Having mentioned my difficulties communicating with State Parks, it's about time
I
put together a bio.

In 1981 I began as a living history docent at Sutter's Fort historic park.
There's a
carpenter shop, but in '81 it was stuffed with donations of "old" tools most of
which
weren't in existence in 1845, which had been recently established as the cut off
date
for anything used or displayed in Sutter's Fort.  Another fellow and I were
asked to
create a formal document for "rehabilitating" the carpenter's shop, to be
approved by
State Parks for implementation.  We produced a 200 page document, describing
wood
work
for that time, listing the tools needed and the wood available to Sutter's
carpenters.

It was approved and we went to work putting the shop in order.  The existing
bench was
no more than a display piece with a 3/4 inch thick work surface, and it was set
against
the back wall where there was never any light.  It went away, and we built a new
bench
using a slab of black oak 30 inches wide by a full 4 inches thick.  Topped it
off
with
an all wood leg vise I picked up for 8 bucks, and placed it under the windows.

The two of us got to buy all the tools we had listed, either antiques or modern
examples
of what was available in 1846.  The carpenter's shop now worked as either a
static
display or as a fully functional shop during living history programs.  All the
tools
were purchased as "consumables," meaning they all got to work for a living.

I worked there for 17 years, and also assisted with the rehab plans for some of
the
other rooms and workshops in what Sutter called his "factory."  In addition to
the
tools bought for the State, I expanded my own tool collection, personal tools
that
I brought with me to events.

There was a 3rd generation working blacksmith at the fort as well.  I got my
first
lessons in blacksmithing from him.  He started at the age of 9, and had been
trained
by his father and his grandfather.  It wasn't a hobby for him; it was how he
made
his living, and that made a real difference in how he approached his work and a 
difference in how I came to approach smithing.

In 2001, I was contacted by a fellow who was a member of the California
Historical
Artillery Society.  He had restored a Civil War "traveling forge" and built the
battery wagon that accompanied the forge.  These were used by the artificers who
were the repair and fabrication workers of all light artillery batteries.  He
needed
to identify and acquire all the tools issued to the artificers and carried in
the
field.  We succeeded in finding or making 98% of the tools in the lists we had
from Ordnance Department documents.  As long as I was helping him identify and
find all the tools, he recruited me into the society, and for the next ten years
we reenacted the Civil War.  

I had the forge lit for about 15 minutes at my first event when I was asked if I
could make a staple for one of the Grimsley saddles that had lost one.  Sure.  
A half hour later, another saddle lost one of its staples, and another one was
made.  An hour later I was asked if I could restore one of the cannon implements
to working condition, and later in the day a second one was brought to the forge
for repair.  We spent hours at each event doing the various repair jobs that
artificers were supposed to do.  If anything could be broken, the tools were
there
to replace, repair, or rebuild -- smithing, carpentry, or harness making.

Between events, we rebuilt, repaired, or rehabilitated gun carriages and other
military rolling stock.  We also got the task of rebuilding and repairing a few
other carriages and wagons that belonged to the group.

Things fell apart with CHAS and the four artificers.  In 2012, all of us
resigned.

Which brings me to one of my two big projects at the moment.  Bob, the fellow
who
recruited me, wanted to continue the artificer gig.  He found the plans and tool
lists for the blacksmith forge and tools and the carriage maker's tools that
were
designed to accompany the mountain howitzer.  There are four chests that contain
all the tools issued, including the forge, which folds up and goes into its
chest.
There are four chests in all -- two for the smith, two for the carpenters.

Bob passed away last summer unexpectedly, so finishing this project is all up to
me at this point.  I have assembled most of the carriage maker's tools as
issued,
but some of the smith's tools are hard to identify.  There's a wrench that is
driving me nuts.  Double open end, one 3/4 inch, and the other 1 1/2 inch.  I
haven't been able to find its length or appearance.  There's a bothersome "nail
punch"
that isn't adequately drawn -- what is the point dimensions??  Since the chest
also contains a fore punch and a pritchel, I doubt that it has anything to do
with
horse shoes.  For cannon carriages and some other things, wrought nails are
specified
and my current thought is that the nail punch is for making holes to accommodate
these wrought nails.

My other project was dropped on me by the lead ranger at Sutter's Fort, which I
have recently rejoined.  The plan for the cooper's shop has been shuffled around
for quite a while, waiting for a number of people with Parks to sign off as
approved.  But the lead ranger and his superior want thing to happen there, and
to have the shop functional.  I've been volunteered to get things rolling and
establish what tools are necessary and appropriate, as well as what processes
would have been used.  This just happened after the Spanish cooper video was 
posted here -- good thing I joined this list!!!  I've got another 50 hours or
so in research on coopering, which has been very educational.  

Since there is very little known about Sutter's cooper shop, this is going to
be a rather creative project.  There was a German cooper who came to Sutter in
1847, but documents show that the shop itself was already in existence.  There's
a great diversity among cooperage in the US, France, Germany, and Spain. so
which
tools should be found in Sutter's shop?  And what names for those tools?  I'm
settling on the Spanish.  I have found other videos of Spanish coopers that show
a very distinctive hammer (different from the first video).  The names of the 
tools are just out the window, so the tool list will have to depend on pictures
rather than names.  The winch sort of things the first video shows, that gathers
the ends of the staves has at least five different names in French...  No
consensus there.

In real life, I do woodwork.  I've built and designed furniture for Sutter's
Fort
and also for Fort Ross.  I spent several years building sets and props,
primarily
for opera.  I've made window sash using tools not mentionable here, adzed beams
for
architectural projects.  Built a hollow core racing mast once.  With the help of
a Stanley 400, a Marsh 400, and a Stanley 100, I build picture frames.  I've
done
wagon and carriage repair and once made a Mexican carreta from scratch.  

My tools include some that were my grandfather's, and a very few that belonged
to
his father, a master carpenter.  Of my hand tools, the newest are pre-war
Stanley
planes, and my oldest is a neolithic stone ax.  Well, the *really* newest are
a number of planes hand made by Viet-Namese carpenters and shipwrights and an
Anglo-American felling ax, circa 1705 that was reproduced by my first blacksmith
teacher.

I love old and old style hand tools.

Mike in Sacto   








 







---- Msg sent via CWNet  - 
http://www.cwnet.com/--------------------------------------------------
----------------------">http://www.cwnet.com/-----------------------------------
-------------------------------------

Hi Mike
As a part time lurker and minimal activist on this list I can only opine  
that you
should find yourself in good company here.
With a bio such as yours you will find many of the list members able  to
(and very willing) help you fill some of the blanks in your quest.
Good to see your postings!
Regards
Bob in Ohio who is gearing up for family at Christmas...love it...love it  
love it!
and wishing y'all the same emotional experience!
 
 
In a message dated 12/23/2013 7:58:28 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
branson@c... writes:

Having  mentioned my difficulties communicating with State Parks, it's 
about time  I
put together a bio.

In 1981 I began as a living history docent at  Sutter's Fort historic park. 
 There's a
carpenter shop, but in '81 it  was stuffed with donations of "old" tools 
most of which
weren't in  existence in 1845, which had been recently established as the 
cut off  date
for anything used or displayed in Sutter's Fort.  Another fellow  and I 
were asked to
create a formal document for "rehabilitating" the  carpenter's shop, to be 
approved by
State Parks for implementation.   We produced a 200 page document, 
describing wood
work
for that time,  listing the tools needed and the wood available to  Sutter's
carpenters.

It was approved and we went to work putting the  shop in order.  The 
existing
bench was
no more than a display piece  with a 3/4 inch thick work surface, and it 
was set
against
the back wall  where there was never any light.  It went away, and we built 
a  new
bench
using a slab of black oak 30 inches wide by a full 4 inches  thick.  Topped 
it off
with
an all wood leg vise I picked up for 8  bucks, and placed it under the 
windows.

The two of us got to buy all  the tools we had listed, either antiques or 
modern
examples
of what was  available in 1846.  The carpenter's shop now worked as either 
a  static
display or as a fully functional shop during living history  programs.  All 
the tools
were purchased as "consumables," meaning they  all got to work for a living.

I worked there for 17 years, and also  assisted with the rehab plans for 
some of the 
other rooms and workshops in  what Sutter called his "factory."  In 
addition to the
tools bought for  the State, I expanded my own tool collection, personal 
tools that
I brought  with me to events.

There was a 3rd generation working blacksmith at the  fort as well.  I got 
my first
lessons in blacksmithing from him.   He started at the age of 9, and had 
been trained
by his father and his  grandfather.  It wasn't a hobby for him; it was how 
he made
his  living, and that made a real difference in how he approached his work 
and a  
difference in how I came to approach smithing.

In 2001, I was  contacted by a fellow who was a member of the California  
Historical
Artillery Society.  He had restored a Civil War "traveling  forge" and 
built the
battery wagon that accompanied the forge.  These  were used by the 
artificers who
were the repair and fabrication workers of  all light artillery batteries.  
He needed
to identify and acquire all  the tools issued to the artificers and carried 
in the 
field.  We  succeeded in finding or making 98% of the tools in the lists we 
had
from  Ordnance Department documents.  As long as I was helping him identify 
 and
find all the tools, he recruited me into the society, and for the next  ten 
years
we reenacted the Civil War.  

I had the forge lit for  about 15 minutes at my first event when I was 
asked if I 
could make a  staple for one of the Grimsley saddles that had lost one.  
Sure.   
A half hour later, another saddle lost one of its staples, and another one  
was
made.  An hour later I was asked if I could restore one of the  cannon 
implements
to working condition, and later in the day a second one  was brought to the 
forge
for repair.  We spent hours at each event  doing the various repair jobs 
that
artificers were supposed to do.  If  anything could be broken, the tools 
were there
to replace, repair, or  rebuild -- smithing, carpentry, or harness making.

Between events, we  rebuilt, repaired, or rehabilitated gun carriages and 
other
military  rolling stock.  We also got the task of rebuilding and repairing 
a  few
other carriages and wagons that belonged to the group.

Things  fell apart with CHAS and the four artificers.  In 2012, all of us  
resigned.

Which brings me to one of my two big projects at the  moment.  Bob, the 
fellow who
recruited me, wanted to continue the  artificer gig.  He found the plans 
and tool
lists for the blacksmith  forge and tools and the carriage maker's tools 
that were
designed to  accompany the mountain howitzer.  There are four chests that  
contain
all the tools issued, including the forge, which folds up and goes  into 
its chest.  
There are four chests in all -- two for the smith,  two for the carpenters.

Bob passed away last summer unexpectedly, so  finishing this project is all 
up to
me at this point.  I have  assembled most of the carriage maker's tools as 
issued,
but some of the  smith's tools are hard to identify.  There's a wrench that 
is
driving  me nuts.  Double open end, one 3/4 inch, and the other 1 1/2 inch. 
  I
haven't been able to find its length or appearance.  There's a  bothersome 
"nail
punch"
that isn't adequately drawn -- what is the point  dimensions??  Since the 
chest
also contains a fore punch and a  pritchel, I doubt that it has anything to 
do with
horse shoes.  For  cannon carriages and some other things, wrought nails 
are specified
and my  current thought is that the nail punch is for making holes to  
accommodate
these wrought nails.

My other project was dropped on me  by the lead ranger at Sutter's Fort, 
which I
have recently rejoined.   The plan for the cooper's shop has been shuffled 
around
for quite a while,  waiting for a number of people with Parks to sign off as
approved.   But the lead ranger and his superior want thing to happen 
there, and
to  have the shop functional.  I've been volunteered to get things rolling  
and
establish what tools are necessary and appropriate, as well as what  
processes
would have been used.  This just happened after the Spanish  cooper video 
was 
posted here -- good thing I joined this list!!!   I've got another 50 hours 
or
so in research on coopering, which has been  very educational.  

Since there is very little known about  Sutter's cooper shop, this is going 
to
be a rather creative project.   There was a German cooper who came to 
Sutter in
1847, but documents show  that the shop itself was already in existence.  
There's
a great  diversity among cooperage in the US, France, Germany, and Spain. 
so  which
tools should be found in Sutter's shop?  And what names for  those tools?  
I'm
settling on the Spanish.  I have found other  videos of Spanish coopers 
that show
a very distinctive hammer (different  from the first video).  The names of 
the 
tools are just out the  window, so the tool list will have to depend on 
pictures
rather than  names.  The winch sort of things the first video shows, that  
gathers
the ends of the staves has at least five different names in  French...  No
consensus there.

In real life, I do  woodwork.  I've built and designed furniture for 
Sutter's Fort
and  also for Fort Ross.  I spent several years building sets and props,  
primarily
for opera.  I've made window sash using tools not  mentionable here, adzed 
beams for
architectural projects.  Built a  hollow core racing mast once.  With the 
help of
a Stanley 400, a Marsh  400, and a Stanley 100, I build picture frames.  
I've done
wagon and  carriage repair and once made a Mexican carreta from scratch.  

My  tools include some that were my grandfather's, and a very few that 
belonged  to
his father, a master carpenter.  Of my hand tools, the newest are  pre-war 
Stanley
planes, and my oldest is a neolithic stone ax.  Well,  the *really* newest 
are
a number of planes hand made by Viet-Namese  carpenters and shipwrights and 
an
Anglo-American felling ax, circa 1705  that was reproduced by my first 
blacksmith
teacher.

I love old and  old style hand tools.

Mike in Sacto    
















---- Msg  sent via CWNet  -  
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-----------------
OldTools  is a mailing list catering to the interests of hand tool
aficionados, both  collectors and users, to discuss the history, usage,
value, location,  availability, collectibility, and restoration of
traditional handtools,  especially woodworking tools.

To change your subscription  options:
http://ruckus.
law.cornell.edu/mailman/listinfo/oldtools

To  read the FAQ:
http://swingleydev.com/archive
/faq.html

OldTools  archive:  http://swingleydev.com/archive/">http://swingleydev.com/archive/

OldTools@r...
http://ruckus.
law.cornell.edu/mailman/listinfo/oldtools

Nice to meet you Mike.
Great Galootish resume.
Yeah, you'll like it here.
Cheers,
Wes

> On Dec 23, 2013, at 6:58 AM, "branson@c..."  wrote:
> 
> I love old and old style hand tools.
> 
> Mike in Sacto

Mike, If you get stuck with the Spanish ping me off-list. Either I or my Dad who
was Head of Spanish Section for ICAO (UN) should be able to track it down. For
the next few months I'm in San Cristobal de Las Casas, Chiapas and I know
several University-level linguists that are in my coffee clatch. They just love
rooting for etymologies. They are off for holidays at the moment but will return
2nd week January.

Best wishes to all for the holiday season.

Ed, not in Ottawa for the next while.......

A great and interesting bio post Mike.  Your participation and
contributions to the list are most welcome and appreciated.

Paul, in SF


On Mon, Dec 23, 2013 at 4:58 AM, branson@c... wrote:

> Having mentioned my difficulties communicating with State Parks, it's
> about time I
> put together a bio.
>
> In 1981 I began as a living history docent at Sutter's Fort historic park.
>  There's a
> carpenter shop, but in '81 it was stuffed with donations of "old" tools
> most of which
> weren't in existence in 1845, which had been recently established as the
> cut off date
> for anything used or displayed in Sutter's Fort.  Another fellow and I
> were asked to
> create a formal document for "rehabilitating" the carpenter's shop, to be
> approved by
> State Parks for implementation.  We produced a 200 page document,
> describing wood
> work
> for that time, listing the tools needed and the wood available to Sutter's
> carpenters.
>
> It was approved and we went to work putting the shop in order.  The
> existing
> bench was
> no more than a display piece with a 3/4 inch thick work surface, and it
> was set
> against
> the back wall where there was never any light.  It went away, and we built
> a new
> bench
> using a slab of black oak 30 inches wide by a full 4 inches thick.  Topped
> it off
> with
> an all wood leg vise I picked up for 8 bucks, and placed it under the
> windows.
>
> The two of us got to buy all the tools we had listed, either antiques or
> modern
> examples
> of what was available in 1846.  The carpenter's shop now worked as either
> a static
> display or as a fully functional shop during living history programs.  All
> the tools
> were purchased as "consumables," meaning they all got to work for a living.
>
> I worked there for 17 years, and also assisted with the rehab plans for
> some of the
> other rooms and workshops in what Sutter called his "factory."  In
> addition to the
> tools bought for the State, I expanded my own tool collection, personal
> tools that
> I brought with me to events.
>
> There was a 3rd generation working blacksmith at the fort as well.  I got
> my first
> lessons in blacksmithing from him.  He started at the age of 9, and had
> been trained
> by his father and his grandfather.  It wasn't a hobby for him; it was how
> he made
> his living, and that made a real difference in how he approached his work
> and a
> difference in how I came to approach smithing.
>
> In 2001, I was contacted by a fellow who was a member of the California
> Historical
> Artillery Society.  He had restored a Civil War "traveling forge" and
> built the
> battery wagon that accompanied the forge.  These were used by the
> artificers who
> were the repair and fabrication workers of all light artillery batteries.
>  He needed
> to identify and acquire all the tools issued to the artificers and carried
> in the
> field.  We succeeded in finding or making 98% of the tools in the lists we
> had
> from Ordnance Department documents.  As long as I was helping him identify
> and
> find all the tools, he recruited me into the society, and for the next ten
> years
> we reenacted the Civil War.
>
> I had the forge lit for about 15 minutes at my first event when I was
> asked if I
> could make a staple for one of the Grimsley saddles that had lost one.
>  Sure.
> A half hour later, another saddle lost one of its staples, and another one
> was
> made.  An hour later I was asked if I could restore one of the cannon
> implements
> to working condition, and later in the day a second one was brought to the
> forge
> for repair.  We spent hours at each event doing the various repair jobs
> that
> artificers were supposed to do.  If anything could be broken, the tools
> were there
> to replace, repair, or rebuild -- smithing, carpentry, or harness making.
>
> Between events, we rebuilt, repaired, or rehabilitated gun carriages and
> other
> military rolling stock.  We also got the task of rebuilding and repairing
> a few
> other carriages and wagons that belonged to the group.
>
> Things fell apart with CHAS and the four artificers.  In 2012, all of us
> resigned.
>
> Which brings me to one of my two big projects at the moment.  Bob, the
> fellow who
> recruited me, wanted to continue the artificer gig.  He found the plans
> and tool
> lists for the blacksmith forge and tools and the carriage maker's tools
> that were
> designed to accompany the mountain howitzer.  There are four chests that
> contain
> all the tools issued, including the forge, which folds up and goes into
> its chest.
> There are four chests in all -- two for the smith, two for the carpenters.
>
> Bob passed away last summer unexpectedly, so finishing this project is all
> up to
> me at this point.  I have assembled most of the carriage maker's tools as
> issued,
> but some of the smith's tools are hard to identify.  There's a wrench that
> is
> driving me nuts.  Double open end, one 3/4 inch, and the other 1 1/2 inch.
>  I
> haven't been able to find its length or appearance.  There's a bothersome
> "nail
> punch"
> that isn't adequately drawn -- what is the point dimensions??  Since the
> chest
> also contains a fore punch and a pritchel, I doubt that it has anything to
> do with
> horse shoes.  For cannon carriages and some other things, wrought nails
> are specified
> and my current thought is that the nail punch is for making holes to
> accommodate
> these wrought nails.
>
> My other project was dropped on me by the lead ranger at Sutter's Fort,
> which I
> have recently rejoined.  The plan for the cooper's shop has been shuffled
> around
> for quite a while, waiting for a number of people with Parks to sign off as
> approved.  But the lead ranger and his superior want thing to happen
> there, and
> to have the shop functional.  I've been volunteered to get things rolling
> and
> establish what tools are necessary and appropriate, as well as what
> processes
> would have been used.  This just happened after the Spanish cooper video
> was
> posted here -- good thing I joined this list!!!  I've got another 50 hours
> or
> so in research on coopering, which has been very educational.
>
> Since there is very little known about Sutter's cooper shop, this is going
> to
> be a rather creative project.  There was a German cooper who came to
> Sutter in
> 1847, but documents show that the shop itself was already in existence.
>  There's
> a great diversity among cooperage in the US, France, Germany, and Spain.
> so which
> tools should be found in Sutter's shop?  And what names for those tools?
>  I'm
> settling on the Spanish.  I have found other videos of Spanish coopers
> that show
> a very distinctive hammer (different from the first video).  The names of
> the
> tools are just out the window, so the tool list will have to depend on
> pictures
> rather than names.  The winch sort of things the first video shows, that
> gathers
> the ends of the staves has at least five different names in French...  No
> consensus there.
>
> In real life, I do woodwork.  I've built and designed furniture for
> Sutter's Fort
> and also for Fort Ross.  I spent several years building sets and props,
> primarily
> for opera.  I've made window sash using tools not mentionable here, adzed
> beams for
> architectural projects.  Built a hollow core racing mast once.  With the
> help of
> a Stanley 400, a Marsh 400, and a Stanley 100, I build picture frames.
>  I've done
> wagon and carriage repair and once made a Mexican carreta from scratch.
>
> My tools include some that were my grandfather's, and a very few that
> belonged to
> his father, a master carpenter.  Of my hand tools, the newest are pre-war
> Stanley
> planes, and my oldest is a neolithic stone ax.  Well, the *really* newest
> are
> a number of planes hand made by Viet-Namese carpenters and shipwrights and
> an
> Anglo-American felling ax, circa 1705 that was reproduced by my first
> blacksmith
> teacher.
>
> I love old and old style hand tools.
>
> Mike in Sacto
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ---- Msg sent via CWNet  -
>
> http://www.cwnet.com/------------------------------------------------
------------------------">http://www.cwnet.com/---------------------------------
---------------------------------------
> OldTools is a mailing list catering to the interests of hand tool
> aficionados, both collectors and users, to discuss the history, usage,
> value, location, availability, collectibility, and restoration of
> traditional handtools, especially woodworking tools.
>
> To change your subscription options:
> http://rucku
s.law.cornell.edu/mailman/listinfo/oldtools
>
> To read the FAQ:
> http://swingleydev.com/archi
ve/faq.html
>
> OldTools archive: http://swingleydev.com/archive/">http://swingleydev.com/archive/
>
> OldTools@r...
> http://rucku
s.law.cornell.edu/mailman/listinfo/oldtools
>

GG's
 
Eduardo's post is an example of the type of helpful attitude that keeps me
coming back to OLDTOOLS.
 
Welcome, Mike.  If you'd care to discuss what was in old-time military
toolboxes, you will find a rapt audience here !  I "sort of collect" ( tm Todd
Hughes) ex-military toolboxes, and posting about them here has revealed a lot of
good info.   I. for one, would be interested in your bibliography of researching
the contents of the "Battery Wagon". John RuthIn rainy Metuchen, NJ

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tom Holloway of this list has done similar volunteer work and has posted great
inventories from his fort, the name of which escapes me at this point.

Cheers,
John

John M. Johnston
“P.S. If you do not receive this, of course it must have been miscarried;
therefore I beg you to write and let me know.” - Sir Boyle Roche, M.P.

On Dec 23, 2013, at 7:58 AM, "branson@c..."  wrote:

> In 1981 I began as a living history docent at Sutter's Fort historic park.

On Mon, 23 Dec 2013 16:49:51 -0500, you wrote:

>Tom Holloway of this list has done similar volunteer work and has posted great
inventories from his fort, the name of which escapes me at this point.
>
>Cheers,
>John
>
>John M. Johnston

Ft. Vancouver NHS
http://www.nps.gov/fova/index.htm">http://www.nps.gov/fova/index.htm

Nail Inventory:
ht
tp://www.wkfinetools.com/contrib/tHollowey/doNails/doNails-01.asp

Welcome aboard.  You'll want the www.wkfinetools.com">www.wkfinetools.com URL pretty soon if you
don't already have it.  I suggest an empty bladder and a full beverage before
you sit down at the computer to browse it.

Roy P.