Yesterday, #TheVulcan & I went back to the home of the family who was liquidating their grandfather's woodworking tools, to help him through Hurricane Ida.
As we talked to the family, I realized one reason why he had SO MANY unique tools:
He used to work for Bethlehem Steel.
The legs alone on this ^^^table are HUGE, & very HEAVY.
Thank goodness it's on wheels, or we never would have made it into the basement.
Bethlehem Steel was one of the largest ship builders & steel producers *in the world*.
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bethlehem…
They opened in the mid-1800's, & went completely bankrupt by 2003. 💔
The bottom of this lathe table (which I am NOT going to tip over right now, because it's heavy AF) is made from Bethlehem Steel crates.
Im so glad to own a bit of this history.
Also...um...
We couldn't go ALL THAT WAY without letting #TheVulcan look around & get stuff for himself.
Right??!
There were 2 more wood clamps. Plus a mortissing bit for a drill press. A cool router bit. And a copper tap for a cider barrel! 😍
The black case holds a working soldering iron.
This is another hand drill.
Plus 2 of the grandfather's custom wood bowls that were NOT for sale, just to oggle over. 😍
On the one hand?
I'm so grateful for all the tools & stories passed down.
On the other hand?
Holy shit there should not have been so many people laid off work & resorting to independent craftsmanship just to stay afloat.
A neighbor of theirs made this.
It was a huge blessing to us. I just want to make sure the next generation is more protected than their grandfather's was.
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