Nicholson wrench

 

  Little implement wrenches like this show up all the time at antique stores, generally part of the tool kit supplied with agricultural equipment, in this case one of products that W. N. Nicholson and Sons of Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire exported to Canada.

 The company was formed in 1825, as a malleable iron and steel foundry and according to Grace's Guides, they were still in business to at least 1960. Over the years they manufactured agricultural machinery and food mills of various kinds, also boilers, steam engines and stationary gas engines. 

Graces Guide

1960

Leon Lauthier Stayer

  In bicycle racing, Staying is an event where a bicyclist pedals in the slipstream of a pacer- a motorcycle or car- in an attempt to obtain high speeds without the problem of wind resistance.

   In 1924, Belgian Leon Vanderstruyft broke the existing speed record at Monthléry with a speed of 115 kph, which was the impetus for Frenchman Leon Lauthier to try to return the record to France.

  He built this 2400cc V twin stayer with aerodynamic aluminum bodywork for the attempt. Professional cyclist Jean Brunier was hired to ride the bicycle and on November 1 1925 they raised the world record to 120 kph. 

  Leon Lauthier continued building stayers and according to this site, there were at least 25 made.

Lovely little shooter

 

Ariel Leader, 1958

 Brand new in 1958, discontinued in 1965. Might have been better as a 350?

Model airplane display

Loc.gov

 Model airplanes decorate the ceiling of the train concourses at Union Station in Chicago, Feb 1943, signifying the huge number of airplanes required to win the war. Jack Delano photo.

Welding lesson

Jan '85 Classic Bike 

 The caption indicates that this a welding demonstration at the BSA factory in 1952. The Golden Flash plunger frame is lugged, meaning it's probably assembled in an brazing oven. I wonder what they would be adding with a torch. 

Sidecar Sunday

Suzuki power

 

Frazer & Jones

 

  I thought this was just another wrench from a long-gone 19th century agricultural equipment manufacturer, it's good to see that Frazer & Nash is still around casting iron in Syracuse, New York.

 From their site, the company was established in 1845 as Frazer & Benedict, became the Frazer & Jones Company in 1882 and was acquired by the current parent company, The Eastern Company in 1945.  Their business is medium to high volume castings less than 25 lb. No hulls for Sherman tanks or steam locomotive tender frames

I expect this wrench probably dates to their early days.

Hoffar homebuilt sea plane

 In 1917 Vancouver boatbuilders James and Henry Hoffar built this seaplane. Not too many details but it apparently flew successfully but was later destroyed when it hit a log in the water.

 From this experience, the boatbuilders acquired a contract to build a 2 seat flying boat to be used as a fire patrol craft. It also was successful on a few test flights, but suffered engine failure as it flew over the city. It crashed into the roof of a house and was destroyed. 

In 1929, Boeing acquired the Hoffar-Beeching yard and used it to build their seaplanes.

1927
Westendvancouver

First advertised wireless broadcast

Dame Nellie Melba, the famous Australian prima donna broadcasts from the Marconi works in Chelmsford England on June 15th 1920.

 Dramatization on Youtube. About 44 minutes in...

 

Steel castings

Flickr

 Locomotive 576, Nashvillesteam.org

Tank encyclopedia

I was recently catching up on the Pennsylvania Railroad T1 Trust steam engine reconstruction and noted that they are constructing the main frame as weldments instead of the original castings. I guess that makes sense, casting huge pieces of steel isn't as common as it used to be, the required strength of the frame can be determined by using FEA, the casting can be redesigned as a weldment. Pieces are laser cut and then welded together, no issues, it's a tried and true technology. But I remember reading about large (huge) castings being made more than a hundred years ago, whole 50 or 60 foot long steam locomotive or tender frames being cast in one piece, armour plate tank hulls cast in one piece... Those guys were massively skilled.

The Blitzen' Benz

   Fitted with a 21,504 cc four cylinder engine producing 200 hp at 1500 rpm, this car achieved a speed of 127 mph at Brooklands in 1909, piloted by Hector Hémery. A year later Barney Oldfield went even faster- 131.7 mph on the beach at Daytona.

 

Octave Chanute glider test

 A.M. Herring pilots a multi wing glider built by Octave Chanute in 1896. 

   Chanute, a railway engineer, became interested in flying after seeing a balloon flight in Peoria in 1856. When he retired from his career in 1883 he began studying flying, publishing a book Progress in Flying Machines in 1894.  He built a series of gliders and tested them on the dunes near Miller Beach. The Wright brothers corresponded with him for several years before they achieved powered flight in 1903.
 

Wood plane, section view

Peter Collinette, Woodworking school, Quill Pub. 1984

 I don't do a lot of plane posts, other sites do wood planes far better- people that know their planes, know their planes.

 But this is a nice cross section drawing for someone just learning...

1956 Cadillac ad

Let's gather around the pool, gowns by James Galanos

 

Morgan 3 Wheeler 2011- 2021

Powered by  a 2 litre S&S V twin coupled to a Mazda 5 speed transmission, I expect this thing is a lot of fun to drive. The replacement model featured a Miata motor.

Morgan 3

Alnico magnets

  Before there were rare earth magnets, there were Alnico (Aluminum Nickel Cobalt) magnets.

  Flexible magnets, made by mixing ferrite magnet powders and synthetic/natural rubber binders were brand new in the mid fifties.

  They had been invented by the German company Max Baerman, Goodrich Rubber developed a way to make them in sheet form, specifically for refrigerator door seals.
 

Knott Apparatus clamp

   Here's a nice little scientific apparatus over-center clamp , one of many types the Knott Apparatus Co. of Boston made over their 36 year existence. The company started in 1896, buying out the E. S. Ritchie Instrument company after the principal passed away in 1895. They became one of the largest suppliers of scientific equipment in America but closed during the Depression.

Catalog from 1916

Monday Mystery, a cast iron scale?

The name Fairbanks is cast into it, there seems to be a curved frame, possibly to hold a bowl or something similar and a strange tippy bird foot-like base. Ideas?

 

C E Jennings Expansive bit

C. E. Jennings sold all sorts of tools under the Arrowhead label.  This expansive bit acknowledges the Steers patent of 1884 shown below.

  The company seems to have been in business from the 1880s to the mid 1930s, expanding their business in part by acquiring other companies along the way. Their office was on Murray St.in New York, the factories were located in Yalesville, Conn and Port Jervis NY.  

  Catalog of their tool boxes and tool kits here.

 

Datamp.org US Patent: 296,242

Sidecar Sunday

 Cushman...

Know your hoses

 Top to bottom; steel braided rubber, clear pvc, reinforced pvc, plain reinforced neoprene, textured reinforced neoprene, copper.

A nice test for illustrators, a few lines and yes that is indeed a clear hose... but how to differentiate a copper from a steel line?

Croname panels

  Here's a metal promotional screw specification chart from the Croname company, who specialized in electroplated panels for instruments panels, dial scales for radios, badges, etc., all those metal plates that used to decorate tools and equipment.  The name is a contraction of the Crowe Name Plate & Mfg. Co. of Chicago and seems to have started in business in 1942. There was a branch of the company located in Waterloo, Quebec that went by the name of Croname-MacDonald Ltd.  The company seems to have disappeared in the early 90s.

Can-Pro wrench

I found this wrench at a thrift shop, never seen the name before and a quick Google search brings some conflicting results. This statement comes from the most likely site,  https://canpro-tools.com/en/ but gives precious little information. Here's what they say; "We’re a family-owned company based in Toronto and Montreal with over 35 years of innovating & developing tools & hardware for industrial market."   Or try this... https://canprotool.com/

Fashion Friday, The eyewatering '80s

 No. That is not Kenny Roberts...

 My experience with red leather indicates that the dye was never water proof- until it soaked into your skin.

Cars in the 'hood

Not really a Jaguar SS-100

 

Planes in formation; Seversky P-35

 Over Michigan in 1938