FeelingGreyAgain

Most arn 'thusiasts will probably consider this b.s. to be the picked-cherry of the day. And maybe it is. It is heavy, runs real nice, pretty clean - won't need to get tanked. But I am suspicious of the pot metal trunnions under that nice and solid table. Wallace don't got no potty metal!

No serial number tag. Just the tags seen and the dead man's son saying dad had had it - hadn't he, though! - about 50 years. (Some day some young fool will talk about me like that as he gloats over my, that is MY, possessions.)

'Shroom-head, the d.p. is probably next up the food chain for deltoid fans. 7" of clearance; 4 speeds, runs nice and smooth. Don't know exactly what is missing, but I am sure a couple of things are.

Shroomy needs tanking, and welding of his table-holes. Another mad-driller who had run of thing constructive things to do. Adios, Dad!

We have a tentative restoration date of 2003, subject to prior commitments.

Bottom of the food chain, I am guessing, down there where the flounders feed is the 1" belt sander/grinder. Never seen one of these before. It bears the loathed - I think that's the word, name of Rockwell on the tag. What I really like about this machine is silly. I like the horribly rusted splay-feet. Mom guesses it to be circa the '60's.

Sander and d.p. both have G.E. motors and G.E. switches. I am leaning toward these being original...

In some ways this is my favorite of the day. Maybe because it came out from under a pile of rags in the back of the garage after the deal was sealed for everything else. I seem to recall, and can't say why, that Peter Wright is a good name to have on your anvil. Maybe it's just 'cause I knew a pretty good guy forty years ago name Chuck Wright; his wife used to identify so with movies that she would have psychotic episodes - had to be taken to an ER from that Audrey Hepburn movie where she is blind in a dark apartment being stalked by a meanie

PETER WRIGHT PATENT is above and in a circle below is SOLID WROUGHT. Weight is 145#. From what I know it looks to be in good shape.

Here is the hoist of my dreams, I hope. It tows very nicely and has a 2 ton capacity. My only fear is that it simply won't be tall enough for some of what I want to do. And while it is easily moved when tipped, it still has the little steel wheels to deal with when loaded. Not outside-friendly. Would be neat if it had big tires all the way around.

The tab: I figure I gave $200 for the hoist. That leaves $400 split three ways on the deltoids, or $133 each. Not really a good value call, but it is an easy way to think about it. The anvil arrived with a price of $150. The fellow had already come down nicely on everything else and I simply said that I would pay what he was asking. Hate to beat somebody down too much. Besides that, I was surprised he came down at all. I was the first person there at a new garage sale and I think he knew he could have gotten his prices: hoist $250, b.s. $250, d.p. $100 and sander $75. A local machinery dealer had already offered him that much on these machines. He also had a big floor model old cast arbor press for $200. Left that for the next guy. He asked me what the stuff was worth and I was honest with him. I told him he could probably get $400 for the b.s. and then he sold it to me for less than his asking. Nice guy, nice day, and his dad was probably a super fellow.

Addendum:

Apparently the Mousehole Forge in Sheffield, England was the first company that made anvils as an industry. Prior to the Mousehole Forge anvils were made locally, by smiths.

Peter Wright worked for the Mousehole Forge and left to start his own anvil-making business in Dudley, England. The Mousehole anvils were welded together from several pieces. Peter Wright conceived of making anvils in two parts and received a patent for the idea in about 1850.