Galoots,

Short Version: Something almost unheard of happened in Texas last weekend. There was an auction in Lufkin that had tools - lots of tools.

This is the first time I have been to a tool auction in 12 or 15 years. They just don't happen around here. And I even bought a couple items.

Long version:

SWMBO and I rode down to Lufkin (4 hours) Friday to look over the tools from James Reese's collection (a Pasadena, TX collector in his 90s and I believe a member of both SWTCA & M-WTCA) and to attend the auction on Saturday. I saw a few people from SWTCA and M-WTCA but no Galoots.

There were hundreds of planes (one dealer bought about 150 of them for resale - with his wife smiling every time he picked up another box of them). Lots of common Stanley (blocks, smoothers, jacks, jointers, etc.), a few Bed Rocks including a No. 602C, one No. 62 low angle smoother, and a No. 85 scraper plane (the one with the handle and knob that adjust from side to side). There was one saw till with 60 saws that went as one lot. Also several boxes of woodworking/tool books (only one of which I got). There were also many hundreds of hammers - a large number of them with fancy non-original handles (not up to Scott's quality, but nice). There were boxes upon boxes of hammers, and two people bought almost all of them.

Here is my take: Wooden box with fourteen saws with handles, including an 18" Disston with a rosewood handle, a 20" Keen Kutter with an apple handle, an unnamed stair saw, and some tree saws. Plus 8 or 10 rusty blades without handles. One is an 18" metal cutting saw blade. I think I might try to make a handle for that one some day.

A box of containing 13 books, including both volumes of PMATPIA, a copy of With Hammer in Hand (about the Dominy workshop), and a bunch of others - mostly in pretty good shape. I already had most, but I should be able to get rid of the extras fairly easily.

A Stanley No. 40 scrub plane (everyone needs at least 10 scrub planes, right?) with a replacement knob and lever cap.

A nice Millers Falls No. 77 router plane (you just knew there had to be a router somewhere in this, didn't you).

And finally, the No. 85 scraper plane. (It was just going too cheap to let get away.

Sorry to be so long winded, but it will probably be another 10 or 15 years, before I get to attend another tool auction.