Description
This article is from the Woodworking FAQ
Collection 1, by multiple authors.
48 Is this a priceless collectible or a user's woodworking tool?
Collectible tools are collectible because they are rare, so
chances are most tools you will find are not going to pay off
your mortgage. However, there are plenty of rare things out
there. For an overview of what Stanley tools are collectible see
Patrick Leach's "Stanley Blood and Gore" archived at the
"Electronic Neanderthal" web page (see #14 below for address).
In that very useful guide to all Stanley planes ever made, he
places an asterisk beside those that are better left to
collectors.
There are numerous guides to the prices of antique tools.
Although these are not precise guides to value, they do make
clear the difference between a #45 and a #44 Miller's Patent
Plow. Which may very well pay off your mortgage. Check any of
the published price guides for this sort of information, but take
them with a pound or two of salt.
Most of the collectible Stanley planes are precisely the ones
that are least useful to the user. They are rare because the
workers of yesteryear didn't find them practical. An exception
to this rule are the earliest types of each tool which are often
worth quite a bit. Dating planes is a complex undertaking, but
the simplest trait is the lack of a lateral adjustment lever on
the standard bench planes. (Do not confuse this with a broken
and lost lateral adjustment lever as some (no doubt well
intentioned ;-) antique dealers have.) There is a guide to
dating Stanley planes by the same Mr. Leach archived at the
Electronic Neanderthal as well.
Even though a tool is not particularly valuable monetarily, it is
still an important legacy of history and should be treated with
respect.
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crafts, woodworking, bandsaw, biscuit joiners, dust collect, jointer, miter saw, motors, planer, router, sander, shop heat, toy safety, ammonia, antique tool, hide glue, motors, wood bending, workbench
