Stan Suther's Real Estate and Stuff » Bethania

Tools and Tin

Stan Suther — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 21:07:01 +0000

If you’ve been here before, you may have picked up that I love woodworking and old woodworking tools. I inherited a gene that appreciates doing things with your hands- fixing things and making things. Years ago I discovered that there are still some pretty cool old tools out there available for a good price, particularly if you didn’t mind doing some de-rusting and adjusting to get them back in working order. Later I joined a group of like-minded people known as the Mid-West Tool Collectors Association. Yes, this isn’t the mid-west, but an older group merged to make a larger stronger group some years ago. Anyway, we have meetings several times a year in the Carolinas and Virginia. Last Saturday we met in Bethania, NC, just north of Winston-Salem to look at tools, buy old tools and talk old tools. Since Bethania was established in the mid-1700s, that seems to be a good place to talk about old things.

We always have a speaker that brings interesting information to the group, and this year, we enjoyed listening to Master Tinsmith Peter Blum, III whose family has been in the tinsmithing business for three generations. Mr. Blum the III has been working with tin and other sheet metals (copper, galvanized, etc.) since he was 15 years old. He took time out to get an engineering degree at NC State and work in industry for quite a few years, but eventually came back to the work that he loves- tinsmithing. He regularly does work to order including some for Old Salem (his father was tinsmith in residence at Old Salem for 22 years), and does many demonstrations including 20 years at the NC State Fair. He’s even made tinware for movies like The Last of the Mohicans and The Patriot. Needless to say, he knows what he’s talking about. His program included showing examples of his work and many of the tools of the trade. At one time, tinsmithing provided many of the containers used by households and many businesses. Like many crafts, its designs included both practical and decorative elements that even today can delight the holder.

Mr. Blum’s work shares with woodworking a joy of taking a simple raw material and turning it into things of utility and beauty using mainly one’s mind, hands and hand tools to make the transformation. If you’ve never done anything like this, you’ve missed what I think is one of the greatest satisfying feelings we can enjoy- being able to say, “I made that.”

Here are a few photos from the day.

What’s a Bow Got to Do With a Dulcimer?

Stan Suther — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 18:43:05 +0000

What do you think of when you see the word “dulcimer?” If you know anything about traditional musical instruments, particularly those familiar to our area, you may think of what we call an “Appalachian” dulcimer. That kind is laid on your lap horizontally and strummed with one hand and noted with the other. There are a few musicians who actually finger pick them like a dobro. Other people will think of a “hammered” dulcimer which is totally different from the Appalachian version in that it has many strings mounted to a trapezoid shaped box. The strings are struck by two small hammers. These are also great for traditional and celtic music.

Several weeks ago, I went to a tool collector’s meeting in Bethania, NC, and was introduced to a type of dulcimer that I didn’t know exists. Kenneth Bloom of Mt. Airy is a musical instrument maker and musician who has revived the use of the “bowed dulcimer.” Kenneth says that they were common prior to the Civil War, but for several generations were virtually unknown. Kenneth set about designing, building and playing these instruments in various sizes. He played one at his presentation, and I was really impressed by the great, complex music he could perform on one of his instruments. You can see more about Kenneth, his instruments and his music at his web site, http://www.boweddulcimer.com/. He continues to evolve his designs and improve the sound quality and volume and is gaining widespread recognition for his work in the music world.

Given that all of his instruments are hand-made by Kenneth in his own shop, all of us tool freaks were really impressed! That degree of craftsmanship is rare. If you have a chance to see Mr. Bloom perform, I think you’ll be impressed, too. Oh, and he’s got CDs for sale on his web site.

Bethania Tools Gathering

Stan Suther — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 19:18:49 +0000

Last week I went to the fall meeting of the tool collectors’ association at Bethania Moravian Church near Winston-Salem. We get together periodically to see programs on old tools, primarily the woodworking type, and may trade and buy some tools. Bethania is a good place to think about old things since it is one of the oldest Moravian communities in the country. Driving around the community, you get a sense of history and historic preservation- perfect for people who value the history of old tools. Most of the tools have been used by multiple generations of craftsmen, and when you hold one and use it, there’s almost a sense of the previous owners’ presence, particularly if they have been somehow marked by the then-current owner.

Some of the people who attend these meetings are true collectors, accumulating large numbers of planes, or folding rulers, or levels or who knows what else. I guess there is the thrill of the hunt for ever more rare tools that fires them up. For me, it is the opportunity to find more of these tools of better quality to use in my own woodworking efforts back at the Suther Shop. I’ve just evolved my woodworking into a path that uses mostly hand tools because of the ability to do great work with them in a relatively quiet, dust-free, don’t-cut-your-finger-off environment that powered tools just can’t offer. There are now some wonderfully made new handtools out there that can do great work. I have bought a few. But, somehow, there is a special value to getting an old tool, tuning it up, and making it sing that you can’t match with a new tool. Call me nostalgic. OK. Whatever. The point is to do what you like because half of the reason of doing it is to have fun.

Here are a few photos from the gathering. By the way, the last photo shows us sitting down to a great lunch of Moravian chicken pie- a very special treat that is a trademark of the area. Let me know if you have an interest in this stuff, and I’ll get you hooked up.

Old Tools at Bethania

Stan Suther — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 02:24:53 +0000

As planned, I went to the meeting of the Mid-West Tool Collector’s Assocation meeting yesterday held at Bethania Moravian Church, just north of Winston-Salem, NC. The meeting was great as usual, with dealers selling old woodworking tools (one of my interests), a presentation on Ornamental Turning including a demonstration of this slice of the woodworking world, and a fabulous meal provided by the ladies of the church, including famous Moravian Chicken Pie, which is a unique pot pie made with amazing flakey pastry. If you visit nearby Old Salem, you can often find this chicken pie on the menu of the tavern. I met two of my cousins there-David, who is heavily involved in collecting and using old woodworking tools, and Jimmy, who brought his young sons, Will and John, because David and I had invited them. I think the boys enjoyed the tools and program, but the biggest smiles came to their faces when they dug into that Moravian Chicken Pie, accompanied by homemade apple pie with ice cream on top! There are a few photos here- wish I’d gotten a photo of the chicken pie. Let me know if you think you might have an interest in collecting and using these old tools. Beautiful and functional old tools can be bought for very reasonable prices at meetings like this (one of several sources). I love the idea that I’m just one of several people who’ve used and appreciated these tools, and that someday, someone else will have them and do the same.

No Tool Like an Old Tool

Stan Suther — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 20:50:22 +0000

I love old woodworking tools and use them in my workshop to make furniture. One of the ways I’ve been able to accumulate these old tools is to be a member of the Mid-West Tool Collectors Association. Next Saturday, Nov. 8, I’ll be heading to Bethania, NC for the next meeting of the M-WTCA. The meeting will be at Bethania Moravian Church just northwest of Winston-Salem. I’ve included the meeting notice here: mwtca-meeting-bethania. This shows all the details and contact info. These meetings are always well-attended by people from around the North Carolina and South Carolina areas and include dealers who bring tools to sell, usually at very fair prices. Some need work, and others are in perfect condision. Many are good user tools that aren’t priced high since they are fairly common. If you’d like any information about the meeting, you’re welcome to call me. Hope to see you there!