recent auction acquisitions
Bryan Danner, Broad Ripple, IN
>Here are a couple of recent auction purchases. This first picture is of a complete set of paring chisels from 1/8" all the way to 2". They are stamped with "The Celebrated Van Camp Hardware and Iron Company", but from the look and shape of the the blades and the handles, they look like they may have been made for Van Camp by T.H. Witherby.
What's really kind of cool is that Van Camp was a local Harware company here in Indy many years ago which apparently completed with the likes of Belknap, E.C. Simmons, and Shapleigh. It just seems kind of satisfying to get a set of old tools with a local connection. All I need to do is turn a couple of handles for the smaller ones, then I'm set to go. I already had a couple of these Van Camps, and the steel is terrific. They were a bit more than I wanted to spend at $63, but for 12 chisels, I really couldn't beat it for a matched set.
