Hi! I’m Kat. I’m a metal smith but love antique or unusual hand tools. (But very new to actually collecting) I bid on a “box of wood tools” that was described as just that. So when I won with a bid of $6, I figured I got a bunch of tools that I would enjoy, but that wouldn’t be worth anything. But when I received them, I had more questions than answers. I like to look up my new items and find out when, where, and, if I can, who. The first item that stumped me is a hand drill. It’s the when, and who! There is a metal round insert at the top of the ball handle. It reads: H. HAWKR
SOLLY WORKS
SHEFFIELD
I found different names of manufacturers that operated in Sheffield in area of solly road. But no H. HAWKR. I feel like it might be 18TH century, and H. Hawkr was an earlier maker or owner. Anything y’all know would be great!
The other item came in the box, but I have no idea what it could possibly be. It’s obviously hand made, speaks to me, but I don’t even want to speculate.
Hopefully y’all have better luck than I did! I have several box planers and big planners next time!
Replies
Just some quick looking shows them to be anywhere from late 1800's to 1900's.
It could be worth something depending on the condition.
I quickly saw somewhere in the few hundreds of dollars but i dont know. You definetly should poke around more. Ask around other forums if you havent already.
Your looks like itll need some heavy restoring but I think you stumbled on to something sweet.
https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/antique-hawke-solly-works-plated-1978298025?utm
Idk about the second item. looks like some kind of a burner. If its got no markings on it its likely not worth anything but who knows.
Thank you, thanks for the ideas and the encouragement!
re: your "hand drill." You may find more information under the name "brace." It looks like the brace was made in England (note the Sheffield tag on the medallion).
There are some Brits on the forum that may be of some help as well.
I too am stumped on your second item. Good Luck!
Thank you!
Second thingy looks like an ashtray. The square clip holds a matchbox and the long flat part gets used as a striker. The pointy tip could be used to clean out a pipe.
It may be that the name of the tool maker is HawkE, not HawkR. Looks like some of these braces have sold on ebay in the past, but no info there on what they sold for.
Hi Curmudgeon,
I agree, it's H. Hawke
From a quick AI search:
"H. Hawke Solly" refers to a type of antique hand brace, a tool used for drilling. Specifically, it's a drill brace made by H. Hawke, a Sheffield, England, company known for their "Solly Works" brand. These braces are often found with brass plating and a Beech handle, sometimes featuring a Lignum Vitae or Rosewood top pad. Some examples include a 8" sweep and are found in very nice condition, sometimes with a single display bit, according to listings
Thank you! This is great!
It is correctly termed a "plated brace" and it has a spring-loaded push button chuck to hold the notched bits. I can't tell from the picture, but is the push button still in place, and if so, is it functional? If you want to restore it a bit, I would use WD-40 to loosen up the chuck if necessary, and lightly clean the brass plates, maybe with 0000 steel wool, but don't use any harsh chemicals and certainly don't use sandpaper. You can use Dawn detergent or Murphy's Oil Soap to clean the wood, but don't soak it. A collector will value it higher if it doesn't look like it's been overly refurbished.
These were very common in the 19th century, and many different companies had their name on them, but they were gradually replaced by steel braces by about 1900 as the steel braces were more functional and didn't crack in the webs. The body is usually beech wood, and it appears that the head of yours is as well. The brass disc in the head is called a "trade disk". Yours is a common style for the period; it would be worth more if it had a brass stem, a brass head, a more exotic wood (body or head) than beech, or highly decorative plating (i.e., engraved or with a pattern to the edges), and of course condition is always most important. I'm only guessing, I stopped collecting years ago, but I would think it might fetch $40-$50 today, so you certainly got your $6 worth.
For comparison, here's one on eBay that has some of the better features that collectors are looking for and is priced at $85 from a professional tool collector's shop:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/357127857850?_skw=plated+brace&itmmeta=01JYFDQKKJVJ7QCY2HRQYHXC2S&hash=item53267aa6ba:g:CT8AAOSwXANn~rmB&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAAA8FkggFvd1GGDu0w3yXCmi1dGBPV4dFhwteLy3AWUZGrbysvyBdTgAgVSXQlGvyvqNPgxJY5G1YaHPu%2B4OqJXn020PFHo244BI3NxLBYqyqYq5BDX%2FSsxPWhoTrz2AdVjOUmbVJiOU%2FwR4KSseNU1Bco5vVrFXywyWuhZa0YI89V%2FXrsXvMkUBruOtJNWtUOCbBRdfPl6nXjR9UU3HegvQ%2BM0f3tdB%2FkKbz%2F21eWQr2vp%2BsGQwNFX3HCoWBKcd8F2ZIOaJQklPTQN8vRztfIoHMLrT0KNVZ7mDacc11JIz1s%2FqNWf1DZ0WlBmgOvcs%2FtWow%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR6S63u3zZQ
Impressive! Thank you!
OP: all above is good input. There’s an unmarked common period brace here: https://www.hyperkitten.com/store/index.php for $50. I’m guessing, but yours being marked, meeting the immediate above criteria would have a value of at least that. But, frankly I have no clue. I suspect any value is as a collectible vs a user tool.
Y'all have been great! I think the second item belongs in a different forum, sorry about that! I can't believe there is an answer for the first, I have some other tools from the box that I'd love more info about, this was my first forum, you did not disappoint!
For more information re: ancient tools try the Midwest tool collectors... They have talent that can I D almost everything related to "OLD STUFF" Here's the link - https://mwtca.org/
Good Luck...
Thank you, I will do that!