Grandpa's Tool Chest

[Parkerfan1]

Ok gang, here is my Grandpa's tool chest. As some of you know, he was a Tool and Die maker at Parker Pen in Janesville Wisconsin for many decades. He started at Parker Pen in 1922 and used the tool chest pictured below to hold his tools. The chest sat on a table at Parker Pen in Janesville Wisconsin until he retired around 1960. He was one of the founders of the Parker Pen Credit Union, organized in 1934 and was also the President of the union at one point. Grandpa made his living and supported his family with the contents of the chest; some of you have seen the Grandpa's Vacumatic Screwdriver Thread. Grandpa passed away in 1974 and my dad inherited the chest and he also used the chest to support his family. Not long ago, the chest was passed down to me. My son will one day receive it, along with the collection of pens that reside within.

 

I felt the chest would make excellent container to house my growing collection of pens, and so with a little elbow grease, I was able to pay tribute to my grandfather and father. My dad looked at the chest and said that grandpa would be happy that his chest was being well taken care of. See the before and after photos below.

 

http://i1131.photobucket.com/albums/m560/vacumatic/gerstner-chest/post-restore/chestcp1.jpg

 

http://i1131.photobucket.com/albums/m560/vacumatic/gerstner-chest/post-restore/chestcp2.jpg

Edited October 31, 2010 by Parkerfan1

[lws]

That's amazing. Thanks for sharing.

 

- Lewis.

[kathleen]

How very special, to keep your pen collection in your grandfather's tool chest, and the history you have with Parker pens. I too believe your grandfather is smiling, to see his chest so used and treasured. How wonderful it is that you have a son to pass it on to yet another generation; that refinished tool chest is acquiring heirloom status.

[RonH]

What a wonderful idea. I'm sure that you and someday your son will receive hours of enjoyment as a result of your work. Congratulations!

[Mr Ink]

What a wonderful and interesting family heirloom you have there! Well done on bringing it back to its former glory. Your dear grandfather would surely be proud of you....and your son will one day appreciate what a thoughtful, talented and resourceful father you are. Thank you for posting this.

[algabatz]

Absolutely fabulous! Thanks for sharing.

/Tony

[pen2paper]

Love this!

wondering, as my odd brain does.. smile, slight chuckle...

did you keep the booklets? were they service manuals/specs?

 

also, love that you kept alot of the surface marks.. whatever "step" was in the third-left drawer had a grimey finger hold on the nob..

whatever "step" was on right/fourth, & right/lowest was abrasive.. or grimey left hand, holding pen being worked on, clean right hand?

top/left was rarely used. was this drawer difficult to open?

<detail person.. embarrassing.

 

 

 

 

[stevlight]

Incredible!

[InkyWinky]

First class!

[OcalaFlGuy]

You did a marvelous job! What a splendid looking case!

 

You Grandfather would be so proud.

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

[sptfr43]

this gives me mixed feelings. While I agree that you did a fantastic job at restoring your chest it seems to have lost some of it's character. In the original pics it was begging to tell you the story of where it had been and what it had seen and heard, but now unless someone asks it could be mistaken for just another chest. In either case you have good reason to be proud of it. I envy you and your piece of history

Edited October 31, 2010 by sptfr43

[tknechtel]

Really beautiful.

[Parkerfan1]

did you keep the booklets? were they service manuals/specs?

 

I did keep the booklets. Those were actually my labor agreement booklets from where my dad used to work and I think those will be a nice piece of history for my son and grandchildren someday.

 

also, love that you kept alot of the surface marks.. whatever "step" was in the third-left drawer had a grimey finger hold on the nob..

whatever "step" was on right/fourth, & right/lowest was abrasive.. or grimey left hand, holding pen being worked on, clean right hand?

top/left was rarely used. was this drawer difficult to open?

 

Interesting observations. Thankfully, all the draws open smoothly. My dad told me that grandpa taught him to rub bar soap on the wooden contact surfaces to make drawers open with a silky smoothness so I will be soaping it up in the near future.

 

this gives me mixed feelings. While I agree that you did a fantastic job at restoring your chest it seems to have lost some of it's character. In the original pics it was begging to tell you the story of where it had been and what it had seen and heard, but now unless someone asks it could be mistaken for just another chest. In either case you have good reason to be proud of it. I envy you and your piece of history

 

Yes, I know exactly what you are saying and appreciate you bringing this up. I too had mixed feelings and after much deliberation, decided to keep the restoration at a minimum. The company that made the chest is still in business and even though I could have replaced all the hardware with nice new shiny pieces, I choose not to. I wanted to keep the nickel-plated brass drawer-pulls, even though the nickel was now mostly worn away, because those are the knobs that grandpa and dad grasp hold of each day they practiced their craft. It was that lock that grandpa most likely locked each day at the end of his shift and it was those ornate, yet tarnished hinges that allowed him to swing open the top the following morning as he prepared to work on projects involving the latest Parker developments of the time.

 

Basically, I wanted to keep everything grandpa and dad touched just like it was when I was given the chest. The problem was, the chest was filthy and I was determined that the it was destined to adorn a shelf in my library/writing room, never again to endure the temperature and humidity swings of changing seasons as it had done for close to a hundred years before in machine shops and garages.

 

I focused on cleaning off the dirt and re-felting the drawers. No sanding or re-staining took place and anywhere where the black leatherett covering was torn the underlying wood was painted with black paint to protect the wood as well as making the chest easy on the eyes. On the bottom of one of the drawers I wrote the history of the chest up until now. I also purchased some blue pen tray material and fitted it in some of the drawers. I did purchase an oval shaped brass manufacturer’s plate and proper shaped mirror as well as applied a gold leaf line to adorn the face of each drawer; After all, this chest was now going to be holding ornate pens and needed to “fit” with the theme. One of the drawers will continue to house the Vacumatic screwdrivers as well as some other tools of my grandpa’s.

 

Look closely at the bottom photo and you might catch a glimpse of the prototype triangular barreled pens that my grandfather invented and made in the Parker Pen Tool and Die shop. They are the only two in existence.

 

Thanks everyone for the kind comments.

[pen2paper]

while I appreciate sptfr43 concerns, it appears that all due care was given to this restoration.

I do see (noted above) original character remaining in the surfaces.. and apart from workshop, (*possibly post-worklife storage), grime, nothing was removed, as Parkerfan1 detailed..

 

That there is More to learn about the contents is Exciting.. !!!

Thank you for sharing with Us.

 

edited out a too-strong capital letter,

and added... in the care of such pieces, the grime of everyday use may serve as a protectant for an endless period of time.. depending upon Where the piece is kept.

>>>However, it is also very sadly true, that such gems of history, once placed in "temporary" storage, basement or attic, where shifts in temperature/humidity, and vermin, imeditately speed towards total loss. In this case, the stated intent was to conservatively restore to used condition (family character preserved), that would allow for best possible outcome, and (most importantly), now kept within climate controlled home. definite win/win

Edited November 1, 2010 by pen2paper

[dnb]

Good one!

[Garageboy]

If you don't mind me asking, who made the chest? Surprised anyone who did something like that still made it this far, considering that even Craftsman tools are Made in china

[Parkerfan1]

If you don't mind me asking, who made the chest? Surprised anyone who did something like that still made it this far, considering that even Craftsman tools are Made in china

 

 

I don't mind at all. The company is Gerstner and Sons. The company was founded in Dayton Ohio in 1884 and operates to this day. Here is their website. Click the "About Us" tab and read their company history. Pretty interesting in my opinion. You're right about so many things being made overseas and it's nice to see that some things endure.

Edited November 1, 2010 by Parkerfan1

[Classics]

Great job with cleaning the chest.

[PAKMAN]

Great job, thanks for sharing the finished product!!

[sptfr43]

I am amazed at what a difference a good cleaning has made. It honestly looked like you had sanded and refinished the wood and possibly painted the leatherett. So I stand corrected. Again it is a great piece and I envy you