Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Stamped Zirconium Magnums

Happy Wednesday Everyone!

We're due for some strong thunderstorms here today so I thought I would try to slip in a quick and early sale this morning. Some very hot weather is coming our way for the weekend and it looks like much of the country is going to be sweltering. Probably not so great for outdoor events unless it involves swimming...

Now, earlier this year I sold a batch of Vintage Magnum beads, and I thought at the time that those were stainless steel. However, it turns out I had mixed up some trays and those were actually zirconium after all. I should have known this at the time because stainless simply will not take a heat coloring like that. Doh! Oh well, mistakes happen, LOL... 

Anyhow, today I have the rest of the Zirconium Magnum beads finished. These are name stamped and then also I have added some of my tiny decorative stamps to them. They are heat colored, lightly tumbled and then oiled to bring out the color.

The Zr Magnum beads will run $70 each plus shipping and it is a tiny batch so one per customer on them please. Thanks as always for swinging by. I hope everyone has a great week ahead, and stay cool my friends!

Gone in a jiffy, thank you so much!





Tuesday, July 16, 2019

Rough Cut Mini Shiners

Hi Everyone,

Summer is in full swing up this way. Yesterday I spotted a couple of cherry tomatoes starting to develop a noticeable pink blush so it won't be long now until we're enjoying the best salads of the summer.

Today I have a small batch of New Old Stock tools. These were cut about 5 years ago but I never got around to finishing the batch because they weren't cut as cleanly as I would have liked. This has happened once in a while before, and in the past I have simply trashed the bad batches. Usually it's because something didn't fit correctly because I didn't check my design thoroughly enough before cutting. But in this case, they were just cut kind of fast or something and so the edges were quite rough, but the fit was fine on the 1/4 hex opening and the cap lifter. Recently I came across the box and decided that the tool was kinda cute and that I would try to save some of these, at least enough to pay for the materials and expenses.

The Mini Shiner is one of the smallest tools I have made. Not as diminutive as the Tiny Tim, but pretty small indeed. They are made of CPM 154 steel and measure just 2.5" long by 1/2" wide and are 5/32 thick (.160). They feature a small rounded pry tip, cap lifter and 1/4 hex opening. Small enough to almost disappear on your keys...as I mentioned, these were somewhat rough cut so expect to see some sanding and cut marks around the edges, but they still make for a great little user tool. There are no stamps on these and no lefties or any other variations.

The Mini Shiners will run $50 plus shipping and the link is below, limit of one per customer please as there are just a few dozen. Thanks for dropping by this week and hope you all are staying cool!

Sold out, thank you so much!








Thursday, July 11, 2019

Titanium Hangmen v1.5

Hi Everyone,

We're finally getting some heat here this week with temps in the high 80's and 90's. Good to see that summer didn't forget us after all, and this is very appropriate weather for the middle of July.

Well I thought I would keep things going after this great holiday weekend...

I have had more requests for these than almost any other tools I have made. The original Hangman hook was a great little item and the form factor was terrific. But, there were a few things that bothered me with that first design. I wanted them to be slightly flexible to fit over various pocket edges since pant pockets can vary so much. In practice though, the flexible arm just weakened the design unnecessarily, and made it more prone to bending. In my Hangman releases since then I have worked to refine and strengthen the design considerably, but I ended up changing the original form factor and I kinda missed it.

So in this new release, I have revisited the original compact and elegant shape, with some small changes, but also incorporated all of the little improvements I have learned thus far. These Version 1.5 Hangman Hooks are made of 5/32 thick titanium and are non flexible. I have streamlined and updated the side grip scalloping, and changed the key ring opening to a hex shape. Then, I went nuts on the stamps and really did these guys up with many variations, as you can see in the sample photo below... Finally, I gave them several long tumbles and left them with a semi polished stonewashed finish. I elected to keep these plain without anodizing but will make another run if enough people want colors. There are a few lefties too, just email me.

Version 2.5 with pry tip is also underway, and I should have them finished very soon. Later this year I will also make a third batch of V1.5, but in zirconium.

The V1.5 Hangmen will run $50 plus shipping and the link is below. No limit on them. Thank you so much for dropping by again, and I hope everyone has a fantastic summer week!


Sold out for today, thank you very much everyone!



      

Monday, July 01, 2019

Titanium MultiMags

Hi Everyone,

Happy Summer!

Wow, we finally have gotten some spectacular weather here over the past two weeks. And it was relatively dry for much of the time too...I had a zillion projects to deal with at home such as replacing some rotten trim and door sills, refreshing the deck, sanding and painting trim, tending to the garden, planting blueberry bushes, changing the oil in the lawnmower, sharpening the blade, taking the cat to the vet, installing air conditioners, and the endless list just goes on and on. I still have a pile of things I need to get to, like going to the dentist, argggh. But it's time for a break from all that and getting back to the workshop.

I finally got the milling done on metric Mini Prybabies, so they are next up on the bench for a few days of grinding and further finish work to get them ready for heat treat. Maybe in a week or so I can get them ready to go out, so figure late July for completion. Hopefully.

I have just cut a batch of steel Atwrenches so those will be coming later this summer with a nicely updated design.

A nifty new micro pry tool is on the drawing board and will be coming in a month or so, maybe sooner.

New beads have just been turned so I have a lot of string tying ahead of me...handy projects for watching Red Sox games and getting work done at the same time....and there are several other projects that need to be finished too.

Today I have titanium MultiMags finished. For this group I made the magnets slightly thicker so they are a little bit stronger than the previous ones. These have decorative stamps in my usual wide variety of images and the batch is mostly contrast anodized. There is a small handful of pieces available that are plain, just email me if you don't want colors and I'm happy to hook you up while supplies last.

Ti Stamped MultiMags run $50 each plus shipping and the link is below. No quantity limit. Thanks so much for dropping by today and I hope you're enjoying the warm summer days!

Sold out, thank you so much!