Surviving Sheffield tool makers

[AndyT]

Paul's thread on Clifton planes ( https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/post908150.html#p908150) set me wondering - what firms are there left, making proper hand tools in Sheffield?

Thomas Flinn and Sons, as the last saw maker and now last plane maker.
Joseph Marples, making marking tools.
Henry Taylor making chisels and turning tools.
Footprint, making quite a range, apparently including saws.

Who else is there?

 

[JohnPW]

Robert Sorby?

http://www.robert-sorby.co.uk/companyinfo.htm

Robert Sorby now occupies a site three miles to the south-west of Sheffield between the A61 road leading to Chesterfield and the A621 to Bakewell. It has over 40 employees many of whom use traditional hand skills passed on from the early days of the cutlery industry.

Today the company is an autonomous division of large hand tool manufacturing group which includes other well known Sheffield names - Spear and Jackson, who were one of the 74 saw manufacturers registered in 1833, Eclipse founded in 1889 and Moore & Wright who started out in 1909.

Crown Tools
http://crownhandtools.ltd.uk/

 

[Sheffield Tony]

Crown. Lots of stuff. But I believe that Crown and Footprint saws are made by Thomas Flinn. I couldn't get a definite confirmation of this from Katie Flinn though.

Hamlet craft tools are now owned by Henry Taylor. I am told that Henry Taylor and Crown buy chisel forgings and handles from the same suppliers, so they differ only in finishing. Not completely confident of that source though.

 

[JohnPW]

I wonder who actually makes what though.

"Sheffield Made S.J & J B Addis" chisels

"Sheffield Made S.J & J.B Addis Gents Saw 16 TPI 6" Blade Brass Backed"
Apparently "Made by SJ and JB Addis in Sheffield",

:mrgreen:

 

[toolsntat]

Passed the Pryor place when myself and Tim went to see the late Mr Hawley at Kelham Island.
http://www.pryormarking.com/marking-pro ... nches.html

Andy

 

[cusimar9]

Atkinson Walker Saws obviously, went in there last week

 

[Shrubby]

Ernest Wright scissors
not in Sheffield :
King **** spanners still have production here
Maun pliers
Fisco-Hultafors tapes and rules
Matt

 

[Vann]

Ashley Iles (chisels);
Ray Iles (plane irons; OBM chisels; infill plane kits).

I'm not sure of my facts here (just brainstorming), nor am I sure if either are located in sheffield

and Clico, assuming they will still make augers etc.

Cheers, Vann.

 

[mikebeetle]

No, the Iles's are now based in Lincolnshire although they were founded in Sheffield.

 

[Sheffield Tony]

I wonder who actually makes what though.

"Sheffield Made S.J & J B Addis" chisels

"Sheffield Made S.J & J.B Addis Gents Saw 16 TPI 6" Blade Brass Backed"
Apparently "Made by SJ and JB Addis in Sheffield",

:mrgreen:

Doesn't that saw handle look like an incredibly close copy of a Thomas Flinn one :wink: Don't recognise the chisel, but the SJ and JB Addis company we know dissolved in 1994.

Adding to the confusion of what is made where and by whom, there is the issue of who owns these old trade names. Flinn have an extensive choice of branding (I counted 4 on one saw alone, if you include the packaging !). The Spear and Jackson group include many familiar old Sheffield brand names including Robert Sorby, but as they say themselves,

Over the years, Spear & Jackson’s products have become widely recognised for their heritage and high quality. The Group has expanded through acquisitions and we have also reduced costs by relocating selected manufacturing operations to Asia.

So although the Sorby chisels are made in Sheffield, who can be certain about anything else.

Presto (taps and dies, drills) still are in Sheffield. Their building is near to my parents home - it does not look to me like anything is actually made there though.

Then there is the issue of what "Made in *****" actually means. It only legally means that the last significant manufacturing step was carried out there - even if that is just fitting the Chinese handle to the Chinese chisel blade ?

Anyway, back to the original question - this site might be usefiul :

http://www.madeinsheffield.org/

 

[Jacob]

It's easy to be confused by brand names. They don't always indicate different makers and it was always that way. Someone makes saw blades etc, someone else buys them and fits a handle, someone else puts his own brand on this for marketing purposes, and so on

 

[JimB]

Remember the different "British" made items? Made in Britain (or England), British Made, and Empire Made. My dad said never to touch the last two.

 

[JimB]

I lived in Sheffield for a few years in the early sixties and loved coming in by bus at night. the colours from the furnaces were beautiful. All those skills now gone.

 

[JimB]

Our son was enthusing about some chisels he bought recently from Dictum, the German company. Apparently they are made for them in Sheffield but no maker is mentioned. He also has some of the Stanley 750s also made in Sheffield.

 

[Cheshirechappie]

www.burgonandball.com - high quality garden tools and agricultural tools including sheep shears.
www.sheffieldknives.co.uk - Jack Adams and several 'absorbed' cutlers such as Austin McGillivray and Co.

 

[Terry - Somerset]

Many years ago (late 1980's) I worked for a group (who shall remain nameless) one of whose subsidiaries was a large special steels producer and stockholder in Sheffield. Visiting them was one of the most depressing experiences I have had in business.

Their proud boast at the time was that they had never lost money during the recessions in the 1970's and 1980's. It was quite obvious how they had achieved this - the total site was (I recall) 22 acres of which approximately 3/4 was full of (previously vibrant?) decaying and derelict buildings mainly from the Victorian era. The main production area which seemed the size of a football pitch was laid out with small furnaces (approx 30) arranged around the outside edge and rolling mills in the middle. Only 6 or 7 furnaces could be operated - the rest appeared non functional. There was insufficient production to keep the rollers turning efficiently. The machine shop was full of traditional machinery - but none of it was less than 30 years old. Economies extended to admin and management - lino, cheap desks, partitions, paper and pens.

They are no longer in business although the brand was very highly regarded. I think the site is now mostly a retail park! It is a testament to the short term and poor management with a complete failure to invest in new equipment and products. The main competition at the time I recall was Japanese, not China/India with much lower labour rates. All in all very sad.

Please forgive any obvious errors in the description - I am an accountant by background not an engineer!

Terry

 

[Andy Kev.]

Are there any Sheffield or other British firms still making decent quality hammers?

I wouldn't mind getting a good Warrington pattern hammer but a quick search didn't throw up any British manufacturers who make really nice ones at, say, LN quality levels. Is there really nobody in the UK left doing them?

 

[AndyT]

Are there any Sheffield or other British firms still making decent quality hammers?

I wouldn't mind getting a good Warrington pattern hammer but a quick search didn't throw up any British manufacturers who make really nice ones at, say, LN quality levels. Is there really nobody in the UK left doing them?

I thought that Footprint (as mentioned above) might be the answer - I believe they own the old Whitehouse brand. Their website describes them as "Manufacturer of hand-tools including wrenches, hammers, planes and tin-snips". But oddly, if you search their site for 'hammer' you get no results, and a quick browse through the categories shows nothing either.

Alternatively, Vaughans of Stourbridge offer a very wide range of hammers, can supply some tools as bespoke specials, and do seem to have some manufacturing capacity, so they might be one source. I think you'd need to phone them and ask to be sure.

http://anvils.co.uk/home/

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Are there any Sheffield or other British firms still making decent quality hammers?

I wouldn't mind getting a good Warrington pattern hammer but a quick search didn't throw up any British manufacturers who make really nice ones at, say, LN quality levels. Is there really nobody in the UK left doing them?

I have an acquaintance who's a silversmith (as opposed to Jewellery maker) and he buys all his hammers from junk shops, car boots etc. cleans them up, polishes them and re handles if neccessary. Some of them are works of art, and rarely cost him more than a quid. :idea:

 

[Andy Kev.]

Are there any Sheffield or other British firms still making decent quality hammers?

I wouldn't mind getting a good Warrington pattern hammer but a quick search didn't throw up any British manufacturers who make really nice ones at, say, LN quality levels. Is there really nobody in the UK left doing them?

I thought that Footprint (as mentioned above) might be the answer - I believe they own the old Whitehouse brand. Their website describes them as "Manufacturer of hand-tools including wrenches, hammers, planes and tin-snips". But oddly, if you search their site for 'hammer' you get no results, and a quick browse through the categories shows nothing either.

Alternatively, Vaughans of Stourbridge offer a very wide range of hammers, can supply some tools as bespoke specials, and do seem to have some manufacturing capacity, so they might be one source. I think you'd need to phone them and ask to be sure.

http://anvils.co.uk/home/

The Vaughans website seems to be Hammer Heaven! Of course the one that does not have a picture is the Joiner's Hammer. Nonetheless the cross pein looks useful. Thanks very much indeed for the tip.

I wish that these Brit firms would do a bit more marketing in the manner of LN or Veritas though as it such a shame that one usually doesn't get to hear of them.