Just the sort of thing you want for dropping in the oil catch pan when doing an oil change.
Theyāre not to actually use, fool!
Only to stroke and admire.
True, I would quite like the toolbox, would look nice in my lounge.
Yeah, Lounge tools
Iāll just slum it with my gold Nepros one Tools you have bought/desire - #2744 by coco
Is it just for stroking?
Actually, no, I plan on using it. Itās not actually gold, rather some kind of ion plating that looks like gold - itās actually very tough.
Taking pictures of shears is like taking pictures of carsā¦
I have a small problem, this it the third pair Iāve bought this year and I have 2 others on the way.
These are amazing though, probably well over 100 years old and in superb condition. Heinisch #8. They are an absolute joy to use, they are big but feel effortless on even quite heavy fabric.
More scissor pron incoming.
Is there a standard tape measure that tailors use?
Serious question
Most tape measures are 1.5 metres with both inches and centimeters. The best ones were made by a company called Dean, sadly no longer available. There are one or two other decent brands thoughā¦
They look glidey.
I know what I mean.
I was looking at the handles and thinking āThe best makers of Things understood ergonomics long before the word came into use.ā, but then I looked it up and actually the word was coined in 1857. So, I was Rong.
They look so good, and you care so much, that it made me wonder - āWhen did Excellence cease to be aspirational and āadequate/acceptableā become the gold standard?āā¦
They are indeed, glidey. That is an excellent description! There is something about the combination of the weight forward blades and the distance of the (amazingly ergonomic) handles to the pivot that make them feel light and responsive to use. The balance between getting the amount of leverage required to cut decently weighty fabrics and have the control to cut straight lines quickly, yet be able to cut around small curves with precision is difficult to achieve. This pair manage that better than any others I have.
Needed a second post to discussā¦
The modern shears available to buy now are a joke comparatively. They feel terrible! Not only that but they are crazily expensive. This pair cost Ā£140 on ebay which is about 1/2 the price of a modern, new pair of Wilkinsonās and as far as a professional tool goes, will piss all over them, they are not even close!
I guess the slow death of the tailoring trade and declining sales is the answer to the question. Pretty sure that the space and machinery required to produce cutting shears in bulk is now longer available in the factories where they were produced. I expect some of the skills in setting them up are gone tooā¦
Happily though, there were thousands of tailors up until relatively modern times and they bought high quality tools in the thousands too. These things will last several lifetimes if looked after properly. If you are patient there are loads out there. I need them like a hole in the head, I have several good pairs but I think they are beautiful things, so canāt stop!
Are they fragile Ritchie ? A hairdresser friend of ours says quite a few hairdressers have their best scissors tied to their wrist with a length of string short enough that if they should drop the scissors they wonāt hit the floor. It seems that dropping them even just once onto a hard surface can ruin them.
Do you ever need to have them re-sharpened ? Are there still people who can do that ?
Bloody Americans, coming over here, selling us scissors.
Weāve had some lovely tools over the last 10 years.
With the best,you can feel the quality and balance of the metal compared to the cheaper modern stuff.
We just sold a lovely little Swiss tool sharpener.Around 50 years old,yet the motor was so quiet,and it was so well made.
Yes, itās possible to damage them badly if they are dropped. You get very good at breaking their fall with your feet, which becomes instinctive after a while. A pair of sharp, heavy shears landing on your foot is the lesser of two evils!
Iāve given up looking for people to sharpen them. I now do it myself and have learnt quite a bit about it fairly recently. The pair I started this thread with, eventually I gave to a guy to improve and he buggered them up! They were razor sharp but wouldnāt cut cloth thicker than lightweight. I have stones and over types of sharpeners, so can give shears of any size a tickle or a more thorough overhaul if required.
The guy that sharpened the pair Iām talking about, sharpens hairdresserās scissors as a speciality. What he, or I didnāt realise is that shears /scissors for cloth need a burr left on the blades to grip and cut through the fibres. He polished them like razors! I have since put a burr back on them with a diamond sharpener I have and they now work fine.
I have recently overhauled a friendās pair and got them really working well which was hugely satisfying! I did this because I ran out of my own to sharpen and I guess that part of my recent collecting is so I can take them apart and fiddle!
Narelleās an ex-hairdresser, and the problem with modern hairdressing scissors is the carbon steel used is prone to breaking. Tips will break off if you sneeze directly on them. We have a couple of pairs as utility scissors at home without tips. They are still sharp as razors but useless for their intended job.
Jackie is too. She gave it up as soon as she qualified though as she hated it.
My sister is still a hairdresser after over 35 years in the trade, and itās damaged her body quite considerably. Feet, back, shoulders, elbow all with quite major problems.
I remember during the Greek financial crisis, the Germans were unhappy that Greeks retired so early, and hairdressers were I think listed as 55, and a bone of contention. Thatās my sister next year, and she needs to retire!
Narelle gave it up due to RSI. She would still be doing it as she loved it. Studied under Vidal Sassoon, ran her own business, studied, trained and taught Trichology, even trained me (I now cut her hair), and resented the fact that she couldnāt continue in her chosen profession.
She got over it, but still thinks back fondly to those days.