What's In The Newsletter

• President' Comments
• Paint Stripper Ban
• Beads Of Hope Boxes
• Your Tools & Fire Insurance
• Industry News - The Stanley Tool Corporation
• Gift Box Challenge Judging
• National Woodworking Month

From the President

Paint Stripper Ban

The EPA just banned consumer sales of paint stripper containing methylene chloride.  It’s linked to at least 5 deaths in California alone because of the fumes.  If you have some in your shop you may want to dispose of it in an environmentally safe way or use it outdoors.

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Beads Of Hope Boxes

Hello Fellow Woodworkers!

Thanks so much for your willingness to make some "Beads of Hope" boxes for the seriously ill children at our local children's hospital.

I did follow-up after the February meeting and got in contact with the "man in charge" of the program at CHKD. Bryan Sellitti's response was encouraging and the following info is provided as guidance.

Boxes should be smooth, finished, and no sharp edges. Nothing too big -- ideal size would be in the vicinity of 5" in length, 4"in width and 3" in height. These measurements are not that critical. Little larger, little smaller is fine. Different shapes are also acceptable (rectangular, square, oval, circular etc.) It is ideal to have a lid, but it does not necessarily need to be attached to the box. The lid should be easily removable / opened by the child.

Refrain from paint and the use of linseed oil on the boxes. Consider accentuating the natural beauty of the wood with a stain, clear varnish, shellac or even wood burning. Ensure you use a safe finishing process without toxic materials. Also, you should consider personalizing your creation by marking your name or initials, the date, and the type(s) of wood included on the bottom of your box.

I don't have a deadline date, however if we plan to get together to chip carve / burn "Beads of Hope" on the lids or sides of the boxes, the sooner the better. More on that in the near future. Maybe we can talk Jim Francis into a short lesson on chip carving some Saturday at WoodCraft or someone's shop. I've never done any chip carving, but I understand a respectable job can be accomplished with a couple of hand tools and some basic guidance.

I am available by phone and/or E-mail to answer any questions.

Phone: 757-567-1421 E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Thanks for your participation.

All the best, Ed

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Your Tools & Fire Insurance

Several years ago a friend of mine had a large exterior wood shop.  In this shop he also stored his lawn mowers and outdoor gardening equipment.  We’re not sure exactly what happened but the cause of the fire is blamed on one of the lawn mowers that he had just recently put back into the shop after mowing the yard.  Anyway, the wood shop caught fire and burnt to the ground. He had insurance on the building and contents and figured he was covered but the insurance company threw him a big curve ball.  In order to replace the contents of the work shop he needed to itemize all of the tools that were lost!!!  He spent months combing through all of the ashes and debris, sifting for wrenches, screwdrivers, hand tools and all of those small items that we have in our shop drawers but really never think about until something like the fire comes about.  He eventually came up with a list for the insurance company and they did replace all of the tools with brand new tools but it was a lot of work.

While this was happening I was just recovering from open heart surgery and I could not do much in the way of lifting.  I listened to his story and said to myself that while I had the time I would do a complete inventory of my shop in case of a fire.  I first started out with lots of photos of the tools and equipment.  I then moved the photos to an Excel spreadsheet.  Took me months!  To give you an idea of the detail that is required in keeping track of your tools in case of a disaster, I now have 1,540 rows of tools in my Excel spreadsheet!

Speaking of fire protection, do you have a smoke detector in your shop?  While I was building my shop I had a fire extinguisher mounted on the wall ready for any use.  Thankfully I never had to use it.  I also mounted a standard smoke detector to the ceiling of the shop thinking it would alert me to a fire.  Was I ever wrong!  The dam thing kept going off every time I cut a board on the table saw or used a power tool on a piece of wood.  Just the saw blade burning the edge of a piece of Oak or Cherry while ripping on the table saw was enough to set the smoke detector off.  The smoke detector also did not like the dust in my shop.  Needless to say I unplugged the unit and it hung there for several years before doing some research on better fire detection in the shop.  After doing some research I found the replacement in the big box stores.  The smoke detector is manufactured by Kidde but I also know that First Alert and others have similar “smoke” detectors.  This “heat alarm” says right on the front of the box that it is for areas prone to nuisance alarms.  This detector does not sniff out particles in the air but rather is sounds off if there is a rapid heat rise in the shop.  This particular unit activates if the air temperature rises above 135 degrees.  I can burn wood all day on the table saw and it will not go off.

Speaking of fire extinguishers, the one I have in my shop was put into operation in the fall of 2007.  Over the last couple of years I have watched the gauge slowly go from a “green or OK” position to a yellow and red condition as the pressure slowly decreased.  The extinguisher is a Kidde unit found in all of the big box stores and sells for about $38 dollars.  I looked into getting it recharged but found out that the recharging fees start around $45 so I recycled the unit on trash day (the guys that circle your sub-division on trash pick-up day took the unit for the metal content).

Editor

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Industry News - The Stanley Tool Corporation

Lasts month the newsletter covered the CRAFTSMAN branded tools which were and are sold by Sears and now the Stanley Black & Decker Company.  This month’s newsletter will now look at how the Stanley Tool Company got started, its history and its acquisitions over the years. 

There are many things you may not know about this company.  First, the current market value of the Stanley Black & Decker company is roughly $21 Billion dollars as of the beginning of March 2019!  Secondly, it is a diversified company split between Tools and Storage (64%), Security (19%) and the Industrial Division (17%).  Thirdly, it has 17,000 employees with 36 manufacturing facilities in the US.  Fourthly, in May of 2002 the company considered moving its corporate headquarters to Bermuda, but public and governmental outcry forced management to reconsider the move.  Lastly, it did not invent your beloved Stanley plane.  The plane division came from the purchase of Bailey, Chaney and Company where they acquired the right to manufacture tools under Bailey’s patents!

The Stanley Tool Company actually started in 1843 when Fredrick Trent Stanley started the Stanley Bolt Manufactory.  His success in the bolt business allowed him to expand into other types of hardware such as hooks and hinges.  This hardware business became Stanley Works in 1852.  Another company, the Stanley Rule & Level Company, started business in 1857 by Frederick’s cousin, Henry Stanley.  Stanley Rule & Level manufactured levels and squares and, perhaps most famously, the Bailey Plane. The success of the Bailey Plane allowed Stanley Rule & Level to branch out into the production of other hand tools, and by 1900, the company was the largest manufacturer of planes and related tools in America.

In 1854, Stanley hired 19-year-old William Hart, who turned out to be such a visionary that he received a promotion to secretary/treasurer of the company after just a few months. Hart proved the driving force behind much of the company’s success, designing new machinery and inventing the process for cold rolling steel.

By the turn of the century, the name Stanley was a fixture, not only in New Britain but at hardware stores across the country. By the time of William Hart’s passing in 1919, the company’s sales had grown from a mere $7,000 a year to $11.3 million over the prior six decades and left Stanley poised for the next stage of its development.

The postwar era witnessed Stanley diversify its product line and expand its operations through a number of strategic acquisitions. The result was even greater branding for Stanley on an international scale and the movement into a new $8-million headquarters in New Britain, CT on August 1, 1984.

Time Lines –

●  1843           Frederick Stanley founded the Stanley Works in New Britain, Connecticut.

●  1854           STANLEY begins to manufacture boxwood rules.

●  1857           STANLEY begins manufacturing levels.

●  1863           STANLEY introduces hammers to their lineup.

●  1869           Purchased Bailey, Chaney and Company and acquired the right to

                       manufacture tools under Bailey’s patents.

●  1870          STANLEY began manufacturing screwdrivers.

●  1920          A new logo is introduced to symbolize the merger of the Stanley Rule & Level Company and the Stanley Works. The Stanley Rule & Level Company was founded by Fredrick's cousin Henry Stanley in 1857.

●  1931         STANLEY introduces the first steel tape rule.

●  1936         STANLEY introduces utility knives in 1936.

●  1963         STANLEY builds the largest hand tool plant in the world in New Britain, CT. The same year, they introduced the PowerLock® Tape Rule.

●  1969         The PowerLock® Tape Rule represented Stanley as part of Apollo 11’s Lunar Landing Gear.

●  1999         STANLEY introduces the FatMax® Tape Rule and the FatMax Anti-Vibe® Hammer.

●  2008         Stanley re-introduces Sweetheart Planes.

●  2010         Stanley merged with hardware giant Black & Decker of Baltimore, Maryland, to form Stanley Black & Decker.

●  2016         Stanley Black & Decker announced that it acquired the Irwin, Lenox, and Hilmor tool brands for $1.95 billion from Newell Brands.

●  2017         Stanley acquires the CRAFTSMAN brand from KCD, LLC (A Sears Holdings subsidiary)

●  2018         Stanley Black & Decker announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a 20 percent stake in MTD Products Inc, a privately held global manufacturer of outdoor power equipment, for $234 million in cash.

By my count Stanley Black & Decker has acquired over 23 different companies since 1980.  Do you recognize some of these names under the Stanley Black & Decker

name?  Stanley, Black & Decker, DeWalt, Porter Cable, Bostitch, Proto, Mac Tools, Facom, Vidmar, Powers Fastening Innovations, Lista, Sidcrome, Craftsman, Irwin,

Lenox, Hilmar

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Don’t forget to bring in your gift box or boxes for judging for Monday night’s meeting.  There will be three gift cards given away to the winners and you will be the judges.

Judging will be based upon the following three criteria:

1.     Uniqueness of wood selection.  In other words, in your own opinion, who built the best box with their selection of woods?  Two gift cards will be allocated to this category.

      2.     Overall craftsmanship.  Who crafted the best wooden box?

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National Woodworking Month® is observed during the month of April. It has been observed as the National Woodworking Month since April 1990.  Drop hints to your sufficient other that you need some new tools for the shop!

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