Product Review
Products Engineering Corporation
PEC 6″ Flexible Machinist Ruler
WAY BACK AT THE beginning of recorded history, I had a guitar. This guitar was hard to play, so I correctly assumed it was the instrument. At some point, it was pointed out to me its strings might be too high. “Measure the height at the 12th fret. You’re looking for 5/64ths”.
OK. My Craftsman tape measure is not going to work. Where to turn? Our neighborhood hobby shop, for a precision ruler? They’ve mostly been driven out of business by our entertainment industry. Brainwashed masses prefer electronic games and 600 channels of content.
The internet had a few suggestions, and for a couple bucks above Asia’s finest, I located an American company specializing in precision measuring devices. A genuine engineer and machinist’s tool! I’ve hit the big time, mama!
Features
- Made from the Finest Quality Steel Available
- All Rules Fully Hardened and Tempered
- Precisely Etched, then Black Filled for Readability
- Any Graduations Available by Special Order
- Satin Chrome Finish
Plumber’s Heat-Pruf Grease
ALL GOOD THINGS COME to an end. If you hold on to them long enough. My tin of Plumber’s Heat Pruf Grease was a decade old. She had traveled this country through relocation, out-of-state employment, and back again to home base. And now, empty.
A good tradesman plans ahead. A year ago, I tracked down the identical product and purchased three tins. One for Pat Graham, and two for me.
Finally, the day came. My tin of grease was truly empty. Good to its last dab. But empty. A shiny new tin was tossed into my tool bag. Our patient? A steam table faucet. Someone had gone to a lot of trouble installing wrong parts. The least I could do is help return function as best I can.
A little grease on the spindle. Screw it back in. Replace packing. Grease a pair of new O-rings for its faucet body. Bonnet tightened. Done. Supply valve engaged. Perfect refurbishment. Ready for another two decades of service!
Micro-Mesh Sanding Sticks
AMERICAN TOOLBOX HAS lately turned their energies to acoustic instrument refurbishment as a way to bridge operating deficits incurred running this USA products online resource. Last year we wrote about a scruffy Peavey T-25. A few months later it was a cracked Guild D-4. Most lately, a facial for a Collings MT2.
Our Collings mandolin is back. This time it is surgery. Its problem? Potholes in the frets. Its Schedule Of Events: remove all hardware; straighten neck; sand frets level; recrown frets; polish frets; polish entire instrument with Novus; reinstall all hardware, including a new cast tailpiece for improved sustain and depth of tone; new strings. Play and enjoy.
Advice came in from all sides. Love notes, bold plans to change the world, gentle suggestions, even blasts of opinion as powerful as #4 shot from a double barrel pump 10 gauge!
In the end, for final polishing of the frets, we went with foam core polishing sticks from Micro-Surface Finishing Products of Wilton Iowa. The same company that makes nail buffers found in almost every nail salon and cosmetic counter? Yep, the very one.
MICRO-MESH was originally developed for the restoration of fine art. It was found to be very effective for removing layers of contamination, old varnish and paint without damaging the delicate original substrate or masterpiece beneath it. – PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT HISTORY
The company history is fascinating! Their client list, amazing. The product quality, unsurpassed. American Toolbox gives Micro-Mesh their highest rating, SIX Thumbs Up!
Stay tuned! An upcoming post will detail the finished project!
Windex • S. C. Johnson
Some time ago, trying to be helpful, I offered to clean my buddy’s stove top. After scraping off six years of burnt pan overflows, and scrubbing what a paint scraper missed, it was time for finishing touches. Windex® and a clean towel. Gonna bring his stovetop back to factory specifications!
“It’s under the sink”, I’m told. Well, there was a spray bottle of purple stuff 
labeled Glass Cleaner. It did nothing to remove residue and grease. Discount cleaner strikes out. Purple water without a trace of ammonia or isopropyl alcohol. Sold for a buck. Not worth one thin dime.
Never do I buy a glass cleaner unless it is the original. Windex®. Proprietary formula and all that industrial secrets stuff cannot be imitated. I’ve concocted a close imitation, but it does not hit the high mark S.C. Johnson has established. The inimitable go-to cleaning product trusted by generations. Often copied, never duplicated.
In 1933 Harry R. Drackett invented “Windex” as nearly 100% solvent. ATB loves harsh chemicals to get a job right, but the Sam Wise formula patented after WW II is what we currently come to love as Windex. And non-toxic biodegradable formulas? Whole Foods and Trader Joe can keep that foo-foo stuff. If you want to clean glass instead of smearing around dirt, go to the original. Windex®
Bison Designs • Longmont, Colorado
My nylon hiking shorts suffered for years. The right belt was lacking. Sure, Orion Leather makes a great belt, thick & durable. Too heavy for my hiking needs. A belt for my REI shorts would have to be lightweight. Nylon was the answer.
As a kid, we had drawers of one-size-fits-all fabric belts with compression & slip buckles. Try finding one as an adult. Made in the USA.
And it has been here all along. Amazingly reasonable. Available in dozens of designs. And, it turns out, just the right width. 30mm is perfect for my hiking shorts.
Bison Designs – The Right Belt
Located within an online auction site looking unused, purchased and delivered for a reasonable price, I’m now a believer in Bison Designs products.
Then I found their Bison Designs website. What fantastic products! Wow, they have so many choices! A paycheck-sized multi-belt order is upon the horizon.
Brian Kelleghan, the man behind Bison Designs, returned my call a few minutes ago. I wanted a pithy quote on what his contribution to American industry meant to him. We talked . . . and we talked . . . for over 75 minutes, and would have kept talking but for obligations. An amazing two pages of notes later, there are so many take-aways that a separate article on Brian is necessary. Give me a few months. For now, we’ll keep it simple.
What is Bison Designs? His American Dream. Success. Everything Brian wanted as a kid. Making a few belts behind the Climbing Desk at REI turned into a 1000+ unit order. Design and innovation led to millions of belts a year being marketed and sold. Brian says “I don’t sell belts, carabiners, chalk balls . . . I sell designs.” True. Brian’s designs are great. But his final, manufactured product is just as outstanding. – publisher
brian kelleghan – first to bring pictorial webbing to the world
Dunlop Tortex® Instrument Pick
Within guitar shops across America, you will find small plastic cases by the register. Stacked, arranged, jumbled. Maybe one large case instead with over a hundred choices. Pick selections may seem dizzying. Tortoise shell, multi-colored, plastic, carbon fiber, bone . . . where to start?
American Toolbox recommends Dunlop. After decades of picking, our staff still carry and use Dunlop daily. Usually two or three for a buck, you can afford to carry half a dozen to the Bluegrass Circle. Share, experiment, learn, enjoy.
Moving over to mandolin, I’ve settled on a thicker .88 pick. Swapping mid-song into a lighter .60 sometimes. My mandolin mentor smiled yesterday when he heard my new choice. A harder pick is quieter is on the strings? This choice developed because I carry a pick variety and experiment with different thicknesses.
Look for the Dunlop name. Select a dozen in different colors / gauges. At a few cents a piece, there will not be any teeth gnashing as they disappear, as picks seem to do.
Sure, a $50 carbon fiber pick produces a softer, more expressive sound. It took decades to appreciate the nuance in tone. An expensive pick for a novice. Would you teach your kid to drive in the Porsche?
Carry a pocket of Dunlop to every session
Klein Heavy Duty Multi-Bit Screwdriver
Never one for fancy screwdrivers, this rough’n’ready tradesman relied on Craftsman for their multi-purpose function. Screws, pry bar, chisel, free exchange when broken. At some point, I went to a 6-in-1 screwdriver, which occasionally did double duty as a chisel, but not as often. Because that would break it. I’d try to be organized enough to have a beater screwdriver for unpopular work a screwdriver is sometimes called upon to perform.
The 6-in-1 is fine. Two Phillips, two slotted, as well as two nut drivers when a screwdriver bit is removed. Is there any better? In some cases bigger is better. A bigger handle for a more comfortable grip. Extra bits for extra options. Klein makes such a tool. But would I lose all these pieces in the heat of battle?
Electricians carry a screwdriver like this. They’re the Air Force of tradespeople. Keeping clean, meals on time, everything well-organized. If they can do it, so can I!
The investment was made, and after three years, I’ve yet to lose its components. Bigger handle with rubber grip. More torque. Better on my middle-aged hands. The bit tips are better honed. Quality American manufacturing. With products like this, Klein will be in business forever.
Klein Heavy-Duty Multi-Bit Screwdriver/Nut Driver
Alden Unlined Flexwelt Loafers
SUMMER TWILIGHT WALKS! Fresh cut grass and kids playing. Steaks sizzling and popping over hot charcoal. Dawn ’till dusk, dirty and barefoot. Shoes? Only on Sunday.
Speaking of shoes, did we mention how cheap I am regarding footwear? We discussed Alden Cordovan Loafers when my favorite $120 dress shoes fell apart after only a year. Long conversations with Kenny over leather, insoles, lining, vamps, and welts produced one firm conviction. The cheapest shoe is the best shoe. He then opened Sherman Brother’s inventory to my perusal.
Wow, what nice material! Hey, these are absolutely the most comfortable shoes I’ve ever worn. But Kenny, did you notice the price? $400? $600?
Who doesn’t love a great salesman! Kenny Sherman brought it all down to my level. You buy a shoe that is designed and manufactured to last years after it becomes your “favorite”. Instead of falling apart, it is just getting started. After three-to-five years, your cost is identical to an average shoe. Another year or so, and you’re MAKING MONEY! And when something fails, this shoe can be recrafted. SOLD!
After Kenny hooked me with superior dress shoes, he appealed to my vanity. “Jim, you seem the type of guy who likes wearing loafers without socks”. Yup, quietly wealthy. Tennis camp, dinner at the Club. That’s me. Who doesn’t like the feel of leather against skin? I invested in my first pair of Alden Unlined Flexwelt Loafers.
These are, literally, the closest thing to going barefoot. Your foot will sing the praises of superior American craftsmanship. New England at it’s finest! Easily surpasses their chowder! Skin soft suede. It is no wonder a Special Order of these takes months to get. Asia’s appetite for quality American shoes is voracious.
If you want a three season (four, in some locations) shoe comfortable as a fine leather glove, visit Kenny. Or someone with his passion. Get your feet accurately measured. Slip into a pair of America’s finest summer shoe. Alden’s Suede Unlined Flexwelt Loafers!
Socks? We don’t need no stinkin’ socks!
Novus – Plastic Polish
SATURDAY AFTERNOONS IN SUMMER we meet within the Arc Of Delaware at The Creamery. High octane triple-digit milk fat ice cream, fresh from their cows. A huge oak tree, where generations of bluegrass musicians have come to flat-pick their favorite guitars. When lucky, there might be a bass, Dobro, fiddle, & mandolin. If Doc is there, leave your music stand in your vehicle; a sight of one in a “Bluegrass Circle” can drive him to sputtering apoplexy.
Hugh had been dissatisfied with mandolin pickers in attendance. Unaccountably, he preferred my scratching noises on an occasionally borrowed mandolin. For the last couple of years, he has suggested I buy a mandolin and make it my preferred instrument.
Whether through generosity or impatience, this summer on a Sunday afternoon he invited me over to pick a few tunes. His home? A 1920s farmhouse deep in woods, filled with cats, surrounded by semi-tame woodland creatures who ate from Hugh’s bounty. His mandolin? A Collings MT2. His offer? Hugh would loan me his mandolin for six months; give me a chance to know a high end – $3800 – instrument.
“Collings. It’s not a name, it’s a sound.”
It looked like his MT-2 had sat in a corner for years. Layers of dirt, dust, cat hair carefully impacted between its double strings. Nitrocellulose finish, originally gloss, now a hazy matte. I was surprised the District Attorney had not yet preferred criminal charges. It was, at minimum, reckless endangerment of an acoustic instrument. Hugh got lucky. This would have gone Federal, with EPA in hazmat suits. Ugg! The deluxe hardshell case by TKL may have been manger and nursery for kittens.
Decontamination began almost immediately. Strings, bridge, truss rod cover, and tailpiece were all removed. Warm soapy water prepared, a soft cloth, dipped then thoroughly wrung, was gently applied to all surfaces. The fingerboard was grimiest; my cleaning solution was replaced twice. Next, deep cleaning of its nitrocellulose finish. Acetone? TOO STRONG! Naphtha (lighter fluid)? Humm . . . to a point. But hazing and fine scratches remained.
An email to Collings customer service was promptly answered! “We use Novus 2 to remove years of dulling and build-up on our nitro finishes.” A quick hobby store purchase, and in no time, that milky haze buffed right out! Wow, the red maple sides and back shine like new! Next time the strings are off, I’ll do its select Adirondack spruce top and ebony peghead overlay. Can’t wait!
Corningware Cornflower Percolator
As a kid, our family lived with Dad’s father. Life was a steady routine. Every day before sun-up, Grandfather would go to the basement and bang around with the boiler. An old coal thing. He resisted change. Grandpa said coal produced intense heat, and his gravity boiler was a superior design because it functioned without electricity. All lost upon a seven-year old.
I would get up when the 6:05 pulled into town, as she gently tooted her horn at a highway crossing. One morning, she didn’t. Neither were trucks heard on a highway half mile away. In our kitchen, a percolator bubbled on his gas range. Beyond the windows, nothing but white. Snow as far as the eye could see. Any shrub under four feet was hidden.
“No school today, Jimmy. All factories are closed. Train not running. Highway blocked.” His world paused because power lines into our valley collapsed under almost five feet of snow.
His house was warm; grownups had their coffee; I played games for three days. A hundred times a day Grandfather extolled the virtues of a home which can survive without electricity. Reliance on fancy kitchen gadgets signaled a return to Roman idolatry, it seemed.
A dozen years ago Grandpa’s coffee maker came into my possession. I kept it for nostalgia only, relying instead on my Technivorm. But while visiting, Jack spied the distinctive Blue Cornflower percolator, and insisted we brew a pot. He demonstrated, I learned. And became a believer.
Nothing beats freshly percolated coffee. Gently bubbling water dripping through coarse grounds. You do not want to rush it, but will know when it is “done”. By the smell and color.
Over 750 million items of CorningWare have been produced since S. Donald Stookey discovered Pyroceram. Next time you poke around a garage sale, look for Joseph Baum’s Cornflower design. Make an offer on a vintage percolator. You’ll be set when snowstorms or massive solar flares shut down the power grid. ◊◊◊. When you want to impress a date. Whenever a superior cup of coffee is desired or required.
◊◊◊ Campfire or gas range-top required. Hunter-gatherer skills encouraged.
Kershaw Leek ◊ Tualatin, Oregon
Machined stainless steel. Finished edges. No burrs or rough spots. Meticulous assembly. Spiffy design. Some people are drawn to mechanical devices of superior nature. We’ve always had a happy eye upon the Kershaw Leek series. Designed slim and unobtrusive in the pocket, so you’ll carry it every day. When you need it, the knife will function flawlessly. Year after year. Decade after decade.
A nice chance of acquisition recently appeared. At a little less than half list price, I bought one of my “grail knives”. The stainless Leek. In near perfect condition, I’ll have a USA-made heirloom-quality knife to give my son or nephew, daughter or niece. Or even a total stranger, returning Karma to the vast repository circling the heavens.
Many consider the Kershaw Leek an ideal EDC – everyday carry knife. After daily using a Gerber as my EDC, within my tradesman profession and as a handy household tool, I find conflict in that statement.
The Kershaw is perfect for someone who wants a carry knife at all times; it disappears into the pocket through size and design. I’ve become accustomed to a larger handle for more intensive cutting, poking, slicing, and prying. The larger Gerber Covert Folder better suits my use. But if the Gerber is unavailable, it will be the Leek for me.
Most importantly, I now have a “dress knife” that will not weigh down fine trousers. LEEK IS LIGHTER with a more robust pocket clip. 87 grams vs. the Gerber Covert Folder’s 113 grams. Not only will the Leek hang more comfortably upon the lighter fabric of dress trousers, it will remain affixed where I secure it. Perfect for cutting a piece of string & opening a box. Ideal for an emergency tracheotomy. Patiently waiting for duty if asked.
Estwing Framing Hammer
About the time of my first Red Wings, I watched a chain-smoking Master Plumber mucking around half a dozen feet below the sidewalk. He was looking for a pipe. Everything in the hole looked the same to me. My first lesson in plumbing: the most important thing is knowing what you are looking at.
After a bit, he asks for a hammer. Naturally, I cross-examine him while he’s ankle-deep in mud, dirt dropping down his trousers, knees caked solid with clay. No, a hammer is what he wants. Really.
I went on to discover there are 20 ways to swing a hammer, at least. On that day, the plumber scraped compacted soil with the straight claw from under and around a leaking water service. I’d seen him break the bell of one piece of cast iron soil pipe while leaving an adjacent piece whole. Nailing? Almost never, in our trade. But I did learn the difference between tapping and smashing!
The Code Book calls for an 8 ounce ball peen hammer for caulking lead joints. Sorry, every tool has to multi-task. You can hold a 22 oz. hammer further up the shaft to reduce a swing’s force, something Galileo famously observed in 1582 – which led to his forgotten pendulum theory.
In a hurry to expose a leaking pipe behind a plaster wall? One can operate the hammer with both hand, punching a clean line through sheet rock with the claw, like a sewing machine. Not exactly like a sewing machine, but that is a similar image.
The pictured framing hammers? One is an Estwing E3-20SM. I’ve had it 20+ years. 13 ½” length, 28 oz overall weight, but called a 20 ounce hammer. (The other, a similar 22 ounce model). This is the perfect hammer to buy your favorite tradesman. Or an accomplished do-it-yourselfer as a supplementary wedding present. He/she may have it forever.
I could write 2,000 words on the various uses of a hammer. Hammering, prying, digging, cracking, slicing, driving, chiseling, cutting, pulverizing. From tapping the handle off a fine china teacup to knocking the lock off a security door without breaking the glass. It’s all in how you swing the hammer.
Friskies Seafood Sensations
Wow! To read cat food reviews in preparation of this article, you’d think the outcome involved Freedom of Religion or a new 90% tax rate! The final determination? Americans are nutty about their pets. Tastes Great vs. Better Nutrition. Ho, hum . . . I’ll keep buying the food my “porch cat” loves.
A couple decades ago a different porch cat lived here. I’d lay out three or four types of food at a time, for variety. The cat would eat them all, choosing one for the whole meal. Patterns of brand preference developed, were observed, recorded, and added to a statistical database. The outcome? Two cats later, the results are in. Cats who eat dry food prefer Purina and Friskies.
The foo-foo “healthy” stuff? Sorry, that doesn’t work. The cat does not read labels. Rule of thumb: If it smells like fish food, the cat will not eat it. Would you?
Raleigh Technium Bicycle
Fifteen years ago, I spied a decent 10-speed in a friend’s basement. Flat tires, peeling cork tape, through the dust I could see a special bicycle. Light, with high quality components. This is the bike that, in the mid-1980s, was the cutting edge. The top line offering. He would not part with it, though unridden for years. It would be another decade before daylight lit up the chrome.
IN THIS SMALL world of international sales and the shipping of anything, from thumbtacks to oil drilling rigs, getting a quality bicycle is a trip to a large sports-center. But the common high-tech bike was not always common. Back in the ’80s – the 1980s – an American subsidiary was working on a lighter bicycle frame. They produced the “first generation aluminum frames”.
Raleigh used a process to thermally bond dissimilar materials to produce frames for the Olympic team. The result was 3 gold medals, one silver and one bronze. – mombat
The story is one repeated throughout the history of humanity. Man meets woman. Man loves woman. Man and woman move in together. Woman tells man to clear out the cave; make some space for her.
So the bike finally made it to me. And at my accustomed price point for a bike wanting a hundred bucks of service. But he/she is now in excellent condition. The weekly pedal of a dozen miles along the Art Museum Loop. The quick jaunt to the post Office. All within my grasp, upon a classic. Always a dependable pleasure, hanging from hooks on my living room ceiling, ready to roll reliably without complaint.
Mid-1980s Raleigh Technium. Frame made in Kent, Washington, as well as assembly in the USA with additional top-line imported parts from France and Japan.
Barbasol
Unconsciously I became brand-loyal. Reaching for the same spice or salt, shoes and tires, buying habits formed decades ago influence every day. Particularly loyal to my shaving cream, I’ve found anything else, at twice the price, does not compare with Barbasol.
Who has not heard of Barbasol ? In the 1930s, after the Raytheon Tube put a radio in everyman’s home, America would be familiar with Singin’ Sam the Barbasol Man. “Barbasol, Barbasol … No brush, no lather, no rub-in … Wet your razor, then begin.” Actors, sports figures, even NASCAR has advertised for Barbasol.
Shaving is not rocket science. Lather up, scrape face, rinse, done. But in 1919, the process was forever changed by MIT Professor Frank Shields. In Indianapolis, Indiana, Frank started a company to sell the cream he invented. A scientist who understood the big picture, because I still buy only Barbasol. For the price? Sure. Mostly for the quality, though.
Raytheon • Mission: Innovation
From humble beginnings in 1922, The American Appliance Company, in Cambridge, experimented with artificial coolants. Founded by Laurence K. Marshall, Vannevar Bush, and Charles G. Smith, they hope to produce a home refrigerator. It never made it out of the lab. Two years later, though, BINGO!
Marshall, Bush, and Smith develop a new kind of vacuum tube that allows radios to be plugged into wall sockets. The brand name? Raytheon Radios become affordable to the average American! Yea!!!
Year after year, research and development leads to new inventions and processes that touch the lives of every American. Microwaves, communication, defense. This week, American Toolbox salutes a company which does so much to protect the lives of Americans around the world.
Coca-Cola ecotainer® with Ingeo™
Sticky drink subjects are left to others. Usually. We did cover Monin syrup last summer in conjunction with Italian sodas. But an interesting thing can happen in this content and media driven environment we call life. I can become bored. Bored enough to read the advertising on my Coke cup at the airport, stranded temporarily between flights.
Rather exciting it was to discover the words “MADE IN U.S.A.” on the cup bottom. Reading further, I find that International Paper has developed a compostable paper cup with a plant-based lining, instead of the petroleum-based (plastic) linings one has traditionally found on paper cups.
And Coke wants McDonald’s to serve Coke products in this compostable paper cup with a plant-based lining, made from paper from responsibly managed forests (SFI®).
FAR OUT! – john denver
1] Tastes great 2] Refreshing 3] Certified BPI (Biodegradable Products Institute) cup 4] Meets ASTM D6400 for compostability! 5] SFI Sustainable Forestry Initiative paper!
Gerber Pocket Knives
A COMPLETE STRANGER one day saw my need of a decent pocket knife. Camping near Fort Pickens along Pensacola Bay, I was making a hideous mess of my tent guide line. A storm approaching, wind rising, rain pelting. There I knelt, making pitiful slashing gestures with the camping equivalent of a butter knife.
In short, a used but serviceable -and razor sharp- knife was lent, lines repaired, the loaner returned. Almost. “Keep it” greeted me the next day, along with the sun, a humid funk rising from the damp ground.
Never absent a pocket knife for a single day after that, its utility proven time after time. One can cut, pry, poke, slice, shave, nick, flatten, abrade, any number of additional operations with a good knife. Operations! Missed that one. Yes, an emergency tracheotomy is not beyond a sharp pointed knife and improvised breathing tube. If you want an appendectomy on a desert island, better hope someone -like me- has a good knife in their pocket.
When my knife broke, I bought an identical model -staggered at the sum- but happy again to be so equipped. Chance conversation illuminated me on Gerber’s warranty. Forever. I sent it in, and they repaired the original. Now I have two. A spare, in case one is at the cutlery professional, having it’s edge honed.
Amtrol Pressuriser Water Booster Pumps
THAT TIME OF YEAR has again arrived. Improvements to the nest don’t stop with Ronnie Residential. Business owners as well dust off hopes and dreams of grand renovations. This spring’s challenges led to a recent meeting with a six-story parking garage owner.
In an area of Philadelphia cursed with vintage water distribution, this owner can not reliably receive water above the third level. Remembering the mantra “height is limited by elevation of a reservoir” recently recited within Little Chap‘s write-up, we suggest a product which, many times in the past, has made us appear wise beyond our years.
Of course, we recommend a booster pump. For over two decades, I’ve trusted Amtrol water pressure booster products. Every Amtrol Pressuriser is USA-made in their ISO 9001:2008 registered facilities. That’s the first thing that drew me in. Second, Amtrol is easy to get on the phone, and know their stuff. Third? Simple. The product boosts the pressure and works for a long time with almost no maintenance. Some are still running, some have been replaced with an upgraded model -very sharp engineering, Amtrol!
If your shower is skimpy, if your roof deck hose pressure is pathetic, consider an upgrade. Buy once, cry once. A couple thousand bucks or so, and you’ll forget the expense after once or two invigorating showers!
Danner
NOTHING LASTS FOREVER. Or does it? How long is forever? For me, it might be a few decades, it might not. Still, I usually buy sturdy multi-generational items.
To celebrate a milestone event my brother wanted to give me something special. He tossed out a few suggestions. Everything seemed “here today, gone tomorrow”. I had been eying a pair of American-made hiking boots. Perfect for the asphalt jungle; better for the Appalachian Trail.
Selected among the best boot available to the committed hiker. Born from the ideals of Charles Danner in the shock of the Depression, a commitment to superior craftsmanship that lives to this day. How sturdy are they? Friends gloat over their Danners, decades old, reminiscing over their trials and trails together. “Buy once, cry once”, they chant. Boots are available for half the price, but you get what you pay for.
The trouble with really comfortable shoes and boots is that they fall apart by the time they become your favorites. Several years ago I turned to recraftable loafers by Alden. When the shoe becomes worn, back to the factory they go, where they take it apart. Alden replaces worn components, puts it together, and ship it back, feeling “like your old shoes” but looking almost new.
Danner does the same thing. Just look for the word “recraftable”. This means you are buying a product designed to be repaired, not discarded. In a business climate of planned obsolescence, you’re seeing a product the manufacturer wants you to keep forever.
Anasazi Stone Co • Scottsdale AZ
ARIZONA! THE LAND OF milk and honey! Grapefruit big as bowling balls right off the backyard tree in mid-winter! The perfect time to visit friends & in-laws. Doing a few jobs will make one more even more welcome. And get you an invite back!
My friends, on a recent visit, told of a desire for a paved path to the back gate. Sure, paver “stepping stones” are easy. The home centers have shelves full of cast concrete fake stones. But if I was to be involved, the job had to have a certain artistic flair. Only real stone would work.
A few phone calls later landed me the address of the premier Arizona supplier of pavers. They own their own quarries and snap the stone on a secret proprietary press of which pictures are forbidden! I ordered a dozen pieces 16″ x 24″ x 2″. We chose buff/buckskin for the color. A few days later, Anasazi dropped a pallet in my GMC Sierra.
This was a fun job. Thirsty work, sure. Two grapefruit per hour, I figure. The stones weighed about 70 pounds (32 kg) each. Raked the gravel down to desert floor, spaced the stones, leveled them around roots, avoided irrigation lines. Put the gravel back. Jiggled and jostled them a bit more the next day, trying to achieve a natural feng shui to the project.
Anasazi Stone Company. Highly recommended!
Flagstone is a sedimentary rock that is split into layers along bedding planes. Flagstone is usually a form of a sandstone composed of feldspar and quartz and is arenaceous in grain size (0.16mm – 2mm in diameter). The material that binds flagstone is usually composed of silica, calcite, or iron oxide. The rock color usually comes from these cementing materials. Typical flagstone colors are red, blue, and buff, though exotic colors exist.
Flagstone is quarried in places with bedded sedimentary rocks with fissile bedding planes. Examples include Arizona flagstone and Pennsylvania Bluestone. – Anasazi Stone
Acoustic Vibes • Tempe AZ
ANY TEENAGER WHO PLAYED an instrument probably hung out for hours in the local music stores. Staring at a limited selection, they’d imagine how cool it would be to own such a store. The business side is usually far from childhood fantasy. Music stores are risky endeavors but there are occasional success stories.
A perfect example? Jeff Looker, architect. Pondering transitional career options to pad out retirement, he bought a half dozen guitars direct from Santa Cruz Guitar Company, becoming their sole Phoenix distributor. Into his orbit came other brands, notably C. F. Martin & Company. Business acumen developed running an upscale architectural firm definitely had a place operating a top-tier acoustic instrument shop. Acoustic Vibes Music arguably has the finest and largest selection of high-grade acoustic instruments in the country.
Looking for a Martin 000 14-fret acoustic guitar? Local shops don’t carry this model. On my last visit Jeff had two stock copies and four from the famed Martin Custom Shop. Four custom Martin 000 guitars with 
list prices pushing $7,000! Jeff picks the options he would like to see, and nine months later, voilá! One-of-a-kind guitars are delivered to his store!
On my last visit there were 450 guitars in stock, 80% in this upper range or higher. When you want a great-looking, great-sounding guitar, and don’t want to wait ten years for Wayne Henderson to build you one, book a flight to this Destination Guitar Shop. Forget the budget. Buy a guitar you’ll have forever.
Acoustic Vibes Music Inc
Orion Leather
SURE, IT’S JUST A BELT. Nothing to get excited about. Is it more? Well, yes. How often do we buy a belt? Good ones last for a dozen years or more. Dress belts, padded and stitched, might lose their mojo from heavy use. But a work belt, all leather, dyed clear through? That should hold up until it stretches too long, you gain/lose too much weight, or you die.
When I decided I’d had enough with a sloppy belt, I cinched the problem with a quick internet search. Found Orion, a USA manufacturer. Double-checked the belt pedigree, and got a quick response: Yes, the belts are all made in USA. We make every single one ourselves in Myrtle Beach, SC. The regular-priced belts are actually made to order. Auction-style listed belts are that much cheaper, is because those are the belts that customers have purchased, and returned to us, usually to exchange for a different size or style. Thanks,
Natalia. I placed bids on four belts and scored two of them, for less than half price! Yes, they look BRAND NEW!
Made In USA 1 1/2″ Havana Bridle Leather Belt With Double Hole Return Size 38 $20.75
Made from heavy native steer hides and drum dyed for deep, consistent colors with waxes and tallows. Hot stuffed with just the right amount of “spew” on the grain and flesh to have that English feel.
Thanks, Orion! You are the “Go-To” company for USA-made leather wear!
Hand-Knitted Cashmere Watch Cap
ALL ACROSS AMERICA are American artisans. Working with metal, wood, and the most useful of all, textiles. Inspired by the Serpent. Or was it Eve? Wanting to accessorize with the apple, no doubt.
Amazing, the progress humanity has made in the last 2.6 million years. Global economies have introduced unlimited variety of materials to the practicing. About a years ago we visited the subject of the hand-woven watch cap, featuring Chinook Winds Bison Yarn and Fiber. This popular Montana supplier produced bison yarn knitted for me into a perfect sub-zero watch cap.
This time, Heather, the fabulous Iowan artisan renown for custom woven headgear, reached clear around the globe to return with a perfect cashmere yarn. This particular product is sourced from the western area of Inner Mongolia. A combination of very cold nights and hot days, coupled with living in a pristine, pollution-free, high altitude environment produce amazing cashmere goats with feathery soft down is how MinkYarn explains the quality. Indiana Jones got nothing on Heather!
And from Heather, herself: The cashmere used in your hat is a laceweight which refers to the thickness. Knitting it single stranded would have been much more time-consuming on tiny needles and would have produced a thinner fabric. Instead, I separated each of the two skeins in half and knit the four strands held together as if they were one. This resulted in a thicker, warmer, more durable product. Using a single rib for the brim gives a greater ability to stretch, and using a waffle-type stitch for the crown adds texture and warmth. (Think of the texture on the fabric for thermal wear, or long underwear.)
Quality isn’t cheap. But you’ll get exactly what you want. If you take care of it, you’ll enjoy the product for years and years. Hats by Heather. Special order only.
Oneida Porringer Candleholder
NOTHING SAYS, “HAPPY HOLIDAYS!” like a candle burning brightly on the mantle. The scented hand-dipped candle bought from an artisan on that lovely trip to Colonial Williamsburg. Or mass-produced Ikea candles, makes no difference. Well, a little, but regardless. Does a candle purify the air? Yes, it does. Air is drawn to the flame, and contaminants within the air are burned. And a burning candle looks nice. A candleholder completes the ambience.
Candleholders with a wide base for stability, room to catch fallen wax, and 
safely receive matches that may smolder still, these are traits one might desire. Just like a porringer. A recent quest for such a pair led us to the Cambridge Colonial line produced by Oneida.
Oneida? The company started in the mid-1800s, and which made at least half of all flatware purchased in the United States by 1980? Yep, same company. These mid-century pewter candleholders cost about ten bucks for the pair, but try to find a USA-made product of new production. Impossible! Garage-sales, online auctions, thrift stores! These are the battlegrounds on which we fight and win back heirlooms of American culture.
Vintage candlestick holders by Oneida – Great value!
S. Donald Stookey “Mr. CorningWare”
S. Donald Stookey 1915 – 2014
There does not exist within this great Republic of ours the kitchen absent of CorningWare. The most important invention to modern cooking, Stookey’s ballistic glass became the temperature-resistant material from which have been fashioned billions and billions of cooking, serving, and mixing articles.
Moving into new digs? A quick trip to the corner 5 & Dime will supply all the Pyrex your kitchen will need. And it has never been expensive. Just about as cheap as any glassware, but infinitely more durable!
Nestling bowls are my favorite. Whether creating pasta salad or reheating a Super Size Serving of chicken soup, Corning makes the item that works for both preparing and serving food. And drink! Here’s another favorite, which we wrote about a few months ago. A Pyrex® pitcher in the Eames tradition. Who knew glass could be both functional and stylish?
Nalgene Water Bottles
HYDRATE! HYDRATE! HYDRATE! The mantra of physical fitness instructors, hikers, and survivalists. Nutritionists, doctors, nurses. But do Americans drink enough water? The CDC says, emphatically, “No! 43% of adults drink less than four cups of water a day.”
Didn’t we learn in school, between six ways to say “Maybe” in French and two days spent on subsets, that we should drink eight 12-ounce glasses of water a day? Has anyone studied a urine color chart to determine their level of hydration? Lately?
What better way to remind yourself to have a sip than to carry water with you! In your pack, car, truck, at your desk. A nice-looking, new, BPH-free water bottle, delivered no charge* from an American manufacturer is a great start! And when you fill up at home or at the YMCA, you’ll be saving plastic bottles from entering the rubbish stream!
Go to Nalgene’s website! Pick out two bottles and get free delivery! 100% satisfaction guaranteed!
The American Road Trip • Part II
OUR WORK DONE, THE 6′ X 12′ U-Haul trailer safely delivered, unloaded, and returned, the American Road Trip continues northward, a streak of joyous abandon. No timetable, almost. Pick a road, any road. The plan? End up in Montana to visit a dying friend. A thousand miles of choices. I decided on less traveled US-89 for scenic beauty and history. Sometimes called the National Park Highway, U.S. 89 links seven national parks across the Mountain West.
I roll into Gardiner MT in a few days to Pete’s small ’30s bungalow tucked against Yellowstone. Found my friend almost blind and eating discount TV dinners but still defiant. No radio or TV, house not cleaned since his stroke 4 years ago. Naturally, I stayed in the extra room. What’s a little dirt among bachelors?
We consume mass quantities, like old times. A ’40s Victrola and a stack of wax from the ’20s thru ’50s made our reunion a party. No wimmin, and he was couch-bound, so I danced with the dog between cranking the Victrola or strumming the guitar. The 1930’s home was rocking to 1930’s music from a period Victrola. The memory will forever bring a tear to my eye.
Leave two days later over the Bear Tooth Highway at 7am; snow and clouds encountered but the view was tremendous. Tremendous! Bear Tooth Highway closes for the year on October 15th at the latest. Bet they close early this year.
The American Road Trip • Part I
AMERICA IS NOT LACKING highway to drive. Anyone want to throw a bag of clothes and the dog in a car? You can motor any direction for a few days. One of my favorite trips takes one through Missouri along I-44, to O.K.C., and west as far as you want to go.
Recently I helped a friend relocate, and made the trip twice in one 
week. The second trip, pulling 4200 pounds, was at 55 mph. Truly the speed of exploration. Empty highway, rain clouds on the horizon, windows down, what could be better for relaxation and reflection?
Along my leisurely way, following the sage advice of billboards, I sampled some of the local fare. And managed to gather information for a new blog, AmericanLunchbox, soon to go online. Barbecue from two states on two consecutive meals! Yummmmm!!!! Ain’t America great?
Big SHOUT OUT to Gray County Westbound Safety Rest Area, in Texas!
J-B WELD Epoxy Putty Kit
AFTER REMOVING THE 1920’s mortise lock, a gaping rectangular hole was evident in the door. The new Schlage locks, ordered and ready for install, would not install until this void could be addressed. Why? Because the extra drilling for modern locks would have turned the French door into a Swiss Cheese door. A lock installed in a compromised door helps no one but the unlawful. Never figured on the space left by the removed lock, but it was a temporary setback.
A bit of handyman-style investigative work came up with The Dutchman Patch. I cut a piece of wood to fit the space formerly occupied by the mortise lock, and glued it in with Liquid Nails.
Next, a prodigious amount of wood putty was mixed. Not your average putty in a can, but an epoxy-based two-part invention from J-B WELD. Exceptional stuff! It cured in a few hours, and I was ready for sanding! A little touching up, and the door now looks like it always had modern locks on it!
Q-tips Cotton Swabs
THE UBIQUITOUS Q-TIP. There is nothing quite like an American-made cotton swab. Assume, for a minute, you never use Q-tips for their most common function, strictly following the medical community’s instruction (who really listens to their doctor, right?). There are still a zillion uses.
Showing me an electronic keyboard for sale, I remarked to the musician, “It looks brand new”. It was, actually, two years old. The seller had detailed all the nooks, edging, and crannies with Q-tips moistened with rubbing alcohol. So began my instruction into detail cleaning.
A family friend operated an auto-detailing business. The cars came out the door factory-new. What was the trick? After general cleaning, washing, and waxing, a couple more hours, armed with a box of Q-Tips and a cup of cleaning solution, laboriously getting into every crack among the interior and exterior trim.
And most recently, applying wood glue to a horizontal upside-down joint, where we do not want any drippies! My near-vintage Guild acoustic guitar repair came out famously!
Return those flimsy imported drugstore-branded cotton swabs immediately and demand quality! Insist on genuine Q-Tips!
The cotton swab was invented in the 1920s by Leo Gerstenzang after he attached wads of cotton to toothpicks. His product, which he named “Baby Gays”, went on to become the most widely sold brand name, “Q-tips”, with the Q standing for “quality”.
Midwest Products • Hobbyist Materials
THE OFFER WAS TOO GOOD to be true. A Made In The USA acoustic guitar, dreadnought-sized, was for sale. In exchange for a reasonably slim stack of crisp Yankee dollars one could own a genuine Guild D4, a treasure from the heartland of American Folklore. Yet something seemed amiss . . .
Ahh, it becomes apparent. It is the six-inch crack in the solid mahogany side of the guitar. An impact crack, fortunately, rather than that caused by heat or humidity. The wood can be buttoned up. We have the patience . . . the technology. The knowledge? Not yet. But a visit to Jake the Snake cleared all that up.
A little super glue to tack the edges together, then thin wood glued across the crack from the interior. How thin? 1/32″ of an inch, it turns out. Beatty Lumber Company will not get my business on this one.
Up the street, though, is an old-time hobby shop. I know, because I’ve passed it several times a week for the past 30 years. And it turns out . . . 1/32″ basswood is a stock item. They also had the right glue, Titebond.
Armed with a sheet of veneer hardwood from Northern Michigan’s forests, and domestic glue I’ve trusted in the past, I set about successfully repairing my USA-made Guild in just a couple of hours. The Circle Is Unbroken . . .
USA Pans 6-Well Donut Pan
EVERY AUGUST, THE MOST difficult decision of the year comes up. What to get Mom for her birthday. After a while, it seems most people have everything they want; when something is needed, they buy it. So the chance to find something Mom wanted but had not purchased was an exciting event!
What did Mom want? A donut pan. Never heard of it, but this new invention, the internet, cleared that right up for me. In the true spirit of everything Homer Simpson stands for, one can buy a specially constructed pan to allow baking of donuts at home!
The Asian manufacturers evidently have not caught on to the American craze of home-baked donuts; the most prevalent search hits pointed to a local company. Over 50 years of experience with materials and commercial end users have made USA PAN the go-to manufacturer of quality bakeware. They had the donut pan. It is made in the USA of heavy gauge aluminized steel The price was right. SOLD!
Made in the USA by American Pans in Pittsburgh, PA, the Largest Worldwide Manufacturer of Commercial Bakeware.
Green Heron Tools • HERShovel
WATER SLIDES AND BUGGY RIDES are OK for some tourists. 30% milk-fat ice cream & funnel cake. But around these parts, it’s farming. Crops & animals. It was no surprise recently, while visiting an exhibition at the Penn State Landisville Experimental Farm, to find myself in front of a display of shovels. Ahh, tools! Love every durn one of them. And these, especially!
As it turns out, I have seen these particular shovels before, having bought one at a home show a few years ago. My Mom loves it, and even Dad chooses it over a conventional shovel (strong enough for a man, made for a woman?).
Conceived by two Pennsylvania residents. Made in Pennsylvania (in America). Designed expressly for bodies which are not engineered for digging. Fortunate to find, manning the booth, one of two woman behind the company, I was able to get a clear understanding of what went into their shovels.
As for design of the shovel — we had a Small Business Innovation Research grant from the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, which enabled us to convene a design team that included, in addition to ourselves, an agricultural engineer, an industrial engineer with a specialty in ergonomics, and an occupational therapist. – Liz Brensinger , Master of Public Health
Channellock Pliers Model 430
Putting the squeeze on
WAY BACK, WHEN MY job seemed to be lugging an eighty pound (36 KG) box of tools behind a guy who smoked often and explained little, I began to notice a pattern. Almost every plumbing job required the use of one particular set of pliers, which Boss called the 430’s. These side-jaw pliers were of a size that fit nicely around the trap nut on a kitchen sink drain, with many uses in addition. One could squeeze, bend, pry, hammer, support, scoop, and more with these pliers. Multiple jaw widths were possible with these tongue-and-groove, slip-joint pliers.
After I finally began buying Craftsman tools for the lifetime warranty, I asked, “Why doesn’t Craftsman make a similar product?”. Simple. A tradesman could buy one set of each size, 
and never have to buy another. As it is, the original Channellock, patented in 1934, will last the typical plumber for several years before replacement is necessary. And the 5th generation of the DeArment family, still running the private company founded 1886 in Evansburg, Pennsylvania by George B. DeArment, has a great warranty, if there should be something amiss.
Channellock Pliers Model 430 • The Perfect Gift
Telescope Casual Furniture • Beach Chair
The last place on earth one ever wants to buy a beach chair is at the beach. When you have a business open four months a year, markup has to cover the lean months. Naturally, being the prepared, forward-thinking individual I am, a week at a beach resort would find me in want of nothing other than food and drink.
However, a few years back, catastrophe struck. The comfortable but old chair I’d used for a decade popped its rivets, tore it’s seams, and was condemned to the rubbish barrel. To keep peace in a crowded, loud, sandy environment, I agreed to purchase a replacement.
Miles from any decent department store, we ventured into a local Everything Store to see if I’d need a payday loan to fund a replacement chair. Not surprisingly, options were limited. Plenty of cheap, flimsy imported garbage. A limited selection of sturdy but expensive domestic production. Time is money and the decision was easy. Hoy’s 5 & 10¢ would be able to pay their taxes through the winter.
For an extra $35, I could buy a sturdy, USA-made product. For the price of a couple of pizzas, I’d support a family business near the New York – Vermont border. A tradition of excellent manufacturing stretching back generations, offering employment in design, fabrication, marketing, and shipping. As well as the Five & Dime (established 1935) getting their cut.
Looking back, the purchase was an excellent decision. Six seasons have been kind to the chair, and my purchase price was about half the current list price. Buy once, cry once.
Alden Cordovan Loafers
Planned Obsolescence. The manufacturer’s credo. Just about the time a pair of shoes begin to feel perfect, they fall apart. Without need, there is no demand. The decision-making process to buy will not exist.
A sales position beckoned after an injury forced me to take a break from rigorous tradesman labors. The product formerly installed would now, through new skills taught by Sales Training Managers, be sold (by me) for others to install. I breezed through instruction, and two weeks later hit the pavement running. And running. And running. Until my dress shoes fell apart. The old adage, “Wanna be a success, start your day with a decent breakfast and a good shine on your shoes” was not quite working, with the upper detached from the sole. The other salesmen started calling me Flappy.
Decades of living finally produced one new thought. Shoes start to fall apart just when they begin to feel really comfortable. So began the decision-making process with me. I was to become a buyer of premium-quality shoes. The salesmen saw me coming!
I choose Alden of New England, shoes made since 1884 in Massachusetts. They are recraftable, a construction that is designed to allow rebuilding. Which I’ve done once so far; the shoes came back looking, literally, brand new. Most importantly, Alden is an American company that stands behind their work. When a bit of stitching came loose, I posted the shoes back to Alden with a note, and they came back repaired and shined up, no charge.
You get what you pay for. Premium shoes feel better on your feet, and, with care, will last for decades. Run the numbers and you’ll see, it is less expensive to buy quality.
Alden is now the only original New England shoe and bootmaker remaining of the hundreds who began so long ago. Still a family owned business, still carrying forward a tradition of quality genuine-welted shoemaking that is exceptional in every way.
Le Sirop de MONIN
TREKKING THROUGH THE WILDS of colonial Philadelphia on a sweltering summer morning, one comes to appreciate the offering of a cool Italian soda in a chic café. Americans are inured to pleasures a quality soda-pop over ice in a clean glass may produce, but there was a time when the drinking of sugary carbonated beverages was not taken for granted. Planning and location dictated when one could “grab a Coke”, as a soda bar at the Pharmacy was the de facto sole supplier of these addictive, rejuvenating beverages.
When I tumbled through the doors of Old City Coffee one particularly hot July morning, I thought first of an iced coffee. An ultra-hip hipster, arranging bottles of flavored syrup behind the counter, had another idea. “How about an Italian soda?”, he suggested, nodding to a leaving customer. I’d never tried one, assuming factory-bottled sodas to be superior. But the look of delight on an exiting customer’s face as she tasted her fruity concoction seemed endorsement enough.
“I’ll take one of those”, I asked, pointing to Miss Red Fizzy Drink. The Hip Barristo poured a finger of raspberry syrup into a cup, added a bottle of Pellegrini, ice, and capped it. “Here you go. Two-fifteen, please”. And what did I get for two bucks?
A refreshing fruity soda made with quality seltzer water, pure cane sugar, and natural raspberry flavor. Most stimulating, I assure you! A little syrup research reveal’s a company history dating to 1912 in Bourges, France. Within years, the Monin family is shipping around the world. 1996, Tampa Florida, sees construction of a plant to supply all of the Americas. This French company producing a quality soda syrup in the USA earns an American Toolbox Five Thumbs Up recognition!
Julz Burnout Wrap • prAna
AMERICAN TOOLBOX USUALLY LEAVES women’s clothing reviews to others. Let’s face it, we’ve never reviewed woman’s clothes nor intended to. But while watching a yoga attendee gleefully unwrap and model her latest purchase at the local Stretch’s Studio, I noted two items: the material was very nice, and among the labeling materials was the tag. MADE IN USA / FABRIQUÉ AUX É.U.
Not all of PRANA’s products are made here, so if you’re particular, check the label. Sometimes the material is domestic but not the assembly. The yoga wrap I saw was USA-made with partially recycled polyester fabric blended with organic cotton. The yogee gushed to her friends over the silky smoothness against her skin. Made me want to try one. Almost.
The Julz Burnout wrap from prAna offers a great cover-up before or after yoga practice.
Craftsman Vintage Slim Tape
2300 BL
OCK OF NAUDAIN STREET, PHILADELPHIA: In the wee hours of May 1st, 2014, a complaint of carbon monoxide went out to the Philadelphia Fire Department. Within an hour, the block was evacuated. Then came the explosion and 3-alarm fire.
No one died, but homes were completely destroyed. Several people lost EVERYTHING except the clothes on their backs. Pajamas & slippers, actually. Within my news-vacuum, two weeks passed before I got the news: Friends of long acquaintance had lost their home. Photos, clothes, dishes, Christmas ornaments. Mementos, furniture, computers, tools.
Wait, did I hear the word “Tools”? Yep, it appears that, after an initial well-received gift of an old black-and-white photo, a jazz CD, a favorite cookbook, and a couple of crystal tumblers, there were still items of great import we could give to our friends.
For this couple starting over, I chose the canvas version of a tool pouch previewed earlier on American Toolbox, along with a mint-condition vintage Sears Craftsman Slim Tape – 8′. Perfect for checking the size of an armchair or bookcase, and slim enough to disappear in a pocket.
Quality tools: the gift that keeps on giving.
Diamond Strike Anywhere Matches
WAY BACK WHEN THE WORLD WAS a simpler place, my plumbing practice concentrated on specialized services to restaurants. Fortuitous events led a customer to give me a commercial Garland oven with 4-top range. From this point on, I was hooked on commercial equipment for the superior construction and control one had over their work.
The Garland is gone, was traded to The Master Of Disaster for wages owed. I did, however, acquire a countertop 2-burner APW WYOTT a few years later, sporting a healthy 30,000 BTUs per burner. ***your typical residential cooktop might product 12,500 BTUs on a good day***
The quest for matches in a smoke-free household often impeded timely lighting of the range, usually when marinated chicken was past due in a cast iron skillet. I finally tracked down the wooden matches 
ubiquitous throughout childhood, when gas ranges did not have standing pilots. Surprise, surprise, surprise! Still Made In The USA Since 1881 they are!
Naturally, we’re talking about Diamond matches. I chose Strike Anywhere Extra Long to fire up the APW Wyott GPH-2H. This exclusively outdoor minimal-cleanup gas cook top can now safely be lit without sacrificing the hair on one’s fingers! While current production Wyott countertop ranges, like the GHP-2i, feature electronic ignition, Diamond matches will find a use in any household. They store for decades.
APW Wyott GHP-2i dual open burner countertop range features heavy-duty cast iron grates that quickly conduct heat and distribute it evenly to your pans or pots.
Apsco Fishing Reel Pencil Sharpener
A slight handsome lad shuffles to the front of the classroom to a wall-mounted pencil sharpener beside the blackboard. Pencil inserted, he slowly engages the planetary sharpener, called thus because the mechanism revolves around a stationary pencil. While he does not yet understand the principle within the mechanism which rotates a set of helical cylindrical cutters set at a diverging angle to each other, he does appreciate this opportunity to covertly observe Lori in the front row. If only she knew . . .
Another American Pencil Sharpener Company product is embedded in the memory of a 5th grader, along with the smell of chalk dust, cedar shavings, and graphite. Nothing smells like a pencil, and recalls to me the timeless experience of grade school. The magic of childhood forever with us. But what of APSCO, of Chicago, Illinois? Ahh, stay tuned for Part II of this fascinating story . . .
The Fishing Reel APSCO imaged at the top of this article ended up in the same Dumpster® as the Revere Ware. Yet another 
piece of Americana inadvertently tossed on the rubbish heap! Fortunately, the intrepid author was there for rescue, triage, research, and restoration. ***Cue heart-pounding triumphant music*** Uncle Curt, up there with Saint Peter threading another worm, smiles through a wreath of pipe smoke . . .
Pennsylvania Blue Marble
Bizarre marine arthropods of the Cambrian Explosion roamed a vast sea which covered what is now Valley Forge National Park. Relax, we refer to events of 450 million years ago. Under this sea there formed a weakly metamorphosed calcite marble. Fa
st forward, to the early days of The Republic. This Pennsylvania Blue Marble became an important regional building stone in the first half of the nineteenth century.
One has but to tour older Philadelphia row home neighborhoods to see its extensive use as steps, window sills, lentils, and trim. Alas, structural decomposition, changing design tastes, and improved transportation systems increased availability of better quality white marbles from New England and Georgia. What becomes of the Pennsylvania marble as buildings are pulled down?
People like me collected steps and sills in nicer condition for garden use. Wear patterns tell the story of healthy, prosperous neighborhoods. Tool marks upon the ends aid
one in establishing production date, as methods of stone dressing evolved. The 350 pound steps were welcomed by friends and neighbors, as well. A unique pillar for the garden bird bath or flower-pot. And the sills make great bordering stones! Pictured is a local effort. These stones were pulled from houses under demolition within Philadelphia’s Fairmount section.
Mid-Century Revere Ware 10″ skillet
AHH, THE CRACKLE OF BACON. Butter, hitting the right temperature to snap and foam! Then in go the eggs! The basics of an American Breakfast.
As a three-year old, sitting on the floor for hours in a kitchen identical to Julia Child’s The French Chef set, these were the sounds I heard. And revisiting her shows years later, I began to appreciate the nuances of temperature, time, and cooking surface.
When my best teflon pan gave up the ghost, I researched All-Clad selections, convinced technology had trumped tradition. Investigations cast doubt, however, upon my preconceptions! The buying decision was even more tempered with caution and eventually placed on hiatus.
Along came a fortunate Dumpster® find, as a friend’s childhood abode was being cleared out for the next owner. I had scored a nice stack of 1950’s-era Revere Ware, as detailed here in a previous blog entry.
The pile was stored in an apple crate. A piece found use as a water bowl for our cat, some smaller pots went to neighbors, but the skillet? The skillet I retained, beheld by the rich history of its patina and a promise of potential magic. I saw value, but was unsure how to harness its powers.
Only after repeated frustrations with our remaining daily-use skillet did I retrieve the old 10″ Revere Ware skillet from the crate, wash it thoroughly, and give it a try. Wow, first use with a grilled cheese, and the butter burned. O.K., it heats up really fast, but it was even. All of the stove’s potential made it to the cook surface. Then I tried eggs, and again burned the butter. Third time’s the charm. I’ve found a perfect pan. Nothing sticks to the decade’s old stainless interior, and the copper bottom spreads heat as well as it did in 1955, when purchased.
This pan should be a basic tool of anyone learning to cook, as well as a must-have for the experienced chef. About $5 at a garage sale near you, or $25 through online auctions.
1960’s PYREX Water Pitcher
VENTURING BY GREEN fields of new rye through southern Delaware, I ponder way-points to make my trip more interesting, the foremost category being American Thrift Stores. The more affluent the area, the better. While Lower Delaware does not have the cachet of, say, Palm Beach, there are pockets of glitter amid the dust and monotony of farmland. One such oasis is Rehoboth Beach.
Passing a strip mall designed for all shoppers, myself due for a break, I wheel into a parking spot, fortuitously coming to a stop in front of a large Thrift Store. My quests for the right butter dish and perfect water pitcher continue! More on the butter dish if I ever find it. But the pitcher? I want light weight – thin glass – and large enough to get my hand inside to clean in.
Why light weight? A shoulder injury has made some routine chores more difficult. A heavy clunky water pitcher extended at arm’s length can sometimes be a painful experience. Besides, if it is going to sit on the counter, might it not be pleasing to the eye?
The Deal Of The Century was thus found: this Pyrex® pitcher in the Eames tradition. Thin glass keeps the weight down, while the volume is a decent quart. Perfect for a round of martinis on the deck! Or, as is more often the case in my deckless abode, enough water to accompany a meal of spicy chili. Two dollars it cost me! An eBay replacement is about $50 delivered, if you can find one!
THOR•LO ~ Padded Socks
“Free” and “Made in U.S.A.” were the buzz words.
NORTH CAROLINA HAS ALWAYS been one of my favorite vacation destinations, particularly the Great Smoky Mountains. I love the states’ abundance of flowering trees, especially fruit trees, like peach, pear, apple, & cherry. The Garden of Eden, indeed, along with its rich history of furniture manufacturers and knitting mills.
But sadly, much of the knitting has been outsourced overseas. In the early 1980s, Jim Throneburg set out to change that, and invented the Thorlos brand, vowing Thorlos will always be made in Statesville, North Carolina.
I hadn’t remembered hearing the name Thorlos, but when an acquaintance posted Free socks offer* on a sportsmen’s chat forum, I tuned in PDQ. A little research revealed Thorlos makes purpose-designed socks for outdoors people, tradesmen, medical conditions [diabetes], and leisure. Their core is developing relationships with people who want/need “engineered padded socks” which reduce blisters, pain, pressures, and moisture. Their mission is to be the very best padded sock manufacturing company in America. 
The DeFeet Aireator® blog posting remains one of the most popular on AmericanToolbox. DeFeets, however, are different from Thorlos. DeFeets started out making a light, breathable sock, and Thorlos makes a heavily padded sock. Both great American companies, but with different focus.
My free pair came today. I chose the hiking, crew length. My feet will be loving these socks, from an easy start through springtime meadows to the hottest August hill-climb. And the bonus, I’ll be absolutely stylin’ on the trails in these sage-colored socks, with my Danner Boots. Turns out, I do have Thorlos experience, as the knitting is recognizable. I inherited several pairs of Thorlos when my brother passed, but never knew the brand. His collection is pushing 15- to 20- years old, and still serviceable.
*While supplies last. One per billing address. Pay $4.90 shipping and handling. US residents only. Allow up to 4 to 6 weeks for delivery.
Schrade Multi-Tool
GOOD THINGS COME in small packages. A motto I’ve often reminded coworkers who remark upon my diminutive stature. So when I spied a small flat leather case on the top rack behind the hardware checkout counter, my interest was piqued.
At this time in my life, my efficiency as a tradesman depended upon compartmentalization. A box for this, a pouch for that. Having the right copper fitting or wall anchor, perhaps a handful of cement or two wire nuts, determined if the job would be completed in one trip. Small, efficient, purpose-build cases were the rage. And that flat leather, snap-closed case looked interesting.
Clyde glanced over, spied the case after a bit, and said he wasn’t sure what it was. A step stool aided retrieval, and a moment later, I was holding a case of thick leather, well-stitched & riveted, with the heavily embossed words, SCHRADE TOOL. Childhood presents had impressed upon me the value of small heavy items, and the case’s heft intimated something good was within!
“How much?” Clyde shrugged, said “Twenty bucks”. I responded with a skeptical frown, but peeled a twenty from my pocket, dropped it on the counter, and let him figure out how to handle a sale with no SKU or stock number. Got the case in my pocket before he could change his mind!
Stamped SHRADE U.S.A., this multi-tool is perfect for an outdoorsman, tradesman, hobbyist, and anyone who likes to be prepared. I’ve actually acquired another; one for the truck and one for the desk drawer. While I’ve yet to use the saw or metal file, the multi-tool has more than once completed its task, saving me a trip to a more complete toolbox.
Many of the Schrade multi-tools are now imported. Their lifetime warranty is nice, but I still prefer the domestic tools when you can find them. USA production Schrade multi-tool, about $1 to $20 at a garage sale near you.
Red Wing Work Boots
THE ROLLICKING ’20s were a grand time in Philadelphia. Luxury “flats” stretched entire blocks. Inside these aristocratic apartments, room after room unfolded in a maze. As an apprentice plumber, a kid in a man’s body, I once found myself on the 8th floor above 15th and Spruce, snapping a piece of 6″ cast iron pipe. We were replacing part of a cracked stack in just such a grande dame near the Academy of Music.
Snap! Crack! Ouch! . . . wait, what happened? The pipe jumped forward a funny way, and smacked my ankle. The boss, grinning through his cigarette smoke, christened me Hoppy, chuckling at the swelling. A few minutes later, he promised we’d visit Vern at the boot store. My health benefits were about to kick in.
Vern ran the local Red Wing Boot Store. For ten bucks, Vern handed me a used but serviceable pair of boots in my size from out back. I was now officially a plumber, with the boots to match. 8″ of leather protected my ankles. Sturdy soles protected my arches in the trenches, where I practiced the Art of Digging. I’ve been buying Red Wing exclusively ever since.
There is a city called Red Wing, in Minnesota. The heart of a country engrossed with mining, logging and farming needed the Right Boots. In 1905, local shoe merchant Charles Beckman, along with 14 investors, opened a shoe company to develop work boots to fill industry needs. A new standard for excellence was born!
My current pair was bought as closeouts a decade ago, and finally put into service a few years back. After 
the heels became mushy, I belatedly discovered these boots were not recraftable. New boots looked to be in order. However, a shoe genius located, at all places, the corner of 15th and Spruce, cut off the heels and glued on new ones for $40, saving me a thick stack of crisp Yankee dollars.
Red Wing is a city in Goodhue County, Minnesota, United States, on the Mississippi River. The population was 16,459 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Goodhue County.
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American Toolbox 
