Sorby blades

[pommyphil]

I,ve got a couple of old plane blades, stamped Rob Sorby with a kangaroo ? I can't find an Australian connection on the Sorby website. Were these blades made in AU ? Or for AU ? Or is it just a trademark ? Mystified :?

[derekh]

I have a Sorby drawknife with the Kangaroo stamped on it. I used Google and could only find reference to a kangaroo branding not an AU manufacture.

[DanSplinters]

Hi PommyPhil

I don't know anything about the Sorby Brand, but the Kangaroo emblem suggests it is Australian, and often older Planers used standard blades that were common to a variety of brands.

Can you advise what it is that you are wanting to do with these blades, i.e, Repair or Replace Them, and what the Dimensions are, as it may be possible to modify Blades of some other Planer to suit.

I have been looking for some 4.5" X 5/8* X 1/8" Blades for an old Gilbro Jointer, and am being told that the simplest solution is to have some 6" Blades cut back to 4.5"

Regards

Dan Mahony.

[pommyphil]

Sorry Dan, I should have been more specific, these are hand plane blades, one from a 9" wooden smoother, the other's in a Spiers coffin smoother,
But, the blades for my 318mm thicknesser are 319 X 18 X 3.2mm double edged HSS
less than $40 a pair at Bunnies. Should be able to chop them down.

Cheers Phil

[derekh]

See http://www.robert-sorby.co.uk/company_info.htm for details about the company.

"In the first part of the nineteenth century it was from the ranks of cutlers and edge tools manufacturers that there emerged the new breed of Sheffield steelmakers who were to sustain the city for a century. By 1850 there were in Sheffield no fewer than 150 steelmakers, many of them small businesses, seeking to exploit the growing worldwide demand for steel.

During this period many of Sheffield's leading businessmen had been forced to seek new markets overseas and travelled widely. This was often reflected in the name of the factory or the brand - Atlantic, Toronto, Philadelphia, Lion, Elephant were all well known names.

In the case of Robert Sorby and Sons the factory was known as Kangaroo Works. The kangaroo itself was one of a number of registered trade marks used extensively until the 1980's. The presence of Robert Sorby in the Antipodes is further reflected by medals and diplomas of distinction awarded in both New Zealand and Australia as well as in London, Edinburgh and Calcutta."

[pommyphil]

Thanks Derekh Thats exactly what I wanted. My Google must have been having a bad day. Phil,