Back in the days before mass-produced imports, being a
DIY'er sometimes meant making your own tools. My dad belongs to that generation, as do some of the men in my husband's family. Relatively few people have the gear or know-how required to do that these days. Sad, huh?
To revisit that self-sufficient era, head to Frank Campbell's
A Woodworker's Bench Notes. In addition to all sorts of
carpentry instructions, wood-working plans, and generally handy tips, this great little site also has
a page dedicated to the site creator's dad, Hugh Campbell. Here you can view photos of some Campbell-creations, along with explanatory notes. Included are photos of a jig
saw, a
drill press, and a power hack saw -- all of them home-made in the 1940s and 50s. Guess what? They are all still working today.
There's also a newspaper clipping from 1946 attesting to Campbell's status as a local inventor. It tells how Campbell dealt with the problem of transportation around his farm after a particularly heavy snowfall by building a caterpillar snow toboggan. Other impressive inventions included a "garden tractor" that incorporated old car parts, and a swathing machine, the frame of which was constructed from an old truck.
Source
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