ID-DOC: general search

Brush to apply shaving soap before shaving with a razor knife or safety razor. A shaving brush consists of a bundle of neck hair from the badger (1), pig bristles (formerly also horsehair), silk or nylon glued into a handle made of horn or bone, wood, metal, bakelite or plastic. The working part is conical or spherical. The shaving brush is first wetted with hot water and rubbed over the jar of solid shaving soap with circular movements. When using a shaving stick, it is rubbed over the beard to be shaved and brought to a light foamy layer with the wet shaving brush. Shaving cream or gel are sprayed onto the wet shaving brush. The brush is held in such a way that you grab the base of the hair with your fingers. The shaving cream is applied to the beard hair with back and forth movements or with pumping and twisting movements (2). [MOT] (1) The soft badger hairs have a high absorption capacity. (2) DE BROUWER & VAN LIEROP: 96-97.

Hard roller approx. 3-6 cm wide, used to press the seams between the strips of wallpaper; with relief paper, a soft wallpaper brush is used for this because the roller in front of the seams presses the relief flat. The working part can be made of plastic, metal, wood, bone or ivory (1). To smooth the wallpaper on the wall, there are seam rollers that are wider and covered with a soft material such as felt or flannel (2). [MOT] (1) SELLENS: 315. (2) SELLENS: 315.

Usually wedge-shaped wooden, metal (1) or bone hand tool (approx. 20-25 cm long) with rounded edges and a straight handle, sometimes sculpted in the shape of a piece of rope (2). It is used by the sailmaker to flatten the seams of the sail. The sailmaker sometimes uses the back of his knife for this purpose. See also the closer's hammer and the furrier's rubber. [MOT] (1) NOORDRAVEN & DE BOER: 101. (2) ASHLEY: 20.

With a serving fork one can easily serve sausages, potatoes, ... It consists of a U-shaped squeezable handle, one end of which ends in two sharp teeth. At the other end is a plate with two holes where the tines of the fork can be inserted. When one pokes a sausage or something like that on the fork and squeezes it tightly, it is slid off by the sliding plate that slides forward. The cake server works in a similar way. [MOT]

The shoe knife is a full metal blade, approx. 15-25 cm long, which is used by the shoemaker to bevel the edges of leather and trim the edges of the sole. The cut is straight and is oblique in the plane of the blade.The blade is often wider towards the cutting end. It can also be concave lengthwise; in this way one avoids damaging the shoe when the edges of the sole are cut. Often the handle is wrapped in thin leather (1). Sometimes the knife itself is made from, for example, a metal strip from a packaging (eg MOT V 84.0056). There are also models with a wooden handle (eg MOT V 88.1549).This knife is used by other leather workers in addition to the shoemaker. For example, the bookbinder uses the knife to thin out the edges of the leather before they are folded over the cover. The basket maker sometimes uses a shoemaker's knife instead of a picking knife (basket maker). [MOT](1) SALAMAN 1986: 141.

Shears (approx. 30 cm long) which consist of one piece of hardened steel bent into a U shape, or two to three pieces of steel that are riveted. The triangular blades rub together when the shears are squeezed or left open. Sheep shears are used to cut sheep short and also for the further processing of wool (see also dog's and sheep trimmers). Sheep shears can also be used to cut grass borders (see also grass shears). See also the Japanese model of the embroiderie scissors. [MOT]

The shoe rasp is a rectangular rasp (approx. 2 cm wide; 20 cm long) without a handle, the two halves of which grate in opposite directions. The shoemaker uses this rasp to smooth and finish the soles, sole edges and heels. The short sides are usually rounded; sometimes one short side is straight. There are also models with one side grooved as a file. See also peg rasp. Can be distinguished from the horse rasp. [MOT]

Before threshing, the farmer cuts loose the twine or straw that binds the sheaves with the sheaf-knife. The blade usually consists of a piece of a scythe blade. It is therefore often slightly curved with a broad back, ending in a point. The length of the blade varies from 12 to 20 cm and is inserted into a straight handle (approx. 10-20 cm). See also the thatching knife and the bale tie cutter. [MOT]

The shedding blade consists of a strip of flexible metal - sometimes made of plastic - (approx. 50 cm by 4 cm), with a handle at both ends (1). It serves to wipe off moisture from heavily sweaty horses.See also the sweat scraper. [MOT](1) A discarded scythe blade was often used for this (e.g. ''Nouveau dictionnaire universel des arts et métiers'': s.v. couteau).

Setting block (1) of a diamond setter, who prepares the gem for the diamond cutter. He places the heated solder caps in it to attach the diamond each time in a suitable position. Derived of the Dutch word 'verstelblok'. The equivalent English name of this tool is unknown.

The shoulder knife is a manual tool used by the marquetry worker to cut veneer (1). It has a blade (approx. 6 cm) with a straight or curved edge. The end of the long wooden handle (approx. 57 cm) is slightly curved and rests on the shoulder of the user. This way he has more control over the knife and can put more pressure.It is also sometimes used as a chip carving knife (2).See also the cutting gauge. [MOT](1) In the 18th century, the cutting gauge was preferred over the shoulder knife. See ROUBO: 847.(2) From DICK catalog: 53.

The hoof hammer is a hammer (300-600 gr) with a round, flat face and split pin that closely resembles the claw hammer (carpenter) but can still be distinguished from it because its claw is usually shorter and more curved. The farrier uses this hammer to nail the horseshoe - when it fits perfectly on the hoof after several heatings and hammerings. The nails should be hammered outwards so as not to hurt the flesh of the foot. The claws are used to rivet the nails that protrude beyond the hoof. [MOT]

The ship maul hammer is used to drive in and out heavy nails, bolts and stud nails and is mainly used by the shipwright. It is a heavy metal pointed hammer on a long handle. The point is straight and has the shape of a truncated cone. The tool is struck with a hammer or club hammer. See also the hand punch. [MOT]

Hand tool with a crescent-shaped or slightly curved blade (approx. 20-60 cm), the edge of which is sometimes provided with small teeth - oblique to the handle - and attached to a short handle (approx. 10-15 cm). The sickle, which weighs about 200-500 gr, is used to harvest (winter) grain, grass, beans, etc. With one hand you hold the stems, with the other - in which you keep the sickle - you cut them off. In general, therefore, cutting is done by friction. However, chopping is also done (1). Exceptionally, a toothed sickle was used as a knife to cut a clod of butter in all directions to get the hairs, straws and the like out (2). The Japanese sickle has an elongated, relatively short (approx. 15-20 cm) blade that is attached at right angles to an approx. 30-40 cm long stem. The edge is slightly concave; the back is convex and relatively wide (approx. 2-6 mm). That sickle weighs about 150 g and is used to cut grass and to harvest rice; a heavier version (approx. 500 g), for pruning shrubs and plants (cf. billhook). The...

Brush with stiff bristles or steel wire, often fan-shaped, and a straight or button-shaped handle. It is used to scrub the sink and dirty pots and pans. Modern dish brushes are made of plastic. See also the pan scrubber. [MOT]

Chisel with one bevel at an angle to the axis of the tool and not perpendicular as with the regular chisel. The skew chisel makes it easy to work in the corners. Especially the joiner and wood engraver use this relatively rare chisel. The tool can be distinguished from the hook and side tool which has two bevels. [MOT]

The slater's stake is a tool for cutting slates to size. It has a sharp straight edge at the top and a sharp point at the bottom that can be hammered into the roof boarding. The slate is placed on the sharp top and cut off with the roofer's hammer. There are different models: round, triangular, rectangular, straight, curved. The straight models are made entirely of metal and have no handle, while the triangular models have a wooden handle. [MOT]

Elongated (approx. 8-25 cm), rounded, slightly concave piece of plastic, metal or horn that is held against the inside of a shoe while it is being put on. Because the hollow takes the shape of the heel, it slides easily into the shoe along it without pushing the back flat. Sometimes the shoehorn is provided with a button hook at the other end. [MOT]

The sledgehammer is a heavy (up to 5 kg) wooden hammer with a long handle (70-100 cm) for driving posts into the ground, splitting wood, driving a thick peg into a hole, tamping soil (1), etc. The sledgehammer can be made of a rough piece of wood or be fitted with a metal strap. It is made from a knotty piece if possible. See also the slaugther hammer. [MOT] (1) Eg. DE MAS: 382. See also the soil tamper

The sledgehammer is a heavy hammer (between 2 and 12 kg) with wedge-shaped peen, which in some cases lies in the same plane as the handle. The handle is long (approx. 60 to 100 cm) so that it can be gripped with both hands to hit with great force. The sledgehammer is used by the blacksmith for heavy forging work; many other professions use it too, such as the quarry worker. When the blacksmith works with one or more helpers, he uses a forging hammer to indicate where to strike. The helpers then each handle a sledgehammer to do the actual forging work. [MOT]

The skinning knife has a sturdy, saber-shaped blade attached to a wooden or plastic handle. The cut is rounded upwards, which makes the cutting surface larger. With the skinning knife it is possible to separate the skin in one piece from the meat. The skin is pulled away from the flesh and the knife is drawn over and over again along the thin membrane between flesh and skin. [MOT]

Use a skimming scoop to wipe off the excess foam from a tapped pint. It is a flat, elongated (approx. 20-25 cm), light (approx. 50 gr), full metal plate with a narrower handle. The skimming scoop is used to stroke the edge of the glass in order to obtain a smooth, level foam layer. [MOT]

Hand tool that resembles a garden hoe, but whose thin, sharp blade is usually not symmetrical and the swan-neck shaft and short (approx. 15 cm) wooden handle - is located on the left or right part of the working part . There are also straight models (V Dv 0851). With the small garden hoe, the roots of the weeds are cut just below the surface of the earth, while pulling. The tool is also used in agriculture for hand weeding and beets thinning. See also the scuffle hoe. [MOT]

About 50-60 cm long and about 5 cm wide saw with usually very large teeth (1) - compare with the frozen-food knife - with which snow blocks are cut to build an igloo. The length of the hand tool is decisive for the size of the blocks that can be sawn; the width to be able to exert enough force when loosening those blocks (2). Not infrequently, the snow saw is made yourself (3). [MOT] (1) Although long knives without teeth are also used. (2) HAGEN: 56-59. (3) For example PRATER: 82: "use a piece of tempered aluminum alloy about 1/8-inch thick, 2 inches wide and 26 inches long. Attach a wooden handle to one end, leaving 20 inches for the cutting blade. Hacksaw serrations in it for the cutting teeth."