The Cradle of the American TAP & DIE Industry | Museum of our Industrial Heritage
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- čas přidán 3. 08. 2023
- Learn about the rich history of hard work and innovation at @MuseumofOurIndustrialHeritage , where America's industrial heritage comes to life thanks to preservation, collection, and education to the public. Led by passionate old-school machinists, the museum takes you on a rollercoaster ride through history, weaving a spellbinding national narrative filled with incredible people who shaped the machining world.
Their team of dedicated manual machinist experts-James Terapane, Albert Shane, and Jay Stryker- have hidden treasures from back in the day! Showcasing tools from as early as 19th-century machines, this museum is a treasure trove of awe-inspiring artifacts.
But that's not all! The most captivating part-they've got a mind-blowing archive with documents, photos, films, and sound recordings that'll make you feel like you're right there in the past! The best part? They digitize it all and share this historical gold with the world.
Find them at: industrialhistory.org/
Do you want to take Practical Machinist for a tour around your shop? Drop a comment below or contact us via email at info@practicalmachinist.com, and we will arrange it! Stay tuned for more machining videos!
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The Valley of Freedom!!!
Certainly a place where freedom started, it's sad that many of these innovative companies have been pushed out
I used to own a home two doors down from that museum. It was still a working shop back in the early 90's. I used to take my kids and dogs for a walk along the river every night. In fact, my garage had a little closet made out of wooden boxes from Greenfield Tap and Die. I love this little town.
I'm in Springfield area. Never knew this place existed.
Incredible History - hard to believe now because that whole area is infested with liberals and I’m in Marin County full of these turds - Hail Labor !
I could watch a video about every single old tool in that museum!
Man, there were so many cool pieces in there!
Right?
Me too !!!
I have a small shaper and one of the funniest lines I've heard in machining is "You can make anything with a shaper -- except money."
Yeah I saw the short burst of youtube "creators" buying them. Telling the inexperienced what great machines they are. Meanwhile the experienced individuals know there is good reason the industry left them behind. They are neat, but I can achieve far better tolerance, surface finish, in less time.
Really nice to see that they are keeping the history of the industry alive! My Dad was a machinist at Reed Roller Bit co. for 43 years. Later I think it was bought by G W Murphy. He taught me a lot about lathe and mill operations. I had opportunities to go to work with him several times, but didn't go. Now I wish I had so I could have had a chance to enter into the field. Now I'm old and have an adult son who is not interested in the field either. Mainly I'm proud I'm not a politician's son or father!
It's these folks that made America great. They were the middle class and the foundation on which this country was built.
It's criminal that they are turning out politicians and lawyers instead of real citizens.
This type of success is what makes America great🇺🇲
Agreed but - maybe “made” is the correct term now. Most of this capability has moved overseas now.
We grew up with " Greenfield", as the standard of quality!
And as we progressed in our field, it was, and is, the " go to!!!!!"
I am in awe!!!!!
This was very gratifying to watch. The abilities and creativity of early Americans has always amazed me. Their initial visions have led us to so many amazing advancements that surround us today, we owe them so much. Here I am, at age 85, using computers with graphics software to program LASER engravers and vertical CNC milling machines including a workbench capable of very sophisticated, highly accurate measurements at microwave frequencies. What would our ancestors think of us today?
They would think its magic, miracle or witchcraft...
That was way too short, I could watch this for hours.Great video guys, we have similar museums in the UK, nice to see how it was done elsewhere!
Amazing stuff..Greenfield is the leader in my opinion when it comes to tap and dies and its wonderful to see the american heritage preservation going on here.The textile industry also has its home in Lowell massachusetts where it all began for the united states.My family history goes way back to the 1700's and they all lived in mass...so it makes me proud that my family played there part in the usa's industrial revoulution..
I worked as an Apprentice Tool and Die maker at a shop in Shelton CT. Apex Tool and Cutter Co. Inc. Back in the mid 70's. We made custom Tool Bits and Tool Holders...Milling Cutters...etc. We still had the old overhead Pulley system on a lot of machines. One section had lathes, shaper, Horizontal Miller, Planer...ALL dated to 1860's...we had modern equipment also. Loved working their. Did 3 years there then went to two years of Electronics School and married the two skill sets...best thing I ever did. Can still hear those pulleys and smell the machines from Apex...loved my time there.
That's pretty neat. Bridgeport, stamford, and norwalk used to have tons of tool-and-die, and factories back in the day. My mother worked at two factories in south norwalk after getting off the boat in the early 70's. Have some friends that have retired or passed away, that also worked at places like Pitney Bowes, or perkin Elmer, from way back when.
@@VitoVeccia I worked at Perkin-Elmer in 1980 and 81'. Lived in Norwalk at the time.
@@mauricepowers8079 my family lived in norwalk too. Then in '87 we moved to wilton.
@@VitoVeccia small world...I got married in 87' and lived in Weston. Then moved to Darien for 2 years then moved to NM.
@@mauricepowers8079 wow, small indeed. Especially when it comes to a small town like Weston. You can drive through there in the blink of an eye. At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if we might know some of the same people. A friend of mine grew up on Cedar road, and his neighbor many moons ago was Christopher Walkin. It sounds surprising, but it really isn't. Keith Richard's used to love going to the Georgetown Saloon. And James Gandolfini used to live on Catalpa road, right behind wilton highschool. James was a customer of my friends drycleaners business in Ridgefield.
Being a retired toolmaker this should be a pilgrimage.
If you like this video please check out the American Precision Museum in Winsor, Vermont. It is in an old, really old, gun factory on Main Street. While there walk across the Winsor/Cornish bridge. It is one of the longest wood covered bridges in the world.
I just put the Greenfield museum on my to do list. I have a couple of tap and die kits in my basement that look nearly the same a the one you showed. I was a machines/machine builder many years ago. Like many of my generation I became an scientist because I could not make a living in the trade.
That's another great museum to visit! We were lucky to go there and shoot a two-part video tour. In case you missed it, here's the link to that video czcams.com/video/Vi-sAYA4mCs/video.html
@@PracticalMachinist Thanks.
The APM not only has some of the oldest machine tools in the US, they also have an extensive miniature machine shop made by a retired machinist with dozens of working models only a few inches tall. It is absolutely amazing.
Is there such a thing as a packaged tour of industrial New England that takes place during the autumn leaf color change? I'm talking Starrett, Snap-On, ChanneLock… whatever I can amplify with my skill set!
I do not know but it sounds like a great idea for a automotive club. I'll suggest it to the guy that runs the mid NH corvette club. @@DeWoodyard
My grandfather was a blacksmith. And a Ferrier. And a teamster. Also worked oil wells and coal mines. I was a machinist. And it’s funny you mentioned the box.
Think about how prevalent the card board box is. Everything came in a wooden box. Everything. From Chalk to cheese. Machinery to cigars.
My uncle had a gunshop and later did antiques. Amazing how many things came in a little wooden box. Of course wood was much more available and cheap because of that back then. Rivers caught fire because spontaneous combustion of the sawdust from the saw mills had choked the rivers off. Like a logjam but covered in sawdust.
History is fascinating.
My grandpa said he cried when he saw how they cleared the land in West Virginia and burned the trees just to get rid of them when he was a kid. Trees so big three and four men touching finger tip to finger tip across. Say six feet each times three. Is 18 feet around makes them 6 feet in diameter.
In the 1960s I worked at Vermont Tap nd Die. We were the Pacific Division, we the 'Special' taps Westcoast industry. The biggest tap I ever made was an 8 inch diameter. It weighed 85 pounds at first, 55 pounds after. Good place to work.
During WWII did they not employ 4000 people at one point?
@@MrThisIsMeToo You still here negative Nancy? Told you to piss off.
My dad gave me some Greenfield taps after he retired in the 1970's. Came in a little box and the 3 taps laid in a wooden block. Still have most of them. Appeared to be best in class back then.
Tour Starretts. Its 20 minutes east from Greenfield.
That would be a fantastic tour, I agree!
20 minutes? You drive slow on Rt2. :)
@@MrThisIsMeToo I like to stop and watch sad people commit on the French King Bridge.
@@Blobby_Hill LOL
@@Blobby_Hillcan you please post a video of the route you’re talking about? I’d love to see where and what it look like. 👍
A shame they don't teach this in schools anymore in the US.
You should visit the Engineering museum in Birmingham UK. It is fascinating. They have the original screw threads cut by hand into wooden rounds.
Maudsley ??
Where is the engineering museum in Birmingham?
Hmm! "Original" wooden screw threads by all accounts go back to 400 BC!! Bit earlier than Brumagem! 🤔🙄😲🤣🤣🤣
@@boblewis5558, he’s talking about the museum has the originals as made, not that they invented them.
@@vicscott7872Harold's definitely represented there but so are a good few others. It's basically a British equivalent of this place. If you're ever around it I second the suggestion, that place is amazing too
Mass. was the center of precision tools and methods in America back in the day.
I’m a retired Caterpillar engine mechanic who spends a couple hours most mornings on CZcams. This is the most interesting video I’ve seen in a long time. Thank you so much for doing this for us out here. I plan to visit this museum if I ever get to that part of our country. New subscriber here.
Thank you very much for checking it out!
this is so neat it just makes me cry. thanks to all who have saved this.
I was a machinist for 45 year. It was my life and I enjoyed it. I learn to set up and operate some, (by today's standards) pretty old machine. The oldest a 1870s vintage Pratt&Whitney turret lathe. Mind you this wasn't in a museum. I had to make useable parts with it. The story of the Industrial Revolution quite of glazed over how important Eli Whitney's screw cutting machine, the first machine was . There was no standard screw thread and no way to make them. I you had a contraption and it was put together with screws and you lost one,,,you were screwed. There wasn't another. The other inventer worth reading about is Sam Colt. Ya the revolver guy. Only that was the easy part. He had to invent all kinds of machines like multiple spindle drill presses. Even tooling. There was none before him. Colt invent the assembly line. He was the first person to ever send an electronic message and the gave his invention to his friend Samuel Morse.
Amazing tour thanks. I worked at Indian Head Navy 3rd station at the Metrology lab. We inspected and calabrated the tooling that made the Navy's
Ordinance. I used a 4 foot super micrometer all analog DOM 1941 read to 1/100000 of a inch..amazing stuff.
I am fortunate enough to have some pieces in my greenfield collection that came from someone directly associated with the Museum. Much history. Much love!
I’m live in Medford MA. I’m currently restoring my great grandfathers tools including Greenfield, Wells bros., Starrett etc.. GTD!
Great video! Nicely composed and shot.
The artifacts are awesome but it is the “big picture” geopolitical history provided by people like Jim that is the real treasure. Thank you for keeping history alive - we forget it at our peril.
the cradle of American ingenuity... great video!!!
What fantastic history! Thank you for sharing.
I'm one of the guys left that worked for Talon INC in the Tool and Die area. Most of the guys I learned from have passed. I really miss the trade. Most older Tool Makers know who Talon was.
fascinating...love industrial history. as a historic film maker, two tips, get people to look at the presenter not the camera and shoot more b roll of close up details....but jolly interesting..thanks
well said Prof.......Paul, another film maker/machinist
Yes, I was very disappointed that there were no shots of anything close up.
Particularly unfortunate that the photo enlarger was glossed over by the camera, and also the proximity fuse.
It's not Radio we're listening to, with simple Audio Descriptions, it's supposed to be Video that we are WATCHING.
Fascinating machine shop.
7:46 ,,, "doesn't take much,,, but..." love the honest look... of shock !!!
Another place to see.
if you want to see some of the old machinery still working go see Kieth Rucker in Tifton Ga.
Awesome! Thanks for doing this.
Loved this Video ! my family has many ties to the MetalmIndustry including a Machinist and a Tool and Die Maker that. got along for family functions with a lot of mutual Respect for each other and Yes! i’ve heard all the jokes of those two Trades over and over when the Whiskey came out of the Shops Refridgerator Freezer compartment ! and got passed around with a shot Glass
Utterly amazing!
Great video! Thank you for sharing.
Ian, while you're in CT, you should check out the old clock manufacturers: Seth Thomas, New Haven, Ingraham, Waterbury, etc. All through the 1800s they mass produced literally millions of clocks. The clock industry is also often credited with inventing the production line (not Henry Ford). The American Watch and Clock Museum is in Bristol.
The clock museum in Bristol is really nice. They do not show how they were made, but have 3 floors of clocks on display, many of which are ticking. They even have a couple of "Hickory Dickory Clocks" where the mouse runs up the clock every 12 hours!
Also in Bristol is a military museum, a carousel horse museum and I remember a lock museum up the road in Terryville, but not sure if it's still going.
Those Green River knives are amazing cutters. Have two of them that 4 generations of my family has used.
that is awesome, preserve the history of tool and die and machining of what it took to build this country..i was fortunate to go to a high school -Irvington technical and vocational h.s. in N.J. where young men learned serious trades such as machine shop, tool & die. metallurgy , drafting,hvac..and many more..many of those institutions are gone now that taught many people these skills...
I hope it has a good fire suppression system because historic wooden structures are firetraps and the contents are immensely important to machining history.
I have worked in metal manufacturing most of my life. I am so impressed.
Exceptional interview to learn about the history of tool and die, and how it contributed to the ascendency of the USA.
Great stories. Love this stuff.
finally a tap I can not break AND a hand crank shaper ? very cool place ...Im gonna go hug my vintage Greenfield tap & die set :)
That tap blew my mind! I believe the application was some kind of reactor - crazy stuff!
Very cool. As a retired machinist I found this fascinating. I've used Greenfield, Vermont, and probably other tool brands made right in that location. All great quality i might add.
I had my own little shop and I love this stuff. Had a 1.5 brown and sharp horizontal with a Bridgeport head and 17 inch lebron lathe and some other stuff. Sold it when I retired and now miss it.
Nothing like
Machinist Tools .👍💪👍💪🇺🇸
That's a traveling head shaper. Very cool old school design.
my dad was a machinist for Babcock &Wilcox in Milwaukee Wi. for 46 years
Before electricity says it all. Damn impressive. Vert cool museum.
Another retired Machinist getting goosebumps lol, nice video!
Fantastic.
I was in Greenfield last year. I went to UMass Amherst and worked in Greenfield for a while, never knew this museum exist until now.
GT&D was so impressive. Thankfully I remember it from my youth. Greenfield and Turners falls were leaders in mfg back in the dax. Thank you.
I have an old greenfield tap and die set. It's probably pre WW2 and is all big size - 1/2 inch to 1 inch. Added 8-21-23 It's in a big wooden box.
Thanks, this is great.
Thanks for sharing.
Amazing museum, thank you for finding that gem of knowledge.
Amazing to see what we would call secondhand tools here are given such reverence in the new country , I use machines and tools of those ages daily and others much older , Whitworth invented the standard pitch threads adopted by many engineering works before they where superseded by those you use now , fascinating that the mechanised factory's established in the 15, 16 and 1700s here in Briton are not know of to the North American history tellers
just give me a Colchester, and I will be happy, Paul I Florida, USA
@@ypaulbrown I have one a round top
We didn't invent any of it, it was already here
Thanks for your video
Incredible place! I NEED to visit this museum.
That was great .
Thanks good show
That extra large tap, we use them at the shipyard I work at, in fact, I've seen even larger taps than the one in this video..
I find machine tools amazing.
I HAVE SOMWE GREENFIELD TAP AND DIES OLDER THAN ME AND STILL GE IT DONE
Thank you for this video, love this very much! Greetings from the Netherlands
I've just put this on my short list of places to see the next time I'm out in Greenfield. I've been out there a bunch of times chasing trains since the 70s and have actually driven right by this place a bunch of times having NO IDEA of its significance. Thank you for this great post!
Nice bud could you Imagine working there back in the day wow love it all ready
Awesome! Thanks for making this.
lovely
Starrett country! Johnson Gage too!
I love these videos, what an amazing place!
It was incredible to see, I highly recommend checking it out first hand!
Greenfield was a top quality tap and die company...!
Great video. I will visit that museum next time I’m in Mass.
Most definitely worth a visit!
Strasburg railroad opened for business in 1832.
Trains running down miles of metal train tracks.
I've always wondered how that is possible without tools or shops.
I need that shaper. We had two shapers in our shop, I used them back in the 80's. Scraped them out a long time ago, wish I kept one.
amazing video , thank you .
Very nice video guys! I learned a ton.
The first thing Alexander Hamilton did after being appointed the first US secretary of Treasury was to slap a massive import tax on all English tools which spirited in the production and innovation of American tool manufacturing.
I wonder what the first metal machine shop was before this in Europe?
Thanks Ian. Enjoyed!
Thank you Ian!
Ive tried to visit a couple of times when i was up to Colrain but could never get a hold of anyone.
The Kerite Company was founded in 1860-something here in Seymour, Ct. They still have their original building right on Route 67 and they still make product there. I'm honestly surprised. My apartment complex is a converted millnery, and on some floors you can see the King Shaft humps. Connecticut has a rich history in machining, machine making and making of consumer goods.
Just think of Stanley, Bridgeport and New Britain Machine as part of that history.
@@dennisyardn1ten238 and Collins Axe Co. In Collinsville CT.
The museum director really should include an overview of the economic and geopolitics in the early 1800s. This was the backdrop in which these industries developed.
The Brits began dumping metal products at low prices in America because of there was no European market during the Napoleonic Wars. This continued after Napoleon's final defeat and culminated in the 1828 Tariff of Abominations which precipitated the Nullification Crises of 1832/33. After which large parts of the Tariff were deleted.
The director doesn't seem to have a good understanding of how powerful water power can be. Water power put Minneapolis on the map doing nothing but milling most of the midwest's grain with water power. He also doesn't mention steam power. Steam was the bridging technology that removed the bottle neck of water power before electricity.
I was there! It's super cool museum in a quint NE town.
I love to see a documentary on “Tool City”, which was located in Meadville, Pennsylvania.
Darn that was coool, thanks for sharing. I do wish you’d zoom in a little more on the images and tools, but I guess I’ll have to visit to get the full experience!
Very cool! 👍
The ship building industries - both merchant and naval - were also the driving force for the local American small scale industries to innovate and try to find ways for mass production. You had to have the basics on hand nearby, coal, iron ore, power source (back then mostly streams) and manpower. In the late 1800's, there was also the demand for American made machines from Canada, Mexico, Brasil, Argentina etc, the rest of Latin America. 🌱
One of my all time heros in very early metal working history. Is a man named Elisha K Root. He invented and built most of the tooling and metal working equipment at the colt firearms factory in the Beginning. he also Invented firearms and firearm components. he had lots of different patents. he became president of colt after Samuel colt died in 1862. He's an astonishing man. I Highly recommend looking into him.
The Collins Company profited from the mechanical and engineering skills of Mr. Elisha King Root, who designed many of the machines and processes to shave and grind axe heads.
In 1849, Colonel Sam Colt lured Mr. Root away, with a sizeable salary of $5,000 per year, to a productive career at Colt Patent Firearms Manufacturing. In the words of Paul Harvey, "and now you know the rest of the story".
@ZingaraJoe wow, I did not know that. Elisha Root is one of my heroes. A true engineering genius. When Samuel Colt died, Elisha became company president until his passing. His genius definitely made him a very wealthy man.
Hi, I am over here in the United Kingdom and I am a collector of taps and dies of allsorts and all makes. I currently have about 68 boxes in my collection and I am about to make a film of them all because as a collector they grow each year as things come in, I hope you will find it interesting. I would be interested to see if I have got something. Truly unusual. I specialise in finding stuff that you cannot find. I have lots of films of everything arriving way in my past CZcams as you can see I’ve been going quite sometime and I’ve got lots and lots of films Does poteen taps and dies in my film search and you might find some of the old ones but I’m about to make a film of the whole collection. I hope you enjoy it
I used to live in Westfield, to the south of Greenfield, and there were still small companies doing this type of work. On of them, a specialist screw & bolt maker, was next to me and went bankrupt and was abandoned around 2019.
pretty cool
Hey DUDEZILLA! Thanks for this!! LEARNING about HISTORY ROOOOOOOOCKS like Van Halen in 1988 at Rich Stadium, where the Buffalo Bills play! I know, because I was THERE!!!!
They probably figured out that prevent the rocking of the building, they could phase the machines. I bet the casting of parts of all these new machines was like a moon- shot; all the planning, lining up the cast for a pour. File making was a big deal, and easy to tool-up for. The spring-making industry would be interesting, and would drive them to higher standards of metallurgy.
There's an insanely huge lathe in Taos, New Mexico that is well worth a visit. Couse-Sharp Historic Site is the exact location.
i happen to pass by greenfield all the time never once thought to stop, i will make it a point now. ive used their products my whole professional life and never knew,, funny every time id drive by for 30 years i would make a mental joke about the tools never realizing the connection.