The “Marvel” geometric compass
The Bennett "Marvel" Geometric compass is a classic example of the torturous development and ultimate failure of an overcomplicated solution to a problem that never really existed in the first…
How I gained 25 lbs and got the six-pack of my dreams!
Don't worry, this isn't another of those spam emails advertising protein shakes or the like. I'm talking weights. Ship weights. Admiralty pattern. These were the extremely heavy lead blocks (variously…
Galileo! Galileo!
Not to be confused with Galileo's compass, the Staedtler Galileo could be considered one of the last radical redesigns of the modern compass, literally turning the usual fine-adjustment spindle concept…
Philden-Coyne Students’ No. 1 geometry set
School geometry sets have always been tangential to my main interest in professional drawing instruments, but occasionally something odd will catch my eye. This particular set attracted no attention on…
WF Stanley catalogues and price lists
From one of the first Stanley catalogues to one of the last, the envelope of material that came with my Amsler no. 5 planimeter included a rare price list dated February 1976. This five-page…
More WF Stanley catalogues online
While researching a couple of new W.F. Stanley finds this weekend, I happened upon a couple of very exciting early sources (well, exciting for me anyway) that had until now…
Rule Britannia
When it comes to patented rulers, it's difficult to concieve of anything more basic than this particular example. It consists simply of a pentagonal section ebonised rod with the end…
The art of drawing instruments
The Painted Hall at the Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich, gets its name from the flamboyant baroque imagery that covers 40,000 square feet of its interior walls and ceilings. Designed…
EngSoc
Today's featured set is a very nice quality wallet case originally retailed by the University of Toronto Engineering Society. It was interesting to discover that this society still exists today,…
Hale’s elliptical compass
While hunting around for more background on Taguel's mould-breaking elliptical compass, I came across a long and detailed paper entitled "Elliptographs, and the Application of Elliptical Curves" by Frank J.…