July 30, 201312 yr I'd like to bring to the attention of our growing old tool collectors here on this site the benefits of belonging to The Midwest Tools Collectors Association. When you become a member of the association you get The Gristmill, a quarterly magazine chock full of information on your old tools. There is no other club in America that has a membership dedicated to the preservation and teachings of old tools and implements. The cost is minimal to join, and you are listed in their membership book annually and you get to attend MWTCA meetings held all over America that consists of tents and buildings full of tool meets, displays, music, luncheons etc. To join click on MWTCA and support a great family oriented organization. You guys will love it!!! Â Â Membership in M-WTCA entitles you to: * Attend with your spouse, the two annual national meetings as well as numerous local or regional meetings which are planned throughout the year. Featured at these meetings are tours and visits to appropriate museums, restorations and other sources of historical impact as well as lectures, seminars, films and interesting demonstrations of early crafts. Members are encouraged to display outstanding tools from their collections and to bring items for sale and trade. Programs for the non-member spouse are also an integral part of these meetings. * A subscription to our magazine, THE GRISTMILL, a quarterly publication featuring stories about and of interest to M-WTCA members as well as articles of educational importance written by and for tool collectors. * All publications and reprints issued for each year of your membership with the Association. Over the years a wide and varied assortment of tool-related literature such as out of print tool and trade manuals, tool and hardware catalogs, etc. have been printed and distributed to the membership. If you feel that your interests and objectives coincide with those of the Association, we would welcome you as a member. Â It truly is a wonderful organization, I love my membership. Besides, Roy can't be wrong now can he! Â John MorrisThe Patriot Woodworker John MorrisThe Patriot Woodworker
July 30, 201312 yr I joined John, the only thing I didn't like is you pay the full dues and they are on the calendar year. So you will only get maybe the last quarter and one more and then you pay the full dues again in January. A prorated amount for a new person joining mid-way of the year would be nice. No it's not a lot of money, more the principal.But I sent them my money and will check it out. I have most of the sites that will date tools bookmarked and I take my iPad with me and look up as much as I have time to while I am standing there looking at the tool. On a lot of them till you can take them apart and see under everything it is hard to tell it parts have been exchanged or swapped out.I look forward to seeing what they have to offer.John MoodySite AdministratorJohn Moody Woodworkshttp://www.johnmoodywoodworks.com
July 30, 201312 yr I looked into joining a few years ago but there are no tool meets/shows in my area or anywhere relatively close to me here in Yorktown, VA.
July 30, 201312 yr Author That is right John, but you will get all the back issues of the Gristmill and the really cool old book reprint. They'll bring you up to speed, so you are not really missing anything except some tool meets you were not able to attend before now. I look at it more like we are supporting a great organization that its sole purpose is the preservation and knowledge of old tools and implements. They are not really a source for pricing either, though they do have their tool auctions, the pricing factor is low on their radar as they concentrate more on the historical importance and pedigree of tools and implements. I think the sources you have for pricing are great, and you should stick with them, and use MWTCA as a wonderful learning tool as I have. The folks are incredible, I have met some MWTCA folks in my area here in Southern CA. As a matter of fact the fellow I am building that Pine cabinet set for is an MWTCA member and his collection of old tools and implements are incredible, it really is a tight knit community, and I can't wait for the day you attend one of their tool meets and report back to us! I have not been to one yet, but I hear they are the bomb!!!!! Congratulations on your new journey with the MWTCA!John Moody said: I joined John, the only thing I didn't like is you pay the full dues and they are on the calendar year. So you will only get maybe the last quarter and one more and then you pay the full dues again in January. A prorated amount for a new person joining mid-way of the year would be nice. No it's not a lot of money, more the principal. But I sent them my money and will check it out. I have most of the sites that will date tools bookmarked and I take my iPad with me and look up as much as I have time to while I am standing there looking at the tool. On a lot of them till you can take them apart and see under everything it is hard to tell it parts have been exchanged or swapped out. I look forward to seeing what they have to offer. John MoodySite AdministratorJohn Moody Woodworkshttp://www.johnmoodywoodworks.com John MorrisThe Patriot Woodworker
July 30, 201312 yr Author That is an issue with my area as well Adam, although we do have the West Coast Tool Association they are not very active. Nothing like the MWTCA, just another reason for us to leave CA the first chance we get!!!!!! But as I stated in the above post to John, it's more about supporting a great organization who's sole purpose is the preservation of history in the form of tools and implements. Adam Welker said: I looked into joining a few years ago but there are no tool meets/shows in my area or anywhere relatively close to me here in Yorktown, VA. John MorrisThe Patriot Woodworker
July 30, 201312 yr Well I am certainly in favor or preserving the history of the tools. That is what attracts me to the older items I have picked up. Price is not a huge factor, but I don't want to spend any more than I have to. It is a good idea if you are looking at it to at least have an idea what it sells for, shoot you might be able to order and pay shipping and get it cheaper unless you just want to have it while you hold it. I'm looking forward to seeing what they send John. Georgia was the closest meet I saw listed in my area. Depends on what part of Georgia it is in. Some please are only a couple of hours away and other are a day trip or more. It would be very interesting to attend one and who knows I might be able to work it out My wife loves to shop for some items and the other day, she had walked on ahead while I was looking at something and she is the one that came back and told me, there is a table up here you are going to want to spend some time at so give me what you have in your hand so you can pick them up and look them over. Now you gotta love that. John Morris said: That is right John, but you will get all the back issues of the Gristmill and the really cool old book reprint. They'll bring you up to speed, so you are not really missing anything except some tool meets you were not able to attend before now. I look at it more like we are supporting a great organization that its sole purpose is the preservation and knowledge of old tools and implements. They are not really a source for pricing either, though they do have their tool auctions, the pricing factor is low on their radar as they concentrate more on the historical importance and pedigree of tools and implements. I think the sources you have for pricing are great, and you should stick with them, and use MWTCA as a wonderful learning tool as I have. The folks are incredible, I have met some MWTCA folks in my area here in Southern CA. As a matter of fact the fellow I am building that Pine cabinet set for is an MWTCA member and his collection of old tools and implements are incredible, it really is a tight knit community, and I can't wait for the day you attend one of their tool meets and report back to us! I have not been to one yet, but I hear they are the bomb!!!!! Congratulations on your new journey with the MWTCA!John Moody said: John MorrisThe Patriot Woodworker
July 30, 201312 yr Just as a side note, I love history. Had I decided to become a teacher, it would have been a history teacher. I was in the history club in school and it was one of my favorite subjects. I took extra history classes in summer school so I could take others during the school year. I guess I was a real school nerd back then.So it fits in with what I like now. Don't get me wrong, I love brand spanking shiny new things, but I love to find the old things in great shape and ponder on who might have owned it and what they made with it.John MoodySite AdministratorJohn Moody Woodworkshttp://www.johnmoodywoodworks.com
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