needle corkscrew?

On the heels of the folding bell corkscrew, I was contacted by a seller about a corkscrew with needles that they had for sale. Needles?

I emailed back, asking for photos and pricing, and went about my business. The only thing that really made sense to me was that it must be one of those cartridge injection corkscrews. There are many varieties of that type, and some with a relative amount of age to them, but they aren’t really my type of thing.

So… whilst I was making dinner the other night, and streaming K-Jazz (out of Cal State Long Beach, you should really check them out), an email came through with a picture of the aforementioned needle corkscrew.

With a fantastic asking price, I might add.

No, it wasn’t one of those injection thingies. And, it doesn’t really have needles. No…this one has spikes; three of them. And, is marked PAT’D across the top. I didn’t try to haggle, I paid through paypal promptly, and the item is on it’s way.

Now, this one is a double, and I know that Tommy will be sending offer material at any moment. Come on TC… let’s see what you got…!

Wilhelm Von zur Gathen

Wilhelm you ask???

I was sipping some coffee this morning, when I decided to attempt a search for a specific patented corkscrew. And, all I was looking for was an image of it. So, when a corkscrew came up–not Wilhelm’s mind you–on a classified/sales/antique site, I decided to search for corkscrews for a couple of minutes.

And, it didn’t take long to find Wilhelm’s contraption, although I was looking for any corkscrew at the time. With the asking price being less than you are probably imagining, the 1894 German registered design will probably make the best 6 for 2009.

The seller didn’t have information on whether it is marked or not, so that will have to wait for a couple of days. But, from the photo, it is a dead ringer for the one pictured on page 77 of Ferd Peter’s Mechanical Corkscrews.

I will post information regarding the markings, and a better photo, once it arrives. But until then, here is a Wilhelm Von zur Gathen’s corkscrew (soon to be in the collection!)

back from the JFO

Okay… driving from Troy, MI back to Newton Highlands, MA takes a fair amount of time. But, we made it back!

The first round of ICCA auctions ended while we were driving home, and I did manage to sell off a couple of items. But, I didn’t win a thing! I will keep an eye on the next round, as there are one or two that I am definitely after…

As to the JFO lot that BT and I picked up, there are many pieces that are intriguing; some will stay in the collection, and some will be available for trade. And, a couple will hit eBay in the coming weeks.

Of course, there was the ONE that got away…as Barry Taylor made a big score before I even arrived. That said, after having dinner with he and Marty the other night–they are fabulous hosts, and have an unbelievable collection–I hinted at possibly making a trade with him for his recent acquisition.

So… here are pictures of some of the stuff that came home with me. There are interesting ones, odd ones, and a couple that are definite keepers.

The first, is a keeper. Not really rare in the grand sense, as it is just a wood sheath and wire worm. However, I have never seen a black one before, and this is marked for A.W. Stephens…

a Bar Valet?

5 flashes… one of which is a good inch longer than the others…

An unusual opener/corkscrew marked INDESTRO –there is also some faint USA marking on there as well…

another unusual one… no patent or patent applied marking, and this one isn’t in O’Leary that I can find…

This one wasn’t part of the lot, but I did swing a deal for a Negbaur Piggy…

Neat can opener/corkscrew with neckstand.

This one does appear in the patent applied for section of O’Leary, but I had never seen one in person before. A cool little corkscrew.

Rydquist patent. This one appears in the patent applied for section of O’Leary, but actually is a patent.

A Nylin patent multi-tool. This is the one that got the conversation going, which resulted in the deal.

There were three variations of the sure-cut, I got two of them…

There is also one "Jewel" from O’Leary’s section on patent applied, and also two King of Cutters…

And, I did score a Walker and Orr patent spoon. This was not part of the lot, but I was thrilled to pick this up!

Here are a few of the various patented bottle/jar/can openers that just looked interesting enough to be added to the lot. There are still others that need to be unpacked!

Morning 3… leaving the JFO

we are heading back this morning with an extra 27 corkscrews/openers in tow!

It has been a fantastic time, filled with some great company, some very cool corkscrews, and one or two incredible deals.

For those wondering what will be coming home with us, pictures will be posted tomorrow, but here is a partial list:

Rydquist

Walker and Orr spoon

Nylin

Sav-Kapp

Negbaur Pig

Knudsen

3 sure cuts with corkscrew

1 that reads "patent allowed" (it’s in the patent applied for section of O’Leary–more details tomorrow)

5 flashes

and, 12 others that I can’t remember given they are packed up, and it is four o’clock in the morning.

Yes, the corkscrew gods were with us for this meeting!

JFO day 2 (or 3)

SCORE !!!!!!!

A detailed list to follow, but Barry Taylor and I just picked up about 40 various corkscrews and openers for a song!

Patents galore!!!!

JFO early evening 1 (or is that 2)

"Let’s go get a drink" the lovely said convivially.

so… it looks like we are off for a drink and dinner. No major corkscrew deals yet. I have picked up one or two things, and sold a few. Tomorrow is the buy and sell, and I have my eye on a couple of corkscrews which will hopefully land in the collection.

JFO day one

well, technically this is morning two, or last night was the tail end of day one…

The lovely and I headed off yesterday morning, and started driving. And, after several hours of rain and traffic–who is up at this hour anyway–we made it to Buffalo, then started heading into Canada. After brief lunch, at The Prince of Wales Hotel in Niagra-on-the-Lake, we were back on the road.

The lunch was fabulous! No time to look for corkscrews however.

After a few more hours, we were heading in to MI, and after a somewhat seemingly circuitous route provided to us by the garmin, we got to the hotel.

Trades have already been proposed and made. And, today we will begin really hitting the other collectors rooms.

I have a feeling there will be a blockbuster deal between JS and I… stay tuned!

JFO-ing

The coffee is on, but man is it early…

We head out on our drive to MI within the next hour. 11.5 hours, and then we will be arriving at the JFO meeting location. The car is packed up, and the lovely made us some yummy treats to snack on along the way.

No other corkscrew news of note, other than there are 50 or so packed in the back of the mini for sale or trade to the other folk attending the meeting.

The coffee maker just made the "coffee is ready" sound…music to my ears.

back from Maine!

The weekend in Maine was fabulous! And, we can hardly wait to go back. Of course, we will have to wait, as there are some other adventures coming up. Thursday in the wee hours we start driving to MI for the JFO.

Corkscrewing was minimal, but we did manage to pick up a bullet mold tool with corkscrew handle. And, just prior to our departure I managed to find a group of corkscrews on eBay.fr for a nice price.

Most of the lot is nothing to get excited about, but there is one that is definitely worth the euros!

I didn’t check email or ebay for the last three days, as our only foray into the cybersphere was looking for information on another house on the island that we are interested in buying. Bigger than our current one, with room for company and corkscrews!

More tomorrow, and definitely from Troy, MI ! I will update finds, trades, and other corkscrewy news

Off to Maine for a couple of days

The lovely and I are heading up to Vinalhaven for a couple of days.

Corkscrew news will be somewhat delayed due to a rather illusive wireless signal which is only sometimes available (and, then it is only intermittent).