Tool Talk

General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: jimwrench on August 17, 2012, 03:06:51 PM

Title: Mueller Drill
Post by: jimwrench on August 17, 2012, 03:06:51 PM

  Heres an old hand drill which is marked "H Mueller Mfg Co. Decatur,Il Pat Jul 30,1899" Thats all very good but don't believe that is a patent issue date. Spent a couple of hours sitting on a hard metal folding chair at auction last night to get this. I'm in Decatur area and Mueller items bring a premium around here sometimes but crud ( scientific name for oxidation) had rendered marking illegible. Does anyone know when Hieronymous reallt patented this ?

Title: Re: Mueller Drill
Post by: mikeswrenches on August 17, 2012, 05:22:10 PM

Jim,
  I looked at Datamp, as I'm sure you did, and found nothing.  Also looked at Google patents a couple ways and found nothing there.

It's possible that it was never patented.  Back then it was not unknown for inventors to mark tools with a patent date that didn't exist.  It would keep the competition down.  Also it was much more difficult to check on whether a patent had actually been issued, not like today with all the patents on the internet.

Mike

Title: Re: Mueller Drill
Post by: rusty on August 17, 2012, 06:58:56 PM

Mr M has his own museum ....

http://www.muellermuseum.org/biography.php

Title: Re: Mueller Drill
Post by: Bus on August 17, 2012, 07:25:26 PM

Could it be July 30, 1889?

http://www.datamp.org/patents/displayPatent.php?number=407842&typeCode=0 (http://www.datamp.org/patents/displayPatent.php?number=407842&typeCode=0)

Title: Re: Mueller Drill
Post by: jimwrench on August 17, 2012, 10:05:21 PM

Right on Bus. It is 1889 and I don't know why I coudn't read that this afternoon. Guess sun was in my eyes. Datamp is correct patent drawing doesn't look like actual driver.

Title: Re: Mueller Drill
Post by: Branson on August 18, 2012, 06:21:58 AM

It looks quite a bit like Goodell Brothers automatic screw drivers.  They have one patent from 1869, I seem to remember.   I don't see, offhand, what
the 1889 patent covers -- it looks like an ordinary Archimedes drill.   I do remember looking at my first Goodell Bros screwdriver and thinking it an application of the principles of the Archimedes drill.

Title: Re: Mueller Drill
Post by: jimwrench on August 23, 2012, 06:01:00 PM

Visited the Mueller museum today and they had 4 or 5 tool drivers similar to mine but none exactly the same. Anton Schuermann had his patents on several them. looks like some more research needed to see what all he was associated with. There was a locksmith with the Schuermann name in Decatur within my memory. Wonder if he was a descendent ?