[jaynjeep]

Originally Posted by sawdustdad

I got that tap and die set from a friend of 25 years who is now moving to a retirement apartment (assisted living facility). He was cleaning out his basement workshop and offered me this set that belonged to his dad, who worked as a machinist at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard. His dad passed away a couple years ago at age 96. Bob is 74. It's hard to tell scale in the picture, but the wooden box is over 2 feet long and about a foot wide.

While it didn't build the Ark, you are not far off, I'm sure it was used in the construction of a bunch of Naval vessels...

That tap and die set is so cool... even better is that you have a story with it! I love vintage tools.. you just can't buy that kind of quality any longer. Even better is the history!

I have a South Bend Lathe that was built for the Navy in 1942. I bought it 20 years ago from a retired Naval Machinist that worked on the battleships in WWII. He bought the lathe surplus after the war and ran his own machine shop for 40 years. Unfortunately he passed away several years ago at the age of 97! For several years after I bought the old machine he came by my shop for visitation with his old friend as he called the old south bend!