Ansell Hand Tools – Made in Sheffield – Thank Goodness!
Amidst all the current doom and economic gloom it is actually quite refreshing to be able to report on one of those all- important small businesses that is doing well by making good products that will probably never go out of fashion. I am talking about Ansell Han Tools of Sheffield, makers of a range of traditional hand tools that are actually made in Sheffield, used widely in Britain and also exported. The secret of Ansell Hand Tools seems to be that they make tools that need to be hand made and forged and are
absolutely necessary in various building and engineering trades since there are no power tool equivalents or serious competition from the Far East –yet. The kinds of tools that I am talking about are things like bolsters, cold chisels, cranked chisels and a few recently launched products like the Ultimate Slate-Ripper and tile-lifter. Ansell Hand Tools was formed in 1980 by husband and wife team John and Patricia Ansell. John had had a considerable
experience of forges and forging production both in the UK and Germany as well as a grandfather who was one of Sheffield’s “little Mesters”. In 1990, when it became necessary to move premises, the opportunity was taken to create modern production processes that were efficient as well as flexible. This obviously worked well, because ten years later the premises were extended again to meet increasing orders and bring in some new machinery. As I have heard so often before from other companies, Ansell’s success has been due to the motto of “top quality and
reasonable prices” as well as having flexible production methods that can respond to new directions in the market. One of the most interesting things about Ansell Hand Tools as far as I am concerned, is that it actively encourages and responds to customers who have particular tooling problems to solve. Need a new design of cranked chisel? Ansell will work with you to produce exactly what you need. These days when our High Streets seem to be clones of each other, whether you are in Sheffield or Southampton, it is great to have the facility to have something specially made and not have to struggle on with a product that is cheap and unsuitable just because it can be produced by the million in China. Ansell also offers a range of engineering and cutting services like abrasive
wheel cutting, band sawing and batch hardness testing. It is my guess that this wide range of services and skills means that Ansell always has a range of customers needs to serve and is therefore successful in a very tough market. I must confess that I have had a very limited experience of the roofing
and tiling trade, but Ansell was keen to showcase two new products – the Ultimate Slate Ripper and a tile-removing tool. I had to go and consult a few friends in the trade and discuss and use the products with them before I could fully appreciate their virtues, but on the plus side, I widened my experience of hand tools. No learning is ever wasted. Slate rippers are, I discovered, very useful tools in removing and
replacing slates. The UK has many slate roofed buildings, in the old days done with Welsh slate. But all roofs have a shelf life, and in many cases planning restrictions mean that they have to be replaced like with like, usually with imported slate, unfortunately. Slates are usually fixed with a nail in the top centre of the slate. If the slate needs to be removed, a tool has to be slid under the slate where it is manipulated to find the nail and a sharp hook on the tool is then engaged. A short sharp tug on the nail breaks it and the slate should then be released. The ripping tool should ideally be flexible and flat enough to be manoeuvred easily into place and the hooked cutting edges should be shaped so that they engage with the nail head easily as well as being ground
and hardened so that repeated cutting of nails is possible. In many ways, these two features –flexibility and hardness- are on opposite ends of the steel forging scale. Hardness usually entails brittleness of the steel, and flexible steel is softer. By hand forging these slate rippers Ansell’s forgers are able to create a flexible and flat main blade that can easily be inserted under the tiles, while localized heating and hardening of the cutting hooks ensures that they are up to the job. I was actually quite fascinated to see the evidence of hand forging of the handle portion still on the blade, but as it got closer to the hooks it was neatly flat ground and increasingly flexible. I have always been amazed at the different ways in which tradespeople I know have customized their tools, but to see this on a “factory-made” product is quite incredible. There are a few changes on the Ultimate Slate Ripper that make it a more useful tool. For example the big plastic handle protects the user’s hands. The handle is also constructed to be at right angles to the blade using a flat section of steel so that it can easily be hit backwards with a hammer. This is necessary sometimes to break a nail that is tougher or thicker than normal. It is only by comparing the original version with the Ultimate that one can appreciate the differences, but the changes are driven by customer preferences. The other new tool I looked at and perhaps was more able to appreciate it’s simple virtues was the tile removing tool. Very simple in concept – a nice sharp ground
edge at right angles to a handle. The Ansell version is a bit more developed than this description suggests. The ground edge is carefully angled and the big plastic protective handle protects from falling debris. The handle is further up the handle so that the back of the tool can be struck with a hammer if the tiles are particularly difficult to remove. I tried the tile remover on floor tiles and it worked well, but I also tried it on my study floor where I needed to remove the remains of an oak floor ruined by a leaky boiler. Since the oak was so damaged it didn’t matter if there was any further damage to it, this tool removed it quickly and without fuss. I didn’t even cause any problems with the concrete substrate. Potential customers would be well advised to look at the Ansell Hand Tools website or get in touch with Ansell by phone. You never know, the solution to your particular tooling problem may be just a phone call away.
Reply No. 207
Independent Review by Peter Brett
6 ToolBUSINESS+HIRE
www.toolbusiness.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32