Handmade at our chandlery at Glascote Basin in Tamworth by myself using various new and antique items that I find. I think that we can offer something uniquely high quality as I am the only person on the canal network who silver solders tiller pins so there are none finer! Usually these are drilled and tapped to provide the best chance at never coming to bits.
Why silver solder? The process of silver soldering means that I have to get both the brass item and the brass bar red hot and then melt the silver solder into the joint so that it creates a metal bond which is vastly stronger than the usual bonding method of superglue. As you can imagine the clean up required for this process does add on a fair bit of time and this is reflected in the price. All pins have a rounded end and a countersunk hole for you to attach a small lock or bell rope (please see my other listings) While all this might take a while I do enjoy the process and I like giving a new lease of life to these almost forgotten objects (some of which are over 100 years old), and I feel this is the most high quality way of making these.
Why I don't use superglue - I could make things easier for myself and follow my competitors and use superglue, however I have heard of many stories of pins falling apart over time due to the vibrations of the tiller arm. Superglue in itself does not have the lifespan I would like when dealing with antiques. I am a fan of creating pins from old fireplace tools and when I have researched these many of the designs have a registration date in the 1930's and 1940's so it would be a shame to not do them justice, it is my aim to save these designs from the scrap man and by silver soldering I hope to make sure these last just as long in their new function. If you have questions about the numbers you see on any design please contact me and often I may be able to tell you some details.
My brass designs are drilled and tapped to 8mm and then a hand threaded 8mm by 9cm brass rod is silver soldered to ensure a solid fit. With some other designs I use a 2mm threaded rod drilled and tapped into the top of a 9cm bar, I then secure these with (real) araldite which is vastly stronger than superglue.
-Some general notes on brass ornaments you might see on eBay.-
Unknown to most the common antique designs (80%+) you will see here on eBay were produced in India from the 1950's onwards the way to tell is to look for almond shaped eyes, this is often a common stylistic choice which carries through to today. Other designs may have been produced in South Korea in a brief period after the war when they had not yet become the economic powerhouse they are today. Some historic brassware also comes from Japan from the post war period, but again they move away from this after a short period of time. Its worth noting that the majority of overseas brass ornaments tend to be hollow cast to save on transport costs so this is also a clue to its origins.
British brassware tends to be fairly weighty as it is mostly for a domestic audience and this is an obvious giveaway. The style tends to be quite naturalistic. I am quite picky about which designs should be on a tiller pin due to rarity, some items are worth more to our heritage and future generations. Some of the best stuff was produced by a company called Peerage (or Lombard) in the post war period when they relaunched their classic designs from the 1930's, this can be identified by the "Design Registration Number" which is stamped. This is a good rule of thumb when trying to identify what is British brass (please see my cheap finials advert for examples of this) if it is a British brass item which doesn't contain a design registration number it was probably produced by some of the smaller (usually family) workshops in and around the Birmingham/Walsall Area. Good examples of this are the brass aircraft you may have seen, however the quality of the moulds and castings goes down a lot during the period of 1960's to 1980's and this is also a bit of a give away. Its also worth noting that there isn't much of the pre war brass about because it was melted down in war time (for shell cases, ammo etc) so beware if anyone tries to tell you a brass item is more than 70 years old, you should check the claim on Google.
I hope this helps you identify quality brass ware when you're out and about. If you would like to see some examples please come down to the shop to have a look at our brass ornaments for sale - I would be happy to tell you some more about the histories of the various historic UK makers. We are based at Glascote Basin in Tamworth where I also offer a bespoke tiller pinning service, if you have a brass design you would like on a tiller pin please get in contact and depending on the design I may be able to silver solder it to brass or stainless steel for you at a reasonable cost.
-Can I chrome?-
Sadly I cannot offer a chroming service but I am aware of a couple of customers who have had my work chromed and it turned out looking lovely. In the near future I "should" be able to offer a silver electroplating service but I am still in the research phase. If you are interested please get in touch to find out how this plan is going.
-Why buy from a business seller?-
I am a business seller here on eBay, this means that you are protected by the UK's distance selling laws and eBay's own money back guarantee. I strictly adhere to all eBays rules and policies. If there is a problem please contact me directly or open a case. Should the worst happen and your item goes missing in the post I would never (quote) "provide a copy of the proof of postage, and a claim form, allowing you to complete and submit it to Royal Mail" I take these things very seriously and recognise that the postal contract is between myself and Royal Mail and not my customer and my service provider. You can have full confidence dealing with properly registered business seller as I will endeavour to resolve your issue as quickly as I can.
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-Disclaimers-
While I have made every effort to capture to true colour of the brass in my adverts, as you can imagine it isn't so easy under many light conditions, to add to this many historic makers used many different types and qualities of brass as was available to them in their time, so please do expect some colour variations because digital photography is also known to cause colour distortion, please check the photos carefully before purchase as these form part of the description. If you have any questions please contact me and I can upload some more photos - and I'm always happy to have a chat!
-My postal terms-
All my products are sent using Royal Mail 2nd Class Tracked services in the UK and I also ship globally using eBay's in-house worldwide delivery services (GSP - Sorry, I don't set the prices on this!) Generally my last dispatch of the day is around 2pm GMT so orders before this time "should" be in the post the same day. All items are presented to my local post office depot where a postal receipt is obtained and will be available upon your request.
I am very happy to combine postage on multiple items. If you would like to buy more than one item, please just ADD each of these into your basket (ensuring they are all from the same seller!). When you're ready to pay, click the pay now button and the shipping discount will be applied across the multiple items in your basket. Combined shipping only applies when all items purchased are paid for in one payment. Please check the eBay help section for more info on combined shipping rules and regulations (usually at the bottom of the page). Please ask if you have any queries.
If for any reason you are not happy with your purchase please contact me to arrange a return. All returns must be received within 14 days of purchase and in the same condition as received. A full refund can then be arranged, but it WILL NOT include postage (unless there is a fault or mistake as per eBay rules and regulations).