slim_boy_fat
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As per the thread title, a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing - well, so can a lot of ignorance...
When I got the lathe, I saw these on "the 'Bay of Everything We Don't Need" and thought...."Oh good, plenty of bits of round bar for practise at turning", so bid and won them, admittedly for 'not a lot'.
They were described [correctly as it turns out, and where my ignorance came up for air
] as 'gauges' but ....well, what did I know?
Now I DO know [and understand] what they are. Some, if not all, are HSS and [I've been told that they might be HCS] the few that are marked have "Hoffman, England", "Osborn, England" and Clarkson, England HHS" on them.
Of course, I only discovered this when I went to turn one to make a T handle for something....
HSS v HSS is never going to work.
I've got no way of machining them e.g. milling/turning but the small ones might end up being ground to make cutters, the larger ones drifts/punches etc. Every day a school day, eh.......?
I've got no way of heating them to red hot and allowing slow/controlled cooling as has been suggested by a pal. 
This one has a 'one-off' or home made look to it, any ideas what purpose it might have served? Don't think it's a template for re-sewing buttons......
Apologies for the lack of the obligatory mug for scale.
Answers on a postcard

When I got the lathe, I saw these on "the 'Bay of Everything We Don't Need" and thought...."Oh good, plenty of bits of round bar for practise at turning", so bid and won them, admittedly for 'not a lot'.
They were described [correctly as it turns out, and where my ignorance came up for air

Now I DO know [and understand] what they are. Some, if not all, are HSS and [I've been told that they might be HCS] the few that are marked have "Hoffman, England", "Osborn, England" and Clarkson, England HHS" on them.
Of course, I only discovered this when I went to turn one to make a T handle for something....





This one has a 'one-off' or home made look to it, any ideas what purpose it might have served? Don't think it's a template for re-sewing buttons......



Apologies for the lack of the obligatory mug for scale.

Answers on a postcard
