Great subject. But there's too much ground for me to cover here while I'm on vacation (Florida!).
In brief, as Troy says the origin of sandblasts is a murky topic. Certainly predating Dunhill. Their patent was of dubious value as a barrier to entry; more of a marketing ploy. If it was worth much Dunhill, a notoriously litigious company, would have sued all its competitors. The link Troy provided is to a terrific gallery of early blasts accompanied by assorted interesting comments. Kudos to Troy for that thread!
Comoy may well have experimented with sandblasting in the twenties. God knows sandblasting went through a real vogue in the mid-1920s in the UK and America. I assume Derek's statement was based on a hallmarked piece but don't really know.
As for the Sandblast grade, I'm with Reschke. Catalogs on both sides of the Atlantic suggest an introduction about 1952.
In brief, as Troy says the origin of sandblasts is a murky topic. Certainly predating Dunhill. Their patent was of dubious value as a barrier to entry; more of a marketing ploy. If it was worth much Dunhill, a notoriously litigious company, would have sued all its competitors. The link Troy provided is to a terrific gallery of early blasts accompanied by assorted interesting comments. Kudos to Troy for that thread!
Comoy may well have experimented with sandblasting in the twenties. God knows sandblasting went through a real vogue in the mid-1920s in the UK and America. I assume Derek's statement was based on a hallmarked piece but don't really know.
As for the Sandblast grade, I'm with Reschke. Catalogs on both sides of the Atlantic suggest an introduction about 1952.
