William Hunt and Sons
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William Hunt and Sons or WHS was a tool manufacturing firm from Sheffield in England. In the UK building trade, the WHS initials are affectionately referred to as 'Work Hard or Starve'. Amongst British archaeologists, who use the firm's 4" pointing trowels, this has become 'Work Hard and Starve', a reference to the notoriously poor pay and conditions in that industry.
The company was founded in 1793, acquired by Brades Nash Industries in 1951 and then by Spear and Jackson in 1962. In 1985, Neill Tools inherited the WHS name when it bought Spear and Jackson.
The trowel is prized amongst archaeologists in the United Kingdom who find its strength useful in digging heavy deposits.
In 2005, the company introduced a new version of the 4" WHS pointing trowel (officially known as the London handle type standard heel width pattern number 111, part number 11104L, 100mm (4 inch) one-piece solid roll forged pointing trowel). The new, thinner and more brittle design was designed more for the construction industry but it was reported in field archaeology industry newsletter, The Digger, that it was encountering resistance from archaeologists who found it inferior to the predecessor model. Oxford Archaeology indicated it might switch to the American-made Marshalltown trowel. As of 2006, complaints of breakages on site to the British Archaeological Jobs Resource brought about indications from the firm that it might re-introduce the original model, but with significant changes suggested by archaeologists.
In the summer of 2006, the new trowel was launched. After listening to archaeologist feedback, the new trowel (which even says "archaeologists trowel" on the blade) has incorporated:
- Thicker, stronger blade
- Higher lift for extra knuckle clearance
- Flattened tang to stop handle rotation
