Tools, Sharpening and Power Machinery - Old tools

Whats the oldest tool you own? I have a set of taps and dies that I got from my dad....Hanson..Ace Super Set that appears to be at least from the late 40's..

Yours?

Just wondering....

Never, ever start a post like that. My heart palpated. Old tools.
I've got a set #2, 5, 6 and 7 Bailey (not Stanley) planes; 5 wooden block planes some with Bailey metal workings; a Skil (Guild) circular saw with a spring loaded flop down blade protector (early 50's); A draw knife (razor sharp) my grand dad used on his farm.
And my pride....My dad and I were somewhere in West Virginia helping to build a church, and I forgot my 2' level. One of the church members lent me his. It was a mahogany with brass banding (old) with pop up peep sights on the ends to use as a transit. When we were driving out of the parking lot he approached our truck and told me I had forgotten my level. I looked in my gun rack and my 4' was there. He reached up and handed me his 2' antique. They had no money, and this was the only way he could show his appreciation. I tried to refuse, but there's certain things you don't do to old people, especially in the country. I keep it, as well as the planes, etc. on a "train track" shelf in my office.
Oh, did I mention my 2 man cross cut saw. My grand father cleared land with it.
Old tools....love 'em.

Wow, what a thread!:D

When my parents moved into a retirement center I 'inherited' some of my father's tools. Among them are some hammers that I believe belonged to his father who was a pro carpenter who worked into his 70's and retired in the late 40's. My favorite hammer [and it is in my shop but don't ask to borrow it] is all steel with a heavily wrapped with leather handle.

I also have a wet rock that has a wooden case that my grandfather built - I couldn't imagine making something like that with no access to any power tools.

I also have an old brace and bit that I bought at a flea market approx 30 yrs ago. I also have no small number of tools that my kids might consider old but........ most of my tools I've either bought new or used over the last 40 yrs. I still have my 1st drill; a 1/2" chuck B&D. I paid $7-$8 for it new to install an 8-track player in a 63 ford. The drill wobbles some and I've long since bought another more powerfull drill but I've no intentions of getting rid of the B&D even if it mostly just gathers dust on the shelf.

I have a lot of old tools---this is the only one I still use.
Purchased from a street peddler in 1952/53--no name plate on drill.
Works like day it was new--about 800 rpm

http://img194.imageshack.us/img194/7803/drilli.th.jpg (http://img194.imageshack.us/i/drilli.jpg/)

I had some other stuff from my Dad, old hand tools mostly..but it got stolen when a dumba$$ buddy left my car parked in a bad area, when he was using it to change apartments. At least all his uniforms and clothes got stolen as well..maybe he'll think next time he borrows a vehicle. Luckily the tap set was locked up in my storage unit.

Wasn't much of a wood worker before my Dad died, so the family friend that bought their house got to keep a lot of stuff. Craftsman RA saw, drill press and wood lathe from the 50's, mahogany and oak woodworking bench my Dad built, lots of old planes and such from the '30s and '40s.

@chandler..does that saw have a thumb opreated lever to raise the guard. I have one that I bought about 10-15 yrs ago...called a Classic I think? What a great idea, both hands on the saw, but you can still raise the guard for cuts when required. Don't know why they discontinued it.

@marksr....what the heck is a wet rock? Did you mean Pet Rock? lol

At the moment I can't think of the other names it's called but it's the "stone" you use to sharpen knives.

Lol I kinda thought so...guess what..its called a whetstone..at least it used to be.

Since they have all the modern alternatives..now you can have "wet stones" and "dry stones" (which are also a standard for computer performance..though spelled differently I think).

The saw is very dangerous by OSHA standards today. The guard only drops back as you pass through the wood and slams shut (sometimes) when you exit the cut. In order to make plunge cuts (holding the guard on today's saws) is might near impossible, since you would have to reach under the saw and pull down and back on the guard. Scary. Dad had all his fingers when he died, so I guess he was careful.

Old tools... well, I still have some of the screwdrivers my brother gave me for a graduation present in 1986... LOL

But I suppose you mean the tools themselves! I suppose my oldest might be my Stanley #45 (type 4), an 1896 model combination plane.

I have a no-name brace in used condition, and a couple pretty cool hole cutters for the brace. They just have a couple sharp (dull looking) wings that protrude downward to do the cutting. I can't imagine actually using something like that to cut a hole!

I have my trusty Crescent #56 nail puller (the kind with the sliding handle that you slide up and slam down to take a bite out of the wood and get a grip on the nail. It's just like the kind my dad used. Not really a very old tool, but I treat it like an antique.

Also picked up a cool nickel-plated push drill a while back. It says Goodell-Pratt Co, patent 1915.

I have a 1910 Stanley-Bailey #4C, and also a Stanley Handyman (like a #4), which is circa 1950. not a highly valuable plane, but its a good beater.

Not sure if it's considered a "tool" or not, but I picked up a Keen Kutter hand meat grinder that's pretty nice... reminds me of the one grandma used to use in her kitchen. Found an old washboard in great shape at the Goodwill for a couple bucks... figured in another 25 years it would be worth 20x as much. If nothing else it will come in handy if we ever go homeless.

Not much into old tools, I guess. I like buying new ones too much!

I also have a couple of Bailey planes and one wood one that came from my wife's grandfather. Chandler, I also have a draw knife that I picked up at a junk store a couple of years ago. I have a few hand tools that were my dad's, ball peen hammer, pliers etc. Not really old, '50's probably.
I still have the B&D circular saw with the thumb deal that I bought in the early 70's.

Whats the oldest tool you own? I have a set of taps and dies that I got from my dad....Hanson..Ace Super Set that appears to be at least from the late 40's..

Yours?

Just wondering....

have several old wooden planes- large jack plane, small rabbet plane and a couple of old stanley metal planes. also have a good draw knife that i still use. but the oldest thing i have, not really a tool although i use it to keep some of my taps and dies in an old fishing tackle box, is a butcher's apron safety pin. remember butchers? they would actually cut the meat for you as you wanted it! PROGRESS!!!!

Not exactly a tool, but I have an old slide rule that was my Dad's that was "Made in Occupied Japan". :coffee:

I always had a problem with the screen on my slide rule. Couldn't find a USB receptacle on it.
Brant, also in "non-tools", I have my great grandmother's bread tray or bread bowl, heck, the thing she made those melt in your mouth biscuits in. Cut from a maple tree and hand hewn by my great grandfather. No cracks, about 3' long and 18" wide.
Hey, Mike, I've got one of those pins in my roll about chest just sitting there. Good use for it!!

Even I have got old spanners of my dad ( No, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13) and one old hammer, and screwdrivers, and knives from the 1970 - 80s .

Old tools.. some good stuff still.
I have my Dad's old Sears and Roebuck router (#315-25031) circa 1963 that I still use today.Works just fine!
A wood chisle set (wood handles), Dad made a box for them..stiill in great shape and I keep then sharpened.
My grandads old wood level..2 bubbles only...haha...!
Some old 'pull' planers...etc.
Gotta love some of the old stuff.

Oh, the old stuff can't be beat. Improved upon, but not beat. Incidentally, though it probably doesn't matter, GG, the circle saw is a Guild, built by Porter Cable, not Skil.

Brant, also in "non-tools", I have my great grandmother's bread tray or bread bowl, heck, the thing she made those melt in your mouth biscuits in.

Good times. Grandma's are the best.

I'd like to see a pic of that saw..if you can show why its a danger....

See how the bail has to be pulled down and away from the blade. You almost have to put your hand in the plane of the blade to grab the bail.
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j3/larrychandler/DSCF0828.jpg

That saw guard does look dangerous as well as cumbersome. Does it come up level with the sole plate when ripping plywood?
My favorite old tools are some L S Starrett machinist tools that my Dad had in the 1940's. The one I use most is a combination square. I also have a Yates American Model Y-20 20" bandsaw made in 1934. I got it in 1983. I called Yates American with the serial no. and they sent me copies of the original paperwork. It started life in a boat factory in Wisconsin. It has a 1 HP 3 phase motor which runs at 900 RPM. It takes about 15-20 seconds to get up to speed, then coasts for over two minutes when I shut it off. It's like cutting on the Rock of Gibraltar, it's so smooth. Later I got a YA shaper from the same era, but it was so big & heavy I just refurbished it & traded it in for a new Delta, which I still have.

Yeah, the fence does come flush for ripping (I just opened it for clarification). If you had to do a plunge cut, look where you would have to place your hand to hold or grab the fence. Shiver. But my dad died with 8 fingers and 2 thumbs, and used it professionally.