Rust Hunting in Georgia 2011.11.12

Just a few things from a sale I hit on Saturday - this one was well advertised and apparently quite a bit had already been sold by the time I got there. I did miss out on a nice body vixen body file mounted in a tension handle (already have one but you never know). Everything that was left was fairly cheap - actually the stuff I bought was dirt cheap - most of what you see was in the quarter pile.

The larger of these hammers was the most expensive item I bought at $3 - guess no one wanted it. I think it's a useful size - about 2 pounds. The ball pein with a broken handle was a quarter and seems pretty well made - it's marked but hard to read.

I was hoping the micrometer was a Starrett - but no it's a Craftsman and the only one left that wasn't rusty that still worked (I left two others that were basket cases) - for a dollar I couldn't complain. I also got the Craftsman thread chaser for a buck.

I threw in the fret saw which I actually purchased at another sale for $5 - it's not as good as my old Millers Falls but I figured it would work as a backup. The real prize from the sale was this Atlas Steady Rest:

This was in the quarter pile. That's right, I found an Atlas steady rest that fits my 6" Craftsman-branded Atlas metal lathe for a quarter. Never would I have imagined ever, EVER finding such an odd-ball item that I can actually use so cheap. If you look you'll see that one of the "fingers" is missing. I believe I can find a replacement relatively easy (or fab one up if need be). I checked it on my lathe and it fits perfectly.

I asked about the lathe while I was at the sale - the guy said it was long gone and in really rough shape. The buyer claimed everything would need to be rebuilt (going from this part it just looks very dirty). No telling what it went for but I would have liked to seen it. Funny that the buyer missed this part.

Well, that's it for me - fairly slim pickings but I've had so much luck so far this year it's probably time for things to settle down (running out of space!).

-- John

Rust Hunting in Georgia - April 28, 2011

I stopped at a well-published estate sale on Thursday and picked up just a few items - most of the goods were outrageously over-priced (as usual these days) but I still managed to find a couple of good items. When I walked them up to pay I thought I would end up putting them back after hearing the prices given to those in front of me. Somehow Ye Ole Tool Gods were with me - the lady said "How about $15 for everything?" - SCORE!

First up is the set of mechanics tools - the Proto ignition wrenches are a nice pair to find, as is the vintage SnapOn ratchet - it matches the quarter-inch ratchet I found last year. I also like these 90 degree drivers and the Craftsman example was nicely made (they come in very handy).

The second set of hand tools includes a Stanley Hurwood #20 wood-handled driver, a pair of Porter Cable tool wrenches (which always seem to be missing) and a set of Klein dikes (the identical pair I already owned have part of the cutting edge blown out from a hot wire - don't laugh - so I was glad to find a replacement).

Stanley Hurwood - my favorite Wood-handled Screwdrivers

But the real find of the day was this 1935 Simmons "Keen Kutter" full-line hardcover catalog. This is the first of this quality I've found in the wild. With a whopping 2118 pages this book is a real beast having illustrations on just about every page and color plates. Besides having the expected full-line of Keen Kutter tools, there are also many Stanley tools, hardware of every size and description, Bicycles and replacement gun parts - you name it. It's an amazing book!

I'm not yet sure what I'm going to do with the book - at minimum I think it would make a good trade item - seems like it would also do very well on eBay, having a lot of cross-collecting appeal.

Oh I should explain the extra items in the photo - we've been slowly replacing all our storage containers for food with glass - preferably Pyrex - as we're trying to get away for storing food in plastics or metal. Those are two glass containers with lids, and an extra pair of lids I got in the deal. I did manage to score one extra item at a sale on Saturday - a "Power Rake" for $4 (it looked well made and was about the only reasonably priced item at the sale) - I found the rake on Lee Valley's website - seems it goes for about $40 or so - hope it works as good as it looks!

-- John

Rust Hunting in Georgia - April 4, 2011

On my way to the local Home Depot I saw a sign for a Moving Sale - stopped by and the older gentleman, who was a retired electrician had a few bits and parts for sale in mixed boxes scattered about the driveway, as well as the furniture inside his home. I spotted a couple of things including two rusty Union marked chisels (one with a handle, the other without), a Proto Tools "Challenger" 9/16" wrench, a small brass wire brush, a 20A orange receptacle and a handful of replacement cord ends (male and female) in both 120V and 220V. I got the small pile for $2.

I hit each chisel with a wire brush for a couple of minutes - there's some pitting but  these will make fine user tools - I've already added a handle (that fit the first try) to the mortise chisel.

I'm not sure if you can see the marks clearly, but Union is full marked on the paring chisel and half marked on the mortise chisel. As Union supplied many electrical tools I'm guessing the guy bought them as part of a set at some point for a job or something. He had some other chisels but they were well used and not much worth saving.

I worked around the house and at our rental property over the weekend so I wasn't able to hit any other sales - I did score pretty well during the week so I think things balance out nicely in any case.

-- John

Rust Hunting in Georgia - March 31, 2011

Spotted a sale this morning and made a quick flyby based on the photos. The sale was marked "Mid Century Modern" yada yada and that drew me to the photos. Looking at them the garage full of tools showed some promise. By the time I got there this afternoon it was fairly picked over - just missed a metal welding table with an enormous vise that sold to a guy for $60 - I don't think he even knew what he got with that deal - the vise alone was probably worth $100-200 so he got the vise cheap and the table for free. I did find a small group of files - seller wanted $30 for the lot but I decided to get picky (I've currently got a 5 gallon bucket of old files that keep getting in my way and didn't want to add too much to the pile) and only picked up the vixen files - I have a soft-spot for those - he told me $3 each. I kept walking around and found a Sears marked soft-bristle brass brush and a Starrett 12" combination square. Got the whole group for $17.

This is the newest Starrett I own with a smoth (non pebbly) slide

Mostly Nicholson

I went inside and the only thing I saw that was interesting was an old wood-topped work table - but at $60 I passed. It was at least 2 1/2" thick made from maple I think - very worn. The last I bought like that I managed to purchase for way less so I guess I'm spoiled. I did another pass in the garage and started looking at this old roll-away tool box. It's a bit rough - the previous owner was an auto mechanic. After pointing out some of the flaws in the boxes (the top is a Kennedy style machinist box) I haggled down to $35 for the top and bottom.

I've never heard of Huot

Seems fairly well-made

As a bonus I got the contents of the top

Both Course and Fine tins of Clover Compound

Now the bottom I recognized as I've occasionally found tools marked Proto Tools - especially wood handled hammers and wrenches. My understanding is that this manufacturer was more popular on the west coast rather than in the South East. Also, I believe the company was bought by Stanley at some point.

Box No. 9941

I may pick up some locks so the upper and lower will match the same key - if you've every accidentally locked one of these you'll understand why I'm considering it. In all, not a bad haul for a 15 minute drive. I swung by another sale that was nearby but didn't find anything at that one. Wonder if finding this now means the weekend will be extra fruitful or dead? No telling...

-- John