Here is my Haul for the last few days.
1st off an auction buy, from a shut down brewery in San Jose (Hermitage for the locals). Several ads on CL caught my eye, some Lista cabinets, couple of grinders, buncha other stuff I didn't need, like a Brite tank. This was the only item that stayed within my hi bid range, a California Air Tools 4610A compressor w 4.6gal tanks. Brought it home, cleaned all the flour dust off of it, and it fired right up, with an air leak at the unloader (I know these things only because I read all the air compressor trouble threads here). Took it four minutes instead of just over 2 to pump up. Oh well, another $20 for a new pressure switch, still a decent deal. Here it is nestled in the truck bed, ready for the trip home.
Saturday brought two potentially interesting sales, 2 houses apart, and a potential on the way in. Drove past the potential, still setting up, so I headed to the estate (grampa's house) and moving sale neighborhood. The estate sale offered woodworking tools, but either it was well picked over 5 minutes in, or he was a power only guy. Did find a nice toolbox on the way in, ignored it since I really didn't need one, but it was still there 20 minutes later as I was leaving. Asked for a price, daughter starts hemming and hawing, dad butts in and says a low price, daughter started to interject, then caught herself, not wanting to contradict dad. He asked for 2 bucks more for the other 4 items, and I am on my way. Daughter started to ask mom for change, and I waved her off, knowing I had a good deal. Box was a Crowntop logo 6516, with some misc tools inside, mostly Craftsman, have not inventoried it well. The box tucked inside was a Heritage logo, with what appears to be a complete period correct set inside. The ratchet convinced me I needed it. Will track it down in a catalog later. More details in the long C thread, which is what the Ratchet is marked.
The house two doors down was having a moving sale, prepping for a United move to Houston area. Some nice tools, some I had no right even looking at. Left an early Craftsman number 5C plane behind, some flipper grabbed it before I could change my mind. I made a small pile, and asked the guy to give me a price. The nicest thing in the pile IMO was an unmarked planer gage. H flipped through the pile, and with his hand still on the planer gage, gave me a price, which I assumed was just for that, which was the high end of my range, and that is what he wanted for the whole pile. Sold.
Included L-R: two replacement handles, both by Link, Stanley machinist vise, unknown vise painted red almost everywhere, except one spot on each set of threads, Little Jack by Chicago Scientific, Proto 3/4" x 8" chisel, Starrett hermaphrodite and inside calipers, unmarked possibly apprentice made planer gage w a stuck main screw in a home fitted box, chinese made needle files, Jacobs chuck on a #2 taper which will fit my Jet mini lathe, 2x unmarked hand vises in nice condition, Solo Stanley trammel, (finally makes a pair), Stanley #700 vise, early w patent, Palmgren machinist vise.
The last stop, hit on the way back out, yielded some real treasures. This was another cleaning out Grampa's house, with the grandson's GF running the show. He had to run into work for a few hours, so she texted him on a tough item. Supposedly they had spent 2 weekends cleaning stuff out of the rafters of the garage, and another section was off limits for the time being. They expected to have 6-8 more sales to thin the herd.
This one started slow, found a box of screws, modern vintage stuff. Moved the lid it was hiding under, and found many boxes of vintage wood screws, from 6 up to 10, included blued screws, and nice round head slotted screws. Left the Phillips stuff behind. Next I stepped into the garage, got past a can of tacky rusty tools, and started poking around on the workbench. Found most of the tools either on the bench, or in a coffee can overhead. L - R, Utica chain nose and horse lock (~snap ring) pliers, Williams Superjustable locking adjustable wrench, 2 Hurd cam lockset, too deep for most that I need, Baker & Hamilton (big local distributor ages ago) blued shingling hatchet, Proto 6 & 8" adjustables, 3x Proto screwdrivers, 2x Yankee right angle ratchet screwdrivers, including a big one I've never seen before, a Craftsman combo stone, a wooden box, details below, pliers by Waymouth, M.W. Weber?, Oxwall (dammit), Cemco Italy, Globemaster (dammit again), Kraueter, Unmarked pliers. The Oxwall and Globemaster pliers are actually not half bad, I couldn't make out the names in the garage, didn't bring a magnifier this trip.
So the wooden case was kinda funny. It was on the edge of the off limits stuff, so I asked about it. Without opening it, she goes, we don't know what it is, but its old, so not sure what to ask. I explained it was a tap and die set, and what it did, making threads, she gave me a No Idea answer, and said she'd text the BF. Gave me a good price on the other goodies, and finally got an answer of slightly more than the first price, but even at double the original price, I was pleased.
Its a vintage S.W. Card tap and die set, with extra dies and taps. It is old enough that it came with 4-36 and 14-20 taps standard. There are also multiple dies in a few holes, so many extras. Have not inventoried it yet to see how many old oddball sizes are in there, but quite pleased. There was a handwritten note w sizes in the box, but when I opened it up at home yesterday, a gust of wind took it straight up, and I never found it. Was bummed to lose that bit of ephemera, but it was gone it a flash. And I have no idea what the black rings, left center are. More on that later in the T&D thread.
All in all a good weekend, made better by the fact that I managed to get a set of Metro racking from a few months back into service, so a bit of cleaning up took place the last two days, just need to button it all up now that its cooling off a bit here.
Will post more details on these in their appropriate threads.
I really didn’t want to buy it, because the “acquisitions dept” has been trying to focus on Bonney products. (Haha.) Yet when I buffed the rust off the back of the slide…
www.ukworkshop.co.uk
To be honest, I'm not much of a woodworker. It does raise a good question about the original market. Definitely a nostalgia market now.
www.garagejournal.com
) Certainly Asian, the hammer I replaced as he broke the original head (claw as usual...) but I grabbed the set as he was going to dump it. Then it got a place of prominence in the "Art Room" (I am barely tolerated unless they need me to do something...) This thing is at least 30 years old. I'd guess you can still get a similar set...
