It was looking bad for me too Outlaw, I thought I was going to go out with a fizzle but thanks to Merc, I'm going out with a BANG!!
So, Merc hits me up at noon with a message saying there is a nice sale close by me. I get done what I'm doing and check out the ad, sure enough, there is a sale right down the road and it not only mentions tools, it mentions that it was an upholstery business!! The sewing machines had sold unfortunately or that would have been the **** of the century... I inquired about a button press and the guy said if it was a snake it would have bit me... I was standing right in front of it facing away from it...d'oh... I start making a pile but it's dark in there and they are closing in mere minutes. I end up with a Proto 1/2" ratchet, 3/8 Thorsen and Williams ratchets, webbing pliers, bunch of button dies and cutters for the button press, bunch of button blanks, BFH, material sample charts and rolls of seat springs. The button press is a Handy model 20 on a cool *** old cabinet, there are boxes and cases of button blanks in the cabinet too. He started pricing things and ended up at $47 total for everything... I gave him $60 and thanked him, told him I would be back tomorrow when they reopen to dig through the drawers for more specialty tools etc.
You should see what Merc got, post up dude! Thanks for the heads up!!
Good to see that you found some things...next time I'll know what that button press is! Was glad to assist, I like to think of myself as Igor, but I tend to drool a bit more and have a slightly more pronounced hump.
From what I heard when I got there, this sale was pretty absurd. Guys grabbing Snap On, SK, Proto, etc. by the crate fulls and running out of the door. I got there around lunch time and it appears that I was the first of the bottom feeders...plenty of USA Craftsman stuff left! I was able to snag:
Estwing rubber mallet
True Temper blacksmith hammer
16 Craftsman combination wrenches
6 Craftsman midget wrenches
2 Craftsman double open end wrenches
3 Craftsman double box end wrenches
5 Craftsman double box end ratcheting metric wrenches
Craftsman screw extracter set
3 Craftsman punches / chisels
Craftsman pry bar
Craftman 1/2 stainless ratchet (Always wanted one!)
Craftsman 1/2 HP commercial block grinder with stand (needs a lot of parts but runs great and smooth)
Ohio Forge grinder
Williams 1/2" SuperRatchet
Wright 1/4" ratchet
Thorsen 1/4" ratchet
V block
Proto 3/8" breaker bar
Proto 345 hack saw
Thread checker set / index (not sure of what to call it, but I've NEEDED one of these)
Starret punch set with wooden case
3 Snap On / Allen sets
Couple of "pointy" pieces I can't ID
Clesco three jaw Puller
3/4" drive socket set, ratchet, extension, and 1/2" adapter (Taiwan)
1/2 swivel impact set (Japan)
Innova 3320 multimeter
Ideal 61-360 multimeter
It was a good week; Wednesday I hit up a pawn shop that Nine mentioned to me and picked up a nice set of double box end Craftsman USA wrenches and a Craftsman USA 3/4" breaker bar
For the week I spent a little over a bill on all of this so I'm very happy. Going back two weeks, I did even better. Although I love hand tools and get the most utility out of them, I'm drawn to collect more dangerous things like chainsaws and knives. I picked these up for a song with the intent to resell, but will likely keep them. May not be the most relevant, but when I'm in the woods these are useful tools and man are they purty and sharp (there's no hair left on my forearms)
To revisit the joint garage sale I had with None, I made out like a bandit and sold <literally> everything I wanted sell except for a HF 44" box...which I sold the following week to a guy who saw it at the garage sale. I ended up making good money, traded for my first "real" anvil, and got some very nice things from Nine:
Vulcan Arm & Hammer 100lb anvil
Craftsman 1/2" torque wrench
Craftsman cantilever tool box
Craftsman 1/3 HP block grinder
3 Craftsman ratchets
Finally, all thanks to Nine for being a great host, and coercing me into joining Garage Journal. Happy New Years, y'all!
