2023 Garage Sale Thread

[Raineman]

Picked this Blue Point Supreme S4448 off the auction site for my collection. I paid up for this big mammajamma but am getting closer to a complete set. Only 8 more to go.

 

[Raineman]

After a less than favorable Marketplace experience and more time and fuel than it was probably worth, I finally got this Craftsman carry box with pictured tools.

I paid $20 for it, but still feel the trouble getting it left me in the red.

Will offer the box alone for the $20 tomorrow at work.

Highlights include the Snap on ratchet (which is the whole reason I pursued this), SK and SK WAYNE wrenches and pictured. I was really excited about the MAC speed wrench, but the retaining ball spring is gone so it’s pretty much scrap metal.

 

[3baygarage]

Maybe there’s a Mac guy who will take care of you. I mean, unless it was used as a pry bar or something. All you can do is ask when you see one. Someone else likely didn’t.

 

[mikeinri]

Why is that not repairable?

Mike

 

[Raineman]

Why is that not repairable?

Mike

If someone shows me how, I'd love to.

 

[bmwrd0]

I know that McMaster has inserts for that, but for the life of me I cannot remember the term they use.

 

[zanyad]

I know that McMaster has inserts for that, but for the life of me I cannot remember the term they use.

This? https://www.mcmaster.com/ball-nose-spring-plungers/

 

[Raineman]

This? https://www.mcmaster.com/ball-nose-spring-plungers/

Wheels are turning. Sorry for the derail guys.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

There are kits for re-seating detent balls. I know Snap-on and Plomb offered one, and @snapmom and @RagTopTA each have one, respectively. The kits are vintage, too, though, and hard to find in their own right, so you can begin to see the problem there. But the reason I mention them is because the principle involved is pretty simple. It's a spring, a ball, and a special concave punch (almost like a leather punch, but not sharp) to re-seat the ball on top of the spring inside the hole with one good blow. What the punch does is slightly deform the steel of the drive stud around the ball to seat it. The kit, of course, would be ideal, but it is a process you can repeat with the right size spring, the right size ball, and something to replace that special punch. Just sayin.

That third-from-the-left McMasters insert looks pretty good though!

 

[Raineman]

Thats the way I'm leaning Lugz. Just have to drill out the old ball (it is still in there, the spring must have broken and disappeared) then measure, order, possibly drill some more, then press. Thanks all.

 

[mikeinri]

If someone shows me how, I'd love to.

I look at it this way, they got it in there at the factory, there's got to be a way to reseat it! And, I'm sure someone here knows how...

As to having the ball still in there with no (or a broken) spring behind it, I'm sure someone has fixed that as well.

Glad guys are jumping in with better suggestions that I was thinking of (heat / cold)...

Mike

 

[snapmom]

The spring has to be thick, or it will not hold the socket. Some of the Snap on rats in like 40s 50s, have plates that can be driven out and replaced.

 

[alinc100]

Stopped at 2 sales today, 2nd a bust but close enough to the first to justify. 1st stop netted these goodies. I kinda went overboard but just couldn't leave a super clean Proto behind.

Snap On SSD80 Magnetic Screwdriver, missing cap
Snap On HE52A Headlight Spring Tool
Snap On FS-241 ⅜” dr shallow socket 6 point
Armstrong NM1216 ¼” dr-½’’ shallow socket 12 point
PowrKraft 84W4847 ⅜” dr- 9/16” shallow socket 12 point
PowrKraft 84W4789 ½”dr -¾’’ deep socket 12 point
PowrKraft ⅝”-¾” DOE
Proto 1145 15/16” - 1” DBE
Proto 5416 ½” dr -½” shallow socket 12 point
Proto 4765 ¼” dr flex extension
Proto Los Angeles 5849 1” dr ratchet
Texas Instruments TI-83Plus Graphing Calculator

 

[Toolmaker51]

Heck. Darn it all. Fiddlesticks.
Did all that posting, forgot main dang thing. OP reminded me of listing equipment. A word document is OK, Excel way better. Running it speech to text bumps it again. Using a strict naming protocol......... Point is, that's portable, editable. Try walking through a garage/ estate/ boot sale/ online auction remembering every missing 3/8" drive socket, drill bit, repair manual. The protocol makes it sort perfectly.
Sure, while it takes a minute, think about the gains. YMMV.

 

[Smokeshow69]

Stopped at 2 sales today, 2nd a bust but close enough to the first to justify. 1st stop netted these goodies. I kinda went overboard but just couldn't leave a super clean Proto behind.

Snap On SSD80 Magnetic Screwdriver, missing cap
Snap On HE52A Headlight Spring Tool
Snap On FS-241 ⅜” dr shallow socket 6 point
Armstrong NM1216 ¼” dr-½’’ shallow socket 12 point
PowrKraft 84W4847 ⅜” dr- 9/16” shallow socket 12 point
PowrKraft 84W4789 ½”dr -¾’’ deep socket 12 point
PowrKraft ⅝”-¾” DOE
Proto 1145 15/16” - 1” DBE
Proto 5416 ½” dr -½” shallow socket 12 point
Proto 4765 ¼” dr flex extension
Proto Los Angeles 5849 1” dr ratchet
Texas Instruments TI-83Plus Graphing Calculator

That’s a nice Proto you picked up there. 1” are called big Bertha!

 

[Smokeshow69]

Heck. Darn it all. Fiddlesticks.
Did all that posting, forgot main dang thing. OP reminded me of listing equipment. A word document is OK, Excel way better. Running it speech to text bumps it again. Using a strict naming protocol......... Point is, that's portable, editable. Try walking through a garage/ estate/ boot sale/ online auction remembering every missing 3/8" drive socket, drill bit, repair manual. The protocol makes it sort perfectly.
Sure, while it takes a minute, think about the gains. YMMV.

You are right! Inventorying your collection or wants/needs really helps to cut down on buying duplicates and helps to keep your mind straight in the moment

 

[bmwrd0]

But then you will be staring at your phone when someone else gets the good stuff!

 

[Smokeshow69]

But then you will be staring at your phone when someone else gets the good stuff!

That’s why you grab the good stuff and go through it on the side . Then put back what you don’t need

 

[NJ Marty]

I got some keepers from the last 2 estate sales, bummed the socket set is missing one socket.
The non tool find is a very nice Fisher 80T found digging in the attic at one of the sales.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

...bummed the socket set is missing one socket.

I might could help you out, Marty. I have some orphans. The sixteen (16) sockets go from 17/32” to 30/32" (15/16”), but there are two (2) 1/2” sockets. One is the socket and the other is an adaptor to mate two other pieces. They're identical and interchangeable, but you will see them called out on your decal as "Sp." for Special, and "A." for Adaptor. Let me know which socket you're missing. And if I don't have it, there are a few collectors here. Thread with many sets and info down on the VB. See Bethlehem in the Sticky Index.

 

[NJ Marty]

I might could help you out, Marty. I have some orphans. The sixteen (16) sockets go from 17/32” to 30/32" (15/16”), but there are two (2) 1/2” sockets. One is the socket and the other is an adaptor to mate two other pieces. They're identical and interchangeable, but you will see them called out on your decal as "Sp." for Special, and "A." for Adaptor. Let me know which socket you're missing. And if I don't have it, there are a few collectors here. Thread with many sets and info down on the VB. See Bethlehem in the Sticky Index.

Thanks so much. I will have to look the set over this weekend and see which socket is missing.

 

[alinc100]

That’s why you grab the good stuff and go through it on the side . Then put back what you don’t need

 

[Rickster]

Huge tool estate sale this really cold and windy morning. Got there early, several guys standing on the porch. I asked what's everyone standing around freezing this early for? Turns out the guy was going to open up extra early.... then the garage door opened and we stormed inside! Lots of tool guys to work around but I managed to get some decent tools. By the time of the posted official opening the place was pretty much picked clean.

 

[bmwrd0]

That’s why you grab the good stuff and go through it on the side . Then put back what you don’t need

There are a couple estate companies around here who, if they catch you doing that will kick you out. Majorly frowned upon.

 

[Old Radar]

Two sales this morning. At the second, I got the Craftsman push drill (9-4221) with all eight points--$2.
The first sale was more interesting--claiming antique tools.
At a table set up in the laundry room, thankfully devoid of washer and dryer, half covered with vintage tin boxes, was an assortment of miscellaneous items and some tools from bygone days. The five items I picked up totaled $6.
-- First thing that caught my eye was the wood handled turnscrew. Unfortunately no brand or marks of any kind.
-- I've passed over hundreds of old soldering irons, but now that I picked up a blowtorch late last year, I decided I needed one and this one has a nice thick handle and a hefty ferrule.
-- I looked for a while but only found one D. A. (Darwin Andrew) Brewer in Yellow Springs, OH. He lived from 1879-1957. That was promising, but the 1940 census shows him as a clerk at a grocery store. Unless he was the store owner, I can't imagine him issuing complimentary screw drivers...
-- I really like the corkscrew. It's fashioned out of a single piece of wire and is very sturdy. I plan on testing it out tonight!
-- I have a question on the cute little folding fork from the Geo. Schrade Knife Co. The patent date of 1-72-42 threw me until I started googling and found that it should really be 1-27-42. Having never seen an error like that on a manufactured item I have to ask: 1. Does that happen often and if not; 2. Do collectors look for that type of mistake?

 

[Cruzan80]

There are a couple estate companies around here who, if they catch you doing that will kick you out. Majorly frowned upon.

Around here, it depends on the sale. If there is tons and tons of tools (mechanic closing shop style), everyone is doing this. Others that only have some get much more upset. I also have found the length of time to be a big factor. Holding for the first 3-5mon, vs an hr plus.

I will usually do a quick sweep/grab, sort fast, put back, then start the detailed search. And the company rarely even realizes, due to staffing/brief timeframe/etc. I also tend to see who else has been grabbing what kind of tool, so my rejects get offered/mentioned to them, so the company doesn't lose a sale.

 

[Smokeshow69]

There are a couple estate companies around here who, if they catch you doing that will kick you out. Majorly frowned upon.

I was mostly kidding . I sometimes do this at swap meets in individual booths but then I put everything back where I found it. In other words I will toss a bin of sockets to find all the Proto ones, then sort by era or what is needed for my collection and then put the cast offs back in the box. I did this exact thing with that vendor in the corner of the Clark co swap that we picked his sockets last year. Well he was there again this year but I got permission before I did this

 

[bmwrd0]

Cruzan All up and down the west coast, there are good companies and bad. Over the last however many years I have been going to estate sales, I have found to just not bother with a couple of them. Not worth the effort. But, I have seen guys just come by and sweep all the tools into buckets, and then go to a corner and sort through them. Those guys get kicked out as soon as it is noticed. I have also seen this with books, were they will grab a couple stacks of them, and then do the bar code thing, checking to see if Amazon will give them more money. Other book dealers will chase those guys off too. Estate sales agents get angry quick when they think they are being abused and losing sales because of this.

 

[bmwrd0]

Mostly I am just giving you grief, Smoke. I know you are a good guy.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

The patent date of 1-72-42 threw me until I started googling and found that it should really be 1-27-42.

That's not an error. They were using the Delano calendar. After just declaring war the previous month, we need extra days in January to get our sh*it together before we could go kick some a&&.

Having never seen an error like that on a manufactured item I have to ask: 1. Does that happen often and if not; 2. Do collectors look for that type of mistake?

Seriously, there are a few well-known examples sprinkled down on the VB. I can't think of one that makes the item more valuable, though. 4.c might know better.

I'm pretty sure that Schrade folding fork is part of a 3-piece BSA and GSA kit. The pouch was marked BSA/GSA.

 

[Old Radar]

I'm pretty sure that Schrade folding fork is part of a 3-piece BSA and GSA kit. The pouch was marked BSA/GSA.

I looked hard for the knife, but no joy. I saw several BSA and GSA sets offered on the bay. Of the dozen or so forks, only one other had the 1-72-42 date. There were also a couple with the 1926 date.

 

[3baygarage]

I went to only one estate sale ever that had this sign in the garage that read do not carry around anything that you aren't going to buy.

It also happened to the one estate sale I was kicked out of. I've told the story before.

I approached the door just as a man walked out the door on a cell phone. I walked in the door and into the attached garage and was the only one in there. There was all kinds of talking coming from inside the house, I thought I just happened to be the only one in the garage.

I put a whole pile together including a Snap-On ratchet. I was there a few minutes when suddenly I hear a voice "What are you doing? We're not open yet!" The guy was pissed. He was the owner of the company. I left my pile of stuff on the floor as he told me the sale opens in 25 minutes or something like that. IIRC the sale didn't start at 9 it started at 10! Oops. Thought I was late and lucky but I was just early. It was rather embarrassing. I apologized and was escorted out.

Well, there goes my haul, I thought. He's going to put everything back where it was. Plus now I had to wait in line, and guess what, there's a stacking of people going on outside so I'm back of the line.

Sale opened in a little bit and miraculously he'd left my pile intact. That was cool. Probably figured a sure sale was better than no sale.

 

[four.cycle]

I have a question on the cute little folding fork from the Geo. Schrade Knife Co. The patent date of 1-72-42 threw me until I started googling and found that it should really be 1-27-42. Having never seen an error like that on a manufactured item I have to ask: 1. Does that happen often and if not; 2. Do collectors look for that type of mistake?

The first time this happened to me I thought I was going crazy. I had multiple photos of an object (from different ebay listings), I had a manufacturer's name, I had a part number, I had a patent DATE. There was no information available at datamp.org.
I floundered around on Google for hours.
When I finally figured out the unit had the wrong patent date forged into the handle, I was absolutely flummoxed. How could such a thing possibly happen?

A few months went by. I forgot all about it. And then it happened again. Wash, rinse, repeat.

After about half a dozen of those, and a few email exchanges with the de facto world's leading authority on all things wrench, I came to the understanding that this is a regularly occurring thing in the world of vintage tools, and learned that you just have to roll with it.

The payoff is that every great once in a while you get that "AHA!" payoff.

The other day I discovered that what had been advertised as the patent number on Charles Morrill's saw set was actually the registration number for the trademark. The error had been repeated in subsequent advertisements, and then repeated again on a couple vintage tool collector websites, as well as various ebay and etsy, worthpoint pages, and others. It wasn't until I shot a note to one of the stewards at datamp and they looked at it with different eyes and saw the error.
To further compound the error, the trademark registration number is stamped on the unit itself!


Charles Morrill saw set (patent 532175) (photo: ebay)

To answer your first question: Far more often than we would like. And every.single.time it's scrambled brains all.over.again.

To your second question:
From where I sit, it doesn't seem to increase the value of the object to have the wrong patent number, patent date, or to have been double-struck with a die, or not having been broached. I see that kind of stuff on ebay now and then and they don't get more money for that stuff - it's not a deal like coinage. I could well be mistaken, but that's what I see in ebayland.

BK

 

[Old Radar]

Thanks BK! Looks like I'll be keeping it then and using it for a pickle fork!

 

[Outlawmws]

You are right! Inventorying your collection or wants/needs really helps to cut down on buying duplicates and helps to keep your mind straight in the moment

Not me, I just buy dupes willy nilly. Always the hope that the new one is better, or maybe I need a second one in a second location But, when you have a half dozen or a dozen or more... (for example, 17 pair of CL 420s...)

 

[bmwrd0]

Multiples are great for trades, flips, gifts, grandkids, things like that.

 

[Smokeshow69]

Mostly I am just giving you grief, Smoke. I know you are a good guy.

I know you were .

Not me, I just buy dupes willy nilly. Always the hope that the new one is better, or maybe I need a second one in a second location But, when you have a half dozen or a dozen or more... (for example, 17 pair of CL 420s...)

It all depends on the pricing . If sockets are .25 and wrenches are $1, no way am I pulling out my list and going through it. I just buy them, put them in my bucket and then clean and sort when I get home. That way I can take my sweet time comparing tools and keep the nicer ones!

 

[wtn1271]

RICKSTER : Nice pile you picked up. Is that post clean up or 'as found' condition?

 

[Provincial]

RICKSTER : Nice pile you picked up. Is that post clean up or 'as found' condition?

Lots of nice stuff there. Weatherhead sockets, ratcheting tap handles, toggle clamps, arch punches, and that European-style pipe wrench!

 

[Rickster]

Pile of tools right out of the bag! Still needs clean-up. Ahh.. the euro pipe wrench is a harbor freight. The picking was fast and furious with all the tool guys elbow to elbow. Still, Ill keep it around and try it out first chance I get.