another "what is this?" post

[OSAO]

I have seen the wood handle with copper tip over the years, I feel like I should know what these are..

Anyway, what are these tools?

 

[gj67stang]

I believe they are early versions of soldering irons.

 

[Kirbot]

I believe they are early versions of soldering irons.

Right

They were usually heated up with a big gasoline blowtorth.
I can post some pictures if you interested.

 

[Theloniousmonk]

Right

They were usually heated up with a big gasoline blowtorth.
I can post some pictures if you interested.

post em kirbot, your torches are awesome.

 

[Kirbot]

Also, the tool on the bottom is called a "saw set".

 

[Kirbot]

post em kirbot, your torches are awesome.

Lol, thanks

Will do, I'll head out and snap a few new ones in a few minutes.

 

[Kirbot]

Alright, here they are.

Here's torch preheating.



And here it is heating up an iron.

 

[Theloniousmonk]

awesome...

 

[mrholeshot]

Yeah, I've used a few of those to put in lead body filler.

 

[premierplayer]

Soldering irons, generally heated with a charcoal fired Brazier. Most common uses were copper gutter/downspout/roof flashings, also galvanized sheet metal work, and early automotive body and fender work.

 

[Kirbot]

Soldering irons, generally heated with a charcoal fired Brazier. Most common uses were copper gutter/downspout/roof flashings, also galvanized sheet metal work, and early automotive body and fender work.

Yup, that was another way to heat them.
I imagine the charcoal furnace or Brazier was generally used in a factory setting, while they were more likely to be heated with a blowtorch in a smaller shop.

 

[csp]

We used these in junior high school shop class (early 1980s) heated in a natural gas fired Brazier for sheetmetal projects.

Nobody teaches how to use these properly any more.

 

[Theloniousmonk]

Yeah, I've used a few of those to put in lead body filler.

uncle used to do the leading thing when I was a wee tot... he still has a bunch of spatulas and various shaped irons... a nearly dead art now, i've seen a few companies offering leading alternatives in the last few years, but have not heard of anything recently.

and now you kids know where the term "lead sled" came from...

 

[lalaland]

The aircraft tool is for drilling nutplates or locating nutplate holes.

 

[nw2571]

uncle used to do the leading thing when I was a wee tot... he still has a bunch of spatulas and various shaped irons... a nearly dead art now, i've seen a few companies offering leading alternatives in the last few years, but have not heard of anything recently.

and now you kids know where the term "lead sled" came from...

http://www.eastwood.com/ew-body-solder-kit-basic-with-dvd.html

 

[Stephenw]

Here is the really old school way to heat those soldering irons...

They were heated in a miniature pot belly stove. Note the iron on the bench.

 

[american lockpicker]

Very interesting! Theres a collector of those torches(has like 40) in a neighbouring county but I've never seen any with that accessory.

 

[RM209]

Those little pots are still used to heat the soldering irons, But they're rarely used due to the expense of copper gutters. However, full service roofing suppliers still stock lump (wood) charcoal for those pots.

RM209

Here is the really old school way to heat those soldering irons...

They were heated in a miniature pot belly stove. Note the iron on the bench.

 

[930dreamer]

I just learned something new today, Thanks.

 

[premierplayer]

Here is the really old school way to heat those soldering irons...

They were heated in a miniature pot belly stove. Note the iron on the bench.

that's a Brazier

 

[I can fix anything]

I am way too big a wuss to light one of those.

 

[Amitygravel]

Stephenw , do you have any more photos of that brazier that you can post ?

 

[Stephenw]

that's a Brazier

I took that picture in a tinsmith's shop. In that trade, they call it a fire pot.

I thought braziers were more like this...

 

[Stephenw]

Stephenw , do you have any more photos of that brazier that you can post ?

I only have the one picture of the fire pot, but I took 4 or 5 of the tinsmith's shop. Maybe tomorrow I'll post them on my blog.

 

[Lump]

I still have several of the old soldering irons here. I used them at work as a sheet metal worker on occasion. They used to be used much more often in older days, but with the advent of modern welding equipment which works so well on thin metal, the need is reduced to copper and brass. We little natural gas furnaces, which were designed for the job. But you had to constantly wash down the contact surfaces of your work piece with acid, and when you hit that acid with the iron, you QUICKLY learned to avoid breathing the smoky fumes which rose from the iron! And then you melted the lead/tin alloy solder, which added more toxic fumes. And then you added more and more and more acid, to keep everything "clean" for good solder joints. It would take days to get that sour acid taste out of your mouth and nasal passages. And if you got too many heavy whiffs of that acid smoke, your lungs would react with violent pain, and you had to go outdoors and catch your breath for a few minutes. When it got better...you went right back to work. After a long day of soldering joints, the copper or brass rivets in your blue jeans would be corroded green, any plated steel zippers, rivets, etc in your clothes would start to rust, leaving stains on your skin on the inside, where you perspired against them.

So... Anyone wondering why soldering and body lead work is becoming a "lost art"?