BEFORE & AFTER....A Tool Polisher's Haven

[catalytic]

Thanks Catalytic! Yes, I know the Burr King folks well- this machine had a hard life before it found the comforts of my shop.

Here's my Burr King Model 562 resto from a few months ago. It was one of the earliest 562's they manufactured (year 1954) after Burr King bought the MacCarthy Mfg Co SandingMaster design and added the improved belt tensioning ratchet mechanism, with the original Baldor (one of the first TEFC motors ever made). I painted the motor with 2-part epoxy paint, but the paint on the machine is the original Burr King grey from before they switched to green (wow the lead in that paint works wonders-- it cleaned up great after 70 years). I didn't need it since I restored two model 760's on pedestals like yours, but it was too cool to pass up. At the time, Burr King didn't sell them with baseplates---they were intended to bolt directly onto your workbench. Mine was complete except for one specialty washer, which they still had in stock 70 years later (and still use one one of their models).

 

[Garage Junkie]

That's really cool Catalytic! It's interesting how their design hasn't really changed much over nearly 70 years!

 

[catalytic]

That's really cool Catalytic! It's interesting how their design hasn't really changed much over nearly 70 years!

Yea! The interesting thing to me is that every 2-3 years for 7 decades, they slightly refined some aspect of the design. It would have been way easier/cheaper for them to just not change anything for 70 years, but instead, the tensioner and tracking and bearings all improved very slightly every 2-3 years for the whole history (and they still stock parts for every single version!). None of the changes were really 'necessary' as my super early models are awesome machines, but the later models are slightly easier to adjust tracking, have a door latch that doesn't rattle, better guards to protect fingers, platen tightens down a tiny bit tighter, etc.

They're a company that really cares about quality. Two of the guys who work there, Paul and Terry, can tell you the dimensions on every bolt for every version of each machine they ever made from memory.

 

[Garage Junkie]

I had a bunch of the Rustoleum paint left over, so this Columbian that followed me home went from red to green after a lot of clean up.

 

[Bowtie4life]

Your vise looks really good after the cleanup and paint job.

 

[bigredcornhead]

I had to add these as this was my first attempt to polish anything with my new wheel and stand setup:

Before:

After:

 

[Bowtie4life]

Show -off............those look awesome! If you were close to me, I would drop off a set for you to do for me. lol

 

[bigredcornhead]

Show -off............those look awesome! If you were close to me, I would drop off a set for you to do for me. lol

Thanks man, i had no idea how much effort they would take and I didn't even polish inside each of the fins whew. That was literally 2 weeks worth of sanding at only a couple hours a night. Baked on the paint as well in the oven, being cast aluminum there are still some pits, but i had say forget about it at some point and roll with it. Cast aluminum is not fun with all the pits. Vintage Cast Aluminum Edelbrock AMC Valve covers, stamped Rambler on the underside, getting to be rarer then hens teeth!

 

[Loose Ctrl]

Thanks man, i had no idea how much effort they would take and I didn't even polish inside each of the fins whew. That was literally 2 weeks worth of sanding at only a couple hours a night. Baked on the paint as well in the oven, being cast aluminum there are still some pits, but i had say forget about it at some point and roll with it. Cast aluminum is not fun with all the pits. Vintage Cast Aluminum Edelbrock AMC Valve covers, stamped Rambler on the underside, getting to be rarer then hens teeth!

In the mid 1990s, I built my 304 into a 307 high compression soild lift torquer for my CJ-5 and never found dress up parts for it. I even worked for a shop that specialized in AMC, Jeep, Willys-Overland, and Eagle.

 

[harley jim]

I had to add these as this was my first attempt to polish anything with my new wheel and stand setup:

Before:

After:

They look great,
I did a set of aluminum heads for my buddies flathead, I know the struggle!

 

[JMLangford]

Quick little before & after clean-up and maintenance on a Harbor Freight 1/4"dr. composite ratchet....I gave $2 for it at the flea and they originally sell for $9.99 brand new....

BEFORE:


AFTER:





Although this is a cheap made in China ratchet, the internals look well made and it functions as it should and is super fine toothed....$2 well spent!


.

 

[Etchase]

That’s a great looking ratchet!

 

[harley jim]

Yes it is, I like the fat handle, it needs a faux wood finish on it.

 

[don long]

I had forgot about this thread for a while
I did a Wilton vice a while ago that should have shone up here earlier but here it is today

 

[gleman]

I had forgot about this thread for a while
I did a Wilton vice a while ago that should have shone up here earlier but here it is today

Gorgeous work! What color is the body?

 

[don long]

Gorgeous work! What color is the body?

It is custom automotive paint color that I mixed from several cans of paint I had in the garage. It is the same paint that I used on my air compressor tank

 

[LWB]

It looks fantastic! What do you use to keep the bare polished areas from tarnishing?

 

[don long]

It looks fantastic! What do you use to keep the bare polished areas from tarnishing?

I wiped it down with boiled linseed oil and keep it in the sealed up garage that only gets opened when I get visitors

 

[LWB]

I wiped it down with boiled linseed oil and keep it in the sealed up garage that only gets opened when I get visitors

Thank you for the info.

 

[metalmagpie]

Re: BEFORE & AFTER....A Tool Polisher's Haven

I found this oiler in a box this morning and got busy. The small opening near my thumb is a glass cylinder also, I havent seen one like that before. Hope you like it

I recently purchased a late-model Royersford Excelsior camelback drill press. Royersford continued to make these right into the 1950s unlike other camelback manufacturers who quit in the 20s and 30s. Now, a camelback drill press has a horizontal top shaft that runs from the back of the machine to the front. Then there is a pinion and bevel gear which everybody calls the crown gears, which transmit power to the spindle. Now, the late model Excelsior doesn't have the babbitt bearings and flat belts of yore, so there aren't 27 places you have to oil every time you want to drill a hole. Instead, most of the bearings on the machine are ball bearings in pillow block-like housings. But if the operator gets out of the habit of oiling all the time, the spindle was in danger of being underlubricated. So Royersford put one of these exact Gits oilers right up front, up high, in the middle. Have a look:



Anyway, the upper glass portion contains lubricating oil. The little toggle on top switches it on or off. The knob it is attached to controls the feed rate, and the operator can view the drops of oil as they drop through the lower section. The idea is the operator can tell at a glance that there is oil available, and whether it's turned on, and how fast the drips are coming, so the spindle won't run dry.

All in all, a very cool oiler, one of the best Gits ever made. It is no longer in production.

No, I haven't started restoring this drill press. I'm just finishing the last one I did!

metalmagpie

 

[ClappedOutBport]

That is a funky setup, magpie! How do you shift the belts? Just walk them off? I think I prefer my flatbelts.

 

[metalmagpie]

Like I said earlier, Clap, the motor is mounted to a platform which is pretty much free floating in the up and down axis, with a large lever screw clamp to tighten or release it and allow it to move. Then there is another big lever which turns an eccentric which lifts the motor. After that it's super easy to change belt position. There is a similar arrangement on the feed belt. I like the look of flat belts too, but these won't slip and replacing them won't require a second mortgage.

Anyway, this is the last camelback model made, so it should have smoothed out any little issues with previous designs. No babbitt bearings, no flat belts. And yes, you could order this drill press with complete belt guards and yes mine has them and they are in good shape, hardly any rust.

I'm looking forward to getting into that resto. But for now I'm rebuilding a big air compressor pump and then I'm going to rework my shop air system. And then maybe I'll get around to the Excelsior. I am still motivated by your excellent videos.

metalmagpie

 

[don long]

I found a few minutes to work on a fun little polishing project. I got these small tools for a birthday gift and decided that they could use a little love so I went to work cleaning them up a bit before putting them on display

Before







After some love

 

[Etchase]

Both are nice, but the KD set is fantastic.

 

[WoodsTruck]

What do you protect the pliers with once you get them polished up?

 

[bonneyman]

That brown Wilton vise ought to be in a museum, Don! Wow!

 

[don long]

Both are nice, but the KD set is fantastic.

Thanks Etchase
I agree and was very pleased to get it

What do you protect the pliers with once you get them polished up?

WoodsTruck
I wipe them down with a light oil and keep them in a dry place

That brown Wilton vise ought to be in a museum, Don! Wow!

Thanks Bonneyman
I almost polished it up to a chrome shine but decided that paint would look better

 

[JMLangford]

Here is a quick little BEFORE & AFTER

I found this lone wood handle nut driver at a thrift store marked $1.55 but with my 15% military discount it was only $1.32

At the time of purchase I saw no markings on it but it appeared well made....





....Once I cleaned it up I found it was a 1/4" Made In U.S.A



I shined all the metal parts and I wiped the wood handle down with acetone....I should have stopped there.....


But, Nooooooooo....My OCD caused me to sand down the handle


Anyways, here it is with tung oil on all parts....shaft, bolster, and wood handle



.

 

[FarmerWill]

Nicely done.

 

[Sawdust_]

Looks great. Can you tell us about your process?

 

[JMLangford]

Looks great. Can you tell us about your process?

Thanks Sawdust,
If you look all the way back at post #5 of this thread you can see the type of 3M Radial bristle disc I use for polishing/cleaning metal.
The disc's bristles are impregnated with an abrasive that removes rust, dirt, deburrs, blends, finishes, polishes, cleans, and removes coatings more effectively with no harm on the surface.....They are used a lot by jewelers

As for the wood portion, I just hand sanded it using finer grits then I coat all surfaces with a thin coat of tung oil (wiping varnish)

 

[calandrod]

Here is a quick little BEFORE & AFTER

I found this lone wood handle nut driver at a thrift store marked $1.55 but with my 15% military discount it was only $1.32

At the time of purchase I saw no markings on it but it appeared well made....





....Once I cleaned it up I found it was a 1/4" Made In U.S.A



I shined all the metal parts and I wiped the wood handle down with acetone....I should have stopped there.....


But, Nooooooooo....My OCD caused me to sand down the handle


Anyways, here it is with tung oil on all parts....shaft, bolster, and wood handle



.

Beautiful work @JMLangford! Little quick projects are always neat. I like it.

 

[don long]

I've been working on these Blackhawk tool cases and locating the tools that came with them. The tools are always well worked over with rust and hammer marks that make them look very used.
I spent the day yesterday cleaning up the tools for this case that I just finished straightening out and painting

The case before


After some love



Some of the tools before polish. (I forgot to take shots of the real rusted tools or the sockets)



The finished project

 

[calandrod]

Beautiful!

 

[don long]

found 2 more tools for the CD32 piece set so Ipolished them up today

 

[don long]

I spent the afternoon shining up a grease gun nozzle that goes with this mobile lube station



That gun standing on the left top corner is what I worked on today

Before



Adter cleaning away all the old grease and grime



Then I took it apart and polished each piece before putting it back together

 

[WoodsTruck]

Splendid results.

Would there have been any tool dividers in that toolbox originally?

 

[don long]

Splendid results.

Would there have been any tool dividers in that toolbox originally?

Woods
There will be 3 25 gallon grease can sitting side by side with air pumps connected to grease guns on 10’ hoses to disperse the different greases. There is a separation wall on both sides of the cans to help control the hoses as they are pulled out of the unit or pushed back in

 

[WoodsTruck]

Woods
There will be 3 25 gallon grease can sitting side by side with air pumps connected to grease guns on 10’ hoses to disperse the different greases. There is a separation wall on both sides of the cans to help control the hoses as they are pulled out of the unit or pushed back in

I meant on the little Black Hawk toolbox that you refurbished. You put the sticky mat in the bottom, but when the box is picked up by the handle all the tools will conveniently find themselves piled in the bottom (oriented with the handle up).

 

[phy6]

Just found this thread, here's a Benwil rolling bridge jack I fixed up last year. It needs a powdercoat instead of paint -- I'll have to make a pregnant oven to fit it.