Cleaned up Dad’s old Stanley Brace

[Jgaz]

I don't know much about this brace other than I grabbed it from Dad’s house when we sold the place 20 years ago.

I think I remember using this on the roof of my first garage in 1979 to install a wood stove chimney. It was old then.



Finally gave it a good cleaning and hung it in the shop. I like to think Dad would be happy.

 

[Blueshound_GJ]

Nice! I have one off eBay and it's fun to use.

Whattya got for bits?

 

[Jgaz]

@Blueshound_GJ
I have a number of auger bits. (A few could use sharpening.).
I also have a countersink, and a driver for the 4 point lag screws that my Dad seemed to have a lifetime supply of.

How about you?

 

[Dave455]

I can tell you a little bit.

Many brace chucks have “alligator” jaws, like this.


They are designed to be used with square tang bits, like this


However, (assuming Stanley in the U.S. followed the same conventions as in the U.K.) the orange rings on your brace chuck indicate that it has universal jaws, which can be used with either the square tang bits, or a regular round shank bit.

This would have been the better option back then, and the most expensive.

That’s a good tool, so don’t hesitate to use it.

I can cut a neater hole with a brace and an old carbon steel bit (easy to hand sharpen) than with a lot of more modern options.

I still choose it in preference if I’m working with thin materials, e.g. plywood. Only a modern Forstner bit, in a fixed drill, can really match the neatness.

 

[Blueshound_GJ]

@Blueshound_GJ
I have a number of auger bits. (A few could use sharpening.).
I also have a countersink, and a driver for the 4 point lag screws that my Dad seemed to have a lifetime supply of.

How about you?

That's cool. I have just 1/4 - 1" (by eighths) Stanley augers. I used them to build my "Paul Sellers " workbench a few years ago.

 

[Jgaz]

I can tell you a little bit.

Many brace chucks have “alligator” jaws, like this.


They are designed to be used with square tang bits, like this


However, (assuming Stanley in the U.S. followed the same conventions as in the U.K.) the orange rings on your brace chuck indicate that it has universal jaws, which can be used with either the square tang bits, or a regular round shank bit.

This would have been the better option back then, and the most expensive.

That’s a good tool, so don’t hesitate to use it.

I can cut a neater hole with a brace and an old carbon steel bit (easy to hand sharpen) than with a lot of more modern options.

I still choose it in preference if I’m working with thin materials, e.g. plywood. Only a modern Forstner bit, in a fixed drill, can really match the neatness.

Thank you sir! I had no idea about the orange ring. I will check the chuck out.
Any time I’ve ever used this brace it’s been with the tapered square shank bits.

 

[RTM]

However, (assuming Stanley in the U.S. followed the same conventions as in the U.K.) the orange rings on your brace chuck indicate that it has universal jaws, which can be used with either the square tang bits, or a regular round shank bit.

This is something I did not know, in 25 years of a accumulating old tools. I will have to start watching for that. Thanks for the info

 

[cody1325]

Looks great!

I still have my great-Granddad's Stanley brace, and a 1960s-70s era Klein (still Stanley though, it was a rebrand of one of the lower-end models). Both still work well, and honestly, for 3/4 of what I grab a drill for, they're adequate with NO battery changes--plus they'll even drill through thick wood without me breaking a sweat. Egg-beaters **** (particularly, those that aren't breast drills), but a brace gives great leverage. I tend to use the Klein (which honestly, I have no idea where it came from--don't think it was Granddads--so maybe the old farm we leased for a decade?--I finally found it under a shelf in the garage and cleaned it up) as it's already pretty beat up, and Klein marketed it as having universal jaws.

Honestly though, the drill bits with 1/4 hex shanks work great in these, as do most larger-diameter round bits. I have a small collection of Irwin pyramid shank bits, but they all need sharpening (and about half of them still need an Evaporust bath)--including an auger bit that has to be a foot long.

 

[RTM]

I have a small collection of Irwin pyramid shank bits, but they all need sharpening (and about half of them still need an Evaporust bath)--including an auger bit that has to be a foot long.

Ah, cute little fellow. Take a look at these ships augers, longer than my tailgate is.






Came out of an 1890s era tool chest, along with a bunch of other tools belonging to a pair of brothers here's a bit better view of them.



This one is a different one, compared to other normal bits