Brace Advice

[Noah Barfield]

Hi all,

Could someone please advise me about what brace to buy? I've seen a bunch both in antique stores and on line ranging in price from $10-$50. I get that it's important for everything to work well (the chuck, the teeth, good handles, etc.). However, I'm not sure what else to look for. Were some brands better made than others? Are there size considerations I need to consider?

I intend to use the brace to drill dog holes through a 2-3" bench top (building a woodworking bench = my summer project). Also, I'm an aspiring neander and figure that a brace (and bits) should be part of my basic arsenal.

Noah

[Tom Vanzant]

Noah,
The Stanley Yankee 2101 "Bell System" 10" sweep is pretty much the Holy Grail of braces for actual use in the shop, but there are many others too. A rachetting brace comes in handy in tight quarters.
For boring 3/4" dog holes, the 10" sweep would be the minimum.

[Jon van der Linden]

If you haven't built the bench yet, I'd saw and pare them before glue up. It's a lot easier than drilling and much easier to get consistent clean edges.

Some of the harder bench woods like rock maple won't be fun to drill out with a brace.

[Dick Latshaw]

A North Bros. Model 2100 is about the best you can get, if you can find one.

A quote from Sydnas Sloot: "North Bros must have done a very fine piece marketing for the Yankee brace at its inception. The two models, 2100 and 2101 are quite similar in outward appearance. But the 2101 is made more inexpensively, with different internal packing, and a lower quality finish. From its inception the 2101 was marketed toward large volume purchasers, such as utility companies. Indeed, most of the 2101 braces that you find today are marked, "Bell System" and were a standard tool for telephone linemen."

[John A. Scott]

+1 for the Yankee. The knurled surfaces of the chuck are parallel which is a help when drilling using mirrors to match angles and sight lines

[Peter Pedisich]

Noah,

Hi, as others have said the Yankee 2101 is built to last. Also the Stanley 921 was a premium brace. And Millers Falls made some beautifully made braces.

Pete

[Jim Koepke]

Just about any brace works. Of all my braces, the ones that are not Stanley or Millers Falls, have a little wobble to them. They are all still useable, but if you are looking for one to buy, stick with the winners.

My accumulation of braces is only up to about a dozen at the moment. The three I use the most are different models of Stanley, an 8" a 10" and a 16".

When you learn how to best use auger bits and keep them sharp, you will want a few braces in your cabinet.

jtk

[Nixon Roger]

I really like Stanley 923's. Not as heavy duty as 2100/01's but the cocobolo pads and handles are pretty. I used the 12" sweep to drill dog holes in my bench.

[Pam Niedermayer]

I'm fond of the simplest braces, the Fray Spofford, fewer things to break, elegant in use, light weight. I've also got a newish Miller Falls that jams up at a moment's notice.

Pam

[Steve Branam]

I'm fond of the simplest braces, the Fray Spofford, fewer things to break, elegant in use, light weight.

What she said! I love my Spoffords. Just plain simple function. I have both 4 and 6" throw. The 4 is my primary brace, light and graceful as a dancer, but the 6 is great for heavy duty work, like drilling a 1" hole through 2" poplar. I also have several ratcheting braces, which are just plain ungainly, but do the trick when you need the ratchet in a tight spot.

[Dave Matson]

My favorite braces are the Millers Falls 770 series braces with the ball bearing lion chuck. The 730 series braces with the 'holdall' chuck are also very good. Both use "universal jaws" that can grip both round and square shank bits. Check out oldtool heaven for more information on millers falls braces: http://oldtoolheaven.com/brace/FeaturedBraces.htm

For drilling into a benchtop - the bigger the better. A 14in brace can exert 40% more torque than a 10in brace.

[James Pickering]

Best I have owned and used: North Bros. "YANKEE" 2100 -- followed by Stanley/"YANKEE" 2101.

James

[Andrae Covington]

...For drilling into a benchtop - the bigger the better. A 14in brace can exert 40% more torque than a 10in brace.

Unfortunately, most of the 14-inch braces out there have lead hard lives. I have a MF 730 that I just cannot seem to get the bit to align with the centerline axis of the brace. So as I turn the brace round and round, the bit tends to wobble... it's like precession of the equinoxes. As the larger braces are not as common, they tend to be more expensive in the first place, and even more so for ones in great condition. The extra torque sure is nice for larger holes though.

Braces by Millers Falls, Stanley, and Pexto (PS&W) are probably the best bet. However, there are lots of old hardware store brands that were actually made by those companies as well. For spofford-chuck braces, JS Fray seems to be both the most desirable and the only name I regularly see, other than the later Stanley-branded ones after they bought out Fray.

[Noah Barfield]

Thanks all! I wound up buying a Millers Falls No. 772 (10") with a Lion chuck from Walt at Brass City Tools. I looked at the Stanleys on e-bay, but they were going for nearly $100.

Next question--Should I buy the bits individually as I need them or is it best to buy them in a set?

[Jim Koepke]

Next question--Should I buy the bits individually as I need them or is it best to buy them in a set?

If you find a good set at a good price pick it up. Often you will find used sets with one or two bad bits.

Then just find replacements for the bad ones.

I have about three sets worth of most sizes. If I find another set at a decent price, I will buy it for a spares.

Some sizes my set has as many as ten, like 1/2", since they get used a lot and some are better for some jobs than others.

jtk