Millers Falls #5 hand drill restoration

[John Gornall]

Jeff, back to the lathe and a courser paper - we'll see. I was using the same stain as you - but my handles may be a different wood.

Where the crank handle goes through the crank on mine there is a hint of threads. The crank pin may be threaded into the crank and then peened on the back side. Not sure if I'll try to get it apart.

The drill is a joy to use - only drill I use on the bench now.

[jeff . whitaker]

Jeff,
What a great looking drill. You inspired me sir. I have my Fathers old Craftsman from the late 50's early 60's ?? At some point in time the whole thing had been covered in black brush painted enamel so.. after much cleaning I found the original colors under the enamel and .. well this is what I got.. new paint was what I had on hand.. close enough for me..
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[jeff . whitaker]

BTW is there a resource for Craftsman drills, never seen any info on line. In the old days (in our family) Sears and Roebuck were the ONLY place to buy tools....I had tought that a fillister that I had was made by Record (a source in another forum) but now I am told it was Sargent?
Thanks
Jeff

[Michael Fross]

I also seem to buff off several layers of thumb skin each time I do I've got one apart now and I pulled the top handle off of its mounting rod because the rod was stuck in the drill body (holds the top gear in place). No damage however and I got the rod out eventually but it was tight.

Hello Jeff. This is very timely as I'm 1/2 ways through a restore of my Millers Falls 05A drill. I, too, am pulled the handle off and the mounting rod is stuck in the base unit. How did you get yours off? I'm fearful of twisting it off with pliers as I don't want to dig the teeth into the rod. Any points would be useful.

Secondly, on one of the pinions, I think a previous owner had soldered or peened over one of the pins. I'm having a rough time trying to get that out. I think I'll get a wee file in there and see if I can take that off, but I'm also worried I'll mar up the frame if I do that. Oh well. I supposed the new paint will cover some of that and I can smooth out any nicks.

Thanks for this post. If I do 1/2 as well as you did I'll consider it a major success.

Michael

[Jeff L Miller]

Michael, once the wooden handle came off the rod, I was left with the rod sticking out of the drill body. If thats what you have, then you might try what I did. First make sure there are no hidden pins, then I put the body of the drill in a vise and grabbed the end of the rod in a pair of vise grips and gave it some light back and forth action. There were raised lines (like knurling only less) on the end of the rod that went in the drill body to keep it tight in the hole. It should come out then you can remove that upper gear, it just falls out really.

To re-assemble, put the rod back in the drill first and make sure you line things up right, the pin holes are not centered so the matching part (that gets pinned) can only go on one way. To say that again, the rods are not drilled so the holes line up any which way, only one way will be right. Once the rod is back in, you can put the finished handle on. I'd love to see some pic's of the finished drill.

Jeff

[Michael Fross]

Thanks for your advice Jeff. I was able to get everything apart by applying more force that I was initially comfortable with doing. I've got the main gear painted. My only challenge right now is to get the ball bearing out of the recess in the main frame. It appears to be quite stuck. Haven't figured out how to handle this yet (other than banging it upside down on some plywood .) When that's done, I can prep the frame and get that painted. The handles are all done.

Again, thanks for the advice and inspiration.

Michael

[Robert Kessler Leibold]

I find this thread most interesting as I just got the Millers Falls Hand Drill bug and have a No.1 in pieces in front of me as I type. I am extremely jealous of the fine work Jeff has put in to his restoration and wish there was a step-by-step tutorial showing each process.
I am interested in what kind of wire wheel and/if a Dremel was used, etc. I have all the paint off (used Easy Off oven cleaner), but my "shiny" parts are not too shiny right now!
I also need one jaw for the McCoy's Springless Chuck or another complete chuck.
Again, simply beautiful work Jeff.

[Mike Brady]

Very nicely done restoration; better than new. I have done less extensive work on a series of of eggbeaters, from the very small versions to the larger two-speed breast drill. All but one were either Goodell Pratt or Millers Falls. I learn something from each one and I have discovered that chuck springs are pretty elusive critters when you need them. Of course the drill is almost useless without a good chuck. Some of the smaller drills have springless chucks, which eliminates that particular restoration hurdle. I am amazed that drills that clearly had hard use show very little wear when all of the crud and rust is finally removed. "Basket case" drills can be made to look and work like new. This is a real credit to their makers. Thank you for your great photos and accompanying description of the process.

[Michael Fross]

Mike, I think you are being modest. I have seen several of your egg beater reconstructions (from Paul J.) and they are fantastically restored.

Michael

[Robert Kessler Leibold]

I am in awe and bow down to the mighty one who brings the beauty back out of the beast! I wish I could look over your shoulder when you take on such a project and make a thing of beauty out of it. i know it's an older thread, but thanks for sharing.

[Jeff L Miller]

Kessler, these drills are great idle time projects. I try not to hurry through the process and have had one sitting now for several months during my kitchen remodel. The qulality is superior and that makes a restoration worth the time, good bones and excellent raw materials. If you're ever in Portland, stop by and you can look over my shoulder; though you won't see anything fancy other than someone having a great time tinkering with tools.


Thanks again for the comments, maybe now I'll get re-started on the drill I have sitting in pieces on the bench.


Jeff