Recent Rust Finds

[Jim Koepke]

The worst part about this pandemic is it cuts back on the rust hunting.

A type 7 #4-1/2 purchased on ebay. My old type 6 had a very thin sole that was subject to warping. The sole on this one is better than twice as thick. It has the wrong lever cap, not a deal breaker at the price:

Recent Rust Hunt 2020-12-09.jpg

It is amazing how much plane prices on ebay have shot up over the years. Must be that it is no longer the free wheeling and wild market place it used to be.This one had a lower 'Buy it Now' price that included shipping. A quick clean and honing the blade and it is making shavings.

An epiphany today while talking to Susan at one of my regular hunting grounds. Last week when we came in her husband was unloading a trailer of tools. He said he had a few planes but didn't know where they were. Went in today and the best one looked like a Sargent #3 sized plane made for second tier sales. The others were a pair of number #5 size planes and what looked like a #220 missing the front knob and the cap adjuster had been replaced with a hex bolt. These were all priced at $5 ea. Tempting, but there are too many other things on my list that need doing. Susan asked me which planes in particular were being sought. My reply was the one that was just purchased on ebay. My realization was there really aren't any bench planes needed in my shop. There are a few speciality planes wanted. She and Mike do not really know one plane from another so leaving them a list would likely do no good.

There were a couple of small clamps for $1 each. Those got a ride home. They are helpful when doing dovetails. A piece is clamped across the face of the tail board at the base line when marking the pin board.

A saw blade was purchased for $1 on my last visit. Chris Carter posted about using one of these to make a ream and got me thinking.

Candy wanted to try looking at the fish in a pet shop downtown today. That gave me a chance to peruse the pawn shop and a couple of second hand stores. The pawn shop looked like their tools have been selling. There wasn't much there.

The bevel gauge with the broken locking lever was $1. The Starrett dividers were $4.

The one shop had an old plane with the front knob looking to be part of the casting. The adjustment was a wheel that had about 8 wings sticking out and a strange looking adjuster. It was missing a blade. It was tempting at ~$25. Maybe some collector would pay big money for it.

Haven't seen anything like it in the various old planes seen online.

It was kind of fun today.

jtk

[Stew Denton]

Jim,

It looks like you did a lot of looking, but the pickens were a bit slim. That said, the stuff you bought looks fairly decent, especially for the prices. I think a lot of us would especially go for the clamps and dividers for those prices. (They always say you can't have too many clamps.) In short, ya did good!

I don't know much if anything about using dividers, but my son-in-law does, so I am planning to learn from him. That wouldn't stop me from buying a set if the chance came up though, especially at the $4 price.

Your comments about the prices for planes makes me want to go to the auction site and just see what they are going for. Fortunately I am pretty good on planes and really don't need any more, but it is fun to look.

Again, good job.

Stew

[John Keeton]

Jim, I have a reamer I bought from Elia Bizzarri that has a saw blade as the cutter. Works really well, though making one that works as well as his might be tricky. If you take on the project and would like some pics of mine shoot me an email.

Nice haul for the day and I like the 4 1/2. Congrats!

[Jim Koepke]

I don't know much if anything about using dividers, but my son-in-law does, so I am planning to learn from him. That wouldn't stop me from buying a set if the chance came up though, especially at the $4 price.

They come in handy for dividing a space into equal parts. Handy whether looking for center or laying out dovetails. Took most of the rust of today.

If you take on the project and would like some pics of mine shoot me an email.

Thanks for the offer John. You will likely be hearing from me when the time comes.

jtk

[Phil Mueller]

Estate sales began to start again around August or so. I’ve gone to a few when they were on my way. Slim pickens indeed. Obviously, always hit or miss as you never know if someone in the household had any interest in woodworking. There still is, however, numerous bread makers and crock pots to be had!

I’m sure there are still deals to be had on the auction sites, but I don’t shop it much these days. For a benchmark, I tend to use Patrick Leach’s pricing as the going full retail. If you find something for less it’s a reasonable deal, for more, then pass.

[Jim Koepke]

Estate sales began to start again around August or so.

We tend to mis those since we do not get off property like we have in the past.

We have also changed the days we go shopping to avoid crowds. That doesn't work well during this time of year. Though the local grocery store seemed crowded on Wednesday it is likely even more crowded on the weekend.

jtk

[Andrew Nemeth]

Jim,
I made a few reamers last year for a stool I was building. One is bigger for legs and the other is smaller for spindles. Both are based on Elia Bizzarri’s and I used an old keyhole saw for cutters. I certainly do not claim to have more insight into the construction or design than what you can find online about Elia’s design, but if I can be of any help by posting photos of the reamers or answering any questions, please feel free to ask.

-Andrew

[Jim Koepke]

Thanks Andrew, pictures are one of my favorite things to spend time looking at.

jtk