# Not a boring machine!



## AndyT (10 Jun 2015)

Some time around the 1850s, the Americans, who liked to make timber framed houses needing lots of mortices, came up with a clever idea. A drilling machine which held an auger in a little frame, so the user could keep it in place by sitting on it, and drive the bit with both hands. This was less tiring than a brace, and worked well, out in the electricity-free farmsteads. 

Some of these machines survive, and are much loved by their owners.

I recently watched this one, by "Wranglerstar" in which he grins like a puppy all the way through, and already knew Roy Underhill's similar enthusiasm. (For example, in this video, about half way in.)

So when I saw one on eBay, buy it now, I was tempted. 
But it was not nearby, and I didn't buy it.

But it didn't sell, and the vendor lowered the price even more!
Then two UKW members sent me messages about it, saying that they thought I would like it. So, Graham and Rodders, you are to blame! You wore down my resistance. :roll: You sent me on a pleasant day out in Winchester.  

And so I now own this lovely thing:












I think, from a quick look online, that it is by Swan. It seems to be in reasonable nick, except that a latch is missing and there is a little bit of woodworm in the base.

I will post more pictures and show it getting back into working order, but I need to finish a chest of drawers first, so there may be a small delay... :wink:


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## nathandavies (10 Jun 2015)

Beautiful machine, will you be going to the electric free wilderness?


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## bugbear (10 Jun 2015)

Is that one of the kind with the automatic retract ?

BugBear


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## AndyT (10 Jun 2015)

Nathan - No - I like to listen to the radio while I work!

BB - Not actually automatic, but designed to be relatively easy to use. There is a vertical rack which is disengaged while you are drilling (so that the leadscrew can pull the bit into the wood). Then you swing the rack round so it engages, and turn the handles to lift the bit up and out of the hole.


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## Sheffield Tony (10 Jun 2015)

I like that. I've seen homemade contraptions for drilling holes at repeatable angles made by chairmakers ... this looks like a more serious version.

So what's the next WIP to be Andy ? I can't wait ...


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## blackrodd (10 Jun 2015)

AndyT, I'm really pleased that the machine is as good as it looked and is now in safe hands.
Looking forward to the fettling and polishing, which will, no doubt be just as interesting as you're other projects.
Regards Rodders


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## AndyT (12 Jun 2015)

Well, with my other project completed there seemed to be no reason not to crack on with this. I will mostly show pictures as there is nothing new or original about my restoration techniques.

A few more details of the machine show that it is basically sound (no missing parts except for the latch; no cracks in castings) but it does have some woodworm.











The worm is mostly in this little panel






and the seller included a bit of oak to replace it, which he had cut to size but not installed.







The metal parts have the familiar build-up of a gummy layer of old grease mixed with sawdust, and a tiny bit of superficial rust. I see no need for acid, electrolysis or aggressive abrasives. I do like my old tools to be clean and functional so I aim to keep it looking old but remove the dirt and grime.

Dismantling is easy, using a socket that fits the old square nuts.






The top is similarly held on with bolts and captive square nuts






In fact, the whole thing all came to pieces very easily. The old woodscrews were not rusted in and can all be re-used.

To get the gunk off the main casting, I sprayed it with degreaser, scrubbed it with a toothbrush and a stick, then rinsed off in hot water.






This may not look much different, but it's actually quite a lot cleaner






For the rest of the job, I turned to my bottle of magic 'reviver'. 

This is a mixture of boiled linseed oil, turps, meths, vinegar and ammonia. It releases the dirt and grime and makes old dry wooden parts look cared for. But it also works well on metal. In a recent thread on chisels, Jacob mentioned using linseed oil, and when I restored my big old treadle lathe, I used quite a lot, to give it a protective coating. But on a little job like this I just use the reviver mixture.

So here it is, going onto the main casting, and getting a gentle rub with 00 wire wool which is enough to remove any superficial rust and remaining dirt.











And here are the rest of the metal parts, which were just dunked in it, wiped a bit, and cleaned off with paper kitchen towels.











Of course, the wood got the same treatment, though I had previously doused it in woodworm killer and left it to dry in the sun for a few hours. These two pieces show the immediate transformation from 'before' to 'after'.






So now I have a nice kit of parts to re-assemble. I need to cut some loose tongues to hold the replacement panel in place, so probably won't finish today. But I promise it won't take four months!


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## blackrodd (12 Jun 2015)

Very interesting stuff, I'm surprised that you got it apart without some difficulties.
Do you have any idea of the age of the machine?
Regards Rodders


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## AndyT (12 Jun 2015)

blackrodd":1i0v35zy said:


> Very interesting stuff, I'm surprised that you got it apart without some difficulties.
> Do you have any idea of the age of the machine?
> Regards Rodders



Funny you should ask - I've just been doing a bit of searching.

A good place to start for something like this is http://www.datamp.org/ - a wonderful collaborative resource of tool related patents, mostly from the US. You can browse by category or search by name. If you start to look by Tool Type, choose "woodworking machines" as the class, "wood drilling and boring" as the category and "portable timber mortiser" as the type, you get a list of 54 patents for this sort of machine.
It's then a question of paging through the pictures until you find something resembling the one you want, bearing in mind that patent drawings did not always exactly match the tool that got made.

In this case, I'm pretty sure that the patent in question is this one, from a Samuel King in 1864, although it shows a fixed angle model. The new, patented aspect is the way that the rack pivots round and works against the edge of the vertical bevel gear. (Other models had a second gear for the raising and lowering.) 






The Datamp entry leads to more information about the company who did the manufacturing, Lamson and Goodnow, and the information that they made these machines for only a few years, in the 1860s, so that is close enough for me.

What's really useful is that the patent drawing shows me the missing latch! I've not made that yet, but I have put the whole thing back together and had a go with it.

Here's my quick and dirty job on the replacement panel






and here is the whole thing. 






I hope you agree that the nice black colour on the old metalwork is an improvement
















But does it work?

Well, yes it does:











but it would be a lot easier to use if I had a full size beam to drill. Here I am trying to balance a little scrap about 8" long which is not enough to fit under the base. I shall keep an eye on the local skips and report back!


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## Sheffield Tony (12 Jun 2015)

Is the auger special, or will it accept other commonly available bits ? I can't quite make out how the bit is held from the picture, and it seems not to be in the photo of metal parts.


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## AndyT (12 Jun 2015)

Sheffield Tony":38200yg7 said:


> Is the auger special, or will it accept other commonly available bits ? I can't quite make out how the bit is held from the picture, and it seems not to be in the photo of metal parts.



Slightly special - it's a 1/2" diameter round shaft at the top, with a little flat on it. The chuck is just a cylinder with a 1/2" hole and a setscrew which tightens on to the bit. I don't have any others like the one that came with it so I shall just limit myself to making 1" holes :lol: .

I've just rewatched the Wranglerstar videos on YouTube, and he goes into more detail about the bits.

I've also noticed that the setscrew on mine is not actually the hard to match American original but a nearly matching metric screw, forced in, which would not come out easily - but it moves in and out far enough to do its job, so I'll leave well alone.


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## blackrodd (12 Jun 2015)

Another fascinating read there Andy, and as you say a vast improvement on the machine from when you started.
An excellent sympathetic restoration, may I say, on the 150 years old tool, thanks for the pics too.
Regarding the drill bit, from what you described, any different sized bits will have to be with a 1/2" shank, or it would be off centre?
I went to Bude canal Thursday, with 'Er indoors and looking at the vast lock gates, mostly in Iroko, Thought how useful you're borer would have been in those days and on similar jobs.

https://www.waterways.org.uk/waterways/ ... l_overview
Regards Rodders


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## DTR (12 Jun 2015)

AndyT":3qp83uwv said:


> I recently watched this one, by "Wranglerstar" in which he grins like a puppy all the way through,



I got around two minutes through that video before I started feeling sick.

Looks like a fun tool though 8)


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## Vann (13 Jun 2015)

AndyT":obf1iz7f said:


> Slightly special - it's a 1/2" diameter round shaft at the top, with a little flat on it. The chuck is just a cylinder with a 1/2" hole and a setscrew which tightens on to the bit. I don't have any others like the one that came with it so I shall just limit myself to making 1" holes :lol: .


That's the same arrangement as my blacksmiths drills. In the process of acquiring 1/2" shank bits for my drills I've come across a couple with woodworking tips - including a screw. This won't work with my blacksmith drills as the drill feeds the bit, so any bit with a screw will result in the two feeds fighting each other. 

If you PM me I'll part with them.



AndyT":obf1iz7f said:


> I've also noticed that the setscrew on mine is not actually the hard to match American original but a nearly matching metric screw, forced in, which would not come out easily...


UNC bolts are usually available from fastener stockists - as far as I'm aware they've not advanced much from the old American threads and should be interchangeable. Or, if you're a bit rougher, BSW bolts will fit most sizes except 1/2". Filing/grinding the hex head down to a square head could be a pain :roll: 

Out of interest, what diameter is the set screw?

Cheers, Vann.


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## Vann (13 Jun 2015)

Vann":3ghj70m0 said:


> n the process of acquiring ½" shank bits for my drills I've come across a couple with woodworking tips - including a screw. This won't work with my blacksmith drills as the drill feeds the bit, so any bit with a screw will result in the two feeds fighting each other.
> 
> If you PM me I'll part with them.


Oops - just one with a screw (the other is brad point - which I'd like to hang on to).







Let me know if you'd like it. It's a ♯12 (¾").

Cheers, Vann.


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## bugbear (13 Jun 2015)

I'm surprise (if the tool is indeed 1860-ish) at the use of the loose tenons and round mortises in the construction.

It looks like these were very much factory/machine made.

BugBear


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## AndyT (13 Jun 2015)

bugbear":2zx4rtfq said:


> I'm surprise (if the tool is indeed 1860-ish) at the use of the loose tenons and round mortises in the construction.
> 
> It looks like these were very much factory/machine made.
> 
> BugBear



That's an interesting observation, but I think I can turn it around and show that the way this was made is evidence that factory/machine manufacture was established in the USA by the 1860s.


bugbear":2zx4rtfq said:


> I'm surprise (if the tool is indeed 1860-ish) at the use of the loose tenons and round mortises in the construction.
> 
> It looks like these were very much factory/machine made.
> 
> BugBear



That's an interesting observation, but I think I can turn it around and show that the way this was made is evidence that factory/machine manufacture was established in the USA by the 1860s.

First, a quick clarification - the original panel had fixed tenons on the end, which fit into the two short cross pieces. I made loose tenons on the replacement just so that I could use the bit of wood that the vendor gave me, which was correctly cut at the nett size, with no allowance for tenons.

Looking again at the frame, the cross pieces certainly do have tenons with rounded ends which fit into matching mortices.






I dug the original panel out of the bin, and looking closely at its tenons I could see a very consistent undercutting in the internal corner. I've seen the same thing on machine cut dovetails. I think it is deliberate and that the rotating cutter would have had a slight extra width on its end, to make sure that there were no whiskers of wood to get in the way.

So, the construction of the frame does look as if it was designed to be made by machine cutting, not by hand work. Were the Americans cutting wood by machine in the 1860s? Yes they were, and they were quicker to adopt machinery for woodworking than the British were.

You'll want evidence! 

I was recently reading a couple of articles from the Construction History society in which Hente Louwe traces the development of mechanisation of architectural woodwork in Britain. In part one, he points out that the US had a severe shortage of skilled labour and so was quicker to adopt mechanisation. He mentions an account of a "sash and blind" factory in New York in 1847 where 6-8 men turned out "50 sash windows plus venetian blinds per day" and a report from 1855 which said "the working of wood by machinery in almost every branch of industry is all but universal"

I also happen to have been reading a book called "Victorian Furniture, Technology and design" by Clive D. Edwards. He cites an 1850 account of a visit to a Canadian factory where the reporter 

"for the first time saw in operation the remarkably ingenious machinery for planing, turning, morticing and effecting other purposes in carpentry for which the United States have gained much deserved celebrity... So perfect is the machinery, that from rough timber a neat bedstead can be made in the short space of two minutes!"

The same book also cites an 1854 book "Things as they are in America" which admires the US adoption of mechanisation - and is available to read online. For example, this page:






(The rest is here https://archive.org/details/thingsastheyare04chamgoog)

In Britain, the first large scale use of machinery to produce mouldings was in Paxton's construction of the Crystal Palace, in 1851, but small scale furniture production resisted mechanisation for much longer.

So, thanks for sending me off down that little rabbit hole of research!


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## Shrubby (14 Jun 2015)

Nice machine Andy, I was recently admiring one very similar in the carpenters at Blists hill (google it and flickr picks will turn up showing the drill)
Regarding mechanization, the Marc Brunel - Henry Maudsley Block Mill for the Navy was about 1803. 
Matt


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## AndyT (18 Jun 2015)

One slight challenge with this tool is that it needs unusual bits with a 1/2" shank. I know from old catalogues that these were offered in a range of sizes from 1/2" up to 2" but I only have the 1" bit it came with. It doesn't have any cutting spurs, so actually makes pretty poor holes. Vann generously offered to send one on a round the world trip, but I thought I might be able to find a way round the problem.

Most of the bigger old auger bits I have looked at have a pretty well standardised shank (below the taper square end) which is 3/8" diameter, so I thought I would have a go at making an adaptor. Here's the result, after a pleasant morning at the lathe, with a lump of cast iron and some drills and stuff. It has a shaft which is 1/2" diameter, with a flat on, and a concentric 1/2" hole in the thicker bit, which is cross-drilled and tapped to take a 5/16" Whitworth grub screw. No wip photos this time, but you can imagine my old treadle lathe and a pile of iron filings. 






I cut off the end of a duplicate 7/8" auger bit to use in the adaptor, shown here next to the original bit






and here it is in place. 






Success! 

Now I just need to make a replacement for the missing catch, but that might have to wait for the weather to change for something less sunny...


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## bugbear (18 Jun 2015)

> Most of the bigger old auger bits I have looked at have a pretty well standardised shank (below the taper square end) which is 3/8" diameter, so I thought I would have a go at making an adaptor. Here's the result, after a pleasant morning at the lathe, with a lump of cast iron and some drills and stuff. It has a shaft which is 1/2" diameter, with a flat on, and a concentric 1/2" hole in the thicker bit,



So how well do the 3/8" shanks fit the 1/2" hole of your adapter ?

 

BugBear


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## AndyT (18 Jun 2015)

bugbear":y0u9f3g5 said:


> > Most of the bigger old auger bits I have looked at have a pretty well standardised shank (below the taper square end) which is 3/8" diameter, so I thought I would have a go at making an adaptor. Here's the result, after a pleasant morning at the lathe, with a lump of cast iron and some drills and stuff. It has a shaft which is 1/2" diameter, with a flat on, and a concentric 1/2" hole in the thicker bit,
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Fortunately, this time my metalwork was more accurate than my writing! :lol: 
It was a 3/8" hole.


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## blackrodd (18 Jun 2015)

An excellent modification there Andy, when the new steel piece has mellowed in colour and having used that older square grub screw,
It will all blend in nicely and, as you say, make for easier drilling with the machine and having a full choice of drill bits available.
Regards Rodders


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## AndyT (22 Jun 2015)

With the bit holding sorted, I just need to replace the missing latch. This is needed to hold the works at the top of the frame, so you can move on to the next location to be drilled, without a lump of cast iron crashing down at the wrong moment. It needs to operate automatically when you raise the drill out of the work.

I just happen to have a length of suitable sized steel, which I bought from a scrap merchant years ago for some garden railings but did not use. It's marked "2S92B K13200", the size, and "H+T" if that helps.







I decided that I couldn't go straight to metal with any confidence of getting the critical dimensions right, so I spent a little while making a wooden prototype first, using a fretsaw, chisels etc. Having got it reasonably close, I drew round it on the steel. 






It was then simply a case of drilling, hacksawing and filing. I didn't take loads of pictures, just a few to confirm that I did this the old fashioned way:






including some cold chisel work






I was pleased to find that this little filing clamp - which I made in school metalwork lessons about 45 years ago - has finally come in useful!






For the spring, I drilled a tiny hole and superglued in a piece of spring wire.






So here, after lots of filing and rubbing with emery paper, is the finished thing in place as the drill rises up






and then it latches nicely






It does look a bit bright though.

Short of putting it outside to rust, or buying specialist gun barrel browning products, is there an easy way to tone it down a bit, using ordinary household products?


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## dickm (22 Jun 2015)

That is a brilliant bit of metalworking! Pretty sure someone has posted somewhere in the forum a reasonably simple way of blackening such material; maybe a search?


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## blackrodd (22 Jun 2015)

I read that vinegar ages metal, Google it I guess.
Regards Rodders


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## Vann (23 Jun 2015)

Nice work :!:


AndyT":3q8q4w82 said:


> Short of putting it outside to rust, or buying specialist gun barrel browning products, is there an easy way to tone it down a bit, using ordinary household products?


There's a method of "blacking" steel that I haven't tried yet, that involves heating the item to a certain heat, then dunking in oil. It wouldn't do the spring any favours though, nor the glue #-o 

Cheers, Vann.


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## Corneel (23 Jun 2015)

I've tried a few methods too. Most succesfull was an electrolitical process. Put a stainless anode on one side of the object and connect the object to the kathode (or the other way around...). The elctrolyte is just vinegar with a spoon of salt. The action is very direction snesitive, so you should wrap the anode around the object.

A worry now is future corrosion with all that salt and vinegar. So you might want to try the heating and oil trick too.


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## Paul Chapman (23 Jun 2015)

Very nicely made, Andy. With regard to the bright finish, why not just let it age gracefully?

Cheers :wink: 

Paul


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## bugbear (23 Jun 2015)

In the world of high carbon, non stainless, knives, forcing patination is a common desire.

Essentially they want the "right kind" of rust, the tight blue/black kind, not the red kind.

You could search for it:

https://www.google.co.uk/search?num=20& ... yflrtKx25s

BugBear


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## Corneel (23 Jun 2015)

Those knife fans patinate the steel with mild acids, like lemon juice, vinegar, mustard etc. In my experience, that doesn't work so wel with mild steel. It turns black, yes, but the blackness is hardly attached to the steel. It is easilly rinsed of under the running tap. I had a lot more succes with the electrolytical method.


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## AndyT (23 Jun 2015)

Thanks for all the suggestions. I will try some experiments on some offcuts and decide what to do.


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## AndyT (28 Jun 2015)

Now I understand why Bugbear was taking such a close interest in the diameter of the bits needed to fit this machine. He has very kindly sent me this magnificent evidence of his skill at the spotting the good stuff at the boot fair - a 1" auger bit with a round shaft, 5/8" in diameter. It's a bit of a beast (or a beast of a bit!) - here it is beside an ordinary lightweight Jennings bit:






- you can see how much thicker the lands are; it's also longer than normal, at about 12". The maker is clearly marked as A SPAFFORD & Co.






Grace's Guide lists a firm of this name, established in Sheffield in the 1880s and continuing to the 1940s and although they described themselves as making agricultural machine parts, a local history page refers to a "huge range" of manufactures, so I think it was probably one of theirs.

To use it, I needed to turn the end down to 1/2". 

Once I had sorted out the right way to hold it, got everything centred and selected the right cutting tool, this was reasonably straightforward.
















and here it is fitted.






So many thanks to Bugbear for his generous donation to the historic re-enactment of boring beams! =D> =D>


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## Vann (28 Jun 2015)

AndyT":1kb3ik0l said:


> I don't have any others like the one that came with it so I shall just limit myself to making 1" holes :lol: .


Situation unchanged then :mrgreen: 

Cheers, Vann.


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## Sheffield Tony (28 Jun 2015)

I think I mentioned that these drills were handy for chairmaking. Well, amongst a pile of tools at the Wimpole scythe festival today, I spotted this one:





The owner is not willing to part with it !


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## AndyT (28 Jun 2015)

I'm not surprised - I think that is an extra sophisticated Millers Falls model with depth stops.


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## AndyT (25 Nov 2015)

A while back, Vann mentioned in this post that he had an auger bit that would fit my drilling machine






In an act of selfless generosity, he offered it to me and I am pleased to report that it has now completed its round the world trip and found its place, alongside Bugbear's gift and the one I modified and adapted. 






So now I am properly set up to make 3/4", 7/8" or 1" holes!!

Here it is ready for action:






and the action shot:






I really am touched by this level of generosity. Huge thanks to Vann for 'going the extra mile' and sharing his not-rusty-at-all gatherings! =D> =D>

It's this sort of thing that keeps me coming back to UKW.

And if anyone in the Bristol area needs some holes drilling, do get in touch! :lol: :lol:


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## Vann (25 Nov 2015)

AndyT":kw19n7ww said:


> A while back...


13th June. I'm sorry I took so long to get around to posting it   



AndyT":kw19n7ww said:


> Huge thanks to Vann for 'going the extra mile'...


Or, according to Google, 11,784 miles. Plus the 11,780 odd to get to NZ in the first place - that makes it one well-travelled auger bit  






It's good to see it in action. Enjoy!

Cheers, Vann.


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## Bm101 (25 Nov 2015)

Andy, another great thread on sympathetically restoring a lovely tool. As always a pleasure to read and learn. (I've already stolen your restorative recipe). Got to thinking about the blackening process. Realised I knew not much about anything but I do have a friend who knows lots about lots of stuff.. Skyped him so i'm gonna copy and paste bits of the conversation in the hope it helps. You'll have to piece together the rest of the conversation. Shouldn't be hard its me Just going 'oh'/ 'really?'/ well I never' in the missing bits. The usual then.  
Maybe this will help. I'm not qualified to judge.... It might be a bit awkward to read in redacted form!

Part 1:

[19:41:06] D: just warm it and then apply the oil
I get things much hotter in the forge and get a similar effect
but the electrolysis process also chemically changes the residual iron oxide to the black form - like magnetite I think
easy to do with a bucket, car battery charger some washing soda for the electrolyte and some sacrificial steel rods
[19:43:00] C any particular oil?
[19:43:18] D I tend to use beeswax or veg oil
you can use old motor oil but that is not good for you

P2:

[19:45:14] D reading page 2, washing soda is the best...not as agresssive as the vinegar and table salt
but make sure it's washing soda

P3:

[19:46:07] D: the other kind is good for other things
I have done the electrolysis thing...it does work
and you can make up containers for odd shapes
Also worth looking at is the tannin method...very strong tea solution

[19:47:29] Chris : shut up <<<< SEE!  
[19:47:31] D: didn't work in my experiment but a chemist was saying it is the mutts

[19:47:53] D: but I would go electrolysis

[19:48:06] D: just make sure you get the polarity right
[19:48:18] D: takes a few hours

Maybe this will help? Some leads? Hope it helps.
Cheers 
Chris.


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## AndyT (25 Nov 2015)

Thanks Chris. I should have said that I did try the earlier suggestions and the appearance of my new adaptor was toned down by rubbing it with a lemon a few times.

It's certainly an improvement on fresh mild steel, and probably good enough for this one, but I have noted your suggestions for future use. Many thanks!


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## Racers (26 Nov 2015)

Mild steel with a squeeze of lemon, on a bed of rocket with a nice crisp Chardonnay?

:shock:  

Pete


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## Rhyolith (15 Dec 2015)

Great thread, very much enjoyed reading this! Love these old drilling machines and have been restoring smaller ones myself for the last year and a bit in a somewhat self taught manner. I have yet to see one like this in person, looks gorgeous with the restoration, nice balance of keeping the history and preserving the functionality. 

I am very pleased to see a hand powered drill press being use, thought I was the only one who used those these days! What make is yours out of interest? I have a Union A1, brilliant machine and one of my first successful restorations.


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## AndyT (15 Dec 2015)

Rhyolith":35zpsgpl said:


> Great thread, very much enjoyed reading this! Love these old drilling machines and have been restoring smaller ones myself for the last year and a bit in a somewhat self taught manner. I have yet to see one like this in person, looks gorgeous with the restoration, nice balance of keeping the history and preserving the functionality.
> 
> I am very pleased to see a hand powered drill press being use, thought I was the only one who used those these days! What make is yours out of interest? I have a Union A1, brilliant machine and one of my first successful restorations.



I'm glad you liked it!

I did a separate thread on the drill press https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/nice-new-bench-drill-t80666.html

I don't know what make it is - do say if you recognise this logo:


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## matthewwh (16 Dec 2015)

Here's another puzzle piece for you.

Abraham Spafford started producing tools under his own name in Sheffield in 1858 after leaving a brief partnership with Samuel Peace. I have a lovely old Peaces, Spafford & Co sash saw, hence the research. The independant A. Spafford and Co went on to become a successful family firm and were still going right up to the 1970s. Previously Peace had a partnership with Robert Ibbotson who lived in New York and acted as the firm's US agent, this would suggest a gearing towards and links with the US market, presumably in a similar way to Sorby's focus on Australia.


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## AndyT (16 Dec 2015)

Matthew - Simon Barley's book confirms what you say but lacks a picture of the Spafford mark - you could send him a photo direct or use the backsaw.net forum.


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## matthewwh (16 Dec 2015)

Thanks Andy,

Email duly sent.


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## swb58 (16 Dec 2015)

Is that AS or RS? ^^^


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## AndyT (16 Dec 2015)

swb58":pprd3f91 said:


> Is that AS or RS? ^^^



I'd assumed RS (or SR) but with no other evidence, could not be sure.


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## swb58 (16 Dec 2015)

I thought the mention of Abraham earlier meant it was understood to be AS, just looks more like an R to me, sorry, no info either way.


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## Rhyolith (17 Dec 2015)

I am intrigued to what it could be... I am pretty sure your drill is Union like mine (considering the "A-1"), however there is next to no info on the Union company other than it made lathes under the name T.S. Harrison and Son: http://www.lathes.co.uk/union/ 

Shame that "T" is so an R or that might be the answer!


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