Low/no cost hand tools acquired today

[Farmer Giles]

I'm on another forum or three and one of the most popular on one is a thread showing what tools you have acquired at low/no cost, could be car boot, skip dive, given or just cheap.

Apologies if there is already a similar thread going

Here's today's acquisitions, cost nothing, they were the father's of the guy who is repairing dry stone walls for me and he saw my collection of old planes and decided I would be better off with them than he as he never used them and never will.

First a nice Record 77A bull-nose rabbet plane, 1948, looks to be ex-services. He believes the box to be original but he made a new lid. Should clean up nicely with little effort, blade needs regrinding but plenty of meat on it.

Finally a Marples no,. 4, no major damage so should also clean up, it has a stanley blade that needs a bit of work.

I like how the cap iron shows the correct grinding angle.

Cheers
Andy

 

[BluegillUK]

Great finds Andy, especially that little Record- how much did you pay for those bits?

I've been thinking about that too - a car boot finds thread, as I've seen so many lately. Any chance of a sticky mods?

 

[Farmer Giles]

They cost nothing, he was happy that they were going to somebody that may use it

 

[BluegillUK]

They cost nothing, he was happy that they were going to somebody that may use it

Oops, must have skipped over that bit! Even more of a bargain than I thought then!

 

[ED65]

Congrats Andy!

I've only acquired a few small bits and bobs for literally nothing, none worth posting from what I can remember offhand but I'll have a poke around my photos and see if anything pops out at me.

If you want low-cost items I fear this thread could get very very long indeed. Typical car-boot prices in the UK are low to lowish and in older threads I've seen many a very nice tool acquired for practically nothing, one or two quid down to 50p or so. Until fairly recently I'd never gotten anything worth mentioning for equivalent money but I got a job lot last year with some nice stuff in among the dross and of late I've been lucky enough to poke through a few "Everything €1" bins which weren't only full of junky screwdrivers that no toolhead would want, odd Allen keys and unidentifiable bits of rusty steel that may or may not be anything

 

[ED65]

I've been thinking about that too - a car boot finds thread, as I've seen so many lately. Any chance of a sticky mods?

No need for a sticky, people post the occasional thread on their finds (I've been meaning to myself for a few weeks now) when the mood takes them and there are few enough usually that they don't take over the forum.

 

[AndyT]

I've had my share of free tools, but it would sound like boasting if I posted them all.

Seriously though, the point is worth repeating - people often inherit tools, know that their father / grandfather took care of them, and are more concerned to see them go to a "good home" than to maximise the potential cash.

So it's always worth letting friends, neighbours and acquaintances know that you will accept old tools. (Rusty hardpoint saws and broken B&Q power tools may have to be accepted from time to time, IF accompanied by some of the good stuff!)

 

[lurker]

Spot on Andy

A few years back a neighbour asked me if I wanted junk remaining in her shed
Most of it was scrap metal but there was one very rusty all metal mortise chisel.
I did this up with a high level of polish to the edge, just to amuse myself.

I showed her it a few weeks later, she said "oh my Dad would be pleased it's being cherished"

Six months later she invited me back saying she wanted me to have her grandfathers tools as she knew I would look after them.
It would be boasting to list what I aquired.
8)

 

[Bm101]

Had a few touches in my tool hunts, but just as a note of sobriety...
Was working on the house all weekend and got a phonecall from the Mrs who had taken the kids out to Summatortother House for a day out. Gets a phonecall.
Mrs: I just walked past a little stall selling tools.
Me: Right.... what sort of tools?
Mrs: Theres a big wooden hammer. And some old screwdrivers with flat wooden handles that match, about 3 in all. Oh and saw that looks old. They are all a pound or 2 each.
Me: Well I could do with a new mallet so get 'the big wooden hammer' Them screwdrivers sound like turnscrews, get them too for that money. What does the saw look like?
Mrs: Blade is about 6" long, rectangle, has a turned wooden handle along the top at the back level with the top edge of the saw and a metal collar...
Me: Uhm? Gentlemans saw? Does it have a name on it anywhere?
Mrs: Erm Nope. it's 2 quid dya want it?
Me: Ahh go on.

10 minutes pass.

Get a text... everything gone apart from the saw!

No worries, you never know. Might be a nice surprise I think.
Few hours later they all get home.
Daddy! My kids sing out! We got you a new saw!!!!

Ahhh... :-s

 

[AndyT]

Nice near miss there Chris!

BUT, bearing in mind I'm relying on memory only, and if there are any teeth on that saw at all, it might be a specific pattern sold briefly as an electrician's saw, possibly connected with the use of grooved wooden trunking to run wires along. In which case it's rare and interesting!

Anyone have Simon Barley's books handy?

 

[Farmer Giles]

All these were freebies, the two on the right are from a neighbour, I'm currently sharpening the blade of one, the other blade was beyond repair, not much left on it and looked it had been used to plane floorboard nails so I bought a second hand Lie Neilsen blade off the bay of evil, a bit of an overkill but it wasn't expensive.

The rest are from my dad who's planing days are over. I seem to have a surfeit of No.4s, three of them, and a couple of 102s. The 110 is incomplete and the Record 075 bull nose plane seems to be missing a few bits.

 

[Bm101]

Nice near miss there Chris!

BUT, bearing in mind I'm relying on memory only, and if there are any teeth on that saw at all, it might be a specific pattern sold briefly as an electrician's saw, possibly connected with the use of grooved wooden trunking to run wires along. In which case it's rare and interesting!

Anyone have Simon Barley's books handy?

Hard to tell from the photo Andy. But in real life I think it's a cleaver. Chop chop.

 

[Farmer Giles]

How about this for a nice bevel and micro-bevel on the spokeshave :shock:

Maybe we need another thread on the worst sharpening on acquired tools

 

[AndyT]

Nice near miss there Chris!

BUT, bearing in mind I'm relying on memory only, and if there are any teeth on that saw at all, it might be a specific pattern sold briefly as an electrician's saw, possibly connected with the use of grooved wooden trunking to run wires along. In which case it's rare and interesting!

Anyone have Simon Barley's books handy?

Hard to tell from the photo Andy. But in real life I think it's a cleaver. Chop chop.

Serves me right for reading the forum on a phone!

Maybe you could adapt it...

 

[ED65]

How about this for a nice bevel and micro-bevel on the spokeshave :shock:

If I had to guess I'd say done with a sanding drum chucked up in a drill. I have seen worse stabs at a proper sharpen, but not often.

Maybe we need another thread on the worst sharpening on acquired tools

Ooo oo can we? I've had a few contenders for that!

 

[kwigly]

Maybe we need another thread on the worst sharpening on acquired tools

Ooo oo can we? I've had a few contenders for that![/quote]

I've got some of those too (maybe some done by me )

 

[bugbear]

Nice near miss there Chris!

BUT, bearing in mind I'm relying on memory only, and if there are any teeth on that saw at all, it might be a specific pattern sold briefly as an electrician's saw, possibly connected with the use of grooved wooden trunking to run wires along. In which case it's rare and interesting!

Anyone have Simon Barley's books handy?

Hard to tell from the photo Andy. But in real life I think it's a cleaver. Chop chop.

Speaking of cleavers, this guy's restoration video may give the more sensitive tool lovers
the vapours.

The violence starts around 1 minute in. He definitely isn't a fan of citric acid or electrolysis.

BugBear

 

[Racers]

Looks like a nice piece of steel looking at the sparks.

Americans seem to have a different understanding of the word restoration.

Pete

 

[Cheshirechappie]

To be fair, it did work quite nicely when he'd finished, though he may have compromised the patina slightly....

 

[Farmer Giles]

I have been looking for a 3/4" gouge for carving for a while, usually by Addis, Sorby etc. Although a few are cheaper, they seem to be around the £20+ mark on eBay. Well I was passing our local market today and Sunday is a flea market, it is usually full of tat but today I spotted these tucked away in a corner, £8 the lot. I could have probably knocked him down a quid but I had two ankle biters and a dog tugging at me so just slid the money.

After a bit of a clean up, the top one is an Stormont 7/16" gouge, the second one down is a Marples 1/2" gouge, the short one is an E Preston & Sons 1/2" gouge and the bottom is another Marples but 3/4" or maybe 11/16"

All but the Preston have the British Broad Arrow symbol so probably ex-forces or civil service tools. The Strormont still has the number from the "rate book" on it, that brings back memories of going to the GPO stores as an apprentice

I've now given them a clean up with a wire brush in the angle grinder, just took the rust and muck off without removing all the patina. I shall get them on the Tormek when I get time.

Cheers
Andy