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Try the Hand Tool Preservation Association of Australia tool sales (3 per year) in the Melbourne area and the once a year Traditional Tools Group (Sydney) February sale. I haven’t travelled down to either organization’s sales in a few years now but when I last went both had quality tools at realistic prices but the sellers were mostly traders who knew what they were dealing in. The chance to inspect for missing components and defects (cracks) before forking out the cash was an advantage over any online auction or trader . But they do know what they are selling so you wont find the mispriced bargains. Fortunately I got most of my woodworking tools many years ago and don’t feel the need to extend the collection beyond what I can reasonably maintain – and I don’t often venture on to ebay because many tools put on ebay in Australia were generally overpriced and/or abused tools.
Yes, I was not aware of that manufacturer either.
However, I have a couple of Record 50’s (not 44’s) with the same embossed diamond impression on some of the thumbscrews (not all) and I had assumed that this was a Record characteristic. The fence, in both of those cases, was different to the one illustrated. Must have been a manufacturer out there who was producing those thumbscrews which both Record and Pemuvar (and maybe others) seemed to have used.
It would be interesting to measure up the other Record 44/50 clones as well such as Rapier and Marples to see if they were basically the same master pattern with different details.
Cheers
MarkYes, it is consistency of diameter, if you believe that someone has ground the outer circumference of the spiral. I don’t happen to think that is the problem in your case. It will be something to do with the two cutting edges and possibly the spurs. Are the two cutting edges co-planar across the cutting face? Are the cutting edges actually sharp? Compare the poorly cutting bits to the good bits – is there a difference of angle at the cutting edge? (as in bevel angle) To understand the geometry of the cutting edges on brace auger bits I can only recommend a book like Aldren Watson’s “Hand Tools: Their Ways and Workings”. His sketched diagrams are so good at explaining how the cutting edges of the tools actually work – so much better than photographs. His section on Brace auger drills is excellent and page 56 and 60 would set you right on the cutting action of the brace auger I believe. I can’t supply these pages sadly as my scanner is out of action right now. But Watson does say that with the larger diameter auger bits you must supply a much larger downwards force to the bit through the bow. He also indicates that the condition of the spurs (he calls then flukes) and lead screw does play a significant part in successful drilling in the larger diameters. Try applying a lot of force to the drill as you are making a few more test holes – if that doesn’t work and there isn’t something obviously wrong with the cutting edges of the bit, then maybe you need to consider it a worn out bit and replace it.
When buying auger bit sets remember that only relatively few augers get used regularly out of sets and they get blunt/broken/replaced more often. When I think of my own twist drill set and how many of the bits have been replaced over the years (especially the smaller ones). It may be that the original owner replaced the auger bit in the set long ago- before the eBay seller even came upon the scene. Having said that, some ebay sellers are not exactly honest (or even knowledgeable) about what it is they are selling. You might be better off looking for a specific size auger bit and replacing just that one. Especially if most of the other bits in the set are acceptable.
Cheers
MarkThanks for that photo which explains what has happened. It would be possible to repair – however it would take a fair bit of effort and what facilities you have available to you.
What you do next depends upon how adept you are at drilling the pin out of the hole (or trying to use a pin punch to tap it out) and then using a tap and die set to clean up the male and female threads. Not sure what the actual thread type would be but it would, in all probability, be one of the common ones for the size of the bow. After correcting the threads, you would have to get another pin, correct to size and fix it in place with a small amount of protrusion so that it can act as the stop pin for the cam ring (see Watson reference from above – page 48). That would fix the brace – but would it be worth your time? Possibly not. Braces are not expensive tools and a quality secondhand replacement 10inch brace might cost $50 from a reputable source (not eBay!).
I hope that this helps.
Cheers
MarkSmall scale toolmaking is a hard road. I’ll wager they’re having problems getting acceptable castings with the porosity only evident when you’ve machined the base flat – and spent a fair bit of money on the casting. That casting looks to be a pretty thin base with all sorts of potential feeding issues. If only tool buyers were prepared to accept small pores in the base of the casting as an inevitable part of the casting process, he’d probably be able to get more “acceptable” tools out there in the market. Sadly everyone seems to want picture perfect ones – and that means more reject castings and a lot of cost in machining!
We had a post on this forum recently from a forum member with porosity in the base of the router that he picked up on the secondhand market – probably made by a former owner and a pattern-maker friend. By the current owners account it still works well despite the minor blemishes on the base of the tool.
Cheers
MarkAny spray adhesive from the stationary suppliers has worked for me. It doesn’t need to be a branded one – nonames work as well as the good ones. At a pinch, even spraying water underneath the wet and dry will work for a short while, if you press it down hard enough – but it will move eventually.
Yes, but how was that hole drilled when the brace was being manufactured? There must be an entrance hole either below the visible hole, or, more likely, diagonally opposite the visible hole. Is there a shear pin, or the remains of one in the threaded part of the handle (the bow)?
Or is there a fracture surface on the end of the male thread?
You might also have a look at Brit’s page on Lumberjocks – The Humble Brace – A Beginners Guide to Restoring Owning and Using Part 2 – he renovates a brace with a similar type of mechanism, although he didn’t have to dis-assemble that part of the brace. It will give you some photos of what parts should be there. Look down the bottom of that particular page. I have attached a link but I’m not sure that links will go through the system. I’ll try anyway.
http://lumberjocks.com/Brit/blog/25110
If you can get access to a copy of Aldren Watson’s book – “Hand Tools – Their Ways and Workings” There are some useful sketches on pages 46-49 of this kind of brace mechanism but sadly not the threaded attachment of the bow to the cam ring. The pin referred to above as a shear pin is called the “stop pin” in Watson’s book.
Cheers
MarkAll the digital calipers rely on a round button variety battery – it is usually easily replaced. It could tell you more about the bits than we can from a distance. I can’t see why the one in the left of photo 115525 shouldn’t work, especially if the leading edge of the spurs was given a little bit of a filing to sharpen it. The one on the right of this photo looks like a spur-less bit which was meant for rough work. But even so, it should work if the cutting edges are sharp. It just wont leave a clean exit hole.
Cheers
MarkTry a pin-punch onto the ends of the front of the jaws with the back of the chuck supported on a piece of wood. Then turn the chuck around and tap on the back of the jaws with the front of the chuck supported on a vise. Light tap is all that should be needed just to gently move the jaws free of the shank – but don’t bash with a big hammer!
Have a look more closely at the ring around the socket where the handle thread goes into the shell. Is that a fracture surface there? In that case, part of the casting (where the ring selector is located) might be missing (fractured) thus taking part of the female thread away and making it difficult to tighten the handle sufficiently. If not, is there any indication of the manufacturers identity? Was it British made or US made – this will give a better idea of what the thread might be.
My problem with understanding what has happened here is that the normal rotational action of the brace should not cause that handle thread to rotate. The rotation should occur about the joint below the selector ring – same axis as through the chuck. Perhaps that joint is frozen. Perhaps need some clearer pictures. Try a camera with a macro facility.
Cheers
MarkIf you could get the wooden handle off safely, you could try heating the main handle casting and trying to keep the pin cool. A bit of differential heating sometimes helps to loosen tapered pins and break oxides holding them together. However, bear in mind that I don’t know if there are any other parts that could be harmed though – think it through before you apply the torch.
Cheers
Mark -
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