The weekend haul

[Carol Reed]

Within the last month, 4 saws have followed me home. I was looking for something to refurbish for the book. Didn't want to spend much. A month ago this showed up on CL. A Rockwell bench top. $25



Seems reasonably solid. Has a quirk I had not seen before in bench-top saw. It is not a direct drive, but a belt drive.



Belt is in good shape so I have hopes this thing.

Then Jim B. was de-cluttering his garage and this freebie Craftsman came home. Quirky shaft drive and lots of rust to experience electrolysis.







Then decided that a common contractor's saw would best fit in the book. Back to CL.

Found this gem. A '48-'50 Timberline contractor's saw. $50. When motors were motors, cast iron was the norm, and stout was the name of the game.



Hmmm.... fence and miter gauge came along. Must still be in the truck behind the seats.

But I digress.

Motors were motors with bearings that run forever. This thing is as quiet as my cabinet saw (in storage). Look at that #10 cord! This is a dual voltage 115/230 VAC and 13/6.5 amp motor.



Here is a shot of the front with badge. You can see the corroded aluminum that I hope will clean up nicely.



Couldn't believe it. This is a keeper. It will get much use in building the house. Biggest problem will be to keep it from being stolen!

Same seller had this rusty ol' Sears band saw sitting there as well. Offered it for $50. Couldn't walk away without it. Also will be good enough, both for the book and the house build.



Lots of rust and clean up to do, but only $125 cash out so far. Got extras, fences, extension tables, miter gauges, stands, even rusty steel saw blades. Will go on eBay and CL and I will easily recoup my cash investment. Will need some electrical stuff and new belts, except for the Rockwell.

And I still don't have a common contractor's saw, like a Craftsman. But there is one freebie on CL without a motor, that if they answered their darned email (only contact they've offered), would be here for refurbishing. I have plenty of donor parts to make it whole.

That's how I ended last weekend!

 

[Jim C Bradley]

The saw that Carol got from me was given to me by neighbors who were moving away. After the dad died, the kids just simply abused the saw. It has good bones and a motor that looks like new. However, as Carol pointed out, it had a strange way to get power from the motor to the saw blade---a real heavy duty flexible shaft. The downside, to me, was that it is amazing how much something like that can get in the way in an afternoon, a night and a morning---It seemed like it was there for a week or more.

It would be a very usable saw for someone starting out in woodworking with little cash and some time. I hope it ends up in a happy home.

Enjoy,
JimB

 

[Vaughn McMillan]

That's quite the haul, Carol. The little Timberline looks like a beast. It looks like it has a rack and pinion fence adjustment, too.

 

[Carol Reed]

LOL! Vaughn, that Timberline is a beast and its not so little. Weighs a bunch. Takes two men and a horse to move it. Yes, the fence is rack and pinion with the locking knob on the rear of the fence. May not survive the renovation. I like the t-square fence better. And I will be making several of those for the book project.

This is getting deeper and deeper. Darn you, Rob Keeble!

 

[Paul Douglass]

Carol's new book title "THE ART OF COLLECTING OLD TABLE SAWS" Don't know if that is my kind of book!

 

[Rob Keeble]

I think i best defend myself here, i suggested you write an updated router book or a woodworking book not a recycling old woodworking tools book. Or how to collect as much junk as possible for $150.

I like the job of refurbishing things but....my question would be who is the book targeted at from a demographic point of view. If the next generation of woodworkers is in their i dunno late 30's to early 40's now then i dont see them taking on Great Grandpas old contractor saw and refurbishing it, especially after the hammering i took (not here but from local friends) merely refurbishing a 17 yr old car. There will be a load of woodworkers with fairly relatively new still very good shape machines coming on the market soon as more recent purchases end up having to be sold for downsizing and change of life for the boomers and as in the case of table saws, the current turnover among the existing generation of woodworkers the move to safety saws like Sawstop continues to put out prior purchases among the baby boomers into the second hand market. Just my view after having purchased a almost new 16 inch drill press from an estate sale. Glenn passed on his still new sears contractor table saw to Jim yeah its going in a different age direction but still a good saw being passed on for newer. Bill recently replaced his newer table saw with even better one, Ninh just acquired a brand new Delta contractors saw and thats just 3 i can think of off the cuff.

We fixer uppers are a dying breed is my view at least that's my take on things around me. As for even younger than current 30's generation, well fixer uppers they definitely are not. I got a son in that category and getting hands dirty fixing something they know nothing about aint their scene.

I believe there is a certain nostalgia among us connected to refurbishing old hand tools (maybe because of a romantic connection we feel when we do it with the past days) like say a plane especially given the price of new ones, perhaps the challenge and maybe some right of passage, but i just don't see next generation doing it in the power tool market when you look at the prices Grizzly manages to put things out at and then there is the Craigslist market but for like new stuff being sold at fire sale prices. Look at how well Mohammad has done with his CL purchases in the machine market.

http://www.grizzly.com/products/category/530000

Maybe i am totally wrong certainly wont be the first time or the last time i am and hope i am. But how many prior generations of woodworkers that did woodworking for a hobby had the kind of coin that is available today (dont forget credit that prior generations would not use) to build a dedicated shop and kit it out with dust collector and all the machines by comparison to what is happening today. Even in the category of dust collection you seeing people spend more on it at the end of the day than ever before. While those dust ports existed 20 years ago on machines, how many were used and by what quality of dust (or should we say chip) collector. To me this is symptomatic of what will drive the needs and wants of future woodworkers. Sorry dont mean to be a wet blanket. Just my honest view.

 

[Carol Reed]

Looks like my turn to explain myself.

There will be little to nothing in the book about tool restoration. I need these tools to show how a lesser tool can be made more useful. In the process, for example, of building a cabinet to house a bench-top or contractor's saw, all the woodworking information is carefully and completely explained and shown. With that information at hand, any cabinet can be constructed.

There will also be jigs in the book. Some shop-made, some purchased. But this is not a jig book either. For every tool in the book, beneficial features will be pointed out, useless features will be panned, complete instruction of the use of each tool will be included. But this is not a tool book, either.

This is a book for anyone who wants to begin woodworking and has not had the benefit of hands-on experience, either through the school system (most shop programs having gone the way of the dodo bird) or of experience handed down in the family, as the boomer generation never got. Nor did the following generations.

This book is also for the experienced to learn some new things and gain greater insight of processes that allows them to kick up their skills without falling for the hype of sales pitches instead of solid educational information. Woodworking shows today no longer bring in independent demonstrators. The vendors cried long and hard years ago, claiming they could provide the same information and increase their sales. So now shows are just major sales campaigns and not sources of impartial information and instruction. We all know the quality of your tools does not guarantee the quality of your work.

I am not putting down new tools or necessarily advocating old tools. Each of us has what we have and those who come into the craft have to start someplace. This book is intended to give them a means to evaluate where to spend their money and time. And it also will allow the experienced to re-evaluate their own tools and processes and spend their money and time more efficiently and wisely.

So do I think there is a market. Yes, I do. My forte has always been the methodology of my teaching. Some of you experienced that at Burning Wood last year. This will be more of the same kind of thing, only in different media.

And Rob, my friend, as you well know, it is all in the marketing. And this book is being written with the marketing in mind from the get-go. Remember, I am doing this because you encouraged it and because both of us want to see me make more than 60 cents a copy this time around.

 

[Darren Wright]

I'm pretty darned excited about the book. I think the last table saw is a good choice for those that are able to do some tune-ups and have grandpa's/dad's hand-me-downs, a current model borg special (http://www.homedepot.com/p/Ryobi-15-Amp-10-in-Table-Saw-RTS10/202517808) would be as well as many guys I know getting into home projects have bought one similar on a budget. That band saw can also be tuned to do ripping in place of the table saw, so good choice to pick it up, especially at that price.

 

[Carol Reed]

Thanks, Darren. Encouragement is always appreciated and a great pick-me-up. Writing a book, even when you've done it before, is a daunting task. And I am counting on my family here to keep me going until the end!

 

[Randal Stevenson]

Here, I have seen and know of a few older freinds who like those old 8" tablesaws for house projects.

Carol, I hope you also go a little bit into selection and safety (things like your old sawboard setups, will do quite a few home projects and there are good aftermarket blade gaurds, for tablesaws).
My generation, was in the middle of the having a workbench and fixing things, to the throw away import generation. There was a little bit of training from family that came in, but it was more in the style of Red Green and Tim Taylor. (learned more from others then family, thankfully). Now, with easier credit and people believing debt is normal/good, seems there is less fixing and more going with new and the cheapest they can get by with. (seen some CL tool posts, that make Walmart seem like a good tool store) People have learned how to work with plastic, not their hands or heads.
Shop classes have gone the way of robotics. That could be good (electrical fundamentals, etc), but seems to me they are lied to. They aren't robots, but remotely operated machines (remote controled), no autonomy for the robotics step, and we are a long ways away from AI/andriods.

I am lacking in a lot of shop time, but have been aquiring hand tools and would like to tune up some of the old hand saws I have (both learning skills and, less chance of getting hurt in late night fix it sessions). That is one reason I like the circular saw setups, hands on the switch (above the blade) and a modern version of what the previous generations would do with hand tools, just faster (not always better/skills are aquired). Table saws (IMHO) seem to have grabbed hold, more due to quality of them verses hand held power tools of the day; now if I were to do it again, I would stick with a circular saw, and would much rather buy a bandsaw for the shop. Space in small or starter homes, is at a premium. (think of the old tools chests and sawhorses)

 

[Carol Reed]

Thanks, Randal, you have reminded me of another reason to do this. For people with space considerations. I had already noted the others. I agree with you about the band saw being a better opening tool. But one can only tilt at so many windmills.
There will be a lot on tool selection and gobs on practical safety, both guards and personal protection. Practical stuff you actually do as opposed to "yeah, that's a good idea, but...'