stanley 150 miter box question

[Thomas Crawford]

I bought a Stanley 150 miter (mitre?) box off the auction site. I *think* it has all the parts. Took everything apart, evaporust on all the screws and doodads, and it cleaned up rather nicely.

This is my first vintage box, and I'm not 100% sure how tight the sawplate should be seated. If I get the clamps installed I can drop the saw plate in from the top, maybe a 1/16" gap. My engineer's square says its dead square sitting there, but there seems to be too much play at the top to guarantee a square cut. Wondering if it is set up correctly or not.

Second question would be the vertical adjustment. There's not much room in between "too tight to move" and "cast iron falling on the workpiece". Any tips on how to adjust the vertical travel? This seems related to my first issue of getting a square cut, as the vertical piece wants to fall down too far for the saw's back spline to rest on the guides.

Forgot to take pictures but can add some later.

[Lonnie Gallaher]

Bad Axe Tools has the manual on their site.

[Bill Houghton]

One of the "jaws" of the saw carriage is spring-loaded. Put your saw in, with a piece of paper for clearance (note: I've never tried this, but it makes sense; if it doesn't work, try another approach); loosen the clamp for that jaw, and let it press against the saw; tighten the clamp. You might also try waxing those jaws. I had one and got rid of it because the saw kept binding; I now realize that (a) I should have waxed them, and (b) I should have tried the paper shim. Waxing them will be tricky, but, if you apply a heavy coat of wax to your saw and run it back and forth in the jaws, you should transfer some wax to the jaws. Buffing...try some printer paper run back and forth. Again: haven't done it, wish I'd thought of it, if this doesn't work, try another approach.

If you've got the clamp on the upright post that holds the saw carriage, you should be able to set it correctly. This miter box is for small work, so you're not going to be cutting 7" crown molding held upright. Let the spine of your saw rest on top of the jaws of the carriage, then adjust it vertically so the saw's teeth are just scraping the wood bed. Now, check that you can move the saw up so the teeth are just below the bottom of the jaws. If you hit the top of the saw carriage before you reach this point, your saw's too wide, and you'll have to figure out a compromise position. The spine does not have to rest on the jaws at full downward position, although a saw wide enough to do that is optimal. The ideal saw width will allow the saw spine to rest on the jaws, while just barely clearing the top of the saw carriage when the sawteeth are just below the jaws, but you can use a less-than-optimal saw.

[Thomas Crawford]

After looking at the manual (thanks Lonnie) and reading Bill's reply I think I have the spring loaded guide set wrong for the size of the saw. The saw that came with it is an unmarked 16" that has a plate that is pretty pitted after derusting. If I can get the box working with that I'll probably order the bad axe.

[Thomas Crawford]

Bill's reply got me to a functioning mitre box, now I just need to sharpen the saw.

[Vaughan Dubrosa]

I bought a little Stanley 150 this morning from an auction house (not fleaBay). Thought it might be a good addition to my workshop. Don't see too many in Australia.
stanley no. 150_1028.jpg
Looking forward to restoring and using it.
Vaughan

PS This is my first post after a year or two of 'lurking'... Hi!

[Bill McDermott]

I mounted my 150 to a bench hook and recommend you consider that. Sometimes I'll drop the cleat into my vise. More often than not, the cleat just rests against the edge of the bench, saw table, assembly table or wherever there is a clear landing space. That makes the saw box more versatile for me.

[Jim Koepke]

Howdy Vaughn and welcome to the Creek.

A working miter box can be a handy thing. Good luck with the restore and post some pictures when your done.

jtk