Got a new toy this weekend with pix

[Dennis Nagle]

My wife and I ended up driving 300 miles round trip to pick up a 1924 Oliver 144 6" jointer this weekend. It weighs appx 700 lbs and we had to take it apart to get it out of the woman's basement. It was her grandfathers and spent its entire life sitting in the same spot in the same house (so she says, but it looks more used than that). So I spent the weekend futzing with my new toy.

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[Faust M. Ruggiero]

I've always appreciated people who love and refurbish "old iron". For pure functionality, I wouldn't bother but some of those old machines are surely a slice of Americana and deserve good homes, elegant paint jobs and freshly poured babbits. Good luck with the restoration.
faust

[Dennis Nagle]

Thanks Faust. The other thing I like about old arn is I can make it totally functional that meets or exceeds any other modern version.

[Keith Hankins]

Great find! I'm sure you will enjoy. Does that have the babbitt bearings?

[Dennis Nagle]

No, they are ball bearings throughout. That is really unusual for a 1924 machine.

[Rick Moyer]

I want to know what you're doing to the bike in the background? Nitrous? What engine is that?

[Mike Wilkins]

Great find on the old/heavy iron.
Ditto on the bike in the background. What in the world is that???

[Rod Sheridan]

Thanks Faust. The other thing I like about old arn is I can make it totally functional that meets or exceeds any other modern version.

You obviously haven't used one of the Martin jointers.......LOL.

Nice find on the old jointer, I only have time for old motorcycles.

Is that a clamshell head?

regards, Rod.

[Loren Woirhaye]

I've learned that collecting more old machines machines than I actually need interferes with getting woodworking done... but I totally recommend old iron and tuning good old machines is a great way to learn about woodworking machines.

[Jim Tabor]

Nice, but what's that yellow thing behind the jointer?

[Dennis Nagle]

THanks all. Here is a link to my Industrial Motor Bike.

http://home.comcast.net/~djnagle/site/?/page/Vehicle_Art/

[Steven Satur]

Looks like a clamshell cutterhead. OUCH

Steve

[Dennis Nagle]

Why "OUCH" Steve?

[johnny means]

They certainly did make them pretty back then. I would never use that for doing actual work, but one of these days I'm going to decorate my office/studio with some nice Ol' Arn like that. That one there is just right for a nice smallish fish tank.

[Dave Cullen]

Gotta love Oliver cast iron. They liked making heavy stuff.

Congrats.

[Dok Yager]

Hi Dennis. Love those old Oliver tools! After my cabinet saw purchase here in the next couple of months, one of those joiners is next on the list.

[David Kumm]

Check with OWWM guys who know about the clamshell. I believe they are less of a worry with a small head than large but those guys will know what to assess before running one. Dave

[Steven Satur]

From what I recall, over time the bolts that hold the knives and caps in get stressed overtime, and when the head spins the force will sometimes cause disastrous results. These replaced the very old square cutterheads that were great for trimming your finger nails up to your wrist.

Steve

[Dave Verstraete]

Hey, that was made in my hometown. A little before I was born, though.

[Dennis Nagle]

Why would you not use it to do actual work?


They certainly did make them pretty back then. I would never use that for doing actual work, but one of these days I'm going to decorate my office/studio with some nice Ol' Arn like that. That one there is just right for a nice smallish fish tank.

[Tom Hardy]

Nothing like old cast iron. That's old American Artwork to me.

[johnny means]

Why would you not use it to do actual work?
I'm a professional. Safety, convenience, capacity and a host of other details figure into what machines I consider a good fit for my shop. Don't get me wrong, I would consider the Oliver a fine machine for a certain type of shop, just not mine. I wouldn't want to use that for a marathon jointing session with a thousand bf of maple.p

[Dennis Nagle]

That makes sense Johnny. I do limited production but I don't use the jointer for that. I use is mainly for facing 2x2s for glue up to make Tractrix midrange horns.

[michael flay]

If it was in grandpa's basement it's whole life then grandpa must of had three phase power if I have read the tag on that motor correctly.

[Keith Weber]

The clamshell heads were notorious for throwing blades. Personally, I wouldn't want to take that risk. Unfortunately, it's a direct drive, which means that the motor shaft and cutterhead are one in the same (unless coupled), so it'd be a more complex (read expensive) replacement.

[Jim Matthews]

Your wife went with you?

All I have to do is mention the words
flea market, cast iron or Dean Kamen and mine bolts for the door.

If she helped you dismantle and haul out, she's a keeper.

[Dennis Nagle]

Yep, she is very supportive and helps me a lot.

[J.R. Rutter]

I use is mainly for facing 2x2s for glue up to make Tractrix midrange horns.

Nice! What driver(s) do you mate them with?

[Scott T Smith]

Why would you not use it to do actual work?

If it's the cutterhead style that I'm thinking of, if you hit a hard spot such as a knot the bolts can break and fling the knives out under load. Modern cutterheads are designed to prevent this from happening.

[Dennis Nagle]

Nice! What driver(s) do you mate them with?

I use the JBL 2441 with Radian diaphragms that have the Mylar surrounds. For tweeters I use the old Big Heil AMTs off the ESS AMT 1s.

[Dennis Nagle]

If it's the cutterhead style that I'm thinking of, if you hit a hard spot such as a knot the bolts can break and fling the knives out under load. Modern cutterheads are designed to prevent this from happening.

Yep, I've done a lot of searching and reading in the last couple hours. These Clamshell cutter hears sound very dangerous. I am torn now as what to do.

[johnny means]

Design and build yourself a good Euro style guard. Use push blocks and safety glasses. This should minimize your risk.