A small neander-haul

[Mike Manning]

Hit an estate sale this morning after seeing the wooden handle of what I thought was a chisel in an ad pic. Turned out to be a vintage Greenlee 1/2" gouge but there were some other finds as well... Stanley No 4 type 16 smoothing plane that will clean up nicely, Pexto 5310 ratcheting brace, OVB 1/2" chisel and a Pexto 3/4" chisel. I don't know anything about the Pexto brace but I have been hoping to come across a decent brace. Is this good one? They seem to sell for around $20 on ebay. I spent $7 on this haul.

471253

[Jim Koepke]

If it works, it is a decent brace.

Looks like a good haul for the price.

jtk

[steven c newman]

Hmmmm, and they call me a Bandit?

PEXTO( Peck, Stow & Wilcox) made some very good braces....The one I have is a 12" version, with their Samson chuck....

Stanley Type 16s came out right BEFORE the start of WW2....

[Bob Jones 5443]

Nice. No estates like that around me.

[Jim Koepke]

Nice. No estates like that around me.

You may never know about woodworking being done in a garage or basement right down the street.

I've been to quite a few unlikely places to find molding planes and a set of chisels under a bench.

My saddest was in my old neighborhood (San Pablo, CA not real far from Lafayette) to get in the house just in time to see another rust hunter carrying a jointer plane that was on my want list at the time.

You won't find that for which you do not look.

jtk

[Bob Jones 5443]

I went to a local estate sale a couple of years ago (Concord, Jim). When I got there I saw a line down the block. For good reason they were metering the number of bodies allowed in the garage at one time (pre-pandemic, more for space reasons). I put my name on the list. Eighty minutes later I was called in, but only after watching several treasures walk out with their new owners. I seem to remember I bought some little thing and was glad of it, but overall it was a waste of time.

The problem here is the population density. There's definitely a large supply of great tools changing generations, but any advertised sale is doomed to the crowd.

A much better source is my local woodworkers' club, which puts tool up for sale or free frequently, via club email distribution. I've also used the group to find appreciative homes for my disused tools. But a random estate sale? Low expectations.

But I'm cheering for Mike Manning in the Hill Country! Mike, were you a Nanci Griffith fan?

[Jim Koepke]

only after watching several treasures walk out with their new owners.

The early bird gets the prize.

Depending on how involved one wants to get there are different strategies. Getting up early, for me, was the hardest.

jtk

[steven c newman]

"Wake up, Watson! The Game is afoot! Watson, come!"

Mr. Sherlock Holmes has the right idea....

Hardest part right now? Yard Sale season around here does NOT start until April-May....

[Luke Dupont]

$7? That's incredible.

Even when I was in the U.S. scouring flea markets and estate sales I never managed such an incredible haul. Great job!

[Mike Manning]

Thanks Luke. All I did was ask how much for everything in the bucket (minus the brace) and say "I'll take it" when he said "$5?". I offered $2 for the brace after that. Sometimes we're just in the right place at the right time.

[Mike Manning]

Bob,
I'm a big folk music fan so yes I was. We sure lost a good one in her. John Prine too.

Mike

[Jim Koepke]

Thanks Luke. All I did was ask how much for everything in the bucket (minus the brace) and say "I'll take it" when he said "$5?". I offered $2 for the brace after that. Sometimes we're just in the right place at the right time.

One time in a junk store there was an 8" Stanley brace in a pile of junk. Being the ever helpful type it behooved me to mention to the lady at the counter there wasn't any price tag on it. She asked what it was worth to me. Not really wanting to purchase another brace my response was, "well people who know me wouldn't expect me to pay any more than $2 dollars for one of these." She said, "for $2 its yours."

And that is how another 8" brace ended up in my shop. It is likely the one that went home with my grandson last time he was here.

At least it was in Oregon so there wasn't any sales tax.

jtk