A Great Day And Some Good Buys

[Hank Knight]

South Carolina is not known for an abundance of old tools. Rust hunting here is pretty dismal. You can imagine my surprise when I read of an antique tool auction to be held in Fair Play South Carolina yesterday, May 10. The web site for the auction looked pretty good so I decided to go.

"Pretty Good" is the understatement of the year! They sold over 450 lots of antique tools and related items, most of it high quality stuff. The highlight of the auction was a pristine Stanley #1 that went for $1075, but the other tools generally sold for what I considered to be very reasonable prices. I went with nothing special in mind to look for, which may not have been a good plan. I bid on lots of stuff and came home with 11 "scores" all of which I'm happy with. Here's my haul:"

http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f343/hankknight/YoderAuction5-10-08005Medium-1.jpg

The moving fillister plane is my favorite. It is in pristine condition with original wedges and a full blade and nicker. It cost me $25.

http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f343/hankknight/YoderAuction5-10-08008Medium.jpg

My next favorite and probably the best score was a Stanley 66 Beader with 6 blades in excellent condition. The nickle plate is flawless except for the thumb screws, and it's missing the curved fence. The blades are stained but not pitted. It cost me $50.

http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f343/hankknight/YoderAuction5-10-08015Medium.jpg

I picked up a no-name medium draw knife for $15, a small Jennings draw knife for - well let's not talk about what I paid for the little fellow - a great Stanley #85 razor edge adjustable spokeshave for $35, and a wonderful, perfect Stanley #271 router for the princely sum of $5.

http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f343/hankknight/YoderAuction5-10-08011Medium.jpg

The tri squares and both of the folding rules were $7.50
each (see first pic). AND finally I picked up a complete, but well used and cared for 78 for $15.

http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f343/hankknight/YoderAuction5-10-08018Medium.jpg

There were several dealers there who were snapping up lots of stuff. One guy was obviously a collector who didn't mind spending money. I got in a bidding duel with him and another guy over a set of Stanley 98/99s, apparently unused. I dropped out at $140 and they went for $170. This was one of the few items that I thought went a little high. Most of the other stuff was dirt cheap. Many very nice Stanley planes (Baileys) went for $20 to $35 and other stuff sold for similar prices. There was a very wide variety of tools for sale. I stayed all day, met some galoots from Charlotte and had a great time.

Hank

[Jim Knight]

You had a good haul. Living in West Virginia, I am spoiled with opportunities for old tool acquisition and forget that some places would not afford me the opportunity to continue making the apartment look like a Cracker Barrel exploded. I expect to be moving in less than a year and am afraid of leaving chances like that behind.

[Phillip Pattee]

Those are nice. I've been looking for a 66 and a 271 for quite awhile. They always exceed my willingness to buy on eBay though. So, I think you did well. Nice gloat!!:eek:

[Hank Knight]

look like a Cracker Barrel exploded.

:D :D :D

I thought about hanging this stuff on the wall in the living room, but I like being married!!

Hank

[Jim Koepke]

Great Haul!!

Wish there were auctions like that out here in California.

Just recently saw a 98 & 99 on eBay go for a little better than $480. They both had their boxes. Have seen some sets go well over $200, even without the boxes. If you do not need perfect and the boxes, they can be had for a lot less.

You can actually get some nice ones if you are willing to wait for them for the price where you bowed out of the bidding.

The things to make sure of on these is that they have their depth stops, that the screw that holds on the nose is not frozen in place and that there is not a crack at the top of the mouth. Of course, the usual all the screws have their threads and no other parts missing is a question that should be asked.

Your find has surely made some of us jealous.

jim

[Mark Stutz]

Nice bunch or stuff! That moving fillister may be the best buy of the day, though. Looks like the #78 is missing the front blade, though!;);):D:D

Mark

[Harry Goodwin]

Mark I think he has what normally came with 78's I own two and bought one myself years ago and only one blade which can be put in the bullnosed position. Harry

[Mark Stutz]

Yeah, I know...I have 2...;););)...I was just joking. I see so many ebay descriptions that are like that. Just couldn't resist.:D:D:D

Mark

[Jim Holman]

Good to see some of the tools stayed in SC. That moving fillister is a beauty. You would think that a Thomas Elfe plane would show up once in a while but not on my watch. I have been a tool collector for about 40 years and while I love SC it is not the best place for rust hunting.

Gentleman Jim in beautiful downtown Ridgeville.

[Hank Knight]

Nice bunch or stuff! That moving fillister may be the best buy of the day, though. Looks like the #78 is missing the front blade, though!;);):D:D

Mark

Mark,

I thought I'd try to find a "front blade" on eBay to complete this plane. ;) Actually, the original blade is pretty used up and I might really need to look for a replacement. There were several 78s sold. Mine was went for the lowest price, so I don't mind spending a few $$ for a replacement blade.

Hank

[Hank Knight]

Good to see some of the tools stayed in SC. That moving fillister is a beauty. You would think that a Thomas Elfe plane would show up once in a while but not on my watch. I have been a tool collector for about 40 years and while I love SC it is not the best place for rust hunting.

Gentleman Jim in beautiful downtown Ridgeville.

Jim,

The fillester doesn't have a maker's mark, so maybe it's an Elfe. :) We can always dream.

Hank

[Hank Knight]

Great Haul!!

Wish there were auctions like that out here in California.

Just recently saw a 98 & 99 on eBay go for a little better than $480. They both had their boxes. Have seen some sets go well over $200, even without the boxes. If you do not need perfect and the boxes, they can be had for a lot less.

You can actually get some nice ones if you are willing to wait for them for the price where you bowed out of the bidding.

The things to make sure of on these is that they have their depth stops, that the screw that holds on the nose is not frozen in place and that there is not a crack at the top of the mouth. Of course, the usual all the screws have their threads and no other parts missing is a question that should be asked.

Your find has surely made some of us jealous.

jim


Jim,

The 98 and 99 were banded together with a rubber band. I took them apart and inspected them. No rust, all plating intact, blades looked like they had never been honed. I didn't try the screws, but I can't imagine they were frozen, given the overall state of the tools. My rationale was that I could buy a new set of LNs for what I would pay for the Stanleys. I'm a user, not a collector.

Hank

[Mark Stutz]

Hank,
I got a replacement for my 778 from LN. I realy like the improvement over the stock blade, which was actually thinner than the stock 78. It wasn't a Record, though. Some knockoff...no marking but I believe Footprint.

Mark

[Ken Martin]

Hank,
You can still get a blade and other parts from Stanley
http://www.stanleytoolparts.com/planes-rabbetplanes-12-078duplexrabbet.html

Ken

[Jim Koepke]

Jim,

The 98 and 99 were banded together with a rubber band. I took them apart and inspected them. No rust, all plating intact, blades looked like they had never been honed. I didn't try the screws, but I can't imagine they were frozen, given the overall state of the tools. My rationale was that I could buy a new set of LNs for what I would pay for the Stanleys. I'm a user, not a collector.

Hank

Well, like I said, my set cost me about $140 and they are nice. I was thinking of going for the LN set if my luck didn't pan out. They did come in separate deals with some other items. Amazingly, they do match pretty well with the same V logo. One does have a previous owners name on the skate. Just used one this evening to take a little wood off a rabbet I was cutting. So far, my accumulation is all users or rehab projects to become users or sold.

jim

jim

[Danny Thompson]

Again with the hating.

Congrats.

[Fred Strumpf]

Hey Guys,

Since we are on the subject. Yesterday I found a pretty good shape 604C at a Flea market in CT. I passed it up because the final $100 price was outside of the budget allowed by the chick who rules me.

Would have been a gloat?

Good condition, only dusting of rust. Kidney shaped hole.