Stanley 2358 Miter Box help needed

One night last week, after a few beverages, I made an offer online for a miter box and saw that did not have a very good photo or description... It arrived yesterday and I might need a little help from my friends.

Any idea on the date of this miter box? Most of the Stanley items I have come across have patent dates all over them. As of yet, I have not found any indication of patent or manufacture date on this product. There appears to be a lot more information online about the similar 358 series boxes but not the 2358 in particular.

From what I can tell the critical parts of the uprights and frame appear to be present and in good working order. However, I know I am missing or need to replace the following parts:

1) length stop assembly (rods, coupler, and tree)
2) stock guide assemblies (guide bars, cam, and thumbscrews).
3) flat spring for 1 "Saw Guide Catch" as one is broken.
Does anybody have a reliable source for miter box parts? Whatever I cannot find I will have to fabricate myself.

Finally, can anyone confirm the proper location for the knurled machine screws pictured? The miter box came with them installed in the holes where the stock guide cams should be but the ends are pointed which makes me wonder if they are really meant for for the holes in the legs to "bite" into the length stop rods. The screws actually thread into the leg holes more smoothly than they holes they are currently located in.

If it weren't for the 28"x5" Disston backsaw that came with it, I might have a little buyers remorse. I have a feeling I'm in for a bit of work and money to restore the miter box to its original condition. The saw plate is very straight with a good etch on the plate and stamp on the spine. The medallion and one saw nut appear to be replacements. I imagine I can track those down if my neurosis gets the best of me.

Thanks again for any comments, suggestions, or help that can be provided,

Andrew

I have the same miter box and never found a source for parts other than another box. The patent application for this saw is online and while it doesn't give sizes of parts, it does show what goes where and kind of what it looks like. The four bearings that guide the saw in the two posts on mine are shot - makes the box only good for making rough cuts.

I have the Montgomery Ward version of the Stanley 2358-inherited it from my grandfather. Mine is complete, although I too have broken flat springs for the saw catch. I keep thinking I will make replacements someday, but it never has been a high priority.

The knurled bolts are for leveling the saw, and are semi-pointed to grip in use. Here is a picture of the back side of mine, where you can see the details of the stock guide parts.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/f.cl.ly/ite...g/IMG_0378.JPG

Hence the phrase, "Don't drink and bid." I can't tell you the number of times I've bid on stuff after a few beers. I've been very, very lucky. The overwhelming majority of my bids have been too low. And the ones I did win brought decent tools to my door.

Missing parts are a huge problem on miter boxes. I had to cannibalize parts from another box to complete my Goodell Manufacturing Co miterbox. Won the entire box online, then contacted the seller to say I'd pay my original bid, but to please only ship the parts I needed. Shipping was 1/4 what it would have been, AND I didn't take up precious shop space with a miterbox carcass I'd never again have use for.

Ralph, thanks for the reply. I'm having trouble finding the patent you mention for this miter box. Do you happen to have a link?

-Andrew

Update: I think I found the patent here: http://www.wkfinetools.com/contrib2/...iterBox-01.asp

Mr. Jones, that is exactly the photo I needed. It's also useful to know that clones exist as I'm searching for parts.

-Andrew

Brad, fortunately I've been very lucky with my online purchases. I've only really been bit once with a 605 1/2 where every single part had significant damage. It was probably a frankenplane made of all the bad pieces replaced while building a few good ones.

I'm in the miter box with saw for around $60 (including shipping). Although I will need parts to make it complete, it is functional as it is right now. So, I probably did okay.

-Andrew

Are there supposed to be 2 or 4 of the leveling bolts? I have two. I'm not overly concerned about finding extras, just courious more than anything. I will likely bypass the leveling bolts all together and through bolt it to a platform that can be clamped down easier. Any idea of the thread pitch for either the stock guide bolts and the length guide bolts? The leveling feet threads do not appear the be the same.

Spring questions:
I need to manufacture a replacement for the broken part below. It measures 0.375" X 3.25" X 0.03125".

I assume I'm looking for hardened spring steel. Any ideas for a good source of spring steel for a few parts? My plan is to grind or file the profile, drill the holes and a majority of the slot with carbide masonary bits, and grind or file the remainder of the slot. The bends are not a critical dimention but I do want them to look nice. What would be the best way to create the subltle bends in already hardened steel? Would I be better off annealing prior to doing any of the work (shape, drill, bend) then retempering when I'm done, or just work it in the hardened state?

Thanks for any help or insight that can be provided,
Andrew

Two leveling bolts, and I'm unsure what thread size on the stick/length guides. I checked them on my die sets, and they appear to be a proprietary thread size. A metric M7-1.0 actually came closest to the length guide thread.

Thanks again Mr. Jones. If I can't find vintage replacements it looks like I will just drill and retap for a common thread.

And then there were two...

Just finished up making a replacement spring. I ended up cutting up an old v-notched trowel that was 0.03" to get the stock. Drilled and filed to shape. Heated to cherry red with a propane torch and quenched in motor oil. Re-heated to blue and air cooled. Hope it lasts as I have'nt done any heat treating since high school shop class.

Now on to the saw...

Wow, that turned out nice! I need to get started making a pair of these myself. I assume that the trowel measurement is a typo-should be .030" instead of .003?

You are correct. The measure is 0.03". I will correct the original post. I was also going to post an update noting that the spring seems soft. I'll have to try hardening again (it's kinda tricky with such a thin spring). It may also be that the steel is to low carbon. If the rehardening doesn't work, I may be looking for a new source of steel.