Good day for a rust hunt

[Rob Luter]

My bride and I went out for a late lunch and a little rust hunting this fine sunny day. Nice day but slim pickings. Lots of beater off brand planes, some oddball braces, and more wrenches than you could count. One antique mall had a few interesting things that I didn't need. One booth had a Sweetheart Era #2 Smoother in a glass case with a tote decal that was about 70% intact. It had a nice dark patina and appeared to be in decent shape. I didn't bother to ask to check it out as the seller had it tagged at $350.00. It was cute but not that cute. Another guy had a bunch of Starrett calipers for a song. If I was a turner it would have been the motherlode

[Jim Koepke]

It is kind of odd pickings these days Rob. One of my favorite antique shops has had a lot of tempting plane parts and a few other things. Some of them could actually be sold for a profit if someone wanted to take the time to sort them out and list them on line. Not my cuppa tea these days.

jtk

[Geoff Emms]

Rob,
Your reference to "some oddball braces' made my ears prick up and my pulse began to race, I glanced to the bottom of your post to see the photos, but oh no....
I know I'm a bit strange, but I love the braces that your ancestors invented and made.
Cheers,
Geoff.

[Rob Luter]

By oddball I mean off brands and weird size. The only one that had any appeal was a like new Sear with a 6" throw. It was clean as a whistle. Alas, I made a promise to myself that I wouldn't bring home stray tools if I wouldn't use them regularly. I have a Bell System 2101 Brace. It's as good as they get. I use it once a year. Maybe.

I still love the hunt, but my days as a tool collector are pretty much done, excepting some future exceptional find. I had a major purge a couple years ago to thin the herd. I've got a solid kit of essential remaining. I am lacking only a #5 with a cambered iron. A few years ago you couldn't swing a dead cat without hitting a #5 at a garage sale. I've owned about six of them. I sure wish I would have kept the last one. It was a Sweetheart (literally and figuratively).

[Geoff Emms]

Thanks Rob,
I know what you mean about bringing home stray tools. I try to stay focused, braces and brace tools are my hobby and from time to time I'll bring one home and then "Dang I've already got that one......whoa.... hang on, they're slightly different".
I have a couple friends in America who also suffer from Braceitis and we enjoy discussing new discoveries.

Cheers,
Geoff.