This is my first new thread at SMC and it will be a long one, be forewarned (I hope this is ok, if not, then moderators please let me know - it'll take a few days to get this posted because I can only sit here and do this for short periods - too many projects calling my name!). You may or may not follow along, you may get bored, you may look at the photos only and never read a word of what I write, you may look at this and wonder why I even tried to restore this saw (and jointer but I won't be covering the jointer here), but I can pretty much guarantee you'll like the results of my efforts. So dive in, gander at what you want, offer comments, or just come back once in a while to see what I've done - I took over 300 photos but I won't inundate you with all those. I will post enough to cover the 'story', though.
This post is more about me documenting what I've done to restore these tools and wanting to share the process than seeking guidance or help. You'll see things you may have done differently or not at all but I do hope you enjoy the trip - David
Here's the background and a prerequisite for understanding how all this took place -
I owned a woodworking business in the mid 80's to early 90's, and we designed and built custom furniture, did restorations, refinishing, repairs, etc. I added a partner (an old friend) in the late 80's. It was a good business and at one time we had about 10 people working for us. In 1990 we bought a Powermatic Model 66 table saw and a Delta DJ-15 jointer. When I decided a few years later to get into the Technology field my partner and I worked out a deal by which I would end up with the saw and jointer if he closed the business since I owned all the other tools anyway.
Well, a year went by and he did decide to close the business but I had no home shop or place to store the saw and jointer. But another friend in the same business needed both and asked if he could use them. He had done some work in our shop before and even rented some space from us at one point. He used our/my tools and took good care of them. So I decided to let this other friend take both tools to his shop and for the next few years I checked in on my tools often. Then it got to the point where I checked on them every few years. Finally, after many years of not seeing them and still not having a home shop, I sort of wrote them off.
Then, a few years ago, a friend at church told me he heard that the guy who had borrowed my saw and jointer had abandoned them in an old building, that the motors were burnt up, and they were likely just boat anchors now. I viewed it as my fault for not checking on them and my fault for even loaning tools like that out - stupid move, really.
I found out where the tools were located and couldn't believe where they were and what I found. A woodworker friend, Adam, went with me figuring we'd find the tools covered in sawdust and just neglected. We were not prepared for what we found.
Looks like a vibrant neighborhood from the front, right? I was concerned about even having my MINI parked there!
Where I found my saw, jointer 4.jpg
I looked in through the broken glass and iron bars and saw this -
Where I found my saw, jointer 1.jpg
Driving around back we saw this locked door -
Where I found my saw, jointer 3.jpg
I couldn't get my phone in very far but I took this shot. If you look closely you'll see a contractors table saw in the dark area to the left. My saw and jointer aren't really visible but they are behind the contractors saw. The sunlight shining in is not from a skylight. The roof is simply missing in several areas, including where my saw and jointer were parked.
Where I found my saw, jointer 2.jpg
We left and came back in Adam's truck and I had a guy who had worked there meet us because he had the combination to the lock to get us in the back door. Adam and I loaded the saw and jointer into the back of his truck by ourselves - these are HEAVY tools! And I was still in my dress clothes, didn't even take my tie off. We stopped for a bite to eat and I snapped this shot - one guy walked by and asked if we were headed to the dump. Uh, nope!
PM 66, Delta DJ-15 - as picked up.jpg
More tomorrow... David