Reviving an old brace and bit set

[Brian Granger]

Hello all,

I am new around here - a few weeks ago I posted a question about tools and got many useful responses. Thanks so much smile.gif

Christmas has been good for my tool collection and I
am in the process of getting my tools and workspace ready to build. My dad was excited about the possibility that I might build a boat and gave me my grandfathers old brace and bit set. The brace works just fine, but the nearly 20 drill bits need some help.

Many of them have rust (not all over, but a good amount) and most of them are as dull as a butter knife. What is the best way of reviving them? Is is worth getting them professionally sharpened?

Thanks for all your help.

Brian

[Bob Smalser]

Lee Valley, Highland Hardware and others sell the Nicholson Auger File that's best for this.....although the thinner slim taper sawfilers will work in a pinch if you are careful.

http://www.woodcentral.com/articles/images/445c.jpg

http://www.woodcentral.com/articles/images/445d.jpg

http://www.woodcentral.com/cg i-bin/readarticle.pl?dir=smalser&file=articles_445.shtml (http://www.woodcentral.com/cgi-bin/readarticle.pl?dir=smalser&file=articles_445.shtml)

[ 12-31-2005, 12:05 AM: Message edited by: Bob Smalser ]

[Cuyahoga Chuck]

Since you didn't specify I'm assuming that you have the old style spiral augur bits.
I bought all my augur bits at garage sales. They were all rusty and dull. And some were bent.
First wire wheel them to get the rust off. They don't have to be shiney. You just don't want to get your hands all red every time you handle them. If they are older they have a number on the shank. It indicates how many 16ths of an inch each bit is.
At this point I usually chuck each new acquisition up and try it. No use messing with a bit that works OK. Check the center spur. It should be able to pull the bit into the wood without too much pressure. Check the side spur. If the side spur has been shapened too many times it may be too small to do any good.
Then comes sharpening. They make special files for sharpening augur bits but I've never had any. I use a set of diemakers needle files. Augur bits are fairly soft so it doesn't take much to restore an edge unless the bit has been abused.
When a bit is in good order you should be able to slowly crank it into a piece of wood and get a continuous chip without too much pressure on the brace.
Charlie

[Andrew Craig-Bennett]

Good thread.

[emichaels]

What timing !

I just came across an old brace and bit set at a barn sale this past weekend.

Thanks Bob, I should be in business with these augers soon.

Eric

[Bob Smalser]

Braces are so cheap these days that there's no reason to do a lot of bit changing. ;)

It's especially handy to have them in different sizes for different uses, depending on how much torque is required.

The later Millers Falls 3-jaw "Lion" chuck is spose to be handiest because it was made to also take round bits. Don't let that stop you, tho...today power drills are used for round bits, and they all handle hex screwdriver bits nicely.

Shown below are a 6", a 8", a 10", a 12", a 14", and a joist brace for really tight spots.

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/5457882/75526028.jpg

A 6" lives nicely in your mechanic's tool box, too, and saves you from buying that spendy Snap-On speed bar.

[ 01-06-2006, 02:07 PM: Message edited by: Bob Smalser ]

[John Meachen]

While it may not be relevant to the thread topic,I would like to add that a brace with a half decent chuck is about the best tool for tapping threads.The pad on the end allows control of pressure and angle and the ratchet mechanism is very useful in tight spots.

[Andrew Craig-Bennett]

The joist brace, with a screwdriver bit, is a really useful thing to have with you if you are handling a lot of largish screw fastenings (eg, in carvel planking, or decking)

I have made a joist brace out of an ordinary one. Real joist braces are rarer, and the tool dealers want silly money for them.

Get a regular brace with a decent chuck (it is always worth picking through braces to select those with good chucks) and cut through the bar. Straighten the handle, cut the next bit of the U off and weld the top pad on straight. Be careful not to wreck the ballraces with the heat, of course.

[Bob Cleek]

I've noticed that Lee Valley has a Chiawanese brace rig that has a half inch socket spud on the end. It takes a half dozen screwdriver heads, plus any half inch socket. It also has optional three and four jaw chucks that snap onto the half inch spud. The pictures look nice, but as with anything from Asia, I am wondering about quality. The set runs something like sixty bucks with both chucks. Anybody have one and are you happpy with it?

[Tom Robb]

I got a nice very short sweep brace from the antique tool dealer in Sequim(sp?)WA for a reasonable price. It's nearly perfect for driving screws. Faster and less tiring than a screwdriver and not too much leverage - you can feel how the screw is biteing so you don't strip out the threads. Using it makes me feel like I know what I'm doing :D

[ 01-10-2006, 05:29 PM: Message edited by: Tom Robb ]