Ngl, I was at a yard sale last weekend in Portland and saw this old Swing-A-Way can opener from the 70s for $3. I almost walked past it, but the lady selling it said they don't make them like that anymore. I grabbed it, took it home, and it cuts through cans so smooth my $30 OXO feels like junk now. Has anyone else had luck with random thrift store finds beating out modern stuff?
I hit the Goodwill outlet in Columbus last week and found 3 old Stanley planes in one bin. Paid about $2.50 each by weight. One is a No. 4 from the 1920s with the original blade. The other two need some cleanup but are all there. Also found a set of 8 old Morse twist drill bits in a canvas roll from the 50s. Anyone else have luck at the bins or is it just me?
I used to just use my hands to press corks into bottles for homemade hot sauce, and it always came out crooked or crumbled. This 1950s cork press I found for $5 has a lever and a metal guide that makes it perfect every time. Has anyone else stumbled onto one of these old laboratory-style tools that just works way better than modern stuff?
Found this old Stanley model at a garage sale in Newton last Saturday. Figured it'd be a fun shelf decoration or maybe for some tiny pilot holes. Tried it on a piece of pine board and the thing just glides through. No vibration, no cord to wrestle with, and I can feel exactly when I'm about to punch through the back. My regular drill chatters like crazy on small bits under 1/8 inch. Anyone else ditch their power tools for old school stuff on small jobs?
I used to think vintage tools were just junk taking up space. Then last month at a yard sale in Pueblo, an old electrician showed me his beat up Simpson 260 from the 70s. He handed it to me and said 'try measuring that outlet with your digital meter and then this one.' My cheap digital kept jumping around, but that old needle settled right on 120 volts steady. He explained how the analog movement averages out noise instead of chasing each spike like a digital does. It made me totally change my mind about older gear. I paid him $20 for a similar one he had in his trunk. Has anyone else had an old timer change your view on a tool?
He told me the dies were shot, but I spent 20 minutes sharpening them with a file and now it cuts clean threads. Anyone ever rehab old threading tools like this?
I was over at my uncles place last weekend helping him clean out his garage. He handed me this beat up old wooden router plane that belonged to my grandpa. I almost tossed it in the donate pile but he stopped me and said "your grandpa cut every dovetail joint in this house with that thing." Now I'm looking up the model online and it's selling for like $150 on ebay. Has anyone else found a hidden gem in a family members old toolbox that turned out to be valuable?
I kept finding rust on my hand tools stored in plastic bins in my basement over two winters. Switched everything to surplus .50 cal ammo boxes I grab for $5 each at flea markets and not a speck of rust since. Anyone else use military surplus containers for gear storage?
Been drying my own corn for years. Always just squeezed a kernel with my teeth and guessed. This old meter had a little chart inside. Told me I've been over-drying by like 6 percent. Anyone else use old ag gear for small-scale stuff?