Thread: Brace Bits

I have just bought a mixed lot of hand brace bits from ebay, to go with the old hand brace that used to be my grandfather's. They need a bit of work on them, and some sharpening, so I thought I would ask for some advice on how to go about it.

The bits came in an old canvas roll, all mixed together.
_IGP1671.jpg
When I emptied them out, there were 38 bits of various sizes and sorts. After postage, that works out to slightly under 95c per bit, which is not too bad.

After a bit of research, I think I've worked out what the different types are.
There are 8 scotch bits
scotch bits.jpg
which vary in size from very big to fairly small. I have a feeling the biggest bit wasn't originally for a hand brace as the tapered end looks to have been ground on later. I'm not sure how to go about sharpening these, as they have a lower side wing that I think is meant to be sharp as well.

There are 5 Jennings bits, which all seem to have their spurs and lead screws intact.
jennings bits.jpg
The largest is a 3/4" which I have sharpened enough for it to work ok. I'm not too worried about sharpening these ones, as all the youtube videos and websites I've found are about how to sharpen this type of bit and all say/show the same thing.

There are 3 Irwin bits, but the middle one is probably useless as all its lead screws have been filed off. The other two look alright at a cursory glance
irwin bits.jpg


There are 5 gimlet bits, which I not sure how to sharpen.
gimlet bits.jpg
From what I have read here it may be that I use a small round file, but I am having difficulty visualising exactly how.

There are also 10 twist drill bits, many of which look to have been resharpened.
twist bits.jpg
Some of them have a very acute angle on the tip. Was that how they originally came, or is it an artefact of later (possibly poor) resharpening? If so, should I keep the same angle, or try and reshape them to a more standard angle?

The roll also has two centre bits (I think that's their name), a 3/4" and a 1".
centre bits.jpg
I have found one youtube video on how to sharpen these, but would appreciate any advice or comments as to how sharpening them properly should go.

There are two countersink bits in there as well.
countersink bits.jpg
Do I need to do anything to sharpen them, or just leave them as is?

Finally, there were two flat screwdriver bits in there too.
driver bits.jpg
Their ends are a bit ragged and not square. Should I square them up so they are usable, or am I committing some sort of sin on rare-to-find pieces?

My intention is that these (provided they aren't already ruined) will become users. I'm not particularly interested in them as collectibles, but I don't want to unnecessarily destroy something that others consider valuable.

My plan is to put them in vinegar overnight, leave the dull coating on them for protection against rust, then sharpen them and start using them in the brace to make holes. The vinegar has already worked a treat on the brace, freeing up and rejuvenating the rachet mechanism, which had been seized for at least the last 20 years.

Thanks for looking, Mike