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Thread: Brace Fanatics

  1. #76
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    Fray & Pigg ... I emailed this to Geoff as I didn't know how this company fits in historically ...

    http://www.ebay.com/itm/Antique-Hand...g/262119943453

    fp1.jpg


    But then these - I saw the missing one first - and I wondered how it worked.
    BTW I think ebay has *the* best system of "Hey, you might also be interested in ..." ever. It's deadly.

    http://www.ebay.com/itm/Civil-War-er...p/262158451591

    http://www.ebay.com/itm/Antique-Hand...g/262119943453

    Paul

    fp2.jpg fp3.jpg

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  3. #77
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    G'day Paul,
    John Fray and Horace Pigg were a partnership who manufactured braces patented by Nelson Spofford in 1859. This partnership finished in the late 60's depending on who you read. Fray continued making the Spofford braces after the dissolution of the partnership.
    www.sydnassloot.com/Brace/Fray.htm is a good resource.

    I've not seen a F & P quite like the one you've posted with its extended rear section of the frame and wooden head, but I think I can see evidence of a weld at the rear angle of the crank which would lead me to suspect it is a modification. With the amount of corrosion on it I'm surprised the seller can see any ID at all.
    The other two photo's are both captioned wrongly by the vendors and the damaged one has been correctly identified as a Jeremy Taylor. Patented in 1836 there are a surprisingly lot of them around.
    Keep up the good work Paul.
    Cheers,
    Geoff.

  4. #78
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    I picked up a small brace this week. I Sorby with about a 5" swing.
    It's the same as the one Paul Sellers found. https://paulsellers.com/2014/03/sear...dden-treasure/
    Will try and grab a photo later today.
    I wonder if it was for a child's set or just a handy size. It has a 2 jaw chuck that looks like it will take a standard square bit.

  5. #79
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    Hi hiroller,
    I'd go with handy size, definately not a child's toy. A small sweep brace doesn't deliver much torque so you don't need to hold the handle in a death grip, so to speak.
    Often called an electricians brace, my Queensland sparky mate used one when wiring timber framed houses in his younger days.
    Looking forward to the photos.
    Cheers,
    Geoff.

  6. #80
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    Here you go Geoff.
    Some shots of the little 5" swing I Sorby brace.
    It's been well used but in good user condition. The wood is still pretty good.
    A clean and some oil will have it going well. No ratchet to dissemble reduces the work!
    I've included a family shot with an 8", 10", 12" and 14" for comparison (two Yankees and two Pexto Samsons).
    image.jpgimage.jpgimage.jpg

  7. #81
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    Those americans ... tsk tsk

    "Antique Drill and Accerories Collecton$500 – Noble, Illinois
    I am selling off my antique drill collection. I have just lost interest in it. I have several items that are not listed or pictured. the prices are below. I will deal if you are interested in buying in bulk. The photo's are not the best as I took them with my phone. I am not on here a lot so you can text me at 618-562-8287. Located in Noble Ill. Cross listed
    Barn Augers With Handels 10.00
    Barn Augers Without Handles 4.00
    Dinamite Drills W/O Handles 6.00
    Braces 5.00
    Hand Drills 5.00 to 8.00
    Breast Drills 10.00
    Push Drills 5.00 to 7.50
    Yankee Screwdrivers 6.00
    Boring Tool 8.00
    Wooden Blue Grass Bit Box 5.00
    Extinsions and adapters 4.00
    Bits 1.00 to 3.00
    Much More."


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  8. #82
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    Well may you say "tsk tsk' Paul, but I would say "Aargh! Call an ambulance!" The man has made the statement "I have just lost interest in it."......... Whew, I'll have to go and have a lie down.................
    Nice little brace HR very much like this unmarked one I've attached. I'm guessing the writing on the rear of the frame in your photo says "Steel 5 In". In the past I've been categorising the likes of these to being made for others By James A. Chapman of Sheffield, a subject I've banged on about before.
    Are the jaws in your example OK or a bit out of whack? I might have a spare set here if needs be.
    The only Yankee gear I've got is two Chain drills and a few PEXTO braces, one with the Samson chuck.

    Cheers... "lost interest" ...unbelievable...mutter...mutter,

    Geoff.
    Attached Images Attached Images
    Last edited by Boringgeoff; 29th November 2015 at 04:25 PM. Reason: forgot to mention,

  9. #83
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    Geoff, very similar indeed. Also spot on with the "Steel 5 in". The jaws in mine are complete and still have a working spring and look OK. Like the rest of the brace it has been used but not abused. There is some surface rust and just needs a good clean and some oil. My chuck is 8 sided, aren't the Chapmans 9 sided?
    I haven't used it in anger with bits yet to see how well the chuck grips. I'm actually hoping it plays nicely with my threading taps. I've used a brace before with larger taps for threading holes in stainless when you need some controlled grunt. This should be a nice size for that task and the ratchet is redundant anyway, as you want to back out the tap each turn.
    image.jpgimage.jpg

  10. #84
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    Good that the jaws are ok, photo angle made them look a bit wonky. What I've seen of Chapman chucks are 8 and 9 sided with the 8's being parallel and 9's curved. Also round chucks which seem to be used in their "Woodside" models which were numbered 125 for ratchet and 126 plain and available in 8, 10 and 12 inch sweeps.
    All this is beside the point because your brace is clearly marked I Sorby so its correct position would be to be categorised as an I Sorby tool.
    In my collection it would be in the group " Other makes, looks like Chapman" but in your case it has a more important category, that of "user" It'll be interesting to see whether it's capable of gripping the shank of a tap successfully.
    Cheers,
    Geoff.
    Attached Images Attached Images

  11. #85
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    Thanks for the background. Always enlightening!
    I have to admit that initially I thought the jaws were dodgy but they look OK, once I pulled it apart.

    The tips of the jaws have a groove that is quite rounded, like they are mean to grab the shaft of the bit.
    The more modern jaws that I have that have a V shaped groove all the way along. This may impact the use with a tap.
    I'll see if I can get a photo later.

    One of my other braces has sheared the pin that holds the ratchet mechanism to the main shaft.
    Any suggestions for a replacement pin?

  12. #86
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    4" nail
    regards
    Nick
    veni, vidi,
    tornavi
    Without wood it's just ...

  13. #87
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    Gee, thanks for the tip Nick.
    Nice article on the manufacture of braces posted here:
    http://www.wkfinetools.com/hUS-borTo...itBrace-01.asp

  14. #88
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    I'm with Nick on that, find an appropriate gauge piece of wire such as a 4" nail and cut it to length. Try and knurl one end with a small cold chisel or centre punch then press it in. It must have had a lot of pressure on it in the first place to shear the pin, because usually the ratchet wheel is a pretty tight fit on the shaft.
    I had a look at some of the jaws this morning, have generally associated the rounding of the inner vees as wear and tear but one of them does look as if it was originally machined round at the front section where it would normally grip the shank of the bit above the tapered tang.
    Thanks for the link to the brace article, quite an interesting read.
    Cheers,
    Geoff.

  15. #89
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    OK Brace Heads, some help for a newbie. I found this at the bottom of a crate of mixed rust I bought for $2 at a farm clearing sale.

    What I think I have found out is that its a Spofford brace, maybe or maybe not by John Fray. The distinctive thumbscrew shape leans me towards maybe. Wooden wrist handle with pewter fittings. Steel top handle which does rotate. The only marking I have so far discovered is "10"on the bend below the wrist handle which I assume is what you chaps call the swing (being twice the 5 inches width of the brace.

    So can anyone tell me more? In my reasonably diligent search I have't seen a brace like this with one wood handle and one steel handle.DSCN0868.jpgDSCN0867.jpg

  16. #90
    Boringgeoff is offline Try not to be late, but never be early.
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    That's one I haven't seen before. The head should also have the sweep cast in it's underside. Fray's usually had No 10 or No 110 (in the case of a 10 inch sweep) on the frame and their branding was often quite faint. It doesn't appear in their 1911 No 26 catalogue.
    Very interesting.
    Geoff.

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