Thread: new hardware chain

Originally Posted by Anorak Bob

I have always been able to depend on my mains powered Nip Makitas. Bought my first drill 30 years ago. Got all the stuff you would require for the renovation of a 80 year old POS worker's bungalow. For 23 years these tools have been used, abused and occasionally repaired. My drills have ingested sand of which we have in abundance over here. They have fallen from the roof onto concrete and still work. They hark from a time when they were simply tools. No unnecessary embellishment at the hand of some stylist. Just robust and honest.

I'm glad I'm not in the market for any new gear.

We used to have stores called WA Salvage. Wesfarmers owned. Filled to the roof with cheap Chinese swill. Bunnings are now just larger versions with a different paint job.

BT

Folks have 2 Makita drills of similar vintage - one bought to use while the other went in for repairs. What repairs you ask? It was run over by a payloader, and required a new trigger. That was ten years ago now, and it still works fine....

Do that with a modern version, and all you'll be left with is plastic dust....

My niece is using my 1984 Makita battery drill daily still. She's rebuilt the battery pack and replaced the chuck, but the rest of the tool is still good, gets a workout daily in her set-building trade. I'm planning on stealing it back somehow next time I visit.

She also got my Gerstner somehow. Didn't think I'd ever want it a few years back.

Originally Posted by Greg Q

She also got my Gerstner somehow. Didn't think I'd ever want it a few years back.

I thought you had plans to hew out one of your own.

Yeah, I do. Now I have to, but before....

Actually, Gerstners are pretty small for an ebay addict. I don't need anything quite so portable either. I think I will get started on that once I have built the tool & accessory cabinet for the mill. The metrology box can then sit atop a roller cabinet I have that will be dedicated lathe tooling and what-nots.

My friend Mike has a roll of genuine English baize, but it's worth serious money. I still don't know if I like green felt lined boxes or not, nor have I decided to discard all the original boxes that micrometers etc came in or just their lids. I have decided that I do not want a box full of smaller boxes-just ready access to the tools I need without having to screw around with a ritual unveiling.

I haven't worked out a detailed plan yet, but I want to concentrate everything in one box-gauge blocks etc included. This should render it too heavy to steal.

GQ

I agree with you about the size of the Gerstners. While they vary in capacity, you'd be definitely limited in what you could store in one. I'd still end up with stuff stashed in different places. I have two 9 drawer top boxes on my White roll cabs. They are jammed so full that the tools scrape off paint from the drawer above.

I would love to have a fitted out cabinet for the 13's odds and ends. I could comfortably decide on a size because there is little chance of adding to my meagre assortment of Schaublin accessories. You can at least swell your collection with purchases from Franz.

Here's a hint of what I'm talking about. An F1 cabinet courtesy Tony's site.

BT

Aren't those cabinets beautiful? The Aciera F-1 has a similar thing when completely kitted out. I am going to have to fabricate something along the lines of the Deckel original because I have almost all the gismos now (excluding that pesky helical milling thing!)

Greg

You'll be needing to add a crane in your plans to haul some of that stuff out Gregory.

I agree Bob...I'd like to add a small jib crane with a SWL of 100 kg or so to the back of the box. I think the heaviest thing is the universal table at maybe 65 kg or so. An arm of about a metre would be plenty, perhaps telescoping.