Tool Graveyard

Here are some pictures of tools I once owned but no longer have. As you can see, I don’t get rid of too many tools.

Craftsman Table Saw	This is the one I had in my shop in Illinois (purchased ≈1988). I added an additional cast iron extension on the left, and I replaced the stock fence with a modern XR2424 fence. I added a nifty on/off switch to make it work better. On and around it you can see cutoff sled, miter sled, Delta tenoning jig, the yellow push stick combo, and the Grip-Tite feather board. Alas, although it served me well, it’s been replaced by a Unisaw, and I sold it shortly thereafter, so it’s truly gone.
Craftsman Bandsaw	I had a Sears bandsaw very much like this one. SWMBO bought it for me around 1973. It wasn’t too bad a saw. But I’m glad I sold it (to the same friend who bought the jointer, below) and got the Delta, which is only about ten times better.
Craftsman Scroll Saw	The other in what used to be a triumvirate of old Sears saws, these jigsaws (yes, that’s what we used to call them before saber saws became jigsaws and jigsaws became scroll saws) are actually both of the old Sears jigsaws I’ve had. I’m not sure how I got the first (smaller) one, but I traded it to a friend of mine for the second (larger) one. There’s an actual oil pan for the crankshaft. I’m surprised I actually found a picture of both of them. I basically never used either, tried selling the second, wound up putting it out by the curb, where a “night-before-scavenger” made off with it, which was fine with me.
Craftsman Jointer	This is similar to the Sears jointer I once had, vintage 1974. I’m glad to be rid of it. I was never able to get the infeed table properly aligned. I fought with it for over 20 years. I sold it to a friend—I hope he’s forgiven me. A DJ15 replaced it.
Puma Compressor	I’d sort of forgotten about this since I got it fairly long ago (≈1984) and owned it a fairly short time. There was a big box store in the area—Builder’s Square, now long gone—and they had these on sale at a pretty respectable price—I want to say ≈$100. I had been lusting after air power for some time, and with bicycling becoming a family activity had an actual need. So, I bought it. It didn’t take long, once I’d filled eight tires a few times, and having acquired a couple of air tools, that I figured out “I was going to need a bigger boat.” I happened on the deal for the C-H compressor I still own, and I think, sold the Puma to someone at work.
Craftsman Drill Press	Just about the time I replaced this 1972 Craftsman drill press with my Delta 17-925, I found this photo on another fellow’s website. It’s identical to my press (which I sold along with the saw). This actually did a fairly good job for me, and had a spindle lock, which I came to appreciate greatly and few modern drill presses have—it also was driven by a hinky 3⁄16" belt.
Skil Saw	I had an el-cheapo Skil 7¼" circular saw that the lumber yard was giving away when you bought a load of deck lumber (deck project ≈1981). It’s the second of that variety I’ve had; the first was probably my first power tool, purchased in the ’60s, I believe. And although it handles most of what I need for a circular saw, there’s a quirk that this thing has that puzzles me. Sometimes when I let go of the trigger, the motor drops to about half speed, running rough. Sometimes I can make it stop by giving the trigger a thunk, but mostly it’ll stop if I bump the saw against something solid. Both saws have done that. I’ve since given one away to my daughter and the other to my son. No, I don’t have anything against them.
P-C 347 Circular Saw	Sigh. I thought I was mostly done with tool buying. I thought the SawBoss would be all the circular saw I needed. And it probably is, but then Sears decided to close out the P-C 347 series (around 2005) at 33% off and I couldn’t stay away. A very nice saw. But did I really need it? Does it matter? Update: everything has a purpose. When my son told me he was looking to buy a saw (apparently my preceding disposition was in error), I decided this really was surplus and sent it to him. I had never even fired it up. He was ecstatic.
Makita Reciprocating Saw	I sort of feel bad about this. My son bought me this saw when he was working at a local hardware store (1994 timeframe). He got a combination sale price/employee discount which made it affordable for him. It worked fine, but after having a tool-less blade change on my Bosch jig saw, it was too much for me to resist Porter-Cable’s Tiger Saw when it appeared on the market with a quick change chuck. A friend who had borrowed the Makita was interested in getting one, so I sold it to him and bought the Tiger Saw when a miraculous bargain price appeared. Sorry, Lee, but I had to.
Delta Planer	I think this was my first Delta power tool purchase, around 1993. It is the 22-540 12" portable planer. This made me feel like I had a really big time shop, having a thickness planer. It’s a surprisingly productive tool, and I can’t imagine doing without it. I eventually got the Delta DC-380, but this certainly did suffice for a while. Sold it to the same guy (a woodworking forum friend in NC) who bought my Copy Crafter (below).
Delta DJ-15 Jointer	The venerable Delta DJ-15 6" jointer needs no introduction. Norm Abram had one in the New Yankee Workshop for several seasons, although he now has the DJ-20 8" jointer. This was my first serious floor tool from the next level category. I found it at a local big box, oddly enough, and at a closeout price (1992). I thought it would be my jointer-for-life until an opportunity arose for a DJ-20 that I couldn’t pass up. Sold it locally.
Skil 3⁄8" Drill	My first drill (not this one exactly). Mom and us kids bought Dad a set of power tools for Christmas one year (≈1962) and upgrading to 3⁄8" made a big impression on me, and I wanted my own. I don’t know how I got to Skil from the Craftsman set we bought Dad—probably reversibility, which is missing on this one—but I’m glad we did. This drill is still in the family, in my mother’s kit, which means I’ll eventually get it back.
Skil 2002 Cordless Drill	This is awkward—SWMBO bought this for me as a present in the mid ’70s. Great idea, poor implementation, and it’s one of the reasons I’m not a bleeding edge kind of early adopter. This was one of the first cordless tools to hit the home handyman market, and it wasn’t ready. There was hardly enough torque to drive a screw, and there certainly wasn’t enough battry life to screw more than one. The NiCads were internal and not replaceable and it just never seemed to hold a charge. I was put off cordless tools for a long time because of it, but when I got the Makitas, my mind was changed. The Skil suffered an ignominious trip to the curb.
Makita 6011 Cordless Drill	I’ve had two of these for several years now (≈1993) and I like them a lot. I don’t know why all of the tool manufacturers have gone away from the pistol grip for cordless drills to the T-handle. I find the pistol grip much more comfortable, especially when it comes time to lean in to my work. Note the difference in batteries from the 6095 (although this also takes the 9.6V 6095 batteries). These were tough to let go. But, the batteries were starting to not charge, replacements were expensive compared to a new drill, I hadn’t used them at all once the Milwaukees came on the scene.
Makita 6095 Cordless Drill	If there is a ubiquitous power tool or at least battery powered tool, it is the Makita 6095 9.6V drill. I now have one, purchased on closeout at Lowes (≈2003). Each of the kids does, too, as does my mother. I also have two of the 12V version (model 6011, shown above). I can’t imagine life without at least one. I keep a Phillips bit in one all the time. Ibid. My friend knew of a used tool dealer and offered to take them by to see what they might bring. The shop owner said, “too old, too slow,” and sent my friend on his way. Not a sad story for me—I got them relatively cheap, used the bejeesus out of them—they didn’t owe me a thing. And the real message is it was the right time and I did the right thing.
Harbor Freight Grinder	I don’t much care for Harbor Freight, but they had a killer price on this grinder with a wet wheel (≈2006). It’s sort of a pain, because you don’t want to leave the wheel sitting in the water for weeks at a time between uses, so you have to drain and fill, drain and fill each time you use it. I wouldn’t buy it again—I doubt I’ll use it again. Tired of kicking it around the shop for several years I set it outside in front of the shop for two reasons—one, if someone wants it, I’m shed of it with no effort. Two, it’s something of a thumb in the eye of bride who thinks if I leave the shop with the door open and unattended for ten seconds, someone will come by and clean us out. Seriously, it’s not that kind of neighborhood.
Bostich Brad Nailer	This T-31 nailer that got me started in pneumatics. Unfortunately, it finally needed rebuilding (O-rings and gaskets) and Stanley-Bostich discontinued support several years ago. It was a shame to have to toss it.
Bostich Stapler	Sadly, the same fate as my T-31 brad nailer has befallen my stapler, so I tossed it, too. I don’t have a replacement, yet. Well, actually, I sort of do. It took two different Sencos, and it’s still not quite the same. But, progress…
Shop Built Lathe	My first second lathe. I had forgotten that I had a picture of it hidden away. I was able to scan this from a recently uncovered original. The shop was a one car garage, you can see my old Craftsman drill press (lathe #1) in the background, and Northern Illinois is cold in the winter. My actual first lathe was an attempt to use my drill press and turn vertically between centers. Yeah, I didn’t think that through. Fortunately, no images exist of that. In any event, this effort (≈1975) was successful enough to let me learn the rudiments of turning and that I wanted a more real lathe. I don’t remember what I did with it, but it’s long gone, supplanted by the Craftsman, below.
Craftsman Lathe Basic setup Craftsman Lathe w/Copy Crafter	Craftsman Lathe and Copy Crafter, acquired ≈1980. I don’t think Sears has changed their lathe design in 40 years. It’s an okay starter lathe, but I’ve always yearned for something better. When I got a good deal on a Delta 46-700 I bought it and retired the Craftsman. I sold the Copy Crafter (to my NC woodworking friend—see above), but haven’t unloaded the lathe yet.
Delta 46-701	Speaking of good deals, I happened into a Woodcraft recently (≈2005) and they had a Delta 46-701 that they had used in their turning classes for sale at less than half price. What should I have done? I’ll bet you know what I did. It turned out to have a defective spindle and when I mentioned it on a woodworking forum, one of the readers recalled a like problem on a like lathe he taught on at that Woodcraft. He said he’d marked his initials on the inside of the headstock cover. Sure enough, there they were. I contacted Woodcraft, and they, through Delta, did the right thing and sent a replacement spindle. Although it turned into a servicable lather, an opportunity arose to upgrade from it so I’ve relegated it to disposable and will soon have it sold. Nice lathe for beginners to journeymen, but it pales in comparison to modern offerings. Update: when my son heard I was all cluttered up with lathes and was disposing of this one, he asked for it. Gladly. We’re making a trip to his house in a couple of months, and it will go with us. He and the kids will get to learn some fun.
Craftsman Belt Sander	Years ago I wanted a belt sander. This was back in the Sears days and they had 3×21s and 4×24s. Well, you know me, no wimpy 3" sander will do. Gotta have 4". aargh, aargh, aargh. Anyway, there was a Sears warehouse near where I lived at the time (in the early ’70s) and they periodically had reconditioned tools at attractive prices, and I picked up this one in ≈1972. It has a funky belt lock that I have to re-engineer every time I use it, but I still don’t use one enough to justify buying a new one. I finally gave up trying to get it to work reliably and tossed it.
Dustfoe 88 Dust Mask	In the past, on most of the woodworking forums whenever someone asked about dust masks, the answer was swift, affirmative, and unanimous; the Dustfoe 88 (≈1997). Unfortunately, it was discontinued. I’ve since replaced it with the Ellipse, described on the main tool pics page.

Last updated: 05 August 2018