minor tool gloat

There ya go! I got a Dake ratcheting arbor press at Boeing Surplus back a few years ago, and I use it all the time. Great tool. If you don't have the ratcheting type, there's a trick you can do about milling off just one tooth, forget if it's at the top or the bottom, then you put the ram there and then you can move the handle to where you want it and then engage it.

Grant

Sounds great!

As for saying "if that old arbor press outside the door was for sale?"

I usually do not do that.

I would ask "what is that strange heavy iron thing you have". The purpose of the question is not to find out what it is (if I know) but to find out if the seller does. If not, I would offer a lot less. And I would also not say "that's just what I am looking for", I would say "maybe I can find some use for it in my garage".

Otherwise, congratulations! Great deal!

i

One Saturday morning this spring I picked up a reasonable looking 4" vise for $5.00 and since we were leaving on a trip, I dropped it in a corner without looking too closely. The other day I got it out and cleaned it up a bit. On one side, it says "Made in Canada" while on the other is a "3" and lower "Henry". Underneath is "Craftools". A google search on craftools and Henry got me:

and after reading the wright up, I am damned glad I spent the $5, Second Son is happy with the cheap vise I donated to his shop as well. Gerry :-)} London, Canada

A Dake is virtually indestructible. My father in law had a #1 sitting in his backyard for years. I finally asked him if he was ever going to do anything with it and my mother-in-law immediately shouted "You can have it! Just get it out of my yard!" I took it to the shop, washed it and packed in some more grease and it has worked perfectly ever since.

Yup, that's a good one, congrats.

I snagged a Famco 3R off ebay about a year ago for $78. Two days ago, I called up Famco and ordered the bolster plate, which was missing, $120. The Famco guy told me I could buy a new 3R for $1170. I just picked up the steel for a base. No way I'm paying Famco prices for that.

Pete Keillor

The bolster plate would be a perfect place to use a pattern burner, if you had another one to use as a template. I have an Airco Camograph I've been itching to use .. where are you, Pete?

GWE

Grant, I'm in Midland, Michigan. However, I put my scanner on the bolster plate and posted the scan to the dropbox.

Look for

Maybe you could use that to make a template. Basic dimensions are in Pete Keillor