Old metal screwdrivers

Just surface weathered w/ a few cracks or is it "punky"???

Weathered with a few cracks.

It depends on how pretty you want it to be. I have one screwdriver built like that, and a meat cleaver that is similar. I used ordinary hardware-store epoxy on both. They're probably stronger than they were when new, but they're not the prettiest things in my drawer.

I'd probably do nothing (other than keep them out of the weather :) ) than perhaps sand a little and oil, then.

As Ed says, you can fill but unless the cracking is so bad they're actually going to fail or they're uncomfortable, a little checking won't make any significant difference on the longevity and I tend to prefer that stuff that's old with "character" keep that as much as can without being anal about "reproduction" or "antique" status.

I've got a flat Stanley driver that just big enough to be more of a really well made prybar that I like (got it from an old timer for a token amount, then he died). It's old enough to be wood with a blue paint job. I use my tools, so it's not going on a display case or anything, but what might be a good way to seal it up and protect it just a bit so the paint lasts a bit longer?

What did folks do back in the day, if anything with these tools to keep them in good shape?

The plastic stuff we have is maintenance free, so "screwdriver PM day" doesn't really happen around here too often.

but what might be

You might look up Boiled Linseed Oil / Crazy glue on the internet. It is quick, but may not last too many years.

Dan

On 02/18/2016 3:07 PM, Cydrome Leader wrote: ...

We just did "flat Stanley" for the youngest grandson... :)

On a painted handle, I'd probably only add a wipe-on varnish after cleaning...

Mostly nothing other than keep dry. I've several wood-handled screwdrivers from grandfather that've been here on the farm since the '20s or maybe even were original ten years prior to that, I don't know. I remember using them from the time I was first big enough to get into stuff... :) ...

Actually, just using them regularly likely kept them in good condition. Human skin oils are also effective 'drying oils' for finishing wood.

Lloyd

Nice.

Anybody know if there was a preferred type of wood used for screwdriver handles?

Recently Went to the guitar center with a friend who picked up some drum sticks. I noticed they proudly state "hickory" on the good ones, so I asked the sales guy what's special about hickory and mentioned it's what good hammer handles are made from. He said will gracefully break and never shatter into splinters. Guess that's a common desired factor in striking tools and drum sticks.

Cydrome Leader fired this volley in news:na5mgv $5qn$ snipped-for-privacy@reader1.panix.com:

For good ones, it was often Rosewood early-on, then Walnut, often. The "Perfect Pattern Handle" was the first successful commercial version.

Lloyd

I've found the plastic in X-lite tends to get oxide or is attacked with a mold. I have sets of them that get gray and fuzzy. Not flaky.

I put them in a basket in my RF sweeping cem tank and some Simple green or like. In a day they are bright and nice again.

I haven't seen the effect on anything but the x-lite brand. I suspect a different plastic is used and that makes the difference.

Mart> dpb wrote:

Clean them with soap and water, then let them dry. Then clean them with mineral spirits. Each cleans different dirts/oils from them.

Then give them a treatment with one of the following wipe-on tung oil varnishes: Waterlox Satin (my favorite), Watco, or (since it is about all that stores carry any more, cringe) Minwax Wipe-On Poly (did I really type that out loud?)

I said to remove them so you can finish all sides and truly seal them.

2 coats will do it. More than that may cause the handles to get slippery when your palms are wet. You want a sealer rather than a thick film finish.

Rosewood is one strange material. Had a small coupon of it on my keychain for years, it was outlasting the other metal junk attached next to it.

I've got a couple Stanleys that do that too. Both have triangular shaped handles, kinda translucent charcoal color. I used my finger nail to scrape most of it off (big tough nails). Figured it had something to do with being kept in the basement and too much humidity at times...

Is this a problem with the black or the fruit colored handles?

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All of them. I have always owned Xcelite tools since being in the TV repair business in the 1960s, and the computer biz in the 70s through

1997.

All of their plastic handles, upon exposure to high humidity and warm temps develop that white haze of fungus. It has to be one of the plasticizers they use.

No biggy. A little abrasive cleaner like fine steel wool brings them right back to shape.

Lloyd

never seen this- have used a ton of them, old and new. Is it real mold or some sort of haze, like superglue on plastic haze? It's not super humid or hot all the time in Chicago though.

Not sure about xcelite, but lots of screwdriver handles are acetate. No plasticizers in there. Do you have something that off-gasses around your tools?

Cydrome Leader fired this volley in news:na85c8 $88b$ snipped-for-privacy@reader1.panix.com:

Nah... it's specific to Xcelite tools. I've been experiencing this since the 1960s, and I have lots of other brands that don't do it.

This is Florida. 90% humidity, and temps in the 90s, ALL SUMMER LONG.

And it is a fungus, but an innocuous one, apparently. No stink, but under magnification, you can see the fruiting bodies.

Lloyd

It is typically full of silicon. Tough on tooling. Tough on what it slides against... :-)

Mart> Lloyd E. Sp>> Cydrome Leader fired this volley in news:na5mgv