Hand Tool Rescue PO Box 23002 Market Mall Saskatoon, SK, Canada S7J5H3 Email: handtoolrescue@gmail.com
This rotary jigsaw was also known as the Cutawl (Model K8). Based on the age of the motor and the history of patents on this machine, I believe it was made sometime in the 1930s. It had many other cutters available for cutting materials such as metal, wood, leather, fabric, drywall, and essentially anything else that is up to 1.25″ thick and softer than hardened steel. This restoration was a lengthly process as the motor needed work as well. I am stunned this motor eventually ran so well. There is zero play in any direction other than back and forth when I move the armature. For a motor that is ~85 years old, I was very surprised to see the bronze bushings having essentially no wear. It’s possible they were replaced at one point. After doing research on this tool and talking with some collectors and experts, I learned that there were certain parts that were fragile and prone to damage. The large wheel in the back is attached to the main shaft by a pin that does not go through the centre of the shaft, but is offset. This means that over time, the offset pin allowed the wheel to wear around the shaft and starting wobbling itself to the point of bending/breaking the shaft. I chose not to risk it and left the wheel as is. While looking at a parts diagram of this tool, I decided it was too risky to try and hammer and pry off the rotary mechanism as it’s filled with small steel balls and retainer rings. These two things are my enemies. All I do is loosen them. The part works completely fine, so there is no reason to mess with it. I could actually see myself using this tool for some applications. It has a very natural feel to controlling the direction of cut and I feel like I could be more accurate with this than a modern jigsaw.
Some say, it’s necessarily complicated. Some, not me, but some. This restoration was on an 1891 patented apple peeler. These were made by the Goodell Co. in Antrim, New Hampshire beginning in the 1890s. I do not know when they halted production of this apple parer, so a more exact age of this specific peeler is unknown. Later models even had a spiral slicer attachment. Personally, I love tools with tons of moving parts that all work synchronistically.
This tool restoration focused on a Craftsman “Model 109” metal-cutting lathe from 1948. The lathe was giving to me by a fan about a year ago. This specific lathe is quite small for a metal-cutting lathe and everything about it has been miniaturized compared to “normal-sized” machining lathes. These were marketed as a model-makers lathe or a hobbyist lathe. These lathes do have some fatal flaws that I point out in the video. Most notably, the spindle is only 0.5″ wide and completely hollow. This means that the lathe will never be able to take large cuts or work well with harder metals. If you follow the limitations of this small lathe, then you can definitely get the job done.
The time has come for this chainsaw restoration. This specific saw restoration is for me and I have been wanting to get to this tool for a long time. I started the disassembly in November 2018 and had to wait a while for some rare parts to arrive. This chainsaw is a McCulloch 99 two-man chainsaw made in 1954. The engine is 161cc and the powerhead alone is 51lbs making it one of the largest production chainsaws ever and the largest in McCulloch’s production line at the time. In this video, I focus on disassembling the powerhead and getting everything ready for painting. I used 2 coats of self-etching primer, 3 coats of yellow enamel, and 3 coats of 2K fuel-resistant clear paint for each of the painted pieces. I was not able to get the clutch off of this saw, so instead of fixing something until I break it, I decided to leave it alone and restore the chainsaw without removing the clutch. This meant that the crankshaft had to stay together as well. Almost all pieces were meticulously cleaned by hand as solvents and degreasers can only do so much.
In this video, I finally piece the whole saw back together and try to get it running. It took me over 13hrs to reassemble just the powerhead and I am so glad to have it done. The parts, like the piston rings took months to arrive, but they fit great after I gapped them like a boss. Cutting wood with this saw is very different than with a normal chainsaw and requires a second person to risk their life during the entire cut.
This tool restoration was on a Russian / USSR chain mortiser. I think it was made in 1973 by Electricgalvanic and has the model number IE-5601A. I do not know much else about this tool as most websites (which are in Russian) do not go into much detail. I believe the chain came in three different widths, and I have the 3/4″ one. If you know more about this company or tool, please let us know in the comments. The restoration itself was pretty straight forward as only a few pieces were missing. I decided to paint the tool as some of the photos of this tool online show it painted and the person I was restoring this for asked for it. In this first part, I disassemble, clean, and paint the chain mortiser. In part two I reassemble, make new parts, and get it running. This thing is a beast!
This “Little Giant” flamethrower/flame gun was made by the Hauck MFG. Co from the 1930s-1950s. The tool restoration was pretty straight forward, but the operation was not. I used high-heat oil-and-gas resistant paint wherever possible. The red handle is not the original colour, I just thought it looked nice. It was nice to see that the pump still had compression and the pressure gauge still worked. Operating this thing is not safe…at all. The shutoff valve is so far from the spout that there is a lot of kerosene left in the piping that needs to burn off before it shuts off. The flamethrower was still burning ~5min after I turned it off. I tested that valve and it works just fine, so the burning is just part of it’s function. I couldn’t use it for very long as there is a fire ban in my area and kerosene is much harder to put out than gasoline.
This antique automatic saw set was is good shape to begin with. The spring on the advancing arm was missing and needed to be replaced, with a temporary fix. I decided to keep the bare metal look as it matches the age of the tool and looks good to me. I left the jaws loose so you can see how it pushes on the teeth. Oil or a wipe-on polyurethane would be a good choice for rust protection in the future. I have no idea what the piece marked “28” does. Would love help with that if anyone knows. Everything else works great and sets the teeth perfectly if setup properly.
