Old tools

[Graeme]

Been working on a little project recently which involved a lot of 10mm holes in wood, for coach bolts. Rather than flatten my cordless drill battery, I dig out my ancient B&D mains powered drill, which is rarely used. What a pleasure to use it again. There is something reassuringly chunky and solid about it. I know people laugh at B&D these days, but back then, the only choices I recall, at least for domestic use, were B&D or Bosch, and I have never regretted using B&D. My drill was all singing all dancing then. A keyless chuck! Variable speed and hammer action, too. Oh, the joy.

Some of the coach bolts needed their heads countersinking, and I don't have a twist drill large enough to take the heads, so started the holes using a brace and bit inherited from my grandfather 40+ years ago. That was satisfying, too.

[tabbypurr]

It's surprising how capable the old B&Ds are. They may look like crap now but that appearance is deceptive.

NT

[Chris J Dixon]

Back then instead of lots of specialist tools you had a collection of attachments. My circular saw worked its way through several 8 x 4 sheets of blockboard and ply, and it seemed to work, though I think it might have hastened the demise of the original drill.

All gone now, but I had it for many years, along with the other attachments: jig saw (my dad's, never used it), horizontal stand, grinding wheel, sanding table, vertical drill stand. When everything went plastic and double insulated you lost the delights of the sparking commutator.

I got rid of the orbital sander attachment when I bought a new Sandstorm one, but that fell apart on the first job and went back to B&Q PDQ.

It must now be about 45 years since I made my workbench, facing the logical difficulty of not having a bench to build it on. I settled on a simple but sturdy design, with coach bolts holding the major parts together.

Chris

[Brian Gaff]

Mine even predates hammer action. Contrary to popular belief you can drill holes in brick walls without a hammer drill that wakes up the dad and gives you white finger in half an hour. Brian

[Graeme]

In message , Chris J Dixon writes

Yes, I had them, too. Still got the circular saw attachment, mainly because it is mounted on my original drill, and I cannot get it off! Still got my Dad's old single speed drill too. It works, but screams. Bearings probably need re-greasing.

The attachments were very good for their time, although the real pain was constantly swapping. I remember installing a new kitchen around

1980, and constantly changing jig saw, circular saw and drill bits. The jig saw cut a sink hole in the work top, successfully if slowly. Certainly better than elbow power alone. .

[Tricky Dicky]

[tabbypurr]

built by a builder for himself. He tended to use quite a lot of second hand materials or seconds. The bricks were an example, these were obtained from a local brick manufacturer who specialised in engineering bricks for sewer s etc. the ones used tended to be over-baked and as a result were like iron . At the time I had a straight forward B&D drill which would not touch them . I borrowed a B&D hammer action drill and even that nearly broke with grea se melting out of the gearbox. It was only when I progressed to a more prof essional drill that I could make any headway and over the years eventually I graduated to an SDS drill and only then did drilling holes become easy.

I've encountered one place where even SDS won't work. I don't know what sor t of stone it is, it's not marble. Time to get out the SDS max just to dril l a little hole!

NT

[FMurtz]

Drill the recess first with a speedbore then drill the bolt size.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I still have my very first power drill. A B&D bought from Marble Arch in Shepherd's Bush, in the early '60s. It did go back to the factory for an overhaul so perhaps like Trigger's broom.

Just imagine. A DIY power tool made in the UK. ;-)

[tabbypurr]

Give it another decade & they'll be collectable.

NT

[Muddymike]

ISTR old B&D drill came in two qualities and that the black ones were supposedly pro quality. I see there current offerings are mostly orange.

Mike

[dennis]

8<

Buy some Bosch multimaterial drills, they will drill almost anything in a cordless drill and you don't need to switch the hammer on.

[dennis]

Do you think my quattro will be better value than the two speeds then?

[John Rumm]

Yup, BTDTGTT :-) ISTR in my youth, mother buying a black plastic B&D "suitcase" that contained a 2 speed hammer drill, jigsaw, circular saw, and orbital sander attachments. Plus an assortment of other add ons and consumables. That got lots of work and held up quite well. The circular saw was only 5", and relied on the bearings on the drill, so was not that refined, but worked well enough. The orbital was ok, but rather slow. The jigsaw perhaps the least useable since it was rather ungainly with an inverted drill hanging out the back of it! Still got the drill although I don't think its been used in a decade or more.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

The black 'tradesmen' came quite late in life. I have one of those too - which is great as a screwdriver. Except it doesn't have a clutch.

My B&D is blue, and all metal. Think later ones were gold. Orange when the body became plastic. But still made in the UK oop north.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Doubt they will touch decent concrete.

[tabbypurr]

I'm familiar with silver & gold(ish), not seen black though.

NT

[dennis]

They go through paving slabs with ease.

[Me]

I won a B&D drill in a DIY magazine comp in the late 1960's. It got well used, hammered in fact, but it was reliable and never let me down. Still got it and it still works!

[Me]

I won a B&D drill in a DIY magazine comp in the late 1960's. It got well used, hammered in fact, but it was reliable and never let me down. Still got it and it still works!