OT: Pennsylvania woodworkers kinda blew it. *LINK*

Re: OT: Pennsylvania woodworkers kinda blew it.

Bill Houghton, Turkey day tomorrow! Sebastopol, CA

>Looks pretty rusted out to me. I might have been intrigued, if I were back in PA, but not sure HOW intrigued.

Bill, who's gotten over buying all his cars after they're clapped out

Re: OT: Pennsylvania woodworkers kinda blew it.

Moses Yoder in White Pigeon, MI

>I am just very glad you didn't post the link before the auction ended. I might actually have been tempted to bid on it due to the low price. I have an old table saw in the shop now that I probably won't get to work on for a year or two.

Re: OT: Pennsylvania woodworkers kinda blew it.

woodburnbob

>Heck, I don't see all that much bad rust. It does appear to be stored outside...that or there's a tree growing in the man's shop...but it may not have been outside all that long. In my limited experience with old machines like this one, the thick crust of oil, dust and grime acts as a pretty good rust deterrent. Anyway, I'd guess there'll be an Ebay relisting, or perhaps there's already a deal going on via after-auction email.

Looking more closely this morning, I see what appears to be a 5 HP or bigger electric motor retro-fit. A scrap guy is going to make a good piece of change at the current price of iron and cooper. The cast iron (assumption) bandsaw wheels are probably worth 50 or 100 alone.

I think it would be sad to see this old boy cannibalized or sent off to China to be melted down, if anyone could put it to work again, even for a museum donation. I'm thinking it probably even has babbit bearings, and re-babbitting would be fun to try...if that's what's needed. The cast iron (assumption) bandsaw wheels are probably worth 50 or 100 alone.

A nice piece of community activism and philanthropy for WC would be to set up a sort-of Free-Willy fund for this old fellow. I'll pledge $20 to the guy who takes this machine in and restores it, posting to WC occasional pictures of progress. Surely there'd be a couple hundred other civic-minded saviors of old iron just here on WC that might join my pledge...it being the season for pledges and donations.

(NB: Some of my comments are tongue in cheek, of course, but most are not.)

Re: OT: Pennsylvania woodworkers kinda blew it.

Thomas Skaggs, Foothills of Mount Level

>That might be the very power tool that would drive me to becoming a full time Neanderthal. Heaven forbid! ;-)

Tommy

Re: a name isn't always what it seems.

Robin Corell

>one of the pics show the initials P.B.B.M.Co, which stands for Parks Ball Bearing machine Co. But here is the irony of the name. the machines were all built with babbit bearings. still it was advanced for the era and boasted an 'electic welded angle frame' and a 10 year guarentee.

I just finished putting tires on a newly aquired parks 18" bandsaw made in 1951 and it is amazing how similar the design is to the machine for sale on ebay.

Robin Corell

Great clue! Thanks. *Many PICS & LINKS*

woodburnbob

>Robin, thanks for the great lead. Googling "Parks Ball Bearing" got me immediately to the Old Woodworking Machines site page on Parks and the back and forth Woodworking Machine to Ball Bearing to Woodworking Machines changes in the name of Parks enterprise. There's even a detailed history of the company.

When you said you were working on a 1959 Parks planer, I initially thought there was a misprint, and imagined you meant 1859 or something. I hadn't suspected the manufacturer of what was on Ebay would be offering competetive woodworking machines in the 1950s. Then I saw this. They were in business from 1884 to 1989!

Anyway, the OWWM site displays two photos of a combo machine similar to the Ebay machine:

The advertisements are pretty informative also. Check out the 1920s price of the Parks "Pride-of-the-shop", which seems to be similar to what Ebay had for $00.01.