Show us your drills!
 

I've been inspired by Youtube videos celebrating vintage electric drills, and of adding a second old Wolf to my accumulation. I was pleased to get a Bosch (EW7UBJ517?) working - I had posted on this some time ago but been unable to find a three legged capacitor/choke. I fitted a suppressor cap from brush to earth and simply joined the other two wires. It works beautifully and has a comfortable weight and feel. That's the first one. The others are a Wolf found last weekend at a car boot for £3, DeSoutter, Scintilla (needs a chuck), another Wolf, and a Black and Decker (kitchen wrecker). The B&D is nothing like so solid but is still a nice drill to use. I'd particularly like to know more about the Bosch, as I have found nothing like it on the web. Love them all. I believe it's good to be aware of the big ones, known as wrist breakers, but would still like to find one. All the drills are working.
Tony

Re: Show us your drills!
 

The Black & Decker shown in the second picture, lower right was one like my first one. It was the lowest priced 1/4" drill at the time. The hex-key chuck wasn't too impressive, but it held the drills rather well.

Re: Show us your drills!
 

Hi Tony, the Wolf pistol drills are very robust, I have several.
The B&D types were only designed for 500Hrs of use (10 years for the average DIY'er), but with occasional maintenance the last well beyond that; I recon the hammer drill version one I got from a skip must be up beyond 5000 hrs now as I do a lot of DIY

Battery drills often respond to restuffing the battery packs, I use cells from de-fibrillators with some success.

Ed

Re: Show us your drills!
 

My 1/2" 110V Wolf drill probably qualifies as a wrist-breaker as it is quite slow, powerful and the top handle is missing!


Ron

Re: Show us your drills!
 

Hello,
The first two photos show a Wolf 5/8 inch drill which I suppose you could call a wrist sprainer.
The next two photos show a Wolf 1 1/4 inch drill, a true wrist breaker with a speed of 380 rpm. If the drill bit jams you go round and round till you can release the trigger. Its really a two man drill.
Yours, Richard

Re: Show us your drills!
 

I guess any tool (or anything in life) needs to be used with an idea of it's limitations ... the most dangerous I can think of, is a car. In the hands of an idiot ...
USradcoll, when did you have your B&D?
Ed, I have a couple of battery drills I hook up to 12v on a cord and work well - they were often at the tip.
Richard&Ron, very nice drills, thanks!

Re: Show us your drills!
 

I recall that Wolf used to say that if you could stall one of their drills when used within its specification, they would refund the purchase price. The implication, of course, is that they were low-speed, high-torque machines compared with their rivals - wrist-breakers indeed!

Re: Show us your drills!
 

I have an old Wolf drill that my mother bought in the early '50s, she was the DIYer my dad spent his time at the allotment.

Peter

Re: Show us your drills!
 

Hi,
Here's my early Wolf drill that belonged to the elderly father of one of my wife's friends. When I found it, it was wired with 3/.029 grey, flat twin and earth house wiring cable!
I found a suitable MK plug in my junk box.
What year would this drill have been made?
Thanks.
Cheers, Pete.

Re: Show us your drills!
 

What no Selecta! Sadly the lifetime guarantee only applied to the drills, not the company!

Re: Show us your drills!
 

The first drill I bought was a Wolf 'Cub' in the late 50s and I seem to recall that it cost me £4-19-6 it had Wolf's own design of chuck that used an Allen key to finally tighten the jaws after they had been loosely brought into contact with the drill shank with the outer conical nut. It gave me years of service and would still have it now had it been returned after I loaned it to a work colleague.

The picture is of an Arcoy drill in I bought 1962 and its still in frequent use! It originally came with a 1/4" Jacobs chuck but I fitted a keyless chuck (same as the one on the Wolf drill at the top of the second picture in the first post). Apart from its very ergonomic design one of its best attributes is how close the chuck spindle is to the top of the drill, it allows holes to be drilled very close into a corner.

Ian

Re: Show us your drills!
 

This is my desoutter drill


picked it up round local boot just needed a new mains lead

Re: Show us your drills!
 

Since it's clearly missed.... I can still remember my father using it, probably back in the '60's (?). It still works, but isn't used obviously !

Before anyone points them out - I take no credit for the broken mains plug, or the masking tape wrapped wiring.... my fathers' handiwork I suspect. There may even be some of the other original accessories around, although I know the stand is gone.

Attachment 167297

Re: Show us your drills!
 

That is a big tape bomb on the power cable....

Re: Show us your drills!
 

I bought my Black & Decker in June 1959, using my grade school graduation gift money. $9.95 USD in the good old days before sales tax. Also, a set of cheap German made drill bits for a buck, as I didn't have any.
A kid, 14 years old with his own electric drill! I felt like a real big-shot. 8-)
Things sure are different now!

Re: Show us your drills!
 

I used to use my dad's B&D when I was probably 8-9 yrs old. Drove him crazy drilling holes in things and blunting his drill bits! That was a 60's drill, blue and silver. I was a compulsive driller.

Re: Show us your drills!
 

I also had my first B &D drill when I was about 14, a D720 - the armature went about a week later, replaced under warranty. Eventually the rear main bearing wore out and they had changed the design so B & D gave me a brand new drill for the price of the bearing - same thing eventually happened to that as well so I bored out the backplate and fitted a ballrace. I still have it thought the armature has gone...

I have a number of other drills, mostly not Black & Decker...

My Dad still has a Millers Falls drill from the early fifties, still works fine.

Re: Show us your drills!
 

Not quite in the same league. I rescued this 'machine' from the medical physics dept where I started work, it was about to be binned. Comes complete with four speed reversiable foot control!
The first photo shows the busisness end and the second the power end

Malcolm

Re: Show us your drills!
 

That's a really useful device, and would no doubt cost a bit new!

Re: Show us your drills!
 

Those of a certain age remember those with some dread!