In article ,
Jeff Wisnia wrote:

bill wrote:
follow this link:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tem=4406121360

while this is partly a blatant shill for an auction for something that
is nearly worthless as a tool, maybe it's also a way to start a
discussion on really really useless tools - this one being something of
an example, but I'm sure there are worse (and please, let's exclude the
electric fork right off the bat)



Don't laff yet....

I'm gonnna be interested in seeing what the toy tool collectors (like
me) bid this one up to.

I've got a Sears Craftsman "Reversing Speed Reducer" from the same era
which I bought new in the 60s, before variable speed, reversing and
torque limiting clutches were a twinkle in "drill motor" designers' eyes.

It's about 3" in diameter and intended to be chucked in a quarter inch
drill. Planetary/differential gears inside reduce the speed. There's a
ribbed collar on the outside you grip to make the differential gearing
exert torque on the output shaft, you modulated the torque by letting
that collar slip through your hand.

The clutch collar can be snapped up or down to make the output rotation
CW or CCW. The output shaft had a "Yankee Screwdriver" type spring chuck
to hold 1/4" shank screwdriver blades.

It worked great back then when I needed it, now it's just something to
look at and remember those halcyon younger days.

Jeff

My landlord has one of those in the toolbox here. Took me literally
months to figure out what the heck it actually did, since I never
actually chucked it up. And now I find out what it's acutally intended
for... Neat

--
Don Bruder - - New Email policy in effect as of Feb. 21, 2004.
Short form: I'm trashing EVERY E-mail that doesn't contain a password in the
subject unless it comes from a "whitelisted" (pre-approved by me) address.
See http://www.sonic.net/~dakidd/main/contact.html for full details.