Ok.. Now I have posted a few times in regards to vacuum pumps and stuff.. And the responses have been great and helpful.. I recently found a commercial grade vacuum pump that was suppose to get a whopping 17cfm which is way overkill. I met with the gentleman who upon arriving at the meet spot we agreed upon, informed me that for some reason the pump stopped working.. Now I’m pretty handy having worked in a maintenance dept for a few years..so I thought no biggie..I will rebuild it myself.. Ya..riiiight!.. 500 buck to buy the rebuild kit.. So basically all I got out of that pump was a new Baldor 1hp motor.. Btw..I paid 50 bucks for the whole pump..
Now for the shocking part.. I was surfing around craigslist looking for woodworking stuff of course and there was a posting for a vakuum laminator..so I casually looked it the post then scrolled down to look at the pictures.. This person was selling a gast 5cfm pump..with water separator, control box..regulator..hoses..table..20mm heavy poly bag..platen..work horses..tons of figured veneer (tiger maple) but wait..there’s more.. I quickly responded to the post telling her I would take it..cash..she was selling the whole scheebang for 295..I drove 100 miles (1 way) and when I got there..it was this really sweet little old lady who’s husband passed a year ago and she was moving.. She not only gave me all the stuff I listed..she gave me all his veneer hand tools..veneer knives..straight edges..countersinks.. Drafting tables..this really cool veritas bow used to transfer curves to your workpiece..lumber..dozuki saws..rolls of plastic..glues…finishes..copper sheeting..brass sheetings.. Dowel rods..a really high end veneer caliper.. And I can’t even list all the other stuff..I completely filled my van..I expressed how grateful I was and that this stuff would be in good hands and will be taken care of and offered to pay her more..she would not accept any more money..and actually thanked me for taking it saying it would make her not having to pack up all this stuff easier on her..it’s been way to long since I have had lady luck smile on me..and I’m very grateful for the find..
-- Randall Child
17 comments so far
CharlieM1958
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7602 posts in 1111 days
posted 31 days ago
Wow! You lucky dog…. you really stumbled on to one there.
-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"
Julian
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687 posts in 418 days
posted 31 days ago
WOW!! What a great find. It’s nice to hear that you at least offered to pay more for it. Make sure to post some pics of the setup once you get it all set up.
-- Julian, Park Forest, IL
Chris
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1467 posts in 883 days
posted 31 days ago
You know… We are all very jealous of you right now. Lady Luck definitely smiled down on you with this one. Post some pictures of the stuff if you get a chance. I know I would love to see what you hauled in….
-- Chris
Scott Bryan
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20554 posts in 714 days
posted 31 days ago
Randall, that is a great buy off Craigslist. You helped her out by taking all this stuff off her hands and I am sure she is glad that another woodworker is going to be able to use the tools and wood that her husband acquired over the years.
Great story.
-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.
a1Jim
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16598 posts in 469 days
posted 31 days ago
Good news Randy
-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop Southern Oregon
jlsmith5963
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178 posts in 241 days
posted 31 days ago
Lay all that haul out some where and get a picture for us will ya…. lol
-- criticism: the art of analyzing and evaluating the quality of a artistic work...
Mike Gager
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215 posts in 160 days
posted 31 days ago
no pics…. didnt happen! :)
Todd A. Clippinger
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5632 posts in 992 days
posted 31 days ago
SWEEET!
-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com
Rustic
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1247 posts in 489 days
posted 30 days ago
great score man
-- There is no such thing as a mistake. Its called a design modification Rick Kruse, Grand Rapids, MI
blackcherry
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730 posts in 715 days
posted 30 days ago
This if faith my good man, someone is watch over you and that nice gentlemen wears. Now put it all to good use and have fun posting all the great projects. Blkcherry
Gary Fixler
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646 posts in 274 days
posted 30 days ago
Fantastic! Congratulations on the huge haul and the good luck.
Now you have to find a place for it all :)
-- Gary, Los Angeles, video game animator
gbvinc
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537 posts in 839 days
posted 30 days ago
Wow! Nice!
yarydoc
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46 posts in 37 days
posted 30 days ago
Nice find. This is going to happen to a lot of our tools. After we die the sweet little old lady that were married to is going to have a big yard sale or give it away. Kinda bothers me now but I guess it wont then.
Ray
-- Ray Cody, Florence Alabama
Rob Drown
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324 posts in 725 days
posted 30 days ago
Seams like we should give it all away before we assume room temperature.
You really lucked out RBW. Enjoy!!!
-- Sharp tools and thin whispy shavings make woodworking a joy.
Lee A. Jesberger
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3710 posts in 872 days
posted 30 days ago
Hey Randy;
Seems to me you were past due on some good luck coming your way. It appears to have been well worth the wait.
Poor guy though, that passed away. I guess it’s like one of the LJ’s said one time… His biggest fear was that his wife would sell his stuff, for the price he told her he paid for it.
Well, have fun.
Lee
-- by Lee A. Jesberger http://www.prowoodworkingtips.com http://www.ezee-feed.com
cabinetmaster
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8474 posts in 450 days
posted 28 days ago
Wow what a haul. I’m hoping Lady Luck will find me soon too. I really could use some of that find.
-- Jerry--A man can never have enough tools or clamps
MsDebbieP
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14161 posts in 1053 days
posted 26 days ago
congrats
bless her heart and sending a big hug to her during a major time of change in her life.
and now…. back to the ‘bling” ... congrats, congrats, congrats.
let’’s see the projects now :)
-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)