Technical Buying a metal brake

I bought a 4 footer at a swap meet for 65 bucks. It is made for siding (?) and is light weight but gets the job done for what I need. I have a few people that come by and use it. A better one will present itself in time. Then I will upgrade when the price is right. It sits just fine outside my shop. Buy them right and you will never lose money when reselling.

 

Many years ago, HF had a sale and I picked of a 3 foot one. It too sits outside, has had so much welded on it, cut off, welded etc. but for the price, I have abused the heck out of it for my needs.
I forget how ugly it now looks until I pull the tarp off of it

My Enco still stays inside the shop though.

 

I sure used the 4’ Tensmith finger brake and cutoff shear at work and missed when I left. Both were very good tools made in the USA.

 

Look for a local "maker" shop. They usually just charge a small hourly or monthly fee to use their equipment. You have to get "qualified" for most of the equipment, but once you're in, it's a great way to get jobs done without getting all the equipment.

 

We had something like that in the next town over. The Armory had been closed for years, then it was contracted out to places that put tons of equipment in it, just about any metal working, turning, etc thing you could imagine. I’m not why it all went away, but it’s been a good 25 years since the stuff has been gone.
Nothing like that around here now that I know of.

 

It all depends on your needs and budget. I built a 4 ft brake and a small 18 inch one I put in the vice to hold it. For what I do I use the 18 inch one a lot more. Unlimited budget I would have 4 ft finger brake and probably a 10 ft brake.

 

I agree on older US stuff.

I have a 4-foot Shop Fox box/pan (finger) brake now, and it is fine.

I do miss my Peck, Stow, & Wilcox Company (Pexto) equipment that I had before I moved to California.

It is harder to find out here, and can be more expensive. If I had realized that in advance, I would have stored it until I had the coin to move it all.

It never dawned on me that the reason I could find that stuff easily was that I lived 41-miles from the factory, in Bridgeport, where Bridgeports are made.

Ooops!

 

When I got to the point of making floorboards for my last build, I began looking for a reasonably priced, preferably USED brake. I found one close by and bought it AND a flathead motor sitting on the floor next to it (another story) anyway, I get it home and check out the manufacturer's plate and see that it was built shortly after the CIVIL WAR. It's framed in 2 1/2" rock maple with machined metal where it counts. Weighs in at just under a ton. This thing is a BEAST and works like the day it was made.

 

Looks like every owner took care of it, 157 or so years worth!