To me, the peak in development of the eggbeater drill has got to be the North Bros Yankee ratchet drills with the five position function selector – such as the well known No.1530, No.1545 & No.1555.
But there are more members of the Yankee drill family.
The No.1555 is a two-speed breast drill, with a three-jaw chuck. It’s cousin, the No.555, is identical - but for a two-jaw chuck for auger bits, etc.
Likewise the No.1545, a two-speed large-ish eggbeater drill with a three-jaw chuck, has a cousin, the No.545 with a two-jaw chuck.
But wait, there’s more…
Another branch of the family has the No.1550 and No.550 – single speed versions of the No.1555 and No.555 breast drills. There are also the No.1540 and No.540 – single speed versions of the No.1545 and No.545 eggbeater drills.
Finally there’s the No.1530, a small single speed eggbeater drill with a three-jaw chuck, that morphed into the No.1530A some time during the decade before North Bros were bought out by Stanley (in 1946).
All these Yankees are equipped with the most marvellous five position selector which allows:
It’s in the 4th position (Double Ratchet) that the drill performs like magic – no matter which way you turn the crank, the chuck turns clockwise. Amazing !!
1926 - Ratchet Mechanism.jpg my1555b.JPG
*
I lusted after one for a while, but purchasing anything in the USA is expensive, and so is the price of shipping, so I accepted I’d have to settle for whatever motley old eggbeaters came up locally.
Then in March, 2012, I spotted a No.1555 on the local internet auction site TradeMe. It was listed as:
“DAMAGED Antique Drill $1 reserve.
The handle doesn’t seem to want to turn… There is no warranty on this item. It is broken. Sold ‘As is, where is’ for parts”
So it didn’t sell for too much ($NZ13.10) and I became the dubious owner. I didn’t need it. I was just curious.
When it arrived I looked for the selector, but it was out of sight (the selector rotates with the spindle, and was at that time rotated around the back) and the drill was jammed. Then I discovered that somehow the selector was in the lock position, so with a bent piece of wire I managed to flick it to another position, and – viola, a fully working ratchet (with no faults). Score !!
My daughter expressed an interest in an eggbeater (she was 8 years old and shows an interest in woodwork and crafts) so I bought her a good reliable Stanley 803. She was so disappointed – it didn’t have the ratchet functions dads big drill had.
Luck would have it, in September 2013 I spotted a No.1530 in a bunch of tools on the same auction site.
Yankee 1530.jpg
I guess nobody else did, because I won that easily ($NZ18.00 the lot) and overhauled it (new paint – you know how kids like bright objects) for her 9th birthday. I managed to find a link to advise how to take it apart, or at least how to take the spindle out – which made cleaning and repainting much easier. http://ift.tt/1KLLaq3
There’s a slight wobble in the chuck and a repair near the handle, but she was happy.
Then just after Christmas 2013, I spotted the intermediate size – this time a No.545 (with two jaw chuck - for auger bits). It was simply described as “Hand Drill - as pictured”, with a single, grainy picture.
Yankee 545.jpg
I won it for $NZ5.00 - again I don’t think many recognised it. But that’s as far as my luck lasted. The main handle was cracked, side handle missing, the spindle slightly bent, some teeth were missing from one of the double pinions, and the mechanism was seized.
However it seemed like a good size of drill, being smaller than the breast drill (which seldom got used) but bigger than my Stanley No.503s (which were getting frequent use), so I kept an eye out for another.
In March, 2014, I picked up a No.1545, with a very crude repair to its crank cog, from the States.
1545c.jpg 1545a.jpg 1545e.jpg This repair is so bad, the gear wheel isn't quite round anymore.
The price was okay ($US19.00), but shipping costs left me with an expensive drill. This too, it turns out, has mechanism woes, with the selector knob missing and all RH movement locked (although left hand movement is possible). At least all the gear teeth are present.
The intention is to make one good one out of the two. My plan was to take the spindle and chuck from the No.1545 and fit these to the No.545. As it turns out the No.1545 is in better shape, so the crank cog off the No.545 is now fitted to it.
This leaves the problem of two jammed/dodgy mechanisms. So how to take it apart….?
Cheers, Vann.
But there are more members of the Yankee drill family.
The No.1555 is a two-speed breast drill, with a three-jaw chuck. It’s cousin, the No.555, is identical - but for a two-jaw chuck for auger bits, etc.
Likewise the No.1545, a two-speed large-ish eggbeater drill with a three-jaw chuck, has a cousin, the No.545 with a two-jaw chuck.
But wait, there’s more…
Another branch of the family has the No.1550 and No.550 – single speed versions of the No.1555 and No.555 breast drills. There are also the No.1540 and No.540 – single speed versions of the No.1545 and No.545 eggbeater drills.
Finally there’s the No.1530, a small single speed eggbeater drill with a three-jaw chuck, that morphed into the No.1530A some time during the decade before North Bros were bought out by Stanley (in 1946).
All these Yankees are equipped with the most marvellous five position selector which allows:
- Plain – normal function (like your common Stanley No.503)
- Left Hand Ratchet;
- Right Hand Ratchet;
- Right Hand Double Ratchet;
- Lock - gears locked.
It’s in the 4th position (Double Ratchet) that the drill performs like magic – no matter which way you turn the crank, the chuck turns clockwise. Amazing !!
1926 - Ratchet Mechanism.jpg my1555b.JPG
*
I lusted after one for a while, but purchasing anything in the USA is expensive, and so is the price of shipping, so I accepted I’d have to settle for whatever motley old eggbeaters came up locally.
Then in March, 2012, I spotted a No.1555 on the local internet auction site TradeMe. It was listed as:
“DAMAGED Antique Drill $1 reserve.
The handle doesn’t seem to want to turn… There is no warranty on this item. It is broken. Sold ‘As is, where is’ for parts”
So it didn’t sell for too much ($NZ13.10) and I became the dubious owner. I didn’t need it. I was just curious.
When it arrived I looked for the selector, but it was out of sight (the selector rotates with the spindle, and was at that time rotated around the back) and the drill was jammed. Then I discovered that somehow the selector was in the lock position, so with a bent piece of wire I managed to flick it to another position, and – viola, a fully working ratchet (with no faults). Score !!
My daughter expressed an interest in an eggbeater (she was 8 years old and shows an interest in woodwork and crafts) so I bought her a good reliable Stanley 803. She was so disappointed – it didn’t have the ratchet functions dads big drill had.
Luck would have it, in September 2013 I spotted a No.1530 in a bunch of tools on the same auction site.
Yankee 1530.jpg
I guess nobody else did, because I won that easily ($NZ18.00 the lot) and overhauled it (new paint – you know how kids like bright objects) for her 9th birthday. I managed to find a link to advise how to take it apart, or at least how to take the spindle out – which made cleaning and repainting much easier. http://ift.tt/1KLLaq3
There’s a slight wobble in the chuck and a repair near the handle, but she was happy.
Then just after Christmas 2013, I spotted the intermediate size – this time a No.545 (with two jaw chuck - for auger bits). It was simply described as “Hand Drill - as pictured”, with a single, grainy picture.
Yankee 545.jpg
I won it for $NZ5.00 - again I don’t think many recognised it. But that’s as far as my luck lasted. The main handle was cracked, side handle missing, the spindle slightly bent, some teeth were missing from one of the double pinions, and the mechanism was seized.
However it seemed like a good size of drill, being smaller than the breast drill (which seldom got used) but bigger than my Stanley No.503s (which were getting frequent use), so I kept an eye out for another.
In March, 2014, I picked up a No.1545, with a very crude repair to its crank cog, from the States.
1545c.jpg 1545a.jpg 1545e.jpg This repair is so bad, the gear wheel isn't quite round anymore.
The price was okay ($US19.00), but shipping costs left me with an expensive drill. This too, it turns out, has mechanism woes, with the selector knob missing and all RH movement locked (although left hand movement is possible). At least all the gear teeth are present.
The intention is to make one good one out of the two. My plan was to take the spindle and chuck from the No.1545 and fit these to the No.545. As it turns out the No.1545 is in better shape, so the crank cog off the No.545 is now fitted to it.
This leaves the problem of two jammed/dodgy mechanisms. So how to take it apart….?
Cheers, Vann.
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