Hi, Power Project

I found this lonely, old drill crying to itself on a Goodwill shelf. I hadn't worked on one before, so I gave the clerk two bucks and took the drill home.

Vintage aluminiumn tools always catch my attention. Plus, it looks like something from Star Trek.

You can't see it from this angle, but the drill's chuck is frozen in place and there is a broken drill bit stuck inside.

An attached, metal model number plate is so much cooler than a company logo on a sticker.

A decayed power cord isn't safe to use.

So, at the next Goodwill I bought a loose power cord that was also two dollars. I hope to be able to cut off the female end and attach the exposed wires to the drill.

The first step was to see if I could get the chuck to open and release the broken drill bit. While researching "Hi-Power" drills, I across the "Progress is Fine, But It's Gone On Too Long" blog. The author has the same drill as I do, but with a different name plate. In the comments section, one commentor stated they had the same problem that I did, and another commentor had the solution.

I sprayed penetrating oil into the chuck a couple of times, and then let it sit. I tapped on the chuck's jaws the next day, and they popped back into place and the broken bit was released. Thanks, Duke! I used my grinder's wire brush to remove its rust, and then polished the chuck with a buffing wheel. 

The temp in the garage was only 20 degrees at the time. It is surprising how much air is moved by a buffing wheel. It doesn't take very long for your bare hands to feel like they are beginning to freeze. I had to stop twice to go inside the house and warm up my hands. When the chuck was mostly polished, I stopped. I was making progress, but I wasn't having fun. 

3/23:

I moved forward on the Hi-Power project a bit. I polished the chrome front and then disassembled the drill.

I made an initial cleaning of the parts and then packed the gears with the grease that I had on hand. I reassembled the drill to see if it would still function, and it does - somewhat. The drill spins much faster than before, but sometimes it needs to be started by hand to operate. A slight turn on the wheel that secures the chuck in place will get the drill moving. That's not going to cut it.

I'm going to break it down again and try cleaning the motor's brushes. I might try some other type of grease, too. We'll see how it goes.