tyler6•1mo ago

Shoutout to the old school mortar mixer I almost passed on

I was dead set against buying a used mortar mixer from the 70s. A buddy of mine in Columbus swore by it though, said it would outlast any new plastic thing. I gave him $150 for it last spring and honestly it still runs smoother than the rental I used to get. Has anyone else found older equipment that just works better than the new stuff?

3 comments

3 Comments

emmaj331mo ago

Got an old table saw from a neighbor's garage sale for fifty bucks like six years ago. It's this heavy cast iron beast from the 80s with a belt that screeches like a stuck pig for the first five minutes. Tbh I thought about dumping it after my first cut cause it scared me. But once it warms up that thing runs true and cuts through pressure treated like butter. The new saws at the hardware store feel flimsy to me now like they'd shake apart on a tough job. Honestly I think they just built stuff with more metal back then before they figured out how to cheap out on everything.

sarah5311mo ago

Man that "built with more metal" thing is so true. @emmaj33 I remember my buddy picking up an old Craftsman table saw from a thrift store and it took two of us to load it into his truck, thing weighed a ton. He's had it for five years now and it still cuts straight as an arrow, even though the on switch is held together with duct tape.

piper_burns1mo ago

Wait, it SCREECHES for the first five minutes every time? @sarah531 I’d probably have a heart attack before it even warmed up, haha. That duct tape on the switch sounds terrifying too.