Need info on this brace

[atgcpaul]

I forgot I had this brace and bit set in my tool box but was happy to have it since my battery operated cordless tools are still in transit.

Can someone give me more details on the circled area? There's a smooth collar that rotates around that grooved area but I'm not sure what it's for.

I've also got an assortment of drill bits but it might be handy to have a #2 driver bit or maybe an adapter that fits in there to hold modern quick change bits. Are those available?

Thanks
Paul

[bandit571]

That collar is a "shifter".  it rotates around to a cross pin.  one way will cause the brace to ratchet when you reverse the brace.   the other direction will ratchet with you are going forwards ( drilling).....collar can also lock halfway between the two points...and neither direction will ratchet..like when you are installing/removing a bit...

Slotted wheel is the ratchet's prawls...there are 2 levers that engage the prawls....the direction the chuck ratchets depends on which lever is engaged in the prawls...


About like the little lever on the ratchet used for a socket wrench.....places where you can't get a full rotation of the handle, and only enough room to swing maybe 1/2 way....

Most hex shanked items will also be held in that 2 jaw chuck.....

[Bill_Houghton]

If you rotate the collar that's toward the crank handle, do little fingers on one side and then the other move out, depending on which way you turn the collar?  If so, that's the ratcheting feature.  With both fingers in, the ratchet is locked.  With one finger out, you can turn the handle less than a full circle, then bring it backward, without turning the bit backward.  This feature is very helpful when you're working in tight corners.  There are multiple versions of the ratcheting feature; yours looks, from here, like the most common version.

Ooops. I see Bandit types faster than I do, although I think he misspelled "pawls." "Prawls" are some kind of seafood, aren't they (insert smiley face).

[brianwelch]

Ahhh, the original cordless drill...broke mine out last week because I needed to drill some holes for which I had an auger bit, but no spade/speed/forstner bits. (and did't want to grind off/remove the square portion of the shank on it)

[atgcpaul]

Thanks for the info, everyone!