r/maxtoolhistory

I'm waiting for a few odds and ends to finish the restoration work on the A-3 sanders I posted recently. While I'm between projects, I decided to tackle the belated restoration of the Porter-Cable K-10 10" circular saw that fits the older of my ERA radial arm attachments. Built around 1941, the saw alone cost 155.00, with the ERA running an additional 199.00, quite an expense for the average homebuilder, who was the main market for the design.

Well built, accurate, and ( with the right choice of saw- the ERA could accept eighteen different saws and two routers with the right mounting bracket ), the ERA still proves so handy that I have two of them in my shop!

It's been exceedingly belt sander heavy here in my repair shop. Having fitted new seals in a Porter-Cable 500G2 and major reworks on a pair of Rockwell 503s, it's time to tackle a group of A-3 sanders. Three of them are Porter-Cable versions from the early '50s, and the fourth is a Rockwell-badged 504 from the late '60s/early '70s. Of the four, there are only two with viable worm gears, so the best pair ( an A-3 that was made for the Canadian market, and the Rockwell ) will get sorted out right away. The best of the two remaining will be in drydock until I find someone willing to pay for a new gear ( it was given to me, but I have all the A-3s I want, so a new home is in order ), and the last one ... Well, it will give the gift of life to another sander some day.

Debuting in1944, the A-3/504 is the longest produced handheld power tool of all time, being made virtually unchanged until 2009. Far and away the most popular of Porter-Cable's worm drive sanders, it was even offered with an air motor, a version known as the 61E.

I've worked on every model of belt sander that Porter-Cable offered over the years, from the original B-5 to the doomed 371 , but the A-3 is by far the most frequent patient. At this point, I would estimate that I've repaired 120-150 A-3's, a testimony to how valued this classic workhorse is to craftsmen everywhere.