Miter Box

 I went to a used tool shop to get a used 9-1/2 block plane.  While I was there I saw he had a used miter box for $70 but didn't get it.

 

 I've been thinking about miter boxes.  

Not the plastic junk or the wooden ones, but the ones they used to make.  

Like this one I had gotten earlier and blogged about.  This is a low end one and it works much better than the plastic boxes.

This is what the high end miter box saws looked like.  They would come with a back saw.  Most of the makers stopped making or went out of business.

The Ulmia miter box is still being made, along with parts.  Amazon carries wood & metal blades.  This is their top of the line model.  It is cast iron and weighs 40 lbs.  New, it's more than 10 times what I paid. 

It works very well, cutting easily through pine or oak as I have here.  The Ulmia is worth having.  It's quick, quiet, accurate, and doesn't put dust in the air.

I squared up some boards.  These are the offcuts

There is a penny in the jaws of one of the wrenches.

A penny is 6/100" or just under 1/16" (1.54mm).  The larger offcuts are 13/100" or just over 1/8" (3.3mm). 

Try that with the plastic junk.  Or even with a power miter saw.