power house drill

[rachel1`]

anyone know anything about a power house brand drill model number 150? just got it from grandpa.

[rusty]

If it looks like this, it could be from 1949. Powerhouse appears to be a hardware store house brand...

(Possibly made by rotex, who later made lots of drill powered gadgets, not certain tho)

[rachel1`]

hard to tell from that picture, but it does look similar

[ron darner]

I have several Powerhouse drills, but mine were made by McGraw-Edison, apparently in the early 1970's.  Mine have quite angular styling in cast-metal cases, not like this at all.  The picture in the ad looks more like the Chicago-made drills by PET (Portable Electric Tools), SpeedWay, etc.
Rusty - I'm interested in learning more about Rotex - don't know them at all.  Can you provide links, photos, info?  There are several companies by that name, one making rock-boring drills; Festool uses the term for a sander; Dalbo-Rotex is a dental company; there are Rotex brake pads; another outfit makes turret punch equipment under then name, etc., etc.  I know that there was a Rotex drill-powered hedge trimmer, but that's all.

[rusty]

Rotex Co, Dallas,Texas

Attachments: [PM 1953]
http://books.google.com/books?id=JNwDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA305

Drill powered Lawnmower starter (eek!) [PM 1958]
http://books.google.com/books?id=3CUDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA183
(Fine print lists them as Rotex Sales co)

Also:
http://books.google.com/books?id=P9wDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA360
Rototrim hedge clippers: [1954]
http://books.google.com/books?id=oN0DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA276

Small Rototrim ad from 1950:
http://books.google.com/books?id=PC0DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA24

[ron darner]

Thanks, Rusty!  I'm [S  L  O  W  L  Y] going through my stacks of old magazines (figure I have about 800 of them...) and searching out such items.  Have some of these issues, but not the Nov. '53 PM.  Maybe the same ad ran in either Mechanix Illustrated or Popular Science - I've got both of them for that month.  I had found a different engine-starter attachment (Specialty Design, PO Box 8505, Sugar Creek MO 64054), but not this one.  Simply amazing how many kinds of "conversion tools" existed or were at least patented: my list has more than 110 kinds now, many in multiple brands and models.  And I'd bet a month's wages that it is not complete - any takers?