Miller’s Falls No. 142 non-ratcheting brace, 10″ sweep

Description

Millers Falls made the 142 and 143 as low-cost alternatives to their line of ratcheting braces.  Their catalog points out that there are many jobs for which a ratcheting brace is not needed.   More interestingly, the handle doesn’t rotate either, which kind of makes an odd kind of sense for a non-ratcheting brace.

The rosewood pad on this brace does rotate, and does so smoothly and well.  It has a couple of dings but nothing too bad. The chuck works well, and the springs are plenty strong.  There’s a little bit of storage rust here and there on the frame and chuck shell, but again nothing too bad.