British Tool Manufacturers

[four.cycle]

thanks humber and Dave455!

 

[four.cycle]

now that I've finally found this thread again.....

help me out here, Dave455:

what's the number about stamped on this little Abingdon/King **** spanner?


Abingdon / King **** spanner R N 765509

 

[dutchgray]

^ Registered design number.

 

[Dave455]

now that I've finally found this thread again.....

help me out here, Dave455:

what's the number about stamped on this little Abingdon/King **** spanner?


Abingdon / King **** spanner R N 765509

Ahh!

That’s the “Registered Design” Number.

I believe that in the U.S. you can basically patent a design.

In the U.K. you can’t, you can only patent an “invention”.

What you can do here is register a Trade Mark, which can be a specific mark or name, or even a particular design.

If a design is “registered” you get allocated a number, and marking the number on the product indicates the design is protected, but only for a few years.

I have seen late 30’s tools with “RD” numbers in the 800000 area, so I’m thinking that’s an early 30’s registration, and the tool would have been produced within a few (maybe five) years of that.

 

[Dave455]

^ Registered design number.

Beat me to it!

 

[dutchgray]

Beat me to it!

Your reply was much more detailed though, I was leaving it so four.cycle had to go off and do some research.

 

[four.cycle]

as though I didn't already have enough research to do?

(you're kidding, right?)

Yes, in the U.S., a manufacturer can secure a "design patent" (patent numbers for which are preceded by a "D"), and they also have a time limit (although I'm not sure how many years that is.)
An example would be Patent D13065 which was issued for an "alligator wrench" in 1882, and manufactured by a number of other companies after the patent had expired.

Is there a database at which these "Registered Design Numbers" can be found?

(I still have yet to find a patent issued to Abingdon, which is why I'm fishing on this one.)

 

[four.cycle]

okay... what am I doing wrong here?

 

[dutchgray]

Most of the old ones are not on the internet, you would have to turn up at the National library in person and have a look.

 

[four.cycle]

^ I am 8 time zones away from London. I do not think I'm going to visit the National Library any time soon.

 

[Dave455]

okay... what am I doing wrong here?

I don’t think you are doing anything wrong.

But if there are over a million “registered designs” (which there are), dating back to 1884, there is no way that lot is going to be online.

As dutchgray says, designs after a certain date (probably fairly recent) are available online, but for older ones you would have to go and look at the paperwork.

I seem to remember, in the dim and distant past, doing a search on a trade name. They were all on a computerised index, but you still had to look at the paperwork for the details.

 

[MBfreak]

Hera are some goodies for small stuff. Wonderful quality. Guessfrom around 1950.

Ola

 

[four.cycle]

any idea whose mark this might be?

 

[four.cycle]

Could you gentlemen take a look at the file attached here and see if I've left anything out?
Your help with this project is greatly appreciated.

* Notepad *.txt file - currently just shy of 300kb. U.S. made stuff is at the top. Outside U.S. is listed below in alphabetical order by country name. (That arrangement seemed to make the most sense.)

Thanks again. BK

 

[humber2]

For Australia refer to www.htpaa.org.au

 

[four.cycle]

^ humber2, if you scroll all the way down to the bottom of the list, you will find that URL there under "sources/websites". Unfortunately my inquiries to them have gone ignored.

Australia and Japan are two countries for which there is still a great deal of work to do. BK

 

[Dave455]

Could you gentlemen take a look at the file attached here and see if I've left anything out?
Your help with this project is greatly appreciated.

* Notepad *.txt file - currently just shy of 300kb. U.S. made stuff is at the top. Outside U.S. is listed below in alphabetical order by country name. (That arrangement seemed to make the most sense.)

Thanks again. BK

Quite a task you have there!


A couple of corrections -

Kamasa, have never, to my knowledge, made tools in the U.K. Originally Japan, (O.K. quality), later Taiwan (poor quality).

Rolson are just importers, real tat.

Stubs - made steel and files, not pliers

Jackdaw - was a type of tool made by Garrington. All the tool types were named after birds.



Always difficult to find omissions, but a few I can think of -

Wilkinsons - major pliers manufacturer, up there with Elliott Lucas. Got taken over by Record I think.

Record - pliers, and many other hand tools.

Paramo - small hand tools.

Picador - similar

William Hunt and Sons / Brades - top quality hammers

Clydesdale Whitehouse - as above

Moore and Wright - made all sorts of tools as well as inspection equipment. Screwdrivers, punches, tap wrenches, etc.

Guys - screwdrivers

Melco - small tools, and bigger garage equipment

If we are being pedantic, several American firms had quite a big U.K. presence too, and U.K. factories. Stanley and Starrett come to mind.


I haven’t included things like woodworkers or engineers tools. Probably a load I’ve missed too!

 

[dutchgray]

^ William Hunt and Sons / Brades
Were the name for bricklaying trowels and what I still use, find good ones at boot sales occasionally, they had right and left handed variants as the sides were differently hardened and many different sizes, unfortunately the name still exists stuck on thin cheap trowels from Wilkinson Sword.
Known as "Work hard and Starve" by many old brickies.

 

[four.cycle]

Quite a task you have there!

It will never be finished in my lifetime. I've been online now about four hours and that list above is already out of date.

Stubs is puzzling. I need to revisit that.

re: "Jackdaw" - there is a referral to "Garrington" in the list. Originally, when the list was first created by GJ member PowderKeg, part of the objective was to make something along the lines of a "cross reference list" so that brand names could be connected to the manufacturer. (e.g., "Companion" or "Dunlap", both of which were brands marketed by Sears, Roebuck & Co.) Ergo: any name gets entered, with a reference to the manufacturer's name.

"If we are being pedantic..."

Pedant is my middle name.

Originally the objective was to create a list of mechanics hand tools.
As the list grew, it became necessary to add more and more names of manufacturers who delved into some specialty tool, even though 99.9% of their product line may have been completely unrelated. (e.g., C.E. Niehoff & Co. of Chicago, whose primary business was automotive ignition parts, but they also made a few small specialty tools.)

A little over a year ago, I started adding taps, dies, twist drills, and measuring devices because (as noted in the list) there's an inextricable link between "mechanic" and "machinist" tools. Ergo, you will find the inclusions of Starrett, Mitutoyo, Greenfield Tap & Die, etc.

I've tried to avoid delving into what are classified as "edge tools", simply because there are/were hundreds and hundreds of small independent makers not only in the U.S., but Europe as well, and (for the most part) these are extensively covered on other websites. This morning I added "Collins Axe Co." because I came across a Collins made tack puller.

The items I am doing my best to avoid are planes and braces, both of which are already covered extensively on collector sites, and also because what I am attempting here is already more than enough.
The same applies to woodworking tools, although "Buck Bros." got added a couple days ago because there was a connection to something else which was already listed.

The objective, if it is to be defined, is to create a source of reference for anyone who's found some widget at some garage sale (or boot sale in the UK), or in Grandpa's basement, and is looking for the who/what/where/when information. Every day a new member joins GarageJournal, posts a photo of his newly-found widget, and asks "What is this?" (and invariably "What can I get for it?")
This will hopefully lead those people in the right direction, because Google's web crawlers are all over this one, evidenced by the content in the text of listings on Ebay in which I find my own language copy and pasted regularly.

For that reason, you'll find some real screwball items in there. Over the last few days I added "Hurd's Patent Hog Tamer" and "Hill's Hog Ring Pliers", because to the neophyte, they look like "pliers" or "tongs". A year ago, I added a plethora of "Sanitary Flow Implement Wrenches" because they keep appearing online by sellers who have absolutely no clue that what they have is a device for working on milk trucks or milking machines.

"... and U.K. factories..."

If they were stamping out some sort of widget, then they belong in the list. You will note the entries for Rothenberger GmbH include their facilities in China, Dubai, India, and elsewhere. The problem there (with Stanley and Starrett) is that their websites do not include that information we would want in the list: location, dates of operation, etc.

Here's the updated list - current as of Thu Dec 16 15:45:33 2021 Pacific Time (GMT - 8hrs)

 

[Dave455]

^ William Hunt and Sons / Brades
Were the name for bricklaying trowels and what I still use, find good ones at boot sales occasionally, they had right and left handed variants as the sides were differently hardened and many different sizes, unfortunately the name still exists stuck on thin cheap trowels from Wilkinson Sword.
Known as "Work hard and Starve" by many old brickies.

I remember an old bloke in my village telling his grandkids that trowels came in “right hand” and “left hand”.

They were convinced he was winding them up, even when he explained about the hardened edge!

Good trowels though. I have a pair of my Grandfathers, but sadly absolutely no aptitude for using them! Can do most things, but not anything involving cement or plaster!

 

[fnlow]

^ William Hunt and Sons / Brades
Were the name for bricklaying trowels and what I still use, find good ones at boot sales occasionally, they had right and left handed variants as the sides were differently hardened and many different sizes, unfortunately the name still exists stuck on thin cheap trowels from Wilkinson Sword.
Known as "Work hard and Starve" by many old brickies.

I'm trying to wrap my head around the hardened edge... is the idea that the hardened edge side is used up against the brickwork when applying the mortar to lessen the risk of damaging the trowel?

 

[Dave455]

It will never be finished in my lifetime. I've been online now about four hours and that list above is already out of date.

Stubs is puzzling. I need to revisit that.

re: "Jackdaw" - there is a referral to "Garrington" in the list. Originally, when the list was first created by GJ member PowderKeg, part of the objective was to make something along the lines of a "cross reference list" so that brand names could be connected to the manufacturer. (e.g., "Companion" or "Dunlap", both of which were brands marketed by Sears, Roebuck & Co.) Ergo: any name gets entered, with a reference to the manufacturer's name.



Pedant is my middle name.

Originally the objective was to create a list of mechanics hand tools.
As the list grew, it became necessary to add more and more names of manufacturers who delved into some specialty tool, even though 99.9% of their product line may have been completely unrelated. (e.g., C.E. Niehoff & Co. of Chicago, whose primary business was automotive ignition parts, but they also made a few small specialty tools.)

A little over a year ago, I started adding taps, dies, twist drills, and measuring devices because (as noted in the list) there's an inextricable link between "mechanic" and "machinist" tools. Ergo, you will find the inclusions of Starrett, Mitutoyo, Greenfield Tap & Die, etc.

I've tried to avoid delving into what are classified as "edge tools", simply because there are/were hundreds and hundreds of small independent makers not only in the U.S., but Europe as well, and (for the most part) these are extensively covered on other websites. This morning I added "Collins Axe Co." because I came across a Collins made tack puller.

The items I am doing my best to avoid are planes and braces, both of which are already covered extensively on collector sites, and also because what I am attempting here is already more than enough.
The same applies to woodworking tools, although "Buck Bros." got added a couple days ago because there was a connection to something else which was already listed.

The objective, if it is to be defined, is to create a source of reference for anyone who's found some widget at some garage sale (or boot sale in the UK), or in Grandpa's basement, and is looking for the who/what/where/when information. Every day a new member joins GarageJournal, posts a photo of his newly-found widget, and asks "What is this?" (and invariably "What can I get for it?")
This will hopefully lead those people in the right direction, because Google's web crawlers are all over this one, evidenced by the content in the text of listings on Ebay in which I find my own language copy and pasted regularly.

For that reason, you'll find some real screwball items in there. Over the last few days I added "Hurd's Patent Hog Tamer" and "Hill's Hog Ring Pliers", because to the neophyte, they look like "pliers" or "tongs". A year ago, I added a plethora of "Sanitary Flow Implement Wrenches" because they keep appearing online by sellers who have absolutely no clue that what they have is a device for working on milk trucks or milking machines.



If they were stamping out some sort of widget, then they belong in the list. You will note the entries for Rothenberger GmbH include their facilities in China, Dubai, India, and elsewhere. The problem there (with Stanley and Starrett) is that their websites do not include that information we would want in the list: location, dates of operation, etc.

Here's the updated list - current as of this posting.

Good luck with your quest!

Yes, if you start cataloging woodworking tool makers, things will get out of hand. Same with cutting tools. I could fill you a box with taps and dies, all different makes!

Stubs are well known in the U.K. They were steel makers originally, then files. Their files were superb, but they stopped producing them some years back. I particularly liked their needle files. They were part of James Neil for a while.

Stubs ”Silver Steel” is an industry standard here. I have loads of it, thankfully, as they were taken over by the usual bunch of water walkers, who closed the factory last year.

Garrington tools were all named after birds. (Don’t ask me why). Some examples from memory : -

Magpie / Merlin - O/E wrenches
Heron - 4 way O/E
Kestrel - Ring Spanner (Box End Wrench)
Wren - Short Ring Spanner
Jay - Flat Ring Spanner
Jackdaw - Adjustable
Puffin - Angled Adjustable
Blackbird - Stillson
Lapwing - 90 degree Adjustsble
Grebe - Monkey Wrench
Curlew - Claw Hammer

 

[Dave455]

I'm trying to wrap my head around the hardened edge... is the idea that the hardened edge side is used up against the brickwork when applying the mortar to lessen the risk of damaging the trowel?

The hardened edge is for breaking bricks. You just give it a clout and the brick breaks cleanly - if you’ve been doing it for years!

 

[four.cycle]

(Don’t ask me why)

Some British gentlemen have an affinity for birds.
Maybe he was a big fan of John James Audubon!

Thanks again for your help!

 

[Dave455]

Some British gentlemen have an affinity for birds.
Maybe he was a big fan of John James Audubon!

Thanks again for your help!

Could be!

Let me know if you want to see examples of tools by any of the makers you listed. I probably have tools by about 90% of them.

Some makers I have very few examples from though. That may be partly due to the tastes of family members (Dad bought Britool / Steadfast / Elliott Lucas etc, Grandfather predominantly American) but I wonder if some makers served particular industries, or particular geographical areas.

I have hardly any Tipco and relatively few Garrington tools. A friend who’s father worked on the railways has loads of Tipco. Another friend, who lives in the North, tells me Garrington is common where he is, but I seldom see it?

 

[fnlow]

The hardened edge is for breaking bricks. You just give it a clout and the brick breaks cleanly - if you’ve been doing it for years!

Thanks Dave, good explanation, that had not occurred to me.

 

[dutchgray]

I remember an old bloke in my village telling his grandkids that trowels came in “right hand” and “left hand”.

They were convinced he was winding them up, even when he explained about the hardened edge!

Good trowels though. I have a pair of my Grandfathers, but sadly absolutely no aptitude for using them! Can do most things, but not anything involving cement or plaster!

I use right handed trowels even though I am a lefty because actually finding the left handed ones is near impossible nowadays, but I only do a little bit of brick/ block work so it doesn't make much odds, its different if you're laying full time and a good trowel only lasts a couple years.

 

[four.cycle]

have another look, Dave.
worked in a few new entries and edited a few others.
kind of a stab at Australian stuff as well - not so much.
haven't worked in all the bird names for Garrington's, but it appears there are fairly comprehensive lists of those available on the web.
BK

 

[Dave455]

have another look, Dave.
worked in a few new entries and edited a few others.
kind of a stab at Australian stuff as well - not so much.
haven't worked in all the bird names for Garrington's, but it appears there are fairly comprehensive lists of those available on the web.
BK

That’s looking pretty good to me!

As and when other names come to mind I’ll let you know.

A bit more detail on some of the names I previously added.

Paramo were F.Parramore and Son, Caledonian Works, Chapeltown, Sheffield. I also seem to recall a “Paramore Forge” address.

They made a lot of forged / cast products (an alternative to Record) and the quality was very good. Their top end engineers vices were awesome things, I stupidly didn’t buy the last of these that were available new (early 2000’s I think), but subsequently inherited one!

The miniature craft knife shown is more in the nature of “merchandising” but even this is good quality.

Picador and Guys Tools were both originally London firms. I have quite a lot of items from both firms, as Grandfather was a Londoner, and obviously their tools had good local availability.

Picador produced mainly cast products. All manner of tools, but also things like pulley wheels and plummer blocks. I still have a Picador drill grinding jig of my Grandfathers, and his original Bridges grinder to mount it on! I use this Picador awl regularly.

Guys made a lot of screwdrivers, and were one of the first companies to introduce wear resistant cellulose acetate handles, which they called “Guyloid”. These were considered quite a premium product in their day. As I have quite a few, some probably the best part of 70 years old that haven’t degraded, that would seem to be justified!

These “Guys” nut runners are from the Handley Page factory at Radlett.

 

[four.cycle]

thank you!

 

[four.cycle]

Dave455, humber2, FarmerJ and others:

Link for LIST of mechanics hand tool manufacturers can be downloaded in *.txt format HERE
U.S. manufacturers and brands are at the top end of the list. Manufactures and brands outside the U.S. are listed below in alphabetical order by country name.
Please take a look when you have time.
Thanks very much for your help.
BK

 

[four.cycle]

1974 Bedford Tool catalog now available for download at International Tool Catalog Library!

1953 King **** tools catalog now available for download at International Tool Catalog Library!

fabulous.

Thanks Mark!

 

[Ton ton]

Thanks,Mark. Always fun to see info on King **** tools.

 

[Dave455]

1974 Bedford Tool catalog now available for download at International Tool Catalog Library!

1953 King **** tools catalog now available for download at International Tool Catalog Library!

fabulous.

Thanks Mark!

Very interesting.

Have never seen a King **** catalogue from that era.

I make only one observation - I reckon the toolchest shown is exactly the same as those offered by Blackhawk, Britool and (not many people know this…) Gordon.

I was told, and had always assumed it was correct, that the Blackhawk boxes were made by Langenau in Cleveland. Bearing in mind that Britool and Blackhawk had much in common, it’s not unreasonable that Britool would source their boxes from the same source.

But, it seems that we now have three British makers, and one American, all using the same American manufacturer for their boxes. It’s possible. But Britain in the ‘50’s didn’t import much, and those boxes (from Britool at least) were supplied in quite big numbers, so what went on?

 

[Dave455]

Incidentally, the current King **** tool chests are British made.

What the quality is like, I don’t know, but I’m told they are a good deal better than most. Steel is supposedly decent and drawers are on ball bearing slides.

Price in the U.K. is the equivalent of about $850 (before tax) which is about right. Much less and it’s not going to be any good, much more and you’re getting close to Snap On money. Shipping to the U.S. would probably be prohibitive though.

Quite why they don’t actually tell anyone this, or go out of their way to advertise, I can’t say!

 

[Ton ton]

Incidentally, the current King **** tool chests are British made.

What the quality is like, I don’t know, but I’m told they are a good deal better than most. Steel is supposedly decent and drawers are on ball bearing slides.

Price in the U.K. is the equivalent of about $850 (before tax) which is about right. Much less and it’s not going to be any good, much more and you’re getting close to Snap On money. Shipping to the U.S. would probably be prohibitive though.

Quite why they don’t actually tell anyone this, or go out of their way to advertise, I can’t say!

Beautiful tool box.

 

[four.cycle]

1953 Abingdon King **** Hand Tools 6th Edition Catalog now available for download at International Tool Catalog Library!

1974 Bedford Tool Catalog now available for download at International Tool Catalog Library!

 

[Tostal]

King **** were originally the Abingdon Engineering Company.

They were a Victorian firm, and did all manner of things.

”King ****” was, I believe, the owners pet bulldog, and the name was chosen for the companies range of hand tools. They continued to make all sorts of things though, and I think were suppliers to the motor trade between the wars.

After the war, hand tools accounted for most of their production so the company name was changed to Abingdon King ****.

I always believed King **** tools to be made in the U.K.
Lo and behold I've just noticed this on a King **** long nosed pliers that was purchased afaik in the 1980's -


~Tostal

 

[Dave455]

I always believed King **** tools to be made in the U.K.
Lo and behold I've just noticed this on a King **** long nosed pliers that was purchased afaik in the 1980's -


~Tostal

King **** tools are made in the U.K. - for the most part, but they only manufacture wrenches, socket wrenches, and accessories. Things like pliers and screwdrivers will be bought in. Always have been.

Outside of the U.S. there are very few companies that manufacture a complete range of tools, and that’s never been a business model for any British firms.

 

[Ton ton]

That is neat. King **** German made pliers. Who would have thought?