J H Williams vintage hand tools

[Private Lugnutz]

Bonney offered them as well.

Yessir! In the same exact sizes, and before Williams did. They aren't included in any Williams catalog before 1947, and in that catalog, they are not listed and shown with the DBE's, only in the largest midget set Williams offered. Bonney listed them on their own in the DBE section, and also put them in their largest midget set, from the 1930's through at least 1946.

Pic 1 Williams composite excerpt from 1947. (I will be on the lookout for the fourth wrench, the 1153 (11/32 x 5/16)!)

Pics 2 - 4, my Bonney kit, showing Bonney's examples, and because, um, er, yeah, I'm showing off!

 

[Oldtuleguy]

Mine is a bit newer, but has them as well

 

[leg17]

Bonney offered them as well.

Most makers offered some version of offset DBE ignition wrenches.
Here is an assortment of makers, in no particular order. All 13/64 x 3/16.
Included are: Armstrong, Blackhawk, Blue Point, Bonney, Craftsman, Herbrand, Mac, Marx, New Britian, Proto, Walden, Wilde, and Williams.
Armstrong seems to have the deepest offset.
(Looking for a Billings)

 

[d42jeep]

This combination 1/4” drive spinner and extension arrived in the mail yesterday. I didn’t really need it for a set since OTG traded me for one quite a while back, but the price was reasonable and I don’t see them very often.
-Don

 

[MisterEd]

Williams BXOE 20, 30 & 32 Flat Shank Combination Wrenches

 

[Oldtuleguy]

This combination 1/4” drive spinner and extension arrived in the mail yesterday. I didn’t really need it for a set since OTG traded me for one quite a while back, but the price was reasonable and I don’t see them very often.
-Don

Interesting finish on that one

 

[misterbill]

Finally found an M-51 9/32" drive ratchet! Now to find the even more elusive 9/32" M-110!





Bill

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Congrats. All the early no quote mark SUPER'S are cool, but it's an even cooler marking when it takes up so much space!

 

[d42jeep]

Finally found an M-51 9/32" drive ratchet! Now to find the even more elusive 9/32" M-110!





Bill

I have three 9/32” drive sockets if you want them. They are chrome though so they won’t match the ratchet.
-Don

 

[MisterEd]

J.H. Williams 4725B 1/2 x 9/16 Box-End Superrench

 

[MisterEd]

Found some no-quotation-marks Superrenches yesterday.
8128, NAF-310693

 

[MisterEd]

Adjustable Spanner 1472

 

[leg17]

Found some no-quotation-marks Superrenches yesterday.
8128, NAF-310693

I think the catalogs show smallest size to be 7/16.
That may explain the "SPECIAL" mark.

 

[MisterEd]

That may explain the "SPECIAL" mark.

Special and Super . . . helluva combination!
Appreciate the observation.

 

[d42jeep]

I found this special spanner at an Oakland estate sale today.
-Don

 

[Old Radar]

Picked up this "partial" 1285P Midget Electrical Set over the weekend. It was full of non-Williams items. The only original set pieces were the NM-20A slider and the NM-609, 9/32 socket. The only correct orphan I had on hand to add was the 1107 1/4 x 15/64 ignition wrench.
AA cites the stamps on the slider to '41-'42. Sadly, both the ball stops have been popped out.
Here's their write-up--please check your spares and orphans--I'm looking at a long uphill fight to fill this...

 

[d42jeep]

Here is my NOS set I got from Lugz, who found several.
-Don

 

[Old Radar]

Green with envy!!

 

[d42jeep]

I found this special spanner at an Oakland estate sale today.
-Don

The evaporust made the spanner look quite a bit better while leaving most of the black paint intact.
-Don

 

[leg17]

I found this special spanner at an Oakland estate sale today.
-Don

Likely a special pin size.

 

[Paul Aslanides]

Greetings all, Newbie in Melbourne.
This Williams spanner I found at market; never seen a Williams tool prior.

Saints preserve us ! Don't know what I've done here, but the image has reversed somehow.... Any rate, the 7/16" jaws are well used, but not much used on the other end, 17/32". It's a number 1090 special, with a faded V at one end, stands for Vanadium I guess. Light and strong, slimline type. Must admit I've never seen any spanner in increments of a 32 nd of an inch. Most unusual here, none of my Britool, Sidchrome and German spanners have 32 nds. Wonder was it to special purpose ? If spanners could only speak - perhaps this one came over with the Marines in 42 ?

 

[Paul Aslanides]

These two spanners, not Williams, I made by hand at my workplace about forty years ago. They were made to adjust the tappets of the '42 Indian 741 I had at the time (U.S.A. connection). 7/16" one end, 1/2" AF the other. Made from 'gauge plate', they were not heat treated for fear of warping and twisting. They did the job o.k. Never used since except perhaps once, to fettle a Coleman 249 most likely. Cheers.

 

[3baygarage]

17/32 shows up on a lot of old Craftsman brand tappet wrenches. What vehicles it was for I couldn't tell you.
Williams produced a large amount of special tools, most of which fall in the open end wrench category. It's fun to see them.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Any rate, the 7/16" jaws are well used, but not much used on the other end, 17/32". It's a number 1090 special,...[ ]...Wonder was it to special purpose?

The "SPECIAL" does not refer to its purpose (as 3baygarage alluded to, it's a tappet wrench), it refers to the odd combination of sizes. This excerpt from a 1943 booklet will help you understand. They already had a 1090 and six different variants with specific suffixes. Looks to me like they bailed and went with "S".

....perhaps this one came over with the Marines in 42 ?

A very strong probability. I've been collecting WWII tools for about 15 years, ever since I bought a Willys MB, there are a few more of us here, we have colleagues in Australia, and it, like Europe, as you can imagine, has always been a great source of US wartime tools. It's hard to see due to your photos being so dark to begin with, but it looks like a natural steel finish. I'm assuming that black on the very middle of the handle is paint applied by a prior owner.

...with a faded V at one end, stands for Vanadium I guess...

What the "V" signifies has never been resolved, as far as I know, but it does help date your tappet wrench to WWII. It is commonly seen on Williams wartime Superrenches. There is some speculation that it's for "Victory," a theory I am indifferent on, personally.

17/32 shows up on a lot of old Craftsman brand tappet wrenches. What vehicles it was for I couldn't tell you.

From memory, Studebaker and IH trucks. In my "Tappet Wrenches" thread, post #3, I posted excerpts of a chart from a very helpful Bonney 1933 catalog that correlates wrenches by opening sizes to an A-Z list of many specific vehicles by model, US and foreign.

Tappet Wrenches Only: History, Use, and Examples!

INTRO POST 1 of 4 The subject of tappet wrenches comes up frequently on GJ, including brand-specific threads (e.g., most recently in the “Craftsman Long C” thread), the “Show us your DOE wrenches” thread, and plenty of Whatzit? threads. They tend to generate lots of questions. Such as, why...

www.garagejournal.com

 

[Paul Aslanides]

Right. Thanks. It's a joy to hold - slim and balanced. I don't really need any more spanners but am always on the lookout for something different or unusual. Wonder if Williams produced spanner/tool sets for original kits in some American cars or trucks ?

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Wonder if Williams produced spanner/tool sets for original kits in some American cars or trucks ?

They supplied wrenches for Mack truck toolkits, civilian and military. I'm not sure those kits had tappet wrenches in them, though, a procedure that was probably beyond the simple preventive maintenance tasks of drivers. If I had to speculate, I'd say your wrench was probably supplied to the Army Ordnance Dept or the Navy for depot level maintenance.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

It's a joy to hold - slim and balanced.

Williams made excellent tools. These are always hard conversations to have with newcomers because nobody wants to be unintentionally insulting, but if you're not familiar with US brands, Williams is one of the oldest hand tool makers, and, up through the 1950's, before the hand tool industry was generally overtaken by conglomeration, imports, and foreign production, it was known as the highest quality. Williams was expensive, too, moreso than many of its competitors, one of the reasons its use by the military during WWII could better be characterized as selective and special, not as common and widespread as others (Plomb, Snap-on, Blackhawk and Bonney, for example).

 

[Paul Aslanides]

Thank you, Lugnutz. Very interesting. I'll try to improve the photos in future. AF spanners I slap some black paint on, a stripe. Make them stand out, easy to grab when your'e busy. BSW are red, Metric are plain. Makes it easy when you have a bunch of spanners to work on some vehicle or machine with mixed/damaged or rusted fasteners. A few times I've rescued a spanner from the press shop scrap bin, as the paint stands out in a large bin of grey metal scrap stampings.

 

[Paul Aslanides]

Thank you, Lugnutz. I have a healthy respect for American tools, no worries. Still have the set of AF ring and open-ended Crescent spanners that I bought back in the mid sixties. Snap-on used to have a van doing the rounds/deliveries to workshops, often seen on our roads. The others that you mention I've not encountered. We had our own manufacturer here, Sidchrome, good strong tools, never heard of a breakage. Mr. Siddons was the well respected founder. Talking about Studebaker, my great grandfather had one, and fortunately it has been preserved in a private museum. An American tourist identified it some years back, by its large hickory wheels and solid rubber tyres, if I remember correctly. The horses have long gone, but the carriage. or buggy, has been restored. Apologies for straying from the topic.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I have a healthy respect for American tools, no worries.

I would expect nothing less! But I wasn't shilling for US tools so much as letting you know where Williams was in the pecking order, so to speak. Very highly respected, especially in the era your tappet wrench was made.

We had our own manufacturer here, Sidchrome, good strong tools, never heard of a breakage. Mr. Siddons was the well respected founder.

We have a thread for their vintage fare. I have just made a note to self to add it to the Index.

The Sidchrome thread

"YA CANA HANDA MANA GRANDA SPANNA. You have to say that catch phrase with a Scottish accent. https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=sidchrome+tools&&view=detail&mid=C23F985037542356EA58C23F985037542356EA58&&FORM=VRDGAR So post up your Siddy goodness.

www.garagejournal.com

And Sidchrome often comes up in the "Britool" thread, too, which tends to be a catch-all at times for other tools by association.

Apologies for straying from the topic.

No worries. We tend to do that here. It's largely tolerated for a healthy bit, especially if it's interesting (like your story), and the excursions could run on for quite a while before saner heads collectively prevail and bring it back in check. A feature of GJ!

 

[leg17]

These two spanners, not Williams, I made by hand at my workplace about forty years ago. They were made to adjust the tappets of the '42 Indian 741 I had at the time (U.S.A. connection). 7/16" one end, 1/2" AF the other. Made from 'gauge plate', they were not heat treated for fear of warping and twisting. They did the job o.k. Never used since except perhaps once, to fettle a Coleman 249 most likely. Cheers.

That is a real nice job there. Real nice.

 

[Ricky Joe]

.

 

[Paul Aslanides]

leg 17

Ricky Joe

Thank you.

 

[SkyPuncher]

Here are a couple auction finds. One is a Williams No.16 that someone made their own "Special" out of. Good shape and I am sure it did its job on Press 14! The other is a 372A.

 

[HeelSpur]

Here are a couple auction finds. One is a Williams No.16 that someone made their own "Special" out of. Good shape and I am sure it did its job on Press 14! The other is a 372A.

That 16 was modified big time. Used to have a 2 3/4" opening.

Industry Standard Comparative Wrench Numbers and Sizes

www.wrenchingnews.com

Here's my 14 & 10 that I got from Twertsy a few years back.

 

[SkyPuncher]

Yep, but whoever did it did a heck of a job!

Very nice wrenches!

 

[d42jeep]

I found a 10” adjustable at an estate sale yesterday and took it out of the evaporust this morning. It looks and works a little better.
-Don

 

[bonneyman]

Finally found an M-51 9/32" drive ratchet! Now to find the even more elusive 9/32" M-110!





Bill

Nice!

If you ever want to disassemble this baby and clean/lube it, I can provide a takedown and internal view.

 

[RTM]

Picked up a 1999 Multisocket tool as part of a tool chest score. Decent shape, first in this thread by number, but 3bay showed a new in the box over here. Mine's not that nice, but its the Chrome Alloy Sockets version. Interesting that there are no size markings (that I've found yet). A little closer look later, just hauled the box out of the trunk yesterday. Seems so much closer to usable than the fixed dogbones, but still not going to be the first wrench I grab.

edit, just passed on to a friend, he was quite happy to get it.

 

[misterbill]

Nice!

If you ever want to disassemble this baby and clean/lube it, I can provide a takedown and internal view.

What do you use for the pin holes on the face by the anvil? A baby face spanner?