dr_clyde
Well-known member
Fellas, last winter my Dad's father passed. He was old, he wasn't well, it was time. He was a quirky fella, lived out in the woods on a small farm and was a very private man. I really didn't know him all that well, but I do have some good memories playing at his farm as a kid. He was a machinist and millwright, and did a lot of work for the tool and die shops of Grand Rapids during the big auto boom in the later part of the 20th century. Mostly setting up and repairing machines like boring mills, presses and other machine tools.
Last Sunday was my birthday, and my Aunt called me and said to meet her out to the farm, she had some of grandpas stuff she wanted me to have.
My dad and I drove out there and loaded up some of the toolboxes he used at work. I brought the top chest into work so I could better evaluate what was in it and see if I could use any of it at work. I found some pretty cool stuff. I suspect the old man would be happy to see his tools getting some use.
I have the bottom box at home, I haven't really gone through it yet. Its kind of overwhelming, and I'm gonna take it slow and keep this thread somewhat updated with what I find.
The box is an older Cornwell, in pretty nice shape for the age. The shop roof leaked and was falling in, so some water got into some spots on the boxes in the shop, so this one is in remarkable shape, considering where it was.
We'll start with the top.
He had a great mix of sockets, ratchets and breaker bars. The sockets were mostly Snap-on dating from the late 40's to the early 50's.
1948 deep socket set in the back.
Some of the original Ferret drive Snappy stuff. The pioneers of the 3/8" drive.
Snap-on 1/4" "Midget" ratchet with Craftsman sockets and a breaker bar.
A set of Snappy swivels from 1945
An incredible old Craftsman ratchet.
That's all I have time for right now. I'll keep you updated as I dig deeper.
Last Sunday was my birthday, and my Aunt called me and said to meet her out to the farm, she had some of grandpas stuff she wanted me to have.
My dad and I drove out there and loaded up some of the toolboxes he used at work. I brought the top chest into work so I could better evaluate what was in it and see if I could use any of it at work. I found some pretty cool stuff. I suspect the old man would be happy to see his tools getting some use.
I have the bottom box at home, I haven't really gone through it yet. Its kind of overwhelming, and I'm gonna take it slow and keep this thread somewhat updated with what I find.
The box is an older Cornwell, in pretty nice shape for the age. The shop roof leaked and was falling in, so some water got into some spots on the boxes in the shop, so this one is in remarkable shape, considering where it was.
We'll start with the top.
He had a great mix of sockets, ratchets and breaker bars. The sockets were mostly Snap-on dating from the late 40's to the early 50's.
1948 deep socket set in the back.
Some of the original Ferret drive Snappy stuff. The pioneers of the 3/8" drive.
Snap-on 1/4" "Midget" ratchet with Craftsman sockets and a breaker bar.
A set of Snappy swivels from 1945
An incredible old Craftsman ratchet.
That's all I have time for right now. I'll keep you updated as I dig deeper.
