30s 40s? Sk toolbox red or green?

[Oldtuleguy]

Found this old Sk toolbox in rough shape. Looks like it can be fixed up. It is red, which is odd. Does not look repainted.

 

[vssjim]

I have seen SK Tools boxes in green, red, black and blue. How ever I don't think this is original paint as the handles on the end look plated like maybe Nickle or Chrome and they have been painted over. I would paint it what ever you want back in those days it was wrinkle finish green like a dark pine needle. I do like the hammer tone green they used later.
I also think the center hasp maybe larger than the originals I have seen also.

 

[Oldtuleguy]

The center hasp has been changed for sure. Looks like hinge on lid as well. No trace of paint under red paint, so maybe someone stripped it and painted it.

 

[d42jeep]

With the riveted on tag, I believe that yours is postwar, as is mine. I think that yours is a little newer, but I still would have expected it to be green. There are more pictures of mine in the vintage S-K thread.
-Don

 

[Oldtuleguy]

Good to know. Color is confusing. I will pull the tag before sandblasting it and see if there is some green paint.

 

[SKI1019]

Don't change the color too quickly. Some SK boxes were factory Red.
" S-K RED T O O L W A G ON
No. 6702
113-PIECE COMPLETE SOCKET WRENCH SET"
Quoted from the 1943 SK catalog, page 14.

 

[Ole Slewfoot]

Plomb ran out of green in the war and switched to red, and I think they shared a supplier on at least the smaller boxes, so ret on SK might make sense too

 

[d42jeep]

Don't change the color too quickly. Some SK boxes were factory Red.
" S-K RED T O O L W A G ON
No. 6702
113-PIECE COMPLETE SOCKET WRENCH SET"
Quoted from the 1943 SK catalog, page 14.

Red S-K toolboxes were marked "Suspended" during the war. See photo below. The toolbox in question has a riveted tag which indicates that it is a postwar box. It's certainly possible that it was red originally, I only stated that my particular postwar box is green. As a matter of fact, all of my S-K boxes with the riveted on tag are green or blue with the exception of one galvanized box.
-Don

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Plomb ran out of green in the war and switched to red

That's a new one on me, Slew. What is your source for that? I'm not challenging you, but that's a big statement. That would be a significant change in the knowledge base, with major implications, especially to WWII collectors. We know that Plomb was painting all their toolboxes "lustrous Chinese red" before the war. Conventional wisdom suggests they switched to green immediately, despite that not being alluded to until the 1/44 Price List in the back of Catalog 19A, EDIT: and not explicitly called out in a Plomb catalog until 19R. And we know that they were back to "lustrous Chinese red" after the war (see Plomb/Proto Catalog No. 4820, 1948). I don't of any WWII collector who thinks the switch back to red was made during the war. So if you have a source for Plomb running out of green paint during the war, I'd love to see it.

 

[Ole Slewfoot]

No, sorry I got that backward.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

No problem.

 

[Flattie]

Here is my green one. I got the paint color matched off the bottom of one drawer. I have a little later model that is indeed red. I stripped the box and painted w wrinkle coat, then top coated it green. Left the drawers alone