A little Fri night project...

[tym]

A little Fri night project (Craftsman BE series 1/2" ratchet find)...

Picked up this old Craftsman 1/2" ratchet with a bunch of sockets at a flea market over the summer. Thought the design looked old, and with a bit of sleuthing here, found that the "BE" series dates it to c. 1931-1947.

Finally cracked it open tonight to clean and re-lubricate it. The thing is built like a tank and probably will be due for another cleaning in about 70-80 years.

I need to replace one of the small screws that holds the cover plate on (head was a bit stripped), but not bad for a $10 investment.

Any ideas where I can source a screw? I'm guessing the last place to have one would be a Sears store...LOL.

 

[d.mcfarland]

Welcome. You're going to have to find one at a hardware store. Figure out what thread size is and that might help the search. You might have to customize if you can't find anything.

 

[Jcrapola]

McMaster-Carr.
Their website is awesome...

 

[tym]

Thanks! So the screw is a little odd, 5-40 3/4", but only threaded for the distal 1/8" or so because the rest of the shaft is a pivot for one of the pawls. All I've found are fully threaded screws at McMaster.

 

[ganymede]

Thanks! So the screw is a little odd, 5-40 3/4", but only threaded for the distal 1/8" or so because the rest of the shaft is a pivot for one of the pawls. All I've found are fully threaded screws at McMaster.

I've got the 'None Better' and Craftsman versions of that ratchet. The None Better has partially threaded screws and the Crafty has full thread.

 

[tym]

I've got the 'None Better' and Craftsman versions of that ratchet. The None Better has partially threaded screws and the Crafty has full thread.

Interesting! They look to be the original screws?

 

[ganymede]

Interesting! They look to be the original screws?

Yes, they're original.
I'll check my 3/8 versions tomorrow.

 

[Richard Cranium]

I have the same ratchet.

 

[ganymede]

3/8 ' New Britain has partially threaded screws. Craftsman has full thread screws.

 

[tym]

Thanks! I'll order some full thread screws from McMaster and see if they do the trick. If so, I'll have a bunch of spares...

 

[tym]

So, after some delay, finally got my hands on some 18-8 stainless 5-40 x 3/4" full-thread flathead machine screws from McMaster-Carr. They are a perfect fit for the ratchet--no more worries about the partially stripped screw becoming too difficult to remove in the future. Old and new screw pictured side-by-side near the ratchet head, but the site's image resize feature has made it hard to distinguish them.

I now have another 99 of these screws in the box, so if anybody needs some for their C-Man/NB 1/2" ratchet, let me know! I think the box of screws cost nearly as much as what I paid for the ratchet + sockets at the flea market! LOL.

 

[northwoods]

What the heck is the purpose of the hole in the handle? Not a hanger hole? Rats go in a box, not on a peg.

 

[tym]

My guess is someone could insert a crossbar in the hole to get better torque.

 

[Gear Wolf]

Those BE and Circle H ratchets are pretty fun to work on. There are a few rare pieces within that broad spectrum family of ratchets.

If you want to learn more about your ratchet TYM check out my history video on it:

Your ratchet didn't make its appearance until the 1940s. There was one version that has a transverse selector bar before it. If my memory serves me right, I believe BE made its first appearance officially in the 1935 Sears Catalog.

 

[tym]

^Great video!. So looks like I can narrow down that ratchet to the 1941-1947/8 timeframe.

 

[Larryjones]

I'm no expert on the subject, but I would of thought a ratchet from that vintage would have slotted and not phillips screws.

 

[tym]

Dr. Doom's video clears that up. Phillips are correct.