Big Bertha wrench find

[tym]

I was poking around a dusty corner of a local antique shop yesterday and came away with these two wrenches for $5.31.

The Billings DOE was a little rusty and cleaned up nicely with a few hours' bath in vinegar. The "yuge" 1-3/8" SOE has no markings that I can find. I was planning to display it in my basement work area for giggles. Any idea who would have made such a thing?

 

[M_George]

Hi TYM,

Those big old wrenches are pretty cool. Here's my 1 1/34 X 1 1/12 inch weapon of mas destruction.

 

[tym]

Wrench or war club?

 

[M_George]

howrah howrah

 

[Private Lugnutz]

All the major Mfgrs made SOE engineers wrenches, tym. These were service wrenches used on large machinery. The largest milled openings were 5" - believe it or not - and those wrenches were 42 inches long! (Talk about a weapon!) Most of the examples I find are usually Williams, Billings, or Armstrong. But they are always marked. Usually with the model number on the shank and the milled opening size and the branding on the faces of the jaw. I'll try to find a picture.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Here is a pair, Armstrong and Williams. I don't have shots of the flip sides, sorry, but that's where the sizes are marked (in this case, 1"), on the face of the jaw opposite the branding. You can see the model numbers on the shanks where yours has a size marking.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Your wrench looks later than these, which are pre-war. Note how mine still have the bulky heads characteristic of pre-war wrenches. Yours has a pear-shaped head.

 

[astroracer]

This is a big Fairmount I got for a buck at an estate sale. 1 13/16

I sand blasted it and used a black oxide kit from Caswell to refinish it. Came out great!

During the oxide process. I think this was the sealer step. Once it drys it is a satin black just like it should be.

My wife confiscated it for decoration...
Mark

 

[wrenchguy]

heres the largest chain wrench made by williams, 7' long weighs 90 lbs.

 

[wrenchguy]

my biggest open end, 4 1/4" opening, 1 7/8" thick, 44" long williams.

 

[tym]

Those are some Big Bubba wrenches to rival my Big Bertha, everyone!

Your wrench looks later than these, which are pre-war. Note how mine still have the bulky heads characteristic of pre-war wrenches. Yours has a pear-shaped head.

I had noticed that as well; the little Billings has the more "vintage" bulky head style for contrast. One of these days I'll clean up the Big Bertha and perhaps there will be some faint markings revealed.

Interestingly, the big wrench perfectly fits the hex on the cleanout plug of the cast iron drain pipe running in my basement, so perhaps that is an indication of the previous use.

Some of the biggest SOEs and DOEs I ever saw were at the Metropolitan Waterworks Museum outside of Boston; this building houses some of the late 19th / early 20th century steam-powered pumping equipment that supplied the city. When the pumping "engine" is a story high, you need some supersized hand tools!

https://vimeo.com/67590218


Since Lugz posted some nice military tools, I thought I'd add this fairly big M4 tool roll I picked up on eBay, populated with a couple of wrenches I have around. The wrench at right is a NOS Arcturus DOE, still slathered in cosmoline when I received it.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Some of the biggest SOEs and DOEs I ever saw were at the Metropolitan Waterworks Museum outside of Boston; this building houses some of the late 19th / early 20th century steam-powered pumping equipment that supplied the city. When the pumping "engine" is a story high, you need some supersized hand tools!

Entered into my little black book of road trip stops! Thanks!

If you've never been to the Cable Car Museum in San Francisco, it's small, quick, and free, and well worth the stop. It's collocated with (and built around) the mechanical station on one of the two main lines, which was a brilliant idea.

Not to side-track your thread too far into the interesting museums topic, but here are some shots...

The wrench at right is a NOS Arcturus DOE, still slathered in cosmoline when I received it.

Does it have a Federal Stock Numbed forged into it? 41-W-1003, 41-W-1005-5, 41-W-1008-10, 41-W-101205, or 41-W-1021? Reason I ask is, I've never seen an Arcturus wrench that did not. Their sole customer seems to have been the military during WWII. Also, if you ever find one with the FSN 41-W-991 forged into it, you'd be famous. Among a close-knit community of WWII collectors anyway. That would be the tiniest wrench in the jeep and GMTK toolkit (3/8 x 7/16), and nobody has ever seen one made by Arcturus. Which is strange, because Arcturus made all the other sizes in those kits (listed above) and they are well circulated, typically from surplus lots, such as your example.

Your M4 tool roll is in mint condition. Very nice.

 

[tym]

^ Very cool museum, Lugz. It's added to my list. No doubt some very large wrenches were used there, so not derailed at all.

The Arcturus is 9/16 by 11/16, and is indeed marked 41-W-1005-5. Thanks for the information!