Blackhawk Tools: Any Respect?

[Hank McMauser]

I just recently picked up a 1/2" dr blackhawk speedhandle fore less than $1 that according to alloy artifacts dates from about 1929. it's made very well and because of it's age and build quality has earned a permanent spot in my little tool box now.

 

[DavidB]

I am talking about USA made Blackhawk tools from years ago, before Stanley sent most (all?) of their line overseas.

Did any/many of you prefer or greatly respect this brand?

I have yet to find one Blackhawk tool at the flea market this season, and eBay doesn't have all that much, either.

I've got SEVEN tool boards to start collecting items for, people! Where is this stuff?

I think I've seen some at my local flea market. What are you looking for? Let me know and I'll keep an eye out.

 

[Bull]

I think I've seen some at my local flea market. What are you looking for? Let me know and I'll keep an eye out.

I'm working on getting the tool boards hung on my barn wall. I will take some pics when I'm done and you can see what I'm up against.

All of the pegs and sheet metal nuts were removed from the seven boards so they could be shipped to me. It's taking forever to put them all back together prior to hanging.

The guy that sent them to me (member here) was a freaking saint to go through all the work he did to get these shipped for me!

 

[old salvage]

You know they even made the lock on socket and then discontinued them. Some of it may have been cost. I don't have a price list but I can bet the gearless ratchets got to be expensive. Also maybe they didn't hold up as well as the standard ratchets. I always ask myself why New Britain went from a 60 tooth mechanism to a 45 tooth mechanism. I always wonder what the logic was on that one.

Good theory. Some of the ratchets are stamped "keep well oiled". This one was a bit finicky when I first got it. I flushed it with oil and it works great but it wasn't that dirty to begin with. Certainly not enough grit inside to bother a regular ratchet.

 

[Coach James]

I have two old Blackhawk ratchets and some wrenches. All USA made and all good. After Stanley bought them, production went overseas. I emailed Blackhawk a year or so ago and asked if anything of theirs was still USA made and the answer was no but I might be able to find some older USA stock somewhere. I still see Blackhawk in our CarQuest behind the counter. I swear I have seen Blackhawk in NAPA a few years ago as well.

Coach

 

[cowboy73]

My grandfather used to use alot of Blackhawk tools when he was wrenching at his shop. They sold them behind the counter at the local auto parts store.

 

[brian90505]

I've got Blackhawk 1/4 & 3/8 ratchets and sockets. I like em as backups to my Snapon and Mac stuff. The extensions are a little too fat for my preference.

Old USA Blackhawk?

They're pretty old but in excellent condition. And they are USA made.

 

[Scooterfish]

I have old Blackhawk 1/4 ratchet, shallow sae/metric sockets
3/8 shallow sockets and semi deep sae/ metric
Great tools.

 

[mrholeshot]

Back in the 80's I bought some Blackhawf stuff from my Mac man. It was a pretty extensive socket sets, several sets of wrenches that I bought for home. It got used a good bit until the shop I was working at burned down and I put them in full duty use along with some Craftsman. I have much respect for the USA Blackhawk brand. Not very pretty but very strong. I still have several of the Mac (made by Blackhawk) ratchets and another I picked up another the other day. I also have one of the 3/4 drive sets my dad had. great tools

 

[chopper1]

I would like to have the older free wheeling ratchets. Blackhawk had a history of innovation. They even made 7/16 drive sockets. The coolest tool box by far has to be the box for the 7/16 sockets nugget sets.

The only Blackhawk piece I have is a 7/16 driver. Date code 1947

 

[64merc]

My grandfather used to use alot of Blackhawk tools when he was wrenching at his shop. They sold them behind the counter at the local auto parts store.

+1 on this

I got a few odds and ends from my grandfather when he passed away.

 

[Slip_Kid]

I like my socket set, picked it up from a friend.

 

[Elroy]

I emailed Blackhawk a year or so ago and asked if anything of theirs was still USA made and the answer was no but I might be able to find some older USA stock somewhere.

In fact a bunch of the current Blackhawk stuff is still produced domestically while some of it has indeed been transferred overseas

If you go to Grainger's web page and search for "Blackhawk" you can see exactly what is domestic and what's imported. You'll also note however, the disclaimer about the COO being subject to change so if you want domestic Blackhawk, now might be a good time to enter your order.

 

[toolnut]

I picked up a bunch of Blackhawk USA stuff on Ebay from wardsautosupply. They seemed to have the older stock stuff in new condition. I don't know what they have left but it might be worth a look.

 

[toolnut]

It looks like 5 pages worth. Heres the link

http://shop.ebay.com/wardsautosupply/m.html?_nkw=blackhawk+&_fscr=1&_trksid=p3911.c0.m19

 

[SMKS]

They seem pretty good to me. I have been slowly replacing my Craftsman sockets with better brands. They've all been purchased at pawn shops. The ones I have are all USA made. I've bought probably around 10 Blackhawks to fill in some of the harder-to-find sizes. Here are a few:

My only gripe is that all of mine appear to be similar vintage, but have different designs. The open end on some have a flank-drive-style opening with rounded corners. Others just seem to be squared off at the corners. I assume the sockets with squared-off corners will be more like to round off a fastener.

Still, I generally pay between $0.25 to $0.85 per socket, so I'm pretty satisfied with them.

 

[vssjim]

For some reason I see a parallel between the Blackhawk USA stuff and the older Proto Challenger series.

TheGrooveking

That was after Stanley bought them both, New Britian was the owner for along time selling New Britian through NAPA and Blackhawk to nonNapa stores. At one time a very complete line of tools. Mac tools did not sell Blackhawk until after Stanley bought all of those brands as in the seventies Blackhawk would have been a competing brand until the late eighties or early ninties when New Britian went belly up.

 

[Rnz520]

I have an old set of metrick Blackhaws USA wrenches and they are my go to metric sets, very comfy and dont slip.

 

[Bull]

In fact a bunch of the current Blackhawk stuff is still produced domestically while some of it has indeed been transferred overseas

It seems that there are conflicting ideas about this. Can Elroy cite a source for Bull to look at to confirm that there is still a plant in the US churning out Blackhawk stuff?

EDIT: I do see on the Stanley/Proto site, if you go to the Blackhawk section, they do show sockets with "USA" stamped on them....

 

[Blacknwhitepit]

Around me the flea markets are flooded with Blackhawks. I posted a while ago about a company in the local area that was dumping them at very good prices. Here is a link... The hotlinks are dead though... http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=30038


Here is a link to it now.. http://www.southerntoolky.com/flyer.php

I can buy never used, shiny Blackhawk wrenches and sockets - USA made, all day long on a Saturday or Sunday around here for good prices, but there is no profit margin on them and its not like I have a shortage of tools. I will snap some pics next time I go... So if someone needs something in particular, let me know..

-BWP

 

[Bull]

So weird that you're market is flooded and I don't see anything.

How good are these flea market prices, exactly?

Around me the flea markets are flooded with Blackhawks. I posted a while ago about a company in the local area that was dumping them at very good prices. Here is a link... The hotlinks are dead though... http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=30038


Here is a link to it now.. http://www.southerntoolky.com/flyer.php

I can buy never used, shiny Blackhawk wrenches and sockets - USA made, all day long on a Saturday or Sunday around here for good prices, but there is no profit margin on them and its not like I have a shortage of tools. I will snap some pics next time I go... So if someone needs something in particular, let me know..

-BWP

 

[Blacknwhitepit]

So weird that you're market is flooded and I don't see anything.

How good are these flea market prices, exactly?

I think these tool vendors went to Southern Supply and bought in bulk.

The one vendor who particularly comes to mind has:

3/8 to 1 inch sockets sets in rails (3/8 drive), nice and shiny chrome, never used, USA made for $20.

Wrenches are full chrome $2-$3 each depending on the size (there are some missing sizes, so it is hard to put a whole set together)

BWP

 

[crankshaftdan II]

Re: Blackhawk Tools: Any Respect? Rodney Dangerfield??

Bull:
They produced a lot of H.D. tools-the thing that sucked is the plating on the real old stuff-light plating or gray paint which is hard to find here in the hometown of the tools.
Also there was an association with Armstrong which is a very old tool maker that made the quality stuff like Williams etc.
I've been setting here waiting for someone to revive these oldies! Cranky/Dan

 

[Griff93]

I'm looking for part number BW1172FP (1 1/8) and BW1130MFP (30mm) wrenches. Both of these are full polish. My sets are missing both of these and I'm trying to find them to finish them out. I've been looking for quite a while for both of these. If any one runs across either of them or both, or knows where some open stock that might have these in it would be I'd greatly appreciate the heads up on them.

 

[Lump]

My Dad worked at a local auto parts store when he was a kid...maybe about 1951 or so... and so all of his life he was considered an "insider" at Genuine Auto Parts of Dayton, Ohio. So he always got professional discounts, back in the day when not everyone got the same prices at auto parts stores (anyone else old enough to remember those days?)

Dad never had much cash, but he strongly believed in top quality tools. He had some Mac tool sets of different things, but not everything. He sometimes bought tools at Genuine Auto Parts from their tool board behind the counter, when we really needed an item he didn't have. These items were often Blackhawk. I still have some of them.

And I can honestly say that I NEVER saw a Blackhawk tool fail. Whether in my Dad's strong hands, or in my own use over many years since. So I personally have BIG respect for Blackhawk.

Around Southern Ohio, I will often encounter Blackhawk tools, but usually only one at a time. I have several in my "extras" bin, which I will photo later. But I have never encountered a complete set of old Blackhawk tools for sale around here.

Bull, between the Herbrand, Truth, Crescent, and Blackhawk tools I have sitting around here, we ought to be able to do some trading before long!

 

[Tim Cowan]

In 1965 I worked a local independent auto parts supply store and we sold Blackhawk tools and S-K off the behind the counter tool boards. In 1966 I started work with the NAPA chain, Genuine Parts Company and they handled New Britian tools and Sparta tools was a second line. I think both stores had K-D and Lisle skin packages on board. I may have bought a few Blackhawk but S-K and Proto were my tools of choice. Worked in a Bell Phone shop for ten years and the company supplied the tool boxes and they were ALL Snap-On.

 

[mcdtommy23]

It seems that there are conflicting ideas about this. Can Elroy cite a source for Bull to look at to confirm that there is still a plant in the US churning out Blackhawk stuff?

EDIT: I do see on the Stanley/Proto site, if you go to the Blackhawk section, they do show sockets with "USA" stamped on them....

Just got a set of metric and SAE flarenut wrenches from Grainger. Both made in USA and very, very nice.

 

[kythri]

I'm looking for part number BW1172FP (1 1/8) and BW1130MFP (30mm) wrenches. Both of these are full polish. My sets are missing both of these and I'm trying to find them to finish them out. I've been looking for quite a while for both of these. If any one runs across either of them or both, or knows where some open stock that might have these in it would be I'd greatly appreciate the heads up on them.

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/ww...w1172fp&op=search&Ntt=bw1172fp&N=0&sst=subset

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/ww...130mfp&op=search&Ntt=bw1130mfp&N=0&sst=subset

 

[Griff93]

Thanks for the links! I previously searched grainger and for some reason they didn't show these in the full polish. I actually checked with my Mac dealer today and he can get them. He was cheaper than grainger's prices. One of my co workers bought a set of Blackhawk full polish wrenches off the Mac truck today. They are brand new and made in USA. I asked about if the ones he could order for me would be made in USA. He told me all the ones they have gotten are US for the regular wrenches. He mentioned they are still being made in the US.

 

[Elroy]

I think these tool vendors went to Southern Supply and bought in bulk.

Elroy knows of Southern well and he can assure you they have nothing like this:

Elroy loves new tools that come in boxes

It's even better when the box has the correct COO

Full Polish Blackhawks made in the USA.

And you thought your Bonney's and Cornwell's had nice thick beams

Made in the USA by our good friends at Stanley. The pouch ***** but these box ends are nothing but nice

Elroy told me he had been Jones'in for these and in some respects this thread pushed Elroy into making the purchase. Picked em up today

 

[wafrederick]

Some Carquest parts stores sell Blackhawk too.

 

[sk farmer]

Elroy knows of Southern well and he can assure you they have nothing like this:

Elroy loves new tools that come in boxes

It's even better when the box has the correct COO

Full Polish Blackhawks made in the USA.

And you thought your Bonny's and Cornwell's had nice thick beams

Made in the USA by our good friends at Stanley. The pouch ***** but these box ends are nothing but nice

Elroy told me he had been Jones'in for these and in some respects this thread pushed Elroy into making the purchase. Picked em up today

 

[fordbroncodave]

carquest and mac tools use to sell a line of blackhawk tools.

i have a random surplus of blackhawk tools i would like to sell off or trade.

many are 1/2" drive chrome 12pt sockets. a couple impact sockets too. they use to be really expensive tools but who knows now

 

[Lump]

carquest and mac tools use to sell a line of blackhawk tools.

i have a random surplus of blackhawk tools i would like to sell off or trade.

many are 1/2" drive chrome 12pt sockets. a couple impact sockets too. they use to be really expensive tools but who knows now

Yay! There ya GO, Bull! Fill them boards, man!

 

[Robertob]

Howdja get that price? Looks like 74 and change now...

 

[Tool Pants]

I have this 1/2" ratchet.

 

[Lump]

I have this 1/2" ratchet.

Wow, NEAT RATCHET, Tool Pants!

You've been showing some really cool tools lately. I'm thoroughly impressed.

 

[crewchief888]

i think my short 3/4 dr breaker bar is a blackhawk, now ya got me wondering

 

[SCscoutguy]

I got a USA made Stanley professional 3/8" ratchet exchanged and they sent me back a Blackhawk 3/8" ratchet that said "made in USA from global components".

This new ratchet is not as nice as my old made in USA Blackhawk ratchets but it is decent.

 

[DPDISXR4Ti]

Reviving this thread to add my experience with a Blackhawk 1/2" breaker bar - it's their 17" version, part# 49988B. I initially bought it at Spring Carlisle, broke it, got it replaced at the local Carquest parts store, and then by the time I broke it the second time, nobody local to me was carrying Blackhawk tools any more so I still have it. Both times the failure was the same - the pin for the head sheared. Mine does say simply "USA" on the handle (not "Made in USA"), so I wonder if this was made offshore somewhere. I can see their lawyers saying, "We were just promoting "USA", not that the tool was actually made there."

If you look up Blackhawk's history, it's really nothing more than a brand that's been bought and sold a bunch of times over the past half century. It doesn't seem like Stanley even knows what to do with the brand at this point - it seems the products are only sold through industrial distributors who really don't promote the brand at all.