c. 1909 Eames Socket Wrenches Automobile Set

[Private Lugnutz]

Those linear marks are from a deep-drawing operation. The material is pulled through a die, and if not lubricated enough, leave the linear marks as the material catches on the die surface.

I didn't see your comment until reading the thread through again this time around, Jock. Thanks for setting me straight. Definitely part of the extrusion process, I agree.

That’s some Brass Era history there, much of which is already gone or fading. Great find. Definitely in the right hands.

Thanks.

That's a nice looking set Lugz.
Just for context, and your valued opinion, where is this on the scale of 'The world's oldest socket set'?

Great question! I would have to say fourth overall and third in the US among a very tight grouping, but apparently unknown, or at least too obscure even for Alloy Artifacts, so you will probably never see Eames on a timeline. Clearly behind Contal's French Auto-Cle set (1904), and Charles Miller's (Miller Combination Tool) set here in the US (1907), and just behind Bay State Autokit (1908).

I was about to elaborate on all that, but I think you've inspired my next "Curator's Corner"!

 

[elidas]

Found these in a mixed mostly Mossberg set. This MAY have been where the ratchet was found. Any chance more Eames stuff?

 

[Stillgottimefor1]

Sure does. My set is still the only set I have ever seen anywhere. And this is the only ratchet adaptor I have ever seen, too. Kind of amazing.

Breathtakingly beautiful set. The box/case is in amazing condition. Bow down!


Sent from my iPhone using Garage Journal

 

[Farmer J.]

my next "Curator's Corner"!

Looking forward to reading that, it would be nice to see a timeline of the very early sets with the background context of them.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Breathtakingly beautiful set. The box/case is in amazing condition.

Thanks. Hard to believe it's 113 years old. Someone took really nice care of it.

Found these in a mixed mostly Mossberg set. This MAY have been where the ratchet was found. Any chance more Eames stuff?

I don't think so, Mike. The Eames sockets are not branded or marked with sizes, but they are distinguishable by their glaze (vs duskiness) and those extrusion marks.

 

[Miketheauthor]

Post 1 of 10

I recently splurged for this splendid socket set…

…made in 1909 by a pair of brothers, both of them graduates of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (we’ll get to that later….), and advertised like mad in several trade mags, including Automobile Trade Journal, The Automobile Trade Directory, The Automobile, Automotive Industries, and, to be inclusive of vehicles with motors but less than four or no wheels, The Motor Cycle, Motor Boat, and Automobile Trade Journal.

The ad was the same in all trade mags, and it could not have been more descriptive or glowing in its praise of the aspects and features of the 1/2-inch drive set I admire the most, which is the gorgeous and unique case itself.

The ad copywriter really nailed it.

“The case consists simply of a solid wood block bound with brass, with a sheet of oak-tanned leather as cover. There are no hinges or catches to break and no thin wood to smash. The leather also keeps the sockets from rattling.”

Anyone who owns any early press-steel socket sets from any OEM – e.g., Mossberg, Smith & Hemenway, Eastern Machine Screw, Charles Miller, etc – knows that all of those things are true of all wooden socket set boxes.

The two Eames brothers were Jesse, my wife's great uncle and David, my wife's grandfather. The Eames family can be traced back to about 1630 when Thomas Eames immigrated and eventually settled in what is now Framingham, MA. My wife's father was also an MIT graduate.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

The Eames family can be traced back to about 1630 when Thomas Eames immigrated and eventually settled in what is now Framingham, MA.

Thanks for posting, Mike. The site is becoming known for attracting descendants and kin led here randomly or intentionally from Internet search results. It's always nice to hear from family, which always adds a personal touch that research simply can't. And sometimes it can clarify or qualify history that is only derived and cobbled together from scant references.

If you're confirming this...

The Eames name goes very deep in American history in Framingham. Thomas Eames, who came to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1636, was seriously injured in the Peqout War and given a piece of land there as recompense by the Deputy Governor. During the King Phillip’s War., the farm was raided several times by natives, and several of his children were seized and eventually returned. Later, the name was associated with a maker of cotton presses, looms and other machinery in the area. I didn’t do any serious genealogical tracing to make a direct connection, but a relationship is not too hard to imagine.

...it would be a wonderful development. Thanks again!

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Secondarily, @Miketheauthor , I'd be extremely interested in knowing if you, your wife, or any Eames or extended family members own any tools, if you have seen any tools before seeing photos of this set, or do you know of any tools in the hands of others (museums, etc). As you can tell from reading this thread, examples of the tools would have to be considered very rare in the collecting community, but these conclusions are often made in a surfeit of public information. There's seemingly not a lot of information about the Eames tools readily available in the typical hand tool collectors' places. If you have any technicsl literature from their mfging and business enterprise - brochures, catalogs, notebooks, paperwork, etc - or know of any, that would also be very helpful.