Craftsman "U" series socket set.

[riley.m]

I bought this rail of Craftsman (u) series sockets last year at a garage sale, and when i got home i threw them in a box and forgot about em till today. I tried doing some research online,and i think these were made by Plomb during the war, i didnt find anything on Alloy Artifacts. If anybody here knows their history, i would love to hear what you know about them.

 

[billymade]

I don't have the energy to read through this whole thread but you might look here:
http://garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=14107
Still can't find any info? Try and PM our expert; lauver

 

[riley.m]

Thanks for the lead, i guess the Plomb fad has died down some since the last time i was here.

 

[lbgradwell]

Over the years, many, many different companies have produced tools for Sears that are sold as Craftsman. For one brief period - probably just after WWII - Plomb (or probably their Penens division) made at least ratchets and sockets for Sears. The ratchets are virtually identical to the Plomb "Wright Field" series.

You should avoid wire-wheeling any of those tools as I believe they have a cadmium finish that poses a health risk...

 

[riley.m]

Aha, i didnt realize that about sears and craftsman tools.

 

[HandyManny]

Over the years, many, many different companies have produced tools for Sears that are sold as Craftsman. For one brief period - probably just after WWII - Plomb (or probably their Penens division) made at least ratchets and sockets for Sears. The ratchets are virtually identical to the Plomb "Wright Field" series.

You should avoid wire-wheeling any of those tools as I believe they have a cadmium finish that poses a health risk...

It's true, many companies produced various tools for the Craftsman brand. In the past they tended to be produced by many high end tool makers for Sears.

Today it's also still true that a great many tool makers are still making tools for Craftsman, some are still high end tool makers, some are not. A lot of people get this idea that Danaher makes everything for Craftsman but that's not entirely true at all, maybe only 15% true. Craftsman USA made tools are sourced from something like 30 to 40 different contract manufactures and subcontractors. That's just their USA sourced hand tools.