Easy to Overlook a Good Tool

[Provincial]

Sometimes when going through a pile of items at a sale it is easy to overlook something that you would otherwise want to purchase. Here are a couple of examples, one an "accidental" purchase, the other an item that I overlooked the first two times I went trough the bin.

The blue screwdriver was in a pile of discards from several sales that I had in a box in the shop. I go through them and pick one out when I need to hack up a screwdriver for a task. This time I realized that the one I picked was a pretty good screwdriver, and I looked closer at the markings.



Yes, it is a Herbrand, and in pretty good shape!

Last weekend I hit the local Flea Market, and was digging through boxes that one vendor had set out on the floor. On my third pass through one box that had been productive, I noticed at screwdriver that had a pretty good blade, but the handle had the white crust of a deteriorating butyrate handle.





Upon closer inspection, it proved to be a P&C "100" P706!

 

[c1504]

For me good screwdrivers can be pretty easy to overlook. It is pretty easy to spot a good ratchet or wrench, but unless you look real close a lot of good screwdrivers don’t look that special

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Same. And they're always in boxes with a hundred others, usually all common. My biggest 'skip, no time' flea market object is still paper (vintage magazines, books, etc where catalogs occassionaly lurk...), but screwdrivers is a close second. I don't always ignore them, but I don't go through them like other tools.

Herbrand loved that blue. Used it on drive tool handles, too. Helps them stick out.

 

[bmwrd0]

Masses of sockets. I always know that there will be something in there, somewhere, but looking at each and everyone in a methodical way just moral defeats me. But, that said, I do know more than a few by the color of the plating, or lack thereof, and will search briefly through to find them. Also, machining of some kind helps.

 

[Oldtuleguy]

Screwdrivers take so much abuse, it's challenging to find vintage ones in good shape.

 

[d42jeep]

Masses of sockets. I always know that there will be something in there, somewhere, but looking at each and everyone in a methodical way just moral defeats me. But, that said, I do know more than a few by the color of the plating, or lack thereof, and will search briefly through to find them. Also, machining of some kind helps.

I’m with you on the sockets. There are often large bins to go through. Usually my wife and I go through them together picking out the keepers. The sale of the items pictured had a large quantity of unused US Craftsman sockets. We pulled out a bunch of metric ones that are easy to resell on eBay. Those help to offset the cost of the collectible tools that I hang onto.
-Don

 

[Mintgrun]

Herbrand loved that blue. Used it on drive tool handles, too. Helps them stick out.

I love that blue too.

 

[Ricky Joe]

I also like the blue. I have a few blue Herbrand screwdrivers and my stethoscope is blue. With good quality vintage screwdrivers I take the time to regrind the tips, as was expected back when, so they last forever. I’ve got two drawers full of screwdrivers. They are hard for me to turn loose.