First post and a Craftsman question

[cdsloop]

I've been lurking here for 6-8 months, and have to admit that you guys have been a pretty bad influence on me and my wallet. I've always had a pretty big interest in tools, but you have taken it to a new level. I have bought another SO chest because I outgrew my old one, and reorganized all my stuff. That's still a work in progress. But my real question tonight relates to older Craftsman combination wrenches. My grandfather was a mechanic by trade, and worked for the local Ford dealership in the 50's and 60's. I got all of his tools when he passed. He had a mix of high quality stuff, SO, Mac, New Britain, Bonney, etc. But very few complete sets. It seems like he bought exactly what he needed from the first truck that came by when he needed it. One of the few exceptions to this is a nearly full set of Craftsman combination wrenches. It is missing the 5/8 and 13/16 from the set, and I would like to find these to complete the set. I'm not familiar with the Craftsman lingo. What keywords do I need to search on the classifieds and ebay to find them? Thanks for the help, and thanks for this GJ community.

 

[bonneyman]

I, too, like to have complete sets of things. Having that one open spot on the pegboard is really annoying!

However, I've learned that on certain tools, I can live with a mutt set.

I'll let the Craftsman experts chime in on those specifics.

And welcome to the forum!

 

[jakemac]

Search for CRAFTSMAN COMBINATION WRENCH or CRAFTSMAN COMBO WRENCH.
Then search through the USED listings.

If you want to match the same era as the ones you have, look for the wrenches that have the double line V date code (=V=). If the wrench has a single line V (-V-) then it is a later series. If any wrench has the model number stamped on it, then it is after 1974. Your wrenches were made in the late 50's to mid 60's (roughly).

Those are the same wrenches that my grandfather had, and the ones I grew up using. These are always my go-to wrenches (and sockets) whenever I need to turn a nut.

Welcome to the forum - be careful, this place tends to **** the money out of your pocket.

 

[Shiftless]

I've been lurking here for 6-8 months, and have to admit that you guys have been a pretty bad influence on me and my wallet. I've always had a pretty big interest in tools, but you have taken it to a new level. I have bought another SO chest because I outgrew my old one, and reorganized all my stuff. That's still a work in progress. But my real question tonight relates to older Craftsman combination wrenches. My grandfather was a mechanic by trade, and worked for the local Ford dealership in the 50's and 60's. I got all of his tools when he passed. He had a mix of high quality stuff, SO, Mac, New Britain, Bonney, etc. But very few complete sets. It seems like he bought exactly what he needed from the first truck that came by when he needed it. One of the few exceptions to this is a nearly full set of Craftsman combination wrenches. It is missing the 5/8 and 13/16 from the set, and I would like to find these to complete the set. I'm not familiar with the Craftsman lingo. What keywords do I need to search on the classifieds and ebay to find them? Thanks for the help, and thanks for this GJ community.

cdsloop:
Welcome to the forum
Looks like you have some raised panel Craftsman combination wrenches which should be easy to find. Do you see V series or anything like that to identify 'em?
Lots of us have extras.

 

[dede2897234]

cdsloop


Welcome to the forum!

In the second picture, I see on the middle Craftsman wrench a "v" in the raised panel. The "v" signifies that the Craftsman wrench was made sometime between 1946 and 1967 by Moore Drop Forge for Sears according to this GJ thread: Craftsman Date Codes.

Those dates fit in when your grandpa was working as a mechanic and bought those Craftsman wrenches. When you shop on eBay, use a search term like "Craftsman v series wrench".


Good luck,

Dave

 

[Fedwrench]

Welcome to the journal !!!

It's not uncommon for experienced mechanics to only buy what they need as it's not like they're trying to fill pegs on a Hansen rack.

As others have pointed out, look for the series code on the back of the wrench and try to find them on ebay, swap meets, estate sales etc. there are lots of old craftsman floating around but, people are starting to scarf it up now that there isn't any US made craftsman to speak of. Good luck in your quest and pass the tools down to your next generation.

 

[Wakefield]

Try to search out old threads and discussion on this site about Craftsman date codes. Also the Alloy Artifacts webpage might be of some help.

www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=14107 should be one

 

[cdsloop]

As jakemac said, they have the =v= mark on them. They are shorter and the open end is fatter than my other sets from the late 80's/early 90's.

 

[FordTruckWench]

Another identifying feature is that on the front side of wrench, the ===CRAFTSMAN=== runs right to end of the raised panel. This design continued for quite a few years after your's were made, so it isn't definitive.

As jakemac said, lack of a model number, and as you've observed, a fat open end, are the distinguishing details of your set.

You are looking for "combination" wrenches, but that keyword is useless on eBay. Many sellers mistakenly use this keword with double open or double box wrenches because they have a "combination" of two sizes on one wrench.