forgotten named older tools

[dj_110]

I was looking through my tool box the other day after I cleaned up my Plvmb ratchet. I had picked up some USA made stuff over the years at auctions, estate sales, garage sales, etc. Some of the forgotten names on my tools are Bonney, Mustang, New Brittain, Old Style Husky. Most of it is 1/2" drive ratchets, speed wrenches, etc. Anybody else have a collection of older odds and ends?

I'm pretty sure that New Brittain also made the old Husky and Mustang stuff, I'm not sure about who owns Bonney now. I also have an old cheap Taiwan set of "Upland" open end box end wrenches. They must have been pretty cheap since my dad gave them to me as a kid. Some of the open ends are missing one side that was broken clean off.

 

[Cope]

A good brand from the old days was Herbrand. All I have left is a set of flare fitting wrenches that were made ±1966-67.

 

[bonneyman]

Bonney and a family of subsidiaries was bought by Triangle Tools Corporation in 1967. They then sold the tools division to Cooper in like 1990, who closed Bonney in 1994.
So Bonney has not technically existed for 20 years, yet, it is amazing that so much NOS stuff is still showing up like on ebay.

 

[jakemac]

Utica Tools went through a similar history with Triangle/Cooper. Although the brand is still available.

 

[dutchgray]

Bonney and a family of subsidiaries was bought by Triangle Tools Corporation in 1967. They then sold the tools division to Cooper in like 1990, who closed Bonney in 1994.
So Bonney has not technically existed for 20 years, yet, it is amazing that so much NOS stuff is still showing up like on ebay.

That's what you get from the days when manufactures kept a large stock inventory, I bet there was warehouses full of tools when Cooper pulled the plug that just sat there for years while those in charge forgot about it all.

 

[PKile]

Don't forget Wards Powr-Kraft...most of those were made under license by Wright Tools. My favorite tool of all time is a tiny 1/4" drive Powr-Kraft ratchet...has the smallest head of any ratchet I have ever seen.

 

[regguy1]

Anyone remember Blackhawk?

 

[Iron Hoarder]

I love Blackhawk tools. Buy them whenever I find them.

 

[Cope]

Anyone remember Blackhawk?

Yes, they also made New Britain and Husky, or maybe New Britain made the other two. New Britain made early Matco sockets and ratchets, and they also made tools for JC Penney back when they had hardware.

 

[lakota]

Penncraft tools sold by JC Penny. Went to an estate sale last week and lot's of the mentioned. Looked like home handyman quality a few steps below Craftsman of that time span.

 

[TDLMOMOWERS]

I have a ton of New Britain stuff that I bought in the 70s, when I worked for Napa Auto Parts. I also have a bunch of Sparta tools that were a second line sold by Napa. They have all held up great, all these years.

 

[lakota]

Benchtop, they were sold by K-Mart in the late 80's early 90's. A rip off of the Snap On design , according to a mechanic friend of mine at the time. I used the screwdrivers and I like them, square handle and metal end that you can put a socket on. I do have 3/8'' sockets which I rarely use. coo is taiwan

 

[pendragon1998]

I have a sears brand socket set made in Japan that is surprisingly good quality.

 

[bhound]

Have some oxwald sockets andtmahawk wrenchs.

 

[bob15]

The Bonney name was bought by Snap On in the late 1990's.

the dates are confusing on the site.....
http://www.trademarkia.com/bonney-71031399.html

 

[Cope]

Completely forgot about Indestro. I worked at an auto parts store in high school, and the chain carried Indestro. They were good tools, but the ratchets would strip easily.

 

[dj_110]

Anyone remember Blackhawk?

I'm not sure if I have any of them, but my dad had some of them over the years. His tools set got divided up among me, my brother and nephew so there might be some in the family.

 

[dj_110]

I have a few Barcalo (Buffalo) tools from my dad and they are pretty decent too. They look to have lots of miles on some of them, but they still work well.

Other brands I have that were from the 1990's-present. K-Tool (seem ok), KR Tools (cheap junk), KD Tools (their racthets are nice; I have a 1/4" & 3/8" Drive), Pro-mate (cheap chinese/Taiwanese stuff), ATD (They made more specialty type, not sure if they are in business anymore).

 

[never enuf time]

My dad has a Kruater ( spelling) ratchet . I think he got it in the Navy in the 60's . A really nice Ratchet.

 

[Conductor562]

Diamond
Fairmount
Before PowerKraft Ward's had a Lakeside and Riverside line.
There was also a Lakeside brand not affiliated with Montgomery Ward's.
Sears economy line was once Dunlap
Thorsen was once decent stuff
J.P. Danielson, Penens, P&C, Vlchek, Paschall, and Cragin (all bought by Plomb/Proto)
After selling his stake in Plomb, Alphonse Plomb made tools under the A. Plomb brand which later became part of California Tool.
Controlled Steel
Par X
Challenger
Millers Falls
Keen Kutter
Walden

And a bunch of others

 

[Conductor562]

Digging through my oddball drawer I also see:
Action
Wizard (Western Auto)
CeeTee
Tru Fit
Bon E Con (Bonney Budget line)
Fuller
None Better

 

[NHBandit]

Firestone. Although I'm sure they were made by someone else. Anyone know who the manufacturer was ?

 

[SMKS]

Don't forget Wards Powr-Kraft...most of those were made under license by Wright Tools. My favorite tool of all time is a tiny 1/4" drive Powr-Kraft ratchet...has the smallest head of any ratchet I have ever seen.

I don't know if it's fair to say "most" were made by Wright. I find lots of Powr-Kraft tools that were made by Thorsen and aren't as good as the Wright-made tools.

Firestone. Although I'm sure they were made by someone else. Anyone know who the manufacturer was ?

They were made by someone in the Plomb/Proto empire, I think. They're very similar to ratchets sold under the Penens and Fleet brands

My dad has a Kruater ( spelling) ratchet . I think he got it in the Navy in the 60's . A really nice Ratchet.

Kraeuter tools were made by SK. The ratchets use the same mechanism as a normal SK ratchet, I believe.

SK also made a line of tools for JC Penny that were very nice and just branded "JC Penny." The tools I most commonly find are ratchets and fully polished wrenches.

 

[lakota]

Digging through my oddball drawer I also see:
Action
Wizard (Western Auto)
CeeTee
Tru Fit
Bon E Con (Bonney Budget line)
Fuller
None Better

Fuller is still around. I checked it for this post since I have a Fuller Adj wrench, I thought they were gone too.
link :http://www.fullertool.com/pages/eng/index.php

 

[SMKS]

Completely forgot about Indestro. I worked at an auto parts store in high school, and the chain carried Indestro. They were good tools, but the ratchets would strip easily.

Huh, it's interesting to hear that they were known to break easily even when new.

Indestro ratchets are the ratchets I find most often that are broken. I generally avoid them unless they work 100% properly.

Many brands of ratchets (especially SK and Wright), can almost always be saved with a cleaning. I rarely finds ones that don't work that I can't fix. I've bought Wright ratchets that were completely frozen solid and got them working very well.

Indestro, however, I will only buy if they work perfectly. I've bought several that seemed like they had a minor issue, but it turned out they had stripped teeth or a broken pawl and weren't salvageable.

 

[wyo george]

I had no idea that Blackhawk wasn't around anymore. It makes me feel old, I'm using some wrenches I bought new while in tech school.

 

[Conductor562]

I had no idea that Blackhawk wasn't around anymore. It makes me feel old, I'm using some wrenches I bought new while in tech school.

Blackhawk is still around. They're owned by SBD and operate as Proto economy line.

 

[SMKS]

I had no idea that Blackhawk wasn't around anymore. It makes me feel old, I'm using some wrenches I bought new while in tech school.

As noted, Blackhawk still exists.

They actually offer a decent selection of USA made tools and can sometimes be had for a good price. Many of the sockets and wrenches are USA made (minus the ratcheting wrenches, of course).

http://www.protoindustrial.com/en/Pages/Blackhawk.aspx

 

[BDT/NWMN]

Duro and DuroChrome, Fuller, Gambles Artisan,

 

[Conductor562]

We had a bunch of guys at TIA that didn't know about Blackhawk. So much so that I actually wrote an article showing some of the line:

http://professional-power-tool-guide.com/2014/05/blackhawk-tools-a-well-kept-secret/

 

[woody 73]

In a small sleepy Town in southern "AHIA" as they say in 1945 they started the Vanadium Tool Company in Athens, Ohio.

http://home.comcast.net/~alloy-artifacts/Photos/tools/vanadium_c12_c6_wrench_combo_f_cropped.jpg

Very well made tools I might add.

 

[mustangSR70]

Firestone. Although I'm sure they were made by someone else. Anyone know who the manufacturer was ?

Firestone tools were made by Plomb.

 

[drivesitfar]

Ford had their brand of tools and i can't remember who made them for them.

also Vlchek made some stout wrenches and Williams too.

Firestone ratchet looks like a Plvmb so i second the thought that it was made for Firestone by Plvmb/Proto.

 

[wyo george]

As noted, Blackhawk still exists.

They actually offer a decent selection of USA made tools and can sometimes be had for a good price. Many of the sockets and wrenches are USA made (minus the ratcheting wrenches, of course).

http://www.protoindustrial.com/en/Pages/Blackhawk.aspx

Good to hear. I was surprised when u read the post that they weren't around anymore.

 

[pauls_workshop]

I got a wide assortment of wrenches, sockets from these older brands. Mustang, Indestro (very good sockets if not rachets), New Britain (among the best sockets ever made), Fleet, Proto, Wright, a few Snap On, Thorsen, US Husky. Most all of these old US brands are great finds for tools in general of much higher quality than new China. I pick them up when I find them cheap. - Paul

 

[Conductor562]

Firestone. Although I'm sure they were made by someone else. Anyone know who the manufacturer was ?

As SMKS stated, that ratchet is unmistakably Penens which was under Plomb ownership and used for many contract tools.

 

[dj_110]

Firestone. Although I'm sure they were made by someone else. Anyone know who the manufacturer was ?

This looks really similar build to the plvmb 5449 that I just cleaned up.

 

[dj_110]

I have a Dunlap Adjustable, I'm pretty sure I still have a Fuller around too. One of them was made in Japan I think though.

I have an Allenite 1/2" dr. racthet. Is that now the same as Allen?

 

[egnorant]

Billings and Spencer!

Of all the odd tools I have, this is the largest company that I have none of.

 

[1950mercury]

Fleet champion