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Help needed with Craftsman ratchet research!
- Thread starter Gear Wolf
- Start date
.....I do have the hour glass selector flex heads but not in the timeline. My thought would be to use the 3 standard ratchet sizes as the core "family" and flex heads or other variants would be offshoots of the core group.
Probably not a bad idea.... I'm not sure when or for how long Sears offered Craftsman branded 3/8" and 1/2" flex head ratchets. What I did notice while I was putting together my Type Study on Craftsman Teardrop Ratchets between 1956 and 1993, was the existence of flex head ratchets with the same general raised panel handle stamps (patent info. configuration, patent numbers, model numbers or no model numbers, etc.) Basically, if you refer to the Type Study, you'll be able to generally place an approximate time of manufacture for the flex heads by comparing their handle stamps to the standard "core group" of ratchets from the same era. Just thinking off the top of my head, I know for sure that I observed a 3/8" drive flex head Type 2, and a 3/8" drive flex head Type 3, so I know the flex heads do go back a ways. Check the Type Study handle stamps. It might help.
Jim C.
3baygarage
Well-known member
Doom, i think that bottom ratchet is a New Britain made.
I know one sold on the bay a few months back. Someone else here found the round head recently without the guts and in very poor shape, barely identifible.
If you get your hands on those it could put us all in intergalactic peril.Either that or we will all congratulate you.
Sincerely,
Reed Richards
I know one sold on the bay a few months back. Someone else here found the round head recently without the guts and in very poor shape, barely identifible.
If you get your hands on those it could put us all in intergalactic peril.Either that or we will all congratulate you.
Sincerely,
Reed Richards
Doom, i think that bottom ratchet is a New Britain made.
I know one sold on the bay a few months back. Someone else here found the round head recently without the guts and in very poor shape, barely identifible.
If you get your hands on those it could put us all in intergalactic peril.Either that or we will all congratulate you.
Sincerely,
Reed Richards
Thanks Reed!
I've been able to find the same about the strange non-chromed Craftsman as well. I wish we could access someone with old Sears/Craftsman tool catalogs to put this baby to bed...
Contact AdamO on the Craftsman Club forums. I think he used to work at Sears, and he knows a lot about ratchet history.
AdamO is not reachable, and what I have seen the guy post on the Craftsman Club "forum," if you could even call it that, doesn't really lend credence to him being very helpful for this project unfortunately.
I've been successful in reaching MrCraftsmanTools here on the site. He is sending me a multi-DVD set that has every Sears & Craftsman catalog since day one! That pretty much blows the data mining portion of this whole thing out of the water.
Now the objective is to complete as much of the collection as possible and pick up a HD camcorder (anyone have any suggestions on a good one?).
If you check the "wanted" area you'll see what I'm still looking for...
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Beerman
Well-known member
Easco 3/8" RHFT Flex $20 shipped. Craftsman 3/8 RHFT Flex $70-$100?! Huh? They are the same ****** thing. Besides not having the Craftsman RHFT Flex variants I have to ask myself both: why is the price so high? & how can I find one for cheap?
I think I can help you with this one. There are a BUNCH of guys who collect vintage C'man. The C'man RHFT flexhead ratchet is particularly rare. So are the stainless steel an "lifetime" rats. Easco isn't nearly as collectable, at least by the masses.
So I had a Easco 3/8 RHFT in NOS condition that I sold here for $25 shipped. I could have sold it 3-4 times over. If that were a C'man 3/8 flex RHFT it'd brought triple that-and I'd have sold IT several times over. Easco had a slightly better design and I'm pretty sure they made the RHFT for C'man-but C'man is more collectable. FWIW.
You know Beerman I was thinking the SAME thing! I received an Easco 3/8" RHFT Flex about 2 weeks ago and I thought, "Hmm, knurled handle, better ergonomics, much easier to clean, better finish,..."
Why in the hell would anyone want the Craftsman over the Easco besides the Quick Release? Don't get me wrong QR is a nice feature to have, but everything I aforementioned trumps the Craftsman. I'm seeking one to complete the research & videos I am working on. I could take it or leave it.
Unfortunately, this seems to be an example of name recognition and likely the ease by which you could warranty it from Sears back in the day.
You are correct sir! Easco was the forge that did the Craftsman RHFT and its variants!
Why in the hell would anyone want the Craftsman over the Easco besides the Quick Release? Don't get me wrong QR is a nice feature to have, but everything I aforementioned trumps the Craftsman. I'm seeking one to complete the research & videos I am working on. I could take it or leave it.
Unfortunately, this seems to be an example of name recognition and likely the ease by which you could warranty it from Sears back in the day.
You are correct sir! Easco was the forge that did the Craftsman RHFT and its variants!
^^^^ It just demonstrates how dominant Sears once was. Practically every mid size to large city had a Sears department store, and its catalog business served rural and less populated areas across the country. As a result, EVERYONE had access to Craftsman branded tools. They may not have been the best ever, but back in the day, Craftsman tools offered better than good quality for the money, and the return/replacement policy was about as good as it gets.
In a time when Craftsman tools aren't exactly what they used to be, the popularity of vintage Craftsman tools has certainly carried forward with the generations who used them and relied on them for years as their primary, "go to tools." They're the tools a lot of us grew up with and still use today. Sentiment probably accounts for some of their inflated values on the current used tool market. I guess there's still a lot of guys out there who are willing to pay a few bucks extra to collect a brand of tools that was for decades a major player in the hand tool market and filled a lot of boxes from coast to coast.
Jim C.
In a time when Craftsman tools aren't exactly what they used to be, the popularity of vintage Craftsman tools has certainly carried forward with the generations who used them and relied on them for years as their primary, "go to tools." They're the tools a lot of us grew up with and still use today. Sentiment probably accounts for some of their inflated values on the current used tool market. I guess there's still a lot of guys out there who are willing to pay a few bucks extra to collect a brand of tools that was for decades a major player in the hand tool market and filled a lot of boxes from coast to coast.
Jim C.
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^^^^ It just demonstrates how dominant Sears once was. Practically every mid size to large city had a Sears department store, and its catalog business served rural and less populated areas across the country. As a result, EVERYONE had access to Craftsman branded tools. They may not have been the best ever, but back in the day, Craftsman tools offered better than good quality for the money, and the return/replacement policy was about as good as it gets.
In a time when Craftsman tools aren't exactly what they used to be, the popularity of vintage Craftsman tools has certainly carried forward with the generations who used them and relied on them for years as their primary, "go to tools." They're the tools a lot of us grew up with and still use today. Sentiment probably accounts for some of their inflated values on the current used tool market. I guess there's still a lot of guys out there who are willing to pay a few bucks extra to collect a brand of tools that was for decades a major player in the hand tool market and filled a lot of boxes from coast to coast.
Jim C.
Well put Jim and I couldn't agree with you more. Craftsman really did offer an excellent value for the money and was made by people who made professional grade tools. Sears, through bulk purchasing, depressed the prices enough to make them very accessible to a majority of the population.
I own and have used plenty of different professional grade/tool truck brand tools. Don't get me wrong, you do, at times, get a tool that may be easier to clean or maintain, has better ergonomics, or better performance (depending on the tool, the maker, and the era it is from this, to me, can be debatable) by buying these types of tools, but you do have to pay to play. While my Cornwell, Wright, Snap On, & others may lead the pack in my tool box, Craftsman has helped me just as much.
Craftsman may be lacking in flair or prestige, but the brand was and still is a part of most people's lives. That is what got me to start thinking about this project in the first place.
Hey Dr.,
That's kind of the same reasoning I used when I got into the Craftsman teardrop ratchet type study. EVERYONE I knew growing up had a Craftsman branded box in their garage and/or basement, and they all had at least one or two Craftsman teardrop ratchets. I thought it would be interesting to learn a little more about those ratchets. I searched for a type study and couldn't find one, so I decided to make my own. It was a fun project. I think I'm gonna do one on 3/8" drive flex heads next from the same time period (1956 - 1993).
I gotta say however, your project is a lot more ambitious than mine was. If you need any info from my type study (like additional photos, etc.) let me know. I have over 40 original condition Craftsman teardrop ratchets now as a result of my little project. Good luck!! I really hope you can pull it off.
Jim C.
That's kind of the same reasoning I used when I got into the Craftsman teardrop ratchet type study. EVERYONE I knew growing up had a Craftsman branded box in their garage and/or basement, and they all had at least one or two Craftsman teardrop ratchets. I thought it would be interesting to learn a little more about those ratchets. I searched for a type study and couldn't find one, so I decided to make my own. It was a fun project. I think I'm gonna do one on 3/8" drive flex heads next from the same time period (1956 - 1993).
I gotta say however, your project is a lot more ambitious than mine was. If you need any info from my type study (like additional photos, etc.) let me know. I have over 40 original condition Craftsman teardrop ratchets now as a result of my little project. Good luck!! I really hope you can pull it off.
Jim C.
I have been continuously picking up more of the rarer ratchets as of late, but I'm going to run out of steam soon, since I'm getting to the edge of the event horizon of the Craftsman ratchet black hole. I'm approaching the "very rare" territory a little faster than I thought and will be limited by my ability to actually find X or Y ratchet and the owner's desire to sell that piece or not.
I'm pretty late to the party as it is. I don't want to burn any bridges by being pushy. I'm just letting some folks know I'm out there if they do decide to let certain pieces go.
A special thanks to Steevo for donating a few of the 1930s ratchets to the project!
I'm pretty late to the party as it is. I don't want to burn any bridges by being pushy. I'm just letting some folks know I'm out there if they do decide to let certain pieces go.
A special thanks to Steevo for donating a few of the 1930s ratchets to the project!
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Another interesting development is that MrCraftsmanTools, the guy who created the Craftsman Tool History DVD set, and I spoke with one another on the phone the other night. I really respect the amount of work he put into his DVDs, and, from what he has told me, there is quite a bit of unreleased info that he hasn't been able to output for X or Y reason.
With a little luck and support from him along with the rest the folks here, I think we can pull this off. Its going to take more time than I previously thought though. My video project may pale in comparison to the shear data and work he put in, but I think once its done some may find it interesting.
With a little luck and support from him along with the rest the folks here, I think we can pull this off. Its going to take more time than I previously thought though. My video project may pale in comparison to the shear data and work he put in, but I think once its done some may find it interesting.
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