Old Craftsman 1/2 drive set year?

[Semi-hole mechanic]

I'm looking to find a year of mfg fo my 1/2 drive set that I inherited from my dad. He said that he either received it for HS graduation or bought it with HS graduation money in 1948. He started farming in 1948 and needed a decent set of tools to work on equipment with Grandpa. Most of the set is not original due to lost, broken, etc., but the breaker bar and speed wrench are the originals I believe. Tin box with leather handle was once gray. Speeder wrench stows in lid. The only sets I can find pics of from the era show a hip roof box not flat. Pics to follow.

 

[Semi-hole mechanic]

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[Semi-hole mechanic]

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[Semi-hole mechanic]

View media item 74194

 

[3baygarage]

Well, you'd probably have to sift through catalogs to find the exact box and set but if the speeder and original sockets are marked BE or H then that is New Britain produced from the 30s or 40s.

 

[Semi-hole mechanic]

Sifted through old catalogs on line and can only find a '49 catalog. 1/2 drive set that year was in hip roof box and speeder wrench was a different designed handle. They are indeed H New Britains.

 

[Semi-hole mechanic]

If anyone has one like this I'd like to know what was actually in the set. I think I have all of the socket sizes but not sure.

 

[Semi-hole mechanic]

Found it in 47 Sears Xmas Wish book. 16 piece tool set for $13.75, I actually have more sockets than what it came with. I'm sure Dad must've bought singles as he needed them.

 

[Cruzan80]

'48 set has it listed for 15.75. 7/16-1" by 16ths (all 12pt), 5 and 10" extension, ratchet, speeder wrench, 15" flex handle (breaker) with T bar.

 

[Al Borland]

I have some parts of a similar set, found it in the trunk of a car in a gully in the woods a long time ago. My speeder has a spinning sleeve on the crank arm as well as the top. about half the sockets are marked Craftsman, half new Britain, and the ratchet had the square plug that you pushed thru to reverse the ratchet. Box was same , but falling apart due to rust. No chrome, but tools are kinda a rust-brown, but not rusty.

 

[Chillylulu]

Here's the funny thing about those 16 piece 1/2" ratchet sets:

Up to the 1957 catalog they were 16 piece sets, then in 1960 they became 17 piece sets.

Through some kind of Roebuck magic, there were exactly the same parts, only the Craftsman logo had changed!

I have both sets on the wall with other crown logo boxes.

What the marketing geniuses decided to do was to start counting the crossbar
that goes with the flex handle.

Chilly

 

[bill300d]

Here's the funny thing about those 16 piece 1/2" ratchet sets:

Up to the 1957 catalog they were 16 piece sets, then in 1960 they became 17 piece sets.

Through some kind of Roebuck magic, there were exactly the same parts, only the Craftsman logo had changed!

I have both sets on the wall with other crown logo boxes.

What the marketing geniuses decided to do was to start counting the crossbar
that goes with the flex handle.

Chilly

Either that or the box. I know on some sets they counted the box .