Plomb tool picture thread - show your stuff!

[Private Lugnutz]

Any handbook from any year would be interesting to read and a good get as a collector. This handbook appears to be the very first such handbook in Plomb's history, though, judging by the way Pendleton introduces it, especially the second paragraph, making it even more special to own. 1946, the dawn of a new era, makes a lot of sense given Plomb's humble start, their modest growth, and their skyrocketing production during WWII, as the "History" page and the "Foreword" allude to. Having said all that, I still might have expected there to be one in the 1930's, an era marked by labor strife.

The 'Number One' claim is interesting, too. From memory, I had Stanley in that position based purely on the Major War Supply Contracts books. But I would have to go back through the statistics I compiled to confirm that.

 

[Username already in use]

Rule #17: Never leave the premises with tools, even if they're in the "seconds" bin.

Apparently even employee lunchboxes and bags were subject to search... Can't let those tools grow legs.

As for procuring 'salvaged tools', there was a procedure for that as well.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

HAHA. Love the illos. That last section on that page is funny. The company bending over backwards to help the employee purchase the things he needs to do his job!!! What a treasure, Unaiu. Can't believe you kept this under yer hat before it was in yer hands!

Letting these contents you've shared sink in, imagining the rest, and getting back to my thoughts on the date - it would be a boon to locate a handbook from 1948, 1949 and 1950. The lawsuit years.

 

[drivesitfar]

User: thanks for sharing and starting another interesting discussion.

ALL: while i was cleaning up I found another toolbox full of Plvmb i'll post up a few pics later. I knew I had it, but wasn't sure where until yesterday.

have a great day and i'm looking forward to the hunt to find a few more once I get ORGANIZED cause i've sort of got a STOP HUNTING ORDER to myself on for now (it's hard to stop though cause this is like my sweet tooth that needs to have it's fix soon)

cheers

 

[tym]

HAHA. Love the illos. That last section on that page is funny. The company bending over backwards to help the employee purchase the things he needs to do his job!!!

Corporate doublespeak is timeless!

 

[harley jim]

Was digging through my junk box looking for spare parts and found this. My first piece of plomb (that I know about).

Sent from my LG-LS777 using Tapatalk

 

[81turbota]

Took home a nice Plomb lot today

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Is the box empty?

 

[81turbota]

Is the box empty?

Yes unfortunately. It looks to have housed a socket set but these wrenches sans the big one were inside.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Yes. A 3/8-inch drive set. EDIT: I recently restored that same box for a set I had been collecting, linked here.

 

[d42jeep]

These tools could have come in that box.
-Don

 

[3baygarage]

Apparently even employee lunchboxes and bags were subject to search... Can't let those tools grow legs.

As for procuring 'salvaged tools', there was a procedure for that as well.

Pretty cool find!

 

[r_olson_06]

Took home a nice Plomb lot today

That's is an impressive amount of Plombs.
What part number is on the big open end wrench?

Looking for the following Plomb Pebbles Wrench 3061

 

[Private Lugnutz]

What part number is on the big open end wrench?

Should've started a poll on how long that question was going to take!!

 

[81turbota]

Excellent! Thanks for the information and period photos. I promised the box to my friend who’s piecing together a WW2 toolkit for his Willys. Lugz- I sent him a link to your restoration as that is his exact intent.

R Olson, the big one is 44248, 1 1/2 - 1 5/16.

 

[r_olson_06]

Excellent! Thanks for the information and period photos. I promised the box to my friend who’s piecing together a WW2 toolkit for his Willys. Lugz- I sent him a link to your restoration as that is his exact intent.

R Olson, the big one is 44248, 1 1/2 - 1 5/16.

Nice. Thanks for the response. That must be a custom contract wrench. I have seen a few over the years but do not have any on the Plomb Wall yet. Still looking for a pair of big DOEs to finish out a 2 sets.

Looking for the following Plomb Pebbles Wrench 3061

 

[81turbota]

Nice. Thanks for the response. That must be a custom contract wrench. I have seen a few over the years but do not have any on the Plomb Wall yet. Still looking for a pair of big DOEs to finish out a 2 sets.

Looking for the following Plomb Pebbles Wrench 3061

It’s a very chunky wrench. The remaining finish I can see is pictured. Paint maybe? Jaws are 7/8” thick and the body is 5/8”. Square profile with rough forging along the sides.

 

[r_olson_06]

Here are some more additions thanks to a fellow GJ member and a few eBay finds. The left side is the new additions to the wall the right is dupes. Have to love my 5 year old photo bombing a piece of candy. This is always a game when taking pictures.
From the top.
O910 LA pre part number
Mystery wrench! Not sure if it is Plomb. The angles are different and the bar stock thickness is thicker than a standard O series. Any ideas?
O1516 only 2 left to finish the set!!!
O1516 LA pre part number
1-3/16" NAF combo! Probably the only 1-3/16" combo Plomb ever made.
1212 LA honing in on the full set
KDB DOE for Dodge Balloon Tires


Looking for the following Plomb Pebbles Wrench 3061

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Disregard my eyes are going kablooey

 

[Provincial]

I picked up a Plomb 1-1/16 socket at the local Flea Market Sunday, and also an unusual Plomb wrench.

It is a 2616 construction spud wrench. These wrenches show up in the 18A and 19R catalogs, but the 2616 (1 inch opening) is not listed in either catalog. It doesn't show up in the later Proto catalogs, either. This wrench has the standard markings for the 26__-series wrenches, including the "PAT. PEND. CHROME MOLY ALLOY" stamping. There is no date code I can find, unless "8F34" is a date code.

The wrench was painted blue when I received it. I removed the paint with lacquer thinner, leaving the finish as you see it in the photos. Unfortunately, when Captain Spraybomb attacked the wrench, he brought along his sidekick, Electric Pencil, who put what appears to be a Social Security Number on the box end.

Is this a wrench that was cataloged, then discontinued, or is it a unicorn?

 

[r_olson_06]

I picked up a Plomb 1-1/16 socket at the local Flea Market Sunday, and also an unusual Plomb wrench.

It is a 2616 construction spud wrench. These wrenches show up in the 18A and 19R catalogs, but the 2616 (1 inch opening) is not listed in either catalog. It doesn't show up in the later Proto catalogs, either. This wrench has the standard markings for the 26__-series wrenches, including the "PAT. PEND. CHROME MOLY ALLOY" stamping. There is no date code I can find, unless "8F34" is a date code.

The wrench was painted blue when I received it. I removed the paint with lacquer thinner, leaving the finish as you see it in the photos. Unfortunately, when Captain Spraybomb attacked the wrench, he brought along his sidekick, Electric Pencil, who put what appears to be a Social Security Number on the box end.

Is this a wrench that was cataloged, then discontinued, or is it a unicorn?

I didn't have that one on my list. I think it may have fallen between the know catalogs. I know Ragz had one that wasn't in the cats. Great work.

Looking for the following Plomb Pebbles Wrench 3061

 

[Private Lugnutz]

The wrench was painted blue when I received it.

Was it the same blue as that socket? Or might it have been "Industrial Blue"?

 

[Provincial]

There were two layers of paint. The top layer was fairly recent metallic spraybomb. There was another layer of paint in some areas underneath that in a color more like the socket. It was close, but not the same. The socket was rusty underneath, and the markings were barely readable as a result. The handiwork of Electric Pencil was under the spray bomb, so that isn't reliable information. The shiny metal would indicate that it had been painted soon after the grinding work, but the lower layer of paint was not directly correlated to those areas.

 

[d42jeep]

I found one of the 26** series wrenches back in August.
I found the size markings a little odd considering when it was made.
-Don

 

[Private Lugnutz]

There were two layers of paint.

Thanks, Jock. I have and have had a few 1000 and 2600 series wrenches, none of them were blue paint, but some of them had a weird hue that may be suggestive of "blue" as in "blueing" or Parkerizing, and it made me wonder if that's what Plomb meant. After all, which OEM's were painting any tools blue? And who has seen vintage blue tools?

I found one of the 26** series wrenches back in August. I found the size markings a little odd considering when it was made.

All of the 1000 series (Heavy Duty DBE) wrenches I have or have had were marked that way, too. My theory is they felt it was more conducive to their uses for users, albeit outdated. EDIT: Or possibly just an artefact of them having been made for a very long time that way. ?

 

[Provincial]

I know that USS (and maybe American Standard) fasteners remained in use in the ironworking trade for a long time. I suspect that the architects and their associated engineers were comfortable with that fastening system, and felt no need to change.

I think that one reason the 2616 was not cataloged is that it does not fit any USS bolts and nuts, only 3/4 USS cap screws. It also fits 11/16 SAE bolts and nuts, as well as 3/4 American Standard cap screws and 5/8 Manufacturers Standard bolt heads. All this application data comes from the chart in the Plomb 18A catalog.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Agreed, Jock. That's what I meant in reply to Don. They were familiar with sections of iron in bridges or tunnels etc with standardized bolting specified by bolt (thread dia.) size and would recognize that more readily on a wrench than the AF dia. size of the head, although Plomb provided that in parentheses. I should have said "albeit outdated in the automotive trade."

 

[Private Lugnutz]

If you're a Plomb guy and you're not following the JO Mfgr thread lately, you should be!

 

[RubiconJK]

If you're a Plomb guy and you're not following the JO Mfgr thread lately, you should be!

Agreed Lugz. Interesting to get comments there from the Grandson of the Jo-Line founder related to the competitive relationship with Plomb. FYI, I also cross posted the Jo-Line valve adjusting tool on the Proto thread since it incorporated a 5249 ratchet head.

 

[drivesitfar]

LUG: I thanked you on the Jo-Line thread and want to thank you again here. i've just read a few posts of the grandson's so far and very interesting stuff that is for certain.

keep edumacating us and one of these days we'll have something to teach you.

cheers

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Agreed Lugz. Interesting to get comments there from the Grandson of the Jo-Line founder related to the competitive relationship with Plomb.

LUG: I thanked you on the Jo-Line thread and want to thank you again here. i've just read a few posts of the grandson's so far and very interesting stuff that is for certain.

He's been commenting on that thread for some time now, and it's always fascinating, but yeah, the Morris Pendleton recollections are special. As far as I know - it is the only first-hand account (vis-à-vis his grandson) that I have ever seen here on GJ regarding any vintage hand tool mfgr. We have had Joshua Ferguson posting, the grandson of William H. Ferguson, of Ferguson-Trimo and Porter-Ferguson body tools fame, but he is inquiring, not supplying information. It's the kind of thing we always wish and hope for to clear up mysteries or set records straight etc. It's an amazing thing and I hope we can keep finding enough interesting JO Mfg tools to keep his Dad going.

 

[drivesitfar]

LUG: I just finished reading that thread and made a comment thanking Bill and his dad for the information about J O tools and Plvmb.

also maybe Bill would take a picture of old man Plvmb (Mr. Morris) that is hanging at the Pasadena YMCA where he donated some of his tool earnings (just to keep Bill's dad's blood pumping since they didn't seem to have a great relationship).

cheers and thanks again for cross referencing cause i might have missed the J O thread.

hope you and everybody has a great day and heck it's almost SATURDAY!!

 

[RubiconJK]

It's the kind of thing we always wish and hope for to clear up mysteries or set records straight etc. It's an amazing thing and I hope we can keep finding enough interesting JO Mfg tools to keep his Dad going.

Working on that as we speak!! Hope to have some additional items to share over the next couple weeks.

 

[r_olson_06]

Check another off the list. A now complete 1927-1931 O series double open end wrench set! A lot of work for a $8.50 wrench set

Looking for the following Plomb Pebbles Wrench 3061

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Nice! Congrats, Roy.

 

[r_olson_06]

Nice! Congrats, Roy.

Now I just have to find the Leatherette to pair with it.

Looking for the following Plomb Pebbles Wrench 3061

 

[RubiconJK]

Check another off the list. A now complete 1927-1931 O series double open end wrench set! A lot of work for a $8.50 wrench set

Wow, super cool! Congrats.

 

[RubiconJK]

Was adding a couple new pieces to my 1/4" drive 47xx set today and thought I'd share some updated pics. The pieces added are the 4704 and 4705 Trico wiper sockets. In these pics I'm also showing both the pebble and round handle versions of the ratchet and hinge handles but not counting those two duplicates, I now have 26 individual non duplicated pieces in this set. Throwing out a challenge to some of you other Plombaddicts to see if you have a more diverse set of 47xx?!

 

[r_olson_06]

Was adding a couple new pieces to my 1/4" drive 47xx set today and thought I'd share some updated pics. The pieces added are the 4704 and 4705 Trico wiper sockets. In these pics I'm also showing both the pebble and round handle versions of the ratchet and hinge handles but not counting those two duplicates, I now have 26 individual non duplicated pieces in this set. Throwing out a challenge to some of you other Plombaddicts to see if you have a more diverse set of 47xx?!

Nice expansive 1/4" set. I have not seen a more full set besides in the catalogs. Good to see those wiper sockets go to a good home. Why are the 1/4" deeps so rare?


Looking for the following Plomb Pebbles Wrench 3061

 

[slowtwitch73]

Here'a all I have plus some Proto.