Sifting Through the Pile

[Provincial]

I was going through some buckets that had been stored on my wife's family farm. Everything had been dumped in an open shed years ago, so there is a lot of rust.

First two photos are an older pair of Vise Grips. They have no release lever, and no mention of patents. They still work!

The next three photos are a pair of angled side cutters marked "Forged In USA" inside an inverted triangle.

The sixth photo shows a bit with a spring-loaded 1/2" pilot that makes a 3/4" hole or counterbore.

More to follow.

 

[Provincial]

The first three photos show an HKP cutter marked US and 1944. I assume they are WWII military.

Next is a Krauter 3/4" arch punch.

Last is a piece with a 3/4" octogon bore. Must be some sort of coupling. There is some wear on the outside of one end, like it rubbed on something while rotating.

 

[d42jeep]

Those are some cool finds. The HK Porter tool is a wire cutter used during WW2. I bought a pouch for one off of eBay recently and have one promised that will hopefully arrive soon. I have those same dykes but I’m not sure who made them. I have some double bow punches in my Navy NAF toolbox. Three of the five are Kraeuter.
-Don

 

[Provincial]

Some online research indicates that the HKP wire cutters are likely "M-1938 Barbed Wire Cutter, US Army" based on a photo of one with its original paper HKP packing envelope.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

The next three photos are a pair of angled side cutters marked "Forged In USA" inside an inverted triangle.

I've got a pair of combination slip-joint pliers with an identical marking and I have seen untold other examples. I don't think we've ever figured that one out.

The first three photos show an HKP cutter marked US and 1944. I assume they are WWII military.

Some online research indicates that the HKP wire cutters are likely "M-1938 Barbed Wire Cutter, US Army" based on a photo of one with its original paper HKP packing envelope.

You are correct. They have popped up on the Garage Sale thread (LesserSon most recently found a pair last year IIRC) and also here on the VB before. I have not yet been lucky enough to find a pair in the wild. HK Porter had $3,447,000 worth of contracts during WWII. They sold a lot of bolt cutters to the Ordnance Dept. The Corps of Engineers was their primary customer for the Model 1938 wire clippers, and also QMC.

 

[Resident1]

Nice finds!

 

[bmwrd0]

Nice!

 

[Tostal]

I have only one old Vise Grips that doesn't have a release lever but it's a 7 inch model not the more usual 10 inch.

T~

 

[Provincial]

A little more internet research indicates that the easy release lever was added in 1957.

 

[Provincial]

I took another look at the angle cutters tonight. I cleaned up the logo at the bottom of the triangle, and it appears to be a "tt" of two christian crosses. This corresponds with Don's example in post #3, above.

I then actually looked at the handles, and there in the middle of the distinctive checkering is a distinct "H", which should be another lead on the vendor/manufacturer. I feel like a dummy for not noticing this before.

 

[Provincial]

Thinking about the markings at the bottom of the triangle, I wonder if they are two stylized telephone poles, with a pole and crossbar?

 

[RTM]

There aren’t many people who have the full text forged listed on the web.

Go to Alloy Artifacts, and the tool list here, and run through the H list for stylized?

 

[Provincial]

The H forged into the handles shown in post #10 is not stylized. The mark in the bottom of the triangle is two separate marks, with a gap between them, like two daggers or two Christian crosses.

Don, does your pair have the H on the handles?

 

[Provincial]

Lesser Son answered the question on the H diagonal pliers over on the Garage Sale thread, post #2174. They were made by Harrold.