Tools from the old world

[mobiledynamics]

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[Chrome Vanadium Cody]

My flea market finds from this weekend: Polytools Italy wrenches. Wasn’t able to find any info on them but I dig them. Finish reminds me of some late period Blackhawk USA wrenches I have and really like

 

[Monte]

Monte might crucify me, but I dare say the Japanese tools I think are finished better than German tools in my opinion.

It´s all good




Bahco air saw blades

 

[Reed Prince]

This arrived recently.

 

[neophyte]

This arrived recently.

It looks nice, but non-orange Fein tools offend me on a fundamental level.

 

[Monte]

GYS dent puller

 

[vwpieces]

 

[HannibalLecter]

Here in Germany I get excellent offers on PB Swiss

 

[zeug]

Here in Germany I get excellent offers on PB Swiss

Curious- What kind of offers, and where from?

 

[Spanner]

Needed new 3/4 drive sockets so I went with this Unior set, the came at a good price compared to some of the better known brands and the quality is not bad at all. Also I prefer the metal case over the blow molded type.

 

[F-22]

Needed new 3/4 drive sockets so I went with this Unior set, the came at a good price compared to some of the better known brands and the quality is not bad at all. Also I prefer the metal case over the blow molded type.

Cool, sockets and wrenches are definitely what Unior does best.

 

[HannibalLecter]

Curious- What kind of offers, and where from?

Contorion.de

 

[Monte]

Snow brush/ice scraper

 

[Monte]

used Peddinghaus metal bumping hammer from ebay

 

[HannibalLecter]

Pb swiss on amazing offer
And a swiss made watch, as it should

 

[F-22]

Caved in and got the most pricey allen keys I know of.




These are going to replace my older worn set at work.



Did a comparison with my other sets. Interestingly Wera nad Bondhus end the ball much sooner while the PB Swiss goes all the way to the tip.










The fit is excellent. I believe Weras profile is very effective, but the precise fitment of both Bondhus and PB Swiss is also just extremely good...

 

[CGarage]

Is your worn set really that worn?

 

[F-22]

Is your worn set really that worn?

Not really, but I need some way to justify the new ones! The rainbow set costs about 30-40€ here, same as a Wera set, but these were somewhere between 80 and 90€.

The tips on the old set were still quite good, and I could always grind them down ever so slightly. But the bottom balls definitely were bad in the most used sizes and that became annoying - especially no. 5 and no.3. It has to be said that set is really quite old by now and it is excellent quality for sure...

I also like that the new set uses round bar stock. I really like that with the weras as well. These do not flex in small sizes. The all-hex 5mm and smaller ones have quite some flex that annoys me occasionally.

 

[Qualitytools]

Caved in and got the most pricey allen keys I know of.




These are going to replace my older worn set at work.



Did a comparison with my other sets. Interestingly Wera nad Bondhus end the ball much sooner while the PB Swiss goes all the way to the tip.










The fit is excellent. I believe Weras profile is very effective, but the precise fitment of both Bondhus and PB Swiss is also just extremely good...

Beautiful workmanship, thanks for sharing.

 

[HannibalLecter]

I should have grabbed those

 

[Monte]

Beautiful allen keys




Multimaster accessory

 

[silkman]

I'm always amazed by the amount of actual industrial production still happening in Switzerland. Many things are still "Made in Switzerland" despite the ridiculously high wages, value of CHF and other related costs.

 

[four.cycle]

^ maintaining a viable and robust economy requires that a nation produce "stuff". simply consuming doesn't work.

 

[CGarage]

I'm always amazed by the amount of actual industrial production still happening in Switzerland. Many things are still "Made in Switzerland" despite the ridiculously high wages, value of CHF and other related costs.

You have to understand the Swiss culture. They are independent and an “island” in the EU.
They do not want to be lectured to by Brussels and Germany, they do not want the EU currency, they do not want to be beholden to anyone.

Independence is a very strong Swiss ideal and a matter of national pride.

Also, one of the world leaders for intellectual property and quantity of annually filed patents.

 

[Dave455]

I'm always amazed by the amount of actual industrial production still happening in Switzerland. Many things are still "Made in Switzerland" despite the ridiculously high wages, value of CHF and other related costs.

The Swiss are very good at choosing manufacturing that suits their country.

It’s not by coincidence that a relatively small country specialises in relatively small (but high precision) products, where they can add the most value.

I believe it’s partly a national strategy, but all the industrialists play the game too. You won’t generally find a product outsourced to save a few centimes (as happens in the U.K. or U.S.A.) and if a Swiss company is put up for sale, domestic financiers will put up the money to buy it, thus preventing it falling into foreign ownership.

The only exception seems to be Bosch, who were permitted to buy Scintilla S.A. the Swiss power tool manufacturer.

The factory now seems to produce exclusively Bosch blades. I love the quality and variety of their jigsaw blades, and choose them over anything else. My local (small town) supplier has over 30 different types - in stock!

 

[dutchgray]

The Swiss are very good at choosing manufacturing that suits their country.

It’s not by coincidence that a relatively small country specialises in relatively small (but high precision) products, where they can add the most value.

I believe it’s partly a national strategy, but all the industrialists play the game too. You won’t generally find a product outsourced to save a few centimes (as happens in the U.K. or U.S.A.) and if a Swiss company is put up for sale, domestic financiers will put up the money to buy it, thus preventing it falling into foreign ownership.

The only exception seems to be Bosch, who were permitted to buy Scintilla S.A. the Swiss power tool manufacturer.

The factory now seems to produce exclusively Bosch blades. I love the quality and variety of their jigsaw blades, and choose them over anything else. My local (small town) supplier has over 30 different types - in stock!

The only thing I ponder is who makes the Parkside Jigsaw and recip saw blades for Lidl, they have Swiss made on the packet and are actually pretty decent blades, certainly better than anything else you can get for the same money.

 

[Outahere]

I recently bought some made-in-Switzerland Bosch 6" and 10" blades at Amazon

 

[F-22]

I'm always amazed by the amount of actual industrial production still happening in Switzerland. Many things are still "Made in Switzerland" despite the ridiculously high wages, value of CHF and other related costs.

To be far, there's lots of very niche manufacturers throughout Europe too. The Swiss need to export, and I assume their tax system may also be more favourable for exports to the USA.
But there are certainly niche small old manufacturers in e.g. Italy and Spain that do stuff that's hardly ever exported too (especially in those countries where the knowledge of English is super low and they have no interest in export markets at all).

 

[CGarage]

To be far, there's lots of very niche manufacturers throughout Europe too. The Swiss need to export, and I assume their tax system may also be more favourable for exports to the USA.
But there are certainly niche small old manufacturers in e.g. Italy and Spain that do stuff that's hardly ever exported too (especially in those countries where the knowledge of English is super low and they have no interest in export markets at all).

That is not true.

Spain and Italy export plenty. Italy has a larger industrial manufacturing base than France, and is second only to Germany.

Never had problems speaking English to citizens and companies in Spain or Italy.

 

[F-22]

Spain and Italy export plenty

I did not say they don't export. I said there are niche manufacturers in there that do not. Especially Italians are quite patriotic and love to buy their own products.

From my perspective - especially motorcycles. There was a whole heap of motorcycle manufacturers in Europe up to the 60's. Then the Japanese and especially Honda swept away most. BSA, Triumph, Norton... Without a doubt the biggest names at the time, BSA was possibly even the biggest manufacturer overall. Then Zündapp, Simpson, MZ, NSU, DKW, Horex, Sachs, Solex, Montesa, Bultaco, Puch... In Germany I think there's only BMW today, and KTM in Austria.

Most of those closed the doors after the Japanese flooded the market with far more reliable and higher performing motorcycles. Even Harley had a bunch of problems since the early 70's (AMF) - and they were pretty much the only domestic US manufacturer that stuck around, even though the US was the most profitable motorcycle market.

But Italians somehow stuck around. There's still a bunch of bikes made there. Mainly because they really sold a lot of them in their own market. The biggest today is Ducati, but then there's Moto Guzzi, Aprilia, Piaggio (Vespa!), Moto Morini, MV Agusta, Gilera, Beta and Gas Gas that are still open today (just a shadow of how many there were in the past, but still way more than any other country in Europe), probably even a few more.

 

[Monte]

Some metal bumping tools.
Picard spoon, Picard spare handle, Stahlwille body hammer and heel dolly.

 

[Beerhippie]

Here are a few of my small collection of Euro tools:





The Mayhew punches are French. They're concentric punches for making gaskets, etc. I can mount up to three different size punches on the mandrel if needed. They see a lot of use making gaskets for plumbing around the brewery.

My Kuh-Nip-Ex pliers:



Those live in a holster in my pocket and see daily use.

I'm sure I could find a few more Euros if I dug around the shop some....

 

[Etchase]

Anyone know who made these? It’s the best size adjustment mechanism I’ve come across. Ratchet close, hit the button with your thumb to release.
No marks besides the made in France that I could discern.

 

[dutchgray]

^ Bahco I think, pretty sure I bought a pair a couple years ago in a twin pack deal with an adjustable wrench.

 

[Etchase]

^ Bahco I think, pretty sure I bought a pair a couple years ago in a twin pack deal with an adjustable wrench.

Yes, they seem to be Bahco. Didn’t know they had any manufacturing in France. The current ones are marked Spain or not at all.

 

[dutchgray]

Yes, they seem to be Bahco. Didn’t know they had any manufacturing in France. The current ones are marked Spain or not at all.

They might be another manufacturers and just labelled for Bahco.

 

[neophyte]

Anyone know who made these? It’s the best size adjustment mechanism I’ve come across. Ratchet close, hit the button with your thumb to release.
No marks besides the made in France that I could discern.

These are definitely Bahco, and still made.

 

[neophyte]

They might be another manufacturers and just labelled for Bahco.

Bahco (or maybe Snap-On Europe) owned part of a French tool manufacturer, that I think also made items for Facom and other tool brands.
I’m not sure what the current status of that manufacturer is, or Bahco/Snap-On Europes use of the facilities.

Other Bahco items like pruners, and snips were made in France, and this included snips made from Sheet metal, as well as forged items like aviation snips.

 

[Etchase]

Bahco (or maybe Snap-On Europe) owned part of a French tool manufacturer, that I think also made items for Facom and other tool brands.
I’m not sure what the current status of that manufacturer is, or Bahco/Snap-On Europes use of the facilities.

Other Bahco items like pruners, and snips were made in France, and this included snips made from Sheet metal, as well as forged items like aviation snips.

Interesting. One of the few stocking retailers in the US is Greener-Gardens, which offers few mechanic tools, but lots of Bahco pruners and such.

 

[neophyte]

Bahco (or maybe Snap-On Europe) owned part of a French tool manufacturer, that I think also made items for Facom and other tool brands.
I’m not sure what the current status of that manufacturer is, or Bahco/Snap-On Europes use of the facilities.

Other Bahco items like pruners, and snips were made in France, and this included snips made from Sheet metal, as well as forged items like aviation snips.

If I recall correctly, there was a French tool manufacturer that Bahco, or Snap-On Europe owned a percentage of.
I’m not sure whether the ownership stake came before or after Snap-On bought Bahco.
The yool manufacturer made items for Bahco, as well as for Facom, and maybe other French and European tool manufacturers and brands.
I’m not sure the current status of the manufacturer.
Forged items like metal snops and pliers were made by the manufacturer, as probably were stamped steel items like pruners and lighter weight snips, and maybe other items as well.

The French manufacturer seems to be or have been Pradines, which was owned by the Deville Group.
The Pradines brand went back to 1865.
Snap-On seems to have fully taken over the Pradines brand in 2021.
Deville Group also manufactures plastic and steel parts for the automotive industry, and still does, with just the tool division being purchased by Snap-On Europe/Bahco.

Snap-On Europe still seems to use the Pradines brand, at least in Europe.

Some of the Bahco tools Epstein Tools had were branded “Bahco Pradines”
Pradines is a “Commune” in France.

Pradines, Lot - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

Here’s the info.