Truecraft Tools / Memories Of First Tools

[Farmall 1066]

Done baling hay, so spent all morning doing all the little things around the place that get neglected when the weather breaks, and it's time to go.
Sorting tools back out of trucks, tractors and swather, this always brings back memories, as a lot of my "field" tools came from neighbors and relatives farm auctions over the years...you see the old initials scratched or painted on the tools, and it recalls a bit of the past.
I keep a set of Truecraft flip socket wrenches in the baler, as they work better than anything for adjusting the knotters. It just occurred to me that those were my first real tool purchase, with my own money. Bought them from some guy hawking tools at the Nebraska State Fair, in about 1985/86, for around $20.
I remembered my uncle Harold giving me hell for wasting my money..."those damn things are made in Japan!" But they have held up very well, through 15 years full time mechanicing, and near daily use. Ironically, they share toolbox space with Uncle's SK wrenches and sockets today!

Anyone else have any Truecraft tools, or know anything about them?

 

[SMKS]

If you do some googling you'll find at least a few threads about Truecraft.

Daido was the company that owned and marketed Truecraft, but all the tools were produced under contract for Daido by other companies.

I have a good number of Truecraft tools. They're good quality, but Daido has discontinued the brand.

Japanese companies like SEK and Top made some of them. Others were made in the USA by Danaher and others.

 

[honcho]

I have a Truecraft 1" made in Japan socket I purchased back in 1987 to change the oil on our 1984 Volvo. The drain plug was 25mm and I couldn't find a 25mm socket so I went ahead with the 1 inch since 1 inch equals 25.4 mm (about 16/1000ths") and on a larger fastener, while a bit sloppy, it was more than sufficient for the task.

1" fasteners haven't been common in my life since getting rid of the Volvo but it still occupies a slot in my toolbox even though I now have a 25mm socket.

 

[7th Kahuna]

I have a couple of Truecraft end wrenches that I read somewhere were made by Palmera in Spain (perhaps in the 70's). They look like my Palmera wrenches. Palmera has a long history of quality and today is owned by SnapOn's Euro Tools Division.

 

[SMKS]

I also have one or two Palmera Trucraft wrenches. They appear older and mine are also marked "Palmera" and "Spain."

 

[honcho]

I was going through a box of tools today and found a set of Truecraft SAE combination wrenches that were made in Spain. They are a fairly recent acquisition and I'd forgotten I even had them.

 

[7th Kahuna]

I think I have both. I'll have to see if I can dig them out. I picked up my Palmeras first. I had never heard of them but for $1 each, they felt nice and were new or near new. After reading about them, I picked up a couple Truecraft figuring I was going to have a hard time finding replacements for the missing Palmeras. Those were strickly labeled Truecraft. If memory serves, I have since picked up one identified both as Palmera and Truecraft.

 

[ken w.]

I worked at an auto part distribution center and we handled Truecraft and Blackhawk tool lines. We had more warranty returns from Blackhawk than Truecraft. I was warranty guy and when the Truecraft rep came in to write up the tool warranty slips, the tools were to be put in the dumpster. I used to take them to another part store and warranty them again. Soo.. I had quite the bit of Truecraft for a long time. They were good quality tools at a reasonable price.

 

[Kaline74]

I have a Truecraft 12425 1/2" torque wrench that I bought 20+ years ago. It still works great. I periodically check its calibration and it is always spot-on. I bought it from an industrial tool distributor: it was one of my first non-Craftsman purchases (prior to that, I was a salesman in the tool department at my local Sears).

 

[Griff79]

You have an Uncle Harold from Nebraska on the farm.......Priceless!
Griff

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

My first pay cheque went into tools in '67, an Oxwall 3/8 dr metric and a Truecraft 1/4 dr SAE. Both made in Japan, neither were very good. I think I might still some of the 1/4 dr 4point sockets. And the Oxwall were thrown out long ago.

 

[toolmutt]

I have a few Truecraft pieces. Here are three of the wrenches. One satin finish, one full polish, one raised panel. All made in Japan. All good wrenches. Also have a stubby 3/8 ratchet, COO Japan.

 

[motoretro]

I'll have to check although think I have some large sized Truecraft 3/4" drive sockets, something over 1-1/4". My Wrights go up to this size, I would have bought these piecemeal at the nearby hardware store in the middle of doing a job. Seems like they were a pretty decent tool, not Snap-on quality although certainly a good, no nonsense, tough tool.

 

[MRH]

I have a Truecraft 12425 1/2" torque wrench that I bought 20+ years ago. It still works great. I periodically check its calibration and it is always spot-on. I bought it from an industrial tool distributor: it was one of my first non-Craftsman purchases (prior to that, I was a salesman in the tool department at my local Sears).

I have the same model torque wrench, bought in the early/mid 80's. Years ago, a Snap-on industrial rep was at my work calibrating torque wrenches, and was not at all happy that my Truecraft was more accurate than the Snap-on ones.

 

[Kaline74]

Wholesale Tools in Warren, Michigan still has a few sets of new TrueCraft ratchets, sockets and wrenches in stock. I picked up an NOS set of TrueCraft combination wrenches for $10. Their fit on fasteners is great!

 

[sk farmer]

were therre any of the truecaft 2000 sae sets?

 

[four.cycle]

True / Truecraft / Truecraft Tool Co., 2425 South Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL / formerly Otto Kaufman Co., acquired by Daido Corp., Japan / http://alloy-artifacts.org/other-makers-p6.html#truecraft-tool / https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/truecraft-tools-memories-of-first-tools.255703/ / https://ameblo.jp/corgibell/entry-12601727921.html /


this thread should be moved to the "vintage tool" forum.

 

[Kaline74]

were therre any of the truecaft 2000 sae sets?

Sorry for the long overdue reply. the last time I was there they had three (3) 114pc SAE and Metric sockets sets. Each was $60. Not sure if they were TrueCraft 2000. I was tempted to buy a set but I do not need another set of sockets.

 

[lugnut71]

 

[lugnut71]

 

[lugnut71]

 

[genog]

Way back in the early 80's I needed a second set of tools.
So I bought a bunch of Truecraft pliers from a local auto parts store.

Darn good tools

 

[Chrome Vanadium Cody]

This ratcheting breaker bar popped up for me today. One of the unique tools Truecraft made. More than I’d want to pay but have always thought these were cool.

SUPER RARE - Truecraft 1/2" Drive Ratcheting Breaker Bar - G384B | eBay

SUPER RARE - Truecraft 1/2" Drive Ratcheting Breaker Bar - G384B. This is all one piece, not a ratchet adapter attached to a breaker bar but all one unit.

www.ebay.com

 

[woody 73]

Funny story but about 10 days ago, I walked into a garage sale, and they had a small True craft socket set for sale and even had a cheap price of $10.00 marked on the set, ratchet and everything included. I turned it down because my funds that week were very limited, and I bought a few other tools that I wanted. Nice set I hope the new owner will appreciate it.

 

[iagsxr]

I have a Truecraft 3/8" SAE socket set my brother gave me for my birthday around 1984. Wore out the 9/16" and 3/4" deep wells but don't think I ever broke a socket. Still have the extensions and universal joint although it's very loose. IIRC the ratchet broke early on.

 

[four.cycle]

Truecraft 32 piece 1/4" drive SAE Socket Wrench & Bit Set w/Original Box

manufactured by Truecraft Tool Co., Chicago, Illinois U.S.A.

this set includes:

21206 3/16" 12 pt shallow socket
21207 7/32" 12 pt shallow socket
21208 1/4" 12 pt shallow socket
21209 9/32" 12 pt shallow socket
21210 5/16" 12 pt shallow socket
21211 11/32" 12 pt shallow socket
21212 3/8" 12 pt shallow socket
21214 7/16" 12 pt shallow socket
21216 1/2" 12 pt shallow socket

1/4" hex X 1/4" square Drive Adapter

T10 Tamper-Resistant TORX Bit
T15 Tamper-Resistant TORX Bit
T20 Tamper-Resistant TORX Bit
T25 Tamper-Resistant TORX Bit
T27 Tamper-Resistant TORX Bit
T30 Tamper-Resistant TORX Bit
T40 Tamper-Resistant TORX Bit

PH1 #1 Phillips Bit
PH2 #2 Phillips Bit
PH3 #3 Phillips Bit

5/32" Slotted Screwdriver Bit
3/16" Slotted Screwdriver Bit
1/4" Slotted Screwdriver Bit

1/8" Hex Bit
5/64" Hex Bit
3/32" Hex Bit
1/8" Hex Bit
5/32" Hex Bit
3/16" Hex Bit
7/32" Hex Bit
1/4" Hex Bit

6739 Reversible Ratcheting Driver Handle

Plastic Blow-Mold Box

* As opposed to a screw-in cap that gets lost, the end cap on the driver is tethered to the handle, which is hollow at the end, allowing the user to store a few bits in the handle.
* These were manufactured in the U.S.A. prior to Daido Corporation's acquisition of Truecraft.

Truecraft Tool Co., 2425 South Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL / formerly Otto Kaufman Co., acquired by Daido Corp., Japan / http://alloy-artifacts.org/other-makers-p6.html#truecraft-tool / https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/truecraft-tools-memories-of-first-tools.255703/ / https://ameblo.jp/corgibell/entry-12601727921.html /

 

[four.cycle]

Truecraft (U.S.A.) 7/16" combination wrench 07/18/26