Unusual crowfoot wrenches

[Rileysan]

Military/WWII crowfoot wrenches?

I purchased this set of unusual crowfoot wrenches at a swap meet Saturday. The price was right at just $2/ea (there were other regular crowfoot wrenches in the group as well).

What's unusual (besides the huge sizes up to 3 7/8") are the pins on the back side. Are there fasteners with both hex head and spanner holes or do these double as spanner and crowfoot wrenches?

Model numbers include:
G33234
G33235
G33203
D 44111
D 44112
D 44113
D 44114
D 44116
The largest wrench has no markings.


Edit: Title change to get the military collectors involved.
Brian

 

[Provincial]

My opinion when we first saw them is that they are military. There were some regular AN-numbered crowfeet mixed in the box.

 

[Rileysan]

Yes - these ones (as well as some Bonney flare nut wrenches). I took all of these except the duplicates to work with me today. I really like the AN series of crowfoot wrenches and would love to complete the set.

 

[Oldtuleguy]

Very nice. Not sure about pins

 

[bmwrd0]

I saw those too but passed as I already had spent a bit.

 

[DFB]

Neat!

Intrigued as to the purpose of the pins myself

 

[d42jeep]

Here is a 7/16” AN marked crowsfoot that lives in my WW2 Navy toolbox.
-Don

 

[Provincial]

Don, speaking from experience, those AN crowsfeet with the skinny jaws are not robust. They apparently were designed for low torque applications.

 

[d42jeep]

Thanks for the warning. I really can’t remember the last time I actually used a crowsfoot. Here are some other AN oddities residing in my Navy toolbox that seem appropriate to this thread.
-Don

 

[doctordirt]

I believe what you have are hydraulic cylinder gland wrenches. This is why they are so large as well. The pin s drop in holes on the gland allowing you to unscrew the gland to replace packing and seal.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Couldn't really ask to find a more appropriate thread title than this to piggyback on. I don't think Brian will mind..

I found this at the flea market today. It is 1" thick with a 2" milled opening. I have seen special crowsfeet with wider openings (post #1 for example), but not 1" thick! And certainly not 1/2-inch drive! I can't even imagine turning this with a 1/2-inch drive handle.

 

[Outlawmws]

Some interesting oddities in here for sure!

Here are some of my non-standard Crows feet:

Most are the very Thin ones, with the one at the bottom for comparison, top row is SO with the one unplated down low marked "US" and the one next to it "AN", a thick Bonney that may have been for a torque wrench, a couple of Flair "feet", Three Protos in the middle row, and for comparison at the bottom, a standard Crows foot made for Sears/Craftsman.


Showing how thin these are compared to the Bonney:

And a couple more flairs I missed in the "family photo" that I found as I was putting them away reunited with the 2 SO from the family shot- Another SO and a Bonney ground still thinner, - Someone had a real tight fit..

 

[Provincial]

Many aircraft from the 1930's and later have hydraulic systems that are crammed into small spaces. It is common for bulkhead connections to be so close together that you have to remove several other lines/hoses to get access to the one you want. With a thin section crowfoot or line crowfoot one might be able to change that line without the extra work.

The lightweight/thin crowfeet have limited torque capacity, indicating that they were designed for work on hydraulic connections. Overtorquing hydraulic connections is common, since many think more torque equals a better seal, which isn't really true.

 

[aarcuda]

I just rented an Inner Tie Rod tool from autozone that had those C looking ends. Used to slip over the narrow flats on the inner tie rod cup