Vintage S-K Tools

[four.cycle]

^ I don't know S-K well.
I am fairly familiar with Indestro, however.
I have seen model 2775 Indestro ratchets stamped both ways - part number / manufacturers name on one side, and "oil" on the other side, and I've seen them stamped both ways.
I suppose it would all depend upon how they were oriented when they were sent through the stamping machine.

 

[d42jeep]

I looked through my S-K pictures and couldn’t find another example of a ratchet stamped upside down like that one. If Daniel isn’t going to bid on it, I probably will just due to it’s novelty.
-Don

 

[Kdaniel8601]

I looked through my S-K pictures and couldn’t find another example of a ratchet stamped upside down like that one. If Daniel isn’t going to bid on it, I probably will just due to it’s novelty.
-Don

I am not going to bid on it, I just thought it was interesting.

​

 

[saukit]

Quick question for you experts out there, I have been organizing my Indestro stuff and found a couple "Chrome Alloy" sockets that I had misplaced with the Indestro pile. I've been under the impression that Chrome Alloy was used by SK but was Indestro using it as well? The socket on the left looks very Duro/Indestro to me while the one on the right looks more likely to be SK. Any help is appreciated!

 

[Oldtuleguy]

I think you have it right!

 

[d42jeep]

I bought this partial 1/4” drive set to add the correct sockets I was missing from my keeper set. I’ll probably end up completing the new set as well eventually. It came with some Proto placeholders which I removed.
-Don
As received
My keeper set completed
Made from ‘61 to ‘63
The two sets together.

 

[four.cycle]

^ I just shipped a package to you yesterday containing most of the S-K sockets you'd sent my way a few months back.

 

[d42jeep]

Thanks!
-Don

 

[four.cycle]

^ I have not yet gotten to the stuff that was in the big Craftsman top box OR the 30-pound box of sockets. I have a feeling I'm going to end up with a lot of orphans here. I've got it separated into bags by drive size / SAE / metric but that's as far as I got. The S-K stuff on the way to you includes a 1/4" 5/16" shallow and a 1/4" 5/16" deep-well, if I'm not mistaken. Can't remember what else was there.

 

[Beerhippie]

I got these as part of a $3 box 'o sockets deal yesterday:



The sockets are all 13/16". 12 pts are 1/2" dr, deep is 3/8".

I thought I got a pretty good deal (and I did, just not for these) until I got back to the shop and took a closer look:



This takes me back! You see, a few years ago (Oct 1980), I spent a couple of weeks living in a private CG in Moab, Utah, rebuilding the heads on 318 small-block in a '62 D100 while waiting for my last USFS seasonal check of the season to catch up with me.

To remove the head bolts, I used a 1/2" Proto breaker bar and an S-K 13/16" socket. I sat on the fender and used my legs to bust those tight and ancient head bolts loose. About bolt #8, I cracked the socket--it being the only 1/2" dr 13/16" one I had. SO I walked all the way across town--Moab was smaller then--to the auto-parts store to buy another. When the counter guy heard the story, he told me the S-K truck came by twice a week and would be in in about an hour, so sent me back my campsite to wait for it. The truck showed up, and the driver swapped my busted socket for a new one--easy peasy. I broke that one the next morning. When the truck came again, he swapped it for an impact-rated socket and gave me an S-K hat! The impact socket is probably still in one of my tool boxes.

So, here's the question: Were the 13/16" sockets just particularly prone to cracking, OR were these the ones I broke? Was the sale the descendants of the tool truck driver for the Four-Corners area in 1980?

 

[Outlawmws]

Timm, what do the bottoms look like? Impact mushrooming marks?

 

[Beerhippie]

Timm, what do the bottoms look like? Impact mushrooming marks?

Nope.

 

[Outlawmws]

The Spark plug socket I can see being common (using it on lug nuts and head bolts) I don't think the other two are routinely split. - It could be they landed back near you. You did recover that tripod...

 

[Etchase]

To me they are very thin wall. They fit where others don’t but I’ve busted two leaning on them. That’s over many decades, so not bad. I didn’t warranty them.

 

[Provincial]

I have broken two SK 5/8" 12-pt. sockets in my career. They are not overbuilt.

 

[Beerhippie]

To me they are very thin wall. They fit where others don’t but I’ve busted two leaning on them. That’s over many decades, so not bad. I didn’t warranty them.

Reckon S-K will warrant these?

 

[d42jeep]

I don’t see many S-K sockets split like that but those look impacted to me. I see quite a few sockets that have been impacted. Those knurled sockets have been around a long time with plenty of opportunity for abuse.
-Don

 

[four.cycle]

@Beerhippie -
I have a 40826 S-K 1/2" drive 12-pt 13/16" deep-well socket in fairly decent condition. Drive end is hogged out a bit from a PO running it on a rattle gun.
I have a 40126 S-K 1/2" drive 12-pt 13/16" shallow socket that is split down the side of the barrel just like yours. Tapered thin-wall design like yours. Maybe they were working on a 318?

Send me a shipping address if you want the deep-well. BK

 

[d42jeep]

These were in the PO Box yesterday. I intended them to fill out the Artisan set but they have the socket retaining dimples in the drive end so a little newer than the others in the set. At least they don’t have any impact damage.
-Don

 

[four.cycle]

^ more on the way to you, but I stupidly shipped them to your house and not Tahoe.
especially stupid since I had already asked where to ship them.
duh!

 

[d42jeep]

My mail is supposed to be forwarded here by the USPS, and so far they are at about 20%. I’m trying another tactic. Something called redirecting a package. Who knows, it might even work.
Here are more of my S-K knurled sockets that have suffered impact damage.
-Don

 

[four.cycle]

^ I have a zip-lock labeled "junk" that I've been tossing stuff like that into. It's a quart sized zip-lock and almost stuffed full now. I'm going to need to get a bigger bag. CL stuff always seems to be loaded with abused sockets.
I think a guy named Blake might find some in his mail today. I heard he has a good relationship with his Snap-on dealer.

 

[d42jeep]

If the socket is otherwise in decent shape, I take a file and remove the damaged area.
-Don

 

[four.cycle]

^ I won't even try to sell something like that - it goes right into the "junk" bag. Only reason I sent that **** to Blake was I figure he can weasel a deal with his Snap-on dealer and get a replacement.

 

[Patrick Eubanks]

^ I won't even try to sell something like that - it goes right into the "junk" bag. Only reason I sent that **** to Blake was I figure he can weasel a deal with his Snap-on dealer and get a replacement.

Send your junk pile this way

 

[d42jeep]

If the socket is otherwise in decent shape, I take a file and remove the damaged area.
-Don

Here are some S-K sockets with the impact damage minimized.
-Don

 

[d42jeep]

This partial set arrived in the PO Box today. The pieces allowed me to complete the #4921 set.
Completed set, ready for a little paint on the exterior.
-Don

 

[Oldtuleguy]

Another old sk cad set

 

[Outlawmws]

Another old sk cad set

Wow! That's nice!

 

[Old Radar]

Another old sk cad set

Wow! Looks like it was made this week!

 

[Oldtuleguy]

I don't think it saw much use.

 

[Shelbylex]

Great findings, Don and OldToolGuy!
I envy you in a good way!

MA had been slow for some time and I am not ready to pay Ebay prices…

Make sure you keep the backup of all your lists and pictures!!! I just learned the hard way - catastrophic failure of Hard Drive and the Geek Squad could not recover the information (computer worked too well and I forgot to keep making backups for few years). The first failure of tge Solid state drive was the last one). Will take me a while to restore all the lists (including the full list sets in Word for some big boxes I plan to complete in the future (catalogs are sometimes hard to read). Once work gets a touch better and I get few home/car projects out of the way - likely mid October, I will try to see if I can start a thread of sets for boxes (especially the ones which had 1/4, 3/8, 1/2 and sometimes 3/4 drives all together - this way it will be online for easy access)

 

[d42jeep]

I don't think it saw much use.

That set is like a time capsule. Amazing find! Congratulations.
-Don

 

[d42jeep]

Here are some S-K sockets with the impact damage minimized.
-Don

I received a bunch of 1/2” drive knurled sockets in a care package from BK. I went through those and more of mine and removed the impact damage. The upper sockets were mostly okay but the lower two rows got the treatment.
Some cleaned up sockets
-Don

 

[four.cycle]

^ wow... and I weeded out the really "bad" stuff - it's in a big zip lock labeled "junk" here... just in case somebody needs a big handful of 1/2" universal joints that are loose as a goose, let me know.

 

[d42jeep]

I have plenty of those for some reason. Most of the sockets I filed had minimal impact damage. I’ve been guilty on occasion of using a chrome socket with an impact although I try to minimize the practice.
-Don

 

[Raineman]

If anyone needs SAE 3/8 drive sockets, I have so many that they’re probably headed to scrap. Yeah, I know, sacrilege, but damn.

 

[Shelbylex]

Raineman, do not junk them!!! I might need some in the future! (First I need to buy a new computer once I return home, then get new Microsoft Office, then restore the list…). Do you have a list of what you have?

 

[Raineman]

Raineman, do not junk them!!! I might need some in the future! (First I need to buy a new computer once I return home, then get new Microsoft Office, then restore the list…). Do you have a list of what you have?

I’ll put a list together for everyone and post it.

I should clarify they are mostly all shorts and SAE.

 

[Old Radar]

If anyone needs SAE 3/8 drive sockets, I have so many that they’re probably headed to scrap. Yeah, I know, sacrilege, but damn.

PM sent!