Western Auto Wizard tool box

[Tool Pants]

Never heard of the Wizard brand until I started on this board. I can only remember one Western Auto store in San Jose, and I never went to it as a kid because Kragens and Grand Auto were closer.

Over the past year I saw some Wizard ratchets and other Wizard tools at the flea market. The kind I like were made by Duro/Indestro. But never bought anything.

Today I see this tool box in great shape. When I picked it up it felt so heavy I thought there were some tools in it.

The top drawer would not close all the way and therefore would not lock when you closed the lid.

Everyone say at the same time. "There is a tool stuck back there."

Last time I played around with a flea market tool box there were condoms in one of the drawers.

I shook the Wizard and did not hear anything. Time to take the drawers out and see what is going on inside.

 

[justinmc]

Wow.. looks to be in great shape. I've got one of those 1/2" Wizard ratchets but it actually says "Western Auto" on the rear plate with the WA "arrow" logo.. kinda cool considering their HQ was in KC and the old building is on the national historic register with fully lighted sign and all.

PS.. at least they weren't used condoms! EEEKKK

 

[Packard V8]

Western Auto was big in the southeast in the '50s. I've got a few Wizard sockets and stuff if anyone collects them.

thnx, jack vines

 

[philw]

Neat old box!! I've can't remember seeing anything of that vintage that was actually marked Wizard.

 

[toymn6366]

love western auto-wizard tools my dad owned a western auto in late 60s to mid 70s so i grew up in the store

 

[Bull]

I have a 1/2" Wizard ratchet that belonged to my dad at one time. It is actually a pretty nice tool...feels good in your hand and has a nice action.

That box is sweet.

 

[Tool Pants]

No condoms this time. Bunch of envelopes. Like a mail box.

Loan documents and pink slips for old vehicles where inside the envelopes. Even an immigration card. Same name is on all the stuff and I guess he is a former owner who lived in Santa Maria. California. Feel sorry for the former owner because he must have looked all over for this paperwork. The oldest date I saw was 1968.

The locking part on the back of the bottom drawer was bent, so I bent it back into shape. Problem is, this is not this drawer that would not close all the way. It is the top drawer, and nothing is bent on the top drawer.

Upon inspection the drawers are identical. I put the top drawer that would not close into the bottom location, and it still would not close all the way.

Then stupid me figured out the problem.

 

[Tool Pants]

Here is the top drawer in the bottom position. while I try to figure out why it will not close all the way. There was a sliver of a magnet where my thumb is that I did not notice before that prevented it from closing all the way.

All "fixed" now. Feel a bit silly. Saw no markings to indicated what company made it.

I now have the pink slips to a 1963 Chevy and a 1962 Ford. Got to find those vehicles....

 

[msrfrog]

I was born in san jose and moved when I 8 and 23 years later I am still home sick.

 

[Tool Pants]

I went the other way. Grew up in Long Island, New York. Got moved to San Jose in 1969 when I was 12 years old. I no longer like the City of San Jose and cannot wait until I retire and move out.

For others, this is the Waterloo I checked out at the flea market back in April. Bob Lewis plates, which is a local VW dealership. I know a mechanic who works there. Should stop by and see if anyone will fess up.

 

[lbgradwell]

That old Wizard box is very cool. Never seen one before!

 

[cruiser808]

Very nice Tool Pants. I have three boxes just like that, but are red and labled Proto. I'm guessing mine and yours were made by Waterloo. How did you remove the drawers?

 

[superautobacs]

That's in good shape, indeed.

I'm going to say it's a product of Kennedy.

 

[justinmc]

I now have the pink slips to a 1963 Chevy and a 1962 Ford. Got to find those vehicles....

Somewhere in resto land someone has a frame that needs a title... I've seen guys sell these before on ebay. Might be worth a shot. I'm assuming they don't have models listed on them but a VIN decoder online shouldn't be hard to find.

 

[cruiser808]

That's in good shape, indeed.

I'm going to say it's a product of Kennedy.

I disagree my friend. Why Kennedy?

 

[lauver]

TP,

My first bike in the early 60's was a Western Flyer (Western Auto brand) purchased in the Bay area. A great bike, with fat tires, chrome fenders, a tank with battery powered horn, and a springer contraption on the front fork. I loved that bike...wish I still had it. They don't make em like that any more.

I miss Western Auto stores too, yet another victom of Sears Roebuck's many acquisitions.

 

[HandyManny]

I hear they basically evoled into todays Advance Auto Parts stores.

 

[Tool Pants]

To remove the drawers you stick a small screwdriver like in the picture.

I went to the flea market again today and brought the envelopes with me in case the guy I bought it from was there. He was not. The only tool related stuff he had was the box. Way too young to be the owner of the documents. Son or relative of the original owner, I have no way of knowing. All he was able to tell me is that it was old.

If they were not so old I would try to find the owner and give him his stuff back.

When I bought the box yesterday I went to the space accross the way because I know the Hispanic guy who is there almost every weekend selling mostly Craftsman. He said yesterday there was a tool stuck back there, but when I shook it I did not hear anything. Today I saw the Hispanic guy again and I told him I had fixed it. He wanted to know what I found inside.

He said the alien registration receipt card was worth money, becuase back then it was just a piece of paper. He is an older guy and originally from Mexico. Never thought about the pink slips.

Next time I buy a box I hope there is money stuck inside.

 

[jim]

I have the exact same toolbox only it's a craftsman. It has the crown craftsman logo on the bottom right hand drawer. The color is gloss dark gray. Got it from my father and i think it is from the late 60's. It has the same sticker on the inside of the cover. Even the letters are the same except for the (-1). Jim

 

[Tool Pants]

Saw this little Kennedy on a table at the flea market. First thing I do is to open it up and to see if there are any surprises inside. Nothing this time.

As I was leaving the flea market I showed the Kennedy to the Hispanic guy I know who sells Craftsman. The same guy who said there was a tool stuck in the back of the Wizard. He said he gave my Kennedy box away last week to a flea market guy who bought a bunch of Craftsman tools from him. The guy I bought the Kennedy from is one row down from the Craftsman guy.

My gal at work went on the internet and we think we found the owner of the 1960s documents in the Wizard. Still lives in Santa Maria, CA. 74 years old.

 

[Coach James]

My first bb gun came from Western Auto when I was in 4th grade. 1974 I guess. I remember my dad taking tv tubes to Western Auto to use their tube tester.

Coach

 

[Tool Pants]

2 more Kennedys to keep the little one company.

Red 2 drawer was $30.

The brown machinist was $35. Last Sunday it was $90 with some tools in in that I had no interest in, or $80 without the tools. I saw one on the local Craigslist for $40, but since I did not look at it I don't know the condition.

The brown machinist I bought is in good shape except for a dent in the bottom that I should be able to fix. Two older lady sellers from last week wanted $40 for it this Sunday. Very nice people. Bunch of clothing and other stuff. Should have asked them how they ended up with a machinist tool box.

I said $35 without the tools. What in the way of tools still in the box a week later was junk stuff.

One of the ladies hovered over me and kept saying it was a Kennedy, over and over, as I checked it out. I was almost tempted to tell her President Kennedy did not own the tool box. The other lady said she was tired of carrying it around because it was so heavy. Maybe that is why there is a dent in the bottom.

That machinist box is heavy. My right arm must have grown an inch carrying it around the flea market to my pickup. The smaller red one helped to balance me out a bit.

Need to remove the drawers to see if there are any interesting things inside the Kennedys. The release for the Kennedy slides are the same style as the Wizard.

Also need to see if I can get some keys.

 

[Tool Pants]

Removed the locks. Red one has numbers on it.

 

[superautobacs]

Nice purchases!

Are the drawer dividers in the brown chest factory issue or an option? I'm wondering as I have the same one (Craftsman/Sears branded version) that doesn't have dividers or pre-fabricated slots to accomodate dividers.

 

[Tool Pants]

Kennedy sells those removable dividers. I believe the box came with them. They are secured on one end by a spring clip. I also have a set of much larger dividers in one of my Craftsman roll aways that I bought from Home Depot 20 years ago. Same design. As I remember they were made by Kennedy.

I checked the Kennedy site and it looks like you have to buy the lock and key together. $15 for the lock and 2 keys. Since I need 2 that is $30 and what I paid for the red box. Don't think I am going to pay $30.

 

[sk farmer]

go find a decent hardware store. they will have that type of lock.

 

[Tool Pants]

Finding a decent hardware store in Silicon Valley is like finding the original keys for the Kennedys.

I have about 5 sets of old Craftsman keys so I tried them on the Kennedy locks. Found a Craftsman set that would go in but of course the key would not turn. So this must be a standard issue tool box lock.

In the daylight today I looked on the inside of the brown box. The lock on that one is the one with the nut to hold it in place, rather than the forked spring retainer for the red box. I could see signs that the brown one originally had a forked retainer. So the lock on the brown one has already been replaced.

 

[Tool Pants]

The brown box is done for $4.59, and with Arnold's tax the total is $5.01.

I started with the brown one because it did not look like it had the original lock anyway. When I measured the factory lock on the red box it was 1/2". The lock on the brown one was 5/8" but it had an escution plate which brings it down to 1/2".

I was able to find a 5/8" cam lock at an Ace place, but it was brass colored. It did have an escuation plate that would bring it back down to 1/2", but I did not want brass. The kit comes with 3 cams, but none of those cams are the right one for this application. With my Kennedys in the pictures you need a hooked cam.

Then I searched for the chrome version of this kit, and the local home depot had it. 5/8" and it comes with the escution plate you need. If you do not use the plate then the lock is a bit too long to engage the latch of the tool box lid. The kit comes with 3 cams, but none are correct for my Kennedys. You could take the smaller flat cam in the kit and cut it to match the Kennedy hooked cam.

I did not need to do this, because I removed the cam from the brown box lock and put it on the the home depot lock. The cams on both are held in place with a screw, so it is easy to do this swap.

The bottom lock in the third picture is the factory lock for the red box. The hooked cam is riveted, so I cannot easily remove it like I did for the brown box lock. This factory lock has Kennedy key code numbers on it, so I might check out the cost of having a key made for the red box.

 

[Tool Pants]

I gave up on the key for the original Kennedy lock. Email to Kennedy was not returned. There is an ebay guy that said he could make a key from the code on the side of the lock, about $10.

I check the local locksmith down the street. He went on the computer and found the Kennedy lock code stamped on my lock to make a key. A single key would cost $2.47, but there is a $20 labor charge. I paid $30 for the red box. So I passed.

So it was back to home depot for another 5/8" cam lock for the red box. Both locks are now keyed alike. I had to sort through the packages to find another package with the same key code. 12121.

I had to cut and grind the cam to make it like a hook.

Update. The day after I replaced the lock on the red box I received an email from Kennedy. Just the key is $12 plus shipping. That would be $24 for 2 keys. But if you buy the lock from Kennedy it comes with 2 keys and cost $15. Makes no sense to charge $12 for just one key.

 

[Tool Pants]

2 weeks later and another pair of tool boxes from the flea market. One was $3 and the other $2.

Wonder who made the one on the right....

As far a who made my Wizard. Yesterday I saw the identical box with a Craftsman riveted plate. Same warning sticker. Guy wanted $5 but it was dented bad on the bottom so that when you pulled out the bottom drawer it scraped. Today I saw the identical box with a Waterloo riveted plate. It had been repainted, so I did not ask. I have also seen this as a Dayton. So, I say all 3 were made by Waterloo.

 

[american lockpicker]

I went the other way. Grew up in Long Island, New York. Got moved to San Jose in 1969 when I was 12 years old. I no longer like the City of San Jose and cannot wait until I retire and move out.

For others, this is the Waterloo I checked out at the flea market back in April. Bob Lewis plates, which is a local VW dealership. I know a mechanic who works there. Should stop by and see if anyone will fess up.

How ironic I was at a auction a while back and there was old tools there and in one of the tool boxes was an old spartan condom still in its box and cellophain wrapped.

 

[Tool Pants]

Long story, at the flea market today. There is a guy who sometimes shows up on Sundays, with a bunch of tools. 30 year old stuff that looks like it has never been used. Some still have the price stickers on them. Williams, Armstrong, Proto, and so on. They are in old tool boxes, but have a surface rust just on the top of the boxes.

The story from the seller is the owner died at 80 plus years, and he had stuff in a mini storage place that he had not been to since the 1970s. The storage place is near the ocean. The tops of the boxes were rusted from the salt air, but not the sides and nothing inside. One side, the up side of the handles were rusted, but not the down side.

I bought a bunch of stuff over the Sundays. Then a few weeks ago I asked the seller If he would sell me just the tool boxes. He said no, because he needed them to haul the stuff around, but would sell me the Thorsen box for $15 after he sold the tools.

Today and weeks later he still had some tools. Most of the very good stuff was gone. Some of which I bought.

I paid $30 for the Thorsen with what tools were still in it. He still did not want to sell me just the Thorsen box because their were still tools inside, so I had to buy everything. Then as I was leaving, I spotted the S-K box which I had forgotten. That was $5, including the stuff inside.

 

[sk farmer]

buy the boxes with tools and peddle what you don't want here.

 

[Tool Pants]

Screwdrivers with the Phillips patent. Williams raised panel that AA says it from 1954-1958.

Wish I had taken some pictures when I first met the seller months ago, and he had all the stuff. It was strange. Like a time capsule. Old stuff that looked like new, some still with the price stickers.

 

[superautobacs]

The Xcelite is cool! ...it's UL listed

 

[Tool Pants]

The UL logo is on that screwdriver and some others.

I think I have done all I can for the rust bubbles on the lids. A shame, because the paint everywhere else is very good.

This is before.

This is the Thorsen after.

The S-K Wayne after.

I painted the lids with Evapo-Rust, waited 24 hours, then washed with a scrub brush and water. Repeated two more times. Had to be gentle or I would take the paint off the rust bubbles. Used Navel Jelly on the latches.

Don't think I can go anything more agressive without removing paint. Next I think I will coat the lids with WD-40.

 

[Tool Pants]

Today it is a Kennedy 526 for $60. Last Sunday it was $80. I almost passed at $60, but there is something about that ugly brown wrinkle finish.

No key, but I am the "expert" at getting a Home Depot lock. If I am lucky HD will still have a lock with the same key code as the other two Kennedys.

One drawer is missing the felt, so I see a hole in the bottom. Looks factory to me. Anyone know why there is a hole. The more I look at this drawer it does not look like felt had ever been glued in. I am thinking this drawer never had felt.

 

[knucklehead]

526 did not have felt in the center deep drawer.
no idea why they have the knock out in the drawer.
mine still has the knock out, yours has been...knocked out.
are you collecting them or reselling them?
i could possibly use another 526.

 

[Tool Pants]

Collecting, so I would like to see what goes in the hole.

I am almost done cleaning up the 526. Would like to see what goes in the hole so I can put something in there.

Receipt from Brisbane hardware. Stuck on name plate from San Francisco. These are towns near me. Decided I will leave the name plate on for the time being.

 

[Tool Pants]

All cleaned up, and lubed slides. New lock. The sticker and handles do not look like the pictures I have seen for the current model. Also the 2 bottom drawers have 2 pulls instead of 3.

That hole in the drawer is bugging me. Does anyone have a pic of what goes in the hole? And why is that drawer not felt lined?