BARCALOS--POST YOURS HERE

[Len Jones]

Congratulations Cliff on winning that None Better 4944 shorty DBE.

You did well to find that Barcalo Buffalo 1020 DOE, a really hard piece to find here, mine came from a house clearance near Bristol , and thanks for your kind words. Nice to see Derek's finds - I wonder if all those little boxes actually contained the same identical pieces

For comparison here is my 1020 ' as found ' with that same ' O ' forge code.

Pleased to see that you have posted your ' Forged in U.S.A. ' DBE example alongside your three correct GMTS Barcalo Buffalo marked DBE's. Because I have these pieces in the following sizes which have all been found here in the U.K.

7/16 X 3/8 - 9/16 X 1/2 - 11/16 X 5/8. Note the ' E ' forge code orientations.

As they resemble the Barcalo Buffalo style I wonder who actually produced them Could they be export pieces for Commonwealth forces in U.K. Anyone else found similar examples outside of the U.K. Has anyone found a 5/8 X 3/4 sized example

For what it's worth my own thoughts - If these were supplied to Commonwealth forces by Barcalo manufacturing then perhaps the makers mark was omitted in the interests of American National Security, or simply not required / specified

Those sharper eyed readers might have spotted the additional ' & W ' marks Presumably made by their previous owner Thanks Don for pointing out that first auction site example. Then by chance many months later the same Vendor put the second piece for sale

Len

[d42jeep]

Len,
I don't believe I have any of the short DBE raised panel wrenches marked Forged on one side and In USA on the other.
Here are some more Double Grip DOE wrenches. From top to bottom the sizes are 7/8" x 25/32", 3/4" x 5/8", 11/16 x 19/32", 9/16" x 1/2" and 13/32" x 5/16".
-Don

[d42jeep]

Here is a Barcalo 8” adjustable wrench I found at a Mill Valley garage sale on Saturday. It was really rusty and totally frozen up. The Evaporust worked it’s magic and even the screw came out fairly easily. This wrench was likely made in the former Danielson factory in 1952, judging by the date markings and lack of a broached hanging hole.
-Don

[d42jeep]

I received this 7/16” x 1/2” Double Grip wrench today from another collector. It was one of the four that I was missing. Just three to go.
-Don

[ndnile]

I received this 7/16” x 1/2” Double Grip wrench today from another collector. It was one of the four that I was missing. Just three to go.
-Don

I have one. Which are you missing?

[d42jeep]

Thanks for asking. I’m currently missing the 15/16” x 1”, the 9/16” x 5/8” and the 3/4” x 7/8”. I believe that the last two were only a available for a short time. If anybody is putting together a set of these I have quite a few extras of the more common sizes posted above. Along with the new wrench, these are my current keepers.
-Don

[Len Jones]

Most Barcalo Buffalo Double Grips are fairly common here in the U.K. which are sometimes listed as ' Willys Jeep ' or ' Wills Jeep ' tool kit items on the auction site

Now whether they were ever military issue, or just civilian purchases is open for comments.
When was the double grip range first introduced, and when was it actually discontinued

These two complete sets were purchased here in the U.K. Their ' Bright red metal clips ' are mentioned in this 1940 catalogue.

The shorty DBE's are stamped ' BARCALO BUFFALO U.S.A. ' , and have the ' E ' forge code.

However the long DBE's are not stamped with a makers name, have the same ' E ' forge code, and are only stamped ' DROP FORGED IN U.S.A '. A previous user /owner has punch marked each one of this set twice. Perhaps this is another export set for Commonwealth forces by Barcalo Buffalo Manufacturing

[ndnile]

Thanks for asking. I’m currently missing the 15/16” x 1”, the 9/16” x 5/8” and the 3/4” x 7/8”. I believe that the last two were only a available for a short time. If anybody is putting together a set of these I have quite a few extras of the more common sizes posted above. Along with the new wrench, these are my current keepers.
-Don

Hi Don, It doesn't look like I'll do you any good. My sole one is 5/16" X 3/8".

[d42jeep]

Thanks for asking. I’m currently missing the 15/16” x 1”, the 9/16” x 5/8” and the 3/4” x 7/8”. I believe that the last two were only a available for a short time. If anybody is putting together a set of these I have quite a few extras of the more common sizes posted above. Along with the new wrench, these are my current keepers.
-Don

Hi Don, It doesn't look like I'll do you any good. My sole one is 5/16" X 3/8".

Thanks for checking. It looks like some of my missing ones are flying across the Atlantic to the West Coast which I greatly appreciate. I recently received these wrenches from Mudbox and they came out of the evaporust today looking like new.
-Don

[d42jeep]

New double grip wrenches arrived today from the UK and were promptly added to the set. I now have 9 of the 10 wrenches listed in the catalog. Thanks again, Len!
-Don

[Len Jones]

Don may recognise this sibling ?

Another recent find is this 11/16 ' DROP FORGED IN U.S.A. ' DBE with a single offset, and equal opening sizes.

Like my other two this one also appears to be in the same Barcalo Buffalo raised panel bar style, yet un branded

My best guess is that these were produced for Commonwealth Forces without a makers mark in order protect American National Security

BTW - What's happened to the attachment sizes

Len

[Len Jones]

This was on the auction site here in the U.K. Although it was quite rusty, and the listing photos were poor I did notice what appeared to be an additional ' U.S.A. ' mark on the right hand end of the panel bar, which I thought was rather unusual for a Barcalo Buffalo Whitworth DBE.

After a thorough cleaning it turned out to be something completely different

Shown here with a Barcalo Buffalo Whitworth below it - Both in my opinion were made by the same manufacturer - But who, because the reverse side shows an Electrolite mark, and not the Barcalo Buffalo mark that I expected to find ?

In addition to the ' U.S.A. ' mark there appears to be a ' . ' mark on the left hand end of the panel bar - Which appear to have been stamped after the final panel bar marking ?

Stay safe Len

[d42jeep]

Len,
That is a very cool find. I believe that both wrenches were made in the Barcalo factory, judging by the E forging mark so often seen on Barcalo wrenches. I suspect that both companies had contracts to supply the wrenches and Lectrolite found it more expedient to have theirs made by Barcalo under contract. Lectrolite went on after WW2 to make wrenches for S-K and actually formed a sales alliance with S-K until both companies were purchased by Symington-Wayne in 1962.
-Don

[d42jeep]

I was pleasantly surprised to be able to pick up this 28S for the minimum bid on eBay. These have gotten to be as hard to find as 723s.
-Don

[d42jeep]

Phil alerted me to this Barcalo item on eBay. It was priced a little high but I made an offer that was accepted. Thanks again, Phil!
-Don