Wingnutt's Flea Market Frenzy - Version 2019

[Wingnutt]

Your Ryan screwdriver looks very similar in pattern to my Dunlap example Greg. I wonder if they were manufactured by a single company and badged with different names?

In the case of your Dunlap, for sure, Cliff. It was an economy line Sears, Roebuck brand name, under Craftsman. No manufacturing capability. And I do think it's probable that Ryan, Irwin, and others had to make them under license. Unless they got around the patent somehow.

I did come across some patent based evidence that Tobrin took over H D Smith on its demise

If you mean that Thompson assigned patents to HD Smith and Tobrin, I'm not sure that's enough. I'll try to see where I got the idea that it was Ryan. I could be dead wrong and just completely juxtaposing the two companies.

CORRECTION:

Just in case anyone is tracking these for their own purposes, the Duplex made Snap-on Handikits were sold by Snap-on from 1933 to 1948. They were "battleship grey duco enamel" in the catalogs from 1933 to 1937, and "grey enamel" in the catalogs from 1938 to 1948. We know they were OD green during WWII.

[Hartofoak]

The link to the blog I posted above led me to a 1940 (?) Ryan catalogue showing your screwdriver and even listing the elusive 5 1/2" cabinet screwdriver of 41-S-1228 specification!
https://archive.org/details/RyanToolsCatalogNo23

[Wingnutt]

I have seen that before on Garage Journal and that's where I saw the reference to them taking over HD Smith. Ryan had WWII contracts, so I am happy.

Note that they called it the "original Wrench Grip Perfect Handle Screwdriver." That's a twist, pun intended, on the HD Smith trademark they assumed. Not too sure why they renamed the more familiar "perfect handle" pattern screwdriver, without the hex shank, to "Perfect Grip" (on the very next page of the catalog). It goes against all marketing logic.

[Wingnutt]

Picked up some Plomb today...

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The pebble hinge handles are 3/4- and 3/8-inch drive.

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The ratchet is a 4748 female reversible with a missing drive plug.

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And that Chinese red finish box is a 1941 Set No. 5000 SPA with spark plug sockets. 3/8-inch drive.

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They have the special rubber inserts designed to not break spark plugs. On the right are standard Plomb deep sockets.

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[P3-F/E]

Greg,
looks like the drive over worked out well for you, the 3/8 set was in very vice condition as was the 1/4 set.

Andy

[Wingnutt]

Thanks! It did indeed!

The 1/4-set box is roached on the outside, but the embossed "Firestone" makes up for it. I may have fun and try to refinish that in the Firestone crinkle brick color. The 3/8 set box is in ridiculously good condition. If I touched up those few scratches here and there, it would look like it was never used. I posted close-ups in your Firestone thread.

The Plomb female reversible rat is rare and highly sought after. It's a shame about the missing plug (it actually took a 1/4 AND a 9/32 size plug), but there are guys that have been looking for one forever.

The spark plug set is uncommon as well. There are Plomb guys who have never seen one of the -SP sockets, let alone a whole set in the original box. The WF- handles in it don't belong, so I will flip those to the needy. The set wants a pin handle. And it's missing an adaptor socket (splined) for older spark plugs.

[Gordon_M]

There's some nice stuff there - it is good to see finishes other than OD now and then.

I never saw the point in having a ratchet that was female drive AND reversible. I can't think of a job where you would need both and flipping the ratchet and pushing the drive plug through wouldn't be almost as quick.

I try not to buy female drive ratchets unless they have the plug, or unless I already have a plug with no ratchet. ( I bought another female 1/4" Craftsman BE Ratchet because that boxed set I bought a few months back came with two drive plugs )

[Wingnutt]

... it is good to see finishes other than OD now and then.

Honestly, I'm not a big fan of red, and the Plomb 1941 "brilliant Chinese red" is a little too brilliant for me. And I think this one has been spraybombed by a PO. There is dried paint splotches underneath. I may sandblast it and do my special Plomb "barn find" OD green treatment to it.

I never saw the point in having a ratchet that was female drive AND reversible. I can't think of a job where you would need both and flipping the ratchet and pushing the drive plug through wouldn't be almost as quick.

Flipping the ratchet over and pushing the drive plug through would be almost as quick, and I can't even think of another female reversible ratchet off the top of my head. But you're making the mistake of thinking that all Plomb collectors are practical utilitarians. The 4748 isn't highly desirable for its utility. This little critter is highly desirable because it's so rare and Plomb collectors want to say they have one! As for why a reversible female, it may have been provisioned like this to explicitly accept both a 4752 (1/4-inch) drive plug AND that second 4753 (9/32-inch) drive plug. I don't know how you'd make a ratchet that would take a 1/4-inch push-through and a 9/32-inch push-through.

I try not to buy female drive ratchets unless they have the plug, or unless I already have a plug with no ratchet.

I have a pile pf push-through square and hex plugs in all sorts of drive sizes that I pick up at flea markets whenever I see them in old toolboxes precisely for the reason that I sometimes find ratchets without them. I can think of a few ratchets I wouldn't buy if it was missing the plug, but a Plomb 4748 is not one of them! I would've been mocked, tarred and feathered, and run out of Plombtown as a complete idiot by other collectors if I had left that ratchet behind for missing its plugs!

[Gordon_M]

I would've been mocked, tarred and feathered, and run out of Plombtown...

Surely not, with your life membership, pretty much a founder member, with Don. My Craftsman stuff needs a 3/8" ratchet, and about a month back I bid on, and won, a 3/8" female BE ratchet with a 3/8" by 1/2" drive plug. I was really happy, until it failed to arrive and the seller was suspiciously quick to offer a full refund - I think someone got to them, presumably attracted by that plug.

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While on drive plugs, any I've found have not had manufacturers marks, do you know of any that are branded? I'll have to remember you have that box if I find something really nice that just needs a plug as I've never seen one loose this side of the Atlantic, we all seem to specify male / reversible here.

[Wingnutt]

I think I do have one or two that have a model number, but no, not any branding. I have to remember which ones (if they're in a box set) or go through the pile of orphans.

As for Plummiest Plomb Purveyors - Tin Medic has more Plomb than God. He's just more quiet and understated about it!

[Wingnutt]

I was in such a kerfuffle to post the Firestone and Plomb stuff, I forgot to post the DBE wrench you can see in the photo above. It's a 1944 Blackhawk GMTK spec 15* pattern 15/16 x 1.

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[d42jeep]

I have a Williams plug with the W in a diamond. Indestro made reversing ratchets with removable plugs as did NB and others.
-Don

[Wingnutt]

Playing some ketchup here with a couple flea market hauls...

Last week

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Thursday

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Yesterday

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[Wingnutt]

The art deco heater (Noblitt-Sparks) is not military, obviously, but it was made in 1945. I took the hood off, cleaned up the components and wiring, and pugged it in - and it actually works. Coil wire heat element and a fan. That layer of gunk (tar and nicotine!) on the hood cleaned up well, too, and needs a little more rubbing...

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That wooden box for two dozen 31/32" high speed drill bits weighing 64 lbs, with the nice spec stenciling (like my GMTK box), is KW era. Might have been WWII originally, and repacks, with the reference to condition and preservation type. At $10, I couldn't resist. I may even keep my KW era stuff in it.

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[Wingnutt]

Here are the Champion DeArment pliers... I believe the battery pliers (No. 307) are older, but the ignition jobbies (No. 424) have the wartime (1934, to be precise) tongue-and-groove patent we want to see.

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...and the partial Duro-Chroe ignition set. Check out the last one separated from the others. E16, instead of E61. I thought, stamping mistake? But it's not quite the same pattern as Duro-Chrome. Interesting though.

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