Last Call: Tools Of The Trade Edition


They say that old men have old tools, and if the tools are still functional, the man probably is, too.
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15 responses to “Last Call: Tools Of The Trade Edition”

  1. Manxman Avatar

    I’ve got tools that belonged to my dad and father-in-law some of which are over 70 years old. I’ve got some 60s sockets made in Japan that I bought in a discount store, not the best “Snap-on” quality but they still work. I’ll pass them all on to my son.

    1. Rover 1 Avatar
      Rover 1

      My cars are mostly metric, the handed down tools usually stay on the rack at my place.

  2. 0A5599 Avatar
    0A5599

    Old tools only through a certain point in history, I suppose. I’m sure my dad still has some 70’s – 80’s Taiwan-made screwdrivers and ratchets that aren’t good for anything but ballast.

  3. Batshitbox Avatar
    Batshitbox

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/9460260d9601c264bfabc14053a40b5e160ecd14f01435897e40f0b13be68c8d.jpg
    Spider-Mobile!
    The Spider-Mobile was (probably for the best) sunk into the muck at the bottom of the East River. But wait! There’s more!
    Deadpool found the Spider-Mobile and reconstructed it as the Dead-Buggy. But that’s not all!
    Spider Man and Deadpool took a road trip in an entirely new Spideypool Mobile!
    (Why wasn’t the Spider Man-Deadpool road movie buddy flick ever made? Why?)

  4. Windbüchse Avatar
    Windbüchse

    My 93 yo father no longer has use for his tools and has given them to me. Some are from his father (born 1888 in Tallinn, then part on the Russian Empire). Pre WW1 Euro spec tools are somewhat interesting as they were used in a paper factory in St. Petersburg. What he can’t explain is how he ended up with a set of these type screwdrivers used in US tanks during WW2 – probably surplus he picked up in the early 50s. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e7d457bcf97fd89f07474c41251fe5a5b0de6d63dd5c78835de51d2383a6ea48.jpg

    1. Manxman Avatar

      Those are very cool and so well taken care of.

      1. Windbüchse Avatar
        Windbüchse

        Those aren’t mine – closest pic I could find. They are actually back in production.

  5. Toaster Avatar
    Toaster

    My Grandpa has a set of russian socket wrenches he bought in the 70s. Good quality, but such a large outside diameter, they are completely unusable for anything recessed.

    1. Manxman Avatar

      Maybe they were intended for use on large diesel motors like in submarines or trains where strength is important because of higher torque settings.

      1. Toaster Avatar
        Toaster

        Oh totally, I bet the same set was found all over the soviet economy and military with civilian sales little more than an afterthought.

  6. outback_ute Avatar
    outback_ute

    I have a few of my grandfather’s tools, as well as the ones that are useful there is a shovel worn down to nearly half its original length. He used it for opening & closing the irrigation channels so big chunks of soil where the reduced size would still work ok. Another one is a socket extension bar with a 45 degree twist in it.

  7. Batshitbox Avatar
    Batshitbox

    Visitor’s to mid-coastal Maine will do well to visit the trifecta of old hand tools: Liberty Tool Co, Captain Tinkham’s Emporium, and Hull’s Cove Tool Barn.
    http://www.jonesport-wood.com/
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/cc996820455e000fecb510650e7f755fa94042f95a9e8b7c792bd370a693d330.jpg
    I went to all three while learning small boat construction at The Woodenboat School. I think my best scores were a lignum-vitae mallet and a 12-1/2 degree block plane. Only one of my grandpa’s tools I have is a 1914 Winchester Model 12 shotgun.

  8. salguod Avatar

    I’ve got an old Thor power drill that was my grandfather’s on my mother’s side. This isn’t mine but looks just like it.
    https://i.etsystatic.com/7233200/r/il/1c2047/1339987186/il_570xN.1339987186_70m1.jpg

  9. ClockDivider Avatar
    ClockDivider

    My great grandfather was a toolmaker. My dad has his toolboxes, which are filled with large precision steel implements stamped with his initials, from around the 1900s.
    I went on an extended craigslist tool buying binge starting in about 2005. The most exotic items I ended up with from that were a 3×5′ welding table made of 1/2″ plate that weighs about 600 lbs, and a Burke mill.

  10. SlowJoeCrow Avatar
    SlowJoeCrow

    My tools are mostly Craftsman from the late 80s, except for my father’s Plumb ball peen hammer.
    On the subject of old tools, I wonder how many people would recognize a dwell meter and know how to use it?
    Personal confession, I haven’t actually used mine since 1990 or so.