Unknown vintage spanners

[GraemeVW]

Just curious about a couple of spanners in a box of tools I picked up today.

Does anyone know anything about HF&CO Ltd?

The two marked AT 8008 and AT 8009. They look and feel good quality, but no idea on make. They have decimal sizes on the other side, on the jaw.

The weidly marked chrome vanadium. I'm assuming these are cheap tat, but it annoys me that I don't know what the logo is!

And on a similar note, how old is the Halfords spanner? It is marked made in England on the other side. I'm surprised they ever made anything in England!

 

[Bullet2012]

Odd to see something marked as a percentage of an inch as well.

 

[James1979]

I thought I recognised the at numbers so I googled them.

I was wrong

However…..

Warbird Information Exchange • View topic - Packard Rolls-Royce Merlin tool roll

www.warbirdinformationexchange.org

They may have an interesting pedigree

 

[Mikey D]

I have a few of those Halfords open end spanners . I believe they were made by gordon tools ?

 

[tom2207]

Middle one looks a lot like a Tipco and so does the one below it , thin ring and decent finish.

 

[Porkypine]

There was an HF & Co that were I believe a knife maker, maybe did spanners as war work..

 

[GraemeVW]

I thought I recognised the at numbers so I googled them.

I was wrong

However…..

Warbird Information Exchange • View topic - Packard Rolls-Royce Merlin tool roll

www.warbirdinformationexchange.org

They may have an interesting pedigree

Wow!
I need to 're read that properly, but seems like they are snap on made for the rolls Royce Merlin tool kit or something.
Interesting!

 

[GraemeVW]

There was an HF & Co that were I believe a knife maker, maybe did spanners as war work..

I'll look into that, thanks.

 

[GraemeVW]

I have a few of those Halfords open end spanners . I believe they were made by gordon tools ?

That would make sense. I sort of recognised the look as something British made that I ignore in the boxes at boot sales. Gordon and bedford.
I did get a Gordon socket in this recent bath of old tools though and it looks quite decent!

 

[GraemeVW]

Middle one looks a lot like a Tipco and so does the one below it , thin ring and decent finish.

There was a tipco in the box too, but it's not the same kind of quality as these other 2.

 

[James1979]

Wow!
I need to 're read that properly, but seems like they are snap on made for the rolls Royce Merlin tool kit or something.
Interesting!

That seems so be the case. @Tinbasherdan may be able to assist?

 

[tom2207]

There was a tipco in the box too, but it's not the same kind of quality as these other 2.

wonder if there was a wartime range ,,, I lost the only Tipco spanner I ever had , an 1/2 inch combo , I think it got left in the sump of a 2.3 DTV Chevete engine I put in a CF Bedford van many years ago ,,, Ive one Gordon spanner in my box and its nice ,,, but theres a thought Bedford spanners ,,, I vaguely remember them too.

 

[James1979]

Wow!
I need to 're read that properly, but seems like they are snap on made for the rolls Royce Merlin tool kit or something.
Interesting!

That’s a snap on part number.

The W denotes Whitworth.

Page 30 https://collectingsnapon.com/2023/02/03/1941-catalog-o/

 

[GraemeVW]

wonder if there was a wartime range ,,, I lost the only Tipco spanner I ever had , an 1/2 inch combo , I think it got left in the sump of a 2.3 DTV Chevete engine I put in a CF Bedford van many years ago ,,, Ive one Gordon spanner in my box and its nice ,,, but theres a thought Bedford spanners ,,, I vaguely remember them too.

I'll grab a photo of the tipco, it's not up there with these though.

Funnily enough, I have a bedford c.f., and I'd LOVE to put a hot 2.3 in it. Not got any flat top pistons laying around have you?

 

[GraemeVW]

That’s a snap on part number.

The W denotes Whitworth.

Page 30 https://collectingsnapon.com/2023/02/03/1941-catalog-o/

I posted some USA spanners over on garage journal and apparantly the blue point in this photo is also from the Packard Merlin tool kit

I may have to go through this box a bit more carefully!
Everything else is English though.

 

[James1979]

I wouldn’t know about that.

Collectingsnapon.com is a good site if you come across old stuff.

Incidentally, that oex120 is $0.70 new.

 

[GraemeVW]

I wouldn’t know about that.

Collectingsnapon.com is a good site if you come across old stuff.

Incidentally, that oex120 is $0.70 new.

I'd been searching blue point archives for the AT code, which I now know isn't it's code. I'd seen the blue point spanners had oex codes but hadn't seen that mark on mine.
You mentioning it just made me look again, and there it is!

People I know think I'm mental buying old tools all the time, but this cheap box of spanners is providing all kinds of entertainment finding out about them!

 

[James1979]

I have seen that AT code somewhere and it’s bugging me!

That snap on site is interesting if you like that sort of thing.

Got some good stuff on there.

 

[Porkypine]

People I know think I'm mental buying old tools all the time, but this cheap box of spanners is providing all kinds of entertainment finding out about them!

Old tools are brilliant, and I've often found that an odd old 'un from the box is just the spanner you need for some particular job

 

[Tinbasherdan]

That seems so be the case. @Tinbasherdan may be able to assist?

If they are, they’ll be Packard not RR. Have asked my friend/ex boss as he’s the font of all merlin knowledge. What I do know is that if a Packard arrived on squadron in the uk there were fights over who got the tool kit!