1) Old/Rare multitool of the month: Redex Combination Tool Knife

[J-sews]

Been meaning to start something like this for awhile now. (gives me a good opportunity to parade some of these old gems in front of a hopefully approving audience) So here we go:


REDEX Combination Tool Knife

The box claims it's "The Tool of Thousand Uses" but I actually could not come up with that many. However it is old, and it is unusual, and so therefore it seems like a good candidate to start this new column on.





At first glance the Redex simply looks like some sort of an oddly shaped plier tool. The body is large and boxy, with a single plier handle, and the plier jaws are short and stubby. There also seems to be an unusual profile cut into the inner surfaces of the jaws. Wonder what that's all about...?

Pictured here next to a Leatherman PST:






The secret to the Redex's "thousand uses" is revealed by opening the spring steel lid at the back of the body. Inside is a roomy compartment, filled with a full set of five accessory blades. There is a big clip-point knife, a three-sided file, a flat screwdriver, a saw blade, and an awl.







The blades all have a special tang on them, which fits closely into a set of notches and grooves in the plier jaws.







Open the jaws, put in the blade tang, close the jaws. Rotate the bail up to lock down the plier handle (which of course locks the blade in place) and you're ready to go!







Or simply leave the blades in the compartment and use the Redex as a regular set of pliers. It feels pretty stout, and there are big v-notches cut into the jaws to help grip objects better.





The body of the tool is made of folded sheet steel, not unlike the Leatherman tool I was comparing it with earlier. The plier handle and plier jaws are made from three much thicker stampings, laminated and held together with rivets. The Redex Combination Tool Knife was made in Olean, New York, USA. There was a patent pending (according to the markings on the tool) but I have not been able to locate it yet, so I can't be certain of when it was manufactured.

[Chako]

I haven't seen one of those before. Can't wait to see what other goodies you have Bob. 

[MultiMat]

WOW Bob I LOVE that  .

The shaped tool tangs reminds me off my 2 Japanese locking pocket knife sets(will get some better pics of them up).
I really like the way the bail acts as a lock , very clever  .

Very cool old MT Bob

[AHB]

I only see a really nice PST..

Very cool tool that Redex.. 

[edcgear]

 

Cool MT...

[Mr. Whippy]

That is a very clever design!  Even has locking blades. 

[Reinier]

That is a cool MT! I wonder if the pliers are actually useful, they are so bulky.

[Freudian Frog]

Wow that's interesting. I want one!

[nuphoria]

Very nice, and actually looks quite useful

[nicolas11]

Nice , never seen before...

[Gareth]

Like the design though I suspect it was too much of a faff when swapping tools around.  What I really love is this thread idea, keep 'em coming Bob.

[MultiMat]

OK here is my latest old multi tool of the month, the blue set .
A Japanese interchangeable & locking pocket knife tool set.



I got the blue set recently & it appears to be made by the same company that made the my more fancily packaged black cased set. I like the way the blue case has extra protection to avoid damage from the saw & blade tips(a nice touch). The Japaneses seem to like to provide blade edge protectors. The black set has a metal sleeve & SOG ToolClips were also sold with metal sleeves for their serrated blades 

The Locking Mechanism

Fully open via deployment of the Phillips head screw driver, my latest version of the 2 with the plastic scales opens slightly wider than the polished metal version does.

Lock partially deployed by closing the Phillips head screw driver down.

Lock fully engaged & rock solid 

The tool sets between the 2 are identical but the thing I wanted to show is the similarity in the tools shaped tangs that enables them to be locked & the similarity with Bob's old plier MT's  shaped tool tangs  . I think these sets were a generic product sold onto western companies with their brand names applied.I think they were probably made between the 60's to the 70's  . Completely different to Bob's but similar ideas to lock the MT's tools 

[J-sews]

Cool sets Mat. I like the way the removeable blade is locked/unlocked by the phillips screwdriver. I've seen some older sets similar to yours, made in Solingen mostly. Same principle, but before there was such a thing as a "phillips" screwdriver. Instead I think they used the knife blade itself to lock/unlock the other tools.

[David]

Bob that Redex is an interesting tool. Cant wait to see some more guys.

[turnsouth]

I love old tools. That Redex looks especially cool Bob. I could just imagine how much fun it would have been pulling one of of your pocket, back when they first came out, locking the knife or saw in it, and everyone going  .