Some old tools and some old tool boxes.

Mo'tools

No mo' tools

Walden, Hinsdale, and Indestro. Nice collection!

Walden, Hinsdale, and Indestro. Nice collection!

Thank you. Actually the set in the large box is Duro which is identical to the Indestro.What is unusual in that set is the set of 4 point sockets.Never seen them before but they were pretty common on early cars mostly as drain plugs.There were two other sets of sockets in the box;one was 1/2 in hex drive and the other 9/16ths hex drive.
Here is a really old set of sockets by the Rex Wrench Co. which was only in business from 1906 to 1915. It was missing the drive handle when I bought it and a good friend who is a machinist made one for me. Luckily I found a picture of one on the Alloy Artifacts site posed next to a ruler so it was fairly simple to make an accurate drawing of the handle.

Page two

Last pics. Instead of having a fractional size the sockets are marked with a number from 2 to 8 .The chart shows which socket to use with which bolt and they measure the bolt diameter similar to the Whitworth system.

Fantastic! That is probably the first Rex set I've seen. 

Cool thread, lots of nostalgia in here. 

When I was growing up my dad had a work bench in the basement where he'd let me/sent me, to tinker when I was bored.  My parents had a whole slew of different activities to keep me doing something when I got bored, things like modeling, cutting open golf balls, seeing what I could build with scrap, etc.  So my dad's tools, while useful for him, were a sort of fun for me.  My dad's first job when I was born and when he was first out of school until he was about 35 or so was as a hydro lineman, repairing and installing electrical lines.  Nasty work in winter no doubt, which is why when he had kids he got a different line of work. 

He had a pair of tools he used as a lineman and the pliers he had was probably my favorite tool of all.  He also had what is now a pretty ancient screwdriver and must be an early version of a ratcheting screwdriver with interchangeable bits.  When I moved out I told him I was taking the pliers, he said no way, but they were mine when he was gone.  In the interim, be bought me a pretty nice, new pair of lineman pliers that I've owned for over 30 years now. 

My dad passed away in 2008 while snowbirding in the U.S. (I'm up in Canada).  As it was a car accident it was a big shock to all.  Thankfully my stepmother survived the accident.  When she asked me what I wanted of his from down south my only concern was those pliers. 

As a bonus, I also got the screwdriver, which I wasn't expecting and wasn't even sure he still had. 

My father in law has also passed away, back in 2002.  He was a mechanic in a mine in northern Canada but also did a lot of electrical work.  My wife, and by being married to her, we got a tool from him as well, though virtually all of the tools went to his two suns. 

The third picture is of all three of my lineman-type pliers.  Figured they should be immortalized together. 

It is nice to have tools with a family history.  Thanks for sharing.