new wrench collector from New Zealand - unusual B&C wrench

[oliron]

Hi guys ,  very  impressed with the site , i wonder if anyone is interested in looking at what i think may be an unusual Bemis & Call wrench ,  i have some of the usual combination ones they made - (nut and pipe combo) ,  but this one is different in as much as the sides of the sliding jaw are plated closed and riveted, in all other aspects its the same as the common ones - although the sides of the sliding jaw head have been cast slightly differently or machined to accept the plates on the upper part of the jaw - i will try and attach some shots of it , the photo of 3 wrenchs together shows the unusual one between 2 common ones , note "plated" sliding jaw , it may just be that there are plenty of them in the US and none came out to NZ ?  but i couldnt find any like it when googling US sites for a few hours yesterday , can anyone shine a light ?  cheers

[Papaw]

Welcome to Tool Talk!

I have never seen one like that.

[Lostmind]

Welcome from Ohio , thanks for sharing. First for me. I've had several of the others.
Any patent numbers?

[Yadda]

Howdy from Texas!

[Plyerman]

I have no info about old B&C wrenches, but as a machinist, all I can say is Wow! when I look at the fit on that side plate. For such a complex shape, to have virtually zero "gap" between the plate and the jaw housing is some very impressive machine work. And to do it 100+ years ago on the equipment they had back then....

[Lewill2]

I think B & C made some heavy duty versions of wrenches for the railroad industry but I don't think they were machined and riveted into place.

[mvwcnews]

Given the difference in metals between the main portion of the jaw & the side plates, I'm going to throw in the possibility that this was a "repair" or modification  performed by a competent machinist.   One thing the side plates do  is close in the side openings normally found on B&C pipe & nut combination wrench jaws.   Could be this one was modified to close that area off from something objectionable in its normal use environment.  All just speculation.

[oliron]

many thanks for all the replys guys ,  it sent me investigating even deeper - so i stripped the sliding head off to see if it looked pro'  tradesman made ,  something i really enjoy doing - i seem to have ended up as the "what - is - it " guy  ...in our NZ vintage tool club  ..my background as a mechanic then later  in engineering and fitting / welding certainly helps me understand tool production & modification methods etc,    the interesting thing with this head is the perfect "zig-zag" machine cut near the pipe jaw and it is absolutely identicle and even on both sides ..it does appear to be factory done, I only found years of ordinary grease and grime in side the head - no fibres or unusual compounds and yet the top of the head is still very open and  loose with a big enough gap to let in something objectionable - i think being modified was a good guess ..but it doesnt quiet add up -  it would have taken half a day to a full day to achieve it when ordinary more enclosed spanners where commonly available at a low price ,  there are no Patent numbers to anser that question - but just 2 large number stamps on the main slide area just down from the top head - which incidentally are on all my other B&C combo's too -  i thought they were production date stamps at first ,  all done by hand ..with the same unusual font ..and not alighned carefully - some have a letter too like  a capitol "J"  which i thought may be January, that one reads   J   2    05  ,  another reads   just    A  29  ,    the unusual plated jaw one has simply  5  4  ,   all  are stamped on the same side of the main slide (you'll see it when the pipe jaw is pointed to your left) and all are the same font , they all came from different areas -towns - villages etc   ... 7 in total,   as you say we can only speculate .. but if u guys can keep a watch out for anything similar ..it may help to solve it .... can u please pass this on to any big-time specialists in the ajustable spanner field in the US for me  - they may have seen another similar ..cheers ,  I saw a mini finger tool set on a post here so iv attached photos of an English set i have .. its in a nice orig' tin , with names for all tools in the lid , incl's screwdrivers / nut wrenchs / 3 types of swivelling tweezers / and a pyrogrip acc'  ...enjoy

[turnnut]

oliron, that is a very interesting set of finger wrenches.  the only ones that I knew about
were finger nut wrenches.  thanks for sharing.

BEMIS & CALL wrench, I will keep looking as I live in the state of Massachusetts where
they were made.  Springfield is only 14 to 17 miles from where I live.

warmer weather is coming, I will check out my B & C wrenches.

[oliron]

thanks for that  Turn nut ,  i look forward to hearing if u find something similar - yeah ..we are just getting the first cold blast of winter - so u must be warming up  huh