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Nostalgic British spanners from bygone decades:
Britool. They still exist in name but shortly after they were taken over by Facom the factory in Cannock was closed down. I think they are now sold as a budget brand and made in the far east whereas Facom are still made in France.
Garringtons. Named after birds.
Gordon Tools. Was the Snap-On of the 1950s and 60s.
Bedford Vanadium. They were made in Sheffield rather than Bedford and had no connection with Bedford vans.
Reform. Spanners turn up every now and again but nobody seems to know anything about them.
Snail Brand. I like the cute snail logo. Still manufactured in Britain. http://www.smithfrancistools.co.uk/
T Williams Superslim. Torque Wrenches are still available but the spanners appear to have been merged in with Snail Brand.
Can anybody here confirm whether DIY and hardware shops in the 1970s commonly sold UNC and UNF (American) nuts and bolts or were they for vehicles? Did the DIY and building community go directly from Whitworth and BA to metric without going through UNC and UNF?
Britool. They still exist in name but shortly after they were taken over by Facom the factory in Cannock was closed down. I think they are now sold as a budget brand and made in the far east whereas Facom are still made in France.
Garringtons. Named after birds.
Gordon Tools. Was the Snap-On of the 1950s and 60s.
Bedford Vanadium. They were made in Sheffield rather than Bedford and had no connection with Bedford vans.
Reform. Spanners turn up every now and again but nobody seems to know anything about them.
Snail Brand. I like the cute snail logo. Still manufactured in Britain. http://www.smithfrancistools.co.uk/
T Williams Superslim. Torque Wrenches are still available but the spanners appear to have been merged in with Snail Brand.
Can anybody here confirm whether DIY and hardware shops in the 1970s commonly sold UNC and UNF (American) nuts and bolts or were they for vehicles? Did the DIY and building community go directly from Whitworth and BA to metric without going through UNC and UNF?
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