Alloy Artifacts Tool History Page

This site is your online resource for 20th century hand tools and the companies that made them. You'll find information on thousands of different makes and types of tools, along with high-quality photographs to show details for each tool, and with background history on the tool companies that helped shape the industry. The website also provides tables of patents and trademarks, logo images to help identify unfamiliar tools, and finally a Site Index to help find everything.

The web pages here are updated frequently, and to help you keep up with the changes, we've added a table of Recent Additions. This table is synchronized with our web page updates, so you can check here for the latest additions.

Four Years and 4000 Tools Later ...

September 2009 marks the fourth anniversary of the Alloy Artifacts website. From a modest beginning with three articles and ten or twenty photographs, the site has since grown tremendously and now offers information for dozens of tool companies with more than 4000 photographs. Long-time readers may remember the "dark ages" before this site came online, when an internet search for a tool or tool company likely found nothing at all, or at best a mix of speculation and misinformation. Alloy Artifacts is working methodically to provide solid information in the form of photographs, references to printed material, public documents such as patents and trademarks, and (when possible) links to other online resources.

Breaking News!

Chicago, 1940. We've just discovered conclusive evidence that the "Cragin Tool" acquired by Plomb in 1940 was in fact the former Bog Manufacturing of Chicago! Bog was a noted maker of automotive specialty and general service tools during the 1920s and 1930s, and the new information on the later fate of the company resolves a number of long-standing questions. Refer to our article on Bog Manufacturing for the details.

Accessing the Web Pages

The Alloy Artifacts website has recently moved back to its original location on the home.comcast.net web servers. The Comcast servers had some problems two years ago, but since this is a hobby website and the Comcast web pages are "free" to subscribers, we've decided to give Comcast another try.

Although the web hosting address has moved, the Alloy Artifacts pages will still be accessible at the http://alloy-artifacts.com URL, and in addition we've added a new synonym at the http://alloy-artifacts.org URL. Finally, the pages can be accessed directly at Comcast at the http://home.comcast.net/~alloy-artifacts address. All of these URL addresses will return the same contents, but if one isn't working, it may help to try the others. We recommend that you try them in the above order.

Improved Indexing and Searching

We're currently working to improve the indexing and searching features of this site. The most obvious change is the addition of a search box for initiating a Google search from the pages here, with the default set to search just the Alloy Artifacts pages. We've also added some improvements to the site (general) index, and have recently created a new Index of Manufacturers listing all of the toolmakers mentioned on the site.

Recent changes to this site:

10/16/2009: Switched to new version of site index.
10/10/2009: Added link to manufacturer index.
10/08/2009: Added photo sampler to home page.
10/06/2009: New index version (beta) now available.
10/04/2009: Started adding Google search box to pages.
09/30/2009: Moved site back to home.comcast.net/~alloy-artifacts, added FAQ page.
08/28/2009: Moved Wilde Tool to separate page.
01/28/2009: Added a page for Thorsen Tools.
03/24/2008: Added table of Patented Tools.
03/03/2008: Updated contact information.
02/14/2008: Added a page for Sherman-Klove.
11/01/2007: Added a page for Bridgeport Hardware (BHM).
10/27/2007: We've moved! New site address is Alloy-Artifacts.com.
06/24/2007: Added a page for Pexto.
04/14/2007: Added a page for Wright Tool and Forge.
03/06/2007: Added a page for Champion DeArment.
03/05/2007: Added a page for J.P. Danielson.
02/19/2007: Added a page for Cornwell.
01/16/2007: Added a page for Crescent Tool.
12/11/2006: Added table of Recent Additions.
09/23/2006: Linked article on Armstrong, added brief notes on Bog and Milwaukee Tool & Forge.
09/13/2006: Linked articles on Billings, Walden, and Williams, currently under construction.
08/17/2006: Linked articles on Bonney and Herbrand, currently under construction.
06/10/2006: Loc-Rite 23336 flare-box wrench added as Tool of the Week.
05/09/2006: Added a brief article on Husky Wrench.
04/27/2006: S-K Model 4270 ratchet added as Tool of the Week.
03/20/2006: Herbrand 6827 Flex-Box wrench added as Tool of the Week.
02/27/2006: Preliminary page for Blackhawk Manufacturing added, under construction.
02/14/2006: Duro-Chrome 699 ratchet (forerunner to Williams S-52) added as Tool of the Week.
02/12/2006: Update to Craftsman page, comparison with Husky breaker bar.
02/08/2006: Update to Snap-On page for early socket patent.
02/05/2006: Swagelok Roller Cam wrench added as TOTW, updates to Plomb Tool page, index updates.
01/29/2006: Vlchek Tool page now pretty much complete, check it out! New TOTW and Site Index updates as well.
01/25/2006: Added Site Index to bottom of page, should help with finding entries.
01/24/2006: New TOTW, patent updates, improvements to Vlchek page.
01/16/2006: Added preliminary page for Vlchek, still under construction.
01/07/2006: New TOTW, updated trademark page.
12/18/2005: New TOTW, updates to Duro-Indestro and S-K pages.
11/20/2005: Updates to Craftsman, Hinsdale, and S-K pages; update to timeline table; improved navigation.
10/30/2005: Added page for Sherman-Klove (S-K) Knurled-Base sockets.
10/22/2005: Updated patents table; added preliminary page for Hinsdale.
10/18/2005: Changed page layout, and added the "Tool of the Week" feature.
10/13/2005: Preliminary page for Plomb Tool history.
10/10/2005: Tool Industry Timeline added