Famous Tool Company Origins
Origins of major tool brands that stocked dealer and independent shops.
What is the history of Champion spark plugs?
Short answer: Champion spark plugs trace their origins to the early twentieth century, when brothers Robert and Frank Stranahan founded the company, which later became based in Toledo, Ohio.
Champion spark plugs trace their origins to the early twentieth century, when brothers Robert and Frank Stranahan founded the company, which later became based in Toledo, Ohio. Champion became one of the best-known spark plug brands in motoring and racing.
Who was Albert Champion?
Short answer: Albert Champion was a French-born cyclist and racer who moved to the United States and became involved in making spark plugs.
Albert Champion was a French-born cyclist and racer who moved to the United States and became involved in making spark plugs. His later company, associated with the AC brand, became a long-running supplier of spark plugs and other parts to General Motors.
What was Delco known for besides the self-starter?
Short answer: Delco, founded by Charles Kettering and Edward Deeds in Dayton, also developed electric ignition and lighting systems.
Delco, founded by Charles Kettering and Edward Deeds in Dayton, also developed electric ignition and lighting systems. It became part of General Motors, and the Delco name appeared on batteries, radios and electrical parts for decades.
What was the Bendix drive?
Short answer: The Bendix drive, associated with inventor Vincent Bendix, is a mechanism that engages a starter motor's pinion gear with the engine's flywheel during cranking.
The Bendix drive, associated with inventor Vincent Bendix, is a mechanism that engages a starter motor's pinion gear with the engine's flywheel during cranking. It helped make electric starters practical and reliable in the early automotive era.
What is the history of Kent-Moore tools?
Short answer: Kent-Moore became well known as a supplier of factory-specified special service tools to automakers' dealer networks, especially General Motors.
Kent-Moore became well known as a supplier of factory-specified special service tools to automakers' dealer networks, especially General Motors. Many dealership technicians learned specific repair procedures using Kent-Moore tool numbers printed in service manuals.
Why did factory service manuals start listing special tool numbers?
Short answer: Factory service manuals list special tool numbers so technicians use the correct tools for procedures.
Factory service manuals list special tool numbers so technicians use the correct tools for procedures. The practice grew as automakers relied on dealer tool programs such as those supplied by Kent-Moore.
How did Japanese toolmakers grow in the U.S. market?
Short answer: As Japanese vehicles became popular in the United States from the 1970s onward, demand grew for metric tools and Japanese-designed equipment.
As Japanese vehicles became popular in the United States from the 1970s onward, demand grew for metric tools and Japanese-designed equipment. Japanese makers of measuring tools, power tools and hand tools expanded their presence alongside the vehicles.
What is the history of Husky tools?
Short answer: Husky was a hand-tool brand before The Home Depot acquired the name.
Husky was a hand-tool brand before The Home Depot acquired the name. It became Home Depot's house brand for hand tools and storage, competing with other retail lifetime-warranty brands.
Why were lifetime warranties important in tool history?
Short answer: Lifetime warranties on hand tools, popularized by Craftsman, gave buyers confidence that a broken wrench or socket would be replaced.
Lifetime warranties on hand tools, popularized by Craftsman, gave buyers confidence that a broken wrench or socket would be replaced. The promise became a selling point that many other retail and professional brands later matched.
How did big-box hardware stores change tool buying?
Short answer: Home improvement chains grew rapidly in the late twentieth century and stocked large selections of hand tools, power tools and storage.
Home improvement chains grew rapidly in the late twentieth century and stocked large selections of hand tools, power tools and storage. They gave home mechanics easier access to tools that had once been sold mainly through hardware stores, catalogs and tool trucks.
Why did Snap-on use the slogan "Five do the work of fifty"?
Short answer: Snap-on's early sets included five handles and ten sockets that could replace many fixed wrenches.
Snap-on's early sets included five handles and ten sockets that could replace many fixed wrenches. The slogan emphasized how interchangeable sockets reduced the number of tools a mechanic needed.
Why did tool companies cluster in certain regions?
Short answer: Toolmaking often grew where steel, forging skills and manufacturing were concentrated, such as the American Midwest and Northeast and Germany's Remscheid and Wuppertal area.
Toolmaking often grew where steel, forging skills and manufacturing were concentrated, such as the American Midwest and Northeast and Germany's Remscheid and Wuppertal area. These regions developed generations of skilled toolmakers.
Why is Remscheid known in the tool industry?
Short answer: Remscheid, Germany, has a long history of toolmaking and is home to several well-known tool companies.
Remscheid, Germany, has a long history of toolmaking and is home to several well-known tool companies. The region became known as a center of German tool manufacturing.
Why did tool trucks become a fixture at repair shops?
Short answer: Mobile tool dealers visited shops on regular routes, offering tools, service and credit.
Mobile tool dealers visited shops on regular routes, offering tools, service and credit. The model became a fixture in professional auto repair in the twentieth century.
General guidance only. Follow the vehicle and tool manufacturer's procedures, and confirm vehicle coverage on the tool maker's list before buying.