Hi all,

You know when you're searching for an uncommon tool and eventually you
buy a decent one, but it doesn't quite do everything you need, so you
keep looking and sometime buy another? Then the whole cycle repeats
itself until you have several similar tools?

Well it keeps happening to me with BA spanners and sockets. I bought a
set of open-ended BA spanners when I was working on a vacuum pump a
couple of years ago. Then a bit later I was working on a scientific
balance which had some delicate brass BA locknuts. So I ended up with
two sets of open-ended BA spanners.

Then I needed to tighten terminals on several motors. The open-ended
spanners don't fit very well, so I ordered some BA box spanners.
Unfortunately the set was incomplete when it arrived, so I called the
old guy at the tool company. He apologised and said that someone else's
set had contained a faulty spanner, so he replaced it with one from
another set, then forgot about it. The replacement didn't turn up, so I
called the guy again and he said the manufacturer was in difficulty and
hadn't supplied him. A few months went by and I called the company
again, but didn't get the knowledgeable old guy. It turned out that he
had passed away. Poor chap.

So I bought some new old stock BA sockets on eBay. Only I screwed up.
They were advertised as "BA sockets, 1/4" hex drive". I assumed it meant
"BA hex sockets, 1/4" square drive", but no, they are actually hex
drive. My fault. They're quite a nice set, though, and they were cheap.
They come with a handle which looks like an Allen key, but I was hoping
to be able to use a screwdriver-type ratchet handle with them. What do
you call a screwdriver-type ratchet handle which fits 1/4" hex drive
sockets, I wonder, and where might one find such a tool?

Ah, the joy of hunting for tools (it is quite fun, actually).

Best wishes,

Chris

"Christopher Tidy" wrote in message
...
Hi all,

You know when you're searching for an uncommon tool and eventually you
buy a decent one, but it doesn't quite do everything you need, so you
keep looking and sometime buy another? Then the whole cycle repeats
itself until you have several similar tools?

Well it keeps happening to me with BA spanners and sockets. I bought a
set of open-ended BA spanners when I was working on a vacuum pump a
couple of years ago. Then a bit later I was working on a scientific
balance which had some delicate brass BA locknuts. So I ended up with
two sets of open-ended BA spanners.

Then I needed to tighten terminals on several motors. The open-ended
spanners don't fit very well, so I ordered some BA box spanners.
Unfortunately the set was incomplete when it arrived, so I called the
old guy at the tool company. He apologised and said that someone else's
set had contained a faulty spanner, so he replaced it with one from
another set, then forgot about it. The replacement didn't turn up, so I
called the guy again and he said the manufacturer was in difficulty and
hadn't supplied him. A few months went by and I called the company
again, but didn't get the knowledgeable old guy. It turned out that he
had passed away. Poor chap.

So I bought some new old stock BA sockets on eBay. Only I screwed up.
They were advertised as "BA sockets, 1/4" hex drive". I assumed it meant
"BA hex sockets, 1/4" square drive", but no, they are actually hex
drive. My fault. They're quite a nice set, though, and they were cheap.
They come with a handle which looks like an Allen key, but I was hoping
to be able to use a screwdriver-type ratchet handle with them. What do
you call a screwdriver-type ratchet handle which fits 1/4" hex drive
sockets, I wonder, and where might one find such a tool?

Ah, the joy of hunting for tools (it is quite fun, actually).

Best wishes,

Chris

Chris
I have a cheap ratchet screwdriver, the type with a fat handle that contains
the spare bits; it's 1/4" drive so if you can find one, you could cut a
piece of a 1/4" Allen key to use as an adapter. This one was free with 5
litres of oil but the same type of thing turns up in the pound stores and
places like Wilko, Lidl and Aldi.
Alternatively, Halfords used to sell BA box spanners, I have a set I bought
for working on valve audio gear which is full of BA fasteners.
Martin
--
martindot herewhybrowat herentlworlddot herecom

Martin Whybrow wrote:

Chris
I have a cheap ratchet screwdriver, the type with a fat handle that contains
the spare bits; it's 1/4" drive so if you can find one, you could cut a
piece of a 1/4" Allen key to use as an adapter. This one was free with 5
litres of oil but the same type of thing turns up in the pound stores and
places like Wilko, Lidl and Aldi.
Alternatively, Halfords used to sell BA box spanners, I have a set I bought
for working on valve audio gear which is full of BA fasteners.
Martin

Thanks for the suggestion. I might check out our local Aldi and if
there's a cheap screwdriver give it a go. I don't want to spend too much
in case the wobble in the two joints proves a problem, but I suspect
this might be the only way to do it. I don't think I've ever seen a
screwdriver handle (actually the ratchet isn't essential) which ends in
a male 1/4" fitting.

Best wishes,

Chris

On Wed, 26 Apr 2006 22:40:32 +0000, Christopher Tidy
wrote:

Martin Whybrow wrote:

Chris
I have a cheap ratchet screwdriver, the type with a fat handle that contains
the spare bits; it's 1/4" drive so if you can find one, you could cut a
piece of a 1/4" Allen key to use as an adapter. This one was free with 5
litres of oil but the same type of thing turns up in the pound stores and
places like Wilko, Lidl and Aldi.
Alternatively, Halfords used to sell BA box spanners, I have a set I bought
for working on valve audio gear which is full of BA fasteners.
Martin

Thanks for the suggestion. I might check out our local Aldi and if
there's a cheap screwdriver give it a go. I don't want to spend too much
in case the wobble in the two joints proves a problem, but I suspect
this might be the only way to do it. I don't think I've ever seen a
screwdriver handle (actually the ratchet isn't essential) which ends in
a male 1/4" fitting.

Best wishes,

Chris
Greetings Chris,
I read your post about trying to find BA tools. I was trying to think
what kind of tool was a BA tool. Finally it came to me. You were just
trying to be polite. You've been tring to find sets of Big Ass tools.
I can see how this might be a problem. Most places sell tool sets you
can hold in your hand. But I imagine that big ass tools are probably
too big for most jobs. I used to run a lathe with a 3 foot chuck. That
chuck key sure was a big ass chuck key. Maybe an old factory site
might have some big ass tools laying around rusting you could have
just by taking them. I see you have a set of big ass tools for working
on valve audio gear which was full of big ass fasteners. I can imagine
big ass fasteners being used with big ass valves but what do big ass
valves have to do with audio gears? Is Audio a brand name? Do they
make big ass gears? But gear is singular. Is this gear so big it is
made in pieces and held together with big ass bolts? I've seen some
pretty big ass flywheels that were bolted together with big ass bolts.
And what's a "box spanner"? Are they something you put in boxes to
keep the sides from caving in? Oh, wait, I know what they are. When
the moving van was being filled during my last move they had these
things which spanned the box on the inside to keep everything in
place when they were driving. I think it's funny what people collect.
Some folks collect model trains, others collect china, while still
others collect whisky bottles. And it appears you collect big ass
tools. Do you display them? It would take a big ass building to
properly display a bunch of big ass tools.
Cheers,
Eric

Christopher Tidy wrote:
Hi all,

You know when you're searching for an uncommon tool and eventually you
buy a decent one, but it doesn't quite do everything you need, so you
keep looking and sometime buy another? Then the whole cycle repeats
itself until you have several similar tools?

Well it keeps happening to me with BA spanners and sockets. I bought a
set of open-ended BA spanners when I was working on a vacuum pump a
couple of years ago. Then a bit later I was working on a scientific
balance which had some delicate brass BA locknuts. So I ended up with
two sets of open-ended BA spanners.

Then I needed to tighten terminals on several motors. The open-ended
spanners don't fit very well, so I ordered some BA box spanners.
Unfortunately the set was incomplete when it arrived, so I called the
old guy at the tool company. He apologised and said that someone
else's set had contained a faulty spanner, so he replaced it with one
from another set, then forgot about it. The replacement didn't turn
up, so I called the guy again and he said the manufacturer was in
difficulty and hadn't supplied him. A few months went by and I called
the company again, but didn't get the knowledgeable old guy. It
turned out that he had passed away. Poor chap.

So I bought some new old stock BA sockets on eBay. Only I screwed up.
They were advertised as "BA sockets, 1/4" hex drive". I assumed it
meant "BA hex sockets, 1/4" square drive", but no, they are actually
hex drive. My fault. They're quite a nice set, though, and they were
cheap. They come with a handle which looks like an Allen key, but I
was hoping to be able to use a screwdriver-type ratchet handle with
them. What do you call a screwdriver-type ratchet handle which fits
1/4" hex drive sockets, I wonder, and where might one find such a
tool?
Ah, the joy of hunting for tools (it is quite fun, actually).

Best wishes,

Chris

It happens that common phillips screwdriver tips are 1/4" hex ... as are
the magnetic holders you put in your drill motor to drive them . You can
also buy adapters (usually in a set with some cheap sockets) to drive them
with a 1/4" ratchet . Female/female , or male/male but you can use a cutoff
screwdriver tip or allen wrench .
Thimk of the possibilities !
--
Snag aka OSG #1
'76 FLH "Bag Lady"
BS132 SENS NEWT
"A hand shift is a manly shift ."
shamelessly stolen
none to one to reply

Snag wrote:
Christopher Tidy wrote:

Hi all,

You know when you're searching for an uncommon tool and eventually you
buy a decent one, but it doesn't quite do everything you need, so you
keep looking and sometime buy another? Then the whole cycle repeats
itself until you have several similar tools?

Well it keeps happening to me with BA spanners and sockets. I bought a
set of open-ended BA spanners when I was working on a vacuum pump a
couple of years ago. Then a bit later I was working on a scientific
balance which had some delicate brass BA locknuts. So I ended up with
two sets of open-ended BA spanners.

Then I needed to tighten terminals on several motors. The open-ended
spanners don't fit very well, so I ordered some BA box spanners.
Unfortunately the set was incomplete when it arrived, so I called the
old guy at the tool company. He apologised and said that someone
else's set had contained a faulty spanner, so he replaced it with one
from another set, then forgot about it. The replacement didn't turn
up, so I called the guy again and he said the manufacturer was in
difficulty and hadn't supplied him. A few months went by and I called
the company again, but didn't get the knowledgeable old guy. It
turned out that he had passed away. Poor chap.

So I bought some new old stock BA sockets on eBay. Only I screwed up.
They were advertised as "BA sockets, 1/4" hex drive". I assumed it
meant "BA hex sockets, 1/4" square drive", but no, they are actually
hex drive. My fault. They're quite a nice set, though, and they were
cheap. They come with a handle which looks like an Allen key, but I
was hoping to be able to use a screwdriver-type ratchet handle with
them. What do you call a screwdriver-type ratchet handle which fits
1/4" hex drive sockets, I wonder, and where might one find such a
tool?
Ah, the joy of hunting for tools (it is quite fun, actually).

Best wishes,

Chris


It happens that common phillips screwdriver tips are 1/4" hex ... as are
the magnetic holders you put in your drill motor to drive them . You can
also buy adapters (usually in a set with some cheap sockets) to drive them
with a 1/4" ratchet . Female/female , or male/male but you can use a cutoff
screwdriver tip or allen wrench .
Thimk of the possibilities !

I'm thinking along those lines. I reckon I should be able to find
something in the various screwdriver ranges. Although I doubt these
sockets were made with that in mind - from the age of the packaging I'm
sure they pre-date electric screwdrivers.

Best wishes,

Chris

You can get 1/4" square drive 1/4" size hex bits, that would work at
the cost of being overly long, you could then use a common 1/4" square
drive drive ratchet handle. Or just get a common 1/4" hex drive
screwdriver and 1/4" hex(Allen) bit, usually sold in a set for cheap.
I just bought a single 1/4" hex bit to replace a lost one, cost almost
as much as a cheap set of 1/4" hex screwdriver bits and driver.
Downside with either of those solutions is that there's no detent on
the hex bits to retain the sockets, but they could be driven that way.


The only sockets with a 1/4" hex drive I've see have been really old
and cheap sets from Japan, back when Japan was known for making junk.
Included a cheap socket caddy and a hex key with flanges on opposite
corners to keep the sockets from riding up the shank. Not for use in
dark places, there was no detent ball on the key, either, the sockets
tended to drop off easily. Talk about hunting for tools... My
grandfather kept the set in his old car, guess he never had to use it,
they were still all there.

Stan

You can tell people who haven't owned a brit car don't know what a
British Association thread is............try a 'chapman' set, nice
version of the little socket screwdriver etc.

On Fri, 28 Apr 2006 20:37:24 GMT, yourname wrote:
try a 'chapman' set, nice
version of the little socket screwdriver etc.

I've got a very nice chapman set that I bought when I was working for 3
months in St. Albans about 15 years ago. Odd that you really can't find
them here, seems like an obvious tool to market.

wrote:
You can get 1/4" square drive 1/4" size hex bits, that would work at
the cost of being overly long, you could then use a common 1/4" square
drive drive ratchet handle. Or just get a common 1/4" hex drive
screwdriver and 1/4" hex(Allen) bit, usually sold in a set for cheap.
I just bought a single 1/4" hex bit to replace a lost one, cost almost
as much as a cheap set of 1/4" hex screwdriver bits and driver.
Downside with either of those solutions is that there's no detent on
the hex bits to retain the sockets, but they could be driven that way.


The only sockets with a 1/4" hex drive I've see have been really old
and cheap sets from Japan, back when Japan was known for making junk.
Included a cheap socket caddy and a hex key with flanges on opposite
corners to keep the sockets from riding up the shank. Not for use in
dark places, there was no detent ball on the key, either, the sockets
tended to drop off easily. Talk about hunting for tools... My
grandfather kept the set in his old car, guess he never had to use it,
they were still all there.

Those sound pretty much like my set, except that my hex key has a detent
ball, and there is no caddy. To me they look fairly decent. Use will tell...

Chris

yourname wrote:

You can tell people who haven't owned a brit car don't know what a
British Association thread is............try a 'chapman' set, nice
version of the little socket screwdriver etc.

No obligatory Whitworth story yet?

yourname wrote:
You can tell people who haven't owned a brit car don't know what a
British Association thread is............try a 'chapman' set, nice
version of the little socket screwdriver etc.

Thanks for the tip. It looks like those mini ratchets in the Chapman
sets would fit. I did know what BA stood for, though :-D.

Chris