Dan.... Interesting. The ratchet pictured in that discussion is marked identically to this one.
HB ... Indeed. Was there a spring in there? A little PB Blaster seems to have done wonders, though. Was not operable when I found it and I could not remove the socket that was rust welded to it. The penetrating oil seems to have fully restored function and a little more wire brushing will undoubtedly return this little guy to its full patina'd glory.
Makes sense that it would be a Military tool ... It didn't wander very far ... Still ... very interesting that even into the sixties, we were procuring tools on a contract that would have had the tools specifically marked like that -- probably to alert the dealers that the tool was *not* covered by a warranty (so they could sell a replacement to the Government rather than give them another for free ... and some contract specialist was clueless enough to not notice it ...)
And now you begin to understand where $5,000 ratchet wrenches and $600 toilet seats come from .... Eisenhower was right!
JM
