Got another vintage ratchet the other day it's a Proto 5449 1/2in. drive. So I decided to do a video about my complete routine to restore this great rat to it former glory. Decided to give CLR a try after hearing good things about it. Hope you guy's enjoy it.

http://youtu.be/tKd3U9lKswA

That ratchet may not be that old. The original design started in 1939 with the PLOMB tool company. PLOMB later became PROTO in 1948. Proto ratchets made from 1948 to 1956 were marked Proto -Los Angeles. After that were marked Proto-MFG.USA. Sometime later they started marking them Proto Professional as they are still marked today. All the older ratchets were all chrome except the ones with the black chemical finish. Somewhere along the line they started using a black chemical finish gear and side plate on the chrome ratchets. I have several side plates that are stamped on both sides and one side plate that came in a repair kit that the screw holes are not taped with threads. Also I have several Plomb / Proto style ratchets marked P&C which was a company that Plomb / Proto owned years ago. I believe the Plomb / Proto ratchet is the most copied ratchet design out there. I am putting together a collection of  Plomb / Proto ratchets together and it is getting pretty big. And another set of copies from other companies. For lube i only use light oil, never grease. Using grease can keep the pawls from fully engaging the gear and will start wearing the gear till it breaks some teeth. Cold weather also makes the grease thicker and more prone to damage. I just flush out the ratchet once and a while with carb cleaner, blow dry and reoil. Another thing to do is keep an eye on the cone springs. They get weak with old age and don't fully engage the pawls with the drive gear. I am trying to find replacement springs without buying a factory repair kit which can be expensive depending who you buy it from.

EvilDr235

I just rebuilt my 1/2" unmarked Proto ratchet. I got a kit from Ebay for $ 17.50. I needed the drive gear. I brush on thin coat of  Super Lube synthetic grease to the gear and like how the ratchet feels. If you want the springs from my old ratchet I can send them to you. They didn't seem any weaker than the new ones.

Thank you for the offer of the springs. You may need them in the future for the next 5449 ratchet you find. I have plenty of repair kits , i just hate to open them just for the springs. I have a couple of spring makers catalogs and they tell me they can match them to mine if i send them a sample. I have appox 20 pear head Proto ratchets that need some form of repair. Many just need a good cleaning. I pick up every cheap one i can find. I have only had two with bad gears. A long handle 3/8s and a Plomb 3/4 inch drive one.

EvilDr235------------------------------------------------------

EvilDr235; Congrats on your large Proto ratchet collections, may we all aspire to such lofty ambitions. My ratchet may not be that old indeed. The year range I gave on my video was based off of info i got from AA, it does not say "Los Angeles " or have a ® after Proto that would according to AA be 1956-to sometime in the mid 1960's, hence the year range I gave in the video. I don't know when they started using "MFG.USA." or "USA", or witch one came first. I also don't know when they started using "Professional". So it maybe in that year range or even later, I was just going off the limited info I could find. I just hope you are not saying it may be a copy that someone just put a Proto face plate on, that would not make any sence. I would like to know what the year range it was made in though, so I could update my video, and for my personal records. EvilDr235 in your expert opinion what year about was it made in.

I use grease. I like grease, thats just me though (and a fair number of other people), use what you want. I don't think it will cause me any problems, I've heard people say the same thing about greaseing guns, and i can tell ya after a number of years and thousands of rounds, in many gun, no problems here. Grease stays were i put it, oil does not, over time for me oil goes away, grease does not. As for the cold weather that is not much of a problem were I live, it's mid January and today it's 70° here. Cold maybe a problem where you live, if so then it has to be taken into account, but not here. As for using CLR to clean it, when I got it, it had a lot of rust on it the CLR cleaned it off of there. IF you keep your eye on it I recomend using it to get rust off your tools. I will keep an eye on the springs.
Thanks for watching.

 

Any year range Plomb or Proto could have a Professional side cover because all current repair kits have Professional stamped on them. All  the Plomb or Proto side covers for that model number interchange. I once had a long handled Plomb 1/2 inch drive ratchet that had a Proto side plate on it. I have a 5449 repair kit that i bought in 1981 that is marked Professional on the side plate and it is the side plate that the holes are not drilled and tapped. I am far from a expert on Plomb or Proto ratchets. I just have seen a lot of ads and catalogs for Proto tools and have been buying and using them for appox 44 years. I also have seen many Plomb unmarked ratchets that nobody has a answer for. Maybe a contrat for ratchets where the buyer did not want a name on them. I have seen several Proto ratchet types in pictures that i have never seen in person. I have a lot of Proto ratchets because i bought my first one in 1968 and fell in love with them.

EvilDr235

Time to eat some crow. After some more in depth research on the net about Proto 5449 ratchet face/side plate markings, it seems my Proto was made some time after 1984. Witch is when Stanley acquired Proto, if my reserch is right when Stanley acquired Proto they changed the lettering on Proto tools. From slanted "P" and "R"s, and block "O"s, to plain lettering and round "O"s, and they dropped the ®. So my rat is not as old as i thought, thanks to EvilDr235 for bring my attention to this, and prompting me to do more research into the history of these neat tools. The most important thing is to put the correct info out for those that maybe looking for it. I will update the video description accordingly.
Here are some pictures for reference. The top is from some time before 1984, and the bottom is my ratchet. Note the "P", "R", and "O"s. 

I see you have a black chemical finish ratchet. I have a 3/8 inch one and a 1/2 inch one. You don't see them very offen. I found both of mine in a pawnshop about 10 years. Both are new and unused. I have never found a used one.

EvilDr235

The slanted letters and the trademark symbol is two things i have never noticed before. I have learned something new. I have a Proto side plate that is stamped on both sides. I remember that double side cover i have were marked with different size letters on each side. I will have to find it and check it out.

EvilDr235

Glad to be of service to you sir. It was fun learning all this my self.

I recently bought 5 more ratchets. 2 Plomb and 3 Proto. I was looking at several 3/8 inch models in my computer room. 1 of the ratchets has a plain steel finish, a side cover marked 5249- blank-LOS ANGELES-MFG USA The blank space is where the name was ground off, but still has a letter O showing ? A lawsuit tool would have been Plomb, not Proto. The handle has very fine knurling. The sides of the ratchet still has a lot of the parting line that was not ground off very good. The directional lever is steel, not brass. The whole overall finish is rough, no polishing. I am thinking it was made around the time WWII started with a newer lawsuit side cover or maybe it is a Korean war era tool. Even under the knurling you can feel the parting line. The ratchet is tight with very little wear considering it is dry as a bone inside. About 20 years ago a fellow who sold at the flea market use to sell brand new Proto tools that had the name ground off. He would not say where he got them, but he did say they were Proto seconds with flaws so they ground the names off so they could sell them rather  than throw them back in the melting pot or have to warranty them.

EvilDr235

I got two 1/2" rats yesterday, a Penens and a Firestone pebble. Both are from the 1945-50 era, I believe. (please correct me on the dates if you have good info.).

Their teardrop heads, with two faceplates, look similar from the outside.  But the Firestone has recessed screws, requiring a little more production effort and giving a much better impression.  The Penens has the round top screws, suggesting hasty construction like a WF-38.

Inside, they are quite different.  The shift mechanism on the Penens is pressed metal and the wheel is not as beefy.  The Firestone is built like a tank.  Much stronger.

Both will make good additions to my collection.

I knew Plomb made a ratchet for Firestone. I have seen several pictures of them, but never one in person. Every time i think i have seen every Plomb / Proto ratchet a new variation pops up. I just looked at a picture of a 5449 PROTO OF CANADA ratchet and a HOPPE SUPER based on a Penens style ratchet. Years ago i had a Proto ratchet that was based on a Penens 1661 1/2 inch drive ratchet.

EvilDr235