id help needed,,unusual adjustable

[benjy]

i cant quite make out what this says..one of you guys is sure to know..
fisrst word is ilegible but appears 4 letters long..so i have something like ---- acier -ondu
8 inches long,,both the jaws move on adjustment.

[lbgradwell]

I can't make out the first word, but "acier fondu" is French for "molten steel"...

You might try a Google search with something like: "clé à molette ancienne" "acier fondu"...

[Branson]

More specifically, acier fondu is the French term for "cast steel."  Older and better French tools have this mark.

[Lewill2]

Schulz #764 and 765 are similar and are marked as being French made. 764 is marked "Brevetes 9. McDele Depose. Ladreze."

[Wrenchmensch]

Somebody in the past cut the jaws off one side of this classic French wrench.  Why? To make the wrench smaller, and therefore more suitable in tight quarters? 

[1930]

I dont want to buy it but I sure do like the lines and the mechanism of that wrench, someone here recently had a set of adjustables that were primo in design, S shaped round headed jobs, this wrench would look great displayed with those

I hope you polish that handle with some Wd-40 maybe, I bet that will be so pretty when done and post another picture

[rusty]

>Somebody in the past cut the jaws off ...

That type of wrench seems inappropriate for tight places , even with the jaws shortened, however, the sawed off jaws might allow you to hammer the wrench onto a stubborn nut, common practive with traditional type monkey wrenches...

Or perhaps it's owner simply wanted a traditional monkey type wrench...(If the jaws had been badly damaged already it would be a sensible 'improvment' to the wrench....)

I have a large german made double jaw wrench around here somewhere (twist handle) , it is very kewl looking, but, I have never been able to figure out what the advantage of having 2 jaws exactly alike was supposed to be...

[Lewill2]

Rusty, one side for taking it apart and the other side is to put it back together............

[Papaw]

Yeah, one side for right handers, and the other for left-handers!

[rusty]

AhA!!!

And here I was thinking the French had invented the first Metric/American wrench...

[benjy]

someone here recently had a set of adjustables that were primo in design, S shaped round headed jobs, this wrench would look great displayed with those

that would be me too

[1930]

Boy do I like those wrenches, I have display cabinets for my tools but these would be the first that would get hung in a glass box up on the wall. You have good taste in tools and are lucky with your finds benjy