Who Makes Cornwell Tools

Manufacturing Dates

Estimating the manufacturing date for an older tool is an important first step in understanding where that particular example fits in the development of a company’s products. Many manufacturers are known to have marked their tools with a date code, for quality control or other purposes, although the coding systems used were often not documented for the public. In the case of Cornwell, we’re still unsure of whether they have a date code system, though it appears that some sort of date markings were used.

On certain early Cornwell tools the company name is followed by a letter, such as “Cornwell-A”, “Cornwell-B”, and so on. Currently codes “A” through “G” are known to occur, and it seems likely that this is an early date code system with one letter for each year. If this is the case, the likely starting point would be 1927 for code “A”, progressing to 1933 for code “G”.

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The evidence for interpreting the letter codes as dates can be summarized as follows.

1. U.S.S. and S.A.E. Conventions. A number of wrenches have been observed with the “A” code and an older size convention marking, but wrenches with “B” or other letters are only known with the across-flats size. This suggests that the other codes are later than “A”, and that “A” likely corresponds to 1927.
2. Model Number Markings. Cornwell is known to have started using model numbers with a letter prefix beginning with the 1935 catalog. Of the tools marked with a possible date code letter, none are known to have a letter-prefix model number. This suggests that the possible date coded examples were all produced prior to 1935.
3. Early Socket Construction. An early set of Cornwell sockets exhibits a very rough finish, with ridges from the parting lines of the forging dies still present. Another set of early sockets marked “Cornwell-A” shows a more refined finish, with no trace of the parting lines visible. The earliest sockets are believed to date from 1925-1926, when Cornwell first started producing socket tools. This suggests that the “A” marked sockets would have been made later than 1926.

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For the tools that aren’t marked with a letter suffix, the Cornwell name is generally preceded or followed by a one or two-digit number, as for example “16 Cornwell” or “Cornwell 12”. These numbers may encode the manufacturing date in some fashion, but the coding system is not yet known.

Until the date coding system can be understood, we’ll try to develop some guidelines for estimating the manufacturing dates based on tool markings, styles, finishes, and other information. The list below includes some observations that may help estimate the manufacturing date for some tools.

• S.A.E. or U.S.S. Size Marking. Early wrenches were generally marked using the older U.S.S. or S.A.E. size conventions, which are based on the nominal bolt diameter rather than the actual (across-flats) nut size. The modern wrench size convention was established in 1927, and most manufacturers quickly converted to the new system. (See our Table of Wrench Sizes if you are not familiar with the older size conventions.) Tools with these older size markings were probably made from the early 1920s up to 1927.
• Letter Date Codes. A letter code in the range A-G following Cornwell (e.g. “Cornwell-A”) is believed to indicate the production year, beginning with 1927 for “A”.
• First-Generation Model Number System. In 1935 Cornwell began using its first model number system, which used a one or two-letter mnemonic prefix followed by a number. For example, angle-head wrenches were given an “AW” prefix, and a 7/16 angle-head wrench became a model AW4.
• “USA” Marking. Cornwell added a stamped “USA” marking shortly after the first model number system was adopted. The exact date is not known, but examples bearing a first-generation model number without the “USA” marking are relatively rare. This suggests that the “USA” marking was in use by the late 1930s.
• Second-Generation Model Number System. Sometime around 1954 Cornwell switched to a new model number system using the same mnemonic prefixes, but followed by a number encoding the opening size(s) (when applicable) in 32nds. In the new system, a 9/16 angle-head wrench became a model AW1818.

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