Day 41, Antique bicycle wrench

Published on 2025-05-29 by Mark VandeWettering

I mentioned before that I have a thing for old adjustable wrenches. Today's installment of my garage gems features this little wrench that was manufactured by the Billings and Spencer Company. The Billings & Spencer Company

Full size view of the wrench The wrench is what is commonly called a "bicycle wrench". These were small lightweight wrenches, often made from stamped steel and quite cheap, and suitable only for the relatively light duty of helping to fix and adjust a bicycle. I have a couple of these, but this is the nicest. I suspect that the hole in the handle isn't original, and was likely bored by the owner to allow him to hang this on a lanyard or the like.

Maker stamp, Billings and Spencer Co., Hartford Conn

The stamp would appear to be an early one, dating before 1915, and bearing the "B inside a Triangle" trademark of Billings and Spencer.

Patent Sept. 29, 1896

The patent date appears to be September 29, 1896, and a bit of research revealed the design patent USD 26,111 issued to Charles Billings.

Happy Thursday, all.