F.H. Ayer Manufacturing Company

Table of Contents

Introduction

The F.H. Ayer Manufacturing Company was a maker of arc lamp windlasses and automotive socket sets operating in Chicago.

Company History

The F.H. Ayer Manufacturing Company was founded by Fred H. Ayer in 1904 as a machine shop in Chicago Heights, Illinois. The company was incorporated on March 23, 1906 with $10,000 capital.

The primary business of the company appears to have been the repair of large machinery such as pumps, but the company also manufactured some products, as noted below.

Ayer was a notable inventor, and in 1895 he applied for a patent on a self-locking windlass for electric arc lamps.

Fig. 1. 1896 Notice for F.H. Ayer Arc Lamp Windlass. [External Link]

Fig. 1 shows a notice for the F.H. Ayer windlass, as published on page 7 of the July 1, 1896 issue of The Electrical Trade.

The text describes the operation of the windlass, and the illustration shows the device marked "Pat. Apld. For". Ayer received patent 590,940 in 1897.

The seller is noted as the Electric Appliance Company of Chicago.

The arc lamp windlass proved to be a successful product and remained in production at least into the mid 1920s.

Ratchets for Socket Sets

In 1913 Frederick H. Ayer received the first of several patents for a ratchet device, suggesting that the company had started (or would soon start) making automotive socket sets.

The second and third ratchet patents were received in 1916, and the patent illustrations show a ratchet in a tubular body with a folding Tee handle affixed at the top.

We recently (November 2026) discovered that in 1916 the company made an important connection with the Packer Auto Specialty Company, also of Chicago. Packer Auto had been offering "Ray" brand socket sets since 1912, and the sets were originally based on a highly touted tubular ratchet with a roller clutch mechanism. However, the roller clutch ratchets apparently had reliability problems, and we found strong evidence that by late 1916 Packer Auto had quietly switched to using the F.H. Ayer ratchets in its sets, which were similar in appearance to the earlier Packer ratchets.

The details of our findings can be found in the article on Packer Auto. The supply arrangement with Packer Auto would have been very significant for the Ayer company, as the Ray socket sets were popular and must have sold in substantial quantities.

Around the same time as the change in ratchets, Packer Auto also switched to using metal cases for its socket sets, and once again this was significant for F.H. Ayer. Although it's not clear whether F.H. Ayer was also the maker of the metal cases, almost all of the observed Ayer socket sets have been found in cases closely resembling Ray brand cases. So regardless of whether the cases were made by Packer Auto, by F.H. Ayer, or by an unknown third party, the net result was that Ayer socket sets looked almost the same as Ray socket sets.

Fig. 2. 1923 Notice for F.H. Ayer Manufacturing. [External Link]

Fig. 2 shows a notice for F.H. Ayer Manufacturing, as published on page 64 of the 1923 EMF Electrical Year Book.

The text notes the company as a maker of rail bonds, automobile wrenches, and windlasses.

The reference to windlasses likely refers to the self-locking arc lamp windlass note above, and the "automobile wrenches" are presumably Ayer socket wrench sets, of which a number of examples have been observed.

Automotive Socket Sets

Currently the only tools known to have been made by the company are pressed-steel socket sets and related tools, which included a distinctive Tee-handle Ratchet based on patents by F.H. Ayer.

One of our readers reports that a large Ayer socket set also included stamped-steel open end wrenches marked with "F.H. Ayer Mfg." on the shank. Open-end wrenches had become a standard component for larger pressed-steel socket sets beginning with the Mossberg No. 14 Socket Set

The F.H. Ayer socket sets appear to be not especially rare, but somewhat curiously we have not been able to find any advertisements or catalog listings for the sets. This leaves us with questions as to how the company managed to sell its products, when the socket sets were first introduced, and what models or sizes of sets were available.

The following list summarizes the limited information available for the Ayer sets.

• The only known examples of Ayer tools with identifying markings are the Tee handle ratchet, stamped-steel open-end wrenches, and pressed-steel sockets with an A-Circle logo.
• Ayer socket sets are almost always found in a metal case closely resembling the Ray socket set cases.
• No advertisements or catalog listings have been found for Ayer socket sets.
• We haven't observed any examples of an Ayer socket set with the original label on the box.
• The Ayer Tee handle ratchet is frequently found in the Ray socket sets made by Packer Auto, which we now believe is the result of a supplier agreement with F.H. Ayer from 1916 on. It's also possible that owners of earlier Ray sets might have replaced a failed ratchet with the similar F.H. Ayer model.
• The Ayer ratchet has been observed in an otherwise anonymous socket set, with no markings on the sockets and an unmarked metal case very similar to the Ray socket set cases.

Later History

Interestingly enough, the F.H. Ayer company remains in business today, and their web site offers an informative page on the Company History [Sorry, dead link 😢].

Patents

Trademarks

F.H. Ayer Manufacturing is not known to have registered any trademarks.

Tool Identification

A-Circle Logo

Fig. 3. A-Circle Logo.

Fig. 3 shows the A-Circle logo, as stamped on a socket from an F.H. Ayer set.

References and Resources

Photographs and observations of particular tools are based on items in the Alloy Artifacts Collection.

Selected Tools

We have a reasonably complete (though unmarked) F.H. Ayer socket set, plus a number of examples of F.H. Ayer ratchets, some of which were acquired from Ray socket sets.

Ayer Pressed-Steel Socket Set

We have an example of an Ayer pressed-steel socket set, consisting of a tubular reversible ratchet, a drive stud, an extension, a universal, a screwdriver attachment, 18 hexagon sockets, two square sockets, and a spark plug socket.

The hexagon socket sizes are 15/32, 1/2, 17/32, 19/32, 5/8, 21/32, 23/32, 25/32, 13/16, 27/32, 7/8, 29/32, 31/32, 1 inch, 1-1/32, 1-3/32, 1-5/32, and 1-9/32.

The two square sockets have sizes 1/2 and 19/32, and the spark plug socket has size 29/32.

Most of the sockets are stamped with the A-Circle logo, with one stamped "RAY" and six with no additional marking.

The set is furnished in a clam-shell case with construction closely resembling that used by Packer Auto Specialty for their Ray socket sets. In particular, the top is a one-piece pressing, but the bottom of the case has a composite construction with wrap-around side walls and a riveted bottom plate. The top is attached to the side walls of the bottom with riveted hinges, and two socket trays are attached to the bottom plate using bent-over tabs.

We are currently preparing the set for display.

Ayer 1/2-Drive Tee-Handle Ratchet

Fig. 5. Ayer Tee Handle Ratchet, with Inset for Marking Detail, ca. Late 1910s to Early 1920s.

Fig. 5 shows an Ayer 1/2-drive Tee-handle ratchet, stamped "F.H. Ayer Mfg. Co." and "Chicago Heights, Ill. U.S.A." on the upper body.

The ratchet is also marked with the "Pat. Sep. 9, 1913 Sep. 26, 1916" patent dates.

The overall length is 7.0 inches, and the finish is nickel plating.

The first date refers to patent 1,072,807, filed by F.H. Ayer in 1912 and issued in 1913.

The second date corresponds to two similar patents 1,199,737 and 1,199,738, both filed by F.H. Ayer on December 23, 1915 and issued on the stated date in 1916.

This ratchet model was typically supplied with pressed-steel socket sets along with a 1/2-square drive stud, an extension, and a universal joint.

Ayer 1/2-Drive 1-9/32 Pressed-Steel Socket

This next figure shows an example of an Ayer pressed-steel socket, taken from one of their socket sets. Ayer sockets were generally driven from the 1/2 square inside opening.

Fig. 6. Ayer 1/2-Drive 1-9/32 Pressed-Steel Socket, with Inset for Service End, ca. Late 1910s to Early 1920s.

Fig. 6 shows a 1/2-drive Ayer 1-9/32 pressed-steel socket, stamped with the A-Circle logo and the fractional size (not shown).

The finish is plain steel.

The F.H. Ayer pressed-steel sockets were interchangeable with those supplied by the Frank Mossberg Company, the leading maker of pressed-steel socket sets.

Ayer sockets were also compatible with "Ray" brand sockets from the Packer Auto Specialty Company, another Chicago-area maker of socket sets. Given the proximity of the Ayer and Packer companies, the socket sets from either company may be found with sockets or tools from the other maker included.