Heller Brothers Company

Table of Contents

Introduction

The Heller Brothers Company was founded in the mid 19th century as a maker of files, rasps, and farrier's tools.

Company History

The Heller Brothers Company was founded in Newark, New Jersey and operated initially as a maker of files, rasps, and farrier's tools. The company claimed to have been established in 1836, but we haven't yet found any public references to confirm that date.

The Heller Brothers operated with a various other businesses with overlapping ownership, including Heller & Brothers, Heller Steel Works, and the Heller Tool Company.

Fig. 1. 1881 Trademark for Heller & Brothers.

Fig. 1 shows an early trademark issued to Heller & Brothers, as published on page 162 of an 1893 Digest of Trade-Marks.

An entry on page 142 [External Link] of the 1901 Industrial Directory of New Jersey noted the Heller Brothers as a maker of rasps and files with 81 employees, and the Heller Tool Company as a maker of farrier's tools with 48 employees.

Fig. 2. 1902 Ad for Heller Brothers Ball Peen Hammer. [External Link]

Fig. 2 shows an ad for a Heller Brothers ball peen hammer, as published on page 12 of the January, 1902 issue of The Blacksmith and Wheelwright.

The ad notes at the top that the company was established in 1836 and incorporated in 1899.

Fig. 3. 1904 Ad for Heller Brothers Hammer. [External Link]

Fig. 3 shows an ad for a Heller Brothers hammer, as published on page 31 (XXXI) of the October, 1904 issue of The American Blacksmith.

Fig. 4. 1908 Ad for Heller Brothers Farrier's Pincers. [External Link]

Fig. 4 shows an ad for Heller Brothers 14 inch pincers, as published on page 47 of the October, 1908 issue of The American Blacksmith.

Acquisition of Rex File and Vixen Tool Companies

In 1921 the Heller Brothers acquired the Rex File Company and the Vixen Tool Company.

Fig. 5. 1921 Notice for Heller Brothers. [External Link]

Fig. 5 shows a notice of the acquisition of the Rex and Vixen companies, as published on page 24 of the September, 1921 issue of Hardware Review.

Fig. 6. 1926 Ad for Heller Brothers Steel. [External Link]

Fig. 6 shows a 1926 ad for Heller Brothers steel, as published on page 17 of the December 30, 1926 issue of The Iron Age.

The Masterench Line

In the late 1920s the company became well known for a line of self-adjusting nut and pipe wrenches, sold under the "Masterench" brand.

The Masterench wrenches were first produced in 1924 by the Lynch-Mead Manufacturing Company of Turlock, California. Lynch-Mead filed a trademark application for "MASTERENCH" in April of 1924 and received trademark #190,245 on October 7, 1924.

Lynch-Mead formed the Masterench Corporation in 1924 and the corporation received Canadian trademark #36,777 for "Masterench" on November 28, 1924.

By June of 1927 the Heller Brothers had acquired the rights to the Masterench.

Fig. 7. 1927 Notice for Heller Brothers Masterench. [External Link]

Fig. 7 shows a notice for the Heller Brothers Masterench, as published on page 385 of the June, 1927 issue of Railway Mechanical Engineer.

The text notes that the Heller Brothers Company had acquired the patent rights to the wrench.

Patents

Trademarks

References and Resources

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

Catalog Resources

Industrial Distributors

Heller Brothers tools were available from some industrial distributors. We'll add references as time permits.

Selected Tools

Heller Brothers Masterench 6 Inch Self-Adjusting Wrench

Fig. 8. Heller Brothers Masterench 6 Inch Self-Adjusting Pipe Wrench, with Insets for Construction and Marking Detail.

Fig. 8 shows a Masterench 6 inch self-adjusting pipe wrench, marked with "Masterench" and "Chrome Vanadium" forged into the shank.

The back side is marked "Heller Brothers Co." and "Newark, N.J. U.S.A." in forged raised letters, with "Patented 7.5.27" and "4-14-25" at the end.

The overall length is 6.0 inches, and the finish is plain steel.

The earlier patent date corresponds to the patent 1,533,602, and the later date is for patent 1,634,908. Both were issued to E.E. Lynch et al with assignment to the Masterench Corporation.

Heller Brothers Masterench 10 Inch Self-Adjusting Wrench

Fig. 9. Heller Brothers Masterench 10 Inch Self-Adjusting Pipe Wrench, with Insets for Construction and Marking Detail.

Fig. 9 shows a Masterench 10 inch self-adjusting pipe wrench, marked with "Masterench" and "Chrome Vanadium" forged into the shank, with "Heller Brothers Co." and "Newark, N.J. U.S.A." on the back side. The back side is also marked with a "Pat." patent notice.

The overall length is 10.4 inches, and the finish is plain steel.

The patent notice refers to the patents 1,533,602 and 1,634,908, issued in 1925 and 1927, respectively.