King Dick Tools

Every motorcycle is built with tools, but how many tool brands can claim that they're descended from a motorcycle company? Sure, Sears once sold Craftsman tools alongside Allstate bikes and scooters, but the machines themselves were re-badged Puch, Piaggio, and Cushman products. King Dick tools, on the other hand, can claim direct lineage from the pioneering Abingdon motorcycle marque, made—just like the bikes were—in Greater Birmingham, United Kingdom.

Starting in 1903, Abingdon built its own motorbikes and supplied engines to storied marques like Ariel and Invicta. The company even developed what may have been the motorcycle industry's first telescopic fork, though its design was a world away from that Showa setup on the front of your Honda CRF. During the turbulent 1930s, Abingdon abandoned motorcycles in favor of its King Dick line of tools, named for the brand's mascot bulldog.

Today, King Dick remains as the only line of hand tools entirely produced in the United Kingdom, and its products can be found in the hands of vintage mechanics who appreciate the company’s tools for Whitworth fasteners, as well as in factories like Aston Martin’s. The brand keeps an indirect hand in the bike business, sponsoring riders who compete in roadracing and the British Superbike series.

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And the company is hardly unaware of its heritage. In fact, it’s launching a line of tools meant to accompany classic British vehicles. King Dick’s Lorraine Sharratt says, “Think black spanners and wooden-handled screwdrivers.” But for all their classic looks, the new tools will be made with state-of-the-art metallurgy, which suggests they might even outlast their hoary old predecessors.

Really, old chap, would you feel proper pulling the plugs from your Vincent or even touching an Amal Concentric carb with anything less British?