Cobra Tool Kit - redux

[Jim Maxwell]

I recently had a German friend send this e-mail to the Elora Company:

"I own numerous Elora tools, including complete sets of Elora No. 100 BSF/BSW wrenches. These tools are from the 1960's. Some of the wrenches in each set are labeled "Made in Germany" and others in the same set are labeled "made in West-Germany". This is true for multiple sets.
Can you explain this to me, please? Were the "made in Germany" wrenches made from holdover molds from before the war? Or were some factories using "Made in Germany" and others using "Made in West Germany"?
Thank you for any enlightenment you can provide about this finding."

Here is the reply from Elora, which should clear things up:

"Guten Tag Herr Csapo,

vielen Dank für Ihre Mail, welche wir Ihnen wie folgt beantworten möchten.

Bis zur Teilung Deutschlands wurden unsere Gesenke mit "Made in Germany" beschriftet. Nach der Teilung in die Ihnen zwei bekannten Staaten, wurde man nicht nur Territorial abgegrenzt, sondern wollte sich daraus ergebend auch technologisch gegenüber dem "Osten" abgrenzen und beschriftete alle neuen Gesenke mit "Made in West Germany". Aufgrund der Übergangszeit aber auch der noch voll funktionsfähigen Gesenke, konnte es über längere Zeiträume zu Vermischungen der jeweiligen Kennzeichnung der Schraubenschlüssel in den Sets kommen.

Wir hoffen Ihre Frage ausreichend beantwortet zu haben und verbleiben.

Mit freundlichen Grüßen

i.A. Tobias Klein"

English translation:

"Hello Mr. Csapo,

Thank you for your email, which we would like to answer as follows.

Until the division of Germany, our dies were labeled "Made in Germany". After the division into the two states you know, one was not only territorially demarcated, but also wanted to demarcate technologically from the "East" and labeled all new dies with "Made in West Germany". Due to the transitional period, but also because the dies were still fully functional, the respective markings on the wrenches in the sets could get mixed up over a longer period of time.

We hope to have answered your question sufficiently and remain.

Kind regards

on behalf of Tobias Klein"


I have examined three known to be original Cobra Elora wrench sets that have a mixture of both "Germany and West-Germany" wrenches. Two of the sets had never been opened, including one we unwrapped for the first time last Thursday night, from a one owner car purchased at auction 12 years ago. The current owner had never opened the box.