Brand Name Vs. Generic: Tools By Any Other Name

Thu, 06 Feb 2025 14:16:12 GMT

There are a few tools commonly used on farms that literally aren’t made the way they used to be made, including Vise-Grips and Channellock.

Vise-Grips were invented in 1923 by blacksmith William S. Petersen in Dewitt, Neb. The tool was popular with local farmers, and by WWII it was so widely accepted the U.S. military provided Vise-Grips to its mechanics. Veterans spread the word, and Vise-Grips became a standardized tool across the U.S.

In Europe, locking pliers are called mole grips or mole pliers because they were first manufactured by the M.K. Mole and Son Tool Company — shortly after Petersen released his Vise-Grips.

Petersen’s family-owned company was eventually bought out, and the Vise-Grip-brand is now owned by Irwin Tools. Some professional mechanics believe old Vise-Grips work better than new ones. They scour auctions and pawn shops for Vise-Grips stamped with “DeWitt, Neb.” They also covet Vise-Grips with the locking lever held in place by a roll pin instead of newer versions that attach the lever with a rivet.

Vintage Vise-Grips made in the original factory in DeWitt, Neb., are identified by “Petersen Manufacturing, DeWitt, NEBR” in the logo and by a roll pin that attaches the release handle. Newer Vise-Grips are missing the hometown logo and use a rivet rather than a roll pin to affix the release handle.

(Dan Anderson)

The Tool That Defined Jaws

Just as Vise-Grip has come to mean any locking plier, Channellock now refers to any pair of pliers that have adjustable jaws. Channellock pliers have roots in a blacksmith shop run by George DeArment, which eventually became Champion-DeArment Tool Company. Chief engineer Howard Manning developed a pair of pliers with a unique tongue-and-groove, adjustable hinge point that were patented as Channellock pliers in 1935.

The popularity of the adjustable pliers spawned knockoffs until “Channellock” became a generic term, similar to Kleenex and Chapstick. To protect the brand, Champion-DeArment changed its name to Channellock in 1963.

Channellock pliers have roots in a blacksmith shop run by George DeArment, which eventually became Champion-DeArment Tool Company. Chief engineer Howard Manning developed a pair of pliers with a unique tongue-and-groove, adjustable hinge point that were patented as Channellock pliers in 1935.

(Dan Anderson)

A similar problem occurred for the Crescent Tool Company, which was founded in Jamestown, N.Y., in 1907. Adjustable wrenches were common, but the Crescent Adjustable Wrench featured a patented screw-mechanism that eventually led to them being standard issue in many military tool boxes throughout WWII. As with Vise-Grips, WWII exposed military mechanics to the value of Crescent wrenches, and after the war they found homes in many civilian toolboxes.

There are now many types of adjustable wrenches for sale. But only adjustable wrenches from the Crescent Tool Company carry the company’s trademark that guarantees they are Crescent-brand wrenches.

Your Next Read: Why Are Some Wrenches More Expensive Than Others?

Trusteed IRAs: why they are popular, who should consider them, what benefits they offer

Fri, 23 Sep 2022 20:01:45 GMT

Q: I’ve heard a lot about trusteed IRAs. How do they differ from traditional IRAs?

A: Simply put, trusteed IRAs offer potential tax benefits of traditional or Roth IRAs with the protection and control of a trust. They provide tax advantages that stretch into the future and offer the ability to control how, when and in what amounts assets are distributed. Trusteed IRAs have become more popular given some of the inherent limits of traditional IRAs and the growing prevalence of self-directed retirement accounts combined with the decline of pension plans. They also are more cost-effective than setting up a trust and are generally more compliant with tax laws.

Q: Who should consider a trusteed IRA?

A: There are several reasons why someone should consider a trusteed IRA, the most consequential of which is if an owner has an interest in controlling assets and realizing tax benefits beyond their lifetime. This can mean an owner is concerned with the financial discipline or sophistication of heirs.

Other reasons include if an owner remarries and wants to provide for a current spouse as well as children from a previous relationship and/or is concerned about IRA management in the event of incapacitation.

Q: I’m in the middle of estate planning. How can a trusteed IRA help with the process?

A: They can help process if only to preserve the potential tax-advantaged accumulation of IRA benefits to pass on to heirs. Under traditional or custodial IRAs, a beneficiary is required to withdraw at least the Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) each year. However, a beneficiary may withdraw additional amounts, for any reason, at any time—and incur possible fees or tax penalties.

Additionally, owners can restrict payouts to a beneficiary to the RMD, enabling it to operate as a spendthrift trust. At the owner’s death, the trusteed IRA would be automatically split into separate accounts for individual beneficiaries, with distribution terms defined for each account.

Another benefit is that estate plans don’t need to be rewritten or updated; trusteed IRAs can be added independent of an estate plan to protect IRA assets which legally pass outside of wills.

Q: Is a trusteed IRA better suited to farmers or owners of farm assets?

A: Not expressly, but a trusteed IRA can play an important role in legacy planning and preservation of farm assets over multiple generations. Given the growing generation gap among farming families, trusteed IRAs could be a way help preserve farm family values over generations from beyond the grave. Moreover, as farm economics continues to change, farmers may find value in the highly customizable nature of trusteed IRAs. In the event of a divorce in the family, for example, assets can be made to not leave the family’s bloodlines.

Q: Are there any downsides to trusteed IRAs?

A: Given that a trusteed IRA requires a corporate trustee, it’s harder to change ownership and family members cannot be named as trustees. Not all financial institutions offer trusteed IRAs so they may not be widely available to interested clients. Additionally, while they offer greater customization and more control, trusteed IRAs carry some limits. To have the highest level of customization and control, a trust would need to be created.

Please send questions, comments or requests to address a topic or issue to Rees Mason at rees.mason@ml.com.

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Brand Name Vs. Generic: Tools By Any Other Name

Trusteed IRAs: why they are popular, who should consider them, what benefits they offer