The Adjustable Spanner is the product of 30 years' collecting and original research, fired by Ron Geesin's acquisition of the SLIK adjustable spanner hanging in his father's garage. At the core of this book is a concise history of this much-maligned tool. Serious and comical observations parallel its checkered life, from its bent beginnings in the blacksmith's shop to over-designed and lovingly engineered treasures by small Birmingham machinists. Discussions and findings about components and construction on the practical side, and patents, registered designs, and trademarks on the design protection side, paint a closer look at uses and abuses. Immersed in an analysis of types and styles, and diving deeply into the histories of the inventors and makers, you will be amazed at the engineering diversity required to produce these most fanciful but essential supports to the Industrial Revolution.