I bought my first set of t-handles from the Honda tool catalog in 1975. Consisting of 8mm through 17mm wrenches and Phillips #2 and #3 t-handled screwdrivers, and nicely plated, these were the prize of my toolbox. I had to replace the #2 Phillips several times before I stopped trying to loosen SOHC four speedo drive screws with it (which systematically made it break) and subsequently also changed my technique. These tools were my mainstays for many years while working in shops, and I still prefer them today.

These were made by Kowa Seiki, a little-known Japanese tools supplier that was the initial supplier of all of Honda's special tools, as well as Kawasaki's, Yamaha's, Suzuki's, and Mitsubishi's during the 1960s and 1970s. The Honda catalog tools were simply brilliant! Exotic, in fact. Elegantly simple and effective slide hammers, holders, valve guide drivers and reamers, cam chain riveters (the first ever available), and the world's absolute best clamshell type piston ring compressors (I own a set of these). Rather ironic, considering how cheesy the stamped-out Honda underseat toolkit tools were during this same time, since Kowa made all of those also. You can still find many of these with the Kowa name on them, some of them with the Honda name, all over, including on eBay.

In August of 1980, Kowa established their first U.S. subsidiary and distribution center, in Lawndale, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. Despite this, Kowa Seiki's fortunes seemed to soon change. Yamaha changed their factory special tool source to an American company, Kent-Moore, and Honda unprecedentedly also switched their to an American supplier, GNK. Oddly, at this same time, Honda Australia, Honda UK, and Mazda's headquarters in Germany, picked up Kowa as their official supplier. A call to Kowa's Lawndale office in 1983 resulted in permission to make a retail visit to the L.A. warehouse with a half dozen friends (fellow HSTA members, actually) and purchase direct several sets of t-handles.

Eventually, Kowa U.S. got an online presence in the U.S.. Then in the early 2000s the Snap-On company bought them and apparently absorbed the U.S. distributorship. The street address changed several times, first to Torrance, then Rancho Domingas, then Cerritos.

U.S. control cable and hand tool supplier Motion Pro in about 1990 began selling their own version of t-handles. They must not have sold well because I spoke with Motion Pro's online sales manager on March 4, 2013 and confirmed they discontinued them.

The Kowa Seiki online catalog is geared toward supplying Japanese market repair shops, car and motorcycle, with lifts, wheel alignment equipment, air compressors, EGAs, and other heavy shop tools, plus hand tools. Very like Honda's tool catalog of the 1960s and 1970s, these tools are some of the best in the industry.

Today there are more t-handle sets available than ever before, and now you have numerous choices. Among them are Motion Pro, whose t-handles seem to be available from Amazon, as well as many other companies' offerings. Also, it seems Pro Circuit is importing the original high quality Kowa set in from Kowa Seiki Japan, the same set I own. Finally some Taiwanese companies have started duplicating the Kowa set, and these tools appear to be good quality for a good price. And, there is even a set available made of Titanium and t-handles boasting bearings to facilitate faster spinning. Nice!

Kowa was famous for their Honda special tools. The piston ring compressors are works of art, and the famous diamond-coated valve seat machining stones were as useful as they were beautiful.

Forums tend to "dis" the use of ring compressors, insisting that fingers and screwdrivers work well enough. I won't comment on that. But once you have tried these, you'll be a believer.	These like the ring compressors are discontinued now but they work so very well!