Unusual Tools: Sock-o-Matic Wrench

I've had this unusual nut driver for years.  It will fit nuts and bolt heads from 1/4" to 7/16" across the flats.

 

Below, an ad from 1965, when it appears to have been introduced:

Popular Mechanics, April 1965

The tool was patented in 1966 by Edward J. Mahall as a "multiple socket wrench."

The patent was assigned to the Silverbrook Manufacturing Company of Springfield, Massachusetts (and also, apparently, Wayne, New Jersey), which gave it the "Sock-o-Matic" trademark:

 

While it's a neat idea, the problem is that, since the nested hex inserts are spring loaded, you can't hold a bolt head or nut in the tool in order to start the fastener.  So, you'd need to have a separate set of individual nut drivers available to start each fastener, which kind of defeats the purpose of the tool.