Old vs New Snap On Line Wrenches

[HomeTheaterMan]

I have some newer style Snap On line wrenches in metric which I absolutely love. I've recently needed a size of a standard one a few times and thought I'd just pick one up in thst size on eBay. I see that several people have this really old style for very cheap.
eBay Listing

Has anyone used this style? How do they compare to the newer style? Or should I just spend the money and get a newer one?

 

[Snapped-off]

I prefer the style with the fat open end on one side.

But the vintage ones will do the job too.

 

[Wrench97]

They are good but not as good as the newer style wrench.

 

[Ricky Joe]

That one on eBay will work great. That is a great deal and you should buy it. The big difference in line wrenches is in fit, and Snap-on excels. They won’t round the fitting . The issue of spreading, in my experience, is with the larger sizes. You aren’t going to encounter a small fitting this size that will spread the wrench.

 

[impactims]

They are good but not as good as the newer style wrench.

What is it that makes the older version inferior? I have some wrenches that are the older version. Have not used them much. Not enough to detect shortcomings anyways.

So that folks know what we are talking about...

 

[Ricky Joe]

I looked at that guy’s offerings. That wrench, and another set that he has, are actually pretty good deals. Some of his stuff is ok priced if you need it, and some gets awful close to retail, but those wrenches are a good deal even if you don’t need them.

 

[Komet]

I have a full set of the old style, metric and sae. They are excellent, never failed me and feel good in the hand as well.

 

[Jgaz]

I have a full set of the old style, metric and sae. They are excellent, never failed me and feel good in the hand as well.

Same.
I’ve had both sets since the 70’s. I can’t really compare them to anything else but they’ve always worked well for me.
If you need that wrench, i wouldn't hesitate to grab it at that price

 

[Mgdoug3]

What is it that makes the older version inferior? I have some wrenches that are the older version. Have not used them much. Not enough to detect shortcomings anyways.

So that folks know what we are talking about...

My great uncle gave move a set of Snap-on 12 point line SAE wrenches and 6 point SAE with the fat open end. The 3/4 12 point is my most used line wrench for injector lines. If they're very tight, I'll use a 6 point but the 12 point helps to get into tight places.

My Snap-on line wrenches might be old but they work great. The fat open ends are my preferred style when not working on injector lines. One day I'll get a set of metric but my SK set have worked fine for me except they're on the shorter side. Sometimes shorter is better for clearance but a longer wrench makes the job easier.

 

[Wrench97]

What is it that makes the older version inferior? I have some wrenches that are the older version. Have not used them much. Not enough to detect shortcomings anyways.

So that folks know what we are talking about...

As I stated they work well but the newer Flank Drive style work better, if you've never had a wrench fail to remove a line nut either you don't take many lines off or don't work in the rust belt on **** boxes.

 

[jtrux]

An older guy I'm very close with has a bunch of older SO tools he bought from his dad who ran a truck in San Antonio decades ago. I would guess 60s and 70s. Anyways, he has a set of line wrenches that I use regularly that have an open end and flare end. I have no idea what year they are but they are at least 40 years old. But they still work great.

 

[lbhsbz]

I have multiples of the old style and new style and I prefer the old style. They're longer than the new ones and the handle is not as thinned out and sharp.

I use them daily (lots of brake line work).