sk hand tools

[chappys4life]

How do sk hand tools compare to sears pro series? I was looking at the full polished pro wrenches from craftsman and I can get a similar set from sk for not a huge jump. So I was thinking instead of buying more craftsman stuff maybe i need to look at sk stuff more.

 

[64merc]

How do sk hand tools compare to sears pro series? I was looking at the full polished pro wrenches from craftsman and I can get a similar set from sk for not a huge jump. So I was thinking instead of buying more craftsman stuff maybe i need to look at sk stuff more.

This is one of those areas where everyone has their own preference. You'll probably get a slightly different response from each member. It comes down to how you like the feel, since quality-wise, they are both similar IMO. The SK wrenches have a thicker feel to them and have more meat around the box end.

 

[strizzy]

Just food for thought, if a wrench needed to be warranted, I know it is much easier for me to take a trip to Sears then to find an SK dealer. I have never used a polished SK wrench (have used raised panels), so I cant comment on their comparison; I can say that I have yet to have a problem with my Craftsman Pros.

 

[MAD]

How do sk hand tools compare to sears pro series? I was looking at the full polished pro wrenches from craftsman and I can get a similar set from sk for not a huge jump. So I was thinking instead of buying more craftsman stuff maybe i need to look at sk stuff more.

The SK long pattern wrenches are a little longer than the Craftsman pro combination wrenches. Other than that, I would say that they are pretty similar.
If you do a search you will find a an old thread by bmwpower about some SK wrenches he got with quality and finish problems. I have never had a problem with SK quality though. I really like the SK ratchets.


SK actually makes the Craftsman pro flare nut wrenches and they made the early Craftsman pro combination wrenches when they first came out.

The SK wrenches have a thicker feel to them and have more meat around the box end.

On the ones I have compared the SKs actually have thinner wall box ends except right where the beam of the wrench meets the box end they are about the same. The SKs look fatter where the beam flairs into the box end mostly because the beam of the wrench is not as wide as the Danaher made Craftsman wrench. Not much difference though in practical use.

The Craftsman pro wrenches are hard to beat as far as bang for the buck is concerned.

 

[billymade]

Thats what I was thinking; do you have a local dealer that can provide warranty service for you for replacements? On the other hand, I haven't broken a hand wrench in years.... I don't know how prone to breakage the SKs are; anyone have any experiences? I don't think I have ever warranted a Craftsman Pro full polish wrench that I can remember (thats not to say they don't break but there are a bunch more flat panels out there!).

 

[chappys4life]

any brand beside craftsman we be more of a hassle to get warrantied because I do not work where we have the trucks come by (I do IT work) If I buy another set of wrenches I will have 2 sets in sae and metric (1 polished, 1 ratcheting) so might not be a huge deal if I break one. If there's no benefit of going to sk compared to craftsman pro I might just go craftsman but for $30 extra if it was a nicer set I figured why not.

 

[MAD]

Thats what I was thinking; do you have a local dealer that can provide warranty service for you for replacements? On the other hand, I haven't broken a hand wrench in years.... I don't know how prone to breakage the SKs are; anyone have any experiences? I don't think I have ever warranted a Craftsman Pro full polish wrench that I can remember (thats not to say they don't break but there are a bunch more flat panels out there!).

I somehow put a slight bend in an older (SK made) Craftsman pro 8mm combination wrench. This size in the SK is very long with a very thin beam compared to the Danaher replacement they gave me. I liked the SK made one better but I can't complain about getting my wrench replaced so easily.

I did recently see a newer (Danaher) Craftsman pro combination wrench in the return bin at sears with the open end completely broken in half. Perhaps someone used another wrench on it to extend the length.

 

[64merc]

The SK long pattern wrenches are a little longer than the Craftsman pro combination wrenches. Other than that, I would say that they are pretty similar.
If you do a search you will find a an old thread by bmwpower about some SK wrenches he got with quality and finish problems. I have never had a problem with SK quality though. I really like the SK ratchets.


SK actually makes the Craftsman pro flare nut wrenches and they made the early Craftsman pro combination wrenches when they first came out.



On the ones I have compared the SKs actually have thinner wall box ends except right where the beam of the wrench meets the box end they are about the same. The SKs look fatter where the beam flairs into the box end mostly because the beam of the wrench is not as wide as the Danaher made Craftsman wrench. Not much difference though in practical use.

The Craftsman pro wrenches are hard to beat as far as bang for the buck is concerned.

What I meant was, comparing the overall feel, the SK's are chunkier. I wasn't specifically referring to the point where the shaft of the wrench meets the box end, just the shaft itself. Personally, I have a set of full polish SK wrenches and they feel chunkier than most of the brands I have picked up.

Everyone made a good point about the warranty. It may be significantly harder to warranty the SKs versus the c-mans.

 

[billymade]

Maybe this will help your decision; look for a local dealer in your area:
http://www.skhandtool.com/Default.aspx?fusemode=19
Any one close by?

 

[chappys4life]

Maybe this will help your decision; look for a local dealer in your area:
http://www.skhandtool.com/Default.aspx?fusemode=19
Any one close by?

yeah one really close.

 

[hamburglar]

My take...

I could care less about warranty. If I break a $2-$8 wrench, I can afford it, plus the fact is that I've never broken a wrench.

Find something you like the looks of and just buy it, it's a silly thing to agonize about. It's not that much money in the scheme of things and you (hopefully) won't buy it twice.

eBay is your friend. I'm simply just not seeing killer prices on new retail hand tools in the last 6 months or so (Craftsman may be an exception, but that's not one that I watch).

Some tool brands are really good about holding value, if you might ever sell a set of wrenches I suppose it's worth keeping in mind.

About 90% (or some other equally large number) of these wrench discussions are a)based on esthetics and b) based on everyone pushing a brand that they already own without having tried much in the way of other brands...personally (and without actually trying them all) my guess is that just about any name brand will do the job.

If you'd rather spend money on a project car than on tools (which makes a goodly amount of sense), I suppose the best thing to do is buy about 20 lbs of Craftsman raised panels off eBay for 10 bucks.

 

[tite681]

SK actually makes the Craftsman pro flare nut wrenches and they made the early Craftsman pro combination wrenches when they first came out.

That's good info. ***** for me though. I actually had the early Craftsman Pro Combination wrenches and lost them.

 

[RickP330]

Personal preference, but I SK is the brand I would go to first if I weren't going to buy SO. Half of my box wrenches are SK and they served me real well. Plus I seem to go off on this all the time, but the SK screwdrivers are my favoriate. LOL.

 

[tite681]

Plus I seem to go off on this all the time, but the SK screwdrivers are my favoriate. LOL.

I know this is a little off-topic. I picked my car from getting smogged and found a SK Sure Grip screwdriver under my hood. I liked it so much, I bought a set.

 

[nissan_crawler]

I actually sold my SK wrenches to buy Craftsman Pro's, and like them much better. I just wasn't impressed with the SK's, I sold the screwdrivers and socket sets, too.

 

[Coach James]

What is "getting smogged"?

I have several of the SK polished combo wrenches and I like them very well. I don't have any C-man pro stuff so I can't compare them.

Coach

 

[tite681]

What is "getting smogged"?

Coach

I guess it's a casual term for smog inspection. It's required every two years in California.

 

[billymade]

Having your car tested to see if it passes a emissions test a.k.a: "getting smogged"; typically required in metropolitan areas and certain states: e.g. California.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emission_test_cycle

 

[Fedwrench]

The key in buying SK tools is to shop around. I don't think any other brand has such a wide range of prices depending on where you shop. I would not buy anything SK from Sears. They have some of the highest prices on SK I've seen. Ebay, Tooltopia, toolrage, the toolwarehouse, and other online vendors have more reasonable prices. The only real drawback to using SK is getting a broken tool warrantied. However, they make a pretty good product so, unless you abuse your tools you may never need to warranty anything.
It's all a matter of personal preference and affordability.

 

[SocketDeviler]

How do SK sockets compare to say SNAP-ON, CORNWELL and CRAFTSMAN? Most of the SKs I've found in used bins (from more than one store) are in rough shape; worn teeth, more than an average amount of rust, chips in the finish and body, very hard to clean. They were clearly beat on and rarely if ever cleaned so it's hard for me to judge their long term performance against the other US brands I buy which are generally in much better shape. Craftsman being the most popular American made sockets in the bins.

 

[tite681]

I was surprised to see Amazon.com selling and shipping SK Tools. The prices are pretty good.

 

[Merkava_4]

I'm thinking SK needs to do some work to their wrenches. They need to narrow the beam where it intersects with the box end and they also need to round off the square edges. As they are right now, I wouldn't recommend them.

 

[jay50]

I got the 28 piece Cman pros a while back. Price was $169.
Really like them better than some older SKs I had.

 

[SteveV]

You might want to check out this famous thread on SK wrenches:

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3247

I know it made me think twice about buying their products. I have yet to hear anything bad about the Craftsman Pro wrenches.

 

[eschoendorff]

Just food for thought, if a wrench needed to be warranted, I know it is much easier for me to take a trip to Sears then to find an SK dealer. I have never used a polished SK wrench (have used raised panels), so I cant comment on their comparison; I can say that I have yet to have a problem with my Craftsman Pros.

What he said.

 

[eschoendorff]

any brand beside craftsman we be more of a hassle to get warrantied because I do not work where we have the trucks come by (I do IT work) If I buy another set of wrenches I will have 2 sets in sae and metric (1 polished, 1 ratcheting) so might not be a huge deal if I break one. If there's no benefit of going to sk compared to craftsman pro I might just go craftsman but for $30 extra if it was a nicer set I figured why not.

I don't think that the S*K wrenches are $30 nicer. The Craftsman Pros are basically Armstrong wrenches - excellent finish... and in practical use, i have a hard time telling them apart from my Snap On wrenches...

 

[nissan_crawler]

I don't think that the S*K wrenches are $30 nicer. The Craftsman Pros are basically Armstrong wrenches - excellent finish... and in practical use, i have a hard time telling them apart from my Snap On wrenches...

I personally think the c-pro's are nicer. As to your last statement...a co-worker and I laid out my C-Pro's, and his Snappy's (albeit he has older ones, from the 80's maybe), and literally about the ONLY difference was that mine are 1/4" shorter. the open end and box end, and handle dimensions were very near identical by caliper.

 

[eschoendorff]

How do SK sockets compare to say SNAP-ON, CORNWELL and CRAFTSMAN? Most of the SKs I've found in used bins (from more than one store) are in rough shape; worn teeth, more than an average amount of rust, chips in the finish and body, very hard to clean. They were clearly beat on and rarely if ever cleaned so it's hard for me to judge their long term performance against the other US brands I buy which are generally in much better shape. Craftsman being the most popular American made sockets in the bins.

As far as sockets go, I have rounded out more S*K sockets than I have Craftsman... food for thought....

 

[nissan_crawler]

My SK sockets pissed me off. The deep wells are a damn joke, they're no different than using a stubby socket and an extension. They choke the socket down right past the splines so you can't get a long bolt or stud inside the damn socket anyway. Junk. I hate the screwdrivers, too. Please show me somebody with a square hand that can fit one of those handles. The pliers were sloppy.

I had $800 of SK tools in a set I got for A&P school. Out of all those tools, only a few punches (most broke rather quickly), a soft hammer, tubing wrenches, and a pair of duckbill pliers (only because it has no teeth, so nice for not marring surfaces) remain at work, the rest was sold quickly.

I have yet to pick up any SK tool and be impressed, personally. Craftsman quickly replaced all my SK tools, and I have yet to have any complaints about the tools.

 

[Merkava_4]

My SK sockets pissed me off.

LOL!

I hate the screwdrivers, too. Please show me somebody with a square hand that can fit one of those handles.

Some of the screwdrivers out there have three sides on the handle; you have to have a triangle hand to fit those.

 

[philw]

The only reason I would buy the SK wrenches over the Craftsman is if they were longer. I have both SK and Craftsman but my older Craftsman pro's were made by SK. I think someone stated that the newer Craftsman pro's were not as long as the SK long pattern.

I don't think there is much from SK that you can't get something similiar in quality in the Craftsman pro line anymore.

SK's palm control ratchets are excellent and I like them better than the Cman pro. Although if you were on a budget you may go with the Craftsman pro since it may fit in some tighter places. Since Sears only has the one style Craftsman pro I would use SK for other ratchets such as stubby, flex and others which are far superior the regular Craftsman.

SK's locking extensions are much better than Craftsman and are worth the extra $.

 

[chappys4life]

I am still not sure which one to do. I doubt I will be buying any new sockets soon. I took and inventory of my sockets and had more than I thought and 90% craftsman so I will prob stick to them. I was mainly looking at sk wrenches vs craftsman pro's right now. So I am debating:

SK SuperKrome 15 Piece 12 Point set metric and sae. In the set they go from 8-22mm & 1/4-1-inch. From amazon they are $227

The craftsman pro are 28 piece 7-19mm, 21mm & 1/4-1 1/16. They set is $170.

For $57 dollars extra I get sk brand I loose a 7mm and 1 1/16 but I gain a 20mm and 22mm. So overall it works out to close in wrench sizes and full polish. Just brand.

 

[RickP330]

Please show me somebody with a square hand that can fit one of those handles.

Well, true - but they don't roll around when you close the draw! LOL Plus I really like the hex you can put a wrench on for additional torque when you need it but I suppose there are a lot of screwdrivers out there that have that too....
RP

 

[MAD]

SK SuperKrome 15 Piece 12 Point set metric and sae. In the set they go from 8-22mm & 1/4-1-inch. From amazon they are $227

If you go for the S-Ks be sure you are ordering the Long pattern wrenches if that is what you want. I think the wrenches you are looking at on Amazon are the regular length ones. Those are shorter than the Cman pros.

 

[chappys4life]

If you go for the S-Ks be sure you are ordering the Long pattern wrenches if that is what you want. I think the wrenches you are looking at on Amazon are the regular length ones. Those are shorter than the Cman pros.

I don't care if they are long pattern. My only big thing is that they are full polish. I have a set of the craftsman raised ones and hate them. I guess I have been spoiled by full polished on my dads set.

 

[tite681]

I don't care if they are long pattern. My only big thing is that they are full polish.

If you have a choice, go long.

 

[billymade]

That is one of the main problems with the less expensive wrenches IMHO, e.g. craftsman raised panel wrenches, they are so short, that breaking the initial tightness of a nut/bolt is a problem. When I was younger, I didn't realize this until I got a set of Mac Tools wrenches and really noticed the difference! In most situations, I will take the long handle wrenches over short and it will make your wrenching much easier!

 

[nissan_crawler]

LOL!




Some of the screwdrivers out there have three sides on the handle; you have to have a triangle hand to fit those.

Close your hand, it forms a triangle. I literally drilled out the insides of a few of my sk sockets to make them work.

 

[SocketDeviler]

Thanks for the info on the sockets, fellas.

 

[philw]

chappys4life

The SK standard are about 3/4 to 1" shorter than Craftsman RAISED panel.

THEY ARE VERY SHORT.

I have both SK long pattern and the standard pattern. I reach for the long every time unless I think clearance is an issue.

Toolwarehouse has an SK long pattern 12 piece set from 8-19mm for $116.50
The topper set (20-24) is $91.75.