GreaseMonkey45170
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- Nov 24, 2013
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As the title states, which do you perfer chrome, or satin finish wrenches and why? Dont you have to wipe down the satin finished ones to help prevent rusting?
satin or chrome finish
- Thread starter GreaseMonkey45170
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Exceller8
Well-known member
I'm just a DIY guy but I much prefer a satin finish.
Tinner
Well-known member
Most of the tools I own are chrome but I don't mind satin if it's done well. I have recent Armstrong, Proto and Stahlwille and their satin finishes are fine. Craftsman over the years has varied from very good to poor. A satin finish shouldn't be like sandpaper or have rough/sharp edges. I always wipe my tools down before putting them away.
nicksnothereman
Well-known member
I store things like an idiot so my chrome stuff always get's scratched a bit. Doesn't bother me but I tend to avoid the mirror finishes for that reason because I don't want to look at all the scratches. If it's cheap enough I don't give a s(tuff). You should see my 3/8' composite ratchet, looks like godzilla was gnawing on it.
The Muffin Man
Well-known member
I like satin chrome better. Between the two, the ease of cleaning and grip is almost the same for me. I think the satin chrome is much more aesthetically pleasing than mirrored chrome. Here is a pic of a very nice satin chrome tools...
The Muffin Man
Well-known member
Your correct, at least on the wrench. The extension was made before Toptul switched them to the water satin finish. At first I didn't like the water satin finish as much as the regular satin finish, but it has grown on me as time passed. Both types still look fantastic, and I still prefer both to mirrored chrome.
I am a satin finish guy myself. But pretty much every european is a satin finish person since we don't really do polish finishes. I love the finish on my Facom 440's and Facom 467F's. Then again, Toptul is the OEM for the 440's and I think also the 467F's.
I do have some chrome finished tools, such as my Wurth Zebra flex head ratcheting wrenches. They do look very nice but they're just not for me.
For ratchets I do prefer polished finish with some sort of comfort handle. Like a THLF72, FHLF80, SHF80A. This is probably again because I am european. All ratchets here are comfort handle, hard to find ratchets here without a comfort handle.
I do have some chrome finished tools, such as my Wurth Zebra flex head ratcheting wrenches. They do look very nice but they're just not for me.
For ratchets I do prefer polished finish with some sort of comfort handle. Like a THLF72, FHLF80, SHF80A. This is probably again because I am european. All ratchets here are comfort handle, hard to find ratchets here without a comfort handle.
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OP
GreaseMonkey45170
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Thats right ndoran, thanks for catching my mistake. Keep it coming guys!
I like both, but looking in a pile of tools I don't even bother picking up the "Chinese" chrome tools, but not because I don't like mirror chrome. I know anything good in the pile with mirror chrome has already been picked out leaving the junk.
Applesauce
Well-known member
For me it depends on whose satin, whose polish, and what the tool in question is. My satin Hazet open-ends are unreal (and unscratchable). My satin Proto flare nuts are great. Satin Mastercraft or CM RPs get a big "meh" from me; holding some of them makes my skin crawl in a fingernails-on-a-chalkboard kind of way.
My polished Snap-On, Williams, and Proto sockets and bit sockets I wouldn't want any other way. My half-polished, thickly-chromed Lobster, Gray Canada, and KBS wrenches are great, too.
My polished Snap-On, Williams, and Proto sockets and bit sockets I wouldn't want any other way. My half-polished, thickly-chromed Lobster, Gray Canada, and KBS wrenches are great, too.
fatfillup
Well-known member
Have some of both. I tend to care more about balance and fit over the finish.
OP
GreaseMonkey45170
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How about satin finished wrights, who has any experiece with them. Keep it coming guys, love to hear your opinions!
Applesauce
Well-known member
I think they'd be media blasted and then chromed like any other tool, no? How DOES the satin finish happen?
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jeff g
Well-known member
Hi
I like satin chrome better
I like satin chrome better
shampoop
Well-known member
satin.
stahlwile vs snapon.
polished chrome looks great till you actually use the tool and it gets all scratched up. Grip and cleanup is the exact same for both.
stahlwile vs snapon.
polished chrome looks great till you actually use the tool and it gets all scratched up. Grip and cleanup is the exact same for both.
They don't use a media blast. They polish the wrenches in a bath of rocks.
You can see them doing it in this video:
Applesauce
Well-known member
Yeah, I've seen that video. It's rad. Those "rocks" are ceramic, and those are polished Snap-On wrenches. I was asking about satin finishes.
Now...can anyone comment on how satin finishes are achieved? Is the finish an integral part of the tool before the chrome is applied? I'm fairly sure chrome is a coating applied to a substrate, and the substrate dictates how the chrome will appear.
The Muffin Man
Well-known member
Incorrect, the ceramic stones are used in both finishes, the video depicts the process for mirror finish anyways.
Also incorrect, the smoothness of the Satin chrome is dictated by the grit of the media "paste" that is used to coat the tool before it is electroplated. The type of media can also influence the smoothness as well.
Satin chrome is achieved by coating the wrench with a fine grit medium "paste". Glass bead and aluminum oxide are some of the materials used to form the paste. After the wrench is coated evenly, hard chrome is then electroplated on just like in the video.
Basically the only difference is that Satin chrome's process coats the tool with fine grit paste right before the electroplating.
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