Matco vs. Snap-On Ratcheting Wrenches

[Chadro]

The title pretty much says it all. I need to pick up a set of metric ratcheting wrenches and the Matco and Snap-on man stop by the most so I'm buying from one of them.

It's going to be either the Sanpon OEXRM710 or the Matco SGRCLM10T . Anybody have any experience with either set?

http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item...=19837&supersede=&store=snapon-store&tool=all

http://www.matcotools.com/Catalog/search.jsp?search=all&query=SGRCLM10T

 

[Sterff]

I don't that have that exact Matco set but, I do have two different pro swing sets. I think the quality is quite good. I use them very often and have no complaints. I have the Metric stubby set and the double box ratcheting wrenches. Mine are stamped USA unlike Snap-on. Yes I said it.

 

[Skin]

The biggest difference is the new SO set will not say USA on the wrench, the Matco ones do. Or at least they did.

 

[Skin]

Gearwrench is not made in the USA nor were they ever to my knowledge. They were Taiwan, they are now China. Unfortunetly i have little faith in Chinese GW so i'd probably suggest Blue-Point or Williams before GW.

 

[GeorgiaHybrid]

The biggest difference is the new SO set will not say USA on the wrench, the Matco ones do. Or at least they did.

The last Matco ratcheting wrenches that I pre-paid for thinking they were USA made came in on a boat from Taiwan. The Snap-on wrenches are still made here as far as I know.

 

[Deafautotech]

depend what would you use for that use most of time??

 

[diesel research]

Neither. Buy Gearwrench. Been using them for years. Excellent quality, comfortable, made in USA, and lifetime warrantied. plus, theyre a THIRD of the price of the snap on set.

Pics or they don't exist.


The matcos and the armstrongs are one in the same correct?

 

[Skin]

The last Matco ratcheting wrenches that I pre-paid for thinking they were USA made came in on a boat from Taiwan. The Snap-on wrenches are still made here as far as I know.

That seriously ***** if thats true.

 

[Skin]

If it doesnt say actually have USA stamped into the wrench, they're ashamed of it and i can assure you its not made in the states.

 

[Hiball]

i have seen the older gearwrench sets say taiwan, but ive purchased a couple of sets (all within the last 3 years) and theyre all stamped USA

Sorry... No USA Gearwrench, But back to the OP's Question which didnt include Gearwrench in any form, Ive got the Snappy's and there First Rate but Pricey.

 

[dinuns1]

Chadro , to answer your ?? i have used both and find the snap on to be better than the matco , but if coo is no big deal i highly recommend the bluepoint ones , they are way smooter than snappys i feel , i used the boss snap on before i bought my own bluepoints and i like the bluepoints way better

 

[GeorgiaHybrid]

That seriously ***** if thats true.

They were the BOGO buy on the zero offset double boxed end XXL wrenches. The are stamped Matco but both the metric set and the SAE set where made in Taiwan. I can go dig up the box in the basement that they came in later if you would like a pic.

To say that I was a little pissed off would be an understatement. I also have Snap-on and Blue Point ratcheting wrenches and like them very well, The Snap-on's are the fixed end wrenches and the Blue Points are the flex heads.

The SO wrenches are a little smoother but the Blue Points are just a hair behind them and I would hate to bet on the quality level difference between them. At least on the Blue Points, i knew they were made in Taiwan up front.

 

[Scout Driver]

I picked up a set of BluePoints and am super happy with them. Better feel and heft than the GearWrench tools. Mechanism feels more precise too. Less money than the Snappys or Matcos.

Scott

 

[Ben Iv]

all i have are matco pro swing and gear wrench i know you didnt ask about gw but i can say my matco are nicer than gw and my matco pro swings say usa on them.

 

[Simplespeed]

Iv been using flex gearwrenches for the past 5ish years but recently have been borrowing matco and snappy wrenches from other techs to help me decide which to buy. Iv been leaning toward snap on because, well, its snap on. But something keeps telling me to buy matco, so iv put off buying a set all together until im sure. The Snappys just seem bulky for some reason. Ill probably go matco double box.

 

[GeorgiaHybrid]

One other big plus for the Blue Points that I have is that they can be taken apart to be cleaned and lubed.

 

[Aklass]

Personally I prefer Gearwrench since they are the original and have the patent. (The patent is from Taiwan hence made in Taiwan) Matco and Gearwrench both belong to Danaher so I believe the are pretty much the same. At the shop I'm at, one of the techs uses Gearwrench, while the other has blue point ones but i rarely see him using them

 

[otis66]

I got the MATCO set because it was made in USA.

 

[Skin]

They were the BOGO buy on the zero offset double boxed end XXL wrenches. The are stamped Matco but both the metric set and the SAE set where made in Taiwan. I can go dig up the box in the basement that they came in later if you would like a pic.

To say that I was a little pissed off would be an understatement. I also have Snap-on and Blue Point ratcheting wrenches and like them very well, The Snap-on's are the fixed end wrenches and the Blue Points are the flex heads.

The SO wrenches are a little smoother but the Blue Points are just a hair behind them and I would hate to bet on the quality level difference between them. At least on the Blue Points, i knew they were made in Taiwan up front.

ah that makes more sense. I thought you were referring to one of the combination ratcheting box end sets, in which case i believe they're still stamped USA.

 

[stukaman]

I'm buying the full polish Proto ones myself

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[stukaman]

Srry didn't look at the date of the thread my bad.

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[gdocktor3]

You can delete your posts you know..

Edit - Delete - then select Delete message bubble - finally click delete this message in box on bottom right.

 

[pgilmore7]

. If I'm not mistaken the new set of Snap-On ratchet wrenches I got a few weeks ago say USA on them. I had the Gear wrench set but I had an issue with them locking up or stripping out. These new SO wrenches have the same "gear shifter" and ratchet mechanism as the actual ratchets. I had to give up a kidney to buy them but so far so good.


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[Pho20]

. If I'm not mistaken the new set of Snap-On ratchet wrenches I got a few weeks ago say USA on them. I had the Gear wrench set but I had an issue with them locking up or stripping out. These new SO wrenches have the same "gear shifter" and ratchet mechanism as the actual ratchets. I had to give up a kidney to buy them but so far so good.


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How much was that set?

Did gearwrench warrenty the ones you broke? I have been very happy with my 120 xp double box end so far but I'm a home mechanic

 

[B_Bimmer]

That snap on set is beautiful. I will look forward to real reviews as to how the mechanism survives appropriate torque for the handle length. My experience with gearwrench is they look pretty but cannot handle even average torque without locking up the ratchet. I'll take care of convince tools, but I won't baby them deleting anything convenient about them.

 

[warmpancakes]

snap on changed designs because the news ones can be serviced on the truck

 

[Skin]

How much was that set?

Did gearwrench warrenty the ones you broke? I have been very happy with my 120 xp double box end so far but I'm a home mechanic

Set is $500. Give it some months to get some stock out there and you'll be able to buy a set on ebay for $300. The only thing I don't like is that they don't taper so you're going to lose some swing arc in a tight spot.

 

[L.Cheapo]

If I'm not mistaken the new set of Snap-On ratchet wrenches I got a few weeks ago say USA on them. I had the Gear wrench set but I had an issue with them locking up or stripping out. These new SO wrenches have the same "gear shifter" and ratchet mechanism as the actual ratchets. I had to give up a kidney to buy them but so far so good.


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How do they feel in the hand? Heavy? Balance?

 

[redwrench60]

I agree with Skin on this. Due to the bulkier head over the first design I don't see these as an improvement. Sure, maybe an improvement to Snap On because the head is now field serviceable (cost saving measure) but not to the end user trying to use a bulky ratcheting wrench in a tight spot. I'd rather keep the wrench as compact as possible and just be handed a new one if it breaks.

Look at the giant head on the 10mm wrench!!

 

[Derek420]

You should buy the snap on it's better than Matco's hands down. Snap on makes there's and Matco ones are just rebadged and over priced hold one of each in one hand at a time the snap on ones weigh more and have a better fit and finish and say made in USA. All the matco tools I have do not. You can even get the blue-point ones which are top notch as well and cost less than the other 2 and are still better than Matcos. Now I'm not a huge snap on fan but out of your 2 options you gave there's really only one company wise at least. I would get the SK x frame ratchet wrenches if I were you. They are the best IMO by looks at least performance will be like snap on but SK has 4 paws for more grip. You can get them online that. A ratchet wrench is just a ratchet wrench they all do the same thing and look the same except SK ones. Good luck with your choice.

 

[B_Bimmer]

Honestly that snap on 10mm looks so much thinner than the gearwrench and old craftsman ones I have around the bulk of the head where it really matters that I doubt it would be more of an issue due to the small area by the selector. Of course would have to see them all right next to each other to really know.

 

[T45]

Dont matco make some decent box-box ratcheting wrenches? Don't forget to at least consider the overall design as much as the brand.

In combos, its hard to not to rate snap on because their combo is such a classic, functional design. You basically getting two tools into one if you don't already have snappy OEX or OEXMs lying about.

On the flip side, you you already have such, it may be worth considering non-combo designs. Including flex head, double box, XL (preferably with one regular box and one ratchet on each tool).

For you guys with the new snappy's please post up some reviews ! after you use them a bit. The clearance on that design as discussed above looks better in some ways and yet has some bulk shifted around.

Let us know how it works in the sizes <14 and <5/8 in particular where obstructiosn tend to be most common these days.

 

[stage20]

ive got a set of matco pro swings and they are armstrong. if you dont need to buy them off a truck look them up and save a ton of money.

i cant get the matco link to work. dont know which ones you are looking at.

for the price of the snap ons, you can have 10 or 15 different sets of imports. how many wrenches will you break? LOL

ive got a lot of ratcheting wrenches, and my dewalts have the smallest, head

 

[Skin]

Honestly that snap on 10mm looks so much thinner than the gearwrench and old craftsman ones I have around the bulk of the head where it really matters that I doubt it would be more of an issue due to the small area by the selector. Of course would have to see them all right next to each other to really know.

Its a bit of an illusion since the ring itself is fatter. They're about 2mm thinner in width than the old versions and about on par with Kabo and GW 120XP.

Dont matco make some decent box-box ratcheting wrenches? Don't forget to at least consider the overall design as much as the brand.

Yes their Kabo made long double box flex are fantastic. The combos have been Taiwan for nearly 5 years now and to be honest I was never impressed by the prior Armstrong ones anyway. A lot of QC issues and I feel the Taiwan mechanisms are more precise having reduced back drag out of the box.

 

[buckwheat_la]

Does anyone have a line on good prices on the 120xp gearwrench? Would like full set of double box metric

 

[Empty Pockets]

Have you considered the X-Frame wrenches from S-K?:

 

[Wamsutta]

snap on changed designs because the news ones can be serviced on the truck

Do they have a cover plate on the back side like a ratchet? I see they have two screws on each wrench.

 

[pgilmore7]

I put the Gear Wrench 10mm and the Snap-On 10mm side by side so you can tell the size difference. The SO wrench feels good in your hand and the ratchet part feels like one of their regular ratchets. The direction switch makes it a bit wider but I haven't run into an issue with clearance yet but I also only got them a few weeks ago. The price was $424.58 for the set. I have had an issue with my longer 3/8 SO ratchet stripping out, I hope these won't do the same.


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[DSLTRK]

ive got a set of matco pro swings and they are armstrong. if you dont need to buy them off a truck look them up and save a ton of money.

i cant get the matco link to work. dont know which ones you are looking at.

for the price of the snap ons, you can have 10 or 15 different sets of imports. how many wrenches will you break? LOL

ive got a lot of ratcheting wrenches, and my dewalts have the smallest, head

I'd have to agree. The older S/O ratchet wrenches are very clunky with a fat head. Matco was much better and had a smaller head diameter.

The most important aspect is the ratchet head diameter, as I tend to use these type of wrenches in difficult locations, such as on bell housing bolts.

Oddly enough, the Taiwan made variants from Blackhawk/Dewalt have a very nice finish and low profile box much better than both S/O and Matco.


I am liking the look of the new S/o ratchet wrench lower profile, but the price is way too high for what you get and there is the risk of FOD due to cover plate screws coming loose.

 

[Adam.C]

I would (and did) choose Snap On for the flank drive plus open end. If everyone's ratchet end is the same or essentially the same (as people here claim), I would pick the better open end and the longer pattern.

THAT SAID:
I don't love my ratchet wrenches. I find them a bit precious. I guess I just don't trust them. I have the set you are thinking of and the super high $$ high performance ratchets. If I am space restricted and have to crack something free, I ALWAYS reach for the high performance DBE snappies. They are my favorite wrenches hands down. I'll crack stuff loose with them, then get stubby ratchet wrenches (again, I have snap on, but really any would do for my use) and ratchet the loose hardware out if I can't do it with my fingers.

My advice is to not spend big on these tools. They all seem to fail eventually. Rather use a socket any day if you can squeeze it in.