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Need offset wrenches. Other than Snap on or Mac, who is decent?

rogersmithiii

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Jan 15, 2012
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212
I need a set of offset wrenches - metric and standard.

Ignoring Mac and Snap On, what other vendors are worth looking at? Are Craftsman still worth buying?

Thanks
 
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OP
R

rogersmithiii

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Joined
Jan 15, 2012
Messages
212
The reviews on the Harbor Freight wrenches look really good, but I'm very hesitant to buy HF. Junk tools break on Sunday afternoon at 5 PM after all the stores have closed, and you have to be at work at 8 AM on Monday morning.

C
 

rsanter

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Dec 22, 2007
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Location
visalia ca
Craftsman pro had some really nice ones. I have some and likemthem.
Perhaps you could find a used set.

I GJSS gifted a set someone one year
 

LXCam

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Apr 23, 2013
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19,183
Location
AZ
If money were no object I'd get a set of Stahlwill's. Superdeep offset, nice broaching, classic shank. :drool:

https://www.kctoolco.com/stahlwille-20-7n-double-ended-ring-spanner-set/

I'll double down on the stahlwill sets, I luv mine and I'd respend that money without hesitation if I had too.

Here's where I bought my set. Jens has some killer deals from time to time so I'd suggest signing up so you get the notifications.

https://www.jensputzier.com/brands/stahlwille/

I'd also suggest both SK, toptul and proto of which I have sets from.
 

DFB

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Sep 7, 2016
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Southern VT/Western Mass
OP I have the Craftsman ones they do the job just fine, mine were made in USA though can't vouch for the Chinesium made ones.

Drop box end are my favorite type of wrench.

Even in stubbies
 

unslow1

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Mar 3, 2012
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7,880
Location
Illinois
Offset wrenches are not usually used much. I found it hard to justify spending much. Myself I have the HF set and then a few odd ones from Craftsman, MAC and Proto.
 

hangfirew8

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Jul 14, 2008
Messages
879
Location
Central Maryland
I have the Stahlwille SF20 set and highly recommend them. For $119.99 at Amazon, they are a good deal.

If you can find the old SK made Craftsman high polish DBE wrenches for a decent price, they are worth it. Ebay prices have been crazy lately.

Current SK DBE are shorties only and at $179 are really pricey, but US Contract versions in a blue tool roll regularly come up on eBay. That is how I got my SAE and Metric sets around $50-55 each.

HF Pittsburgh deep offset DBE are made in India. When I examined them the broaching was off center and the chamfer was uneven to missing. Maybe they work fine but I was not impressed. Their Taiwanese tools are all better looking.

If looking on foreign sites, look for deep crank ring spanners.

-HF
 

bonneyman

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Apr 22, 2010
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8,852
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Desert SW
Offset wrenches are not usually used much. I found it hard to justify spending much. Myself I have the HF set and then a few odd ones from Craftsman, MAC and Proto.

You've got a point there. I don't like long offset wrenches, as they like to "pivot" sideways when you put alot of force on them. Deep offsets are better on shorty wrenches. (see my Bonney's)
So the perfect setup for me would be deep shorty's, 15 deg offset standard length, and 0 deg extra long DBE's - like Snap-On High performance style. :thumbup:
 

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Psychwarfare

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Nov 26, 2018
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106
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NJ
I went with Tekton and have been happy but didn't pay full price.

If I was looking again, I'd go older USA or SK CM
 

Mr_B

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Nov 21, 2016
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5,378
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Reading
Stahlwille are proper nice if you want spend that much, if not tekton pretty decent mid cost, toptul proper nice but maybe harder find in US these days .
 

turnthewrench 2.0

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Dec 23, 2017
Messages
518
Location
FL
I have the Stahlwille SF20 set and highly recommend them. For $119.99 at Amazon, they are a good deal.

Stahlwille are awesome. You can have both sets, metric and SAE, delivered for $144 from Germany @ amazon.de
 

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dsimatt

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Dec 9, 2012
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I have Macs economy line of metric ones and really like them but in typical stupid Mac fashion you can't buy standard ones.:mad:
 
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M6erfan

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Dec 6, 2014
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'Merica!
I use mine a lot. Matter of fact I spent today tearing down a vintage enduro bike and the KTC TM510 set I use are really, really nice. I have a Stahlwille 60° set too, they're great but I don't use them as often.
 

jdlong

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Oct 2, 2016
Messages
333
Location
Kaukauna Wisconsin
I have Cmann SAE (USA) and metric (China) and for DIY, they are fine. I've had no issues with the broaching when I herf on them. China Cmann and Tekton are probably very much alike. What I hate is the even x even, odd x odd (eg-12x14, 13x15mm) patterns. They are a ***** because I am often off a head size when I eyeball a bolt head and it means grabbing another pattern verses flipping the wrench. Both Cmann and Tekton do this for reasons unknown to me.

I also have some Harbor Freights lying around. As others say, they are cheesy. They look like cast pig iron and the broaching is sloppy. On the other hand, the offset is very steep compared to Cmann and Tekton (45 deg) and I've gotten them in tight recesses where Cmann would not go. Also, they do not do the even x even, odd x odd pattern thingy. I did cut a couple in half to get in a couple real tight spots. Because they are so cheap, they come in handy for that.

The Stahlwillie sets linked here look like the best of both worlds. Quality broaching, steep offsets, and even x odd patterns. I would go that route if I were to do it over again.
 

mrobins297aaa

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Sep 20, 2010
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3,283
Location
south east michigan
If your going to buy Stahlwillie check Amazon.de

I bought this 10 pc set for 82 euro (usd $93.20) with free shipping last may
buying from Amazon.de takes a little longer to get here but @ $93 it was less than half on the cost here.


https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B001D2XALU/
 

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General Geoff

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Jan 12, 2013
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Allentown, Pennsylvania
Buy once, buy the best. Less than a hundred shipped from amazon.de.

20170209130605-77ea794f-xl.jpg




They paid for themselves with one washing machine motor replacement for me.

20170302221412-bc117afb-xl.jpg
 

Dimitriy

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Jul 19, 2017
Messages
97
Location
San Jose, CA
Another vote for Stahlwille, fit on the fastener is superb, very light and wears well due to the matte chrome. Even at $120, this set is a steal. I liked them so much that I added a set of the combo wrenches.
 

ChrisLS8

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Jan 16, 2015
Messages
1,964
They are definitely limited use tools. I'd go with a mid-range like Toptul or even the Duralast is made in Taiwan
 

Shane6377

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Jul 11, 2017
Messages
683
Location
.
My favorite are the Matco USA. I bought mine used off of eBay for cheap.

Haven't used the Stahlwille myself but have used some of their combo wrenches and they are great. Sounds like a good option if you're buying new.


Sent from my iPhone using The Garage Journal mobile app
 

redwrench60

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Joined
Sep 10, 2011
Messages
6,075
Location
East Tennessee
Those Stahlwillie deep offsets do look like they’d be great. Nice thin box rings, deep straight offsets without extra material in the hips. Look like they’d be great for access in a pinch. At right near a hundred bucks the price is very reasonable if they’re also tough. Anybody know what the COO is on them?
 

CR888

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Feb 19, 2017
Messages
1,198
Yup the Stahwille's are the bomb, I have the deep 20 series Stabil in metric & love them. They don't have perfect mirror polished chrome, they have a finish that will actually last and look the same many years after use.
 

BroncoAZ

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Jun 23, 2018
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MA
Buy once, buy the best. Less than a hundred shipped from amazon.de.

20170209130605-77ea794f-xl.jpg

Shows $73.03 shipped for that 8 piece set of metrics pictured. Seems pretty reasonable.

https://www.amazon.de/dp/B000HB00CA/

Looks like the same set is $144 at KC Tools:

https://www.kctoolco.com/stahlwille-20-8-double-ended-ring-spanner-set/

The SAE set is a couple bucks more from .de for two less wrenches. My OCD makes it hard to buy just metrics and not the matching SAE, but I ordered just the metric for now.
 
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turnthewrench 2.0

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Joined
Dec 23, 2017
Messages
518
Location
FL
and if I have a choice use the zero offset.

Sometimes the only way to go is with a deep offset..., or I love my knuckles :lol_hitti

As Bonneyman says, the tendency to twist is irritating on deeper offset, so I use the least offset that I can.

I haven't noticed any twisting with the Stahlwille wrenches when applying high torque, but each design has its uses I guess.
 

ku17

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Joined
Jan 20, 2016
Messages
63
I have the Proto sets in metric and SAE. They're still fairly new additions so I can't comment on the longevity of them. It's worth noting that the two sets have very different beam types. The metric set has thicker beams that are almost square, but not sharp-cornered like Mac wrenches. The SAE set has much more rounded beams with less volume to them. Maybe someone on this forum knows why the beam styles are so different.
 

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bwringer

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Jan 1, 2013
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Indianapolis
Dewalt for $50 a set on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N2QS30G/?tag=atomicindus08-20

I have the Stahwille as well and grab the Dewalts first.

Those look mighty niiiiiiice for the money, and they have a nice sharp angle on the offset, too. Thanks for the link!

Much as I love Tekton's stuff in general, the 45 degree angle of their offset means they'll be less useful. When you have to break out the offsets, it's because you're in a tight situation with stuff in the way, and sometimes that angled offset is going to keep you from reaching something.
 
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