That's a pretty good price, they also make a 5 piece metric add on that covers 20-25. These are my favorite wrenches and certainly my most used.
Does anybody else not care for ratcheting wrenches?
- Thread starter Wamsutta
- Start date
That's a pretty good price, they also make a 5 piece metric add on that covers 20-25. These are my favorite wrenches and certainly my most used.
techieman33
Well-known member
I have a set, but have only used them maybe a dozen times. They’re the last resort when nothing else will work. Haven’t had any problems in that little use though.
I prefer wrenches to ratchets and ratcheting wrenches are my favorite. It doesn't make sense to me to me to pull a handle off center of the fasterner when you can be straight on it. I use power/air whenever possible, but now go for the ratcheting wrench right after that.
I got a double box SO xl and love using them but just got the Gearwrench xl with the box and ratchet so I'll be selling my SOs soon. They are nice but not as efficient and I work to make money.
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I got a double box SO xl and love using them but just got the Gearwrench xl with the box and ratchet so I'll be selling my SOs soon. They are nice but not as efficient and I work to make money.
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You are pretty much on your own here.
Add me to the list of guys that really like ratcheting wrenches and feel that you are odd for not using them.
928'er
Well-known member
Google "luddite" then Google "troll."
Rabid Badger
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That tells me that you view wrenches as a means to an end; like a shovel would be for most people. I wonder if there's anybody out there that just loves shovels and tries to dream up opportunities to use one.
Anyone that used their wrenches even one tenth as much as you claim to would know their fractions well enough to not have to ask if 31/64 is bigger than 3/8.
He has at least one prior banned account on here
Fluelikesymptoms
Well-known member
"Traditionalist" would be a better word. For example, there's some ******** woodworkers out there who refuse to use any power tools or power equipment.
And this is not a troll thread by any stretch of the imagination. I was genuinely curious if anybody else out there prefers a traditional combination wrench with no moving parts, as opposed to a ratcheting wrench.
wolf_from_wv
Well-known member
I can think of times when I've tried to use them, but was unable to because the head was so much bigger than a regular wrench.
dr_clyde
Well-known member
I don’t really care for them. They’re not as ergonomic as a regular wrench, and I don’t like the space the mechanism takes up.
I am usually either using the open end, or the box end is being used to break something loose or hold something for a power tool.
I have some, and in certain situations they work great. But, 99% of the time I can use either a regular wrench or a socket.
I dont work on cars. In industry, the fasteners are typically bigger, and easier to access. Once you get above 3/4”, ratcheting wrenches lose a lot of appeal.
I view them as a “tight spot” tool, and only use them when I need to.
I am usually either using the open end, or the box end is being used to break something loose or hold something for a power tool.
I have some, and in certain situations they work great. But, 99% of the time I can use either a regular wrench or a socket.
I dont work on cars. In industry, the fasteners are typically bigger, and easier to access. Once you get above 3/4”, ratcheting wrenches lose a lot of appeal.
I view them as a “tight spot” tool, and only use them when I need to.
Meh. IDK. I asked a similar question a couple years back. Like a lot of others I find the ratcheting mechanism too big in a lot of circumstances and sometimes the angle/offset is wrong for the job. Reversible flex would be the best style of ratcheting box wrench, with a fixed box end on the other end for breaking fasteners loose.
I use my M12 ratchet and 1/4 impact waaaaay more than ratcheting wrenches. I consider ratcheting wrenches a last resort/specialty tool.
Downwindtracker 2
Well-known member
Some have missed the hunour in my response.
Handyandy23
Well-known member
I don't have the GearWrench locking flex heads, but I do have a set of Kobalt non-locking flex head ratcheting wrenches that I got on clearance to try them out.
I know it's largely a preference thing, and some people love them, but I find the non-locking flex heads really annoying to use. If going flex head I'd definitely go locking if I bought them again.
The problem is they seem to cam out way too easily. You don't realize it until you use a flex head, but using a combo wrench with an offset, there is a subtle pressure you push with on angle to counteract any kind of cam-out forces. Well when you have a flex head with no lock and you put that angular force on the handle, the head just flexes and actually tries to cam out even more. Under high force I basically have to hold the wrench head down on the bolt with one hand while using them.
Tekton and a few others have XL ratchet wrenches with a non-locking flex, and I know some people like them, but based on how hard it is to use these regular length Kobalt's, I would think an XL flex head would be a disaster.
PiperCub49
Well-known member
Maybe you meant to post this on the chainsaw thread?
Flybye
Well-known member
THIS. A few weeks ago I was cursing in 2 different languages because of a nut I was removing that only had the space for a wrench. If I had a ratcheting wrench, I probably would have been done 30 minutes sooner.
WittHay
Well-known member
I like the flex heads and consider them to be a must have tool. Used for belt and chain adjusters. Long threaded rods. Turning rethreading taps and dies and certain types of extractors. Also for hidden bolts or nuts. Faster than a small ratchet.
If somebody were to give me a SK X-frame or any Snap-on fixed ratcheting wrench set I would probably polish them and put them in the home display tool chest, never to be used again.
If somebody were to give me a SK X-frame or any Snap-on fixed ratcheting wrench set I would probably polish them and put them in the home display tool chest, never to be used again.
I have a set of Facom 467BF ratcheting spanners with flexible heads. Beautiful things.
I can’t think of a strict need for them, but they’re convenient for some jobs. The hinged heads are even bulkier than fixed ratcheting heads, but they still fit in many places that are difficult to reach. And when you get it on the fastener, you can screw away without fiddling to get it on and off as you would with a ring spanner.
I can’t think of a strict need for them, but they’re convenient for some jobs. The hinged heads are even bulkier than fixed ratcheting heads, but they still fit in many places that are difficult to reach. And when you get it on the fastener, you can screw away without fiddling to get it on and off as you would with a ring spanner.
RedneckWelder
Well-known member
The offset ring of the Mountain/EZRed/ATD Platinum type ratcheting wrenches is the best for clearance
Lisamelting
Well-known member
I hate the look of them and don't use them often, but there's been times where a socket wouldn't fit without disassembling equipment to provide adequate access. In those instances a 3/4" ratcheting wrench has saved me hours of time.
Granted I get paid by the hour so time saved doesn't put more money in my pocket, but who wants to spend unnecessary time and effort cramped inside a piece of equipment if there's an easier way.
Granted I get paid by the hour so time saved doesn't put more money in my pocket, but who wants to spend unnecessary time and effort cramped inside a piece of equipment if there's an easier way.
I'm impressed that you use high end truck brand tools, since that seems what you were really going for.
That said, I use my HF ratcheting wrenches, when it makes sense, from an efficiency standpoint to do so.
LumpyMusic
Well-known member
I see people complaining about ratcheting wrenches because "the offset is weird/wrong". That has nothing to do with it's ratcheting mechanism. Any wrench could have a "weird/wrong" offset.
I also see complaints about the head being huge in comparison to regular box end. I just measured four wrenches.
Craftsman Box end
SK Box end
HFreight ratcheting
Husky (HD) ratcheting
Largest difference between box and ratcheting is .210 diameter larger between the HF and the SK. Smallest difference is .048.
I find it hard to believe that less than a quarter inch causes so much grief. Unless some part is installed aftermarket by some hack in a weird place, I can't see the nut/bolt head access being a problem due to the diameter of the wrench head. If it IS a clearance problem, is .110 inch (half the diameter difference) really significant enough to allow access?
And of course, some don't like them because "My grandpa didn't like them". Not much to support that kind of reasoning.
Perhaps the most confusing question, "Why ask?". I mean, what's the point of knowing if others like a tool you don't like.
I remember when wrenches were for turning nuts and bolts. Now they're blog fodder.
Thanks - Lumpy
I also see complaints about the head being huge in comparison to regular box end. I just measured four wrenches.
Craftsman Box end
SK Box end
HFreight ratcheting
Husky (HD) ratcheting
Largest difference between box and ratcheting is .210 diameter larger between the HF and the SK. Smallest difference is .048.
I find it hard to believe that less than a quarter inch causes so much grief. Unless some part is installed aftermarket by some hack in a weird place, I can't see the nut/bolt head access being a problem due to the diameter of the wrench head. If it IS a clearance problem, is .110 inch (half the diameter difference) really significant enough to allow access?
And of course, some don't like them because "My grandpa didn't like them". Not much to support that kind of reasoning.
Perhaps the most confusing question, "Why ask?". I mean, what's the point of knowing if others like a tool you don't like.
I remember when wrenches were for turning nuts and bolts. Now they're blog fodder.
Thanks - Lumpy
Stuart in MN
Well-known member
I was thinking the same thing. If you don't like them, don't buy them.
I've encountered numerous situations where larger diameter conventional box ends, and sockets, wouldn't fit and had to use a better one or grind down what I had. So yeah that extra ~0.200" is more than enough to cause access issues.
I'm not anti ratcheting wrenches. I own several sets. But they ain't a viable replacement for conventional wrenches.
I am really enjoying these kinds of ratcheting wrenches. They handle tons of torque unlike a modern gearwrench, I enjoy the ritual of cleaning and lubricating the mechanical parts that make up the tool, I like being able to see the moving parts, I like they way they feel and sound. They are just....fun to use.
They can't always be used and they have their drawbacks, but they are fun.
They can't always be used and they have their drawbacks, but they are fun.
Attachments
A rare but hilarious problem with ratcheting spanners in tight spaces happens when you partially unscrew a bolt to find that your spanner is trapped because the gap between the bolt head and the obstruction is too narrow to let the spanner slide out. No problem with a regular spanner: just screw in the bolt again and find another solution. But many ratcheting spanners cannot be reversed, and so more drastic methods are needed to free the trapped spanner.
Just something to be aware of.
Just something to be aware of.
Elsinore13
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- Joined
- Sep 20, 2017
- Messages
- 504
Funny you mention handling torque as that was going through my mind while reading this thread. I bought my first Gear Wrench 20 or so years ago at the local Ace Hardware, a 10mm. After seeing the display and giving it a spin, I overlooked the made in Taiwan label and decided to give one a try. It quickly became my favorite wrench. One day I had to remove some odd fastener off a euro car that was a 10mm thread but had a 10mm hex head. No room for a ratchet and socket without removing a bunch of other stuff and it was stuck like nothing else. Ended up putting a cheater pipe over the wrench and bent the hell out of it but the ratcheting mechanism still worked perfect. Impressed me...lol
techieman33
Well-known member
It's one of those problems I think most people run into once or twice and then learn their lesson. And hopefully it's in a place where they can then get something in to cut the bolt in half, and can then unscrew the rest of it by hand or with pliers. Though I do usually reach for a reversible one just to not have to worry about it.
Only have 2 set of ratcheting wrenches.
At work in my tool bag are SAE reversible ratcheting wrenches with the capstop feature
Home toolbox I got extra long double flex ratcheting wrenches Metric.
Impact wrench, impact driver, cordless ratchet > ratcheting wrenches > standard wrenches
I haven't touched my standard combination wrenches at home in such a long time
At work in my tool bag are SAE reversible ratcheting wrenches with the capstop feature
Home toolbox I got extra long double flex ratcheting wrenches Metric.
Impact wrench, impact driver, cordless ratchet > ratcheting wrenches > standard wrenches
I haven't touched my standard combination wrenches at home in such a long time
Just spent all day yesterday under a car. My X beam and flex head ratcheting wrenches got used more than the ratchet sets. The 3" long threaded rod on the emergency brake cable was an exceellent example of their worth. Regular combos were a distant 4th.
cptn_zippy
Well-known member
I didn't really like them until I bought good ones. Proto metrics and Carlye SAE. My Gearwrench reversibles - numerous failures, and I'm just a home gamer...