11mm the most useless socket in the world?

[vaultdweller]

I use 9 fairly often in textile machinery of Italian and german origin. I have specifically bought about 5 9s in different styles trying to find just the right one. Luckily I do more than half of my buying at a pawn shop that I basically pay flat rate of $0.50/pc from the loose tool bin. Makes accumulating oddballs cheap.

 

[Yarpo]

Used my 11 a fair amount, dont recall using my 9 much recently

 

[Super Mech]

I actually think 9mm is more useless than 11mm. I've only used a 9mm once I think.

Agreed.

 

[El_Guapo]

Took apart a small gearbox recently, all the seal retainer bolts were an 11mm socket. Internals were junk, so into the scrap bin it went, and has probably already been melted down and reforged into cheap 11mm sockets.

 

[wssix99]

So many people are comfortable with their swath of 10mm bolts, but... the 11mm is obviously one better.

When you have a 10mm bolt and you just need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do? We put it up to eleven.

 

[shanny19]

My least used socket from the three common drive sizes is 1 3/16.

 

[mailpup]

As already mentioned the BMW intake manifold (at least on the M54 engine) uses 11mm headed bolts and one thermostat housing fastener is 11mm. If you've ever had to work on a BMW, you know the intake manifold has to come off to perform other routine (for BMWs) maintenance jobs.

 

[TonyCH]

Obviously you don't work on anything Japanese

Yes, you are right, years since I touched anything japanese. Mostly european cars, some vintage EU/US cars, mopeds, lawn mowers, snowplowers, bicycles etc.

 

[Tonyuk]

I use my 11mm spanners and sockets pretty much daily working on Audi's.

 

[yrly]

Yep, 11mm on Ford, Yamaha, some small engine stuff..........pitch the 9mm instead.

I was just gonna say, I run across a lot of 11mm on small engines.

 

[txvwnut]

Aircooled veedub transaxles use 11mm nuts.

 

[Catch_22]

No. I think 20 mm is useless for anything other than filling a peg on a Hansen rack.

Truth. I had to order a deep/shallow 3/8th just to keep me from having anxiety every time I looked in my box. It will forever stay in that slot, never to move.

 

[2manytools]

Vehicles in the north often can use an 11mm... when the 10mm bolts get all rusted

 

[thin_concrete]

You will now find every 11mm nut on everything you're working on.lol

Lol - so true.

 

[tonyciambrone]

I would say 33mm is my least used. I don't use 16 or 18 much except when I see a Chrysler product.

9 and 11 are used a lot, but it's always funny to see what guys don't encounter.

As I remember, on my Subaru you needed 8,10,12,15,17,19,21, #2 PH and a couple torx bits.

 

[PR1Gneon]

11mm for 1/4" wedge anchor nut.

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[jsaw]

I actually think 9mm is more useless than 11mm. I've only used a 9mm once I think.

I remember using 9MM twice

 

[protegeV]

I remember using 9MM twice

Once to remove and once to reinstall that one fastener?

 

[intillzah]

I have an elderly Kawasaki motorcycle, and I swear that bike has nothing but 11mm nuts and bolts holding it together...

 

[BonzoHansen]

As seen on FB today...

 

[Spacey_G]

If you're just looking for a socket to leave out of a set, why not make it either 19mm or 3/4"? Those are much closer in size than 11mm and 7/16.

 

[57JoeFoMoPar]

I'd argue 5.5mm.

 

[TonyCH]

I'd argue 5.5mm.

Mustang SN95 TFI to heat sink bolts are 5.5mm. Probably Fox too.

 

[greenlizard]

As already mentioned the BMW intake manifold (at least on the M54 engine) uses 11mm headed bolts and one thermostat housing fastener is 11mm. If you've ever had to work on a BMW, you know the intake manifold has to come off to perform other routine (for BMWs) maintenance jobs.

I used my 11mm socket(s) every time I did almost anything to my N54 equipped 335i. And being an N54 it required regular attention. My 11mm sockets have the same handling marks as as the 10’s and 13’s. I suspect things are engineered with minimum sized bolts for weight and space saving purposes. Goodness knows modern BMW engine compartments are incredibly tight.

 

[DelayedZ]

A lot of turbo applications I run into use 11 mm as well.

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[protegeV]

Mustang SN95 TFI to heat sink bolts are 5.5mm. Probably Fox too.

Lots of 5.5mm behind the dash on GM vehicles as well.

 

[Fialaja]

Vortec intake manifold bolts plastic intake 11mm bolts...

 

[57JoeFoMoPar]

I used my 11mm socket(s) every time I did almost anything to my N54 equipped 335i. And being an N54 it required regular attention. My 11mm sockets have the same handling marks as as the 10’s and 13’s. I suspect things are engineered with minimum sized bolts for weight and space saving purposes. Goodness knows modern BMW engine compartments are incredibly tight.

I never had to change the TFI module on my SN95 when I owned one years ago. I'm sure I'll have to pull the 11mm out for my N55 535i sooner or later.

 

[shockwave]

I use the 11mm a lot lately on mostly Ford products and 7-16 is very close and can be used instead also a lot of tpms use 11mm

Now a 9mm is really the oddball of any tool box hardly ever used

 

[Glassdave]

well i'll be damned . . . the 11mm fastener exists . . . but more to the point . . . jeasus i'm outta touch with modern mechanicals lol. . . . for the record i kept the 11mm socket, its close by, just wanted a clean arraingment on that socket rack and something had to go lol

 

[Jtels85]

11mm for those 10mm engine shield screws under your Challenger/Charger/300 that get scraped up from curbs and bottoming out.

I think my 11 gets more use than the 10 these days

 

[Yarpo]

Just had to use 11mm today! Mitsubishi highlander, some stupid 10mm bolts underneath near the vapor canister, sooooo rusted I thought it was a 12. It was a 10, but 11 got on snug enough to do the trick. Rust, fun stuff.

 

[rustbucket5]

i use 9mm more than 11mm. 9mm is common for valve adjuster jam nuts on the small engines i work on

 

[JulianMorrow]

I work on two Toyotas and a Ford truck.
Sizes rarely used: 9mm, 11mm, 15mm, 16mm, 18mm.
Sizes frequently used: 8mm, 10mm, 12mm, 14mm, 17mm, 19mm, 21mm.
Once in a while: 13mm for the oil pan drain plug on my Ford Ranger.

 

[ChrisLS8]

All the t bolt clamps and v band clamps on my turbo setup use 11mm nuts as well. Granted it's a case by case basis but lots of people run these as well

 

[f121]

11mm is typically used on European cars for fine thread m6 nuts and bolts, to distinguish them from regular m6 with a 10mm head.

The 9, 12 or 14mm I could probably bin and not miss for a while.

 

[KillNThrill24]

I use the 11mm every so often on Fords it seems. Not at all other than that, tho.

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[DGersic]

My Mustang has 11mm brake bleeder screws, you know, because Ford couldn't use a 10mm for some stupid reason.

They’re doing you a favor. Now you can still bleed your brakes after misplacing your 10mm.



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[gda659]

I've used the 11mm socket, but never the 9mm.
I bought a Thorsen socket set over 40 years ago. In the 80's I broke the 10mm and replaced it. But, it turns out I didn't have to. I had a spare. Only a couple months ago I discovered the socket labeled 9mm is really a 10mm socket. I had the perfect set all along.

 

[DGersic]

I remember using 9MM twice

8, 9, and 10mm were used daily, along with 14, 15, 9/16, and 5/8 when I worked in a bike shop.



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