12 Point Deep Sockets or Spline Drives ?
- Thread starter Weedwaka
- Start date
petty4243
Well-known member
personaly, i am leary of the spline drives... would stick with 12 point as i know they were designed with only 6 and 12 point in mind(fasteners)... same tokem, i have never used a spline drive socket/wrench to have a valid opinion on how well they do or do not work... just my 2 cents
rsanter
Well-known member
a friend of mine has the spline drive wrenches and sockets from snap on
he swears by them and he uses them on 6pt, 12pt, and spline fasteners.
he workes on cars and planes.
snap on showes them for use in the applications but to me they seem a little 'loose' or sloppy
just my perception
bob
he swears by them and he uses them on 6pt, 12pt, and spline fasteners.
he workes on cars and planes.
snap on showes them for use in the applications but to me they seem a little 'loose' or sloppy
just my perception
bob
krusty the clown
Member Emeritus
I've been thinking of getting some spline sockets instead of 12 point. I was looking at the Wrights in the pdf catalog, but they only list 12 point sockets.
The description in the catalog talks about requiring more force to remove the fastener, which is probably why the teeth are angled in the Wright spline sockets.
I'm not sure I like this design.
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petty4243
Well-known member
that is a good illistration of spline on spline... op is asking as reference to not purchase deep 12 point sockets... what would the contact angles look like on the 6 and 12 point nuts/bolts.....
volvo420coupe
Well-known member
most of the time that I encounter 12 pt fasteners they are bolts not nuts, is there any particular reason you want deep sockets?
I use six point sockets most of the time except for 12pt nuts. Most of my combination wrenches are 12pt. They might be handy if you run across some torx nuts and need a deep well.
Buy a couple and try them if you like them then purchase a set. You could get a cheap one and if you like the feel buy a good set.
Buy a couple and try them if you like them then purchase a set. You could get a cheap one and if you like the feel buy a good set.
volvo420coupe
Well-known member
yeah 12 pt fasteners are a cruel joke from the manufactures, german mostly, the first 12pt socket to buy is a 30mm for volkswagen axle nuts, that will piss you off when your trying to do a job at your house on a weekend, fords like to get you with their driveshaft flange bolts, but you already have a wrench to get those with, lots of head bolts are 12 pt but your not doing those too often, the last one to bite me in the *** was a crazy 6mm 12pt for a wheel speed sensor on an explorer. don't know if that will help but its all I can come up with.
petty4243
Well-known member
the best thing about a 12 point socket or wrench is more possible positions on a six point fastener... sometime you are working in a confined area and the 12 point will just get on the fastener easier...
Merkava_4
Banned
If I was to throw my 2 cents in this thread, I'd say I don't like the idea of spline drive for 6 and 12 point fasteners. It may work alright, but that doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. Let's look at it from a fastener's point of view, if you were a 12 point head bolt, would you rather be driven by a spline drive or a nice and comfy 12 point socket?
kooldino
Well-known member
I agree with this for the box end of a wrench, but as far as a socket is concerned, you can simply rotate it another click before dropping it onto the fastener.
06wt
Well-known member
using spline on 6 pt and 12 pt hardware is good for breaking them loose without rounding them off, specialy rusty low quality hardware. I swear by spline, and i realize it dosnt mean much coming from a carpenter, but all of my tech buddys feel the same way, they are the reason i got into spline stuff.
Grayhatlinux
New member
- Joined
- Feb 12, 2015
- Messages
- 3
I have a set of SAE and metric spline wrenches from craftsman and i use them all day every day in automotive and small engine repair work. They are BEASTS. The reason i like the splines over a 6 or 12 pointer is they grip better and they dont let go. On some yamahas i see i have to put my 17mm on the bolt, wedge it against the frame, then hit the nut with my 1/2" air gun to break it free. 3 years of that and i havent seen so much as a nick on the splines.
I do not recomment them for finish applications though. They can be rough and leave scrapes on your fasteners but id put a spline up against a 6pt for grip strength any day.
Ive even used i think my 1/2" spline wrench like a sort of makeshift twist socket in that i slipped a cheater bar on the end of it and busted a rusted bolt loose from a water pump on an old dodge.
Im really looking hard at the craftsman ratcheting spline wrenches too. God i bet theyre nice.
I do not recomment them for finish applications though. They can be rough and leave scrapes on your fasteners but id put a spline up against a 6pt for grip strength any day.
Ive even used i think my 1/2" spline wrench like a sort of makeshift twist socket in that i slipped a cheater bar on the end of it and busted a rusted bolt loose from a water pump on an old dodge.
Im really looking hard at the craftsman ratcheting spline wrenches too. God i bet theyre nice.
Most these guys don't work on cars for living. Trust me when I say this. The best set of useful " all around " wrenches are a set of mountain box flex head spline extra long. They have extreme slim head with quality swivel pin, long length for extra torque on tight bolts, and safety of spline head. On over ~1000 oil changes done have never rounded a bolt... Cant say the same for any of my 6 point flank drives.
1950mercury
Well-known member
Buy them as you need them....
hautpot
Well-known member
Don't forget about XZN Internal! Spline geometry just coincidentally fits in other shapes. Just because it magically fits, doesn't mean it is the best.
Examples:
-Torx in Torx Plus head
-Phillips in JIS or Pozidriv head
-bi-hex(12-point) in hex(6-point) head
Examples:
-Torx in Torx Plus head
-Phillips in JIS or Pozidriv head
-bi-hex(12-point) in hex(6-point) head
drink
Well-known member
I have been using both 6 and 12 point sockets. The 12 point sockets are used the most and they will work on hex, square, and 12 point fasteners. One reason I like 12 points is they don't have to be rotated as far as a 6 point to line up with the fasteners. So far I have not encountered any spline fasteners. Maybe I will buy some spline tools if, and when I encounter some spline fasteners.
sberry
Banned
A guy is buying his first set of sockets, think this all makes any difference? Buy standard stuff, if you run across a special need then get a tool for it. I don't have them and cant recall rounding a bolt during an oil change and certainly not with a 6 point tool.
gdocktor3
Well-known member
I bought the kobalt pass thru spline sockets. They're metric and Sae and I'm told are made by blue point? I've used them a few times on 12 point and 6 point sockets and they work. You can also buy an adapter to use with an actual ratchet, or they fit ratchet wrenches. I use them with my older 6 point snap on ratchet wrenches. Reason I bring these up is because they're on clearance close out right now at most all lowes for dirt cheap. They're 12 point, spline and "deep" like you want. For the price they're worth buying for the spline aspect. That's really why I bought them.
Greg85mcss
Well-known member
Splines definitely grip very well. One drawback is they dig into some fasteners & need to be persuaded off. Not a big deal unless like me you have non reversing wrenches.
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