3/4 Ratchet Set - Uses?

[Steel_Rain]

Looks like Harbor Freight is expanding the Quinn impact line to carry 3/4" drive now:

3/4 in. Drive SAE Ratchet and Deep Impact Socket Set, 21-Piece

Amazing deals on this 21Pc 3/4In Dr Sae Ratchet & Impact Sockets at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

This looks close to the Tekton set:



I have a family members RV to work on (Diesel pusher), so I'm planning on investing into one of these two kits. Unless I win the lottery tomorrow or take out a mortgage on my house for the SO set:



Anyone have any experience with the Tekton set? I've only every broken one 1/2" drive impact socket (Quinn) and it was nice to run down to HF to get a replacement the same day.

 

[Sumboodie]

I mostly have 1" drive. A few 3/4" in the mix.

 

[Wrench97]

Looks like Harbor Freight is expanding the Quinn impact line to carry 3/4" drive now:

3/4 in. Drive SAE Ratchet and Deep Impact Socket Set, 21-Piece

Amazing deals on this 21Pc 3/4In Dr Sae Ratchet & Impact Sockets at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

This looks close to the Tekton set:



I have a family members RV to work on (Diesel pusher), so I'm planning on investing into one of these two kits. Unless I win the lottery tomorrow or take out a mortgage on my house for the SO set:



Anyone have any experience with the Tekton set? I've only every broken one 1/2" drive impact socket (Quinn) and it was nice to run down to HF to get a replacement the same day.

Look for a ratchet with a longer handle.

 

[Steve_P]

^ I'd say to buy sockets, and not a kit with an 18" ratchet that you'll never use. If you're using big sockets like these, you better have an impact gun, or a 36"+ ratchet. The only time I use a 3/4 breaker bar is on a pinion crush sleeve; otherwise, it's impact time.

 

[mikey03]

I max out at 1/2 and honestly it’s good enough for me but I kept thinking if I come across some cheap used 3/4 set I will pick them up. I was thinking to use with a 3/4 breaker bar and not even bother with a 3/4 ratchet

since honestly I won’t go over 38 mm which I got in 1/2 so I was thinking if I couldn’t move with 1/2 I could break with 3/4 on a long breaker bar and then switch back to a 1/2 ratchet

but then I realized maybe the entire bolt is rusted so it’s not just breaking with 3/4 I might need 3/4 tools to run the whole thing

but only if I get some sweet deal like us made socket set complete for like 50 bucks at a swap meet or something

 

[wantedabiggergarage]

Years ago, I bought a 3/4" socket set, as I thought the breaker bar would be good to have and the set, might be good for something like my relatives old small Farmall tractor/lawn mower. I figured small enough vehicle, but farm gunk may need a bit more oomph then 1/2" might handle.

 

[mike93lx]

^ I'd say to buy sockets, and not a kit with an 18" ratchet that you'll never use. If you're using big sockets like these, you better have an impact gun, or a 36"+ ratchet. The only time I use a 3/4 breaker bar is on a pinion crush sleeve; otherwise, it's impact time.

Isn't the rest of that ratchet stored as the handle on your floor jack?

 

[Junkdrawer Dog]

 

[Junkdrawer Dog]

The cheap sets they used to buy us at work didn't even come with a ratchet or breaker bar. They only included an L handle. I think the assumption was that you'd be using an impact or else a 6 foot pipe on that L.

 

[Hakeem]

Isn't the rest of that ratchet stored as the handle on your floor jack?

Right that’s what i figured. The handle of the ratchet is necked down so I assumed it was intended to accept an extension pipe

 

[Sumboodie]

I have sockets up to 3.5" I think.
Not much on equipment that is small.

 

[Steel_Rain]

^ I'd say to buy sockets, and not a kit with an 18" ratchet that you'll never use. If you're using big sockets like these, you better have an impact gun, or a 36"+ ratchet. The only time I use a 3/4 breaker bar is on a pinion crush sleeve; otherwise, it's impact time.

Agreed, I'm buying it for the sockets for this monster:



No need for the ratchet, I have two 3/4" breaker bars and a few cheater bars.

 

[Retired dozer fixer]

I have several 3/4”&1” ratchets and never used them to break any bolt loose. Why destroy an expensive tool in a known high torque application. I have used them with a torque multiplier many times and never with a cheater. My Snap-On 48” handle ratchet is plenty for a 2000 ft/lb multiplier. Most all bolts that require that size tooling are very high torque if done correctly.

 

[AJHD]

I have sockets up to 3.5" I think.
Not much on equipment that is small.

Depends on the equipment you work on and the jobs you're doing on said equipment.

 

[SwissMetric]

Some 3/4" solutions (all Stahlwille):

1st pic:
735/80 disassembled, 30 teeth, 1000 Nm non-reversible ratchet for push-through 3/4" adapter (1/4" ratchet head for size comparisons).

2nd pic:
1) Homebrew ratchet: 3/4" 36 teeth rotating part from a 552 ratchet head (or spare part set) in a 1" ratchet head (from a 882 1" ratchet head), not very useful. The 1" rotating part in a 3/4" head is more interesting it allows a more compact ratchet head.
2) Common 3/4" 36 teeth ratchet 552 (see last pic).
3) Barely known 3/4" 44 teeth reversible ratchet adapter 563 (1980 Nm (!)), there are 4 locking parts, the mechanism is very specific, repairs would be possible but Stahlwille doesn't sell spare parts, it's also a bit trickly to reassemble.
4) 735/40HD (Heavy Duty) 3/4" 60 teeth ratchet head (650 Nm)
5) 735/40 3/4" 60 teeth ratchet head (400 Nm)

3rd pic:
Some other options, all 32 mm:
Stahlwille 5, StahlwilleSTABIL 8 and 3/4" impact socket 55IMP.
4th pic:
Easily replaceable damaged and worn out rotating part of a 735/40 3/4" 400 Nm ratchet head. Typically the male square drive will shear off first if a heavy overload is applied to the ratchet, With articulated tools the articulation sometime breaks before the square drive is severely damaged.
The question about the usefulness of 3/4" had been recently answered in another topic.
Admissible torques are often not mentioned but they can easily exceed the ISO requirements. Many Youtube tests are not reproductible or representative enough to really allow fair conclusions. Many factors can leas to biased results and also several samples of the same type sould be tested but that's not possible. Manufatcurers know the values and also test competitor's tools but obviously won't publish results.

5

 

[SwissMetric]

Was not able to quickly reorder the pics.

Last pic shows 2 existing and 2 homebrew ratchet heads, the 3/4" and 1" ratchet bodies are different but the ratchet mechanisms are identical excepted the rotating parts (pinons), the locking part, lever, ball, spring, etc. don't have to be removed. The conversion requires less than 1 minute but somewhat more if lubricated carefully.
If one absolutely wants to save money, it's possible to get one ratchet head and take the additional rotating part as spare part (not in the catalog) or from a spare part kit (in the catalog).

 

[mikey03]

I bought an ICON 3/4 breaker bar a while back for no other reason than it was on sale. I tell you what very impressed with how much easier most things are with the extra leverage. I use it mostly with 1/2" sockets and an adapter

I was given a gift of a 3/4 breaker bar and I don’t have any 3/4 sockets. how good would it work with an adapter? i never really used socket adapters I always heard they brake

 

[bwringer]

Once when I was small, I was following one of my uncles around the farm and we passed a John Deere implement of some sort.

I asked "What's this big green wrench for?"

He said "Big green nuts." and kept walking.

And thus I was enlightened.

 

[mikey03]

Most common use in my home shop is axle nuts, but I have big trucks and equipment on farm that as the saying goes: :when you need them you NEED them" applies.

interesting tekton makes 3/4 drive in

6 point shallow
6 point deep
12 point shallow

but no 12 point deep and I think lots of axle nuts require 12 point deep?

 

[cgrutt]

I was given a gift of a 3/4 breaker bar and I don’t have any 3/4 sockets. how good would it work with an adapter? i never really used socket adapters I always heard they brake

I haven't had any issues using adapter. Suspect the weak point would be the 1/2" side but you're still dealing with 1/2" so suspect it's pretty strong. I've used the 3/4 breaker with 1/2 adapter on lower carrier bearing on my boat's outdrive and it worked no problem. That required a significant amount of effort much more than a typical 1/2 drive socket. The threads on lower carrier bearing is approximately 4" in diameter.

ETA here is picture of the bearing carrier tool and 1/2 to 3/4 adapter. The adapter seems pretty beefy. It's ICON.

 

[Wrench97]

I was given a gift of a 3/4 breaker bar and I don’t have any 3/4 sockets. how good would it work with an adapter? i never really used socket adapters I always heard they brake

Axle nut sockets for trucks, trailers and some equipment in 6 and 8 point.
2 1/4" to 5 1/4"

 

[Outlier]

I encounter large sizes working in the material handling industry but most of them don't require a large amount of torque so adapters to 1/2" work just fine.

 

[SwissMetric]

I'd recommend to get some adapters.

The last pic shows some options for 3/4", the 1/4" ratchet is for size comparison. (Very) long handles or bars/tubes allow to handle higher torques smoothly, which is possible also for smaller across flat dimensions using adapters.

Above around 24 mm (slightly below 1") I find 3/4" useful. OTOH 1" is mostly only useful where really required as all parts are heavy, bulky and expensive.
3/4" is sort of close to 1/2" while the difference between 3/4" and 1" is much more massive.
Test torques are as follows: 1412 Nm for 3/4" and 2515 Nm for 1" according to ISO 1711-1:2016 but good tools exceed those requirements, test torques for machine-operated tools ("impact") are higher, 2200 Nm for 3/4" and 4000 Nm for 1", according to ISO 1711-2:2016(E).
Above some socket size, thr test torques is limited by the resistance of the male square, below that limit the test torque increases with each socket size. Non-listed values are computed using the formulas of the respective standards.

 

[Steel_Rain]

Looks like Harbor Freight is expanding the Quinn impact line to carry 3/4" drive now:

https://www.harborfreight.com/colle...nd-deep-impact-socket-set-21-piece-70727.html

I was able to buy this set today @ Harbor Freight during the parking lot sale for $132.00 plus tax:



That's a lot of tool for $132 bucks. I'll see if they hold up this Spring / Summer.

 

[mikey03]

I was able to buy this set today @ Harbor Freight during the parking lot sale for $132.00 plus tax:



That's a lot of tool for $132 bucks. I'll see if they hold up this Spring / Summer.

Tekton also listed a coming soon 3/4 impact socket set so maybe the same factory? Would rather get Tekton over HF personally.

 

[AJHD]

Tekton also listed a coming soon 3/4 impact socket set so maybe the same factory? Would rather get Tekton over HF personally.

Doubtful. Completely different designs.

Also Tekton is made in Taiwan and the Quinn is made in China.

 

[mikey03]

Doubtful. Completely different designs.

Also Tekton is made in Taiwan and the Quinn is made in China.

Idk if all Quinn are made in china. I bought some Quinn nano dual drive 1/2 sockets made in Taiwan on the box

 

[AJHD]

Idk if all Quinn are made in china. I bought some Quinn nano dual drive 1/2 sockets made in Taiwan on the box

Correct, not everything Quinn is China.

The ratchets are from Taiwan and likely Apex, company that owns Gearwrench. There are plenty of similar design ratchets from different brands on Amazon, but completely different than Tekton.

The Quinn "nano sockets" are from whoever is making them for or are directly from Astro. Again, there are several different brands for these now on Amazon, but Tekton doesn't sell them.

My point is other than selling wrenches, sockets, ratchets, and other hand tools there are no similarities between Tekton and Quinn offerings.

 

[Steel_Rain]

Correct, not everything Quinn is China.

Correct, this 3/4" set is made in Taiwan. I inspected these last night and compared to my 3/8" and 1/2" set, these seem just as good if not better broaching. For $140 bucks, idk if it gets much better. I'll put these to the test with a 92 Prevo later this year.

Would rather get Tekton over HF personally.

I have lots of the newer gen Tekton impact tools/sets, and they have been great. My logic with Quinn/HF is the convenience, especially since I have 3 HFT's within about a 10 min drive of my house. The Tekton warranty great, but it won't help me same day/next day/weekend.

 

[Jazz1]

I bought JET 3/4 drive set 40 years ago for spring repairs on semi trailers. I have not worked on semis in decades but the sockets do come into play on some cars axle nuts, under hood sensors and since buying a RV i rather tackle a 1 1/16” wheel nut with my 3/4“ drive bar over a 1/2”bar

 

[Hannahranga]

These days, high torque impacts are so powerful they can chew up 1/2" sockets, even if the size you're working on is 1/2" socket-sized. So one use for a 3/4" (impact) socket set might be for use with an impact wrench.

Least locally second hand 3/4" impacts are cheaper than high torque 1/2" ones just have to spend a bit more on sockets

 

[vwpieces]

Bought this back when HFT was mail order for $40. The metal case dates it...
But it is bolted to the top of the 20T press. That is what they have always been used for, press tools.

 

[n8n]

Years ago I bought a 3/4" breaker bar to service a water heater - I think it was the anode I was taking out, the WH was 18 years old at the time so it was one of those "if I fix it, great, if I break it, it owes me nothing" kind of deals. I tweaked my 1/2" breaker bar trying to get it out so I had to step up to the big boy. Later on I bought a full set of SAE sockets off Craigslist, I think the only time I have ever used it was taking an element out of a different water heater.

The first water heater lasted until we sold the house, although the realtor insisted that it be replaced - even though it worked perfectly and I'd put a 3/4" ball valve on the drain so it got properly flushed every year.

 

[Junkdrawer Dog]

Once when I was small, I was following one of my uncles around the farm and we passed a John Deere implement of some sort.

I asked "What's this big green wrench for?"

He said "Big green nuts." and kept walking.

And thus I was enlightened.

In the 1960s, if you couldn't afford mag wheels, sometimes the guys would remove their hub caps and run their black steelies with chrome, acorn style lug nuts. I was around 8 or 9 years old when I asked Dad why they removed the hub caps. Without missing a beat he replied "I guess they want everyone to see their nuts".

 

[Steve_P]

Bought this back when HFT was mail order for $40. The metal case dates it...
But it is bolted to the top of the 20T press. That is what they have always been used for, press tools.

That's what I also have. And what I also use mine for. IIRC, the metric set I bought a few years later came in a plastic case which I threw out. I need to move all of my 3/4 drive stuff into separate carry toolboxes as I need that drawer space for tools that I actually use.