4x4gearhead
Well-known member
Adjustables arent good to rely on for everything but they have their place. I use them a lot when I have to rescue a leaking machine off the hill or something, a lot easier to carry than a wrench set.
Adjustable wrenches? why
- Thread starter Carson_13
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DandDMachine
Well-known member
I just saw a Diamond Caulk 4" at a swap meet on Sunday with a $50 price tag on it...I was glad that I paid $5 for one just like it at the last swap.
Hey Stuart I was at that swap meet and saw those wrenches also.
I have 32 of those 4" adjustables. Some go for huge money on ebay. I once sold a 4" Plomb for $405, and a Black industrial finish Thorsen for $100. I usually see them at garage sales and estate sales for a buck or two, and cant resist buying them.
If I dont have the correct size wrench handy, and I am pretty confident the bolt will come out easily I will use an adjustable. I keep one in the car for emergencies and if I have to unbolt a vise from a bench or take apart a large tool I just bought at a garage or estate sale.
bw77
Well-known member
I have found them useful when you need a lot of force on a thin part.
Example - holding the flat of a tie rod end with another wrench on the
tie rod lock nut. The flat is about 1/2" thick but you need more force
than a 1/2" open end wrench gives. A 12" or longer adjustable works
better.
Example - holding the flat of a tie rod end with another wrench on the
tie rod lock nut. The flat is about 1/2" thick but you need more force
than a 1/2" open end wrench gives. A 12" or longer adjustable works
better.
turbowoodworker
Well-known member
I have a small handful of Crescent and Diamonds. I don't use them often but they are very useful for reminding me of my dear old dad every time I open the drawer. They were his and he used them long before I got snooty and went full polish.
finley31
Well-known member
Where I work they are usually used for gas regulators on welders, and I keep a 24", 12" and 8" on my cart for the compounds and tool posts on the various lathes. Another common use is for large pipe unions. When we are out in the steel mills working, you never know what your going to run into so it's easier to have an adjustable wrench than carry a full set of wrenches. With that being said, we do always carry two sets of combo wrenches up to 2-1/2" on jobs with us, and always use them first. The adjustable wrenches are just more convient sometimes for maintenance type work. Occasionally you will still run into the guy who will be using an adjustable wrench when we have 500 3/4" nuts to tighten. It's usually the same person who uses a screwdriver to tigten down a hose clamp.
Knipex pliers wrenches for me. But for bigger jobs I need an adjustable because I can't get enough leverage on the Knipex, even the 12" ones I have.
Would be nice if someone made a locking adjustable in a large sizes, 12" or more:
www.amazon.com/Stanley-85-610-10-Inch-MaxGrip-Adjustable/dp/B00009OYGZ
Anyone ever tried on of these?
Would be nice if someone made a locking adjustable in a large sizes, 12" or more:
www.amazon.com/Stanley-85-610-10-Inch-MaxGrip-Adjustable/dp/B00009OYGZ
Anyone ever tried on of these?
Wakefield
Well-known member
A good big adjustable fills in for several one size open ends or the open ends of several combos. I think the 15" and up adjustables are strong if you aren't using them opened up as far as they will go-when it is all the way open it isn't as strong as a big Wright or Williams or something fixed size of the same gape size--and those big one size combos cost a good bit of money to buy a whole bunch of them.
I think it is important to pull the wrench the right way-turn it over to get it right-and rock it a little bit while getting it tight and snug. It might not fit everywhere that the one size open end or combo will fit. Of course the box end of the combo is said to be stronger.
Beware the adjustable for sale cheap above the canned food in the grocery store!
A big Wright like the 1 and 7/16" combo is a real beast. Longer than the 15" WF adjustable that will open to more than 1 and 1/2".
I think it is important to pull the wrench the right way-turn it over to get it right-and rock it a little bit while getting it tight and snug. It might not fit everywhere that the one size open end or combo will fit. Of course the box end of the combo is said to be stronger.
Beware the adjustable for sale cheap above the canned food in the grocery store!
A big Wright like the 1 and 7/16" combo is a real beast. Longer than the 15" WF adjustable that will open to more than 1 and 1/2".
bcradio
Well-known member
Hitch ball?
Jawn
Well-known member
You called it.
Outlawmws
Well-known member
I use mine for bending or straightening metal as much as anything else. Some times on plumbing, but the "finger tighten" plastic drain traps have all but eliminated that use...
Tightening the nut on a ball hitch used to be a big use, but receiver hitches make it easier to just have several with different balls on em.
I personally disagree with the manufactures "recommended rotation". The reason is the usual way these "wear out" is from a sprung jaw, and it's always the moving jaw that gets sprung. Why?
Because it is the weakest link, and if you rotate as per directions, all the pressure is on the outer part of the moving jaw. If you go the other way, the pressure is on the inner part of the moving jaw, and from a leverage point of view, that is the stronger part. Did Archimedes, live in vain?
(Makes me wonder of those rotational arrows are there by design; they are in the business of selling tools after all..)
Edit: I do carry a 4" crescent on my pocket for the often needed "something quick" usage, but it's small enough that you can't really round off a nut realistically, and if it can be removed with a 4" lever, it's not going to be an issue. But it does save a lot of trips for "the right wrench"
Tightening the nut on a ball hitch used to be a big use, but receiver hitches make it easier to just have several with different balls on em.
I personally disagree with the manufactures "recommended rotation". The reason is the usual way these "wear out" is from a sprung jaw, and it's always the moving jaw that gets sprung. Why?
Because it is the weakest link, and if you rotate as per directions, all the pressure is on the outer part of the moving jaw. If you go the other way, the pressure is on the inner part of the moving jaw, and from a leverage point of view, that is the stronger part. Did Archimedes, live in vain?
(Makes me wonder of those rotational arrows are there by design; they are in the business of selling tools after all..)Edit: I do carry a 4" crescent on my pocket for the often needed "something quick" usage, but it's small enough that you can't really round off a nut realistically, and if it can be removed with a 4" lever, it's not going to be an issue. But it does save a lot of trips for "the right wrench"
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Exactly.
On excavotors, some of the hoses in the house, swing motor, require you take 2 or 3 hoses (of different sizes fittings) off just to get at the blown or leaking one. I just go up with a 3lb hammer and a 18in cresent and I;m usually good, ( I use the adj wrench as a slug wrench most often). Same thing with anything on the boom or stick. Theres also the couplers and fittings where you plumb in an attachment, where leaky o-rings have to be replaced, (hammer, hoe pack, etc). Again, a 18in and 24in come in handy.
RedFordTruck
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- May 10, 2012
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Really?!
Maybe next time im at my small hardware store I should pick one up? They have 2 or 3 OLD USA Crescent 4'' adjustables for $11.99 each i think. Still in original packaging.
RedFordTruck
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Bingo! Give that man a cigar!
We carried adjustable wrenches on every piece of farm equipment. The hole in the end of the handle sure makes it easy to hang that wrench up on the tractor with some wire. When you break down in the middle of a hayfield and the truck is a half-mile away, its a walk back to the toolbox on the truck.
X3.
3 Must have tools on a tractor are Channellocks, a pair o Vise Grips, and a 12'' adjustable.
GeneralDisorder
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- Sep 20, 2012
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Not intended as an attack against anyone here - just an observation that most mechanics in the automotive industry (dealerships are the worst for this) have no background in anything else and thus no experience from which to draw upon. There is a much larger world out there full of machines that aren't anything like the modern automobile.
What I meant is that if you are a "parts hanger" and that's all you have ever been then a crescent wrench would seem not too useful or even dangerous as they have a tendency to not work well on small fasteners. But in the wider world of tools it's one of those tools that is quite useful and I make a point of having just about two of every size.
Ford wrenches are also REALLY useful and very few people have them - they are to the point of being hard to locate and alarmingly expensive because no one uses them anymore. As useful as a crescent is - the Ford style wrench opens much wider in comparison to it's tool length and can handle things like tubing fittings where a crescent would be much too large or simply won't fit.
GD
archirelic
Well-known member
I have never been a believer in an adjustable [always thought there were a myriad of tools that did the same job but better] but if you haven't convinced me to at least make sure I have one lying around for that rare occasion...
thebeekeeper1
Well-known member
I use them for most of the things mentioned above. In particular I tinker with farm stuff on the weekend. Gear boxes on mowers ("brush hogs") always have square pipe plugs on them, and a "Crescent wrench" is always handier than fetching the 8-point socket and ratchet. Also, when using old equipment it's common to need to chase threads. When no vice is handy an adjustable works well for the bolt head or nut. One adjustable wrench is MUCH easier to keep handy than a set of wrenches for a "quick tighten" of just about anything.
I wasn't aware you could wear out an adjustable, I thought once forged they were here till the end of time.
mattdwelder
Well-known member
ive found the cheap ones will round off a lot of nuts but if you ever use a snap on you will see a difference
plinker
Well-known member
My 10" Klien has seen a LOT of use and has some excess travel now but still works as intended. +1 that quality counts when dealing with these wrenches.
AZ_Catskinner
Well-known member
Proto makes the Clik-stop up to 24" length. These aren't "locking" types like the Stanley or self adjusting like the Knipex, but they do lock in position quite well.
metaldad
Well-known member
61 posts.......... No one mentioned they are another thing to collect and fill the drawer(s) of my chest(s).
Juddy
Active member
Working in underground mining you carry a shifter on your tool belt as it is easier and lighter to carry one shifter than a heap of spanners. And if your real lucky you can get a shammer which is a shifter with a metal block forged to the side of it so you can use it as a hammer or a shifter. Excuse me using the word spanners instead of wrenches it's an Aussie thing.
RCStocker
Well-known member
61 posts.......... No one mentioned they are another thing to collect and fill the drawer(s) of my chest(s).
Oh but you did not read the all the post. I said the 4" ones were very collectable and that I had them on display in my office.
As for the Aussies that called them Spanners. No worries mate I know what you mean. My wife is an Aussie and she calles them spanners. I argued with her for years. A spanner wrench is different here in the new world. LOL
I work on cars in my free time, I rarely use adjustables on those. Last time I did it was the Toyota BJ40 I'm building, adjusting and tightening the fuel plumbing on the SBC 327 thats in there. I find car repair relaxing, those cute little fasteners and small parts. 
Auto mechanics are commonly referred to as part swappers where I work. Most seem to have lost the ability to fix and build things, they just throw them away and put in new parts. That seems to not apply to heavy truck mechanics, they're still fixing and building things instead of throwing them out a lot of the time. I can understand that, the customers demand fast repairs, and fixing things takes more time than throwing them away and bolting on identical parts. But that means that auto mechanics loose out on valuable experience.
I work on ships, mostly freezer trawlers and research vessels, with the occasional tanker. I always have a 6"/150mm Bahco adjustable, 6"/150mm Knipex diagonal cutter, 10"/250mm Knipex Cobra waterpump plier and either a 10" or a 12" Bahco adjustable in a leg pocket.
I rarely have the luxury of having my job sitting an arms reach from my tool cabinet, so I either pack tools into a cantilever toolbox to haul around or I stuff them in my pockets.
The 10" or 12" work on most of the bolts I come across, so they are very handy to have on you at all times. The Knipex Cobra can remove studbolts, rounded fasteners, clamp on to newly welded pieces of HOT steel, hold nuts while you tighten bolts with the Bahcos, hold pipe while you tighten the fittings with the Bahcos etc.
The 6" is good for taps, the tap holders need a lot of room, and most of the time I'm just chasing threads to clean them up, so the taps are not all that hard to turn. It's also good for those little terminal bolts on electrodes or to snug up pipe clamps.
Diagonal or side cutters are handy for zipties, bailing wire, welding electrodes, TIG & MIG wire etc.
I have more adjustables than I can remember, they are always handy. I also have numerous Knipex Cobras, I prefer them over all other waterpump pliers.
I think the Snap-On adjustables are Bahco wrenches, the best adjustables in my opinion. Stahlwille and Kamasa are really good too in my experience.
The 18" and 24" adjustables live in my tool cabinet, they usually only come out for hydro plumbing work or threaded water pipe work, but have been known to make an appearance for other jobs.
Auto mechanics are commonly referred to as part swappers where I work. Most seem to have lost the ability to fix and build things, they just throw them away and put in new parts. That seems to not apply to heavy truck mechanics, they're still fixing and building things instead of throwing them out a lot of the time. I can understand that, the customers demand fast repairs, and fixing things takes more time than throwing them away and bolting on identical parts. But that means that auto mechanics loose out on valuable experience.
I work on ships, mostly freezer trawlers and research vessels, with the occasional tanker. I always have a 6"/150mm Bahco adjustable, 6"/150mm Knipex diagonal cutter, 10"/250mm Knipex Cobra waterpump plier and either a 10" or a 12" Bahco adjustable in a leg pocket.
I rarely have the luxury of having my job sitting an arms reach from my tool cabinet, so I either pack tools into a cantilever toolbox to haul around or I stuff them in my pockets.
The 10" or 12" work on most of the bolts I come across, so they are very handy to have on you at all times. The Knipex Cobra can remove studbolts, rounded fasteners, clamp on to newly welded pieces of HOT steel, hold nuts while you tighten bolts with the Bahcos, hold pipe while you tighten the fittings with the Bahcos etc.
The 6" is good for taps, the tap holders need a lot of room, and most of the time I'm just chasing threads to clean them up, so the taps are not all that hard to turn. It's also good for those little terminal bolts on electrodes or to snug up pipe clamps.
Diagonal or side cutters are handy for zipties, bailing wire, welding electrodes, TIG & MIG wire etc.
I have more adjustables than I can remember, they are always handy. I also have numerous Knipex Cobras, I prefer them over all other waterpump pliers.
I think the Snap-On adjustables are Bahco wrenches, the best adjustables in my opinion. Stahlwille and Kamasa are really good too in my experience.
The 18" and 24" adjustables live in my tool cabinet, they usually only come out for hydro plumbing work or threaded water pipe work, but have been known to make an appearance for other jobs.
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metaldad
Well-known member
You got me. I somehow missed that.
3 at 8
Well-known member
Nowater
Well-known member
When I worked as an electrician, I had a leather tool pouch that held my tools. There was room (and weight limitations) for an adjustable wrench, but not for an entire set of wrenches. A tool box was not practical to carry around for every job, it was a trade off.
shampoop
Well-known member
For automotive use, they're garbage. With the exception of using very large ones with a very fat open end for loosening stubborn tie rod style adjusters.
They actually have a place in the construction industry though. For large fasteners and times where you need 2 of the same size wrench to loosen something. You're not gonna carry 2 full wrench sets in your tool bag.
They actually have a place in the construction industry though. For large fasteners and times where you need 2 of the same size wrench to loosen something. You're not gonna carry 2 full wrench sets in your tool bag.
AZ_Catskinner
Well-known member
I keep an 8" and 12" in my box for automotive work at home. Their uses are rare, but they are occasionally a necessity.
At work however, they are invaluable. Most of the time when you get the extremely vague call from operations to fix a "something", you really don't have enough of an idea of what the hell they are talking about to justify grabbing the tool bag/load up the cart. More often than not, it is a loose air or hydraulic fitting that doesn't call for anything else toolwise.
Industrial maintenance thrives on adjustables.
richfinn
Well-known member
I use mine for:
Bending brackets and stuff in the vice
Holding Torx/Hex bits where I need a lot of leverage but have about 20mm clearance and cant get a ratchet or breaker in.
Anything where a thicker/heavy wrench is an advantage for shocking stuff loose like oil cooler pipes.
I could live without my Bahco, but I choose not to
Bending brackets and stuff in the vice
Holding Torx/Hex bits where I need a lot of leverage but have about 20mm clearance and cant get a ratchet or breaker in.
Anything where a thicker/heavy wrench is an advantage for shocking stuff loose like oil cooler pipes.
I could live without my Bahco, but I choose not to
Jawn
Well-known member
"Shifter" must be an Aussie thing too. Only "shifter" I'm familiar with is the stick in the middle of my car that I change gears with.
Can't say I've ever heard of an adjustable wrench called that before.richfinn
Well-known member
"Shifter" must be an Aussie thing too. Only "shifter" I'm familiar with is the stick in the middle of my car that I change gears with.
I,ve heard older men (mostly coal miners) call them "Movers" in West Yorkshire
sberry
Banned
bobcatdan
Well-known member
For me 12" and 15" are the most useful sizes. I use them almost everyday for something. Plenty of times the big 18" and 24" come out. There are plenty of times an adjustable is an acceptable choice. Yes, when I worked on cars, I next to never used, went to tractors, a must have. The plierwrech became one of my favorite tools 6 months ago when I got one. when wrench on the weekend, I normally carry it in the leg pocket of my jeans.
dirtmister16
Banned
for me i used to think they were just not needed for the longest time. last year or so ive bought a few.
they are great for line work on hydraulic hoses and such. i use mine on riding lawnmowers,snowblowers ect. for draining oil.
every job needs the right tool and sometimes it really is the right tool for the job. besides they are just plain cool! lol
they are great for line work on hydraulic hoses and such. i use mine on riding lawnmowers,snowblowers ect. for draining oil.
every job needs the right tool and sometimes it really is the right tool for the job. besides they are just plain cool! lol
Jawn
Well-known member
I,ve heard older men (mostly coal miners) call them "Movers" in West Yorkshire
Down this way, it's usually a "crescent wrench" regardless of who actually made it.
fivespdcat
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I have quite the selection of adjustables. I used to use them for hose fittings and general plumbing, but they pretty much gather dust now that I have a full range of the Knipex pliers wrenches from 6" to 12". Those things are awesome! Sometimes you can't replace the adjustable, but it's very rare. The pliers wrench just about grips anything and does it better than a adjustable.
AZ_Catskinner
Well-known member
I'd imagine they are pretty handy, but I don't think I'd be able to put the same pull on them that I do a 15" or 24" adjustable. Even with an 1¾" capacity on the big ones, you still only get 10" of leverage.
bgott
Well-known member
Since the OP's journeyman doesn't like adjustable wrenches, I bet he'd **** if he saw me dig out my 24" pipe wrench from my "automotive" tool box.