Are SAE tools dead?

[Toolcrib]

Fire apparatus (pumpers, quints and ladder trucks) are mostly SAE.

 

[ovilla]

What the hell is Whitworth and what is it primarily used for?

 

[Robbie B]

When I was in auto repair the only SAE I ever needed was for the bleeders on some Ford vehicles, now that I’m an industrial mechanic the only metric I use is on 2 machines that are British. It really depends on what you’re doing.


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[rustbucket5]

golf carts can be a mix of both. some have switched to metric while some use metric for the engine and imperial for the body

 

[kythri]

Just wish Tractor Supply sold metric hardware by the pound like it does for SAE.

Seems like a huge reason why SAE stays entrenched.

 

[Gmonkee]

I'm going to throw out all my SAE and metric and fully convert to Whitworth. Who's with me?

I have full kits of wrenches in sae, metric, cap nut, USS and number wrenches. I am prepared for any car. I even have antique unmarked wrenches that I cannor guess what standard they are.

One adjustable elliminates all standards.

 

[DFB]

What the hell is Whitworth and what is it primarily used for?

Google's your friend pal

Whitworth thread was the world's first national screw thread standard developed by the British late 1800's and used well into the 60's especially known on British cars and motorcycles sold into the American market

They had a coarse thread, BSW or British Standard Whitworth 55 degree. The thread "form" is almost identical to American Unified Coarse (UNF) 60 degree and except for 1/2" all the rest of the sizes have the same TPI threads per inch

There is/was a fine thread fastener BSF or British Standard Fine and a TPI that didn't match up at all with American Unified Fine (UNF) thread pitch.

Also one called BSC or British Standard Cycle, was a fine thread small diameter fastener

Something else called BA (a weird form of metric )

And then the most commonly known British Standard Pipe (BSP) Tapered thread

But that's the easy part

Its the fastener head sizes that are different too notably two different sets of markings both with fractional wrench numbering like American standard

https://jrcengineering.com/technical-support/whitworth-and-other-british-threads/

http://www.team.net/sol/tech/whitworth-hist.html

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

Thread form takes a fair bit of math to describe . The old standard thread form took less than the Whitworth or the metric , if I remember right from my apprenticeship days. Whitworth and metric are better designed threads than the old standard. No sharp corners to concentrate stress.

Except for 1/2", you can with the aid of an impact the first time use UNC in Whitworth threaded holes. chuckle.

 

[nelstomlinson]

SAE is totally dead. Send all your SAE stuff to me for proper disposal.

Pretty much everything I have except the chainsaws and the Subaru uses SAE.

 

[xela456]

This question comes up alot from automotive guys.
Pretty much everything that isn't an automobile is going to have standard fasteners. Im and industrial mechanic, working in paper Mills, cement plants, foundries, grain mills I'd say I run into about 80 percent standard hardware. It depends on where the equipment comes from. In the cement plant, the raw mill itself (originally manufactured in Germany) has all metric hardware. All of the chutes, conveyors, ductwork, structural steel that surround it is all standard.
At Hallmark cards a good deal of the machinery is designed and built in-house and it all depends on which engineer designed it.

 

[BFHtime]

Anybody else find themselves moving their SAE tools to another cart to make room for more metric, hex, torx, etc.?

I work on mostly Honda, Nissan, Hyundai, Audi, and an occasional Chevy every now and then and can’t even remember the last time I needed a 1/2 or 9/16 wrench. The other day I saw a great deal on some new Snap On SAE sockets and they didn’t even interest me - and they’re still listed on Offer Up.

Just curious, what are you using SAE tools on and are you still buying any SAE stuff?

My SAE tools live in my tool box.

 

[Snapped-off]

It'd be pretty hard to do much maintenance on a submarine without a 9/16". I've always referred to them as the "ship's key".

1/8" allen/hex key is also mandatory.

 

[MushCreek]

Adjustable wrenches and Vise-Grips. Problem solved.

 

[crewchief888]

in the construction eq world, it's a mix of MM & std.

most everything attached to the engine is MM, most of the rest of the hardware is std.

 

[HPRifleman]

What the hell is Whitworth and what is it primarily used for?

It's what you need to work on your Matchless, AJS, BSA, Sunbeam, Brough-Superior, Velocette, and other similar bikes.

My previous comment was me just being sarcastic. But it illustrates the point that certain fastener standards sometimes fade away and give way to new ones. It's just the nature of technology.

When I design a product at work and I specify a machine screw, that screw has metric thread and a six-lobe (commonly called Torx) drive. For us that's the standard. They are so much easier to deal with than Philips. Especially for higher torque applications.

 

[Lucid Moments]

I wish SAE was dead, and prior to seeing this thread I would have tended to think similar to the OP. Counting race cars I have 6 vehicles and only one of them uses any SAE fasteners.

I get it for guys that work on older stuff, but I truly don't understand why anything newly designed uses SAE fasteners.

 

[Jim C.]

I still use SAE tools on a regular basis and occasionally use some metric tools too. Very recently, after buying an old British made car, I’ve had to invest in a set of Whitworth sockets and wrenches.

Jim C.

 

[MikeF2316]

It's been a while, but I just bought some Allen key sockets, both Metric and SAE. I needed the SAE for furniture hardware, which is pretty much still non metric in this country.

I had to fix the starter on my snowblower which has a Briggs and Stratton engine, also not metric last year. But at least I didn't have to buy anything...

Plumbing stuff is also not metric, to fix a tap you need non metric tools.

 

[Kent_B]

This is my main reason for keeping the fractional stuff

 

[JohnM45]

Adjustable wrenches and Vise-Grips. Problem solved.

Just as long as it's a metric adjustable wrench...

 

[BiggityBen]

in the construction eq world, it's a mix of MM & std.

most everything attached to the engine is MM, most of the rest of the hardware is std.

i work on generators. the engines (even John Deere's) and back ends are all mm, the trailers, ductwork for exhaust, enclosure bungs for draining oil/coolant, fuel tank bung hardware, etc is all sae. i had to pick up a set of torx plus sockets recently as new Kohler diesels use them now. went with Mac set STP12B. most of the nuts on the timing cover studs on John Deere's are torx also.