Best ratcheting wrenches (midrange in price?)

[jlevers]

I'm in the market for some ratcheting wrenches...I bought a set of metric ones from Autozone, but I cracked one of them the day I bought em, so they're going back. I'd prefer having a flex end on the ratchet side, but if there's a set you love that doesn't have that feature, I'm open to it.

I'm looking for something reasonably high-quality that won't totally break the bank. Definitely not interested in things that're Snap-on level prices.

Thanks!

 

[Rarified27]

I've been using the Gearwrench flex head combo wrenches at least weekly for almost 10yrs with no issues. About 5yrs ago I soaked them in some lube, bit they've been otherwise maintenance free.

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[JBradley500]

If you dont need an open end and you like longer wrenches i'd get one of the brands 1foxracing lists in his post linked below. I have the Mountain and Platinum versions and they are pretty nice.

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showpost.php?p=7037618&postcount=3

 

[VolvoRyan]

GearWrench. You can't go wrong.

-Ryan

 

[CafeTools]

Offset reversible with anti slip grip on the open end are pretty much the best in most circumstances. The flex heads are secondary imho.

 

[Mr_B]

If you want reversible look at icon or oem tools.
both offer very good ratchet wrench for the price ICON with 20% or more coupon fair deal, OEM do deals like free pass thru sockets to go with wrench set).
I no ICON or HF fan but the reversible ratchet wrenches are decent design by a good oem and easy warranty handy on ratchet wrenches as you likely use it a few times over the years.
I using an ICON long pattern set professionally and they doing fine and I enjoy using them and putting them to the challenge .
The ICON flex head ratchet wrenches not such a great buy and plenty options on flex heads at all price points and brands .

 

[Steve_P]

EZ red, Mountain, Tekton...

 

[M6erfan]

I haven't used them but Tekton ratcheting wrenches get good marks around here. So does Icon.

 

[lardy1]

Keep in mind that Tekton are six point. I have the fractional, reversible set and I like them but in hindsight, I think I'd rather have twelve point.

 

[demarpaint]

Keep in mind that Tekton are six point. I have the fractional, reversible set and I like them but in hindsight, I think I'd rather have twelve point.

That's exactly the reason why I didn't buy Tekton. I ended up paying a bit more for Williams, and I'm glad I did.

 

[lardy1]

Blackhawk and Icon come up a lot in these threads.

 

[anndel]

I have Snap-on. Not mid-range price but I saved for them instead of buying mid-range. Williams makes a great set and wasn't available when I bought the SO.

 

[Handyandy23]

I've got a few different GearWrench sets that I like. I mainly got them because they are sold in Canada through Canadian Tire as "Mastercraft Maximum by GearWrench". They have the regular GW stamping on one side and then say Maximum on the other.

They go on sale regularly at CT for 50-60% off or more, and have lifetime no questions asked warranty in-store.

I've got a set of "regular" combo ratcheting wrenches, the XL box ends, XL flex box ends, stubbies, and just picked up a 4-piece large sizes set going I think 21mm-25mm. My favorites are the XL non-flex, but they've all been good. Out of all those I've only ever warrantied one for seizing up.

Depending what price you can get them from GearWrench for I'd recommend them.

 

[jlevers]

You guys are the bomb, thank you! I have lots of options to look through now...I saw some bad reviews on the Amazon page for a GearWrench set, so I wasn't gonna go with those, but given all the positive thoughts on them here, I'm considering it. $55 for a 20 piece SAE/metric set seems pretty damn good. I'll look through all the other options, though...

 

[Handyandy23]

You guys are the bomb, thank you! I have lots of options to look through now...I saw some bad reviews on the Amazon page for a GearWrench set, so I wasn't gonna go with those, but given all the positive thoughts on them here, I'm considering it. $55 for a 20 piece SAE/metric set seems pretty damn good. I'll look through all the other options, though...

If the 20 pc set you're talking about is GW # 35720, it's got like a 4.7/5 rating over 1,800+ reviews. Pretty hard to go wrong with those for the price.

 

[demarpaint]

If the 20 pc set you're talking about is GW # 35720, it's got like a 4.7/5 rating over 1,800+ reviews. Pretty hard to go wrong with those for the price.

My beef is they skip sizes in the metric wrenches.

 

[Handyandy23]

My beef is they skip sizes in the metric wrenches.

Yeah I have to agree with that, not ideal. Their higher end sets like the 85988 XL wrenches don't skip, but a lot of their "standard" combo style ones do have some skips.

Depending what you work on it may or may not be a big deal. If you're working on anything Japanese they include all the major 8-10-12-14-17 sizes. 11mm is missing for some GM stuff. 9mm missing I believe you come across on some Euro stuff? For the most part the sets cover 99% of what I'm working on around my house. But if you know you'll be missing those sizes you might want to look elsewhere.

 

[dnschmidt]

For some reason the Taiwanese hate 13, 15 and 18mm. I had a major problem when I was selling TOPTUL because most of their sets skip these sizes. I had to fill them in on the sets that I sold.

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

I picked up a Gearwrench set on sale at Canadian Tire. It didn't have 17mm. And separate 17 was as much as the set. The machinery I worked on, 17 was very common.

 

[OneDollarSaab]

I consider Proto USA to be midrange. I have both Proto and Snap-on, Proto are 90% of the quality and usability of Snap-on. I consider GW and the similar imports to be about 50% for comparison. Proto Taiwan I consider to be about 75%.

The Proto USA from Zoro on 20% off coupon are 1/2 of the price of Snap-on. The Proto Taiwan are a bit less.

When i bought, the Proto USA were to me the best value, after I had gone through several iterations of Gearwrench and tried EZRed and wanted better. I got the Snap-on later when I got an as new set used for essentially nothing. The Proto and Snap-on both have been acceptable, I've had no failures with them compared to immediate and repetitive failures with all the Gearwrench I tried. Warranty is useless if the tool won't work as you need; I just warranteed the GW for new tools that failed also, so I gave up and sold them off.

The JSCVM-20SA set is $25 per wrench average cost. How is that midrange in any way? I own them and they are in the top five of ratcheting wrenches ever produced.

 

[Unruh]

I have a set of gear wrench and a set of the SK X frames. The SK’s make the Gearwrench’s feel, sound and look like a child’s toy. Sk’s May be out of the mid-range price though?

 

[OneDollarSaab]

I have a set of gear wrench and a set of the SK X frames. The SK’s make the Gearwrench’s feel, sound and look like a child’s toy. Sk’s May be out of the mid-range price though?

They're pricey, but the 12-piece metric set is cheaper per wrench than the Proto USA ratcheting wrenches.

 

[woody6904]

Blackhawk hands down

 

[CafeTools]

Icon is good. They don't skip sizes. Also the have anti slip design.

 

[speed88]

Williams MWS-12RCF for around $150 from toolsdelivered.com

 

[Fedwrench]

I was going to recommend Blackhawk until I saw that their prices have increased quite a bit over the years.

Since you're looking for flex heads, I would run with this set from Tekton. They're durable, have great customer service, and if you order from Tekton.com, you get free USA shipping plus 10% back in points fro future purchases.

https://www.tekton.com/flex-ratchet...zes=8-19-mm&storage-option=holder&unit=metric

Another thing to consider is that if you're like me, the last thing I need is another open end wrench. Tekton takes care of that by offering these double flex boxed end ratcheting wrenches in standard & extra long lengths

https://www.tekton.com/flex-ratcheting-box-end-wrench-sets?quantity=1&unit=metric

https://www.tekton.com/long-flex-ratcheting-box-end-wrench-sets?quantity=1&unit=metric

The Tekton ratcheting boxed end is a six point design. Many people claim that this is a disadvantage and is harder to place on the fastener in tight areas which is a load of ****. If was a fixed boxed end, I would agree. However, with the crisp 72 tooth ratcheting action, slight movement is all you need and the claim is a nonissue.

Another great thing about Tekton, is that they offer open stock should you misplace a wrench and need to replace a single or just want and one in a particular size.

Another option would be NAPA's Carlyle when on sale.

 

[Handyandy23]

I picked up a Gearwrench set on sale at Canadian Tire. It didn't have 17mm. And separate 17 was as much as the set. The machinery I worked on, 17 was very common.

The GearWrench sets at CT are very hit or miss. For some weird reason they have about a dozen different part numbers for very similar sets, some of which have skips, and others that don't. And it seems every week one of the sets is on sale for 70% off or something.

There's also no real consistency in what sizes are missing. Sometimes 16mm, sometimes 17mm, etc. The "specialty" sets are hit or miss too. I love the XL's because there are no skips, but then the locking flex heads the only available set is full of skips. 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 17, 19. Doesn't even make sense because it alienates almost every potential customer. Has all the Japanese sizes except 14. Missing euro sizes, mssing GM sizes, etc

 

[Handyandy23]

The JSCVM-20SA set is $25 per wrench average cost. How is that midrange in any way? I own them and they are in the top five of ratcheting wrenches ever produced.

^This. That's like saying a Corvette is a mid range car because it's not as expensive as a Ferrari. I wouldn't consider them mid range at that price and I doubt any other DIYers would either.

ssdave must be a technician or some kind of trade because as a DIYer I haven't had nearly that many issues with my GearWrench, and I have several sets. I've got a lift in my garage and use them semi frequently, and only had one wrench ever lock up. I know experiences can differ, but if SO, Proto, and other truck brands are premium wrenches, and your random store brand or Amazon fly by night wrenches are bottom of the barrel, that would seem to put GW and Tekton as mid range options.

 

[bsaint]

I am happy so far with my williams. 111 for 5/16 through 3/4


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[OneDollarSaab]

Here is the invoice from Zoro for both SAE and Metric Proto's. $17.51 per wrench; new, retail, relatively current, I didn't check prices today.

That's not too bad. I was calculating based on the 20 piece metric set (the 32mm is $150 by itself).

 

[Tallpilot]

If the 20 pc set you're talking about is GW # 35720, it's got like a 4.7/5 rating over 1,800+ reviews. Pretty hard to go wrong with those for the price.

How many of those reviews are for the older Taiwan sets not the newer Chinese ones? I have Gearwrench in my box but I detest Apex and they don’t seem interested in helping me have a better option of them.

 

[Tallpilot]

For some reason the Taiwanese hate 13, 15 and 18mm. I had a major problem when I was selling TOPTUL because most of their sets skip these sizes. I had to fill them in on the sets that I sold.

I don’t get it. I’d imagine Toyota is the most popular manufacturer in Taiwan but I’ve seen German cars there. It is way past time to stop selling JIS only sets. WTF?

 

[Handyandy23]

How many of those reviews are for the older Taiwan sets not the newer Chinese ones? I have Gearwrench in my box but I detest Apex and they don’t seem interested in helping me have a better option of them.

Touche, that could very well be the case. And I'll admit my views on these wrenches is likely skewed from them being a store brand locally to me. It makes them a lot easier to digest on huge sales and knowing I have lifetime guarantee by just walking through the door, rather than having to fight GearWrench over the phone.

 

[M6erfan]

How many of those reviews are for the older Taiwan sets not the newer Chinese ones? I have Gearwrench in my box but I detest Apex and they don’t seem interested in helping me have a better option of them.

Just to chime in... I had a set of the early GW Taiwan ratcheting wrenches and they were garbage. They kept locking up or going into neutral on their own. Garbage.

 

[Tallpilot]

Touche, that could very well be the case. And I'll admit my views on these wrenches is likely skewed from them being a store brand locally to me. It makes them a lot easier to digest on huge sales and knowing I have lifetime guarantee by just walking through the door, rather than having to fight GearWrench over the phone.

There is nothing wrong with that. I always say the same thing about Harbor Freight. If you drive by one every day on the way back and forth to work it is hard to beat the warranty. It takes me almost two hours back and forth to get to Harbor Freight so Tekton beats their warranty by a mile.

I’m with Fedwrench though, if you already have wrenches with open ends it doesn’t make sense to buy more unless you want to add anti-slip. So get the double box end type or the aviation style.

The real travesty is Napa Canada doesn’t carry Carlyle. Why would they maintain two different product lines? Plus it would make a true mid-tier alternative to the cheap **** at Princess.

 

[Tallpilot]

Just to chime in... I had a set of the early GW Taiwan ratcheting wrenches and they were garbage. They kept locking up or going into neutral on their own. Garbage.

I’ve never tried Gearwrench reversibles. But that’s what is so strange about Gearwrench. Opinion is just about evenly split between love and hate. At this point there are just too many other good options to bother with Gearwrench unless you are grabbing them on clearance for pennies.

 

[Fedwrench]

When Gearwrench was trying to flood the US market years ago, they would have uber cheap sale pricing at sears. Now that sears is gone for the most part so, are those sales.

I've also maintained that there are different quality levels across Gearwrench products. Take for example the reversible Gearwrench ratcheting wrench set. Buy it at Sears back in the day and it came with capstop on the boxed ends. Buy it online or at a parts house, no capstop. Fit & finish from other than sears was also usually better too.

The issue of sets skipping sizes is very annoying. Capri tools sell some pretty nice 100 tooth flex head ratcheting wrenches with anti slip open ends but, they skip 16 & 18 mm sizes. those sizes are listed in their open stock section but, they have never and won't ever be in stock. 18 mm is too common of a size not to offer it.

 

[M6erfan]

That's the trouble with all the anecdotal experiences from a wide group of random people (like use here at GJ). The experiences vary over a wide range of expectations, a wide range of experience, and who knows what generation of the tools and who made them that we're talking about.

...*snipped

Your whole post is spot on.

Besides their sockets which are decent (but nothing extraordinary) I've not been impressed with GW tools in general (their older 60t/84t ratchets are OK). I've said before, the only thing GW excels in is marketing. But I know they sell a ton of stuff and generally get good reviews, so who knows. My personal opinion is that there are better alternatives out there.

 

[kngelv]

I work as an electrical leader in a large U.S. auto manufacturing facility. We use ratcheting wrenches for various repairs, adjustments and other work. Our primary use with them is adjusting brakes on electrical motors for lift tables, roll tables, transfers, high lifts etc. There are literally hundreds of these motors in the plant. There are crews doing brakes pretty much every saturday night shift and sunday day shift so these tools get used heavily. 15, 19, and 22mm are the most common sizes we use. They may be used to adjust the brake itself or access the motor before any adjustments. We used to have a mix of Gearwrench and Westward stuff which I never understood because most everything else is a mix of Proto, Blackhawk and Snap-On. The average lifespan of these were about 4-6 months before the mechanisms took a ****. Myself and another worker finally convinced the bosses to order either the Proto or Snap-On as a test set. The Gearwrench and Westward stuff were easier to replace because they were already set up in our general stores. We are three years in in on the Proto’s with no failures. Everything going forward the last two years has been Proto.

James

 

[Tallpilot]

That's the trouble with all the anecdotal experiences from a wide group of random people (like use here at GJ). The experiences vary over a wide range of expectations, a wide range of experience, and who knows what generation of the tools and who made them that we're talking about.

M6er's experience is exactly what I had with GW. ...

Excellent post. Guys like you are why I like this board. I treat my tools pretty nicely but I like buying the stuff that survives what you do to it. Please keep sharing which items don't end up in your junk bucket.

... We are three years in in on the Proto’s with no failures. Everything going forward the last two years has been Proto.

James

Very impressive. Usually it's hard to convince the bosses to spend more up front to not spend more on the back end. 6 months vs. years is a pretty good testimonial.