Yesterday I was at Gemplers and they had a bunch of these Channellock "Uni-Fit" socket sets on clearance for $20:
The clearance price tag covered the country of origin, but a quick google check said they were Taiwan, which is okay. So I bought one to check it out. I figured even if the Uni-Fit sockets are ****, I'll still get a ratchet handle and extension out of the deal.
Taiwan turned out to be correct:
Uni-Fit is just spline sockets sized to the nearest increment. The packaging says it will drive all sorts of fasteners in SAE or metric sizes. We're gonna test that!
I'll be interested to see whether they are native metric and sloppy on SAE, or the other way around, or some of each.
The tools themselves look budget-grade but well-made for that niche:
The chrome on the sockets is not deep and thick, but it does fully cover the sockets without light spots. The laser-etched size markings could be more legible. The extension is pretty much like the sockets; not deep chrome, but looks ok for what it is. Everything clicks together pretty snugly; you're not going to have sockets dropping off on their own, and neither will you have trouble pulling them off the extension when you want to.
The reducer adapter is a bit of a mystery. There is overlap between the 5 largest 1/4" drive sockets (bottom row), and the five smallest 3/8" drive sockets. 3/8-10mm through 9/16-14mm are represented twice. Why would you want to use a 1/4" socket with a reducer on a 3/8" handle when you have a 3/8" socket in the same size? Feels to me like they could have eliminated some of that duplication and included a 1/4" ratchet handle instead. Of course then they'd also have to include a 1/4" extension too, so maybe that's why.
The ratchet handle is about HF quality, which these days is not as sketchy as it was, but not super either. It's pretty short, only about 7". Not going to get a lot of leverage with this, but probably useful for tight spots. The handle looks like rubber but feels more like plastic. On the plus side, though, it appears to be 72-tooth without a lot of slop, and the release works smoothly, as does the direction lever.
I'll probably put a few of these sockets in my pockets* and go to Ace and test-fit them on some SAE and metric bolt heads, see how they fit.
This set doesn't seem really exceptionally good, but neither does it appear to be exceptionally bad. It does sort of seem like a failed extension of the Channellock brand, though, which is probably why they were on clearance. Clearly not worth the $60 or so MSRP, but for $20 I'll give them a fair chance. Might be good to just toss in the back of the car.
*Sockets in my pockets. I'm a poet and I don't know it. But my feet sure show it; they're long fellows.
The clearance price tag covered the country of origin, but a quick google check said they were Taiwan, which is okay. So I bought one to check it out. I figured even if the Uni-Fit sockets are ****, I'll still get a ratchet handle and extension out of the deal.
Taiwan turned out to be correct:
Uni-Fit is just spline sockets sized to the nearest increment. The packaging says it will drive all sorts of fasteners in SAE or metric sizes. We're gonna test that!
I'll be interested to see whether they are native metric and sloppy on SAE, or the other way around, or some of each.
The tools themselves look budget-grade but well-made for that niche:
The chrome on the sockets is not deep and thick, but it does fully cover the sockets without light spots. The laser-etched size markings could be more legible. The extension is pretty much like the sockets; not deep chrome, but looks ok for what it is. Everything clicks together pretty snugly; you're not going to have sockets dropping off on their own, and neither will you have trouble pulling them off the extension when you want to.
The reducer adapter is a bit of a mystery. There is overlap between the 5 largest 1/4" drive sockets (bottom row), and the five smallest 3/8" drive sockets. 3/8-10mm through 9/16-14mm are represented twice. Why would you want to use a 1/4" socket with a reducer on a 3/8" handle when you have a 3/8" socket in the same size? Feels to me like they could have eliminated some of that duplication and included a 1/4" ratchet handle instead. Of course then they'd also have to include a 1/4" extension too, so maybe that's why.
The ratchet handle is about HF quality, which these days is not as sketchy as it was, but not super either. It's pretty short, only about 7". Not going to get a lot of leverage with this, but probably useful for tight spots. The handle looks like rubber but feels more like plastic. On the plus side, though, it appears to be 72-tooth without a lot of slop, and the release works smoothly, as does the direction lever.
I'll probably put a few of these sockets in my pockets* and go to Ace and test-fit them on some SAE and metric bolt heads, see how they fit.
This set doesn't seem really exceptionally good, but neither does it appear to be exceptionally bad. It does sort of seem like a failed extension of the Channellock brand, though, which is probably why they were on clearance. Clearly not worth the $60 or so MSRP, but for $20 I'll give them a fair chance. Might be good to just toss in the back of the car.
*Sockets in my pockets. I'm a poet and I don't know it. But my feet sure show it; they're long fellows.