fine tooth vs coarse tooth

[young_buck]

Which do you prefer for each drive size and why?

For a 1/4" it needs to be a fine toothed ratchet as a 1/4" is often needed for confined space.

For 3/8" I also prefer a higher tooth count as it it good for tight quarters but will hold up to the torque required for a 3/8" ratchet.

For a 1/2" it must be a coarse tooth such as a Proto 24 tooth or Mac 30 tooth because they will take the use and abuse expected of a 1/2" for heavier duty applications.

 

[Gary S]

My preferences are as follows.

For 1/4" and 3/8" I have only coarse tooth. They are all I need because I seldom do critical work with my small tools.

For my serious mechanical work I use 1/2", so I have both coarse and fine tooth. The coarse tooth does 95% of the jobs I need done, and the fine tooth picks up the tiny bit that the coarse doesn't do well.

 

[bobcatdan]

For me 36 tooth is about perfect. I have 1/4" and 3/8" 72 tooth SO roto ratchets and like those very much also. To me there is no real advanage to ratchets like the dual 80's. Anywhere my 36's won't swing, my dual 80 won't either.

 

[young_buck]

Not to rain on your parade YB, but this has been discussed 1000 times already, probably why your not getting any responses. I am NOT being critical of your question, but the current trend from all tool manufacturers is a higher tooth count. Having a greater # of teeth does not necessarily translate into a weaker ratchet. Personally I much prefer a greater tooth count.......... no matter what drive.

My apologies, I had not seen a thread for this since my joining GJ

 

[Altec]

Course ratchets doesn't mean strength off the bat. It's more to do with design, materials, and how well the pawl engages the teeth.

Personally, I worry more about how much force it takes to make the tool ratchet.

 

[rusty65]

Personally like fine tooth 3/8 and 1/4 ratchets but I like my 1/2 ratchets to be course tooth they just seem to feel stiffer and flex less when you really yank on em.

 

[tweedlestan]

Coarse tooth in any drive size is fine for most applications. That being said, I use my 88-tooth Matco 1/4 drive most often.

When I use 3/8, I use a coarse Snap on MOST of the time.

When I use 1/2, it's usually an old Hazet 30-tooth.

 

[ianguilly]

Fine tooth for every drive.

 

[ddo]

Fine tooth all the way. If torque is too high for a fine tooth, you shouldn't be using a ratchet in the first place. Only reason I use low tooth count on high torque is that I don't like those ratchets as much and if I broke something...I just broke something cheap. Fine tooth just feels better to work with. Not always necessary, but the little things make the day go smoother. The feel of a quality fine tooth ratchet in operation is one of them.

 

[dirtmister16]

For me 36 tooth is about perfect. I have 1/4" and 3/8" 72 tooth SO roto ratchets and like those very much also. To me there is no real advanage to ratchets like the dual 80's. Anywhere my 36's won't swing, my dual 80 won't either.

^maybe im wrong here but a dual 80 should and to me will swing where a 36 won't. unless it is a matter of having swing but can't grab it or something.


personally i have both in 3/8", but have come love my dual 80s i can really get in some spots and ratchet where i would not be able otherwise.

i don't have fine tooth in other drive sizes as i havn't had the need, though i should get a fine tooth 1/4" to be honest for the times when it would come in handy.

 

[chris142]

Fine tooth only here.I don't like the feel of the coarse ones.

 

[shockwave]

I use both but I must say the fine tooth dual 80 has saved me quite a bit where a coarse tooth would not engage the fine tooth I got about 4 clicks the long flex head snap on dual 80 is great for belt tensioners on 4.0l fords

 

[GarageDan]

What's the difference really?

 

[kunkernator]

Course ratchets doesn't mean strength off the bat. It's more to do with design, materials, and how well the pawl engages the teeth.

Personally, I worry more about how much force it takes to make the tool ratchet.

Couldn't have said it better myself. Example; Craftsman RP ratchets, would consider them coarse tooth, but they cannot hold up to an extreme amount of torque.

I also agree, when I look for a ratchet, I look at tooth count, but more importantly the ratcheting force. The less ratcheting force required means the more ease of use you will get from using the tool (not turning a bolt/nut the opposite direction by accident).

 

[superautobacs]

My concern is how much drag the mechanism has; not how high a tooth count it has.

It's very frustrating to work with ratchets, whether low or high tooth count, when the fastener rotates with the ratchet on the back stroke, when you DONT want it to.

For greater ease of use, low drag trumps total tooth count. That said, I don't want to use anything under 20-tooth. The lowest I have is a 24; highest is 144 (double-pawl).

 

[1982fxr]

my 1st fine tooth ratchet was the 3/8 Armstrong 88 tooth aerospace. Had no idea what I was missing!

 

[kc-steve]

My concern is how much drag the mechanism has; not how high a tooth count it has.

It's very frustrating to work with ratchets, whether low or high tooth count, when the fastener rotates with the ratchet on the back stroke, when you DONT want it to.

For greater ease of use, low drag trumps total tooth count. That said, I don't want to use anything under 20-tooth. The lowest I have is a 24; highest is 144 (double-pawl).

Yeah, that's my experience. I hate to two-hand a ratchet where one hand holds the ratchet and the other holds the socket to keep it from backing up in reverse.

For the OP's question, why not keep all types available in your toolbox? I do. That covers about any situation that pops up. No tool works when you don't have it.

Steve

 

[young_buck]

For the OP's question, why not keep all types available in your toolbox? I do. That covers about any situation to pops up. No tool works when you don't have it.

Steve

Very well put, my wallet might not like you for this one

 

[sberry]

I find most 1/2 ratchets to work fine but its the 3/8 that really get abused. I am not sure how many hours a day a guy can actually use a ratchet but the majority of sockets we use are power driven anymore. Over the years have got more better, equipment, less stressful turning by hand. When I was a kid wore the stuff out, over stressed it, today almost never.

Bought a new SK 3/8, last 10 yrs, reman,,, now been 20 and still works. Ist 4wd pickup I had wrecked it in a hurry, next one drove 22 yrs. ha

 

[twincam00]

why get a coarse tooth ratchet?

From what I've read and heard from snap-on dealers myself, the new fine tooth dual-80 ratchets are much stronger than the previous 936 and 830 series of coarse tooth ratchets, less rebuilds since they hold up to more torque

fine tooth ratchets are a win-win

...except the price

 

[kc-steve]

I'm not arguing your point, but most of us already have coarse-tooth ratchets from days gone by. ADDING the fine-tooth ratchets to those just covers all possible bases. Some ratchets have large heads, some small, low drag and all the other differences. Why throw away (or sell) a tool at all?

Like I said previously, no tool works when you don't have it.

Steve

 

[GarageDan]

Yeah, that's my experience. I hate to two-hand a ratchet where one hand holds the ratchet and the other holds the socket to keep it from backing up in reverse.

Oh yeah, I have some of those and I hate them too. So a course tooth ratchet is the cause?

 

[Conductor562]

I have course and fine tooth options in each drive size. I rarely ever use my fine tooth 1/2' rats just as I seldom use my course tooth 1/4". 3/8" Is a toss up. I use the fine toothed rats a lot, but if I think it's going to be a little stubborn I'll grab the 24T Proto without a second thought.

 

[Puckett_k]

Fine tooth for everything! My coarse tooth ratchets are just collecting dust. They are typically stronger (more surface area to contact teeth) and fit into more places.

 

[03protege]

For the Snap On S80 17 1/2" they list that it can hold 700 ft-lbs of torque. I doubt I would put more stress on a ratchet than that especially one of the smaller s80's

 

[Drew_flux]

Fine tooth for 1/4" drive. 3/8" drive I have both,depends on the ratchet handle/use. I only have coarse in 1/2" and above.

 

[tjmonsen5]

I just rebuilt an old T841 Snap-on 1/4 drive and F723 3/8 drive. They are both 30 tooth. They are cool because they are old and work like brand new again, but the 3/8 is a bit hard to spin. The 1/4 has a long throw before the next click. I guess my dual 80s have spoiled me. After using dual 80s for a year, I definitely prefer the fine tooth.

 

[richfinn]

I just bought my first 3/8 Dual 80 (I think its an FL80). I have all other sizes in coarse and have managed fine for nearly 30 years. I dont think its going to make me a better mechanic, but it seems nice enough and its the only version they now sell. I prefer an Impact or air ratchet so it wont get used all that much anyway.

 

[Fedwrench]

Modern fine tooth ratchets with a floating pawl design have 7-10 tooth engagement with the drive gear offer much more strength than the coarse toothed ratchets of yesterday.
Back in the day especially with round head ratchets, you only had two teeth on the pawl engaging the drive gear teeth so, coarse teeth were bigger and offered more strength than their thinner finer toothed brothers.
However, that is no longer an issue on newer pear head ratchets so, buy what you like. To me I want 60 teeth in my ratchets. The 80, 84, 88, and 90 tooth models are nice too but, adding 20 to 30 teeth to a gear the size of a quarter isn't really a giant leap in terms of performance.