I liked them until Danaher went through TWO revisions of cheapening them... IMO now they're just another crappy chinese wrench, and I no longer have any interest in them.
This is pretty much how it went (IMO of course):
Version 1: Made in Taiwan, very nice finish quality, wonderful tight and clean ratcheting action... feels like a quality tool. Resistance of ratcheting action very uniform from wrench to wrench, and size to size. Every single wrench works perfect. Selectors on reversing wrenches don't stick, and work perfectly. Inside of open ends are slim with good points, strong, well finished, accurate, and smooth.
Version 2: Moved production to China. Quality close to Taiwan made, but differences in chrome and overall finishing. Occasional issues with ratcheting action, resistance and precision of action varies between wrenches in a set. The open end is still slim with good points and overall good quality, but the broaching inside is inferior to the Taiwan wrenches. Overall acceptable quality, especially if gotten on sale.
Version 3: ****.
As if moving production to China wasn't bad enough, they cheapened the already cheapened wrenches. The way you can tell the difference on these is that the open end became much thicker and clunkier than older Chinese made versions. The finish quality is horrid, unpolished forging pits and blemishes, terrible broaching on the open ends, and you're lucky if every wrench in a set works. Even when they do all work, they are so poorly made that the innaccurate teeth often catch the reverse levers, or bind. Bad enough quality that I wouldn't even want to use them if they were free.
I had a Taiwan made set that was stolen, and replaced with several V2 Chinese sets. They were great, but I sold them when I was in a tight spot, only retaining one set. I later re-purchased, only to find there was now a V3 pattern for the chinese wrenches, which was inferior to the older Chinese made versions.
I was in such disbelief at the horrid quality of the V3 Chinese wrenches versus the older ones I'd had, that I bought three other sets from three seperate sources and ended up having the same experience.
That was the point that I sold my Gearwrench products and gave up on them completely. The quality is no longer what I consider acceptable for a tool, import or not.
I'm sure they work fine for many people still, but they are no longer good enough quality to deserve a place in my tool kit.
edit: Here's a couple pics I posted a while back. I can confirm that both wrenches shown were labeled made in China, hence V2 and V3 Chinese wrenches. I've read accounts of this change by others as well.
Notice the extreme change in thickness, and the horrid quality of the broaching on the newer wrench (left).
In this picture you can see the V2 Chinese wrench in the top, very elegant open end shape with sharp, well formed tips. The bottom V3 wrench has a chunky, ugly profile with poor finishing and non-uniform tips which vary from wrench to wrench.
The newer wrench has gotten a similar ugly lobster-claw profile as the Craftsman wrenches that were switched from quality USA steel and then had to be reinforced to account for cheaper Chinese steel.
