I never really use combination wrenches

[OutsideMachinist]

Half the nuts and bolts on my car can ONLY be reached with a combo wrench due to clearance issues etc. Must be a nice world where something clunky like an adjustable will work.

Usually it wont. A lot of times it is a jerry rigged adjustable either with the handle cut short or the jaws cut down. I have to carry tools on my back a mile or more away from toolbox. Even with 100+ pounds of tools you wont always have everything you need, its not possible.

That said i prefer not to use adjustable. Definitely reach for a combo first. If i have to use an adjustable i prefer the smooth jaw pipe wrenches like the ford wrench mentioned earlier and a ridgid e110.

 

[e30bradley]

From what I'v seen, people who use adjustable for everything are hacks..

 

[David W]

If you don't actually fix much of anything then a crescent wrench is just fine. I just wonder what the OP actually works on?

 

[shockwave]

I only use adjustable wrenches on low torque applications or to hold hex on slides of brake calipers mostly and I use combination more than adjustables.

And try loosening up a lower ball joint with an adjustable or gearwrench they always round this is where a quality open end comes to benefit you where a socket or box end will not fit

 

[HaroRider]

I usually try to use vise grips as much as possible, rounds off bolts alot better than an adjustable.

 

[48RON54]

I usually try to use vise grips as much as possible, rounds off bolts alot better than an adjustable.

lolololololol nothing i love more than watching someone get frustrated rounding something off with a pair of vise grips in an attempt to avoid walking 10 feet back to their toolbox

 

[plinker]

When dealing with a number of different size air or hydraulic fitting's that you have good access to, a quality adjustable wrench(s) can beat using regular wrenches depending on the job at hand.

Not so much useful for automotive work, but for heavy equipment & class 8 trucks they are very useful to have around.

And no, I do not do hack work. In fact I refuse.

 

[MagnumForce]

On cars adjustable wrenches are pretty much useless, in industrial maintenance they are a godsend and indispensable.

 

[n8n]

brake caliper slides I use my German open end wrenches; not even sure how you would get an adjustable in there...?

 

[BDT/NWMN]

A good quality $2 plier is the only tool some folks will ever need.. They can hold, pinch, pry, twist. turn, tug, bend, stretch, snap, pull, smack, tap, hammer, drive, torque, ream, or align with a single tool....

It is bewildering that major tool companies have sold tool sets with sockets, wrenches, screwdrivers, hammers and pliers for decades. But again; some folks only need the plier....

So the tale of the tool progresses. We will all have our chapter somewhere in the book. The Factory Maintenance Crew, the Diesel Tech, The Aircraft Crew, The Home DYI, The Auto tech, the Electronics Group..... The Newbie to the Pro...... All present and accounted for,,, Everyone has their own "my page" with a quirk or two.. As long as you have a pulse; there are a few blank pages to fill in.... Our stories will not be the same.

 

[SASORacing]

Adj. Wrenches I use to hold a nut white tightening a bolt. They are never good for any high torque application.

 

[MagnumForce]

Adj. Wrenches I use to hold a nut white tightening a bolt. They are never good for any high torque application.

Work pretty well in high torque situations when using them to put fittings on black iron pipe.

Look at things outside of the automotive realm.

 

[BDT/NWMN]

Ratchets, Flare nut wrenches, and Adjustable Wrench... Three needed tools where I don't like cheap dime store ****... My ProTo and SnapOn adjustable wrenches can be adjusted for a tighter grip on a worn or damaged fitting than my combination wrenches.. Not the first choice tool, but sometimes the only choice.. Should mention that I hate pipe wrench and vise grip marks on a fitting if it needs to be reused. The adjustable wrenches are clunky compared to a combo, angle, or flare nut wrench... But, I have them all for a reason... Not everyone works on hydraulics and air brake systems; so your tool needs and uses will vary from mine and everyone else's..... just cannot stress that fact enough

 

[David W]

Work pretty well in high torque situations when using them to put fittings on black iron pipe.

.

I suppose a guy can get away with using a crescent wrench in industrial maintenance but the OCD side of me just can't tolerate using one if I got a proper tool halfway available. Toolboxes have wheels for one other reason than quitting a job and mine have a lot more miles on them than most peoples. I rolled mine everywhere it would fit and carry a bag with the proper wrenches if I can't get the box halfway close.

You certainly can't use a crescent on any machine that it won't fit on. Sockets and combo wrenches were a must in every place I've been in.

 

[MagnumForce]

You want a minimal amount of anything when you are 30 feet up the air on a boom or scissor lift. Besides that if used properly I bet I have a tighter tolerance while using my 18 inch adjustable than an open end would. Box end is not an option on pipe obviously.

I might be using everything from a 9/16 to a 2 inch wrench in the span of a few minutes running weld gas across a room, I am surely not having that kind of range of tools with me up on a boom lift when 3 crescent wrenches and two pipe wrenches will do the job just as well.

Hydraulic fittings, pipe, and coolant lines are all the realm of crescents and pipe wrenches but there are times they work well in other applications too, like floor anchors and such. This is not precision stuff.

Another thing is that in industrial maintenance you see a lot more allen heads than you would anywhere else, in fact most all bolts in the plant are allens so that means that you have a allen set key you carry around on you and a crescent wrench to hold onto the nut on the backside of that allen head to take it off.

Anyway there is a place for everything and a reason for everything but in some applications using an adjustable wrench is standard and wholly justifiable.

Remember in industrial maintenance we are not paid to dicker around and go get the exact right wrench when a crescent will do the job fine. 10 minutes downtime means 20 people standing around doing nothing losing production and that stuff adds up very quickly if I had to go from one end of the plant to the other to get the right wrench all the time there would be a lot of explaining to do and it is basically not possible nor reasonable to cart your box around all the time.

Now stuff we have to tear down or set up new tooling etc such, that is a different animal altogether but at that point you are usually able to have plenty of time and have your box or at least a buggy with your tools near you.

 

[CJM8515]

I hardly ever use mine, got a 6, 10 and 12 inch and I think I used each of them maybe 10x in all the years I have them.

I will say i always throw one in my roadside and atv tool kit,w hen you dont have the space they are handy.

 

[Premium08]

You want a minimal amount of anything when you are 30 feet up the air on a boom or scissor lift. Besides that if used properly I bet I have a tighter tolerance while using my 18 inch adjustable than an open end would. Box end is not an option on pipe obviously.

I might be using everything from a 9/16 to a 2 inch wrench in the span of a few minutes running weld gas across a room, I am surely not having that kind of range of tools with me up on a boom lift when 3 crescent wrenches and two pipe wrenches will do the job just as well.

Hydraulic fittings, pipe, and coolant lines are all the realm of crescents and pipe wrenches but there are times they work well in other applications too, like floor anchors and such. This is not precision stuff.

Another thing is that in industrial maintenance you see a lot more allen heads than you would anywhere else, in fact most all bolts in the plant are allens so that means that you have a allen set key you carry around on you and a crescent wrench to hold onto the nut on the backside of that allen head to take it off.

Anyway there is a place for everything and a reason for everything but in some applications using an adjustable wrench is standard and wholly justifiable.

Remember in industrial maintenance we are not paid to dicker around and go get the exact right wrench when a crescent will do the job fine. 10 minutes downtime means 20 people standing around doing nothing losing production and that stuff adds up very quickly if I had to go from one end of the plant to the other to get the right wrench all the time there would be a lot of explaining to do and it is basically not possible nor reasonable to cart your box around all the time.

Now stuff we have to tear down or set up new tooling etc such, that is a different animal altogether but at that point you are usually able to have plenty of time and have your box or at least a buggy with your tools near you.

Great post, we gotta keep those bosses off our back. After all, their bonus is based on uptime haha

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

 

[ADSR]

This^^!

Who the heck doesn't use combo wrenches???????????

 

[ZRX61]

I take it the OP doesn't work in aviation.. or on anything important.

 

[fasteddie313]

Between sockets and adjustable wrenches...what is the main purpose of combination wrenches? I bought a nice gear wrench set a year ago and I haven't even opened it because Ive never needed it.

there are a hell of a lot of things only a slim box end or a slim open end will do..

and adjustable are good at rounding things off, box ends are much stronger/much more grip...

adjustable are for bicycles..

 

[JR 42]

there are a hell of a lot of things only a slim box end or a slim open end will do..

and adjustable are good at rounding things off, box ends are much stronger/much more grip...

adjustable are for bicycles..

I miss the 4" Craftsman adjustable that's the size of a 4" adjustable, not a 6" with a 4" handle. It was a great size for a bike toolbag.

I like combo and double-end wrenches more than ratchets and adjustables- they're dead simple, have no moving parts, never sieze up or require lubrication to function properly, and are sized according to function.

JR

 

[nicksnothereman]

Between sockets and adjustable wrenches...what is the main purpose of combination wrenches? I bought a nice gear wrench set a year ago and I haven't even opened it because Ive never needed it.

Sometimes you can't get a socket in there so wrench. Actually I use wrenches a hell of a lot more outside (other projects) of a car than I do with a car. I just prefer the ratchet + socket setup if I can help it. Small head bolts I might go with a wrench to avoid having to use 1/4" with sockets