Mac vs Matco vs Cornwell vs Snap-on

[mofo62]

.


I Love design Mac ...its awesome!!!


V!

 

[FergusonTO35]

Honestly, they all have their virtues. I love the traditional V-shaped open end and only Cornwell makes it any more. Snap-On is probably the most durable wrench and most resistant to chrome flaking that I have seen. The square and somewhat wide beam of a Mac wrench is very comfortable to use. Love the older Bonney made Matcos, I've been hoarding them for a while now. The Matco Opti-Torque open end looks strange but actually works. I used them all the time as an alignment tech.

Pick what you like the best and be happy!!

 

[XxToolAholicxX]

S-K by far the best. Just my opinion.

I am a Toolaholic,Sometimes I regret it,Especially when the toolman wont give me no credit.

 

[Trey T]

Does anyone know if the Armstrong XL wrenches are about same length as the SO Flank or Craftsman Pro? I need to replace a 19mm craftsman pro.

 

[pauls_workshop]

i have sae combos in those four brands. older bonney made matco wcl, newer so oex, mac knucklesavers and the extra long cornwell. i also have cman full polish wich are the same as sk. i rate them as follows

1. bonney made matco. love the feel and the look. nice chrome, v heads. i would get another set if i could find them.

2-3. sk made cman full polish. nice feel, nice length. great for the price. a great wrench no longer sk made though. i recomend.

2-3. snap-on. nice length. nice finish. not real comfortable in a hard pull i bought them used at less than 1/2 price, like new. a great wrench if you can find a good used set. if you have to buy new, save your money and buy something else. to many other good options for less money.

4. cornwell. very nice satin finish. very long, v heads (bought from hiball, thanks!) if the new full polish xl's are this nice i recomend. to long for many jobs. the regulat long handle may be a better choice.

5. mac knucklesaver. a nice beefy well finished wrench. they look great but for some reason just don't feel right. if they fit your hand you may like them. the shortest of the bunch and not much longer than a raised panel sk or cman.

this list is based on personnal preferance first and value or cost second. i did not base them on warranty or availability as some versions i have are no longer available. if i needed an excellant sae wrench available right now i would go with.


1.wright grip satin. nice finish and good price

2. cman full polish. a lot of wrench for little money. you can't go wrong even at full price. unbeatable on sale.

3.sk full polish long wrench. a nice wrench and the superchrome is just pretty. probably not as cheap as the others but not truck price either.

4. take your pick. if you can afford truck brands or some other brands go for it. probably lots i am missing but just remember, he wanted opinions and i gave them. any of the better brands should serve you well.

Wow, this is one of the most informative wrench posts I've read in a long time. Question: I have a set now of the Craftsman Professional full polish above, not too old. Does Armstrong make the current Craftsman Pro/Industrial wrenches? Do they also make the sockets Pro/Industrial? If not, who does make them? thx- Paul

 

[JUNK-MAN]

I'm gonna have to say Snap-On or Mac that's all I've used for years now, I used to use Craftsman's but when I switched to Snap-On and used them I never picked up a C-man again.--Good luck

 

[u118224]

Does anyone know if the Armstrong XL wrenches are about same length as the SO Flank or Craftsman Pro? I need to replace a 19mm craftsman pro.

I only have one Armstrong XL, it's 19mm, and it's quite a bit longer than my regular Snap-On FD 19mm. There should be dimensions on the Armstrong website.

 

[Trey T]

Perfect thanks. I just ordered one from eBay for $12shipped

 

[rowerwet]

SO all the way! I love the length, cman rp feel like a bar of lead to me now. I use them at home on the car.
I have a Mac wrench, it is shorter than SO so I don't like it, the cman pro are nice, the small sizes were longer than SO, but not any more.
I still use cman rp for rusted nuts, SO are too tight to get on rusted stuff.

 

[SantaAna12]

I would not buy one of each. Seems like a waste to me.

Plenty of good advice. With regards to Mac.....before Knucklesavers was the cw series. Comfortable....smaller.....leaves no marks.......good stuff.

Good luck!

 

[merbie]

I really like my mac precision wrenches, chrome is excellent they tackle rusty fasteners well and don't damage knew ones with the aggressive teeth like the snfdp, also the beams are chunky and rounded so there really comfortable long too

Merb

 

[Trey T]

^That's a nice handle design, quite unique actually. I would imagine that I-beam (almost like) design (assuming same material) is more stronger than the typical oval SO FD or CMAN Pro.

I bet it cost more than the SO FD combo set, or at least a lot more than their usual combo wrenches.

 

[merbie]

Cost me 230 for 6-24 combos


Merb

 

[Malczewski]

Does anyone know if the Armstrong XL wrenches are about same length as the SO Flank or Craftsman Pro? I need to replace a 19mm craftsman pro.

The Armstrong XL is 17" in one inch.(measured the Armstrong)
Snappy is also listed at 17"

 

[u118224]

The Armstrong XL is 17" in one inch.(measured the Armstrong)
Snappy is also listed at 17"

Huh? The OEXM190B is about 11" long. The 19mm Armstrong XL 52-419 is 13.13" long.

 

[XxToolAholicxX]

I don't want to hurt no ones feelings but none of the above. When it comes to wrenches Wright or Proto Professional kicks *** all the way.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I am a ToolAholic,Sometimes I regret it,Especially when the Toolman wont give me no credit.

 

[ihateminimumwage]

Wow, this is one of the most informative wrench posts I've read in a long time.

Well, it is from 2010 after all.

S-K by far the best. Just my opinion.

I don't want to hurt no ones feelings but none of the above. When it comes to wrenches Wright or Proto Professional kicks *** all the way.

Make up your mind!
Or at least read through a thread before posting. You are the one that resurrected it from the dead less than a year ago (and still on the same page).

 

[Trey T]

I just received the Armstrong XL 19mm polished. It's eXtra Long, 13"; I didn't realize it's extra extra long. See comparison of the Craftsman pro 18mm.

 

[skruft]

If we are talking about regular combination wrenches, I have used all the quality USA brands and have no strong preference. I have never broken any quality one that I can recall. Regular old Craftsman work fine. The ones I use most often now are Wright and Matco but for no special reason.

I saw an SK with a broken box end some time ago. I suspect it was abused.

I prefer the regular size oval-shaped grip surfaces. There are some with slim or more rectangular grips that feel a bit odd to me. The only wrenches I own that seem to have an especially good feature are some Wright that have a sort of matte finish. They are not shiny or beautiful but they seem to me to be very easy to grip.

 

[dodgejunkie]

Wow some of you have a huge selection to choose from!

I've used about all major US brands and didn't have any preference to one or the other. I just use my snap ons I bought first starting out in 1983.

Lately, and with all the help of you all posting the nice pics of these newer styles, I am almost wanting to try a different set.

Thanks for that.

 

[BUILTTOLAST]

Wow, you've stepped on a landmine with this question

Hahaha+1
Get the popcorn going.

 

[Skyline]

If you shop eBay for long enough, you'll find a large set of Snap-on's. I paid just over $600 for my metric set 9-32mm, which I think lists at over $2k. And that's for a set in new condition, all the latest style logo/design. I paid $500 for my SAE set up to 1-1/4".

Wait for an auction, they will come around if you're patient.

I always had a couple of Snap-on wrenches from 40 years ago when I first started wrenching...in my most commonly used sizes of 10mm and 13mm. All my other wrenches were Craftsman raised panel, and the Snap-on ones felt so nice in my hands. So when it came time to upgrade, I got the S-o. It's all a matter what feels good in your hands.

 

[Anarius]

I'll bite.

At work, my primary set of non-ratcheting wrenches are blue-points with the 'cloudy' matte finish. I like these because I get a good grip on the wrench themselves, and they are not too outrageously priced. I have never broken one.

My primary set of ratcheting wrenches are Snap-on. Why? Well, they came included in a deal for a toolbox. I am not unhappy with them. Unless you are doing something you shouldn't, its pretty hard to kill just about any wrench. I have had to warranty my ratcheting wrenches several times - particularly the 13,14, and 15 mm for issues with the ratchet mechanism. Not a flawed design - they take a lot of torque sometimes.

I have a set of Matco double-flex (thats two flex joints per box end), double ended ratcheting box wrenches. They are very nice. I chose Matco...because nobody else seems to sell them.

I have a set of EZ-Red 'spline drive' flex head ratcheting wrenches - they are probably one of my favorite tools. Simply amazing for doing belt/pully and engine work.

My larger ratcheting wrenches (21mm- 32mm) are gearwrench. Why? Because tool truck brands in that size are so expensive there will be no return on investment. I don't NEED a ratcheting wrench that size...its just nice.

My stubby ratcheting are also gearwrench. Good luck applying enough torque to break one.

I have some offset, obstruction, 's' and other odd shaped wrenches that are Chinese. Again, as a professional mechanic it does not make sense (to me) to invest stupid amounts of money for a tool that will gather dust for months/years between uses. Especially considering 'static' wrenches of any make are damn hard to screw up.

 

[i4ni]

Wow! I started this thread in 2010 and I was surprised to see that it has resurfaced. Well seeing this again compelled me to tell the story leading up to this thread .I had a set of Snap-On's up to 1" that I bought off the truck in 1976 when I worked at the local Chevy Garage fresh out of high school. I believe I paid $101 for those and decided to get those paid off before buying the other 4 wrenches that would take my set up to 1 1/4". If I remember right those 4 wrenches were like another $135. That was alot of money to me back then. Anyway I got a factory job before long and never did buy those other 4 Snap-On wrenches but often wished I had. Fast forward 34 years. One day I'm out in the garage piddiling around and I need a 1 1/4" wrench so I go to the old craftsman and ease open the wrench drawer and "WHAM" it hits me. My Patriotic and faithful Snap-On's all standing at attention are being led into battle and represented by 4 rag-tag imposters that were not worthy of the elite status they were assuming. At that point you might say I had a moment of clarity and set out to unite my troops with the royalty that should have led them all along. After alot of time on Ebay I'm happy to say that Iv'e since appointed all Snap-On replacements up to 1 1/2" sae and a complete metric set up to 34mm. O yah and now they reside in a Stanley Vidmar.

 

[carlitroz350z]

I have a set of craftsman rp, craftsman industrials and matco opti torques. Theyre all really nice but lately ive been wanting a set of snap ons.