Matco Ratchets - Opinions

[CHI_Tool&Die]

Guys with the Matco Eighty8s, how do you like the ratchets? I’m looking at the fixed head chrome handles. Is there much play in the drive? How is socket retention? Are the chrome handles comfortable?

Work gave me a list of stuff that I have to change out due to an audit and COO stuff. I need to replace my Hazets and due to my shift change I cannot find a good time to meet with Snappy. The Matco guy said he’d drop off at the shop, hence why I’m looking at Matco. I’ve never had hands on these ratchets. Plus if I have to ditch my Hazets for MiUSA, I would rather get a ratchet made in my home state of IL.

 

[mreisner]

The Olsa tools ones are made in US, very fine tooth count very low back drag. I'm very happy with mine.

 

[teufel666]

I have both current gen and previous gen Matco 88s. Drive is not sloppy and once broken in back drag is low. Socket retention is fine. Heads are nice and slim. The current gen handles are fairly thin. For this reason I almost always grab my previous gen.

I really like their locking flex heads as well which gearwrench copied. Mine prefer marvel mystery oil for lubrication. Even without a truck I've had no problem with Matco sending rebuild kits at no charge.

 

[ThePostman]

My go to ratchets first are almost always Matcos. I have a long handled fixed in 3/8", a long handled locking flex head in 1/4", and it's big cousin the 30" locking flex head in 1/2". The heads are slimmer than snappy and Mac.

 

[CHI_Tool&Die]

I have both current gen and previous gen Matco 88s. Drive is not sloppy and once broken in back drag is low. Socket retention is fine. Heads are nice and slim. The current gen handles are fairly thin. For this reason I almost always grab my previous gen.

I really like their locking flex heads as well which gearwrench copied. Mine prefer marvel mystery oil for lubrication. Even without a truck I've had no problem with Matco sending rebuild kits at no charge.

Thank you so much! I have stripped the guts in a few ratchets at work so I’m glad to hear rebuild kits are easily attainable. Technically our shop doesn’t get any trucks but all three service the general area but Snappy won’t stop by because it’s not his area and the Mac guy just doesn’t have anything that I couldn’t get via Proto for my work. The Matco guy seems willing to actually drop off which is great because I am now on a new shift which is early mornings to early afternoon. Plus if my work is going to insist on MiUSA for reasons, I might as well go the extra step and get homegrown ratchets.

 

[Wamsutta]

Guys with the Matco Eighty8s, how do you like the ratchets? I’m looking at the fixed head chrome handles. Is there much play in the drive? How is socket retention? Are the chrome handles comfortable?

Work gave me a list of stuff that I have to change out due to an audit and COO stuff. I need to replace my Hazets and due to my shift change I cannot find a good time to meet with Snappy. The Matco guy said he’d drop off at the shop, hence why I’m looking at Matco. I’ve never had hands on these ratchets. Plus if I have to ditch my Hazets for MiUSA, I would rather get a ratchet made in my home state of IL.

I'm not asking you to reveal your employer, but I have to admit I'm curious.

 

[liliysdad]

Matco Eighty8s are easily my favorite ratchets.

 

[Steve_P]

I have quite a few 88s and they're really nice. The heads are about the thinnest (along with Gearwrench 90T) for a "real" ratchet (not a bit ratchet with a tiny gear for low torque).

In 1/4 drive, the grip area is extremely small in diameter- it's like holding a pencil. So, you might want to look at comfort grips, at least for 1/4". To be fair, Snap On and Gearwrench also have small diameter grip areas as this goes along with the thin heads.

One thing I'm not sure about is why there haven't been any rebuild kits for the 88T 3/8 drive on the Matco website for many months. It just says NLA and mentions nothing about them being in stock in a few weeks, years, anything. Same with some ratchet models being discontinued. So I wonder what is going on with Matco and the 88. Maybe you can ask your driver why the lack of rebuild kits online and why some models are discontinued.

For example, if you go to matcotools.com and look up AFR118, you'll see that most of the ergo handle colors are NLA. Same with a BFR8TKA 3/8 rebuild kit....

 

[fatfillup]

Most folks I know who have the 88's are happy with them

 

[belvedere]

I have a 3/8-drive fixed-head chrome handle, and I like it. No problems with it.

 

[Shoreline_]

It's been either matco or snapon for me for the past 10 years. I have a couple 1/4 88 and one (and my only) locking flex head 3/8 I find myself using all the time. I never use the locking feature anymore but I love the ratchet. Second fav next to my bent handle F732

 

[chris142]

I bought a 1/4 inch one when they came out about 10 years ago. Thing would lock up, switch directions etc. guy put a kit in it which didn't help. He wouldn't replace it with another one.

I threw it away as it was useless on me.

 

[Zewnten]

Use the **** out of my 5 every single day. Keep a head kit handy in each size, pretty cheap at >$50/ea and it’s a quick swap but I’ve only had to get a new head 2 in 4 years after they figured out what was going on with the 1/2 dr sizes.

 

[Callelle]

The 88s are my favorite ratchets that I have. I know a lot of people don't like how they look or feel, but with my large hands, they just feel great to me. I also think they have the best locking flex head of them out there.

 

[teufel666]

The last time I called Matco which was a little over a year ago, even though the website said they were out of stock on rebuild kits they sent them to me no problem.

 

[darkzero]

I don't have any experience with the 88s/newer Matco ratchets but I love my older Danaher/Armstrong ratchts. Pretty much the same design & form factor they are now. Except they were 60T back then.

My BFR8T I swapped out the anvil & pawl for a GW 84T (old pic below shows it but don't use the GW selector switch, caused self reversing for me). They're old & well used but I still prefer using them over my Snappy ratchets (9 series 36T & Dual 80/72).

 

[plinker]

Socket retention is good, I've had no issues. The plain chrome handles are nice, feels better then the Snap-on, and Snap-on isnt bad at all. Armstrong is better yet, but not available anymore. I dont care for the soft grip that Matco has. The thin head and locking flex mechanism are the main features. Gear/drive play is about the same as any other decent ratchet.

Oil for lube, grease will cause skipping. Shock loading (when something breaks loose) can cause the direction lever to flip, pretty much any ratchet will do that though. I would say Snap-on 80's are a bit better at handling this sort of abuse.

I use mine daily and prefer them over most other ratchets, depending on the situation. Snap-on TK72 & S-K 40970 are the others I use regularly. I do keep some rebuild kits on hand (for all brands I use) as I can rebuild whatever ratchet and swap out the kit next time the dealer stops so I'm not doing without a particular ratchet. IIRC, 13$ for the kits from Matco.

 

[CHI_Tool&Die]

I'm not asking you to reveal your employer, but I have to admit I'm curious.

I would love to say but they’ve been clamping down hard on social media and other stuff. We had a big hack awhile back and it really set the US shops back.

I keep checking with HR because this all seems kinda crazy about my personal tools. My foreman told me not to stress and that I shouldn’t do anything rash. Rumor has it that we are applying for a green loan or possibly working as a contractor for a green company and so all those new rules from the new green initiative or whatever you want to call it are impacting us. My foreman thinks HR is just misreading the rules and being overzealous.

 

[Buckgnarly]

I am 100% a dual 80 fan, but I have no problem using Matcos....at school I have a few Matcos that got replaced at home shop with Dual 80s. They are thinner than dual 80s, which is nice.

 

[dnschmidt]

For the right price I'd burden myself with your Hazet's. Hey, what Porsche owner wouldn't? The Matco ratchets are very good and preferred by many professional mechanics over Snap-On. But, Hazet is like Gucci.

 

[908Jim]

No experience with the 88 tooth but I have some 36 tooth ratchets in 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 circa 2008 that I have grown very fond of. Comfortable handles, smooth operation, low back drag, thin profile, and plenty strong for normal use. I like them more than my Snap-On 936 ratchets of equivalent tooth count.

They are simple, reliable, and used examples in great condition are available for relatively cheap on eBay.

 

[Callelle]

For the right price I'd burden myself with you Hazet's. Hey, what Porsche owner wouldn't? The Matco ratchets are very good and preferred by many professional mechanics over Snap-On. But, Hazet is like Gucci.

I really wanna try a Hazet before I ever decide to buy one. They just seem massive and clunky to me (Most Euro ratchets do).

 

[CHI_Tool&Die]

For the right price I'd burden myself with you Hazet's. Hey, what Porsche owner wouldn't? The Matco ratchets are very good and preferred by many professional mechanics over Snap-On. But, Hazet is like Gucci.

I’ll DM you when I get home from work.

 

[VolvoRyan]

I really like the Matco locking-flex ratchets. It's the best of both worlds. The ratcheting mechanism is great, and the flex-head design is the best in the business.

I prefer the Dual-80 from Snap-On in 1/2", but for 3/8", Matco wins.

 

[darkzero]

One thing I'm not sure about is why there haven't been any rebuild kits for the 88T 3/8 drive on the Matco website for many months. It just says NLA and mentions nothing about them being in stock in a few weeks, years, anything. Same with some ratchet models being discontinued. So I wonder what is going on with Matco and the 88. Maybe you can ask your driver why the lack of rebuild kits online and why some models are discontinued.

For example, if you go to matcotools.com and look up AFR118, you'll see that most of the ergo handle colors are NLA. Same with a BFR8TKA 3/8 rebuild kit....

I've been wanting to buy 88T rebuild kits for my older gen Danaher/Armstrong ratchets. As you said the 3/8 kits have been showing discontinued on their website for quite some time.

I emailed Matco stating I wanted to buy the rebuild kits for my older 60T ratchets. They quickly replied, asked me a few questions, then sent me the kits for free.

So they don't seem to be discontinued or unavailable, not sure what their reason is for showing that online.