Moderately Priced Wrench Set

[Fender1325]

Anyone besides me like to see a couple of photos of a Jeep wheel cylinder where there's no room for anything but an open-end wrench?

Guys, I'm seriously not going to go to my friend's shop, take the customers car apart, place various wrenches on it, take pictures of the lack of a couple milimeters of space to prove that you all are idiots with nothing better to do than play make-believe youre master technicians who specialize in AMC Jeep's from the 70's that have been modified, beat to hell, then left in a field to rot for decades. I already know that.

To those of you who actually tried to help with suggestions of wrenches to try out and upgrade to, thanks! Carry on GJ

 

[WittHay]

GearWrench combos don't work well on tough fasteners. Either Wright or Proto.

Worked on IH pickups from the 70's and what i used was a full selection of Snap-on and Craftsman USA in SAE and Metric. When the SAE wrench was loose or started to round off the fastener, you hammered on the metric open end. Removed a lot of rusty fasteners that way

 

[derosa]

Its a legit question with a legit reason. I have a "nice" set of craftsman professional flair nut wrenches made in the US 14ish years ago, not the cheapy raised panel; from my single use of them I'd sooner grab an open end wright with wrightgrip. Worked on bronze european lines and watched the open ends spread as the connections rounded out, guessing it'd be less of an issue and clearance would be negligible. I'm more then willing to believe snap-on flairs or crows feet would do the job but for the cost I'd rather have a nicer wrench set that will see far more regular use; the OP might have a similar perspective.

 

[Fender1325]

GearWrench combos don't work well on tough fasteners. Either Wright or Proto.

Worked on IH pickups from the 70's and what i used was a full selection of Snap-on and Craftsman USA in SAE and Metric. When the SAE wrench was loose or started to round off the fastener, you hammered on the metric open end. Removed a lot of rusty fasteners that way

I started to do exactly that. It gets desperate

 

[Fender1325]

Its a legit question with a legit reason. I have a "nice" set of craftsman professional flair nut wrenches made in the US 14ish years ago, not the cheapy raised panel; from my single use of them I'd sooner grab an open end wright with wrightgrip. Worked on bronze european lines and watched the open ends spread as the connections rounded out, guessing it'd be less of an issue and clearance would be negligible. I'm more then willing to believe snap-on flairs or crows feet would do the job but for the cost I'd rather have a nicer wrench set that will see far more regular use; the OP might have a similar perspective.

Thank you for backing me up. Some of these knuckleheads can't fathom a wrench spreading.

 

[ADSR]

GearWrench combos don't work well on tough fasteners. Either Wright or Proto.

Worked on IH pickups from the 70's and what i used was a full selection of Snap-on and Craftsman USA in SAE and Metric. When the SAE wrench was loose or started to round off the fastener, you hammered on the metric open end. Removed a lot of rusty fasteners that way

Never used wright yet, but the proto anti-slip taiwan or USA grip like no tomorrow.

 

[kctyphoon]

Milwaukee is releasing some nice looking combo wrench sets.. made in Taiwan with a rounded I beam design and a toothed open end. I can only imagine large sockets sets will follow.

Here's the wrenches -

 

[WittHay]

Never used wright yet, but the proto anti-slip taiwan or USA grip like no tomorrow.

Years ago all I had was the smooth jaw wrenches.
Lately I chose the Proto's over Snap-on, because of the satin finish and they fit over hydraulic lines easier than the Flank Drive Plus.
They seem to work good, even using the double wrench trick

 

[ADSR]

Milwaukee is releasing some nice looking combo wrench sets.. made in Taiwan with a rounded I beam design and a toothed open end. I can only imagine large sockets sets will follow.

Here's the wrenches -

Waiting to see what the price point of these will be. Milwaukee's prices have been in a steady increase as of late.

 

[ADSR]

Years ago all I had was the smooth jaw wrenches.
Lately I chose the Proto's over Snap-on, because of the satin finish and they fit over hydraulic lines easier than the Flank Drive Plus.
They seem to work good, even using the double wrench trick

I have the black ones. They seem to do just fine.

 

[JazzBlueRT]

I have not compared the raised panel wrenches (USA vs China). I just know that the polished wrenches are **** you might as well go to harbor freight for your wrench you'll pay less and get the same warranty.

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IDK about the FP wrenches, never used them, but the RP wrenches regardless of COO are sturdy and a great deal when you can get them on sale.

 

[JazzBlueRT]

Jesus tap-dancing Christ dude! What is there not to get!?! A Chinese craftsman wrench (a wrench that is known to have cheaper steel that spreads) rounded a nut a few times and a matco one with teeth bit in and got the job done. ****

How do you define "cheaper steel?" I would suspect that the alloys used in all major brands is pretty much the same. If any tool brand was using a superior alloy, they surely would be highlighting it in their marketing.

It appears that the "teeth" on the MatCo is what made the difference, not the alloy used in the wrenches. Do you believe a smooth jawed MatCo wrench would have been just as effective?

 

[Parrothead]

Its a legit question with a legit reason. I have a "nice" set of craftsman professional flair nut wrenches made in the US 14ish years ago, not the cheapy raised panel; from my single use of them I'd sooner grab an open end wright with wrightgrip. Worked on bronze european lines and watched the open ends spread as the connections rounded out, guessing it'd be less of an issue and clearance would be negligible. I'm more then willing to believe snap-on flairs or crows feet would do the job but for the cost I'd rather have a nicer wrench set that will see far more regular use; the OP might have a similar perspective.

Just an fyi, those flare nut wrenches you referenced were made by SK. Look for the "k" stamped on them.

 

[BIG BACCHUS]

Ok I see what you are saying. I would love to try some of those Tekton wrenches someday. They are making some pretty good stuff these days.

I would highly recommend them especially for the price. Their customer support is also fantastic.

Dismissing a tool because it won't fit is wrong?
You're right, just cut the car apart and make it fit right?

To be fair, there are many times you have to cut into a Jeep to make **** work.

 

[cherrybomb]

If you just work on one of your own vehicles, go thru some scenarios, and check to see if you could repair it,it's easier to chase a special or upgrade tool that way.Before you need it on Sunday afternoon,been there,done that

 

[Fender1325]

How do you define "cheaper steel?" I would suspect that the alloys used in all major brands is pretty much the same. If any tool brand was using a superior alloy, they surely would be highlighting it in their marketing.

It appears that the "teeth" on the MatCo is what made the difference, not the alloy used in the wrenches. Do you believe a smooth jawed MatCo wrench would have been just as effective?

To my knowledge, all the wrenches in this test have smooth jaws, except the wright. They all out perform the craftsman. Chalk it up however you like, but you can clearly see the craftsman is the quickest to round a bolt.

I personally highly doubt a Chinese wrench is going to be using the same recipe steel as a snap on or what have you.

 

[Jaysreal]

Milwaukee is releasing some nice looking combo wrench sets.. made in Taiwan with a rounded I beam design and a toothed open end. I can only imagine large sockets sets will follow.

Here's the wrenches -

Those look like they're made by Infar(the same MFG that makes Napa Carlyle and Channellock wrenches with the same exact tooth style) Unless the price point is significantly less, might be better off getting Napa Carlyle, plenty of Napas around and stock on hand at most stores.



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[Jaysreal]

Sears changed from Danaher (USA made) to Apex (China made) about 10 years ago all to increase profit margins.
I have old craftsman that work great and was given the big polished sae and metric wrench sets for Christmas two years ago by my wife who lost the receipt otherwise I would not still have the new Chinese junk, I just don't like them they don't fit as nicely as my old craftsman and they are springy not solid.
One question : Who in their right mind tries to take of a stubborn fastener by using the open end of a wrench that only grabs two sides/points?

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Wasn't Apex sold to bain capital in 2012? Meaning 10 years ago it still would have been Danaher?

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[Tallpilot]

Lots of heated discussion and bickering here. That is unfortunate. If we are disassembling 40 year old rusty Jeeps perhaps a purpose built tool instead of a wrench? Astro Pneumatic flank bite? The metric and SAE set together would be moderately priced. You probably would want both since they are skip sets and you will want whatever fits best on a rusty fastener instead of what it was when it was first assembled.

 

[Rarified27]

Not sure if this will help OP, but I've been looking at this Gearwrench set for a while (really needed something down to 6mm) and this is the first time I've heard about them spreading.

I'm not working on anything pulled from a decade plus in the elements, but lots of good advice here over the years has saved me tons of money when I didn't have to replace poor quality tools.

How severe have you guys witnessed spreading on something like the above taiwan-quality set?

 

[art487]

Wasn't Apex sold to bain capital in 2012? Meaning 10 years ago it still would have been Danaher?

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I don't know for sure(I'll look it up) but just because two tool companies are owned by the same parent company does not mean that they are equals or even share production facilities look at Milwaukee and Ryobi both owned by TTI (Techtronic Industries), both made in China and Taiwan, but certainly not in the same class. And based on my experience with a variety of different types of tools working on a wide range of things from military aircraft(f/a-18) to waste pulverizers(muffin monster) and many things in between I believe it come down to what is ordered as in the materials used to make the tool
Cheap materials = cheap tools
Quality materials = quality tools
And yes the design makes a difference but they must still use quality materials.

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[Tonyuk]

When i started as a tech i bought my own set of Halfords Pro spanners, they were cheap and the design was basic, but they worked well for around 3 years before i decided to invest in a set of Facom 440's The Facom's are a bit of a better fit tbh and the finish on the tool is a bit better, but i cant say that i've ever rounded a bolt with the cheaper set.

A lot of issues i've seen with rounded fasteners come from poor use of the tools. If your trying to break a bolt free with an open end its much better to place the spanner on and tap the box end with a hammer rather than just pulling on it and trying to force it, undoubtedly this leads to the end slipping at and angle and rounding the corners.

If the spanner feels loose on the fastener double check the size, if its loose on more than 1 bolt i wouldn't use it and buy one that fits properly.

 

[Mr_B]

Only spanner I recommend a lot are wrightgrip, facom sets or stahlwille open box 13 and 14 series . All world class at specific spanners and prices are sensible for what is a pro tool for life.
Stahlwille standard spanners are superb fit and unique durable finish, facom ratchet spanners are superb for the set prices, wrightgrip are best for priced toothed open end sets .

 

[cherrybomb]

Fender 1325 its also possible somebody before you worked on that jeep,using cheap tools,slightly damaging the fasteners,now under rust.This left you with a bigger problem.In a real world,sometimes you have to spend more,to get more features,a popular size in more than one brand?You will prove to yourself in a real situation what works for you.A reply please?

 

[buckwheat_la]

On a side note to this thread, has anyone noticed that the Gearwrench 120xp wrenched have a "toothed" open end on them? I wonder if they are going to make a regular wrench with the same feature?

 

[ADSR]

On a side note to this thread, has anyone noticed that the Gearwrench 120xp wrenched have a "toothed" open end on them? I wonder if they are going to make a regular wrench with the same feature?

I saw that. And while the anti-slip open end option is nice, the box end is the business end and works 99% of the time. The premium you pay for the teeth, doesn't always pay back.

 

[Shark Pilot]

Rusted fasteners ****. Try penetrating oil & follow that with brake cleaner & then more oil. Plus heat - propane torch or big soldering iron. Need to get the lube deep into the threads. For wrenches forget the "moderately priced set" and just buy the WrightGrips in the sizes you need as has been mentioned before. With corrosion the breakaway torque can vary from fastener to fastener so there is no guarantee that a wrench that worked on one bolt/nut will work the next even if they are identical. If you like the looks of the Carlyle wrenches with teeth then look at these: https://www.doitbest.com/products/30...702d410a00406b which are identical for less than half the cost. I would just get the WrightGrips in the sizes you actually need and prep the hell out of the fasteners before you wrench.

 

[buckwheat_la]

I saw that. And while the anti-slip open end option is nice, the box end is the business end and works 99% of the time. The premium you pay for the teeth, doesn't always pay back.

Agreed. In this case though you get the 120xp ends too. And they aren't out of the park expensive....

 

[visionguru]

Jesus tap-dancing Christ dude! What is there not to get!?! A Chinese craftsman wrench (a wrench that is known to have cheaper steel that spreads) rounded a nut a few times and a matco one with teeth bit in and got the job done. ****

LOL. What's worse than rounding rusty bolts on a car with the open end of a wrench? It's running foul mouth on a public forum.

These wrenches have been in existence since forever and far from rocket science. There are reasons some don't have teeth and some do.

For example, this $50 DeWalt set claims 400% gripping power
http://www.homedepot.com/p/DEWALT-Metric-Combination-Wrench-Set-10-Piece-DWMT72166/205132010

 

[Fender1325]

Potty mouth on a public forum!!!! Burn him! Burn him alive!

 

[Infinia]

Combo wrenches have box ends for a reason. Once you get the fastener moving a few mm switch ends. Breaking frozen connections with open ends, teeth or not is bound to be round over fest.

 

[Fender1325]

Welcome to the madness infinia. Not only have the other members repeated that ad nauseum, we've also established that there was no room for a box end. Buckle up, I'm expecting 100 additional pages of everyone repeating one another.

 

[JazzBlueRT]

To my knowledge, all the wrenches in this test have smooth jaws, except the wright. They all out perform the craftsman. Chalk it up however you like, but you can clearly see the craftsman is the quickest to round a bolt.

I personally highly doubt a Chinese wrench is going to be using the same recipe steel as a snap on or what have you.

Interesting video, but I do not see any of the smooth jaw wrenches being substantially different. 1/8th turn difference between the 3.

 

[tonyciambrone]

Welcome to the madness infinia. Not only have the other members repeated that ad nauseum, we've also established that there was no room for a box end. Buckle up, I'm expecting 100 additional pages of everyone repeating one another.

Room for an open end and no room for the box end is pretty much insulting to GarageJournal's collective intelligence. This is one of those "pics or it didn't happen" things.

 

[PJNJ]

Welcome to the madness infinia. Not only have the other members repeated that ad nauseum, we've also established that there was no room for a box end. Buckle up, I'm expecting 100 additional pages of everyone repeating one another.

Don't let 'em get to you, Fender.

 

[Infinia]

we've also established that there was no room for a box end. .

Have we? but the original complaint was the lobster claw end was opening up on it. Things that make you go hmmmm.

Welcome to the madness infinia I'm expecting 100 additional pages of everyone repeating one another

It's called a chorus, every Greek tragedy has one & the central protagonist was often a mad man.
Fender you don't really need an excuse to replace funky wrenches, we are on your side!

 

[hangfirew8]

Room for an open end and no room for the box end is pretty much insulting to GarageJournal's collective intelligence. This is one of those "pics or it didn't happen" things.

I haven't wrenched an old Jeep in a while, but I run into it all the time on my cars.

Perhaps I am not part of your collective intelligence.

 

[M_George]

Often times it's the same size bolt that gives this problem. Back in the seventies I kept having trouble with 9/16 bolts, often on exhaust manifolds. To solve this I got a Snap On 9/16 socket, not the entire set and still use it for problem bolts to this day. With that said, you might not need to replace the entire set, but just get top quality for the problem size.

 

[ADSR]

Agreed. In this case though you get the 120xp ends too. And they aren't out of the park expensive....

Funny you bring them up, As soon as I sell the new proto set in the classifieds here, I'm going to pull the trigger on these 2 sets.....

http://www.tooldiscounter.com/ItemDisplay.cfm?lookup=KDT86229

http://www.tooldiscounter.com/ItemDisplay.cfm?lookup=KDT86126

 

[T45]

On a side note to this thread, has anyone noticed that the Gearwrench 120xp wrenched have a "toothed" open end on them? I wonder if they are going to make a regular wrench with the same feature?

There was a link to a wrightgrip test earlier in the thread, and the GW (they tested) was poor, worse than a smooth jaw SK. The jaws look liked they had toothed open ends, but it was a quick shot of the jaws.

They also were an unspecified model so who knows vs what their latest version is. They could have been smooth jaws with dents or markes from previous failures.

edit: pic of GW 9/16 jaw