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New bad tools

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RCStocker

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Aug 12, 2012
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I have received and bought so many bad sockets in the past months that I am shocked.

I had 2 sets of new Kobalt 1/4" sockets. They were in their original rack and unopened. I wanted to give them to one of my young grandsons. I went and bought all the ones on both ends of the sets both deep and shallow.

I had 7 sockets that would not fit on the Hansen socket racks. There was too much metal in the middle. Some had no hole, some had a whole but it would not go over a bolt because the metal was half way down the socket on the inside. These were all long ones. I got the replacements and still had to exchange 2 of them. Ok, someone is not drilling the holes or using the wrong size bits. They are made in different methods.

Yes those are real Ivory figure in the photo.

If this was not bad enough I ordered a Gearwrench of 1/4" drive in the blow mold cases. They were $100 for 40 some pieces. I figured that as good as their ratchet wrenches have been the sockets would be ok. Hell No. The first set had 3 shallow sockets with no wholes in them and one with a very small hole. The deep sockets were a mess. I could not get many of the sockets to go more tan 3/16" of an inch over the Hansen shaft. I shipped them back to Amazon and ordered another set. This set was just as bad.

The real kicker is that the ones that were bad were not the same ones.

Then I pull an old Craftsman and 2 little SK sockets out of a spare bucket of tools I was sorting . The ones I pulled were all bad. I could not get a bold though the hole and there was metal in one of the sockets that was only partly attached. Then I pick up an old Fleet 11/16" socket and it would not go over the wrack. It was 1/2" drive. I got the nut and bolt out and sure enough the socket would not go down far enough to pick up the bold.

This is the first time in all my years I have seen bad sockets. I was a tool and die maker in the late 50's, I worked for the US Navy and Boeing aircraft.
I have rebuilt and repaired tractors, heavy machinery, cars, shop machinery and I have owned thousands of used tools. I have been buying and selling them for over 50 years.

Funny I find them all at once. Even some oldies.

I am done with Kobalt and GearWrench. There is no excuse for almost 30 bad sockets.


He is the Gears on the racks

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CWP1616L

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Let's see, you're done with:

1. Kobalt
2. GearWrench
3. Craftsman
4. SK

That's all the cheaper brands. Your next sockets are gonna cost yuh. :D
 

Hootbro

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Dec 8, 2011
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Delaware
Correct me if I am reading this wrong but your whole rejection criteria is based on the ability of these sockets to fit a Hanson tray?
 

rusty65

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Mar 20, 2012
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Pekin,IL
Yeah I have an old snap on 5/16 that won't fit on my Hanson tray does that make it a bad socket? I sure hope not because it fits a 5/16 bolt nice and snug.
 

PoolGuy444

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Jan 11, 2011
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Waco, TX
I guess to be fair, he did say some of the sockets didn't have holes. While some did. That can't be right.
 

scarney1988

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May 13, 2013
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508
I will relieve you of your problems. Please ship them to me in a USPS flat rate box.

For serious consideration, I would recommend the mechanic's timesaver rails. I do not know how much time they save me, but they definitely keep my sockets organized. I prefer the lockasocket versions.

Either way, sorry for your disappointment with your purchases. I hope different organizers will improve your feelings.
 

BK13

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Mar 1, 2013
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PDX, OR
I guess my Wright 1/2" deep sockets are no good since they won't fit on a Hansen...
 

crewchief888

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One time u couldn't get a socket to fit a fastener then I realized I was using the wrong end.


:lol_hitti :lol_hitti

as much as i hate to admit it,
i did that this morning.. :eyecrazy:

i was really gettin PO'd that my socket wouldnt go on my ratchet

but in my defense, it was just a little after 5am, and i hadnt had any cofee yet....


:beer:
 

Steevo

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I drilled out the hole in my smaller Snapon sockets to fit my Hansen trays. No big deal

I have a set of Snap-On 1/4" drive deep sockets that all but two have the broaching waste plugging up the hole through the sockets. And these are not recent sockets, they were bought off the truck, by me, more than thirty (30) years ago.
 

jmm

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Aug 20, 2012
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NC
Preposterous! He has been buying and selling and using tools for 50 years! Such a problem has never existed before! :eyecrazy:

Hey bought them so much cheaper than you'll ever be able to -- might as well give up. Sometimes, people even pay him to take their tools!
 

TwoInch

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:lol_hitti :lol_hitti

as much as i hate to admit it,
i did that this morning.. :eyecrazy:

i was really gettin PO'd that my socket wouldnt go on my ratchet

but in my defense, it was just a little after 5am, and i hadnt had any cofee yet....


:beer:

i wouldnt even think about sockets before coffee....


you're ******** man :rocker: :bowdown:
 
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bimmerZ5

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logical conclusion: hansen trays ****... that's about the last thing one could blame for his problems....

just kidding.... but subscribed to see where this goes...
 

oldtools

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Sep 15, 2008
Messages
2,706
logical conclusion: hansen trays ****... that's about the last thing one could blame for his problems....

just kidding.... but subscribed to see where this goes...

Ditch the Hansen tray and go with the HF tray. Socket doesn't need to be drilled through.
 

chris142

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Dec 19, 2011
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apple valley,ca
Meh that's a minor inconvenience. I bought one of those impact tools that you hit with a hammer. I bought a mac one from the truck. I needed it to do a project out in the desert with no electricity or air tools.

First time I hit it it jammed. Had to go back home and wait for the mac guy to warranty it.
Got it replaced and went back out into the desert to use it. The bit broke the first time i hit it! Got a shorter bit out of the box and the tool jammed on its 2nd hit!

I then went to HF. Paid $5 I think it was and that one did the job.
 

archirelic

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Sep 24, 2010
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texas
Take a picture of what you're talking about on the sockets...let's see what we're really dealing with. I could care less about the pic w/the sockets trying to fit onto the Hanson trays.
 

CWP1616L

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I drilled out the hole in my smaller Snapon sockets to fit my Hansen trays. No big deal

I'm thinking you'd have to have one heck'uva healthy drill bit to get through a hardened chrome socket. Must've been solid carbide.
 

Trucky

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Apr 26, 2011
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1,747
First things first:

Wouldn't it be easy to take a cut-off wheel (Dremel, made for plastic) and cut the hanson "posts" down a bit?

And, I'd also like to see these sockets as well. Why don't you just clean out the excess metal?

Also: Sockets aren't that hard.
 

cgv69

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Boone Co., KY
I drilled out the hole in my smaller Snapon sockets to fit my Hansen trays. No big deal
I'm thinking you'd have to have one heck'uva healthy drill bit to get through a hardened chrome socket. Must've been solid carbide.
I've had to do the same thing on a few sockets. It's not the easiest thing in the world to do but it is doable. You need to have fresh (sharp) drill bits and go slow and rill just a little at a time with a bit that is only slightly bigger then the current opening.

OP - As you may have gathered by now, judging sockets by their ability to properly fit a Hansen tray is foolish at best and you will likely run into that same issue with just about all brands. I've personally seen that issue with MAC, SK and Wright but obviously this can even happen with Snap-On sockets. I have some Kobolt sockets too and IMO, they are some really nice sockets for the money.
 

SMKS

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Feb 14, 2010
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USA, planet Earth
I would call this a tool polisher's complaint, but he can't even get to the polishing stage because he can't display the sockets properly....

Perhaps they're inconsistent because it doesn't matter if there's a hole drilled all the way through, unless you store your sockets on a Hansen socket tray.

I'm just messing with you, RCStocker. As another person mentioned, use the HF socket trays. The sockets go on the other way.

http://www.harborfreight.com/3-piece-metric-socket-trayorganizer-68102.html
http://www.harborfreight.com/3-piece-sae-socket-trayorganizer-68100.html
 

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arbadacarba

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Oct 19, 2011
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53
I ran into a similar problem with a few of my Mastercraft Impact sockets, and my HF trays... 30 seconds with a dremel and the longer round parts of the posts were much shorter.
 

Fedwrench

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Dec 9, 2007
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14,954
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Valley of the sun
I was unaware that the true measure of a socket's performance was its ability to fit on a hansen rack.:wtf:

Here I thought is was how the socket fit on fasteners and drive tools. Boy, was I confused. :lol:

This thread is the latest reason to boycott hansen racks. Not only do the racks drive people to insanity as they search for obscure socket sizes that they'll never use just to avoid "empty peg syndrome" but, now people have to get lathes to rebore their sockets so they'll fit.:shocking:

Obiviously, hansen racks are causing untold amounts of mental anguish and sleepless nights to many tool collectors, polishers, and hoarders but, not to real users. :lol: :beer:
 
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