NOS Danaher Kobalt ratchets, help!!

[Fireflite341]

I just bought a couple new old stock Danaher made USA Kobalt ratchets from Cripe Distributing. I got the 1/4” (22315) and 3/8” (22316) drive. I wanted to replace the Chinese made 1/4” (CMMT 81747) that I carry in my trunk toolbox. I was never happy with the imported craftsman that I bought. I only got it because it was the same price to get a 1/4” socket set with or without a ratchet. I got the 3/8” Kobalt just because the price was good and I have a problem saying no to tools. Long story short, both ratchets slip and the 1/4” reverses really bad. At first, I attributed this to the lube inside turning pasty after 10 years of storage. After disassembly and cleaning, the 3/8” seems pretty good, although it still clicks nicer and crisper in one direction. The 1/4” seemed unchanged. I did stretch the pawl spring out a little and it seemed good, right up until I lost the ball bearing… I saw an old thread about a mysterious pawl grinding modification, but the post was deleted. Would I be able to enlarge the ball retention pockets in the bottom of the pawl, or make them wider? Does anyone know what this “fix” was for these late Danaher ratchets? I know everyone was suggesting to just trade the ratchets for new Kobalts, but I’m trying to slowly convert my backup toolbox to USA made. I’d like to at least fix the 1/4” before I chalk it up as a loss and replace it with a Williams like I should have bought off the bat.

 

[Tools4Me]

The fix for older Danaher ratchets is pretty quick and easy if you happen to have a Dremel and a few metal shaping/grinding bits. A set of cheap diamond files will do the job as well, but it will take longer.

Look at your pawl and notice how the back side is pretty rounded (the BEFORE image). That's what makes it too easy for the pawl to accidentally reverse on its' own. If you take a dremel and grind away the curved areas (marked in red in the attached image) until you visually have two flat surfaces that meet at a point, your ratchet will work perfectly from then on.
Don't grind away any metal from the actual point where the two red lines touch, just grind away the curvature on both sides. If you have any other vintage non-Danaher ratchets with similar internals look at one of their pawls. Ratchets with bat shaped pawls like your Danaher ratchet, used to all be pointed (like my AFTER mod shows).

 

[Fireflite341]

This is perfect! I’ll give it a try right after my ball bearing assortment shows up to replace the detent ball. I’ll take a before and after video for comparison.

 

[Tools4Me]

I popped the cover off and took a quick picture of the modified pawl on one of my Kobalt USA ratchets. As you can see, almost all the curvature has been removed from both sides, where the selector switch spring ball contacts the pawl.

Side note- the pawl modification works perfectly on Danaher 3/8 and 1/2 drive ratchets. It works on the 1/4 ratchets as well, but sometimes the 1/4 ratchets have other unrelated quirks to them which prevent them from operating perfectly from that point on. Their 1/4 ratchets were always a little bit hit or miss from the factory. If the pawl mod on the 1/4 ratchet doesn't fix all the issues are having, try cleaning out all the original grease and lubricate the ratchet with a few drops of motor oil instead. If everything functions better, that means the lubricant you originally had was too thick or too sticky. Also look at all your gear teeth. If any of the teeth are dinged up or distorted in any way, run a small triangle file through that tooth grove once or twice to clean things up. If those things don't fix your 1/4 ratchet, you might just have a dud. Good luck OP.

 

[Fireflite341]

I’ve already cleaned as much old lubricant out as I could. I’ve been fond of WD-40 for cleaning lately. I sometimes won’t even use any additional lubricant on reassembly. I know it’s not a good lubricant, but considering a third of my 25 ratchets were bone dry on disassembly, and the fact that I clean them often, I kinda use WD-40 like CLP. One of the Craftsman rebuild kits I have actually recommends it for cleaning.

 

[drtyler]

Other than the country of origin, what was wrong with the CMMT81747?

 

[Fireflite341]

Heavy backdrag, along with uneven ratchet clicks. It may sound petty, but I stopped using a performance tool brand 3/8 ratchet for uneven clicks. It just seems to indicate poor machining tolerances or poor production standards in my opinion. I used it tonight and it did seem to work well. I hate to sound ridiculous, but with current events underlining issues with our supply chain, I am trying to make all my tools USA made. I know we live in a “global economy” because I work for a GM dealer, and a lot of the parts production is Eastern Europe, Mexico or Cananda. In my own small way, I’d like to support American production, even if it’s 10 years after date of production. My main toolbox is Snap-On, with mostly SO tools in it, but they’ve gone up surprisingly in price lately. It seems the quality has gone down hill, if the internet is a reliable gauge, and the price has gone up 50%. I still don’t understand how a Williams 3/8 ratchet is $35 and an F80 is like $125. I’m ok with 36 tooth count to save $100