I recently found a set of Craftsman RP flare nut wrenches that apparently I had bought and forgot about, as they appear new. They are made in USA. I'm guessing they are at least 20 years old. Are these any good? They seem to fit on a bolt head pretty nicely. Just hoping to hear form someone who has experience with them, as I know it's hard to find flare nut wrenches that work well. Thanks in advance!
older Craftsman flare nut wrenches
- Thread starter belvedere
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Climatecreator
Well-known member
I wouldn't use them on bolts. But I use flare nut wrenches quite a bit in the HVAC field.
CC
CC
Right, I was just saying that I slipped one over a bolt head to check the fit, and it seemed good.
TuxThePenguin
Well-known member
I had Craftsman flare nut wrenches almost 20 years ago Maybe more like 15.... I would never touch one again. Incredibly terrible in my personal opinion. Of all the tools I ever upgraded from Craftsman to Snap On, flare nut wrenches were probably the biggest improvement.
Disclosure: I had the Craftsman when I was a teenager and possibly into my early 20s, when I couldn't afford a super new car w/o rust. But when I upgraded to Snap Ons, at that time I was still driving the same sort of vehicle, but the improvement in being able to get lines off was VERY significant.
Edit: I honestly think using Craftsman tools is one of the worst decisions a person can make when trying to work on their car, and I truly mean that. So many issues for me have been solved by just getting Craftsman out of my toolbox. I know not everyone will agree, but as far as my own experience goes, this is not an exaggeration at all. One could argue my experience increasing over the years helped more than upgrading the tools (and there is certainly no replacement for experience), but in many cases I used my old Craftsman stuff side-by-side with the various brands that replaced it, and felt instant differences in many cases.
Disclosure: I had the Craftsman when I was a teenager and possibly into my early 20s, when I couldn't afford a super new car w/o rust. But when I upgraded to Snap Ons, at that time I was still driving the same sort of vehicle, but the improvement in being able to get lines off was VERY significant.
Edit: I honestly think using Craftsman tools is one of the worst decisions a person can make when trying to work on their car, and I truly mean that. So many issues for me have been solved by just getting Craftsman out of my toolbox. I know not everyone will agree, but as far as my own experience goes, this is not an exaggeration at all. One could argue my experience increasing over the years helped more than upgrading the tools (and there is certainly no replacement for experience), but in many cases I used my old Craftsman stuff side-by-side with the various brands that replaced it, and felt instant differences in many cases.
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BlakeTheCarGuy
ALLIANCE MEMBER
As a professional mechanic I do recommend them the ones I have are series V^ and VV mixed and they are amazing I use them at work and just have some less expensive at home and have never had problems with the Craftsman personally they haven’t stretched at all like some of the cheaper ones have just my experience others may have had different experience with them
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Fedwrench
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I don't think they're great but, I don't think they're that bad either. 
They have a bit of an offset which to me is better than the zero offset ones they used to sell. There's seems to be decent sized contact areas for you fittings and the best thing 20 years ago was probably their price.
They fall into the category of no frills, just get the job done tools to me.
I say use them the next time you have a need and see for yourself
They have a bit of an offset which to me is better than the zero offset ones they used to sell. There's seems to be decent sized contact areas for you fittings and the best thing 20 years ago was probably their price.
They fall into the category of no frills, just get the job done tools to me.
I say use them the next time you have a need and see for yourself
Firebrick43
Well-known member
I have 25 year craftsman, sk, proto, and snap on. Along with ratchets snap on flare wrenches are worth the money. You don’t realize how bad the craftsman are until you use snap one on rusty brake line nuts.
finn
Well-known member
I have some Craftsman from the eighties, along with SnapOn probably from the nineties. Don’t see much difference between them. You need the flame wrench on pretty much everything anyway in the rust belt.
I have a few others also. The no name flare wrenches are useless, but some of the House brands are actually ok.
In general, though, the SnapOn and Craftsman work about the same, but both need help.
I have a few others also. The no name flare wrenches are useless, but some of the House brands are actually ok.
In general, though, the SnapOn and Craftsman work about the same, but both need help.
Same here, I have several brands and they are all OK. In the rust belt they are really for assembly only. Disassembly requires destruction in most cases.
Mechanical Noise
Well-known member
I have some 70s era Craftsman raised panel flare nut wrenches. They fit OK but there isn't enough metal around the nut area and they spread excessively at high torque. I went with SK when I needed metric and those are somewhat better. I also have a set of Crescent flare nut wrenches of which I've used only the 10mm and that one is quite good, although I might have won the import tool QC lottery on that one.
Probably just about any flare nut wrench is good enough for rust free lines in good condition and crappy brake lines should be replaced anyway, so it doesn't make much difference if you're taking things apart with a perfect flare nut wrench or a hammer, chisel and a six point socket.
Probably just about any flare nut wrench is good enough for rust free lines in good condition and crappy brake lines should be replaced anyway, so it doesn't make much difference if you're taking things apart with a perfect flare nut wrench or a hammer, chisel and a six point socket.
Super Mech
Well-known member
I have two sets of older ones also, both SAE and metric. They are superior wrenches and are as good as Snap On. I have probably used them hundreds of times through the years and they work very well. What they don’t work on gets the torch.
Al Borland
Well-known member
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I have older Craftsman line wrenches, and they are better than my old SKs.
BlakeTheCarGuy
ALLIANCE MEMBER
That’s right except at my shop we can’t use the torch most of the time unless we know the brake lines are being replaced our boss is strict on things and that’s one thing he is strict on so I usually have to use a **** load of pb blaster
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Old Craftsman made in USA flare nut wrenchs are selling for $89.99 on amazon:
Craftsman Set of 4 SAE Flare Nut Wrench Set, from 3/8-7/8" Made in USA Vintage/Rare, Part #VV44173
https://www.amazon.com/Craftsman-Flare-Wrench-Vintage-VV44173/dp/B074JMRVZD
$79.99 on ebay:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Craftsman-SAE-NOS-Flare-Nut-Wrench-Set-made-in-USA-4-pcs/184278542903?_trkparms=aid%3D1110006%26algo%3DHOMESPLICE.SIM%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20200520130048%26meid%3D85bfa840762a43ebac153733018e3b10%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D12%26mehot%3Dpf%26sd%3D313151317745%26itm%3D184278542903%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D0%26pg%3D2047675%26algv%3DSimplAMLv5PairwiseWebWithBBEV2bDemotion%26brand%3DCraftsman&_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851
Craftsman Set of 4 SAE Flare Nut Wrench Set, from 3/8-7/8" Made in USA Vintage/Rare, Part #VV44173
https://www.amazon.com/Craftsman-Flare-Wrench-Vintage-VV44173/dp/B074JMRVZD
$79.99 on ebay:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Craftsman-SAE-NOS-Flare-Nut-Wrench-Set-made-in-USA-4-pcs/184278542903?_trkparms=aid%3D1110006%26algo%3DHOMESPLICE.SIM%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20200520130048%26meid%3D85bfa840762a43ebac153733018e3b10%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D12%26mehot%3Dpf%26sd%3D313151317745%26itm%3D184278542903%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D0%26pg%3D2047675%26algv%3DSimplAMLv5PairwiseWebWithBBEV2bDemotion%26brand%3DCraftsman&_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851
The Fall
Well-known member
The guy I worked with didn't even have flare-nut wrenches. Just used his open-end Snap-on wrenches on lines. He definitely wasn't a "tool junkie." Great mechanic, just kept it Spartan in regards to tools.
I would just use them. I have Snap-on and SKs sets myself, but honestly if the nut starts rounding, it's probably vise-grip or new line time anyway.
The USA CMan stuff was fairly solid. Miss that bang for the buck.
I would just use them. I have Snap-on and SKs sets myself, but honestly if the nut starts rounding, it's probably vise-grip or new line time anyway.
The USA CMan stuff was fairly solid. Miss that bang for the buck.
SILVERPLATE
Well-known member
I have a set I have used for more than forty years and they still my go to flare nut wrenches.
Desertskyy
Well-known member
As mentioned, I have a set of both metric and SAE V and VV I believe for many years. I have not had any trouble with mine. Maybe there was a bad batch years ago as I have heard mixed reviews of them
MikeF2316
Well-known member
I have a set, and have had poor results with them. What I did was snap on some Vise Grips as tight as I could manage to stop them from spreading. That works, assuming you have the room.
Wyoming09
Well-known member
^^This.^^
I have a set I bought either just before or just after I got married. Almost 40 years ago. They have never let me down.
My Old Tools
Well-known member
Mine are from the 1960's at least, maybe the 50's. Inherited them from my uncle that build dragsters. They work just fine for me.
Mechanical Noise
Well-known member
I've done the same thing. Sometimes, when I'm working with the tools that I work with, I wonder if the manufacturers of "affordable" tools machine the openings with an oversize broach and let the broach wear down to the nominal size and then start over with a another big broach.
I have no doubt that the higher priced tools have more consistent sizing.