Ratchet shopping spree

[Ledaku]

So I just went on a ratchet shopping spree after purchasing a small 1/4 piece Stanley socket set at Lowes for $12 and realizing the Stanley ratchet was better than my Craftsman RP ratchet. All that i had was a set of Craftsman RP ratchets from a set from 20 years ago. The 1/4 Craftsman ratchet is really junky because the lever was so loose. The Stanley ratchet has 72 teeth and is tighter and smoother than the Craftsman. This got me thinking about my other ratchets and if Stanley can make a better ratchet than Craftsman, then anything should be better. So I upgraded and thanks to GJ, I bought more than expected.
This is what I got:
1/2
Blackhawk BP-1412QR ergonomic
Proto J5452FBL palm control

3/8
Blackhawk BP-1338QR ergonomic
Proto J5252F palm control
Gearwrench 84T
Carlyle tear drop stubby
Gearwrench 84T XL extended length

1/4
Blackhawk BP-1214QR ergonomic
Carlyle tear drop

The Proto ratchets were the last ones I received and are my favorite ratchets so far. They are so smooth compared to everything else. The head is real compact for a RH ratchet too. I never was a fan of round heads, but these have changed me. Before these, I never knew what a smooth ratchet was. They will likely be my go to ratchet now. The Blackhawk ratchets are nice too with 72 teeth, a real slim tear drop head, quick release, and ergonomic handle. These are slim ratchets. The Carlyle ratchets are just as slim as the Blackhawks but without a quick release. They have 60 teeth, but are smoother than the Blackhawks. I didn't really like the slim handle on the 3/8, which is why I got a stubby instead. They are a high quality ratchet though. The Gearwrench 84T ratchets have the largest heads out of all the others. They are just as wide but not as thick as the Craftsman. The action feels really fine to compared to the rest, almost similar to the Proto. The only reason I got them was because the 3/8 was $16 at Menards and the XL was $25 from Amazon. That was just a good deal on a good ratchet.

 

[Tonyuk]

The smoothest ratchets i have are my pear head facoms;

Buttery smooth although they're probably full of a fair bit of motor oil by now. My gearwrench 84t though are excellent and a good bit longer than the facoms. Some of the smoothest ratchets you can get are the composite 72t ratchets made in taiwan, similar to the below;

Pretty sure harbour freight sells a version of this for cheap.

 

[uncwstudent]

Hey those Blackhawks are pretty nice! Definitely a huge step up from the Craftsman RP!!

 

[AmishFury]

careful now... you don't want to end up like many of us who are now thinking about how many ratchets we have bought once we discovered the joys of decent tools

and how many more we will buy before we go

 

[Alaniho]

careful now... you don't want to end up like many of us who are now thinking about how many ratchets we have bought once we discovered the joys of decent tools

and how many more we will buy before we go

Haha, i've got the popcorn out already for this thread

The HF style composites are amazing for the money, i picked up a 1/4 Custor brand version here for 6euro a few years ago and it's still a joy to use.

 

[Zewnten]

Ratchets are one area I think people should spend a good chunk of money to get something quality, I had a a cheapo HF ratchet that lasted 2 months, then I bought Carlyle but the back drag was rough. So I spent $600 on Matco 88's and never looked back haha.

 

[apdxyk]

Ratchets are one area I think people should spend a good chunk of money to get something quality, I had a a cheapo HF ratchet that lasted 2 months, then I bought Carlyle but the back drag was rough. So I spent $600 on Matco 88's and never looked back haha.

So, how many composite ratchets $600 can buy? Or should I say: a laddered 2-month CD with the dividend offsetting the ratchet purchases..

 

[Tonyuk]

Most i would spend on a ratchet now is about £50, the most expensive ratchet i own is a long flex head snap-on;

It cost £80, and while its good i'm just not sold on the more expensive ratchets yet.

Ratchets are one of those things you'll never really be done buying, you'll always see something "new" every few months or a year and think it'll be better and worth the money to get, then you have it and a year later the same thing.

 

[maxcarp709]

I just got a Blackhawk 1338QR last month. I like it a lot

 

[AndySchlagzeuger]

Go Lodaku! Nice to hear, and gives me a chance to gratuitously post some of mine >_<
Left to right:
Kincrome 1/4" Sidchrome finetooth sealed 1/2" (rebranded Facom, awesome ratchet)
Black Cat 1/4" air ratchet, Something 3/8" hardly ever used
Kincrome 3/8"
SP lock 1/4", Something- cutdown 3/8" had for decades. Powerbuilt spinner 1/4" actually really never used
Minimax 3/8" quite good actually, Stahlwille 1/4 QR finetooth excellent
Stahlwille composite 3/8" Stahlwille 3/8 QR fine tooth- brilliant
Stahlwille QR torque wrench.
Have a few more as well tucked away but they are some of my favourites.

 

[Automag88]

One of my favorite things to do is look on eBay for ratchets. I've ended up with some really nice condition Snap On. I kind of like the older generation lower tooth Snap Ons that were out right before the dual 80s. You can get them for a song if you look long enough. They just feel solid in my hand

 

[turnthewrench 2.0]

Stahlwille composite 3/8" Stahlwille 3/8 QR fine tooth- brilliant

The Stahlwille 80T QR is the smoothest ratchet I've ever used.

 

[Jason280]

The smoothest ratchets i have are my pear head facoms;

Buttery smooth although they're probably full of a fair bit of motor oil by now. My gearwrench 84t though are excellent and a good bit longer than the facoms. Some of the smoothest ratchets you can get are the composite 72t ratchets made in taiwan, similar to the below;

Pretty sure harbour freight sells a version of this for cheap.

I'd really like to try one of the Facoms, but I never see them locally.

 

[CR888]

Aussie tool co Sidcrome now rebrand Facom tools for much of their stuff. The ratchets I believe 'may' have a lower tooth count but are a real bargain compared to buying Facom. The socket sets like the little 1/4" nano is $95ish au dollars branded Sidchrome and over 3X that price branded Facom. I'll be buying more & more Sidcrome due to this fact. Its good news for us tool nuts.

 

[AndySchlagzeuger]

The Stahlwille 80T QR is the smoothest ratchet I've ever used.

Yeah- the Facom/Sidchrome ones are pretty good too I must admit.

 

[AndySchlagzeuger]

Aussie tool co Sidcrome now rebrand Facom tools for much of their stuff. The ratchets I believe 'may' have a lower tooth count but are a real bargain compared to buying Facom. The socket sets like the little 1/4" nano is $95ish au dollars branded Sidchrome and over 3X that price branded Facom. I'll be buying more & more Sidcrome due to this fact. Its good news for us tool nuts.

Quite sure the ratchets Sidchrome/Facom are identical in many cases other than name

 

[kb1982]

Careful, before long you will end up in a rabbithole and have to dedicate a full drawer just for ratchets. A ratchet that is really starting to grow on me is the 45 tooth Proto Premium pearheads. They have very little backdrag and have nice ergos. I'm also fond of the older SK Tuff 1 ratchets that have a 72 tooth count as you can see.

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