Ratchet wrenches - one way or reversible?

[Sick Puppy]

Hi guys, I'm considering buying some ratchet wrenches / spanners, and there are is the choice between the ones where you can select the direction, and the ones you make sure are the right way round (preferably before you put it on the bolt! lol)

Now, aside from the obvious convenience of the selector lever, are there any other pros and cons I should be considering? I mean, are the one way ones any stronger/more reliable than their selectable counterparts?

Thoughts, opinions, suggestions and advice are wanted - cheers!

 

[impactims]

One way wrenches are straight and the ones with the switch are bent. This is the real thing you need to think about - Do you want them straight or angled? The switch is secondary. The only reason the switch is there is because it is not practical to flip an angled wrench over to ratchet the other direction.

Myself? I like the stubby, stright wrenches with a one way ratchet mechanism. No switch = one less thing to go wrong and I don't need the angle in the wrench.

 

[diesel research]

Both!

 

[Wes28376]

I bought my first set of ratcheting wrenches about 6 or 7 years ago. For me it came down to price and what I perceived as reliability. I compared the Gearwrench sets in both standard and selectable. I decided to go with the standard model because it was cheaper and had less parts to break. To this day I haven't run into a situation that I thought I needed the selectable model and I'm still using those wrenches. I'm just a weekend hack so I'm sure someone will have an example where a selectable model might be needed.

 

[dwm]

Both!

Eventually, very true. Along with a bunch of others; flex-head, stubby flex-head, stubby straight, box/geared combos, various long-pattern, etc.

First set, I buy the non-reversible. That's under the assumption you already have normal 12-point combination wrenches and can think well enough to avoid getting yourself in a situation where you can't get the wrench off. I find that most of the places I really need a ratcheting combination wrench, they work just fine. In my experience, some of those places are very space-constrained where an angled wrench doesn't work well.

I also really like having the double ended geared ones like Gearwrench 9260 and 9240. Handy for portable tool kits and fewer wrenches to grab when I'm guessing at fastener size.

An argument can be made for getting the flex-heads or reversible first, of course. All depends on what you think you need the most.

 

[Rico.]

Both!

Yeah, you can't really argue with that. I have found that I have needed to
undo a bolt that could only be accessed by a straight spanner, but for most
fasteners a slight angle gives you nice knuckle clearance.

I also have flex head ratchet spanners and if you don't want to get both or
can't afford it right now, the flex head ones gives you the best of both worlds
at the expense of just a little more faffing about to secure it on the fastener.

 

[diesel research]

Along with a bunch of others; flex-head, stubby flex-head, stubby straight, box/geared combos, various long-pattern, etc.

To try to offset those needs slightly, I decided to test drive these:

If I want a super stubby, I have used them in my palm before. If I need a certain length of straight wrench, I have added extensions to the end. If I need a different length I adjust the amount/length of extensions used. If I need flex, I add breaker bar to the end. If I need offset flex, I add extensions/breaker bars to the holes visible in picture. If I need obstruction "moon" type, I add indexing ratchet.

It doesn't always work for various reasons, plus those heads are a bit thicker/fatter than possibly desired, but the day I needed a deep offset wrench like this

...a regular offset wrench wasn't deep enough, I needed atleast 6" offset. I needed ratcheting. I needed additional flex. I needed super long handle. The end tool ended up being pieced out of about 5 other tools, a armstrong 17" maxx flex (a breaker would have been better) an adpter, a straight extension, a wobble extension, and above mentioned piece. Shaved about an hour off the job though. Talk about being in a real bind. Fab up some wild creation or spend another hour + pulling front clip apart just to replace a cheap rubber bushing.

 

[Sick Puppy]

I must confess, I'm buying them because I figure I'll need them one day, and haven't really given the straight/angle issue a second thought! lol Thanks for the pointer though impactims, appreciated!

I am looking at buying a set of normal and stubby wrenches, the normal size ones will be selectable (For now anyway!)

 

[diesel research]

What brands are available in new zealand?

 

[Sick Puppy]

Gearwrench, Teng, King Tony, Toptul, Kinchrome, Sidchrome, Genius, Powerbuilt, Jonnesway. As well as GW, the KT, Teng and Kinchrome ones get good reviews, the rest aren't that common bar Powerbuilt, which are rubbish. Toptul is too new here, and their ratchet wrenches are hens teeth.

I know that all the above are Taiwanese, but then they have the patents, so it's not that surprising. Snap on and Blue point are here but serious $$$.

Then there are Husky, Proto, Blackhawk, Armstrong and Mac, I know Armstrong are American, and that's pretty much it! None of those are sold here though. Now, most of these bar Armstrong are Taiwanese?

Gedore - one day I'll be able to grab the German ones , until then, maybe their Taiwanese ones? Haven't really seen any European/English ones here in NZ, and not much on here either, but then anything Euro here is pricey...

To be fair though, the location of the tools don't really matter to me, so long as quality is there and price is right. I've purchased stuff from America, the UK and Taiwan (Japanese Aigo spanners ironically enough), resigned myself to horrendous shipping charges, and still paid a fair bit less than I would have here in NZ.

 

[diesel research]

gearwrench is almost entirely chinese.

 

[Jim85IROC]

I don't like the 1-way style. Not only do I never seem to have room for my hands, but usually I'm using them in tight areas where ratchets won't fit. In those situations, it's not uncommon for me to run out of room when I'm backing bolts out. Go a little too far with the non-reversable jobs and you're stuck.

 

[byoungblood]

My only issue with the Gearwrench reversibles is that they have that built in nut stop, ie., you can't flip them over and use them from the other side. It sometimes has you working at odd angles because you can't flip it over as you could a normal combination wrench and work at a more comfortable angle.

 

[uart]

I don't like the 1-way style. Not only do I never seem to have room for my hands, but usually I'm using them in tight areas where ratchets won't fit. In those situations, it's not uncommon for me to run out of room when I'm backing bolts out. Go a little too far with the non-reversable jobs and you're stuck.

That hasn't yet happened to me Jim. I can imagine it could be a problem on a flanged bolt that didn't have clearance to back out with anything other than an open ender. Say if you could back it only <i>almost</i> all the way out but then not be able to remove the wrench. If it wasn't a flanged bolt I guess you be able to just slip the wrench right over the head and continue backing it out with a thin open ender.

Honestly I would have thought that the number of places that you could get completely trapped would be very small, but I do hear this issue often mentioned when the reversible versus non-reversible is discussed. Just how often does this situation really arise?

 

[countryroad82]

I prefer the one way style myself, I have a set of reversible ones but the straight imo are more convenient in most areas.

 

[smoky]

that's a tricky question because, it depends on what you work on. if you work on many types of cars fasteners can be in a multitude of P.I.T.A. places. if you work on only one type of vehicle that you know a reversable wrench will make it easier to handle a fastener, then stick with that.

 

[Jim85IROC]

My only issue with the Gearwrench reversibles is that they have that built in nut stop, ie., you can't flip them over and use them from the other side. It sometimes has you working at odd angles because you can't flip it over as you could a normal combination wrench and work at a more comfortable angle.

I haven't really had many problems with that yet. My metric set is Gearwrench and has that. My SAE set is Craftsman and doesn't have it. Most of the time I find the nut stop to be an advantage, but there were a couple times where it was a disadvantage.

That hasn't yet happened to me Jim. I can imagine it could be a problem on a flanged bolt that didn't have clearance to back out with anything other than an open ender. Say if you could back it only <i>almost</i> all the way out but then not be able to remove the wrench. If it wasn't a flanged bolt I guess you be able to just slip the wrench right over the head and continue backing it out with a thin open ender.

Honestly I would have thought that the number of places that you could get completely trapped would be very small, but I do hear this issue often mentioned when the reversible versus non-reversible is discussed. Just how often does this situation really arise?

I work on all GM stuff, and they use flange bolts for everything. I frequently seem to find myself using the ratcheting wrenches in very tight locations where this becomes a problem. The only time I use wrenches is when a shallow socket & low profile wrench won't fit. In those cases, it's really not uncommon to find yourself running out of room in a hurry. A number of times I've backed the bolt out too far and had to tighten it back up a bit to slide the wrench out. With the 1-way style, I'd be in a world of hurt.

 

[tcsalvage]

i have them all, and the combination wrenches that get used the most are one way gearwrench. only had to cut them out a couple of times in over 20 years. now for something you will love the matco long double box flex head are used daily, if not hourly. the only wrench in the gearwrench set that hasn't been replaced numerous times is the 9mm.

 

[Zebu Fellenz]

My favorites by far are the non-reversible flex head wrenches. They get used +90% of the time, I also have sets of the straight non-reversible but seldom reach for them.

To be fair though I don't have a set of the 15 degree offset reversible wrenches so I cannot comment there.

 

[kythri]

So, a couple observations and comments since this regularly comes up:

1> Reversible GearWrenches seem to get a lot of support due to the fact that they are reversible. Lots of folks have had issues taking a nut off and backing it up to the point that they can't get the wrench off, and this would be a bad situation without a reversible. I've never had this problem personally, but I've seen it reported more than a few times.

2> While Chinese production is prevalent, the 20pc set of regular GearWrenches I just bought at Sears are all Taiwanese. I think it more depends on the type of wrench, as I believe there's still production happening for these in Taiwan, and that this isn't just a "new old stock" situation

3> The capstop on reversibles - I can't confirm this personally, but, again, from many posts here, this seems to be a feature limited to Sears-sold reversible GearWrenches. Personally, I like it, but many people hate it. If it bothers you, you might look around.

4> Watch sales at Sears, because these things sell super-cheap all the time. You just missed a heck of a sale - 7pc XL X-beam sets (SAE or Metric) for $24/each, 7pc Flex-Head sets (SAE or Metric) for $27/each, and a 20pc regular set (10 SAE, 10 Metric) for $49.99. They do some deep discounting on these at multiple points during the year. As always, no guarantees that they'll do it again, but there's always the possibility.

Additionally, a local independent tool store is having a major sale through the end of the year that they report is GearWrench-initiated. They've got lots of "big" sets (14pc, etc.) that they're selling for some significant discounts (though not nearly as deep as the Sears stuff, but these are sets that contain sizes not in the Sears stuff). If it's truly a sale put on by the manufacturer, there might be similar deals near you in similar locations.

If these are a "I don't need them now, I want them for the future", then unless there's one of those killer sales, you should definitely wait a bit to buy. Watch Sears between now and Christmas (and even shortly after), and keep an eye on the "Hot Deals Thread" here on the forum.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Just posted this in another thread. I bought a small set of Crescent ratcheting wrenches that are non reversing. I dislike them and rarely use them. I have a set of Craftsmans that are reversing (with a lever) that I like and use.

 

[archirelic]

My experience with the reversible Gearwrench at Advanced Auto Parts is that they DO NOT have the capstop feature.

 

[transamfan]

My only issue with the Gearwrench reversibles is that they have that built in nut stop, ie., you can't flip them over and use them from the other side. It sometimes has you working at odd angles because you can't flip it over as you could a normal combination wrench and work at a more comfortable angle.

that nut stop feature is why I bought my craftsmans for the home and snap on for the shop. I like the reversable wrenches with the 15 degree offset. the angle can be used to your advantage, sometimes you need it angled one way, other times the otherway. the nutstop feature would keep you from doing that.
flexheads are nice but big and in tight quarters my fixed head with its little 15 deg offset usually is just right.

 

[impactims]

I don't like the 1-way style. Not only do I never seem to have room for my hands, but usually I'm using them in tight areas where ratchets won't fit. In those situations, it's not uncommon for me to run out of room when I'm backing bolts out. Go a little too far with the non-reversable jobs and you're stuck.

What are you saying?

That the 1-way kind get you stuck if you go too far and the selector kind will not?

And what do you mean by "stuck" and "too far"?

 

[shampoop]

One way wrenches are straight and the ones with the switch are bent. This is the real thing you need to think about - Do you want them straight or angled? The switch is secondary. The only reason the switch is there is because it is not practical to flip an angled wrench over to ratchet the other direction.

this

 

[Jim85IROC]

What are you saying?

That the 1-way kind get you stuck if you go too far and the selector kind will not?

And what do you mean by "stuck" and "too far"?

Let's say that you're pulling out some accessory bolt at the front of the motor where you've barely got any room. There isn't enough room for a socket & ratchet, which is why you're using the wrench in the first place. You back it 7/8 of the way out, only to discover that now there isn't enough room left for you to take the wrench off the bolt. You have to tighten it up a little bit so that you can gain the clearance to get the ratchet off, and come the rest of the way with the open end. If you're using the non-reversible style ratcheting wrench, you're beat. You can't reverse it to tighten the bolt back up, and you don't have room to get the ratchet off. You'd better hope you can get in there with some pliers to tighten it back up or you're in trouble.

I've had a number of situations where I got carried away and went too far loosening my fastener and got into that situation. Fortunately, all I've had to do is snug the bolt back up and get my tool off.

 

[ajchien]

I have luckily not run into this situation either so forgive the dumb question: One thing I don't understand ... If I back the bolt all the way out, and can not get my gearwrench out, doesn't that mean that the bolt was never coming out anyway, until I remove the obstruction?

 

[impactims]

Let's say that you're pulling out some accessory bolt at the front of the motor where you've barely got any room. There isn't enough room for a socket & ratchet, which is why you're using the wrench in the first place. You back it 7/8 of the way out, only to discover that now there isn't enough room left for you to take the wrench off the bolt. You have to tighten it up a little bit so that you can gain the clearance to get the ratchet off, and come the rest of the way with the open end. If you're using the non-reversible style ratcheting wrench, you're beat. You can't reverse it to tighten the bolt back up, and you don't have room to get the ratchet off. You'd better hope you can get in there with some pliers to tighten it back up or you're in trouble.

I see what you are saying now.

However, I have never had a fastener that was that far out couldnt be turned by hand.

 

[Seanbev24]

My preference is reversible combination (I have Snap-On) and non-reversible stubby (I have Gearwrench). The offset is helpful in many situations where you'd want to flip the wrench around, so I'd never consider a set with that nut stop feature.

 

[Jim85IROC]

I see what you are saying now.

However, I have never had a fastener that was that far out couldnt be turned by hand.

rusty fasteners can come hard the whole way. Up here in the north, that's all of them. It's especially common on through-bolt fasteners like you get with a lot of accessories mounted to brackets.

But, often I find myself in one of those situations where even if it turns easily, it's hard to get two fingers to, so bringing it all the way out with the ratchet is easier... until you realize you went too far.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

I have luckily not run into this situation either so forgive the dumb question: One thing I don't understand ... If I back the bolt all the way out, and can not get my gearwrench out, doesn't that mean that the bolt was never coming out anyway, until I remove the obstruction?

Many bolts have shoulders or washer heads on them. If this is the case, you cannot slide that gearwrench down the shank, its stuck on the head, and if you trapped it by unscrewing the bolt too far, its possible the part was engineered with just enough room to tilt the bolt out but with the gearwrench in the way, the bolt won't tilt out. I've seen it happen. I recall someone on this board did this with a intake manifold bolt several years ago. I think they ended up cutting the bolt.

Charles

 

[uart]

You can't reverse it to tighten the bolt back up, and you don't have room to get the ratchet off. You'd better hope you can get in there with some pliers to tighten it back up or you're in trouble.

I'd imagine that even if you could get pliers in there you might still be in trouble if there's not much room to turn the wrench. As you turn the bolt back in with the pliers the wrench can not ratchet and must rotate back in turn with the bolt/pliers. So if there's also limited room to turn the wrench then I guess you're royally screwed.

 

[BloodySinner]

I've got a set of resersible flex-heads by Blue Point. There is no real benefit in having it one way.

 

[Andy Griffith]

I like the reversable wrenches with the 15 degree offset. the angle can be used to your advantage, sometimes you need it angled one way, other times the otherway. the nutstop feature would keep you from doing that.
flexheads are nice but big and in tight quarters my fixed head with its little 15 deg offset usually is just right.

Yep, just ran into that yesterday while assembling a GM seat. I needed to tighten a bolt in a tight location and there was not enough swing room for a straight wrench, but I was able to set the reversible wrench to 'loosen', flip it upside down, and the 15 degree offset let the wrench poke just below the obstructions such that I could actually tighten the bolt.

I could have used a flex-head but the darn things are so thick that there was not enough room between the top of the bolt and the immediate overhead obstruction.

This is the first I've heard of a 'nutstop' and my 15 degree sets are a number of years old so I assume they don't have that feature. And if this nutstop prevents the wrench from being put on the fastener when the wrench is in the upside down position that would mean I'd not been able to use them as I did on that seat.

The one thing I really don't like about my 15 degree offset reversible wrench sets is they have a strong propensity to shift into neutral when I'm spinning up a fastener at a rapid rate. This is very annoying and I don't know if the entire set is defective or if that's just the way the are. Near as I can tell multiple wrenches in the set act this way.

 

[G1GRANDEUR]

One way flex head.

 

[Sick Puppy]

This eBay auction for a 16pc Metric Gearwrench set went for US$150. It was metric (8-25mm) and reversible. Is this about right for such a set? Here, it is US$215 for a non-reversing set...

Also, does anyone know the OEM for Blue Point ratchet wrenches, or is it a specific factory owned by Snap-on/Blue point? Just an idle query for my imagination...

 

[defy]

Gearwrench, Teng, King Tony, Toptul, Kinchrome, Sidchrome, Genius, Powerbuilt, Jonnesway. As well as GW, the KT, Teng and Kinchrome ones get good reviews, the rest aren't that common bar Powerbuilt, which are rubbish. Toptul is too new here, and their ratchet wrenches are hens teeth.

I know that all the above are Taiwanese, but then they have the patents, so it's not that surprising. Snap on and Blue point are here but serious $$$.

Then there are Husky, Proto, Blackhawk, Armstrong and Mac, I know Armstrong are American, and that's pretty much it! None of those are sold here though. Now, most of these bar Armstrong are Taiwanese?

Gedore - one day I'll be able to grab the German ones , until then, maybe their Taiwanese ones? Haven't really seen any European/English ones here in NZ, and not much on here either, but then anything Euro here is pricey...

To be fair though, the location of the tools don't really matter to me, so long as quality is there and price is right. I've purchased stuff from America, the UK and Taiwan (Japanese Aigo spanners ironically enough), resigned myself to horrendous shipping charges, and still paid a fair bit less than I would have here in NZ.

I brought a full set 8-19mm of gear wrench non reversible flex end and reversible x-beam from tooltopia, got them sent to a mail forwarder then sent to me, on a 3 day courier which cost about $80. It still saved me about half the price of buying those 2 sets in NZ. I've been buying a lot of tools from the states lately with the way the dollar is, and the price point difference for tools, its sooooooo much cheaper.

Especially for speciality type items that are like $5-$20 on sites like tooltopia, that would cost about $50 on a Sulco tool truck here, so if I buy a few its definitely worth it

 

[Sick Puppy]

Thanks for that, I'll have a look! I know what you mean about Sulco - their prices make me shudder every time I look at them!

 

[defy]

I don't know about your Sulco rep near you, but the prices aren't that different and at least the Snap on man turns up same time every week, offers trade ins, is a general GC. Local sulco guy turns up about once every two months and once you've brought it he doesn't give a **** if your not happy.

For package forwarding, I would recommend shipito.com. They are really busy at the moment due to Christmas, but I've have about 20 packages through there with no problems.

btw, you know of anyone good that sells Koken in NZ?

 

[Sick Puppy]

For package forwarding, I would recommend shipito.com. They are really busy at the moment due to Christmas, but I've have about 20 packages through there with no problems.

btw, you know of anyone good that sells Koken in NZ?

Cheers for that Snap on are a tad out of my budget, but eBay and here appear to be good for it.

As for Koken though, alas, no... I regularly checked these fliers for their specials in their promotional magazines that are released every two months:

http://www.georgehenry.co.nz/index.html - Caliper Magazine
http://www.bayengineers.co.nz/BGH-Pr...s-Profile.jasc - Oily Rag
http://www.wilsonbros.co.nz/ - Workshop Magazine

Every now and again they have stuff I want at a discount and I'll grab it, but because I'm not in the trade, no regular discount for me. Of the three above, Bay Engineers in Lower Hutt seemed the most up for doing a deal, and I nearly grabbed a cheap Aigo set from them a while back 8-32mm, $200NZ).

I also check Waitemata Hydraulics and Sulco for their monthly promotions, but they are pretty high anyway. I had a contact on the Toyspeed forums who I got the best prices prices, but he didn't respond to my last PM.

There are a few engineering supply shops here in Chch that don't have fliers etc, and I have to check their prices at some point, although I have most of what I'm looking for, and now its the trinkets I'm after lol.

There is of course LevelChrome and FranksTools in the US and Japan, and Quattrojon in the UK. For free shipping from LC though, you're looking at about $250 down though, which will hurt lol

What Koken stuff are you looking for?