Ratcheting open end wrenches.

[Sugarfryz]

Does anyone have experience with the open end ratcheting wrenches from craftsman? I believe husky makes them as well.

My buddy at work said I wish open ends ratcheted, if we could make them we'd be millionaires! I laughed and said its already been done

I haven't bought any because I have no faith in craftsman tools anymore. They ruin fasteners at work.

Does anyone use these, and thinks they're worth a buy? I can see where they'd be helpful

 

[gdpolk]

I had them and sold them. I love ratcheting box ends but the ratcheting open ends were a no go for me. In my experience they took MORE swing to make them ratchet which made them less handy in tight spaces and they gripped LESS making them more likely to round bolts. A solid open end to crack the nut loose and then flip over to a ratcheting box end for speed, convenience, and access to tight spots is where it's at in my opinion.

 

[ChevyEFI]

When you cannot use a box or flare nut style wrench, they are a handy option.

I don't know all makers tha currently lists them, but SO should have ratching box / speed open end style combos.

 

[Gmonkee]

Very recently there was another thread about these. General consensus was they will flop.

In a world where the grip type open ends seem to be be the best these are sadly lacking in the main ingredient. Gripping power.

I get them odds and ends in the markets and so far none have been better than a basic open end.

That said I still grab them all for the novelty of the design. From the oldest ones from the 20's to the latest, if they are dirt cheap.

 

[Finky198]

I have them. A black set from craftsman. There not great, but have saved my but on a few lines where my SO flare nut wrenches couldn't get to. Even when using them I still tend crack loose and torque with a std open end... Their just less likely to strip and its easier to feel the final torque...


For 20 bucks or so I'm happy but far from impressed.

 

[bonneyman]

Never had much luck with the several kinds of ratcheting OE's I've had, but I love my Cam-Loc ratcheting flare wrenches. If you've got the room to place it, the ratcheting action and grip are great.

Sorry to say this is one design even the Chinese haven't been able to reproduce economically.

 

[ChevyEFI]

Never had much luck with the several kinds of ratcheting OE's I've had, but I love my Cam-Loc ratcheting flare wrenches. If you've got the room to place it, the ratcheting action and grip are great.

I'll second this. I learned about them on here. I picked up a few on `bay. I've used them happily.

 

[Schurkey]

I've got several brands of ratcheting open ends. I have some similar to the Crapsman design, but made in Japan by a company I don't remember the name of right now, a Mac 13 mm ratcheting open end/flare nut combo, a fairly-complete set of Snap-On ratcheting open end/flare nut combos in SAE and Metric, and a double-ratcheting-open end 1/2-9/16 from Snappy as well. I'm especially fond of the Snap-On open end/flare nut combos.

The Mac has been advertised in the Classified section here for years.
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=127858

 

[Jeepster425]

I've got the expert (mac) ratcheting wrenches with ratcheting open end. I hardly use them, maybe that rare case where I'm too lazy to go get the proper tool, that's about it

Sent from my SM-G925T using Tapatalk

 

[Gmonkee]

Another to say the CamLoc work. But they are bulky and don't come in metric.

 

[bonneyman]

Another to say the CamLoc work. But they are bulky and don't come in metric.

Yes on both counts.

Though, I am working on a deal where I can get a badly worn 3/8", take it apart, and try installing slightly thinner pins to "convert" it to 10mm. Might prove invaluable on brake work - if I can get it in those places.

Also have a Snap-On double "snake bite" OE. (Top wrench in this lot of tools) Haven't had a chance to use it with torque yet.

 

[Roobaix]

I have the Husky set and think they're garbage. They don't fit very well (too tight) on most on the fasteners I've had to use them on (standard 9/16" and 5/8" nuts) so the ratcheting action doesn't work. I've also had them slip.

The closed ratcheting end works great though.

 

[M6erfan]

Never owned any but always thought they were a gimmick, maybe I'm wrong...

 

[joe_padavano]

I've spent decades trying to make sure open end wrenches DON'T slip on the nut...

 

[rjvjeepster]

I have a gear wrench metric set of them. I like them, you kind of have to get a feel for them. But not having that feature would be fine too, actually I haven't seen any new Gearwrench ones with it lately.

 

[T45]

are those speed wrench open ends what this thread is talking about?

i'm confused, as that doesnt seem like a ratchet? some other folks have tried to make ratcheting open ends and ratcheting line wrenches with more or less success.

cman in particular had a cam type ratcheting design built into some open ends, but recently a thread here deemed they were lacking by consensus

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=337237&highlight=Ratcheting+open+end+wrenches.

 

[4 FN 27]

We used them on every area of my Race Car where clearance and swing allowed. We had dedicated tool tray for each area of the car and each tray had the right ratchet wrench for each bolt or nut size. The guys loved them.

They were all Craftsman purchased when they first came out and I still have them all most in duplicates. However recently the new ones I have gotten for other areas of the shop have fallen apart or snapped the "tooth ring".

If I buy any more it will be from Snap-On or Mac.

 

[mdnelson86]

I've got a set of alden wrenches that area different design.

I never bought a set of the craftsman wrenches, but looked at them several times. I like the alden wrenches as they grip really well. The "ratcheting" mechanism isn't the smoothest in the world. But they have gotten the job done on many occasions where I really needed an open end ratchet.

 

[Bessy]

I too can say that though it may not be the most useful set of tools in my box, that my open end ratchet wrenches have seen some use, both on small engines and around the house. Hung a clothesline using one to tighten the turn buckle to take up slack (as it was a 5/8" hex instead of the traditional open style), and from what I recall, I used them to remove the carburetor assembly on my HH120 rebuild. Once I got used to the motion of how to use them, it wasn't so bad, though I would only use them realistically under relatively low torque situations.

 

[JAKE-THE-TOOL-MAN]

I bought two sets of GW ratcheting open ends to try since they were something like $20 or so. Tried them a couple times and they work ok, I'm just not overall fond of them.

 

[Art From De Leon]

You would be surprised how fast you can work a conventional open end wrench to run a bolt/nut on or off.