Round VS Pear head. What is your ratchet preference?

[Kirbot]

I realize this is just a matter of personal preference, but I'm curious to hear your thoughts on it.

Personally, I usually prefer the pear head design.
I like to be able to change direction with one hand.

Though I do have a palm control round head ratchet that only takes one hand, and it's become my most used ratchet..

 

[shanker]

I'm with you , I prefer to flip a lever rather than spin the head to change directions

I have a few Roto Heads, but dont use them as often as my Pear Heads

 

[NinetyTwoFifty]

I realize this is just a matter of personal preference, but I'm curious to hear your thoughts on it.

Personally, I usually prefer the pear head design.
I like to be able to change direction with one hand.

Though I do have a palm control round head ratchet that only takes one hand, and it's become my most used ratchet..

I prefer pear head for the exact same reasons you do.

 

[tw33k2514]

Pear head. To me it is just a superior design.

 

[Xenocide]

Pear too. I have a couple of round ones but they never really get a look in to be honest. Smaller, easier to flip direction and always feel tighter. I love the "pear" headed units

 

[davesnothere]

I prefer pear head for the exact same reasons you do.

Agreed.

 

[KU_MechE]

Also, if you need a tiny head...

sounds like a personal problem.

I prefer Pear with QR, but my SK round is pretty sweet

 

[Old Donn]

Despite being outnumbered by pear heads, my SK palm control and Cman RHFT are my current favorites.

 

[dirtrider]

My vote is for pear head's. I just like the look and feel a whole lot better. Plus I can switch direction's more easily and all internal part's are replaceable on all the pear head's I have used, unlike round head's.

 

[cglasgow]

My very first ratchet was a junk Taiwanese (back when Taiwanese stuff was REALLY junk) round-head out of a crappy set. I think it came from TG&Y department store, if anyone remembers those. Later, I graduated to a CM pearhead (it really was a step up, both because these were the days when CM was not too bad, plus anything was a step up from the POS roundhead I had been using). Ever since then, I've had a background feeling that pearhead=good, roundhead=cheap/nasty.

Since that time I've only had pearhead (including that same CM). I've since picked up some CM RHFT ratchets (after reading about them here), and I'm starting to warm up to them. I still like the flip lever on the pearheads better, and I've still got that anti-roundhead bias in the back of my mind, even though I now know better....

 

[mrholeshot]

Any of my round head Snap-On ratchets can be switched with your thumb. I like both. In a real tight space I like the round head, out in the open I like pear head.

 

[Davefr]

I like round heads. They get into tighter places and don't have a lever that you can easily hit by accident. (more of a problem with 1/4" flex heads)

I have an old 3/8" Thorsen round head exposed gear that'll get into tight places where no 3/8' ratchet has gone before.

 

[porphyre]

I like pears because you can change direction with one hand.

Maybe I don't have a lot of experience with round heads, but the roundheads I have a thicker than the pears. Both my old-style Craftsman RHFT (with spinner) and new-style RHFT (no spinner) are as thick or thicker than any of my pear heads.

I do like the spinner on my CMan RHFT, though.

 

[JeremyManning]

I only have one round head and I like it for tight spaces the only thing I can say is that it seems like the drive may wobble due to the type of retaining mechanism used to hold the plate on the back.

 

[senlow]

For the most part, I prefer pear head ratchets. However, round heads can be useful in some tight clearance applications. I wouldn't be without some of each type.

 

[PepperCrab]

Pear head for me. It's more practical. With round-heads, you always have a problem figuring out which direction it's set on, you can't just tell by looking. You also need 2 hands to switch directions, whereas with pear heads you can switch with one hand.

 

[Pro-Painter]

I don't believe Ive ever really used a round head ratchet before. Like cglasgow said, I too have always just assumed they where junk and never gave any of the higher end models a 2nd look.

 

[Fedwrench]

I have both but, prefer the pear head. The heads are thinner for improved access, easy direction change with a flip of a thumb, and I can rest my thumb on the head to apply a little inward pressure if needed.

 

[neverenoughtools]

Pear head,,,,,,,, I like the one handed direction change.

 

[Butters]

My very first ratchet was a junk Taiwanese (back when Taiwanese stuff was REALLY junk) round-head out of a crappy set. I think it came from TG&Y department store, if anyone remembers those. Later, I graduated to a CM pearhead (it really was a step up, both because these were the days when CM was not too bad, plus anything was a step up from the POS roundhead I had been using). Ever since then, I've had a background feeling that pearhead=good, roundhead=cheap/nasty.

Funny, I had a similar experience and developed the same bias. No matter how positive a review for a round head ratchet, I just can't get past it. (Plus, I like the lever to switch directions).

 

[Cobra6]

My very first ratchet was a junk Taiwanese (back when Taiwanese stuff was REALLY junk) round-head out of a crappy set. I think it came from TG&Y department store, if anyone remembers those. Later, I graduated to a CM pearhead (it really was a step up, both because these were the days when CM was not too bad, plus anything was a step up from the POS roundhead I had been using). Ever since then, I've had a background feeling that pearhead=good, roundhead=cheap/nasty.

Wow - I think I had a friend who had one of those TG&Y sets (early '70's) and carried it in a little tool bag on his bicycle - we tried to fix something with the 1/4" socket one day and has soon as he beared down on it, the socket cracked.
That was back before any of us didn't understand that cheaper wasn't always better.

 

[bchee]

pear head

 

[Gregg33]

i like pear shaped women and ratchets lol. I have pear shaped ratchets in Gray, Kobalt ,Craftsman and a lesser name made in the USA. The only round I have is a Mastercraft 3/8, that's part of a set my step dad got me almost 20 years ago and I can't part with it, sentimental value I guess. Maybe it's perception but to me the rounds look cheaper and they are harder to switch direction too.

 

[PepperCrab]

Funny, I had a similar experience and developed the same bias. No matter how positive a review for a round head ratchet, I just can't get past it. (Plus, I like the lever to switch directions).

Same here. My first bad experience with a bad round head ratchet was some taiwanese junk 20+ years ago, the ratchet drive broke off. Second bad experience was my crappy Craftsman digitork torque wrench. Spun free on me. After I took it apart and saw the puny "spring" inside, I don't think I'll ever buy another round head.

Ironically the bad experience stuck but not the good. I was given a 1/4" Stanley socket set with a round head ratchet when I was 19, it's still with me today afer almost 20 years and still works fine, but because of the bad initial experiences I will rather get a pear head.

 

[leod]

i prefer pear head, more **** looking

 

[tylerae40]

pear head- hey can we set this up as a voting thing????

yep first ratchet was a round- and yes when they let go and your nuckles punch the side of an engine block with 50pounds of force you know why they're cheap.

 

[PT Doc]

Pear head because of the reversing lever. My thumb can always reverse the lever but the round heads need 2 fingers to reverse the lever.

After thinking about it, it makes sense: the axis of rotation on a pearhead is at 1 end of the lever but on the round head it is in the middle of the lever. I have a few round heads that will be given if someone needs to borrow a ratchet.

 

[cglasgow]

Wow - I think I had a friend who had one of those TG&Y sets (early '70's) and carried it in a little tool bag on his bicycle - we tried to fix something with the 1/4" socket one day and has soon as he beared down on it, the socket cracked.
That was back before any of us didn't understand that cheaper wasn't always better.

That would have been about the right timeframe for me as well. It came in a red metal box with a paper-thin plastic organizer tray inside. I'm even thinking that it said it was a "23-piece set" or something like that, and two of the pieces were the box and the tray. I think I may still have the spinner handle from that set.

Thinking about it, I can't recall ever having seen an ultra-cheap, ultra-crappy pear head. Seems like the most craptacular ratchets I've ever seen have all been roundhead. Not to say all RH are bad, but RH must be cheaper/easier to manufacture to be disproportionately represented at the bottom of the barrel....

 

[sk farmer]

i like and use both styles i won't offer any opinion on ratchets other than the statements that round heads are all cheap because i had a cheap one and it was junk is a bull---t reasons to knock the good round head. i have seen plenty of crappy pear heads as well. saying all round head are junk is like saying snap on hard handle screwdrivers are junk because i had some from harbour freight that looked like them and they were junk. want to see an ultra cheap crappy pearhead ratchet? go to sears, they have them in abundance.

 

[littlekillertoad]

I like both, but I find myself reaching for the pear heads more often than not.

 

[91bronc300]

When I get to a really stuck bolt, I'm usually too lazy to get up and switch to a breaker bar so I just yank on the ratchet until it either breaks or I just don't have the strength to break the bolt free. I have never stripped pearhead, only round. But I still use both.

 

[cglasgow]

i like and use both styles i won't offer any opinion on ratchets other than the statements that round heads are all cheap because i had a cheap one and it was junk is a bull---t reasons to knock the good round head. i have seen plenty of crappy pear heads as well. saying all round head are junk is like saying snap on hard handle screwdrivers are junk because i had some from harbour freight that looked like them and they were junk. want to see an ultra cheap crappy pearhead ratchet? go to sears, they have them in abundance.

Read much? Maybe I should repeat myself:

Not to say all RH are bad,....

No one has said all RH are bad. My statement, echoed by some other folks, was that, because our first experience with cheap RH ratchets was bad, it's left RH ratchets with a certain stigma for us. Once again, just in case you missed it:

Not to say all RH are bad,....

And the crappy RH ratchets I'm talking about make current-production Sears PH look like gold-plated SnapOn. They're that bad. Really.

 

[petee_c]

My 1st large set of sockets was from about 1996. Back then, I don't think the pear shape was as popular for the consumer stuff. Got Mastercraft in Canada - lifetime warrantee from Cdn Tire.

All my ratchets are round head..... not as ****, but work good for the amount of wrenching i do.

 

[Lucien421]

Pear head with rubber handle, easy to reverse and comfortable to use

 

[Citation]

Pear for the reasons others have said. The one exception is roto ratchets. I still don't care for the round head but it's worth it for the root benefits.

 

[raiderhillbilly]

I like round heads. Sockets are round, so, it just looks right to me. Pear heads are good for tight spots. I just dont like the floppy loose levers. Even on a beautiful new Snap on dual 80, the lever looks like a donor from a cheaper ratchet. Proto pear heads are too short and the head too big. My three Favorites are SK, Craftsman RHFTs(especially the Armstrong handle), and Williams Supperratchet (old mechanism, not new Facom style).

 

[ecotec]

I have a lot of ratchets. Probably a 10:1 ratio of pear head:round head. I prefer the pear heads, but the SO roto ratchets and the Wright 4494 get used sometimes.

 

[Adam.C]

They are two different tools for two different jobs. Round heads were designed as a low back drag ratchet for low torque applications, removal, and installation, often pared with a breaker bar or wrench to crack free or final torque.

The pear head was essentially a semi ratcheting weak breaker bar. Their coarse heads produced inconvenient back drag. They were a better alternative to breakers for undercarriage and some engine work.

Today, mostly fueled by Snap Ons intellectual property, tool makers are producing low back drag pear heads that are as strong as breakers rendering round head ratchets, breakers, and all other ratchets obsolete.

Some guys I know have kept round heads almost as novelties or for ergonomic reasons. The best of these is the Snap On 100 tooth swivel. It can function like a ratcheting screwdriver. Has lower back drag than anything else with teeth.

 

[Rarified27]

They are two different tools for two different jobs. Round heads were designed as a low back drag ratchet for low torque applications, removal, and installation, often pared with a breaker bar or wrench to crack free or final torque.

The pear head was essentially a semi ratcheting weak breaker bar. Their coarse heads produced inconvenient back drag. They were a better alternative to breakers for undercarriage and some engine work.

Today, mostly fueled by Snap Ons intellectual property, tool makers are producing low back drag pear heads that are as strong as breakers rendering round head ratchets, breakers, and all other ratchets obsolete.

Some guys I know have kept round heads almost as novelties or for ergonomic reasons. The best of these is the Snap On 100 tooth swivel. It can function like a ratcheting screwdriver. Has lower back drag than anything else with teeth.

I didn't know any of this, but I'm also not entirely sure about it.

The least resistance I have in any of my ratchets is an SK 40970. Yes, it's tiny, so less friction since there's less surface area, but I think the quality is evident as well.

It's probably the "best" ratchet I own, as the next closest thing is an Armstrong 11-992, but it does just fine for a non-pro like me.

I'm patiently waiting for SK to release their pear head they keep teasing about on their social media sites. I was looking at the new Proto stuff, but some users here had less than ideal experiences, so I'm happy to wait.

 

[PJNJ]

Today, mostly fueled by Snap Ons intellectual property, tool makers are producing low back drag pear heads that are as strong as breakers rendering round head ratchets, breakers, and all other ratchets obsolete.

Some guys I know have kept round heads almost as novelties or for ergonomic reasons. The best of these is the Snap On 100 tooth swivel. It can function like a ratcheting screwdriver. Has lower back drag than anything else with teeth.

Hey, someone better call Wright and SK - tell them their ratchets are "obsolete" and only good as "novelties".