I had some new tool arrivals since around Christmas time. I waited to post as the I warrantied an SK 40972 ratchet that I bought off eBay. It was listed as new and looked new but the head has pitting in the chrome across the top and the pressed in pin at the flex was protruding out of one side and barely flush on the other. The pitting in the chrome would snag on your slacks if you ran it across them. It was acceptable to me. I've read about this in an Amazon review or something that somebody else encountered but SK was extremely helpful land replaced it no questions asked. The new one I received as somewhat different than the old thought. the old one matched every picture of the 40972 I've ever seen. Pressed in pin and a rounded sides on the head. The new one had a torx bolt at the flex and the head is boxy and square with the edges rounded. On to the good stuff:
- SK 40972 60 tooth 1/4 flex ratchet
- Husky USA 1/2" 25-250 clicker torque wrench (APEX/DANAHER)
- Milwaukee M12 drill, impact driver, and 3/8" cordless ratchet
- Metric and SAE Craftsman USA 1/4" drive impact socket sets
- Pittsburg Pro Torque Adapter
- Husky 2-drawer roll cart for $40 on clearance
I must say I am totally impressed with the SK 40972. The chrome on the new one is perfect and amazing. The mechanism is butter silky smooth. It's honestly like a jewel. I feel that I may preferred the rounded sides on my previous one but the over finish of this new one is absolutely perfect. I'm ready to buy some new SK tools!
The Husky roll cart is awesome for the $40. I used the hardware that it came with unlike most who replaced it. The black screws and nuts for holding the thing together may be slightly undersized but it didn't cause a problem for me. It's my first roll cart and, so far, it's been very handy having all that I need for a job right next to it instead of having to keep walking back to my box.
The Milwaukee M12 tools really don't need any words, they're great. I've had a Craftsman C3 19.2V drill for years and it's big and bulky. Even with brushes my new M12 drill is great to use. I primed the oil in a new engine today with it and it had plenty of torque on speed 2 to hold 65psi on the pressure gauge for a minute or two. The impact is really nice too. I've been using a Craftsman Nextec impact driver for automotive work for a few years and I love it. This Milwaukee is a great option to reach for as well. I got these 3 tools together because Home Depot was doing a free $100 or less tool with the purchase of the brushed drill/driver combo. So for $179 I got these 3 tools, a charger, 2 batteries, and a bag. I mainly wanted the cordless ratchet but $179 would usually only buy you the ratchet itself and 2 batteries. No brainer. I really wanted the 1/4" ratchet instead of the 3/8" but the 1/4" is more than $100 and wasn't an option for the deal. I just ordered the 1/4" anvil to swap out for whatever size I want to use in the one ratchet.
The Craftsman impact sockets came from a Sear's Outlet while searching for the clearance pro screwdrivers. They were like $12 for each set. Lately, whenever I see a Made in the USA Craftsman tool I buy it if they don't make it anymore. These will work great for the impact driver as well as my converted 1/4" Milwaukee ratchet.
The Husky USA 1/2" torque wrench seems really nice so far. This one was on the peg with the new Chinese version. I think this if the same wrench that Gearwrench sells/sold. I have the HF 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2" (which have been holding and providing accuracy for a few years for me) but the 1/2" topped out at 150 ft/lb. The extra 100 ft/lb is just the range I was missing and could use from time to time. I first bought the 3/4" drive HF for $70 and that tested to be very accurate as well but decided that the drive size was just too big and I would end up using a reducer most of the time. I saw the USA Husky and returned the HF to replace it with this one.
The HF torque adapter is a love hate relationship for me. It's proven to be very accurate and very nice to use. BUT, the battery is a freakin joke. You pretty much get a couple torque wrenches tested with it at different ranges and it's dead the next time you use it. No, the unit is not being turned on by the foam in the case when I close it. I returned the first one because the battery was dead the 2nd time I tried to use it. On the second one I checked the battery voltage, used it, removed the battery for storage and tested it again and it had dropped significantly. The battery problems are really the only con's to this thing. I'm OVERALL still happy with it.
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