SK combination wrench question

[TOOL FANATIK]

I have searched this forum back thru May and have not seen this topic, so here it goes... Does anyone know whether SK is slated to make a combination wrench line with similar technology to snap-on's flank drive plus lines and wright-grip lines for not rounding off a bolt/nut using the open end? i searched thru their entire catalog and found nothing and i know they had the new ratcheting wrenches reveiled at SEMA. if there are no plans for this than im going to look into the wright grip. sidenote: id like to do a comparison test, how does the open end of these snap-on or wrightgrip wrenches compare to their box end in regards to maintaining their death grip....thatd be a pretty cool test to do....like the old how many licks does it take commercial, how many turns does it take til you round off or snap a grade 8?

 

[bonneyman]

SK has a broaching system called SureGrip that is basically a box end design like S-O's Flank-Drive and Bonney's Loc-Rite.

The new wrenches are combo wrenches with a "skeleton" shank design and ratcheting , 6 pt box end. And what looks like an enhanced open end profile, too.

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

Right most pro wrenches borrowed the flank drive technology for box ends but I'm referring to the open ends which are broached to size but then linear grooves are added to catch and hold the bolt or nut on it's flats. This is flank drive PLUS and wrightgrip., not sure if any other mfg s use this technology, maybe Carlyle...

 

[chepe]

Ive used the wrightgrip, and I own a set of SK wrenches. The SK worked just as good imo, great wrenches.

 

[T45]

Woodstocka (sp) has a video pf FD+ and Wright grip both shearing off a bolt head using the open end. In other words, those are fine choices. It takes a cheater bar, btw. But the don't slip.

 

[T45]

Here's the video: Snap-on VS Wright Tool (Flank Drive Plus VS WrightGRIP)

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

This video is what sparked the thread. He has a part one video where he compared the wrightgrip to an old sk and gearwrench, and both rounded the bolt, but the wrightgrip sheared the bolt.

 

[espyking83]

Supercombos are better than any wrench SK has or can ever make, IMO.

 

[87FoRunner]

I would put my SKs to that test. They are tough and beefy.


I really want a set of their crowsfoot wrenches because of how my open ends have held up.

 

[Fedwrench]

Back to the original question, SK only has a modified open end on their new x frame ratcheting wrench that comes out next year. As of this writing, SK does not have teeth or any other modified open end on their combination wrenches.

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

Back to the original question, SK only has a modified open end on their new x frame ratcheting wrench that comes out next year. As of this writing, SK does not have teeth or any other modified open end on their combination wrenches.

Do you know what that mod is on their new ratchet wrenches?

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

Supercombos are better than any wrench SK has or can ever make, IMO.

Did you mean to say superkrome? If so I agree my superkrome sk s are awesome. Wonder how they would do in that test...I don't have a 9/16" for a direct comparison. I'm poor so have to get one at a time....I have a 7/8 long pattern and a 3/4 standard length, both 6 point.
Just googled supercombo....ahhh a Williams. I do know the best adjustable wrench I've ever used was a Williams superjustable....but I dunno...imo the sk are great. Standard wrench vs standard wrench I'd put my sk's against anything.

 

[Pumpman1968]

Did you mean to say superkrome? If so I agree my superkrome sk s are awesome. Wonder how they would do in that test...I don't have a 9/16" for a direct comparison. I'm poor so have to get one at a time....I have a 7/8 long pattern and a 3/4 standard length, both 6 point.
Just googled supercombo....ahhh a Williams. I do know the best adjustable wrench I've ever used was a Williams superjustable....but I dunno...imo the sk are great. Standard wrench vs standard wrench I'd put my sk's against anything.

Supercombos are Williams

 

[Tronyadorable]

Do you know what that mod is on their new ratchet wrenches?

Yeah. A lil notch like Proto

 

[bonneyman]

Back to the original question, SK only has a modified open end on their new x frame ratcheting wrench that comes out next year. As of this writing, SK does not have teeth or any other modified open end on their combination wrenches.

Yeah, it looked like an enhanced OE. Prolly their take on how to get the force away from the point of the fastener
$400 for a set of metrics is alot for me, though.

 

[defektes]

SK does not make wrenches with the ridges like SO flank drive plus. I have both, and I work on industrial machinery in wet environments. The SK performs as well as the Snap On IMO. Where I have seen stuff really round is when the wrench is inferior metal (horrible freight) and it starts to flex open the open end. If you are flexing open a open end quality wrench you are abusing it.

We did a make shift stress test at work, not scientific at all. But a co worker swore by his pittsburg full polish long handles, the really thin flimsy ones.

We put a bolt on the vise and welded a nut to the bolt after running it down with a impact. We took a series of open ends, his pitts, a co workers badly pitted craftsman V, my SK and another co workers older Williams.

Putting a jack handle about 4' on the wrenches we put about (on a 3/4'' nut) 10 degrees and snap went the open end it began flexing open at about 3 degrees. The Williams Exceeded 10 degrees before it began flexing, the pitted CM began flexing at appx 6 degrees and hit 10 with no failure, the SK began flex at 10 aswell, we did not push all wrenches to failure, just wanted to exceed the 10 degrees the horrible freight exploded.

Basically get a good quality wrench, US and you'll be fine, notice the nut did not strip out even when these wrenches open ends were flexing open.

Get the SK with confidence, they are a tad heavier than Snap On but good quality.

Take our "test" with a grain of salt, but it does show something. I'll probably get flamed for posting it.

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

Yeah. A lil notch like Proto

Imo this looks just like the fd+... You can see the grooves towards the ends, plus it's a 4 point like proto asd or the Macs....fantastic.

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

Defectes take a close look at the photo provided above. These are slated for spring arrival. Zoom in and notice the same tech snap on uses... This feature I admit you don't always get to reap the benefits from, but man it makes a world of difference if you need it. I'm convinced.

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

SK does not make wrenches with the ridges like SO flank drive plus. I have both, and I work on industrial machinery in wet environments. The SK performs as well as the Snap On IMO. Where I have seen stuff really round is when the wrench is inferior metal (horrible freight) and it starts to flex open the open end. If you are flexing open a open end quality wrench you are abusing it.

We did a make shift stress test at work, not scientific at all. But a co worker swore by his pittsburg full polish long handles, the really thin flimsy ones.

We put a bolt on the vise and welded a nut to the bolt after running it down with a impact. We took a series of open ends, his pitts, a co workers badly pitted craftsman V, my SK and another co workers older Williams.

Putting a jack handle about 4' on the wrenches we put about (on a 3/4'' nut) 10 degrees and snap went the open end it began flexing open at about 3 degrees. The Williams Exceeded 10 degrees before it began flexing, the pitted CM began flexing at appx 6 degrees and hit 10 with no failure, the SK began flex at 10 aswell, we did not push all wrenches to failure, just wanted to exceed the 10 degrees the horrible freight exploded.

Basically get a good quality wrench, US and you'll be fine, notice the nut did not strip out even when these wrenches open ends were flexing open.

Get the SK with confidence, they are a tad heavier than Snap On but good quality.

Take our "test" with a grain of salt, but it does show something. I'll probably get flamed for posting it.

Now for your stress test....good stuff I ain't mad at ya for posting that. I just did.one last night to mimmick the you tube video (posted early in thread). I just took a 5/16 bolt and spun some nuts all the way up it. Put this in the vise with the jaws biting down on the stacked nuts and the 9/16" hex head exposed up top for my wrench to get onto, a gw non reversing ratchet wrench. Stuck the OE over that bolt and started turning, and sure enough e'n tho it did make a couple of turns (no cheater bar), it eventually began to spread. At the apex of this spreading I let go of it and it stayed. I estimate that this 9/16 wrench now was about a 5/8" wrench. (with my hands free off the wrench I grabbed another 5/16 bolt and put it's hex to the wrench jaws, big gap there. I figure it may take a little more, but without the SO technology my sk wrenches would experience the same fate, much sooner than a fd+ would. That's why I started the thread, because I hoped that sk would jump on board, and looks like they did. I knew there was something I liked about this company!

 

[defektes]

Defectes take a close look at the photo provided above. These are slated for spring arrival. Zoom in and notice the same tech snap on uses... This feature I admit you don't always get to reap the benefits from, but man it makes a world of difference if you need it. I'm convinced.

I am well aware of those, and I misread your initial post thinking if you were asking if they currently make. Sorry, I personally am going to purchase a set of those in SAE when they become available.

I agree, SK is making excellent progress, Ideal seems to be doing a good job with them. I am also interested in the new ratchet design they spoke of when they introduced those wrenches.

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

I am well aware of those, and I misread your initial post thinking if you were asking if they currently make. Sorry, I personally am going to purchase a set of those in SAE when they become available.

I agree, SK is making excellent progress, Ideal seems to be doing a good job with them. I am also interested in the new ratchet design they spoke of when they introduced those wrenches.

Yea I read a good article back from November from techshopmag.com about these wrenches. They covered a lot but oddly mentioned nothing about the open end..not that I recall anyway....

 

[MagnumForce]

Yeah. A lil notch like Proto

I don't care if that wrench is total ****, I want it now! How bad *** is that thing?

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

I don't care if that wrench is total ****, I want it now! How bad *** is that thing?

Not very in my opinion.

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

I don't care if that wrench is total ****, I want it now! How bad *** is that thing?

It certainly won't be ****. At worst it'll be as good as the snap-on ratcheting wrenches. It's a stew pot of speed, strength and beauty. Each of those ingredients are tried and tested, so in my eyes it can't not be a homerun.

 

[defektes]

I actually like the looks of it, as a good few here dislike it purely based on looks. What benefits me of these is they beefed up the ratcheting end to handle busting bolts loose. 6 PT too, cant say enough good things about what I see in those SK's.

In fact I would venture to say they may handle stress on the ratcheting end better than the Snappys.

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

I actually like the looks of it, as a good few here dislike it purely based on looks. What benefits me of these is they beefed up the ratcheting end to handle busting bolts loose. 6 PT too, cant say enough good things about what I see in those SK's.

In fact I would venture to say they may handle stress on the ratcheting end better than the Snappys.

Exactly. I don't see how it could be any better. They've tackled everything. Wait, I take that back. It could be longer;...but that's about it.

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

Exactly. I don't see how it could be any better. They've tackled everything. Wait, I take that back. It could be longer;...but that's about it.

Non-flexing, zero offset, non-reversible...........what do they do that any other featureless ratcheting wrench doesn't do? It's cool that they have built a strong mechanism, but the goofy beam is pointless in the real world and many other manufacturers have incorporated some form of anti-slip on the open ends. Also, the 6pt isn't desireable to me; I prefer 12pt or splines (like Proto). I won't be buying a set.

 

[defektes]

Non-flexing, zero offset, non-reversible...........what do they do that any other featureless ratcheting wrench doesn't do? It's cool that they have built a strong mechanism, but the goofy beam is pointless in the real world and many other manufacturers have incorporated some form of anti-slip on the open ends. Also, the 6pt isn't desireable to me; I prefer 12pt or splines (like Proto). I won't be buying a set.

Im sure they will introduce other options for those wrenches, but coming from a wet industrial environment, the really beefy 6pt is very solid selling point to me. I use combo wrenches a ton here. Sure, they made the tool look cool, eh, don't care what it looks like as long as its as strong as they claim.

And what they do that other featureless ratcheting wrenches don't do is that they are a hell of a lot stronger on the ratcheting end. I stopped using my US CM cause the 5th time I went to warranty I got lucky and spotted a NOS US wrench to replace it with. We break ratcheting wrenches here like a fat boy eats twinkees. I was about to pull the trigger on those nice US Protos and these got unveiled.

Who wouldn't want a 6pt on a ratcheting wrench? All things added up on the other thread the swing arc will eliminate the need of a 12pt, unless working with 12pt bolts, but I don't really encounter that in my field. Once the ratcheting end is on the fastener does it matter if its 6 or 12? it ratchets!

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

I actually thought of this thread earlier today while bolting the castors onto a toolbox. My 1/4" drive ratchet and 13mm socket wouldn't clear the castor so I used a Proto ratcheting wrench. Without the offset of the box end, the wrench wouldn't have worked. Hence, a simple example of why I wouldn't buy these wrenches.

They may have a strong mechanism, but it how strong will their reversing mechanism be? I won't buy non-reversing ratcheting wrenches.

 

[T45]

Never buy a wrench you need to clean with a toothbrush ...

 

[Brenticus]

Amen!

 

[Brenticus]

Re:6 point making sense in a ratchet wrench over 12 point or spline

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

I actually thought of this thread earlier today while bolting the castors onto a toolbox. My 1/4" drive ratchet and 13mm socket wouldn't clear the castor so I used a Proto ratcheting wrench. Without the offset of the box end, the wrench wouldn't have worked. Hence, a simple example of why I wouldn't buy these wrenches.

They may have a strong mechanism, but it how strong will their reversing mechanism be? I won't buy non-reversing ratcheting wrenches.

6 point 12 points doesn't matter if it ratchets, you don't have to take it off and put it on. If anything 6 point is stronger. Sometimes a 6 point won't go over a worn fastener and a 12 would. That's the sole advantage. The reversing mechanism will be very strong. Besides, you shouldn't be breaking anything lose with it anyway. You don't always need an offset. Sometimes an offset gets in the way and you need a zero offset. No one makes a ratchet wrench that can do everything. I don't see what your point is.

 

[SASORacing]

I dont even pick up non ratcheting wrenches these days. Once you try a offset reversible ratcheting wrench, one name brand with a high tooth count and slim head, you will be addicted!

 

[defektes]

I actually thought of this thread earlier today while bolting the castors onto a toolbox. My 1/4" drive ratchet and 13mm socket wouldn't clear the castor so I used a Proto ratcheting wrench. Without the offset of the box end, the wrench wouldn't have worked. Hence, a simple example of why I wouldn't buy these wrenches.

They may have a strong mechanism, but it how strong will their reversing mechanism be? I won't buy non-reversing ratcheting wrenches.

Good point, the wrenches wont work for your needs, but I got plenty of room on the equipment I work on.

If I think automotive I guess I can see a offset being a deal breaker.

But if you think about it the reverse is as strong as the entire mechanism, since it is not offset, you just flip it. So it is a give and take.