SK fit vs. Snap-On

[dfadams1956]

How well do SK bit sockets fit compared to Snap-On? The reason I'm asking this question is because I was working on my Suzuki Intruder recently and stripped out the inside of one of the allen head (internal hex head) style bolts with a Craftsman bit socket I was using. The bolt was very tight and the bit socket fit was a bit on the loose side. So I bought a Snap-On bit socket to remove the rest of the bolts which were just as tight and had no problems. The Snap-On fit nice and tight. I've decided to purchase a good set of bit sockets and have been considering both the Snap-On and SK brands.

 

[chad s]

Well, you know the Snap On's work great, why take a chance on anything else. Unless you can find someone that actually has both snapon and SK equivalent sets, and you want to go on their opinion, Id go with Snap On.

 

[Junkman]

You get what you pay for. Buy cheap, and it will cost you more in aggravation and time later on. There is a reason that professionals use Snap-On tools. They are the best that you can get. I know someone that works at Boeing, and he said that they use only Snap-On black tools. They don't want to even risk that the chrome will chip and get into a aircraft engine during assembly. Makes you wonder why more people don't use the black industrial finish.

 

[dfadams1956]

I've been leaning in that direction, but I'm still curious if there's a difference in the way they fit.

 

[Cashed]

I've been leaning in that direction, but I'm still curious if there's a difference in the way they fit.

You could buy one of each and measure them with a micrometer. That would be neat to see. My money is on the snap on being of closer tolerances.

 

[jimmycrackcorn]

Have you ever noticed that the snap on metric ones are coated, and the standard sizes are not.

 

[ImportTuner]

Have you ever noticed that the snap on metric ones are coated, and the standard sizes are not.

What do you mean coated? Both my Snap On metrics and SAE look the same ..

 

[dfadams1956]

What do you mean coated? Both my Snap On metrics and SAE look the same ..

The Snap-On bit socket I bought has a gold colored coating on it.

 

[eschoendorff]

I have not been necessarily pleased with my SK sockets. I have actually had better fit with my Craftsmans. If you need a tool that will fit with minimal slop, go for the Snap On.

 

[dfadams1956]

I have not been necessarily pleased with my SK sockets. I have actually had better fit with my Craftsmans. If you need a tool that will fit with minimal slop, go for the Snap On.

Thanks for that reply. I'll buy Snap-On. I don't want a repeat of the previous disaster.

 

[jimmycrackcorn]

What do you mean coated? Both my Snap On metrics and SAE look the same ..

The SO metrics are gold and the SAE are grey.

 

[kartracer55]

Craftsman>SK. Skip the SK.... they have a bad design for bit sockets.

Jim

 

[shocker51]

Might not be the tool. One thing that causes internal hex heads to strip out is crud inside the head so the hex bit isn't fully inserted.

 

[dfadams1956]

Might not be the tool. One thing that causes internal hex heads to strip out is crud inside the head so the hex bit isn't fully inserted.

Not the problem. The bolt was clean inside and the tool was fully inserted and seated in the fastener. I was also careful not to let the tool wobble over as I was trying to loosen it. The Craftsman bit socket was just too loose a fit. That much I am sure of.

 

[jimmycrackcorn]

just curiouse what size was the fastener?

 

[dfadams1956]

just curiouse what size was the fastener?

It was a 6mm.

 

[Cashed]

I have Long SK allen set and a short craftsman set. Just for shits and giggles I went and measured them. I wiped both of the bits off so there was no debris on them. I used the 5mm.

SK

Craftsman

The craftsman actually has a better fit. Just a little but its noticable on the mic. I have never noticed a looser fit while working with either though.

 

[dfadams1956]

I have Long SK allen set and a short craftsman set. Just for shits and giggles I went and measured them. I wiped both of the bits off so there was no debris on them. I used the 5mm.

SK

Craftsman

The craftsman actually has a better fit. Just a little but its noticable. I have never noticed a looser fit while working with either though.

Looks like it should fit fine. Maybe mine was defective? I don't have a way to measure mine so I can't say for sure.

 

[Cashed]

I would be interested in what a snap on / mac measures. If anyone has one that wants to measure?

 

[MAD]

I do not have any SK bit sockets but I do have Both Craftsman and Snap-on hex bit sockets in 1/4". They measured the same with my H.F. digital caliper. The Snap-on socket does not have as much chamfer on the leading edges as any of the other hex bit sockets I have (that have not been ground shorter). That lack of chamfer at the tip could account for a slightly tighter fit in some cases. I have found that even when the recess in a bit type fastener looks clean, I am less likely to strip it out if I spray a little WD40 in the hole and tap the socket with a hammer. And if the tip of a bit socket is worn even a little, take the time to grind it down until you get past the rounded part, being careful not to heat the metal enough to loose the temper. Or get a new socket.

I like the Craftsman hex bit sockets I have and think they are a good value. I have only had them for a few months but I have used them enough to say that the ones I have are decent. The 6mm size gets a lot of use for me and I have hammered the Craftsman with an impact a few times and it still shows no wear. That being said, in my long term experience I have found that the Snap-on bit sockets are the best. They are incredibly hard and last along time before they show wear. They do deform, but it takes a lot of abuse. If only they had a feature that told you that you left the socket inserted in a fastener I would still have my 6mm.

As far as SK bit sockets are concerned, I have never owned any so I can only say this: The Owner of the last auto repair shop I worked for ten years ago preferred SK ratchets over Snap-on but always bought Snap-on bit sockets even though I don't think he liked the Snap-on dealer very much.

What I did as a low level tech making very little money was to buy decent but cheap bit sockets to cover all sizes and buy Snap-on for the ones I used the most. I bought Lisle at the time since that was what was available to me cheap. The shop I last worked at did about 70% VW so an 8mm triple square and a couple sizes of Allens covered the high volume ones I was working on at the time. If I had been at a place that worked on more domestic cars I don't think the Lisle Torx sockets would have cut it for long.

 

[george4]

Craftsman>SK. Skip the SK.... they have a bad design for bit sockets.

Jim

Could you elaborate on the design issue re SK? Thanks.

 

[kidney]

Could you elaborate on the design issue re SK? Thanks.

I think it's due to SK using a set screw to keep the bit inside of the socket.


The most used tool in my garage are my Craftsman bit sockets. I have stripped out a few bolts due to me not making sure the bit was fully seated. Since my bike uses a lot of large sae and metric bits, the big metric and sae ones do get used on the wrong bolt, but it's so close that it's hard to tell. I use mine on a ratchet or a speed wrench. Anything bigger than what comes in the craftsman set, I go to sears and buy an L-key and cut off a portion off the bottom and put it in a socket. One that comes to mind is a 1/2 hex. However, I have broken one of my metric bit sockets. The bit itself broke right in half. I keep a bunch of cheap L-keys laying around that I modify to fit in weird places, so I just cut the bottom off of one and pounded it back into the socket piece and when the job was done I pounded it back out, pushed in the bad one and took it back to sears for free replacement.

I will say that I have stripped out a lot of the button head hex screws, though. I don't think even having a snap-on bit would help with that. Even at work, when working on a machine that has button head screws -unless needed for clearance- we change them out for one that has a deeper head on it.

 

[chad s]

As a side note, If you buy the Snap On set, dont get the ball end ones as your only set. They are handy for tight areas though. I have both the ball end and regular in SAE, and they are great, but I used the 1/8" ball end to break a tight screw lose, and the ball sheared right off! The local Snap On rep just ordered me a replacement tip, but the ball end are obviousely not for high torque situations.

 

[-lecroix-]

I would be a dollar to a donut that the C-man and the "superior" Snap On measure pretty close to the same if measure with quality micrometers.

I'm betting the "slop" was in the bolt head. Bolts are made by a process thats called "cold heading" and then the hex shape is broached into the head.

Just my .02 cents worth.

 

[dfadams1956]

As a side note, If you buy the Snap On set, dont get the ball end ones as your only set. They are handy for tight areas though. I have both the ball end and regular in SAE, and they are great, but I used the 1/8" ball end to break a tight screw lose, and the ball sheared right off! The local Snap On rep just ordered me a replacement tip, but the ball end are obviousely not for high torque situations.

I appreciate the tip. I don't have the need for the ball end so I'll just be buying the regular type hex bit sockets.

 

[dfadams1956]

I would be a dollar to a donut that the C-man and the "superior" Snap On measure pretty close to the same if measure with quality micrometers.

I'm betting the "slop" was in the bolt head. Bolts are made by a process thats called "cold heading" and then the hex shape is broached into the head.

Just my .02 cents worth.

Could very well be. The bolt heads on my bike aren't very deep, either. So it would be fairly easy to round them out if anything was much out of spec.

 

[george4]

As a side note, If you buy the Snap On set, dont get the ball end ones as your only set. They are handy for tight areas though. I have both the ball end and regular in SAE, and they are great, but I used the 1/8" ball end to break a tight screw lose, and the ball sheared right off! The local Snap On rep just ordered me a replacement tip, but the ball end are obviousely not for high torque situations.

Roger that. I sheared off a few too.

 

[george4]

I think it's due to SK using a set screw to keep the bit inside of the socket.


The most used tool in my garage are my Craftsman bit sockets. I have stripped out a few bolts due to me not making sure the bit was fully seated. Since my bike uses a lot of large sae and metric bits, the big metric and sae ones do get used on the wrong bolt, but it's so close that it's hard to tell. I use mine on a ratchet or a speed wrench. Anything bigger than what comes in the craftsman set, I go to sears and buy an L-key and cut off a portion off the bottom and put it in a socket. One that comes to mind is a 1/2 hex. However, I have broken one of my metric bit sockets. The bit itself broke right in half. I keep a bunch of cheap L-keys laying around that I modify to fit in weird places, so I just cut the bottom off of one and pounded it back into the socket piece and when the job was done I pounded it back out, pushed in the bad one and took it back to sears for free replacement.

I will say that I have stripped out a lot of the button head hex screws, though. I don't think even having a snap-on bit would help with that. Even at work, when working on a machine that has button head screws -unless needed for clearance- we change them out for one that has a deeper head on it.

I have no problem with cman. My mm set and miscellaneous sae are fine except that I did have the 6mm deform from twisting. It was seated pretty good but I was leaning on a 3/8 ratchet.