SK vs Snap-On flare nuts wrenches

[Banshee365]

Last summer I bought a new metric set of SK flare nuts wrenches. I've really loved the SK products I've bought recently so I wanted to give them a try. We all know flare nut wrenches are something not to cheap out on so I wanted to see how SK's are these days.

I must say that, so far, I've been super impressed with the quality. The finish is nuts and I've had a fuel rail feed connection that was together for 20 years that was VERY tight. It was a 14mm and 18mm. I got the connection loose and the wrenches seemed to mark the corners of the flare nut pretty good. The fit of the 14mm seemed like it could have been a little tighter.

I was curious if someone with some new Snap-On flare nut wrenches could compare some measurements with me to see the tolerance difference. For a company like SK there isn't really an excuse not to have a tighter tolerance if they wanted to. Maybe they are manufactured to their specs, maybe something is off in manufacturing. Who knows.

The ONLY OCD gripe I've got with these wrenches is that the roll marks on the 9-11 wrench are reversed from the other ones. Meaning the the offsets do not line up if you line up the roll marks in your drawer.

14mm equates to .551". My 14mm measures .559". That's an 8-thousanths clearance. Couldn't it be a bit tighter than that?

10mm equates to .394". My 10mm measures .401". That's a 7-thousanths clearance. A little better.

18mm equates to .7087" My 18mm measures .7240". Over 15-thousanths clearance? Seems like A LOT. Maybe that clearance is some sort of standard when it comes to making the fasteners but it still seems like a lot.

Can anyone mic those sizes in Snap-On to see how they compare?

 

[firworks]

Now, we watch.

 

[Strouty]

The clearance is not the only factor, they can flex too. I used to own some of those flare nut rounders that craftsman makes, now I own Snap On. It also depends on where you live, I live in the rust belt, if I lived in Arizona, Harbor Freight would probably work just fine.

 

[Deej]

I have the craftsman professional version of those sk wrenches. They've been great for the last 15 years for me

 

[T45]

Yep...static measurements arent the end-all-be-all when they flex under dynamic load.

 

[bob15]

Read the handbook of specs for SAE: http://www.nashua.edu/paradisem1/Machinery's%20Handbook%2027th/27_Fast_08A.pdf


ISO spec for metric wrenches and sockets: http://u.dianyuan.com/bbs/u/36/1135304296.pdf

 

[LXCam]

I sure wouldn't want a tighter clearance the 8 thou. I'll gladly check my SOs in the morning for you though. But now that you have those values you can double check your SK from time to time to check for spread.

 

[bob15]

And what are you using to make your measurements? Dial calipers or a micrometer?

And did you mic (with a micrometer) the 14mm fitting?

 

[anndel]

I have a Snap On set and used them on fuel rails and brake lines. I also have a Tekton set at my mom's house which did the same. Both sets worked well and got the job done, what more can I say.

 

[Banshee365]

The 14mm flare nut in question measures .5513" 3-tenths over what it mathematically converts to. The wrench has an 8-thousanths clearance on it. It doesn't sound like much, but the wrench rocks back and forth on that fastener a pretty good amount.

I know that spreading is obviously the other huge, and probably more prominent, issue with cheap flare nut wrenches. I would like to think that SK's metallurgy is on par with any of the tool truck brands and will not spread like a cheaper brand. I put a lot of torque at this union to break it lose and didn't feel the slightest bit of spread.

 

[Banshee365]

Read the handbook of specs for SAE: http://www.nashua.edu/paradisem1/Machinery's%20Handbook%2027th/27_Fast_08A.pdf


ISO spec for metric wrenches and sockets: http://u.dianyuan.com/bbs/u/36/1135304296.pdf

This is great info, thank you very much.

And what are you using to make your measurements? Dial calipers or a micrometer?

And did you mic (with a micrometer) the 14mm fitting?

I took the measurements with the internal measuring part of a set of calipers, locked it, rechecked the fitment then mic'd that with a micrometer. I feel it's within half a thousandth this way. I'm no machinist...

 

[Richard Cranium]

I have only used my USA built craftsman but have never had a problem. But no I don't really live in the rust belt.

 

[derosa]

I'm watching this one, I've got a 10 year old set of craftsman professional that I hate. Bought them when I was upgrading the soft lines on my Volvo, they did such a good job on rounding things that I had to replace half the hard lines and use vicegrips at the portioning valve after the wrench got done. Been thinking a set of wrights are in my future as I want to upgrade the soft lines on my Mazda.

 

[Strouty]

Just buy the snap on wrenches and get it over.

 

[Banshee365]

Just buy the snap on wrenches and get it over.

Based on what technical facts? The name? That's the reason for this thread. If there were a vast difference in clearance on the Snap-On wrenches I may put these on eBay and go for the Snap-On's. I have a feeling the clearances will be similar, but we will see.

I'm no Snap-On hater. I've actually spent $400 the past week or two on Snap-On stuff but I've really taken a liking to SK for the past couple of years. Everything I've gotten from them I've felt is very underrated.

 

[LXCam]

Just buy the snap on wrenches and get it over.

No ****. After going thru 4 different manufacturers offerings I finally gave in and bought both sets and am glad I did, should have done it a long time ago.

 

[Strouty]

No ****. After going thru 4 different manufacturers offerings I finally gave in and bought both sets and am glad I did, should have done it a long time ago.

Same experience, I have slowly been buying the "best" offerings from Snap On, luckily I have a very good driver and he helps me acquire most of the items through BOGO deals.

 

[T45]

Based on what technical facts?

Try hitting up the GJ search.

 

[Loscaldazar]

I'll do all of them for kicks and giggles (and science)

Snap On Flare nut wrenches, warranted for brand new ones in 2012 or 2013 shortly after I purchased them brand new. My first two sets (metric and SAE) had 11 out of 12 broached severely off center out of the box. Talk about just buying Snap On so you won't have problems, right?

9MM- .3650
10MM- .4010
11MM- .4460
12MM- .4790
13MM- .5170
14MM- .5590
15MM- .6040
16MM- .6385
17MM- .6790
18MM- .7205
19MM- .7550
21MM- .8370

Dead nuts on except for the 18MM, but still pretty close

 

[KnurledNut]

Checked mine too:
10MM .4010 (well used)
14MM .5585 (well used)
18MM .7155 (brand new never seen a bolt)

 

[Banshee365]

I went through the rest of my set and they're all pretty much dead on your measurements Loscaldazar. For the large 18mm size, we are less than the thickness of a sheet of paper so I don't think that would make much of a difference practically.

I don't have a way to check hardness levels but must assume SK's alloy is of premium quality. I suppose I'll keep these to see how the perform and if I ever have any spreading as time goes. I only have the metric set so far.

I put a huge amount of torque on the fuel line union (14mm and 19mm) and there are some marks right at the points of the fastener but otherwise there is no peened over metal around the corners like if it were rounding it.

 

[Strouty]

The thing that sold me on Snap On line wrenches was a demo that the local drive did, he would use a craftsman line wrench to round off a fitting, then take one of his wrenches and loosen the fitting he just rounded over with the craftsman wrench.

 

[Finky198]

Same experience, I have slowly been buying the "best" offerings from Snap On, luckily I have a very good driver and he helps me acquire most of the items through BOGO deals.

This I buy what snap on is known for wrenches, ratchets and prybars in general but mainly their flare wrenches, crowsfeet, DBE and 4 ways I don't have a reliable driver but I make things work between the truck eBay and CL.


I was at our local Bolt house who's an SK dealer and got to handle a bunch of stuff to be honest I'm not impressed with the chrome tools they are nice but for the price their charging I'd rather just buy Snap on. And I won't touch Theirs or other truck brand impacts they are just way to pricey compared to that of sunex GP and tekton and the functional differences are minimal.

 

[454ragtop]

Meh, I have both Snap On and SK, can't tell the difference.

 

[oldtools]

Now, we watch.

SK vs SO is not that interesting to watch as HF vs SO.

 

[oldtools]

I have both the SO and SK sets and the SO quality is excellent. SK seem a little short though it would come in handy in certain situation. When it come to flare wrench, SO is the best thought Wright is also very good.

 

[montanafordman]

I've had a set of SK flare nut wrenches for about 13+ years and have been very happy with them. They still look new and have never spread on me. The snap-on appear a little more sleek and might get into a tighter space but the difference is really aesthetic and pretty negligible from what I can tell. I'm a home enthusiast not a professional so I don't have snap-on money for everything. I feel like most SK tools are a fantastic value and work well.

 

[peejay75]

I'll add my current situation for good, ahem, measure. Trying to remove the clutch line from the master cylinder on a '94 Pathfinder. Felt leery about spending $60 on the SO 10/12mm flare nut wrench, so bought the $25 SK 10/12mm flare nut wrench. Wire brushed the threads, PB Blaster, rinse and repeat, no dice. Tried gently with a Duralast 10mm open end (which has tighter clearance than my 10mm Craftsman open end), nope. Kept penetrant, alternating tools, nothing, somewhere in the process I could see the nut starting to round off so I stopped. Thought "maybe I SHOULD spring for the SO", but I honestly don't think it would make a difference in THIS case. Bought 4" crescent wrench, got it SNUG, nut still wouldn't budge. The Irwin 4LW should arrive tomorrow, I'm pretty confident it will be the difference maker, will report back.

 

[5ubtle]

@peejay75 - Sometimes you just have to cut the line.

 

[Wamsutta]

The ONLY OCD gripe I've got with these wrenches is that the roll marks on the 9-11 wrench are reversed from the other ones. Meaning the the offsets do not line up if you line up the roll marks in your drawer.

I think I'm the only guy here that doesn't know what that means. Nobody else has mentioned it.

 

[peejay75]

@peejay75 - Sometimes you just have to cut the line.

Yep, that is my next-to-last resort! I haven't been the best at bending/flaring new lines in the past, but now may be a good time to learn to do it the right way!

 

[VolvoRyan]

Yep, that is my next-to-last resort! I haven't been the best at bending/flaring new lines in the past, but now may be a good time to learn to do it the right way!

Welcome to the forum!

Rather than revive old threads, please start a new one. The old information in 10 year-old threads is often no longer relevant. In this case, SK doesn't really exist as it used to anymore.

Fire is a great way to free flex lines from metal lines. Also, Ni-Cop brake line bends much easier than steel.

-Ryan

 

[peejay75]

(thanks for the response, Ryan, did not know that about SK not being what it used to...and will start a new thread in the future! also, i've been "burned" in the past using heat, so that's my absolute last resort, plus the area i'm working in is confined and cluttered!...and thanks for the tip about Ni-cop!!!)

 

[VolvoRyan]

(thanks for the response, Ryan, did not know that about SK not being what it used to...and will start a new thread in the future! also, i've been "burned" in the past using heat, so that's my absolute last resort, plus the area i'm working in is confined and cluttered!...and thanks for the tip about Ni-cop!!!)

It's a bummer. Too much in the tool world changes faster than we can keep up with. New threads are fun, because then it's "your thread", and it can be about your situation. Lots of really smart/good folks on the forum that can not only help with tool questions, but also help problem solve.

-Ryan

 

[Steve_P]

The USA SK flare nut wrenches tested quite well in the TTC review. Not sure if what you bought was USA or not. Either way, sometimes flare nuts will round off no matter what wrench because they're soft nuts and typically in locations that see a lot of water and salt. Clutch master cylinder should be better than most locations, but still, sometimes you just have to replace the line.

 

[Mallen]

The clearance is not the only factor, they can flex too. I used to own some of those flare nut rounders that craftsman makes, now I own Snap On. It also depends on where you live, I live in the rust belt, if I lived in Arizona, Harbor Freight would probably work just fine.

I don't get that kind of crazy rust here, but flare nuts are always jammed tight. I think you need a top notch one anywhere. I saw this today and I'm very interested in how well they work. I've never seen one like that before. Its made by Proto.

 

[F-22]

I don't get that kind of crazy rust here, but flare nuts are always jammed tight. I think you need a top notch one anywhere. I saw this today and I'm very interested in how well they work. I've never seen one like that before. Its made by Proto.

Proto is not the only one to offer this. They do work, but I think a high quality regular flare nut wrench is still better.

 

[Etchase]

In metric Snap-on only had 0.002-4 inch clearance. I was always having to pound them on which I didn’t like. Proto and Mac gave me 0.006-8 clearance which I liked. Mac, Snap-on, and Proto finished about the same in the Torque Test Channel video, with the Snap-on getting some of its points for being what I think is too tight, so your mileage may vary, but I don’t think you will be stuck with a bad tool with any of those. The cost varies considerably though.

 

[d42jeep]

Imperial offered these wrenches. I own them but never found a need for them. I gifted one to my transmission guy after he solved a particularly difficult problem. Always grabbed a Snap-On to use although I have quite a few brands.
-Don

 

[d42jeep]

A few more choices. Gotta like the California Tool/A Plomb marked wrenches.

-Don