SK vs Snap-on vs GW

[Mgdoug3]

This post is made just to help me pass some time on a slow day. Yesterday I picked up a new Snap-on FHLF80A. The ratchet is awesome. The back drag is a little higher than what I'm used to but it has only tightened three bolts in its lifetime.

I included a picture of each ratchet dimensions. The ratchets are SK Wayne 3870 and 45170, SK 3770 and 3870 (both with DT upgrades), GW120xp and the newly acquired Snap-on.

The SK Waynes have the lightest back drag of the group. It's hard to tell which one has the least. GW is second and the rest are all about the same. The SK's with DT80s and the Snap-on have similar back drag but the two styles feel different and tough to decide without a gauge of some sorts. None are excessive by any means and are a joy to use.

I really like the Snap-on and now I'm considering another one in a regular length flex. While the GW is a decent ratchet and low back drag, the joint has a little slop and I'm not a fan of the detents. There's no doubt the Snap-on is a much stronger ratchet and more refined appearance.

With all that said, I still prefer the SK 3870 with the DT80. I like being able to spin the ratchet like a screwdriver and long enough for adequate torque. The back drag is marginally higher than the non DT mechanisms but still smooth as silk. The 3870 isn't best in tight spots due to the width of the head so it does have its downsides. The Snap-on is a great ratchet and it's easy to see why so many people regard it so highly. I doubt it'll be the last Snap-on I buy.

 

[eschoendorff]

Once upon a time I started with a snap on ratchet it was an F936 if I remember correctly. I think it had 36 teeth and you want to talk about backtrack that thing was stiff! I still have it and probably eight or 10 other snap on ratchet I don’t even know how many I have I have them in different places but they sure are handy.

That said I still use my SK ratchets I still use all my other ratchets the Proto’s and everything else. It’s amazing how you will find uses for things once you have them!

 

[Wamsutta]

I too have a stiff F936. I would say its polar opposite is Cornwell JR30.

 

[Mgdoug3]

I thought I should update this after getting the Snap-on broke in. Besides the two SK 3/8 in a 1/4 body I have, the FHLF80A is the lightest back drag 3/8 ratchet I have. I picked up a FL80 off the truck and a FF80 from Ebay. The two I bought new were 2018 models and the FF80 is 2014. I don't know if there were changes but the FF80 has more back drag than the other two.

I'm trying to break in the new 3/8 SK LP90 flex but at the moment I prefer the FHLF80A over it. I like the slimmer head of the SK and the handle over the non-soft handles Snap-ons but FHLF80A has a great feel to it.

The FHLF80A is a little long sometimes which is why I picked up the SK. I love SK tools but Snap-on makes some of the best ratchets.

 

[Fedwrench]

Gearwrench is supposed to release their new line of 90 tooth ratchets next month. They hardened the gears and redesigned their comfort grip handle.
I'm looking forward to their release.

 

[lardy1]

There are so many nice ratchets to choose from these days. I think you'd have to actually try to find a ****** one if you wanted it. Mostly it comes down to personal preference for each application. I want every ratchet I see.

 

[Mgdoug3]

The gap between truck brands and overseas ratchets are getting smaller. I don't like detents like the GW flexheads but can't complain other than that. I like supporting US companies which is why I prefer Snap-on and SK.

I'll be honest, I'm more likely to abuse my GW ratchets than my SK or Snap-ons and they have held up fine. The GW 120xp were my first high tooth ratchets and are great for the price. I've heard great things about the Tekton 90T ratchets as well.

I would like to buy a long 1/2 Snap-on Dual80 but I can't justify one at the moment. The GW, SK and breaker bars are working just fine.

 

[BarryWells]

Gearwrench is supposed to release their new line of 90 tooth ratchets next month. They hardened the gears and redesigned their comfort grip handle.
I'm looking forward to their release.

The gap between truck brands and overseas ratchets are getting smaller. I don't like detents like the GW flexheads but can't complain other than that. I like supporting US companies which is why I prefer Snap-on and SK.

I'll be honest, I'm more likely to abuse my GW ratchets than my SK or Snap-ons and they have held up fine. The GW 120xp were my first high tooth ratchets and are great for the price. I've heard great things about the Tekton 90T ratchets as well.

I would like to buy a long 1/2 Snap-on Dual80 but I can't justify one at the moment. The GW, SK and breaker bars are working just fine.

The EZ Red is as nice a ratchet SHHHHHHHHHHH

 

[Gordon R]

I have a 1/2 Snap On ratchet, which has little drag and is brand new. Previous Snap On ratchets have been clunky and clumsy. I have Proto, SK, Mac, Gearwrench, Facom, Beta, an old Blackhawk, Gordon, Britool, Kennedy Pro and Plumb ratchets, plus a few more.

Facom is the best - had my 3/8 for 20+ years and still as new. The Beta has seen 10 years of graft and the SK 1/4 finger ratchet is just as good after 20 years.

The old Blackhawk 1/2 has fewer teeth, but is smooth as silk and will outlast me.

I like Snap On spanners and sockets, but their ratchets are far from the best.

 

[rockidr4]

Used SK would be my choice. New, GearWrench if you want the best value for your money. SK if you want to buy American, and don't need tool truck service. GearWrench has tool trucks now, but more probably if you want tool truck service, Snap On is gonna be who has a tool truck operator near you.

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[BarryWells]

I have a 1/2 Snap On ratchet, which has little drag and is brand new. Previous Snap On ratchets have been clunky and clumsy. I have Proto, SK, Mac, Gearwrench, Facom, Beta, an old Blackhawk, Gordon, Britool, Kennedy Pro and Plumb ratchets, plus a few more.

Facom is the best - had my 3/8 for 20+ years and still as new. The Beta has seen 10 years of graft and the SK 1/4 finger ratchet is just as good after 20 years.

The old Blackhawk 1/2 has fewer teeth, but is smooth as silk and will outlast me.

I like Snap On spanners and sockets, but their ratchets are far from the best.

Try SO older round heads. You may dance differently.
SK had the TUFF ONE era which was maybe their best offering.

 

[Wrench97]

Never liked round head ratchets, I use mostly Snapon and Matco I really like the newer Matco thin head 3/8" ratchets.

 

[bonneyman]

There are so many nice ratchets to choose from these days. I think you'd have to actually try to find a ****** one if you wanted it. Mostly it comes down to personal preference for each application. I want every ratchet I see.

^^^This^^^

The Snappy's I've had were all pretty stiff on the back drag - even one that got a new rebuild kit. I had to shorten the pawl spring by almost have to get it to what I would call acceptable. I ended up selling or giving away all of them.
Pretty had to beat the S-K 45170, though Thorsen roundheads and EASCO's are pretty sweet.
GW are great ratcheting wrenches - no personal experience with their ratchets.

Lowest backdrag of all my ratchets are the vintage Herbrand pear-heads. Super smooth, low back drag, clicks are almost undetectable. Low tooth count but damn I don't notice it in use. (I need to find the 1/4"er M5)!

 

[Professional Tool User]

The Snap on dual 80 wins in my books when it comes to the smoothness of the ratcheting mechanism. Then comes the SK round head ratchets. The Gearwrench ratchets, both the 84 tooth and 120xp have a notchy feel to them.

 

[PR1Gneon]

Gearwrench is supposed to release their new line of 90 tooth ratchets next month. They hardened the gears and redesigned their comfort grip handle.

I'm looking forward to their release.[emoji481]

Im looking for the GW 90T but not for that price.



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[RedneckWelder]

**** at that price I’ll just buy Snap On (same thing for the SK new flex head ratchets prices too)

 

[lardy1]

Not for an import. They'll likely come down in price later.

 

[Andres26tnt]

Im looking for the GW 90T but not for that price.



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how are these for sale? they don't come out till 2020, I can't even find them on amazon.

 

[parks31]

I am leaning more towards snapon for the convenience of warranty and the quality of the ratchets. The price of imported tools just keeps climbing.

 

[PR1Gneon]

how are these for sale? they don't come out till 2020, I can't even find them on amazon.

https://www.applied.com/c-brands/c-gearwrench-tool/81210t/Flex-Head-Ratchet/p/115119632

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...Vaw2WcZNVu407vgK5ISBA_LQ3&cshid=1577398583418


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[Andres26tnt]

https://www.applied.com/c-brands/c-gearwrench-tool/81210t/Flex-Head-Ratchet/p/115119632

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...Vaw2WcZNVu407vgK5ISBA_LQ3&cshid=1577398583418


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yikes! the same mistake as HF, way too expensive. Those are USA made prices, will fork over slightly more money for a better product.

 

[rockidr4]

I am leaning more towards snapon for the convenience of warranty and the quality of the ratchets. The price of imported tools just keeps climbing.

The quality too from what I can tell

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[PR1Gneon]

Not for an import. They'll likely come down in price later.

The 84T is $48 on Amazon, I was expecting the 90T to be around $60.

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[rockidr4]

I'd welcome the quality of the imports increasing to competing effectively on a usability and durability basis with US products. That would indicate a shift in American buying habits, and what we vote with our wallets. I'm disgusted with the quality of many items that I see at the store, much less selection than years ago, and all of it poor quality.



It started in the mid-70's with Kmart introducing shoddy but extremely low priced merchandise into the market, with a 100% satisfaction guarantee. Ma and Pa stores sold better stuff, but wouldn't warranty even obvious defects, and the price was several times the Kmart price. The satisfaction guarantee and no questions asked replacement/refund coupled with low prices quickly eroded the traditional high quality and "buy it for life" mindset that consumers had to the ridiculous cheap quality and throw it away habits we have today. Wal-mart and Shopko and Target and Sears and Amazon just copied the model, after they saw it was the only way to succeed.



When I can go down and buy a GW item that I KNOW will work correctly and last, then they will be able to compete with SO and SK for me. As of now, I've had nearly 100% failure rate with GW starting about 20 years ago, so have bought only one piece new in the past 5 years, and it was a disappointment also, because of the poor design and usability, and poor quality control on multiple pieces that fit different from each other. It's going to take them starting to make good stuff, and keeping doing it for a few years reliably before I'll try any of it again.

Fair enough. My current next purchase is a used wright ratchet or a new set of Williams sockets, so I guess I'm just as leery of foreign tools as anyone else, but when I look at the knife industry, I see that the manufacturing power of the overseas machinists and heat treaters are just as good as domestic, if not better. The different in quality of any tool at this point isn't where it was made, but whether or not the plant in which it was made was trying to make a quality tool

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[81turbota]

$110 for a gearwrench ratchet? I’ll pass. Plenty of better options in that price bracket.

 

[FerrariPower]

But, if they're ever going to really compete with the big boys, they're going to have to start charging enough to buy good materials, design it well, test it and improve on the design where testing shows it's needed, have it manufactured with high standards, use quality control to insure the high standards are being adhered to, and sell it with a profit that insures their costs are covered and they stay in business. To really compete, they're going to have to build new, high quality, innovative products, not just copy 15 or 20 year old stuff that's off patent.

The business model of doing a rip off copy of the market leader's innovations, and making it LOOK like the real thing at a lower quality won't work forever; eventually the big boys will not be able to pay for innovation for the wannabees to copy and will go out of business.

I hope this is starting to happen, I'd like to see quality come up again, and there be a meaningful choice in the market.

If you go on eBay you can buy a brand new Snap-on FHX80A for $125 (soft grip, locking flex). That seems the most comparable in length, and the gear wrench appears to be semi-locking adjustable.

If you spend $110 on the above GearWrench ratchet, you're just a fool. They are not even close to being in the same league.

Some of us crazy people have over 25 ratchets because they overpaid, and like variety, or just waited and scooped up insane deals locally from other foolish people who overspend (me).

...But with that one FHX80A you could do 99% of every single job you'd ever use a ratchet for, and that's worth spending an extra $50 over some Taiwan/Chinese/Cheapo (minus a really high leverage situation).

I'm not sure those Amazon prices are real for GW however, since the tool people there sell Snap-on for two times retail.

 

[rockidr4]

That last part is the part that I'm the most curious about. How much is that price inflated for early adopters and people who don't know any better the price range that GearWrench should sell at? I'm gonna keep my eye on Zoro.com

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[2ndGearRubber]

That last part is the part that I'm the most curious about. How much is that price inflated for early adopters and people who don't know any better the price range that GearWrench should sell at? I'm gonna keep my eye on Zoro.com

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Nail on the head. Same as any other release by any other brand. Starts off at MSRP, after 6months or so "street price" has been established and is generally consistent.

"Gearwrench 90 tooth ratchet", reveals the amazon listings, and product release info which states release as for early 2020. I'd guess the 90tooth ratchets on amazon will be drop shipped straight from GW, earliest delivery for me is the 3-7th of January. GW is likely hoping a few will take the bait before the full roll out.

 

[Lassen Forge]

How long is it until we do away with teeth altogether, and just have some kind of friction lock up? I mean, I still remember when a 36 tooth ratchet was fine, and my 80s are the cats pajamas, but there has to be a limit somewhere to the "chase the tooth number" game.

 

[BarryWells]

How long is it until we do away with teeth altogether, and just have some kind of friction lock up? I mean, I still remember when a 36 tooth ratchet was fine, and my 80s are the cats pajamas, but there has to be a limit somewhere to the "chase the tooth number" game.

Snap-On did one of those. Failed. They then did 100 tooth round head which was decent.

Seems 72 tooth were the majic number overall but the low backdrag ratts rule the roost for real mechanics. SK was hard to beat in that category. A broken in Wright is similar. The XL Proto 45 is a nice piece too.

If I was unfortunate enough to work on new cars daily I think the Matco 88's would leave my box more often than all the others combined. The GW 84 is a good piece too.Similar.

Off the shelf/truck today new stuff the 90 tooth stuff is nice. Not "better", per say, but nice to spin. Mac axis are great( I imagine the Proto is the same ?)

 

[fang123]

Gearwrench ratchet for $110, with a snap ring and cheesy plate to hold the guts in???????? LOL... I'll pass. I wonder if it will self reverse and lock up like every other Gearwrench ratchet I have wasted my money on.

 

[Minnesota Steve]

Guys that amazon listing is from a seller of a questionable nature. If you look at their storefront, all the tools they have are marked up greatly, like screwdrivers others sell for $15 marked up to $25. I think what they're doing is listing the item, and if you do buy it they'll drop ship it from a different seller on amazon.

Always check the seller... if it's not amazon.com, then you need to double check the prices.

 

[Yarpo]

Guys that amazon listing is from a seller of a questionable nature. If you look at their storefront, all the tools they have are marked up greatly, like screwdrivers others sell for $15 marked up to $25. I think what they're doing is listing the item, and if you do buy it they'll drop ship it from a different seller on amazon.

Always check the seller... if it's not amazon.com, then you need to double check the prices.

Nail on the head. Same as any other release by any other brand. Starts off at MSRP, after 6months or so "street price" has been established and is generally consistent.

"Gearwrench 90 tooth ratchet", reveals the amazon listings, and product release info which states release as for early 2020. I'd guess the 90tooth ratchets on amazon will be drop shipped straight from GW, earliest delivery for me is the 3-7th of January. GW is likely hoping a few will take the bait before the full roll out.

Bingo. I imagine they won't be selling them at that once the lineup is fully released. Prices will come down, tho I'm curious how much higher than the 84T stuff they end up. Plus as stated, at 110 dollars nobody would buy them given the ratchets near that price point, not even me and I'm pretty sure I own more GW tools than most people

 

[bubinga]

This post is made just to help me pass some time on a slow day. Yesterday I picked up a new Snap-on FHLF80A. The ratchet is awesome. The back drag is a little higher than what I'm used to but it has only tightened three bolts in its lifetime.

I included a picture of each ratchet dimensions. The ratchets are SK Wayne 3870 and 45170, SK 3770 and 3870 (both with DT upgrades), GW120xp and the newly acquired Snap-on.

Im sorry, but what is a DT upgrade?

 

[BarryWells]

Im sorry, but what is a DT upgrade?

Doubles the tooth count. Dual pawl cartridge insert

 

[M6erfan]

Im sorry, but what is a DT upgrade?

https://sktools.com/shop/800720-2-3-8-dr-dt80.html

 

[bubinga]

Doubles the tooth count. Dual pawl cartridge insert

https://sktools.com/shop/800720-2-3-8-dr-dt80.html

OK, Thanks,