Snap on combination wrenches

[ToolGlutton]

Looks like most folks here love Snap on combination wrenches. I'm looking to buy a set of combination wrenches and want to see you advice.

Put aside price, why is Snap on version better? Snap on wrenches is tronger? I do not think other brands will break easily. At least, I do not have the strength to break even a Craftsman combination wrench.

How are Snap on wrenches compared to Cornwell, Mac, Matco, and S-K?

 

[forceyoda]

It comes down to personal preferance of the shape of the wrench, some people don't like the snap on because of how thin they are and others prefer it. I would put the MAC knuckle savers and the Cornwell in the same legue of Snap On as far as quality and strength goes, all of them are better than the S-K or craftsman. I see the Matco and i just think they are craftsman pros that are relabled but i do not have any experiance with them.

 

[krusty the clown]

to me the snap on's are lighter without sacrificing strength. MOST of the major players wrenches are good quality and like forceyoda said it a matter of your preference on the beams. of course of bonney was still in business i wouldn't have bought snap ons.

 

[-B-]

Lighter and last longer for my uses they also have a nice long pattern length. Strength and weight are directly from the forging process which are in my experience the most important factor in a high quality wrench.

 

[ToolGlutton]

Thank you. But SK wrenches look really good. Why do you think its quality is not good? They break easily or they do not last?

It comes down to personal preferance of the shape of the wrench, some people don't like the snap on because of how thin they are and others prefer it. I would put the MAC knuckle savers and the Cornwell in the same legue of Snap On as far as quality and strength goes, all of them are better than the S-K or craftsman. I see the Matco and i just think they are craftsman pros that are relabled but i do not have any experiance with them.

 

[dxdexter]

In my case I finally broke down and bought a SAE and metric set around 5 years ago because I wanted what I perceived to be the best tools available and could get them at good prices online. They look great, but my experiance has been that they perform no better than any other wrench in my box and I own many brands. The finish is superior to most , but they are harder on my hands due to the thin shafts and sharper edges. Prior to this I have owned only a few SO wrenches and they still look great after nearly 25 years. They also hold their value should I ever need to sell.

I'll admit the purchase was driven by more of a prestige thing than anything else.

 

[Fedwrench]

Snap on wrenches are finished better than most other wrenches. They are made of better steel than some brands which makes them lighter but, that weight savings is really only noticed in larger sizes say over 7/8 or 22mm. In years past there was the flank drive issue but, now everyone has some type of off corner engagement design with a different name. The flank drive plus on the open end can be handy when doing front end work. To me there's no reason to buy Snap on unless you need the truck to shop service, or the ability to make weekly payments. There are plenty of other choices that will do a great job of loosening and tightening fasteners. It's a matter of personal preference as to which brand or style of wrench feels the best when you're using it. What works for me may not feel right in another guy's hand. Some people shop by brand name alone and that's ok for them.
I have found SK wrenches to be a durable and dependable product. They might also be a bargain if you shop around. The only thing I don't like about them is that the beam is wide and fat by the boxed end. This is more noticable on the larger sizes. I also feel their standard length wrenches are a little on the heavy side. Their long metric versions seem better balanced. Their bright superchrome finish is sparkling. There have been quality concerns posted here about curvy edges and blemished chrome so, your results may vary. I found that the wrench set that really gives you the best bang for the buck (if you're not name shopping) is the 13 piece Cratfsman professional combination wrench set in metric or sae. They're finished nicely, well balanced, long, lightweight, have off corner engagement in the boxed end, and will serve you well all for a price south of $100. They don't have a magic name but, will do the job.

 

[Vulturej]

When I bought my first sets of SO combo wrenches, CM Pro did not exist and few other manufactures made the longer style of wrenches like SO. I never broken a SO wrench when it was being used correctly. I personally like the thinner beams, and the raised panel wrenches hurt my hands due to a couple surgeries. I think some of the people in forum forget that a lot of us have hard our core tools for a long time.

 

[HandyManny]

Looks like most folks here love Snap on combination wrenches. I'm looking to buy a set of combination wrenches and want to see you advice.

Put aside price, why is Snap on version better? Snap on wrenches is tronger? I do not think other brands will break easily. At least, I do not have the strength to break even a Craftsman combination wrench.

How are Snap on wrenches compared to Cornwell, Mac, Matco, and S-K?

Strength and quality wise. They are all about the same in my opinion. Like others here have said, it's a matter of how the wrench beam feels to you and what you prefer, some ar thicker/wider than others. I find the Craftsman Professional Combos to be every bit as good as the other brands listed above. Some will say that the Snap-On are heat treated and tempered better or different. All I can say is that Snap-On may heat treat and temper their unique steel alloy differently, but is it really better? Never thought so myself, as my Craftsmans have held up every bit as good as my Proto, Wright, MAC, and Snap-On wrenches that I own. Only time I've ended up with ****** knuckles has been a result of my own undoing, not the tools fault. When used correctly I've never broken, bent, or distorted any of my various wrenches.

 

[steelespeed]

I might get bashed for this, but I had a chance this weekend to see and feel the quality of Wright, SK, and Proto in person. I gotta tell ya, I really don't think any of those brands offers a better product for the cost than a set of Craftsman Pros. I am speaking mostly about the combo wrenches.

The shop I was at had both style SK's, the SuperKrome finish and the other raised panel pattern they offer. The chrome was far from perfect, much less better than the Craftsman Pro flare nut wrenches i recently picked up, there was pitting, some casting flaws, etc.

The Wright combos were very nice, probably the nicest wrenches in the store, but the prices were far too high for my use as a mechanic that wrenches for a hobby and not a paycheck.

I will admit that the quality of SK's sockets seems nice, much nicer than their wrenches. Both the exterior and the interior of the sockets were very nicely machined and finished. But again, cost per unit and ease of warranty claims keeps them a tad unrealistic for my uses.

So, all in all I am pretty disappointed. I really expected to see some tools that blew my mind in quality for the costs over the Craftsman stuff. Makes me wonder if Mac/Snap-On/Matco/Cornwell are really worth the prices they command.

 

[a390st]

I have SO, Bonney/Matco, Mac Tools, Cman Pro, and a dozen or so misc wrenches. I like the flatter beam of the Mac wrench for a lot of work. The SO are a bit sharp. The Cman Pro don't fit quite as tight, but are comfortable. The Mac wrenches are noticeably heavier than the SO, especially at the larger sizes. They all work, it just amounts to what is the most convenient for you.

 

[forceyoda]

Thank you. But SK wrenches look really good. Why do you think its quality is not good? They break easily or they do not last?

Look at the sticky for popular threads and read the SK one and you'll take them off your list.

 

[RRmech]

The older -V- series Craftsman wrenches, have done everything I've asked them to do, in 40 years of ownership.....cars, motorcycles, aircraft, and trains.
I don't own any modern Craftsman wrenches, so I don't have an opinion on them.
Snap-On and MAC make A#1 first class wrenches, and if you use them everyday to earn a living, are well worth the price of admission IMO.

Steve

 

[Moose-LandTran]

I bought my set of Eloras for a tenth the price of the same Snap-on set. They work great and have never once failed me. I only buy Snap-on for special applications, like extra-long zero-offset, S-Shaped, Short combination etc. Flare nut, however, are Elora too.

Plenty of professionals use Craftsman Profession wrenches. Unless you're working as a pro, i wouldn't buy anything above that. You can pay for Snap-on, but you won't notice any difference.

 

[fourfeathers]

Snappy has hands down the longest lasting chrome in the business, and will stand up longer to normal everyday use.

 

[sk farmer]

for some reason or another sk has had some issues in the past. their older stuff is excellant and if you watch the finish on the newer stuff you are ok. the older cman pros were made by sk and may still may be. find a wrench that you like and feels good in your hand made by one of the reputable companies and you will be fine. for the price the cman pros are hard to beat. for the same money as a truck brand you can get standard and metric with some left over.

 

[Mike83]

I read in my Snap-On tool catalog that Snap-On wrench are made with a special alloy steel that, when dropped to the ground, is claimed by technicians to make a different kind of sound than other wrenches. I for one would gladly pay the extra $300 for a set of wrenches to have a unique sound to them

 

[Merkava_4]

It comes down to personal preference of the shape of the wrench, some people don't like the snap on because of how thin they are and others prefer it.

The latest additions are thicker with rounded edges.

 

[MattPersman]

if you have a snap on guy you can get the "buy the metric get the std free" if he still has them in stock or can call the other area dealers to see if they have one. good deal for $311 if you need wrenches.

for home use I would probably buy something else unless you have the $ to spare and as others say they do have good resale, I have some napa professional wrenches and they are not terrible, full polish, not as long patterned at MAC, SO, Matco, etc though. Gearwrench makes quite a large selection of wrenches that are decent too

 

[davestlouis]

The only time I've ever really seen a differcne with SO vs. Proto, C-Man Pro and Matco was on a BMW starter...the SO was the only one that would fit onto the top starter nut...the box end is thinner in section than the other brands and it fit where the others didn't.

 

[tankboy_taylor]

my main combo wrench sets are Snap On use em all the time they feel great. I was glad I put the initial investment into the best.

 

[carsounds_dan]

I've got some older stuff and some stahlwilles that I brought recently, and have used plenty of snap-on spanners... I rate the stahlwilles higher.. some may not like the finish but the overall feel, length, strength and weight is in my opinion superiour to snap-on.