Snap-on VS Wright Tool --- Flank Drive Plus VS WrightGRIP

[woodstockva]

www.GBToolsnz.com contacted me a while back to see if I would like to re-do my original WrightGRIP wrench video, where I compared the WrightGRIP to a Craftsman, Gearwrench, & SK wrench. In that video they all failed except for the WrightGRIP. They offered to provide a Snap-on Flank Drive Plus wrench in the same sizing, so I could show a comparison of the Snap-on & WrightGRIP.

Both of these wrenches (Wright & Snap-on) are made 100% in the USA, and are very comparable in weight, performance, and quality. The Snap-on is slightly longer (by about 3/4") & it has a 15 degree offset on the boxed end VS around a 7-8 degree offset with the WrightGRIP.

I personally think it boils down to brand preference with these wrenches, but you may want to take into account the offset on the boxed end, as well as the length that you prefer.

*** I used the satin finish WrightGRIP wrench for this demonstration, but Wright does offer the identical wrench in full polish if that is your preference ****

Check out the review here ---->

 

[monomach]

Sold my Snappys a while back, running Wrights in the work box now. Couldn't be happier. Best wrenches I've ever used.

 

[sal024]

very well done

 

[ADSR]

Now that was great! So it comes down to 3 things for me. Offset as you said, price and quality of finish.

Love the test!

 

[Wamsutta]

That was the best YouTube video I've ever seen. Bar none.

 

[OxJaw]

Awesome test, well done.

One thing that would neat to see is if the Snap-On or Wright would grab and turn a bolt that was rounded by one of the other wrenches in your previous test.

 

[RCStocker]

I have a back up set of SAE Wright Wrenches. The set is form 1/4" to 1-1/4 They are satin finish and work very well. I have a longs set of Snap-on's and SK. I have Craftsman sets and other SK short sets. They all work well. I got all of my Snap-on tools dirt cheap or I would not own them. I really like my SK. The Wright have sharp edges that were not de-burred properly. I have never had a bolt or nut I could not remove with a raised panel Craftsman. I like the longer wrenches. Sell the Snap-on and put the money in the bank. I got my set new at the swap-meet for $50 new in a wrench roll. It took me a month to get him down form $150. No one wanted them. Huge swap meet. Years ago they would have been gone in the first 10 minuets. Now here in California no one is paying anything for tools or machinery. So much has been dumped on the market that it became cheap. Good old Capitalism. LOL The set is the only Wright tools I own. I would not go out and buy any tools new. I would not buy Wright unless they were less than 20 cents on the dollar.

 

[mikebramel]

Five stars. Two thumbs up

 

[Fedwrench]

SUPER JOB on the video!!!

Are you going to open up testing to Proto, Mac, Carlyle, etc. 5/8 wrenches?

 

[KamiCrit]

How does the Wright wrench compare to Proto's Anti-Slip Design (ASD) wrenches? Also, who in Canada sells Wright wrenches?

 

[espyking83]

Great video. Where the hell do you find Wright's in Woodstock? I can't even find them in Harrisonburg LOL.


I'll still take my Proto's or Wrights over SO all day. But honestly, they held up much better than I figured they would.

 

[espyking83]

How does the Wright wrench compare to Proto's Anti-Slip Design (ASD) wrenches? Also, who in Canada sells Wright wrenches?

I'd bring popcorn for that video.

 

[sloppy]

I have tried this test with the local wright tools sales rep.. And the wright wrench's and the snapons are both pretty awesome..

I will say I got the snap on to strip the grade 8 bolt head without the cheater bar, the wright would still turn and I could probably had broken the bolt with the wright..

 

[Exceller8]

Great video!! Anyone know where I can get a mandrel like that? I want to test a few wrenches at home.

 

[Trucky]

Ditto to Excellers comment. Where can you get something cool like that? I made something similar last year at work out of a block of tool steel and a grade 8 bolt.. but the intent there was to test hex bit sockets. Not nearly as nice looking

 

[n8n]

great stuff. I am still happy with my S-K Superkromes, but if I need another set of combination wrenches, Wright and Snappy just went to the top of my list (even though I do prefer the feel of the S-K to Snappy as I usually work without gloves.)

This ties in nicely to the "is there really a difference" thread, I think...!

Would love to see some more similar tests, e.g. the Proto mentioned above and maybe some Macs and Cornwells so we could see how the "other truck brands" stack up.

 

[Skin]

How does the Wright wrench compare to Proto's Anti-Slip Design (ASD) wrenches?

I have MAC wrenches which have the same ASD design and I found it entirely worthless. The indents only become beneficial when they're close to the jaws, not at the far end. The reason being that's where most of your turning force is so by have a radius design close to the arch it allows most of the force off corner of the fastener. This is what GW, Matco, Armstrong, Williams and Snap-On FD+ use (Snap-On has both this and teeth).

What happens with the ASD design is the force is applied directly to the corners of the fastener and not only that but wrench spread becomes more apparent due to this and basically rolls the fastener completely out of the ASD notches at the front.

From my testing it may as well not even be there although im sure its great from a marketing standpoint.

You can see what I mean here, moderate force applied and the bolt has rolled well past the ASD points. Had they been located inward the bolt wouldn't have done this.



And here is a Matco which has the indents located to actually lock a fastener in place off its corners (one indent inside one indent outside). This is also with moderate force applied (note the discoloring metal at the contact points due to the stress). You'll shear a fastener off with this design as well minus the teeth marks. Only caveat with this particular design is it only works in the "proper direction", if you rotate the other way its a normal open end wrench.

 

[woodstockva]

Sold my Snappys a while back, running Wrights in the work box now. Couldn't be happier. Best wrenches I've ever used.

Yeah I love my WrightGRIP wrenches....I have a full SAE set, and now I need to get the full Metric ones

very well done

Thanks!

Now that was great! So it comes down to 3 things for me. Offset as you said, price and quality of finish.

Love the test!

Thanks! I have the SAE WrightGRIP's in full polish chrome & I like the looks of them a lot better than the satin. I wanted to show that the WrightGRIP would still work flawlessly in this test, which is why I used the one from my original video this time.

That was the best YouTube video I've ever seen. Bar none.

Thanks haha....thats quite a compliment!

Awesome test, well done.

One thing that would neat to see is if the Snap-On or Wright would grab and turn a bolt that was rounded by one of the other wrenches in your previous test.

Thanks! I am out of that particular size of grade 8 bolts at the moment, but once I get some more from the store I will try again and let you know.

I have a back up set of SAE Wright Wrenches. I got my set new at the swap-meet for $50 new in a wrench roll.

WOW! Are they the standard older Wrights, or the new WrightGRIP wrenches? Thats a great deal!

Five stars. Two thumbs up

Thanks!

SUPER JOB on the video!!!

Are you going to open up testing to Proto, Mac, Carlyle, etc. 5/8 wrenches?

Thanks! Oh, I would be happy to do this test with whatever wrenches companies wanted to send my way, I enjoy making this test, and I think it is definitely eye opening to the different quality you will run into out there.

How does the Wright wrench compare to Proto's Anti-Slip Design (ASD) wrenches? Also, who in Canada sells Wright wrenches?

Not sure, I have not used Proto ASD as of yet.

Great video. Where the hell do you find Wright's in Woodstock? I can't even find them in Harrisonburg LOL.


I'll still take my Proto's or Wrights over SO all day. But honestly, they held up much better than I figured they would.

Haha....online! The place I find everything....Lowes is pretty slim pickins

I have tried this test with the local wright tools sales rep.. And the wright wrench's and the snapons are both pretty awesome..

I will say I got the snap on to strip the grade 8 bolt head without the cheater bar, the wright would still turn and I could probably had broken the bolt with the wright..

I figured they both would hold up roughly the same, and thats just what happened as you saw....but I was a lot more surprised in my original WrightGRIP video that my gearwrench long pattern failed so quickly.

Great video!! Anyone know where I can get a mandrel like that? I want to test a few wrenches at home.

Thanks! I am sending Wright Tool an email to check and see if they can point me in the right direction for you guys to purchase those mandrels if you want one....they are very handy for this test.

Ditto to Excellers comment. Where can you get something cool like that? I made something similar last year at work out of a block of tool steel and a grade 8 bolt.. but the intent there was to test hex bit sockets. Not nearly as nice looking

Did your homemade one hold up or strip out? The mandrel they sent me seems to be as hard or harder than a lugnut to be honest.....very durable & it has sheared off over 30 bolts now with no issues.

great stuff. I am still happy with my S-K Superkromes, but if I need another set of combination wrenches, Wright and Snappy just went to the top of my list (even though I do prefer the feel of the S-K to Snappy as I usually work without gloves.)

This ties in nicely to the "is there really a difference" thread, I think...!

Would love to see some more similar tests, e.g. the Proto mentioned above and maybe some Macs and Cornwells so we could see how the "other truck brands" stack up.

Thanks! I would be happy to test any wrenches that would be comparable to these...I enjoy making the videos

I have MAC wrenches which have the same ASD design and I found it entirely worthless.

What happens with the ASD design is the force is applied directly to the corners of the fastener and not only that but wrench spread becomes more apparent due to this and basically rolls the fastener completely out of the ASD notches at the front.

Wow! I am surprised to see that the MAC wrench failed....what size bolt head was that?

 

[sonvolt]

Excellent vid, I have both Wright wrightgrip and Proto ASD wrenches, both excellent quality.

 

[RedneckWelder]

I have MAC wrenches which have the same ASD design and I found it entirely worthless. The indents only become beneficial when they're close to the jaws, not at the far end. The reason being that's where most of your turning force is so by have a radius design close to the arch it allows most of the force off corner of the fastener. This is what GW, Matco, Armstrong, Williams and Snap-On FD+ use (Snap-On has both this and teeth).

What happens with the ASD design is the force is applied directly to the corners of the fastener and not only that but wrench spread becomes more apparent due to this and basically rolls the fastener completely out of the ASD notches at the front.

From my testing it may as well not even be there although im sure its great from a marketing standpoint.

Thanks for the info on the Mac. I was considering buying Proto or Mac wrenches this fall for school but I'm skipping them now. Likely go with Wright or maybe Snap On if the discount is better than Wrights's price.

 

[redwrench60]

You do excellent reviews. Good clear well lit camera shots, no bitching up, studdering or mumbling. Easy to see results. Hope to see more of these type of tests.

 

[Skin]

I am surprised to see that the MAC wrench failed....what size bolt head was that?

5/8"

Thanks for the info on the Mac. I was considering buying Proto or Mac wrenches this fall for school but I'm skipping them now. Likely go with Wright or maybe Snap On if the discount is better than Wrights's price.

Unless you need very high torque on an open end they're still excellent wrenches. The box end is the real business end of a combo anyway.

 

[92integra]

hey guy's i'd like to get some imput from you do you think that the cornwell style of wrench would work even better it looks like to me it would grip the fastener even better then the FD+ or wright grip style. if you look at the open end of the wrench below you can see it would fit around the fastener on 4 sides vs the two side on a regular wrench. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Cornwell-18...1421200055&pt=Motors_Automotive_Tools&vxp=mtr

 

[JDon99]

Great videos as always. Now the next test between the two would be the try a case hardened bolt and see what happens.

 

[Skin]

hey guy's i'd like to get some imput from you do you think that the cornwell style of wrench would work even better it looks like to me it would grip the fastener even better then the FD+ or wright grip style. if you look at the open end of the wrench below you can see it would fit around the fastener on 4 sides vs the two side on a regular wrench. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Cornwell-18...1421200055&pt=Motors_Automotive_Tools&vxp=mtr

Despite having four flat sides only the two main jaws matter in turning/torque load. The V design is also inherently weaker and will permanently deform under repeated stressing faster than an arch so over the long haul you'll end up with oversized open ends. See photos.




And the bolt rolling out of the V.



And the wrench rounding.




It bears repeating Cornwell, along with MAC and Proto and a myriad of other manufacturers who don't offer fancy open ends, otherwise makes excellent wrenches. I've never had the box end of any of these manufacturers fail me and 9 times out of 10 that's what im using.

 

[ADSR]

Skin, that is a nice finish on the wrench tho! lol

 

[Skin]

Always said, Cornwell, MAC, and Proto, nicest looking full polish chrome in the industry today .

 

[92integra]

Hey thanks for that Skin. I guess I'll be buying some fd+ or Wright grips! Anyone know if Wright offers an xterra long wrench with the Wright grip style..... looking for the these for work on alignments! And I know SO doesn't make fd+ in the extra long size and I could use all the help I can get considering I wieght like 145

 

[RedneckWelder]

Unless you need very high torque on an open end they're still excellent wrenches. The box end is the real business end of a combo anyway.

This will be for heavy equipment/diesel work. If I'm paying the money for good wrenches I want the better product.

 

[Chuck122]

Despite having four flat sides only the two main jaws matter in turning/torque load. The V design is also inherently weaker and will permanently deform under repeated stressing faster than an arch so over the long haul you'll end up with oversized open ends. See photos.









And the bolt rolling out of the V.







And the wrench rounding.









It bears repeating Cornwell, along with MAC and Proto and a myriad of other manufacturers who don't offer fancy open ends, otherwise makes excellent wrenches. I've never had the box end of any of these manufacturers fail me and 9 times out of 10 that's what im using.

Also the short radius of the v is a greater stress riser than the large U, not that I have ever seen a quality wrench broken...

 

[Wakefield]

Snap On should consider making their OSHM150B style wrenches (combination wrench with 6 point box end) with the Plus feature on the open end since those wrenches are supposed to be good for rusty/tough situations. They don't seem to be made bigger than 19mm. (I have the ones in the set of 7) and a 5/8"s since that one should work in place of 16mm.
I do have a set of Metric Wrightgrip in "satin" bonelike texture and that does seem better for ordinary use instead of the jewel like polished Snap On.
Interesting that the 9/16" Wrightgrip hasn't worn out after 20(?) torture tests

 

[Steinmetz]

A few comments. The Craftsman, Gearwrench and SK wrenches could not be fairly compared to the Wright since, even upon visual inspection, they obviously lack the internal jaw configurations of the Wright tool. All that you have shown is that the internal serrations do allow the cap screw to be broken when sufficient torque is applied. The test has nothing to do with the brand, however. It is only the serrations in the jaw interior that make this possible.

Therefore, you could (surprise!) attain exactly the same result with a pipe wrench.

 

[908Jim]

Duplicate

 

[908Jim]

I would be interested in seeing a comparison of non-serrated jaws.

I believe a more informative/accurate comparison of open end strength may be to do the same test with multiple non-serrated wrenches. Then, when the wrenches slip, use a beam torque wrench to measure how much torque it takes to further tighten the bolt if it hadn't broken before the wrench slipped. From a brand quality standpoint, I feel that this test sort of apples to oranges.

While a hex mounted to a torque tester may be the most accurate, I would at least order a box of bolts. This way, you can assume that the thread finish and interface friction is essentially identical, since they are all from the same lot.


Sent from my XT907 using Tapatalk

 

[Skin]

Hey thanks for that Skin. I guess I'll be buying some fd+ or Wright grips! Anyone know if Wright offers an xterra long wrench with the Wright grip style..... looking for the these for work on alignments! And I know SO doesn't make fd+ in the extra long size and I could use all the help I can get considering I wieght like 145

That is the downside with Wright. That's the longest combo they make.

Matco has extra longs with the opti-torque pro open ends which grip amazingly well.
Williams and Snap-On regular lengths are both fairly long, as long as what most other brands call "long patterns".
Snap-On reversible ratcheting wrenches also have FD+ and are a little longer than their standard combos however they stop at 19mm / 3/4".

 

[woodstockva]

You do excellent reviews. Good clear well lit camera shots, no bitching up, studdering or mumbling. Easy to see results. Hope to see more of these type of tests.

Thanks! I appreciate it....I do try and make videos that dont look like they were shot on-the-go with a cellphone

Great videos as always. Now the next test between the two would be the try a case hardened bolt and see what happens.

Thanks! Do you know where I could find one of those bolts? What do I look for?

Despite having four flat sides only the two main jaws matter in turning/torque load. The V design is also inherently weaker and will permanently deform under repeated stressing faster than an arch so over the long haul you'll end up with oversized open ends.

It bears repeating Cornwell, along with MAC and Proto and a myriad of other manufacturers who don't offer fancy open ends, otherwise makes excellent wrenches. I've never had the box end of any of these manufacturers fail me and 9 times out of 10 that's what im using.

Wow....thanks for the step-by-step photos....looks very similar to how the regular wrenches failed in my initial video.

A few comments. The Craftsman, Gearwrench and SK wrenches could not be fairly compared to the Wright since, even upon visual inspection, they obviously lack the internal jaw configurations of the Wright tool. All that you have shown is that the internal serrations do allow the cap screw to be broken when sufficient torque is applied. The test has nothing to do with the brand, however. It is only the serrations in the jaw interior that make this possible.

Therefore, you could (surprise!) attain exactly the same result with a pipe wrench.

A few more comments...

#1 - The last video was to show the differences between a regular combo wrench & the WrightGRIP....it was not a battle of the wrenches.

#2 - I think I showed fairly well that both the Snap-on & Wright do not slip....which was the intention to test.

#3 - It absolutely has to do with the brands, since they are ALL different with the internal serrations. If by simply adding serrations to the jaw, any brand could achieve these results.....then by that logic a $5 set of china wrenches from Wal-mart could do the same thing as a Snap-on.....I think not.

I would be interested in seeing a comparison of non-serrated jaws.

I believe a more informative/accurate comparison of open end strength may be to do the same test with multiple non-serrated wrenches. Then, when the wrenches slip, use a beam torque wrench to measure how much torque it takes to further tighten the bolt if it hadn't broken before the wrench slipped. From a brand quality standpoint, I feel that this test sort of apples to oranges.

While a hex mounted to a torque tester may be the most accurate, I would at least order a box of bolts. This way, you can assume that the thread finish and interface friction is essentially identical, since they are all from the same lot.


Sent from my XT907 using Tapatalk

I suppose you could go as in-depth as possible if given the right equipment....but as far as a garage-style test, this is about as good as it gets. Also, as far as brand quality.....Snap-on & Wright are both top shelf.....Wright is not in the same league with store brands by any means.

That is the downside with Wright. That's the longest combo they make.

Matco has extra longs with the opti-torque pro open ends which grip amazingly well.
Williams and Snap-On regular lengths are both fairly long, as long as what most other brands call "long patterns".
Snap-On reversible ratcheting wrenches also have FD+ and are a little longer than their standard combos however they stop at 19mm / 3/4".

Wow....interesting....I am surprised that's as high as the go with FD+.....I know with my SAE WrightGRIPS, they go all the way to 1 1/4".

 

[Steinmetz]

"......then by that logic a $5 set of china wrenches from Wal-mart could do the same thing as a Snap-on.....I think not…"

Do you have any proof? If not, it is only your belief.

 

[Fcvapor05]

"......then by that logic a $5 set of china wrenches from Wal-mart could do the same thing as a Snap-on.....I think not…"

Do you have any proof? If not, it is only your belief.

The first snap-on tool I ever bought was a tappet wrench to adjust the lifters on a BMW S14.

The cheaper tappet wrench I had bought at harbor freight was too thick to do the job without taking the cylinder head apart.

So yeah, I have proof, even if he doesn't.

 

[Wakefield]

I believe the ridges and pockets in the enhanced bite open ends are only part of the story,the top flight wrenches are also probably stiffer or don't spread in the open end as much as a cheap wrench

 

[zilla68]

great video I'l have to check out wrights now