Thin wrenches?

[Rickkyyr8]

Looking for a set of SAE thin profile wrenches. Who do you guys recommend?

 

[Meursault74]

discussed here recently

Suggestion for DIY thin open end wrench set

Hi, I'm a DIY guy who needs a thin (~1/8", no more than 3/16") 7/8" open end wrench to repair a cart. I inherited 2 sets of thin open end wrenches but unfortunately both sets top out at 11/16". I've been looking on Amazon and there are a several SAE sets (no 7/8" individual wrenches) with...

www.garagejournal.com

 

[Grant Gunderson]

I have a set of the Snapon low-torque ones ( top left of pic) mine are metric, I use them for rebuilding suspension on bikes. They excel at that. They are about twice as thick as my Park cone wrenches, but hell of a lot nicer in finish and won’t damage delicate parts that require thin wrenches.


That a Park 14mm cone a Snapon 14mm low-torque and a 14mm Snapon flankdrive plus.

Also many people don’t know this, but that funny hole in the park cone wrench is so you can use them with a Torque wrench.
I prefer crowfeet for this, but some of the stuff I work on, only the cone wrench will fit and it requires a precise torque.

 

[nadogail]

Bicycles use thin wrenches. Park Tool and Campagnolo (sp?) are the leading makers of bicycle tools. Automotive Tappet Wrenches were thin, they were used for valve adjustments on Inline Flat Head engines.

As a kid I was given a set of thin wrenches intended for the maintenance of a machine made by the Cissel (sp?) company, a maker of laundry and dry cleaning equipment. I have made thin wrenches from standard wrenches by carefully grinding their width away; this was a slow process because I had to be very careful to not overheat the wrench and draw the temper from the metal.

If you get to San Diego, you may find a used tool store. I bought a lot of tools from Pat's Tools during the 80's and 90's.

 

[robert6715]

Used tappet wrenches on eBay.

 

[tunnelengineer]

I recently bought this set from Capri on Amazon for a small project and they worked fine. Give them a look. Capri Tools Super-Thin Open End Wrench Set, Metric, 6 to 19 mm, 7-Piece (11850-7MRK)

 

[SRU1436]

I have a set of the Snapon low-torque ones ( top left of pic) mine are metric, I use them for rebuilding suspension on bikes. They excel at that. They are about twice as thick as my Park cone wrenches, but hell of a lot nicer in finish and won’t damage delicate parts that require thin wrenches.


That a Park 14mm cone a Snapon 14mm low-torque and a 14mm Snapon flankdrive plus.

Also many people don’t know this, but that funny hole in the park cone wrench is so you can use them with a Torque wrench.
I prefer crowfeet for this, but some of the stuff I work on, only the cone wrench will fit and it requires a precise torque.

I have one Snapon low torque really thin wrench that I use on my chevelle carburetor, it’s super thin and works really well for my needs. Using it on my carburetor and is the only instance where I’ve needed something that thin.

 

[joe_padavano]

If you only need one particular wrench, it's usually more cost effective to just buy a used one at a swap meet and grind it down to fit. I've done this multiple times for specific applications. Typically $2-$5 each, depending on size.

 

[Odd-job]

For some reason never knew that slot was for a torque wrench. Guessing you have to do the 90 degree trick I learned on GJ to get the right torque?

 

[anndel]

I have a set of the Snapon low-torque ones ( top left of pic) mine are metric, I use them for rebuilding suspension on bikes. They excel at that. They are about twice as thick as my Park cone wrenches, but hell of a lot nicer in finish and won’t damage delicate parts that require thin wrenches.


That a Park 14mm cone a Snapon 14mm low-torque and a 14mm Snapon flankdrive plus.

Also many people don’t know this, but that funny hole in the park cone wrench is so you can use them with a Torque wrench.
I prefer crowfeet for this, but some of the stuff I work on, only the cone wrench will fit and it requires a precise torque.

Those are nicer than the Park tools wrenches I use on caliper pin bolts.

 

[Grant Gunderson]

For some reason never knew that slot was for a torque wrench. Guessing you have to do the 90 degree trick I learned on GJ to get the right torque?

Yes. I was always taught to set it at 90 degrees anytime you use a Crowfoot of any type.

 

[cherrybomb]

If you research the Stahwille brand thicknesses, I have found they beat my Snap,Proto,S.K and Wright,and they are a great wrench,a more reasonable price.

 

[Grant Gunderson]

If you research the Stahwille brand thicknesses, I have found they beat my Snap,Proto,S.K and Wright,and they are a great wrench,a more reasonable price.

Interesting.

I just looked them up, the Stahwille 13mm are 3mm thick according to their site, the Snapon low torque are 4mm according to their site (for a 13mm I measure 4.25, a 10mm is 2.66mm) and a Park cone wrench measures 2.17mm. Price wise the Parks are about $100 a set, the Stahwille are about $200 and of course Snapon is $630

I use these a lot, so the Stahwille could fit perfectly for me in a few applications... but I am curious as to the quality of the polishing in the open end of the section, as I am very concerned about not scratching suspension componets.

 

[bob15]

I have a set of Mac and a set of Snap On. Zero issues with either.

The Snappy's can be gotten cheaper on ebay.

 

[n8n]

Thicker than a cone wrench or tappet wrench, but thinner than a standard open end wrench, are some German DOE wrenches I found in a Goodwill years ago. I will have to check brand however. They were unbranded but I found one to fill out the set (there was one missing) that appears identical, but I'll have to actually look at them to get the brand for you as my memory is not so great. I used them a lot for brake jobs on GM trucks as a standard open end was too thick to hold the caliper sliders.

 

[Vwpower]

My thin metric wrenches are vim. They are double open end and we’re around $35 or so.
i also have the park tools cone wrenches in sae and mm.

 

[M635_Guy]

I have Capri thin wrenches, and I'm happy with them.

 

[wafrederick]

Thin wrenches come in handy on brake caliper slides.Sometimes you have to support the brake caliper slide to get the bolt loose,The 15mm works good on the Chrysler brake caliper slides

 

[Mytoolsupply]

What's your application? Some of my thinnest wrenches are service wrenches, I use them a lot for hydraulic hoses because they are so short its easy to get them into tight places and spin fittings fast. A 1" Wright service wrench is 7/32" thick but it's only 6-7/8" long

 

[Walkers]

Dang, just when I was perfectly happy with my wrench drawer. I have long, stubby, standard, reversible ratcheting, flare nut, and now, I guess I have to go find my dealer and have him hook me up with thin wrenches. Thanks a lot!

 

[Death Row Dave]

Mine are Williams , for adjusting lifters

 

[jmf535]

Interesting.

I just looked them up, the Stahwille 13mm are 3mm thick according to their site, the Snapon low torque are 4mm according to their site (for a 13mm I measure 4.25, a 10mm is 2.66mm) and a Park cone wrench measures 2.17mm. Price wise the Parks are about $100 a set, the Stahwille are about $200 and of course Snapon is $630

I use these a lot, so the Stahwille could fit perfectly for me in a few applications... but I am curious as to the quality of the polishing in the open end of the section, as I am very concerned about not scratching suspension componets.

What Stahwille series were you looking at that is 3mm thick? I have a set of the 14's and the 13mm is 6.5mm.
I've been on the hunt for a good set of thin wrenches, so if Stahwille offers one, it's going to the top of the list.

Then, regarding the open-end finish. Stahwille's don't have a mirror-type polish to them, like your snap-ons, but the finish is still quite good. I use mine on motorcycle suspension, and have no concerns about them scratching the coatings.

 

[johnu]

I recently bought this set from Capri on Amazon for a small project and they worked fine. Give them a look. Capri Tools Super-Thin Open End Wrench Set, Metric, 6 to 19 mm, 7-Piece (11850-7MRK)

I like mine. When buying, look for the 16mm to be missing. Capri has it!

 

[Grant Gunderson]

What Stahwille series were you looking at that is 3mm thick? I have a set of the 14's and the 13mm is 6.5mm.
I've been on the hunt for a good set of thin wrenches, so if Stahwille offers one, it's going to the top of the list.

Then, regarding the open-end finish. Stahwille's don't have a mirror-type polish to them, like your snap-ons, but the finish is still quite good. I use mine on motorcycle suspension, and have no concerns about them scratching the coatings.

These. https://www.stahlwille.de/products/de_en/40063232-40063232.html. They range in size from 3.2mm to 14mm.

 

[Wyoming09]

I have both an Olsa set and a Capri set. Holding up well for what I need to do with them.

 

[R.Bolte.Jr]

Working on the Jeep brakes last Sunday, couldn't find my Park 15mm, HomeDepot to the rescue...

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-Thin-Head-Access-Wrench-Set-6-Piece-H6PCTWS/314256097

They worked, decent finish, of course I found the Park later that day, but I'll keep these.

 

[Sgtboz]

Palmera from Spain. Nice and thin yet strong. At least the one Palmera wrench I own is!!

 

[EzGoingKev]

I have a couple of Snap-on low torque thin wrenches I use for servicing motorcycle forks and shocks. They have always worked great for me.

 

[neophyte]

Look up “Check Nut” wrenches.
These are specifically designed as a very thin wrench.
The design goes back to the early 1900s, at least.
A bunch of manufacturers used to make Check Nut Wrenches, and even used the same wrench model number system.
Armstrong, before the brand was murdered, and Proto, and Martin were all the main recent US manufacturers.
The Martin ones I have were thinner than my Craftsman/Armstrong Tappet wrenches.
Martin and Proto are probably the best current options.
I believe both manufacturers make both SAE and Metric.
( either Martin or Stanley may make both brands)

 

[cannuck]

I am a mechanical guy who works with electrical stuff. Althought Stahwille is my go to for flat wrenches, I have never seen the set from post #25. As usual, you guys have cost me a bunch of coin, but one I am glad to spend.

I scored some sort of Asian brand from a bargain table that covers sizes well up to 3/4" to 2" stubby single enders in 1/16" increments (we need these for jam nuts on high voltage bushings in power transformers) and two smaller sets of plate double enders from Princess Auto sale a few years back that covers the lower end 1/2 to 1 1/4 and 8 to 32mm. They are all from Grand Rapids Industrial Products (GRIP) but I don't see them on their website. 100% Chineseum and the plate wrenches are a bit on the delicate side, but the forged single enders are actually quite useful and useable. Just with I had them up to 4" or so.

 

[ItsNemo]

These are really cheap and do the job if you just have clearance issues:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001HZQW0Y/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[71firebird400]

Capri has impressed me.

 

[Dave455]

I’ve been reading the recommendations for the Stahlwille No.12 “Electric” wrench and can only agree. I’ve used these and they’re quite nice.

The Hazet 440 are very similar. So much so that I wonder if both wrenches are made by one company on behalf of both?

Maybe go with whatever you get the best deal on. I know Stahlwille are available in SAE though, not sure about Hazet.