Tools you always had but never used

[bsaint]

For me it's vise grips. I probably use vise grips once a decade. I think I usually cut or grind it if I can't turn it. But way early on in my pre teen wrenching years everyone had a pair so I bought mine from Bradlees and added it to my collection.

 

[DemoFly]

Brake flaring tool, ratcheting wrenches, adjustable wrenches.

 

[BlakeTheCarGuy]

That’s a hard one. I think I’ve used everything pretty much. Maybe adjustable wrenches because I only use those as the absolute last resort but always had them.

 

[DSS]

I use vice grips almost every day. For me it's ratcheting wrenches. I have several sets and never use any of them

 

[sparky 1971]

I have many, but at the top of the list is my Mac 1/2" drive, 26" locking flex head ratchet that I bought over a year ago. I just had to have it, was working for a Mac dealer, he told me $200 cash and it was mine and so it was. I didn't think about the fact that I had never used my 24" Gearwrench locking flex, so now they sit side by side. At least the Gearwrench was cheap, even after the Matco guts went into it.

 

[metaldad]

when i was going thru my 'ratchet craze', (thanks gj), bought a 1/2'' armstrong indexable ratchet wrench. never used it

 

[MarvinBerry]

I use vise grips often enough... great for broken bolts & screws.

Cant say I recall the last time I used any 1/2 drive stuff. I have full rails of SAE & metric but never touch em. Most of the things I work on are pretty small... I'm in 1/4 drive all the time.

 

[PelicanPines]

Gearwrench Serpentine Belt wrench... (for putting in a serpentine belt...) I have used parts of the kit for other tasks

Battery terminal "Puller"... I have a different puller that I always grab instead

I'm sure there are individual wrenches I have not used... since I have 5+ different sets of the same sizes.

 

[PFSard]

For me it's vise grips. I probably use vise grips once a decade. I think I usually cut or grind it if I can't turn it. But way early on in my pre teen wrenching years everyone had a pair so I bought mine from Bradlees and added it to my collection.

- Bradlees. Now that's a name I had forgotten. What brand Vise Grips? Peterson, I presume.
- And to answer the Title's question. Kind of (not always had). The large collection I've bought (mainly at garage and estate sales) since finding this Web Site.

 

[dwasifar]

I assume you mean regular normal tools, and not fad gimmick tools.

Someone gave me a Hitachi oscilloscope once, and I never used it in the 10 years I had it. Don't know if that qualifies.

If you just mean hand tools, I can't think of anything I've literally never used, but my SAE open end wrenches and slotted screwdrivers don't get a whole lot of use. With the wrenches I only need them for brake lines and fuel fittings, and it's been ages since I had a non-metric car. For household work like water lines, I generally use a crescent wrench. And the slotted screwdrivers only come out for guns and old radios. So it's not like I never ever use them, but it's pretty seldom.

 

[Ohmthis]

I’ve used almost everything people have posted in just the last two days. That is not just at work (industrial maintenance), but at home. I have a vacuum brake bleeder that I’ve used exactly once. The worse part that it only worked ok. It does make the process of flushing brake fluid faster, but I still had to pedal bleed to get a hard pedal.

 

[bsaint]

I use adjustable wrenches a lot in hydraulics but I can see auto and truck mechanics not using them so much. Also if I worked of rusted stuff more I Def would use them. I don't remember the brand vise grips I was about 13 or so lol. Now my vise grips are Facom.

 

[Geezer]

.

 

[Tools4Me]

I have a couple specialty pullers I purchased from garage sales. I have yet to use them, but you never know right?

The only other tools I can think of are my drag link sockets. 8-10 of them, purchased here and there from garage sales. I know if I get rid of them I will eventually regret it, but they always seem to have blades that are too thick for any alternate use I try them for.

My 6pt wrenches get used quite regularly, but I can't recall any situations where a 6pt was necessary for the job. I could probably sell them off and be perfectly fine with my regular 12pt combo wrench selection.

 

[toolmutt]

I've had a pass-thru socket set for years that has never been used.

 

[glchandler]

Full set of crows-foot open end. Used one of them on jeep distributor about 25 years ago and since have been collecting dust in top drawer.

 

[sixty4]

***** enhancement tool...Got a good deal from craigslist.

 

[Bogie1632]

***** enhancement tool...Got a good deal from craigslist.

Was it Swedish made? Hahahahaha.

V/R
Bogie

 

[Tools4Me]

***** enhancement tool...Got a good deal from craigslist.

Let me guess. After purchasing it, you quickly realized there wasn't much point in inflating 1.5" up to 2" so you never bothered to use it.

 

[Bogie1632]

I have a cheap spoke shave. Bought it ~2002 or 03. It still has the blade guard on it and has never seen wood. No idea if I'll ever use it but by golly I have one.

V/R
Bogie

 

[sixty4]

Let me guess. After purchasing it, you quickly realized there wasn't much point in inflating 1.5" up to 2" so you never bothered to use it.

Too small...lol

 

[dwasifar]

I've had a pass-thru socket set for years that has never been used.

Oh! Yeah, I've got one of those too, also in new condition.

 

[CS454]

1/2" drive Mid Depth impacts.

 

[Meursault74]

1/2 in drive SAE sockets. They came with the Craftsman set (1/4 and 3/8, SAE and Metric . 1/2 drive SAE) I bought in the early 90's, I think I might have used some of them just to use them at one point, but the 3/8 in drive SAE would have been appropriate for my needs.

 

[gatewaysysop]

Probably my first choice for this would be a pair of Pozidriv stubby screwdrivers (Wera branded, I believe) that I picked up in Europe while on vacation. Close second is probably 1/4" breaker bar that likely came with a socket set ages ago.

 

[f121]

My snap on low profile 3/8 sockets and ratchets. It's a lovely set, beautifully made but pretty much unused...if access is tight enough to need it, I go for a wrench. I think I've used the 10mm twice as a hex bit holder for really awkward access on a VW.

 

[matt_i]

I bought a Tree tapered boring head and have never used it in ~20 years of ownership. It also occurs to me that it resides in the drawer with a weed burner torch that I've also never used.......

 

[tyyost]

For me it’s crowsfoot wrenches. I just haven’t found anything they would do for me another tool wouldn’t. I know some use them often, so I’m either not seeing the opportunity or working on things they aren’t needed for.

 

[G1GRANDEUR]

so many to list

 

[2ndGearRubber]

I bought the timing tool for the cruze 1.8s, thinking I'd clean up the local market. Then I realized people with chevy cruzes don't have any money.

 

[FMB4]

Offset ratcheting wrench set. Been sitting in my odds and ends duplicate/triplicate tool box for years. Don't even remember if they're SAE or Met. Guess I'll have to look the next time I'm in it.

 

[seber]

Ratcheting wrenches were in the box for maybe twenty years without being used even once. Also two stud pullers. I don't think I have every used them either.

 

[joel63]

S wrenches and Half Moon wrenches.
I figured if they're made, there must be a need for them.
I'm still looking for opportunity to use them.

 

[unslow1]

I have a Branick G300 brake bleeder that has never had fluid in it. Then the same crow's feet and pass thru sockets as many others. Gimble ratchets, a few other vacuum brake bleeders, CV pullers and I'm sure I have more because I have a lot of specialty tools. I often buy them after I've been in a jam and really needed them.

 

[Bessy]

For me it was the long (I think 18, 24 and 30 inch) 3/8 drive extensions. I needed a long one for removing the battery in my Mother's VW, once, bought the set because it was the only option at Crappy Tire and I didn't feel the need to wait for Amazon (this was several years ago, so they didn't have stellar shipping time in my area). Since then they have hung on the side of my box untouched, keeping in mind that I am a weekend warrior, not a pro.

Ratcheting extractor "wrenches" I have used once or twice (It worked so now of course I want the ones that go on an impact just to have them for a pinch), but by far the biggest disappointment in my toolbox is the sets of universal spline wrenches and sockets. Again, they're for those special cases that seem to never come along (like e-torx). Maybe I'm just not taking on any majorly challenging tasks, which is a distinct possibility.

 

[Davefr]

Some of my least used tools have been the ones that saved my *** like a handheld impact driver. The one common tool that stands out as rarely used is a ratcheting screwdriver. Some guys always use them but I'm just in the habit of grabbing regular screwdrivers or grabbing a cordless driver.

 

[Zewnten]

hand held impact driver. Used it 16 years ago doing a brake job and then used it the other day to remove a roof on a loader.

 

[joe_padavano]

Pneumatic 3/8 ratchet. Too slow and no torque. I've got a 3/8 butterfly impact and a 3/8 impact gun, both of which I use constantly. The ratchet, not since I got it decades ago.

 

[Dumber than lumber]

Brake spring pliers.
One tool I use often is YouTube.
Garage Journal is the school I attend daily.

 

[sgf13]

3/4" Craftsman ratchet & socket set. I got an outstanding deal on it new but I have only used it a few times in over thirty years to take off a trailer hitch ball. Tube flaring kit and I avoid adjustable wrenches unless there is no other option.