Tried and true and so underrated

[mrholeshot]

Thinking about a question from this morning about American built wrench sets there is one wrench that hasn't changed much over all the years I've around the blue marble and is still one of the best values going. The Craftsman raised panel wrench. Still made in the US, still a very solid performer. Here is a set of wrenches you can own and if you buy in the 43 pc set includes everything from 1/4 inch to 1 5/16 and 6mm to 32mm all for around 150-175 dollars depending on when you buy and no ignition wrenches in that bunch. Despite there being slightly better designs the craftsman raised panel is still a sodid performer. Before I wrote this I took a new one that had never been used (9/16) that came in a set and took it out into the garage and hooked it on a well used 3/8 nut and bolt that I put through my drill press plate. I proceeded to tighten the nut until I could no longer pull anymore so I hook another wrench to the open end and pulled until the bolt snapped. The nut and bolt wern't new but rather a collector bolt that had been installed and removed around 5-6 times. It didn't round the nut depite in not having flank drive. It would cost you over 1000 dollars to buy that set off any tool truck all the way into the larger wrenches. They are just no nonsence, no fluff solid performers that haven changed much over 50 years. maybe it's time to get back to the basics.

 

[toolnut]

I like the raised panel wrenches. It seems NAPA, Easco, Master Mechanic, and Craftsman all were similar with their wrenches at one time and probably made at the same forge.

 

[D9H 90V]

I love mine, but I need longer wrenches so I bought a set of Snap on flank drives

 

[shotgunfatcat]

Have a set of metric and standard for the good ol' trailer box.

 

[ATTappman]

Are there any American men who haven't owned Craftsman raised panel wrenches at some time in their lives? I still have the set I bought at age 21, more than 25 years ago. Only the 7/16" has a little bit of flaking chrome and rust, and both the metric and standard have been beat to death.

Are there any statistics on just how many raised panel wrenches Sears has sold over the years?

 

[supertooljunkie]

All of my first wrench sets were C-man raised panel. I had several sets stolen over the years and replaced them with more raised panels. This was in the mid 70's. I bought 3-4 more in the early 80's, and a couple from the late 80's to early 90's. I have 8-9 sets now.
I got on my first tool truck in 1981 and didn't buy Sears for a while, but most are still in my boxes. I buy "lovingly used", US tools from the pawn shops now.

 

[lauver]

I like the raised panel wrenches. It seems NAPA, Easco, Master Mechanic, and Craftsman all were similar with their wrenches at one time and probably made at the same forge.

That is correct. All made by Easco.

 

[FoMoCoPower]

They like to bend near the box end.

 

[Old Donn]

They like to bend near the box end.

Like the others in this thread, most of my wrenches are C-man raised panel, ranging in age from 50+, (Dad's old stuff), to 4 years old, (6 point combos bought on sale). I'm not a pro, but I've never cranked down on a combo or a box wrench so hard that I bent it.

 

[Aberdale]

Agreed Mr Holeshot. I've got 6 sets of Cman raised panels. The oldest set is 35 years old. The newest set is 5 years old. I've yet to warranty one wrench, or wear one out. The fact that these wrenches performed so well, helped make my decision to buy two sets of the fully polished professional Cmans over the SO equivalents (even though I do own one set of the SOs).

I haven't noticed any bending on any of my raised panels, except on the older larger sized offset double boxed ends that seem to have a smaller cross section beam.

Dale

 

[blue dog]

I would say that if you put all the tools from every body on this site together and separated them out by brand, the craftsmen pile would be the largest.
In 25 years i have cracked 2 regular sockets due to using them on a impact, and had one ratchet take a dive. Not a big deal, got them all replaced, no questions asked. I agree mrholeshot, back to the basics.

 

[FoMoCoPower]

Like the others in this thread, most of my wrenches are C-man raised panel, ranging in age from 50+, (Dad's old stuff), to 4 years old, (6 point combos bought on sale). I'm not a pro, but I've never cranked down on a combo or a box wrench so hard that I bent it.

Then you must not actually use your tools. I have had to get atleast 3 or 4 replaced because they bent right at the box end.

 

[olds394]

In DavidB's test it sure looks like the new Cman raised panel has some sort of flank drive going for it.

 

[Rickster]

I like the old CMan raised panel wrenches but I've always found them a bit too short. Although they're one wrench I've never hesitated to smack with a hammer when needed.

 

[back2class]

I like the old CMan raised panel wrenches but I've always found them a bit too short. Although they're one wrench I've never hesitated to smack with a hammer when needed.

I have owned Snap-On, Proto, and even a mac set of combos amd that is just in metric. In the end I have sold them all and kept the basic Craftsman raised pannel set. I think for metric (often cramped modern machinery) the shorter length is perfect. I do keep Protos that are longer for my SAE set.


I have yet to measure the jaw spread and wish someone would. To me that is where the rubber meats the road on wrench quality. I know they are decent quality, though to me the open ends seem to not hold as tight as my Protos. (I am not talking flank drive plus or other exotic open ends)

I think a fair test would be to measure actual spread using some hardened stock or a more simple test like at how many pounds it slips at on a grade 8 bolt. My guess is that there will only be a few pounds of difference and that would be hard to verify in less than lab test conditions, though in real use I think a small differenc would translate to much better performance.

 

[matthew]

I agree, mrholeshot. They're not the fanciest, but they're certainly very functional. I'd say some of the old-school acetate handled screwdrivers have the same story - not most people's favourites, but functional and good value, and something most of us either grew up using or grew up seeing our parents use...

 

[sanya]

is that their regular price or a sale?

 

[scarrylarry]

I have not really looked very hard into this Craftsman USA wrench thing,but maybe someone can tell me if those USA Craftsman are available in Canada.I think all I have seen at Sears in Canada presently are Craftsman made in China.
Thanks
scarrylarry

 

[atari]

They like to bend near the box end.

I "use" my raised panel wrenches also, sometimes with a hammer. I have never bent one. What the hell are you doing to them and did you eat the can of spinach before or after?

 

[matthew]

I have not really looked very hard into this Craftsman USA wrench thing,but maybe someone can tell me if those USA Craftsman are available in Canada.I think all I have seen at Sears in Canada presently are Craftsman made in China.

Back in the old days Sears sold US made Craftsman products in Canada, so you can find older series -V- stuff around pretty frequently. Nowadays most of the stuff Sears sells in Canada under the Craftsman name is made in Taiwan or China (sourced from Stanley, I think). Some of it isn't bad, some of it is poor (although from the sounds of it, our American friends are finding the same thing in the present Craftsman US made stuff). And the stuff they brand with names other than Craftsman is pathetic.

 

[toolmutt]

Agreed. The first set I ever owned and I still have them. I agree that they are a little on the short side so I have a set of long profiles next to them in the box for when I need extra umph.

 

[scarrylarry]

Thanks Matthew
scarrylarry

 

[Cameronl]

Love my Cman raised panels. I've had them for nearly 30 years (and have added to them).

 

[z28snksknr]

I love mine as well - still have my first set I bought in high school and they have served me well.

I am just now starting to accumulate a few wright wrenches to try to "upgrade" my tools littel by little, but I won't be "replacing" my old craftsman ones any time soon.

 

[mrholeshot]

Ive cranked hard on the raised panels and I've never bent one of the standard combo wrenches. I have bent one of the long double box wrenches slightly. I have a few XXL SO wrenches with a bow in them. Nothing is industructable but for about 70 dollars you can build a great set of wrenches in stadard and Metric up to 1" and 19mm. Still a great value.

 

[Stuey]

I like the old CMan raised panel wrenches but I've always found them a bit too short. Although they're one wrench I've never hesitated to smack with a hammer when needed.

I've got a set that I'll never give up but, this is why I upgraded to Craftsman's full polish wrenches. The raised panels just weren't long enough one time too many.

 

[loj]

They're good enough for the girls I go with.

I don't know about the spread on the open end, but I was taught to never use an open-end wrench where a box end or a socket will work. If I turned wrenches more I'd buy a set of line wrenches and try to avoid the open end entirely.

They're one of those "rite of passage" tools - like the stinky handle drivers, but of higher quality. If they were to modernize the acetate handle screwdrivers with hardened tips, I'd buy a boatload of those too.

 

[Old Donn]

Then you must not actually use your tools. I have had to get atleast 3 or 4 replaced because they bent right at the box end.

If that's the criteria for real use, I guess I don't. Just for the record, you've bent 3 or 4 of these things by hand. No hammer, cheater bar, or standing on it?

 

[cdseven95]

If that's the criteria for real use, I guess I don't. Just for the record, you've bent 3 or 4 of these things by hand. No hammer, cheater bar, or standing on it?

I had two brand new ones snap clean in a row trying to get a timing belt adjuster bolt loose.. No hammer.... No bar no room for anything else... I think it was either a defect or just the newer ones being ****