Wrench Connection (E-Z Red wrench adapter)?

[mrborohachi]

I just bought E-ZRed WC100 and WC200 metric and SAE wrench connectors and i'm wondering if anyone else that has bought these had the crappy-ist industrial black finish?

I'm going to use them today on a brake job on a '97 Toyota. I will try to use them in every bolt removal situation. I'll post here on how I like them. So you GJ'ers will need them in your life

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[jeremy v]

Mine looked just like yours. I rubbed mine down a little bit with a greased rag for rust prevention and now they look just like all my other black oxide stuff.

I am pleasantly surprised, I really like my sets. I was worried that they might have loose tolerances, but they fit about as snugly as possible in my box wrenches without them dragging in and out. The magnets are a little on the weak side for me, and they really only grab thicker ratcheting box end wrenches. For regular box wrenches the wrench sidewall is too thin to align with the magnet.

The other thing I was worried about was whether the corners of the hex would be too rounded off. If they are too rounded I get nervous cranking on them using a 12pt box wrench, because there isn't a lot of engagement. I found mine to all have edges that were quite sharp and crisp (none are like the OP's 12mm size in the picture), I was pleasantly surprised. Hopefully they stand up to torquing over time, because I really like them and I hope to get many years of use out of them.

 

[Crown Imperial]

Yeah same here.

 

[Askme42]

Any videos of these in action?

I just can't figure out their purpose.

 

[OutsideMachinist]

Any videos of these in action?

I just can't figure out their purpose.

Id guess so you could stick two wrenches together for more leverage. Instead of double wrenching.

 

[jeremy v]

Any videos of these in action?

I just can't figure out their purpose.

In addition to a stronger double wrenching alternative, I am hoping they work well as stubby hex drivers (along with a wrench) instead of using a larger L wrench or hex socket with a ratchet. They only have to work in a tight area one time to make it worth the $19 I paid for both sets delivered.

They also allow you to create a double wrench with an angle where the wrenches meet instead of them having to be almost straight when interlocked. Nice for convoluted access points.

You can also use them with a socket and a double box wrench, combo, or a stubby wrench to build your own offset for a torque wrench as long as you keep it at 90 degrees or else calculate the torque change. That is a nice added feature, because until now I didn't have a way to torque a fastener that was too tight for a socket to fit. Now I can accurately torque fittings with the box end of a double box wrench or the open end of my combo wrenches.

 

[hangfirew8]

I just got a set yesterday, haven't used them yet but some test-fits in my SK 6 and 12 point wrenches looks promising. Yes, the black oxide finish on mine looks a little chalky too, I should put some FluidFilm or Engine Fogger Oil on them.

Combined with short, long, and various shallow and deep offset wrenches, the clearance and leverage possibilities are almost endless. I wish I had these long ago, the moment I saw them it was like "D'oh, take my money now".

Let's hope the quality is where it needs to be.

 

[alan camby]

The idea of combining two wrenches with these adapters kind of concerns me. If the wrench was to slip off or the adapter were to break, the wrench that is on the fastener would have built up torsional energy. Could come back and slap you in the face.

Also, I assume most people will use two combination wrenched together with these?
If the box end is on the fastener, the adapter is going to be on the open end of the wrench. This improves the chances something might slip.
Call it the EZ red eye adapters.

While still not ideal, I would think that the old fashioned way of double wrenching would be safer.

 

[TOOL FANATIK]

The idea of combining two wrenches with these adapters kind of concerns me. If the wrench was to slip off or the adapter were to break, the wrench that is on the fastener would have built up torsional energy. Could come back and slap you in the face.

Also, I assume most people will use two combination wrenched together with these?
If the box end is on the fastener, the adapter is going to be on the open end of the wrench. This improves the chances something might slip.

While still not ideal, I would think that the old fashioned way of double wrenching would be safer.

I agree. The only way they could put a "safe" stamp on these is if they were only for use with double box ends. Also the quality must be high enough to resist spreading, rounding off, or even shearing.

 

[hangfirew8]

Usually the lower wrench goes one way, and I go the other.

-HF

 

[T45]

"They also allow you to create a double wrench with an angle where the wrenches meet instead of them having to be almost straight when interlocked."

This is pretty cool. I think these are great. Its pretty well proven you can use a cut-down hex to make a bit for a box ends (use in a low profile situation) and these just are pre-cut. They are also like fip-sockets in that you need fewer pieces in your tool-box, which makes sense given the niche-use for when these come in handy.

I would thing these would also be useful with FD+ and other wrenches which have open ends and enough grip to shear the heads off DIN/ISO standard size bolts. I think there was a test where one of the members here did that with wright-grip and snappy wrenches (used a cheater pipe) to prove the concept. In this case, for $10 bucks...seems like a great deal even if it keeps you need ing to buy that one expensive XL or obstruction wrench...heck even a 17mm hexagon bit socket can be pretty pricey if you need to buy it as a single.

Anywazys, I look forward to more real world reviews !!

 

[peteco]

A quick revive on this post as another post was looking for wrench extender recommendations. I have used these a few times. Worked great on a hard to reach belt tensioner.

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=409189&page=2

 

[hangfirew8]

In the past 4 years I've had a chance to use the EZ Red extenders, and they have worked well. A bolt will round off under a 6pt wrench and the extenders are still fine.

-HF