Wright Tools, The Good, The Bad

[Renegade1LI]

I know Wright tools has been around a long time just never had any, till now. In searching for a good set of 8 pt sockets I came across a set from Wright, give them a shot. After a little research I see everything but adjustable wrenches are US made, which is great. They seem to cater more to the industrial user, not as many tools as other brands.

I think moving forward I will be buying more from them, they even have USA made screwdrivers and have most of what we use in the jobsite. I don't need fancy, just good dependable tools. Anyone else use these on the job? Thoughts,recommendations? I'm sure there are some must haves.

 

[ElectroMechTech]

I have some Wright combination wrenches that I absolutely enjoy using. I do have a Wright 8" adjustable that was made by Western Forge for them.

 

[Renegade1LI]

Well it looks like Amazon is not the place to buy Wright tools

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002C3XU50/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[Handyandy23]

Their WrightGrip wrenches are the best value you can find in wrenches. Torque Test Channel did a video testing the open ends of wrenches, and the WrightGrips out-performed everything, including Snap On. And for a fraction of the price, and made in USA.

 

[toddmorr]

Yeah the wrenches just feel really nice in the hand, night and day difference from the SO that bites because it's too thin.

I have one of their flex round head ratchets, it's ok but nothing like a dual 80 or koken.

 

[AA/FC]

Well it looks like Amazon is not the place to buy Wright tools

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002C3XU50/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Well actually Empire Rigging & Supply is the company selling those screwdrivers..... they just happen to be selling them on the Amazon website.

I always try to buy directly from Amazon itself, if possible.

 

[finn]

Wright seems to be a favorite around here. Based on that, I picked up a set of their combination wrenches maybe eight or so years ago.

For some unexplainable reason, I never developed a fondness for them. They are nicely chromed and finished, but they sit in the toolbox and I almost always find an old Powercraft, Craftsman, or SK in my hand while the Wright and SnapOn are ignored.

 

[boom_bap]

Only problem with Wright is the common joe can't buy them anywhere in person..

 

[RedneckWelder]

You could say I like some Wright wrenches. Got a bunch of them up to 2 1/2” they are very high quality.

 

[1982fxr]

Most comfortable beam profile in the wrench business.

 

[Ilikeike]

I bought my Wright wrenches from Summit racing. For those looking for another source.
Summit will price match and free shipping at $100. they will also source p/n#s not listed.

 

[jobo1004]

Epstein's also carries Wright. harryepstein.com

 

[Handyandy23]

Amazon might not have a full selection of Wright tools, but you can usually get wrench sets for a good price on there. It was cheaper and easier for me in Canada to buy them on Amazon.ca than it was getting them through a US vendor.

 

[Lt CHEG]

How do you get a Wright tool warrantied if it breaks?

 

[Snapped-off]

Their WrightGrip wrenches are the best value you can find in wrenches. Torque Test Channel did a video testing the open ends of wrenches, and the WrightGrips out-performed everything, including Snap On. And for a fraction of the price, and made in USA.

How did they perform the test? My personal experience is the exact opposite, which is why I ultimately sold both of my Wrightgrip sets. They just don't perform on rusty/damaged fasteners. They were solid wrenches aside from that.

 

[Ton ton]

.

 

[Ton ton]

White Horse Machine in Gap,PA sells wright wrenches.

 

[boom_bap]

 

[VolvoRyan]

How did they perform the test? My personal experience is the exact opposite, which is why I ultimately sold both of my Wrightgrip sets. They just don't perform on rusty/damaged fasteners. They were solid wrenches aside from that.

I've been impressed with mine, pairing a 21mm with a 13mm trying to free rusty tie rods and jam nuts. I do consider them "special use" tools, since they leave their mark on every fastener.

TTC's tests are pretty good, but they have to make certain concessions to try and simulate a worst case scenario. Lots of "grains of salt" to take into consideration.

-Ryan

 

[AA/FC]

Only problem with Wright is the common joe can't buy them anywhere in person..

I purchased a Wright 3/8 drive ratchet in a 1/4 body at my local Acme Tools retail store. Sure, they're not everywhere, but they do sell Wright in SOME retail stores.

 

[2ndGearRubber]

How did they perform the test? My personal experience is the exact opposite, which is why I ultimately sold both of my Wrightgrip sets. They just don't perform on rusty/damaged fasteners. They were solid wrenches aside from that.

Which side was slipping, box or open end?

I love my wright wrenches, best in the biz IMO. I have a few impact sockets from them as well, which obviously work fine.

 

[Renegade1LI]

I see Wright makes an aluminum pipe wrench, never saw one in the field, might have to get one & try it.

 

[Snapped-off]

Which side was slipping, box or open end?

I love my wright wrenches, best in the biz IMO. I have a few impact sockets from them as well, which obviously work fine.

Open end. A few times there was no access for a socket. The others, a reasonable person probably would've hammered on a smaller socket. But I was able to get it off with the FD+ every time the Wrights wouldn't.

In all cases, the box end was a no-go due to the rust/damage.

But here you are dailying them in a shop so my experience is likely an outlier.

Also for context, mine were the original 1.0 design.

 

[2ndGearRubber]

Open end. A few times there was no access for a socket. The others, a reasonable person probably would've hammered on a smaller socket. But I was able to get it off with the FD+ every time the Wrights wouldn't.

In all cases, the box end was a no-go due to the rust/damage.

But here you are dailying them in a shop so my experience is likely an outlier.

Also for context, mine were the original 1.0 design.

IIRC mine are generation 1.0. I will say their open-end had more lead in taper than a snap on. So if a fastener is already pretty short, with rot and rust the wrights may not grab it. I have run into that with the box end and low profile rotten bolts like for wheel cylinders.

 

[four.cycle]

"...everything but adjustable wrenches are US made..."

We no longer manufacture adjustable ("Crescent") wrenches in the U.S.
The last domestic manufacturer of adjustable wrenches was Western Forge in Colorado Springs, Colorado. They were manufacturing them for a number of other companies, PROTO and Wilde being but two. You may still be able to find some NOS Proto or Wilde from some vendors. They will have "W F" forged into the handle down by the hanger loop.

Suggest checking out Irega from Spain. That's all they do, and they've been doing it for a while:
Irega / Irega S.A., Fueros, 1, 48250 Zaldibar, Vizcaya Spain / http://www.irega.es/en/ / est. 1945 / adjustable wrenches /

Cannot beat Wright quality on the rest of their product line. Unfortunately they have no distribution network.

 

[KnurledNut]

Well it looks like Amazon is not the place to buy Wright tools

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002C3XU50/?tag=atomicindus08-20

I wish Wright would offer a better screwdriver.

 

[finn]

How do you get a Wright tool warrantied if it breaks?

I can’t imagine a scenario where one of mine could possibly break, unless it was obvious abuse.

I only abuse disposable tools, though, and if I abuse it I don’t expect some else pay for my ignorance!.

 

[MarkH]

Between wright itself and the local farm supply that stocks them warranty has never been an issue.

Then we do not care about scratches dings and other issues. It is how long will they work, do they survive way to long pipes placed on them and other abuse. If we break during abuse we do not warranty.

For the last 40 years wrights have been our main purchase for the main shops.

 

[alinc100]

How do you get a Wright tool warrantied if it breaks?

If you call Wright direct they will provide you with a local retailer,or if that is not available they will mail you the replacement tool. One of my WrightGrips either broke or bent( a co-worker "borrowed it"),I don't remember which ,but a very pleasant lady answered the phone in Barberton OH, asked my zip code and found the local retailer,verified the stock, informed the retailer I'd be in for a warranty exchange and since it was a retailer I was familiar with,and on my way home new wrench was easy peasy.

 

[dnschmidt]

The only problem with Wright, if you consider it to be a problem, is that their wrenches seem to be shorter than what I'm commonly used to. I sort of like their round head ratchets but they don't compare to the classic Williams B-52. They do seem to be somewhat bulletproof on the other hand.

 

[four.cycle]

"How do you get a Wright tool warrantied if it breaks?"

You call the nice lady on the phone on their 800 number... I think it's Diane (?)
I wouldn't sweat about "warranty" on that product line.
Fairly bulletproof stuff.

The Japanese and Europeans seem to be making better screwdrivers these days according to the overall member feedback here. Check out Vessel, Wera, Wiha for starts.

 

[Lt CHEG]

Interesting, I might have to look into picking up some Wright stuff. I like supporting American manufacturing when I can.

 

[matthew]

The 3430 ratchet, which is a 3/8” drive in a 1/4” ratchet body, was all the rage for quite a while here. I bought one and really like it.

 

[Dieseldemon219]

I know Wright tools has been around a long time just never had any, till now. In searching for a good set of 8 pt sockets I came across a set from Wright, give them a shot. After a little research I see everything but adjustable wrenches are US made, which is great. They seem to cater more to the industrial user, not as many tools as other brands.

I think moving forward I will be buying more from them, they even have USA made screwdrivers and have most of what we use in the jobsite. I don't need fancy, just good dependable tools. Anyone else use these on the job? Thoughts,recommendations? I'm sure there are some must haves.

Yes I’m a diesel tech for heavy trucks and wright impact sockets are the best along with the wrightgrip2.0

 

[metlmunchr]

We were taking down a 4000 sq ft metal building several years ago whose framework was all formed steel assembled with about a bazillion 5/8 bolts. Problem was, the original erector had used hex and square nuts at random. So, you're on a ladder with an impact and 2 sockets plus a wrench. 8 bolt joint might have 3 hex and 5 square nuts, or any other imaginable combination. Fortunately all the bolts were hex head. So, you remove the hex nuts, change the socket, and remove the squares. And manage to drop one or the other of the sockets when changing on a regular basis. Real time killer and general PITA.

Thinking wow, wouldn't it be great if someone made a socket broached for both hex and square nuts. Called industrial supply house we dealt with regularly who sold Williams, Armstrong, Proto, and Wright tools. Salesman said yep, Wright does make such a thing, but their company didn't stock them. Rather than have us wait for them to order 2 sockets from Wright, he recommended we get them from McMaster as he knew they stocked them. Sure enough, McMaster had them to us the next morning.

Obviously a sorta obscure socket, but worth its weight in gold if someone ever runs into a similar situation. Fortunately, the use of square nuts is pretty much a thing of the past today.

 

[boom_bap]

Interesting, I might have to look into picking up some Wright stuff. I like supporting American manufacturing when I can.

+1. 140 for 751 set (10-19) USA made is pretty good, considering the price of Icon, Milwaukee, Carlyle.. Great to know warranty isn't too bad and summit can ship them out.

 

[jobo1004]

The only problem with Wright, if you consider it to be a problem, is that their wrenches seem to be shorter than what I'm commonly used to. I sort of like their round head ratchets but they don't compare to the classic Williams B-52. They do seem to be somewhat bulletproof on the other hand.

They're definitely shorter than my snap-on wrenches. On black Friday I picked up a set of the V series Craftsman wrenches on a whim and they're about an inch shorter on average than the wright wrenches, which surprised me.

 

[Outwest]

Epstein’s, zoro and circle c supply all carry Wright as far as online shopping. Warranty is easy via phone or email. I had some issues with pealing chrome on a set of new wrenches years ago that they were having with a batch. I emailed and sent pictures and new ones showed up in the mail. I own several ratchets, sockets- chrome as well as impact and wrenches, no complaints.

 

[Renegade1LI]

Has anyone bought the wright socket racks? I just got a socket set that came with their rack & it works well. Not sure how they will hold up long term as they are plastic, but made in the USA so not made of chicrylic. Plus they come in blue so thats a plus.

 

[Handyandy23]

How did they perform the test? My personal experience is the exact opposite, which is why I ultimately sold both of my Wrightgrip sets. They just don't perform on rusty/damaged fasteners. They were solid wrenches aside from that.

That's the video there, but he tested the open ends of 5/8" or 16mm wrenches of several brands. He used Grade 8 barrel nuts on a torque dyno, and measured them until they slipped or stripped the nut.

WrightGrips basically maxed out the hardware at 1540 PSI, where the bolt stretched/yielded before the wrench slipped, and was the only one to do so. The Snap On FDX got close at 1492 PSI, but slipped before the bolt yielded.

For comparison, mid-range import stuff like Tekton, Craftsman, Capri, etc were in the 1200-1300 PSI range.