I’d like to pick up some individual ratcheting wrenches in some common SAE sizes of fasteners I use on a lot of projects and wanted to hear what y’all have to say. I’m not buying a full set so I wouldn’t shy away from more expensive brands like Snap On if they’re really the best option available.
My primary concerns are that they’re very, very low back drag, can be rebuilt and have a really high tooth count for tight spaces. I noticed BluePoint offers a stubby flex head that’s also reversible. Do you guys think the reverse lever gets in the way or is it one of those “buy one of each” kinds of things?
Strength isn’t really a concern since the only size I’m getting first to see how much I use it is 7/16" for 1/4-20 fasteners (mostly grade 5 anyway) and if I need to apply more torque I’ll be using a completely different tool anyway.
I noticed Olsa tools offers a stubby 120-tooth stubby flex head but it didn’t look like it was rebuildable or available for individual purchase.
I’m not opposed to no-name or manufacturer brands, either. (I tried to find the Williams equivalent to the stubby BluePoint, for example, just to see if I could save some coin on the same tool)
That was my first stop, too, but he doesn’t cover stubby, ratcheting, flex head wrenches specifically and his ratcheting wrench video didn’t cover rebuilding at all.
I did look at some other videos from other channels, but it’s hard to find good info on YouTube where practically everything is a first impression/unboxing or, worse, a sponsored first impression.
Not a stubby like you asked but for individuals tekton is generally my go to. I have the long double box end ratcheting wrenches from them ive used a ton and yet to have one fail.
Ive had pretty good experience with gearwrench ones as well but they seem to get jammed up with dirt and grease more often.
Neither brand has rebuild kits for ratchet wrenches that im aware of but tekton is good about their warranty. The website lists 7/16 as 6.6 inchs long.
I checked Tekton first. I’ve been really happy with the other tools I’ve gotten from them. I definitely would’ve gone with them if they’d had a stubby.
I’m not sure on the newer stuff but I have a set of Snap-on ratcheting box ends and I don’t know if I would call them low back drag let alone very very low.
Im not sure how long some of these have been out, but looking on Ebay for used may be the way to go.
If its blue point or snap-on, no need to rebuild, they have a lifetime warranty.
Yeah Snap-On and many others have abandoned the idea of rebuilding much anymore. Sure some of the tools can be disassembled, but good luck getting any parts.
We live in a throw away world, like it or not.
Well unless you have a machine shop in your garage.
Be aware that you can also “blueprint” tools like that to get the performance you want. Back when I turned wrenches for a living I would do that with new ratchets to get the right feel. You can stone the pawls and teeth like you would do a trigger job on a firearm. Polish the faces and sliding surfaces and lube with moly.
I think he is taking about trying to get a ratchet to feel a certain way. I would say this is pretty rare. I also turned wrenchs for most of my life and have never heard of this being done. Maybe a OCD thing?
Perhaps OCD, but perhaps simply a quest for continuous improvement. “Blueprinting” as applied to racing engines is the process of making all the parts as close as possible to their nominal dimensions, as if striving for “zero tolerance”. If I was providing tools to a multi-million-dollar race team I would likely consider doing such things. My $85 Snap-On ratchet would be turned into a $500 tool (but it would function PERFECTLY).
It sounds like Rambozo has some experience blueprinting firearms (or having firearms blueprinted$$$) When split seconds count or a jam is life-threatening these are the things you find value in.
I could understand this in a fire arm, and in a race engine. In a ratchet no.
Im not sure what advantage I would see in your $500 ratchet over the $85 Snap-on.
I guess if I could try them both then maybe I could see a difference, then I could see if any of that would make a difference.
Yes, I have done some gunsmithing now and then, and back in the day I worked on a ProStock team. The OP was talking about low backdrag, and I just wanted to point out that you can change the backdrag if you don’t like it. There are a lot of jobs where the tooth count and backdrag can make or break the job. While I haven’t seen it in ratcheting wrenches, there is a Swedish ratchet that uses a roller sprag clutch, so it has infinite teeth and very low backdrag. It was my goto tool to get the seat drive motor out of some MBZs without removing the seat. You had to be able to move the ratchet with your fingertips, but it saved a lot of time on a job that came in pretty often. That tool turned it from a PITA to a real moneymaker.