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Wrench Discussion (split from joke thread)


IcePrick

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Disclaimer:  IcePrick posted this in the joke thread of the forum, not here, but I wanted to further the discussion without polluting the joke thread.

 

 

Mike, I've looked for this wrench and couldn't find it in 0.748 seconds so I gave up.  Could you tell me what this is called so I can refine my search?  It looks pretty nifty but I would expect to be exponentially unstable in higher torque applications with the multiple pivot points.

 

 

The conversation was about flare nut wrenches, and the above wrench checks a couple boxes.

 

BUT....there are two styles of wrench that I have never found, and would like to.

 

One would be a standard click style ratcheting box end wrench that has an access slot cut into it like a flare nut wrench.  The round of the wrench AND the drive insert would both have an open slot, and would have to be aligned to place the wrench on the fastener.  Additionally, the insert would have to unload and reload into the ratchet mechanism seamlessly as the cut out section rotated past the mechanism.

 

The second would be a split wrench where part of the round would be removable or displaceable to allow fitment around an obstruction such as tubing, and then be returned to make a complete round in order to apply maximal torque to a non-compliant fastener.  Open end and flare nut wrenches will stretch and lose grip, ruining the fastener and often the wrench.  A closed end wrench is much more stable and being able to "assemble" a drive cage around the fastener would allow higher torque levels.  I've done effectively the same thing by placing a vice-grip locking plier around the driving round of a flare nut wrench to keep the drive surface from stretching, but there's not many applications where there is room for that to be realistic.

 

So, has anyone seen either of those type of wrenches?

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I would say you should look at the auto-adjusting plier-wrenches from Knipex first.  In a live test (Project Farm on Youtube) they blew away the real wrenches.  And I haven't touched my flare nut wrenches in a decade, so I'm not actually in the market, but want to play with one.  Please buy a few test samples before NeXXt.

 

The "water pump" pliers are incredible, as are the mini adjustables.  I may as well throw away my whole plier drawer now, those two are the 98% go-to.

 

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Now that I have a hot minute.........

 

The fasteners I'm focused on are, as blackhawk suggested, already profoundly compromised and often quite stuck.  Not only am I looking at brake lines and things very exposed to road salt and corrosion, but also exhaust components that have tubing or wires connected to them that are degraded from thousands of heat cycles and exposure to elements.

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28 minutes ago, rockmeupto125 said:

Now that I have a hot minute.........

 

The fasteners I'm focused on are, as blackhawk suggested, already profoundly compromised and often quite stuck.  Not only am I looking at brake lines and things very exposed to road salt and corrosion, but also exhaust components that have tubing or wires connected to them that are degraded from thousands of heat cycles and exposure to elements.

 

It definitely adds time to the process.  I'm sure you have a pretty advanced skill set because of it.  And it's not just the stuck fasteners, reduced-dimension heads on stuff that make it impossible to fit a proper tool - it's the flaky, filthy crap on everything, getting in your eyes and staining everything it touches.

 

I once had a very old wrench, it looked like a basin wrench with a curved, serrated upper jaw and a spring-loaded cam for the lower jaw.  It was really good on things like brake line fittings at the wheel, they were usually rounded off but this thing could grab them.  Lost it somewhere about the time I left the wrenching business, and I never went looking for a newer version.  I also became a huge fan of the Snap-On cobalt left-hand drills with their screw extractors - superior to any others I'd used at the time.

 

I grew up in New England, then worked around the ocean in Florida so I'm somewhat acquainted.  When I moved to the southwest, I was stunned that there were 40 year-old cars that even had recognizable suspension component fasteners, much less ones you could get out with a standard-length wrench.  Comparatively, it's heaven in that respect.  

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It seems like these should solve some of those fastener issues.

 

https://www.amazon.com/KNIPEX-Tools-7-Inch-Pliers-Comfort/dp/B000X4PTZ4?source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

 

Those Crowfoot types that Mike posted, if well made, seem like a solution also.  To me the shape and machining looks Chinesium.

 

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6 hours ago, SwampNut said:

 

Those Crowfoot types that Mike posted, if well made, seem like a solution also.  To me the shape and machining looks Chinesium.

 

 

I have some wobble extensions from the same brand - not to say they are made by the same supplier, but they are pretty nice.  Of course, that's what the Chinese do best: simple pieces of cast, stamped, or forged metal.  Add hinges, pins, precise machining, quality metals, hardening... it becomes less and less in their wheelhouse.

 

Anything Knipex is good.

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FYI, the top-level Bremen locking pliers at Harbor Freight are simply unbranded Milwaukee pliers with a different rubber compound on the handles and a different adjusting bolt.  I've examined them closely and determined that they are almost certainly made on the same equipment. 

 

I know Project Farm tested locking pliers, but don't recall if HF and/or Milwaukee were in the test, how they placed, etc.  I guess I'll go look that up now.  The HF units are a few dollars cheaper than the Milwaukee brand at Home Depot, and I'd guess they go on sale from time to time.  

 

Note that these are the newer design locking handle, with no "release" lever - they unlock automagically.  The cashier pointed out that they have a lifetime warranty, including the rubber cushions - bring them back and they replace them.  Incidentally, she's the returns/warranty cashier as well so I'll try to hold her to that.

 

 

IMG_0827.thumb.jpeg.c7b1104efa219823b7f5071d50c22847.jpeg

 

 

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9 hours ago, IcePrick said:

I also became a huge fan of the Snap-On cobalt left-hand drills with their screw extractors - superior to any others I'd used at the time.

I thought maybe it was my imagination.

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43 minutes ago, IcePrick said:

FYI, the top-level Bremen locking pliers at Harbor Freight are simply unbranded Milwaukee pliers with a different rubber compound on the handles and a different adjusting bolt.  I've examined them closely and determined that they are almost certainly made on the same equipment. 

 

I know Project Farm tested locking pliers, but don't recall if HF and/or Milwaukee were in the test, how they placed, etc.  I guess I'll go look that up now.  The HF units are a few dollars cheaper than the Milwaukee brand at Home Depot, and I'd guess they go on sale from time to time.  

 

Note that these are the newer design locking handle, with no "release" lever - they unlock automagically.  The cashier pointed out that they have a lifetime warranty, including the rubber cushions - bring them back and they replace them.  Incidentally, she's the returns/warranty cashier as well so I'll try to hold her to that.

 

 

IMG_0827.thumb.jpeg.c7b1104efa219823b7f5071d50c22847.jpeg

 

 

I can clearly see that the Milwaukee has 1.8% more carbon in the mix and was heated 13.2 degrees higher in the heat treatment.  Most importantly it has TORQUE LOCK so it's obviously worth the extra cost.

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1 hour ago, superhawk996 said:

I can clearly see that the Milwaukee has 1.8% more carbon in the mix and was heated 13.2 degrees higher in the heat treatment.  Most importantly it has TORQUE LOCK so it's obviously worth the extra cost.

 

I just watched both of the Project Farm videos, the Milwaukee pliers finished below the middle of the pack.  I guess the redeeming factor is the ability to return the HF version to a store that's under 5 miles away, no hassle for the swap-out.  I've seen the way they do returns here, they glance at it briefly and throw it in a bin and say, "okay, go grab another one".  Lowes and HD, not quite so simple.

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11 hours ago, IcePrick said:

Anything Knipex is good.

All the talk here about Knipex and other threads got me looking today.  Some reviews of the 10" water pump pliers on Amazon accused them of selling knock offs because of slight differences and breakage and others said they got a used tool.  So I went to Lowes, they had reduced the price by $4 something and with discount, they were they same price as Amazon but still double the Irwin.  You guys are costing me money.

 

BTW-they were not in the tool section but the electrical aisle.  Also there are two versions of the same plier.  One has teeth on both sides of the slot, the other one side.  The latter you can close without pushing the button.  I got the double tooth one, thought it looked stronger plus they didn't have the other one.

Edited by blackhawkxx
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There are a lot of very similar but slightly different Knipex tools, in all the categories.  My go-to for most anything has been the "tiny" slotted ones with no button.  For the big ones, which I have yet to actually need, I went with the button.  I don't recall why, probably the PF test.  There are also often variables like anti-static, lanyard for OSHA working at heights rules, stainless steel, etc.  Sometimes the tool for $5 more/less has a variable, you may or may not care.

 

The abilities of the little slotted pliers compared to my huge actual branded Channel Locks sold me on the brand.

 

And then there's another tool that has become a running joke amongst dozens of road construction guys throughout AZ.  One of their project leads was working with me, and I whipped out the tiny Knipex flush cutters.  Some conversation ensued and I said, "These will change your life."  I was cutting 316LL bands.  He agreed, has been handing them out, and now the crew says, "Hey man, hand me the life-changers over there."

 

Of course, that's the wrong tool for that and other hard materials, so you really also want the Knipex dikes, which will cut anything.  Hardened?  Meh, whatever.  Bring it.

 

 

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3 hours ago, rockmeupto125 said:

Just added these. Thanks a lot, Oscar.

 

 

IMG_20220825_105131690.jpg

Please give us a review after some usage.  When did they switch from SAE to metric for brake lines?  The last thing I changed a brake line on was a 1999 and it was SAE.

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On 8/25/2022 at 1:13 PM, blackhawkxx said:

When did they switch from SAE to metric for brake lines?  The last thing I changed a brake line on was a 1999 and it was SAE.

Almost every non-American car forever, and American cars possibly as far back as the early 90's.  I don't know when it became the norm for American cars, but at this point I doubt you'd find a single SAE fastener on one.  Heavy duty/industrial vehicles might still be SAE.

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