Socket wrench brands

dungfly

What brand of small sockets would you recommend. I want something of good quality that will last.

case956tom

dungfly wrote: »

What brand of small sockets would you recommend. I want something of good quality that will last.

king tony, if you want to spend more money elora would be v good, also britool,facom,teng.i have draper expert 1/4"and 3/8" and vortex socket sets cant fault them.

ABlur

Teng tools here can't fault them.

ferryman35

Both of the above are good and if you send me a pm I'll be happy to make additional recommendations!

locha

+1 for Teng.

visatorro

teng are good but over rated. snap on crazy over rated and expensive. britool ratchet and sockets very good.

dungfly

I have a small compressor and large socket gun. Presume this is no good for small sockets? I was hoping to get a small set that can be used both manually and by air compressor. Should I just get a small gun and a separate small socket set? Or do any brands come with air gun and small set together?

visatorro

HLS have a good selection of stuff. for a compressor your ment to get impact sockets that are slightly stronger than normal sockets. if its only an air ractchet or the nut and bolts you'l be working with wont be solid or seized normal sockets should do the trick for ya.

Midfield9

Draper expert are what i have, i think a good balance between cost and quality.
I think with teng, elora etc id spend more time worrying id loose something from the set than using them!
I'm not 100% on this but i think they would be over twice the price of draper expert.

ferryman35

If you are using a gun you should use impact sockets - these will be black plain steel and rated for use on a gun / air tool.

A small compressor should work reasonably well up to 1/2" drive, but you could be waiting for it at times depending on what job you are doing.

Not easy to get a gun and a good range of sockets together - sometimes you'll only get wheelnut sizes like 17 / 19 / 21 in a gun kit and these are usually consumer focused aka twice a year usage.

Be sure to keep the water drained from your compressor and oil the gun regularly with air tool oil - it's the life of them.

Better to buy a good set of sockets, especially if you have a gun already because the one time you need them you don't want them to let you down, and you can add to to your collection over time with some very useful accessories.

Nothing wrong with any of the brands already mentioned, but there are lots if other brands that will look cheap but you'd be better off with plastic - when you come up against a difficult nut they fail or worse damage the nut.

Snap On are geared for the very professional user and consequently they will seem very expensive to a less frequent user.

1/2" drive would be considered middle of the road and probably the most useful size for jobs around the farm with sockets ranging from 10- 32mm.
a 3/8" set will typically cover from 8 - 22 mm and 1/4" drive fom 4- 13mm

If you are buying standard / chrome sockets you might pay a little more for what are known as 'flank drive' - but its worth the extra cost. these sockets apply the forces to the faces of the nut or bolt rather than the edge, and so you can apply more opening force without damaging the nut or your knuckles.

Some good value to be had out there at the moment

Finally, a good durable case is important because it's what keeps your set together

Cran

ferryman35 wrote: »

If you are using a gun you should use impact sockets - these will be black plain steel and rated for use on a gun / air tool.

A small compressor should work reasonably well up to 1/2" drive, but you could be waiting for it at times depending on what job you are doing.

Not easy to get a gun and a good range of sockets together - sometimes you'll only get wheelnut sizes like 17 / 19 / 21 in a gun kit and these are usually consumer focused aka twice a year usage.

Be sure to keep the water drained from your compressor and oil the gun regularly with air tool oil - it's the life of them.

Better to buy a good set of sockets, especially if you have a gun already because the one time you need them you don't want them to let you down, and you can add to to your collection over time with some very useful accessories.

Nothing wrong with any of the brands already mentioned, but there are lots if other brands that will look cheap but you'd be better off with plastic - when you come up against a difficult nut they fail or worse damage the nut.

Snap On are geared for the very professional user and consequently they will seem very expensive to a less frequent user.

1/2" drive would be considered middle of the road and probably the most useful size for jobs around the farm with sockets ranging from 10- 32mm.
a 3/8" set will typically cover from 8 - 22 mm and 1/4" drive fom 4- 13mm

If you are buying standard / chrome sockets you might pay a little more for what are known as 'flank drive' - but its worth the extra cost. these sockets apply the forces to the faces of the nut or bolt rather than the edge, and so you can apply more opening force without damaging the nut or your knuckles.

Some good value to be had out there at the moment

Finally, a good durable case is important because it's what keeps your set together

Cheers for the above really useful as I'm looking for new socket set at the moment as well. Wheres the best place to buy currently?

ferryman35

PM Sent

f140

I bought a box of britool sockets over 3 years ago. they cost I think around €200. now because they were so bleedy dear I mind them like there diamonds.


with cheap sets you don't care for them as much and couldlose them breakbox etc whereas I think a dear set will last for life because you will be for ever thinking of what you paid for them.

Nekarsulm

Have a selection of King Dick sockets, that I bought in 1985. Lost a few but never broke any, even when using on an impact gun. Do they still even make them?

Got a set of Teng 3/8 drive sockets in a red plastic case 3 years ago. They are excellent. And if you lose one, you can replace it with an identical socket from a Teng stockist. When you buy single one's, you realise what good value the sets are.

Wouldn't even bother with any other make, to be honest.

mancity1

never a bad idea to have a cheapish socket set as backup always seem to lose a socket or five when have expensive stuff

Zoo4m8

Have a set of 1/2 " CK sockets the father bought for me as a young lad over forty years ago ! Still have them all but on my fourth ratchet , don't know if they can still be got.
Have a Teng 1/4 drive set very nice but all my other stuff is Draper expert, can't fault them and find Draper decent value even have a 3/4 drive set that's had some pounding over the years and comes up smiling every time..:)

TopCon

Had all bits and pieces here for years. I was using them on a daily basis. Got sick of rooting and tearing through back of van for bits so I went all out and bought teng toolbox, filled it to my spec,(top box with 4 drawers) mostly socket sets, 1/4 to 1/2 + extensions. ratchet spanners, ordinary spanners, Allen keys etc plus insulated screwdrivers, snips the lot.

I bought based on another's recommendation. Spent €1450 before vat. Hugely discounted from catalogue prices as I bought so much.

I should have known better. It was too good to be true. Looked lovely first day. All drawers filled with all tools sitting in moulded foam.

After six months of use, all ratchet action tools started giving trouble. Both socket ratchets and ratchet spanners. Sockets started to corrode and got brown rusty colour.
Screwdrivers and snips/pliers set still perfect admittedly.

In fairness they were in constant use, and constant exposure to moisture, freezer temperatures, acidic liquids, oil etc etc.

Replaced ratchets and ratchet spanners with snap-on blue point and no more problems. Unbelieveable quality. Still mostly teng sockets and they're all rusty but doesn't affect function.


The lifetime warranty is only bullsh@t with teng. When I went back with mine I was only offered a repair kit for the moving parts.

Stavros Murphy

I bung a set of Halfords 170 piece socket sets(which include bits and spanners) in all the vans - great value, good to work with, not dear and easy to replace/keep consistent(i.e replacements). We use them for work, which is usually rough and heavy and I have no complaints at all. I must have a dozen sets or more at this stage and no-one ever complains about using them. They often do good offers too -at the mo they have the set and a full set of spanners for €200, which I consider a bargain.

mancity1

Stavros Murphy wrote: »

I bung a set of Halfords 170 piece socket sets(which include bits and spanners) in all the vans - great value, good to work with, not dear and easy to replace/keep consistent(i.e replacements). We use them for work, which is usually rough and heavy and I have no complaints at all. I must have a dozen sets or more at this stage and no-one ever complains about using them. They often do good offers too -at the mo they have the set and a full set of spanners for €200, which I consider a bargain.

+1 halfords socket sets are top stuff

Tibulus

Stavros Murphy wrote: »

I bung a set of Halfords 170 piece socket sets(which include bits and spanners) in all the vans - great value, good to work with, not dear and easy to replace/keep consistent(i.e replacements). We use them for work, which is usually rough and heavy and I have no complaints at all. I must have a dozen sets or more at this stage and no-one ever complains about using them. They often do good offers too -at the mo they have the set and a full set of spanners for €200, which I consider a bargain.

+1 for the tools, have the set 4 years and find them top class.

-1 for the case, found it easily damaged. Have it fixed in place in the workshop now.

Stavros Murphy

Tibulus wrote: »

+1 for the tools, have the set 4 years and find them top class.

-1 for the case, found it easily damaged. Have it fixed in place in the workshop now.

I consider the case just packaging to keep stuff sorted till you buy it. I buy a simple steel old-style tool-box and bung the set in there along with the spanners. We use 1" drive heavy air impacts for the really beefy stuff, so the Halford sets cover all the rest.

Cavanjack

Zoo4m8 wrote: »

Have a set of 1/2 " CK sockets the father bought for me as a young lad over forty years ago ! Still have them all but on my fourth ratchet , don't know if they can still be got.
Have a Teng 1/4 drive set very nice but all my other stuff is Draper expert, can't fault them and find Draper decent value even have a 3/4 drive set that's had some pounding over the years and comes up smiling every time..:)

Have a CK set here that were bought
with a tractor back in the 60's way before my time. Still have every socket belonging to it. Reason being they must have bought a vice grips with it too. Every bolt on the tractor looks like a round head rivet.

mayota

Have a CK 1/2" set no problems. King Tony 1/4" the ratchet broke but maybe it was abused. Picked up a lovely Gedore 1/2" set with metric and imperial almost unused for €50 on adverts. Best value was a set of S+K from Lidl 1/2" and 1/4" plus all the torq bits and screwdrivers ect. Could'nt recommend it enough, has a power of work done. €49.

sheebadog

Inherited a set of half inch CK from dad that were bought in the 50's, still perfect.
Find Britool,Facom,Snapon to be good and good lifetime guarantee.

maxxuumman

Does the lifetime guarantee cover leaving the spanner on the wing of the tractor and driving off. Never to be found again.

patsy_mccabe

Didn't want to open a new thread so;

I'm looking for 3/4" Drive Impact Sockets. I have the ratchet and lever bar already with sizes - 30mm, 32, 33 and 41. I got these from a company I worked with once that closed down. The brands I have are KENNEDY and PROTO. The quality of these seems very good.
I want to get the rest of the range (24mm to 38mm) as they are dead handy for opened trailer nuts etc.
Where in Ireland could I get good quality ones, preferably in Limerick.

kowtow

patsy_mccabe wrote:

I'm looking for 3/4" Drive Impact Sockets. I have the ratchet and lever bar already with sizes - 30mm, 32, 33 and 41. I got these from a company I worked with once that closed down. The brands I have are KENNEDY and PROTO. The quality of these seems very good. I want to get the rest of the range (24mm to 38mm) as they are dead handy for opened trailer nuts etc. Where in Ireland could I get good quality ones, preferably in Limerick.

A bit far maybe but there's a King Tony shop near Cobh.

Attie

patsy_mccabe wrote: »

Didn't want to open a new thread so;

I'm looking for 3/4" Drive Impact Sockets. I have the ratchet and lever bar already with sizes - 30mm, 32, 33 and 41. I got these from a company I worked with once that closed down. The brands I have are KENNEDY and PROTO. The quality of these seems very good.
I want to get the rest of the range (24mm to 38mm) as they are dead handy for opened trailer nuts etc.
Where in Ireland could I get good quality ones, preferably in Limerick.

Patsy Screw fix.
Snapon or Tang.

MFdaveIreland

snapon tools

orm0nd

patsy_mccabe wrote: »

Didn't want to open a new thread so;

I'm looking for 3/4" Drive Impact Sockets. I have the ratchet and lever bar already with sizes - 30mm, 32, 33 and 41. I got these from a company I worked with once that closed down. The brands I have are KENNEDY and PROTO. The quality of these seems very good.
I want to get the rest of the range (24mm to 38mm) as they are dead handy for opened trailer nuts etc.
Where in Ireland could I get good quality ones, preferably in Limerick.

maurice doody might be worth a call

http://www.mauricedoodysales.com/sockets-impact-c-5_756_780.html?page=2&sort=20a

studdlymurphy

Bahco. Think they are Swedish and they are top notch get a good set of any size for around 50 squids