The round head stigma

[goodfellow]

Idk man. Ive put 3 foot cheaters on those old ratchets. Beat em with hammers. You name it.
I dont own any harbor freight but i cant imagine them taking that kind of beating.

The old Cman ratchets are robust -- probably more so than anything HF puts out. That said, they are also clunky and not very smooth. HF and many other companies such as Tekton have Taiwanese import lines that are superior in design -- smooth as silk and quite strong. Will they stand up to a cheater bar like an old EASCO manufactured Craftsman pear shaped ratchet -- probably not. That's why I keep the old C-mans around -- they are used in situations when things need to get nasty.   

[Jamesyarbrough]

Idk man. Ive put 3 foot cheaters on those old ratchets. Beat em with hammers. You name it.
I dont own any harbor freight but i cant imagine them taking that kind of beating.

The old Cman ratchets are robust -- probably more so than anything HF puts out. That said, they are also clunky and not very smooth. HF and many other companies such as Tekton have Taiwanese import lines that are superior in design -- smooth as silk and quite strong. Will they stand up to a cheater bar like an old EASCO manufactured Craftsman pear shaped ratchet -- probably not. That's why I keep the old C-mans around -- they are used in situations when things need to get nasty.

Since i bought the blackhawk ratchet wrench set in 05 i dont reach for ratchets as often. They are smooth and work well in tight spaces.  I really havent felt the need for a newer ratchet yet.


And when im working on cars its ALWAYS nasty. 

[Uncle Buck]

I maintain a USA bias in my tools that will probably not go away. I have made only a small number of concessions towards import tools, regardless the brand even now. I cannot say anything bad of the few import tools I have added, but still see imports as only limited use tools. I will concede those that I have added do not seem in any way short on quality.

My antiquated notions are just stuck in my head and not likely to go away sadly.

[Jamesyarbrough]

I feel the same.  Seems like just yesterday i realized the lack of usa made tools and started buying all the vintage us stuff i came across. Its a shame really

[stokester]

No love for Thorsen?

My late father was not a mechanic of any sort but we always had a mixed bag of tools around the house, usually of the cheap flea-market type.  It was always a treat to use the tools at my friend's farm shop where his father had a selection of Craftsman which are still in use today 50+ years later.  After joining the AF and moving away I needed some tools of my own and bought this Thorsen set from the base exchange because, having very little money, I could not afford Craftsman.  Still all together and works well although the clasp broke during early use and I used a small lag bolt to hold it shut which still works today.

Later I started working on Volkswagens and Japanese motorcycles so it was time for some metric tools from the Craftsman line.

[DeadNutz]

I have an Action 3/8dr flex head which has served me well for years. It is a Thorsen product of course. My go to ratchets are the Kobalt 90T which work well in tight spaces or I want the speed. Sometimes I will grab any ratchet out the drawer just to appreciate other fine tools like my P&C 100 open gear or Armstrong or others.

[hickory n Steel]

I cut my teeth on the old craftsman pear head in my parents driveway. The cheap ones that came in the socket sets back in the 90s. I think they were like 36 tooth.  The round heads were "fine tooth" and i found they came in handy in tight spaces. Today ill use either but i kinda like the lever selector.

What i haven't got on board with are the new 72 and 90 tooth ratchets. They feel like cheap crap to me and i think they might break.   Those old 36 tooth ratchets were indestructible!  Ive done some crazy stuff and never broke one. Everytime i see a guy on youtube raving abojt the new stuff i throw up a little in my mouth

But thats just me

What you want is a Wright, same larger stronger teeth with the arc swing of those higher tooth counts.
I personally don't do import ratchets either, especially HF, but I'm also not doing any automotive work so I don't carry much weight in this area.
I'm just a guy who likes tools and uses them as much as possible.

I have found that when I stop and think about it I do prefer a lever selector but in use it doesn't matter when I'm just working on my E scooter, my bike, or doing maintenance on the lawn mower.

[Jamesyarbrough]

I cut my teeth on the old craftsman pear head in my parents driveway. The cheap ones that came in the socket sets back in the 90s. I think they were like 36 tooth.  The round heads were "fine tooth" and i found they came in handy in tight spaces. Today ill use either but i kinda like the lever selector.

What i haven't got on board with are the new 72 and 90 tooth ratchets. They feel like cheap crap to me and i think they might break.   Those old 36 tooth ratchets were indestructible!  Ive done some crazy stuff and never broke one. Everytime i see a guy on youtube raving abojt the new stuff i throw up a little in my mouth

But thats just me

What you want is a Wright, same larger stronger teeth with the arc swing of those higher tooth counts.
I personally don't do import ratchets either, especially HF, but I'm also not doing any automotive work so I don't carry much weight in this area.
I'm just a guy who likes tools and uses them as much as possible.

I have found that when I stop and think about it I do prefer a lever selector but in use it doesn't matter when I'm just working on my E scooter, my bike, or doing maintenance on the lawn mower.

Rigjt on! Gotta get the job done. I haven't had the chance to use a wright but the tools look good and have a loyal following.  They do kinda resemble sk and i have plenty of those....and i just bid on 5 more on ebay.