Your thoughts on the reversible ratcheting wrenches, These things are really calling my name lately Options

[enderswift]

so, over the course of the past two years i've slowly built up a pretty complete tool collection. I feel like I have the right tool for just about any job

I would love to get my hands on some snap-on/matco/sk tools but they are waaay to expensive for what i plan on doing. Thats why most of my tools are of the craftsman variety and I have had no problems with them whatsoever. Please dont turn this into a brand loyalty thread, everyone has their opinion on tools. I happen to like the value found in craftsman.

anyway, one of the things i hate most about regular wrenches is that they can be a real PITA to use. For example imagine a hard to reach bolt that is tucked way the hell off in the most awkward place possible. You feel around with your hand and then try to shimmy in the wrench after. Eventually when you manage to you get the wrench on the bolt, a lack of space only allows you to turn it about a quarter before you have to reset the wrench, all the while your body is screaming in pain. THIS TAKES FOREVER and usually puts me in a bad mood. Dont get me started on putting the bolt back on

for a situation like this, those reversible ratcheting wrenches would be amazing. 5 degree arc, no more resetting, and waaaay faster ratcheting wrenches(ignore the price, they go for alot cheaper on ebay)

honestly these seem worth replacing my regular wrenches just for the amount of irritation they save. The only thing that bothers me is whether or not they can handle torque.
Is this one of those things where you have to break the bolt loose with the open end and THEN use the box end to finish the job? or do these wrenches actually hold up?

btw, im not talking about the crossforce reversible ratcheting wrenches, just the regular reversible ones. (crossforce is a gimmick in my book)

your thoughts please

This post has been edited by enderswift: Jan 10, 2009 - 11:22 AM

[presure2]

they work very well, provided you arnt using them to break loose bolts with high torque settings.
the open end on the craftsman set i have pretty much suck, they tend to round off nuts.
if i cant break it loose with the racheting side, i use either my normal wrenches, or break out the snap on or cornwell offset wrenches depending on the situation.
the snap-on and cornwell gearwrenches are alot more expensive, but they are a much better tool.
smaller degree of movement between clicks, higher torque capacity, and the awesome flank drive system on the open end is where its AT.
but unless you use them to make a living, i cant see spending the money on them.