Advice Needed: New Metric Wrench Set In Anticipation of Work On 2nd Gen Tacoma

Holy hell what a great rant. All of it is duly noted, sir.

 

Excellent stuff. Thank you.
I have a pretty nice Made in USA Gearwrench 3/8-drive 0-100 ft/lbs torque wrench, but I think I may have wrecked it when torquing the lug nuts to 85 ft/lbs when I rotated the Taco's tires a couple weekends ago. Wrecked in what way? When I changed the front diff oil this past weekend, I barely applied any torque at all to the drain plug before I got the "click." As you know, that drain plug requires 48 ft/lbs of torque, and it felt like I was applying less torque than I do when torquing in the oil drain plug to 30 ft/lbs. I think I may have stretched or in some other way weakened the spring. I tried telling myself it was because the hex bit requires less felt torque than a standard socket does, but that was a theory of convenience.

 

Sorry, but that's not craftsman's fault. That's a buyer fault. I ALWAYS read what sizes I'm getting on the box. I will read through every single size to make sure it's what I want. Most Craftsmen metric sets also don't have 16mm and some don't have 18mm. If you are going to buy tools, it's your responsibility to know what you're getting. If the box clearly stated all included sizes and 12mm wasn't one of them, it's not their fault. This is why I stay away from combo sets. nearly everything I ever wrench on is metric. I haven't bought anything SAE in 15 years. My first set was a cheapy from Kragen/O'reilly's and it was a combo SAE/Metric. It was a pretty crappy set, but I still use it once in a while for the SAE if I'm putting some furniture together.

Also, I would love to see a 12 inch socket.

 

1. Yes, yes, caveat emptor. But the exclusion is still a dick move on their part, and adds fuel to the already burning fire of their demise. Everything else about the set fit the bill.
2. I had to buy another tool box just for that 12-inch socket

 

I like hf because its hard to beat them being cheap and if they break you slap the set on the counter and they'll exchange it no questions asked. Wait until their sidewalk sales where they bump open box stuff down really really cheap and granted your usually missing a socket but for a couple of dollar I think its worth it.

 

For certain tight spots, a set of universal socket joints are a life saver. They can easily be found at HF or try

TEKTON 4964 Impact Universal Joint Set,3-Piece

Tekton. Tekton, like Harbor Feight has a very generous return policy.

 

Also like others have said an impact wrench can save a lot of time.

I have a compact DeWalt 1/2'' that I use.

DEWALT 20V MAX* Cordless Impact Wrench Kit with Hog Ring, 1/2" (DCF880HM2), Yellow

DeWalt 150 ft-lbs and/or

$299 DEWALT 20V MAX XR Impact Wrench, Cordless, 1/2", 700-lbs of Torque, 2400 IPM, Bare Tool Only (DCF899HB)

DeWalt 700 ft-lbs (good for crank pulley)

 

Yeah no kidding, those seem to like to walk away for some reason.

 

Is the 1/2" impact wrench standard (as in stupid if I don't get it), or do people also use 3/8"? I ask only because I have a complete set of 3/8" impact sockets (metric and SAE). I also see the Dewalt 20 XR 3/8" is about $100 less than the 1/2". Thanks.

 

10MM - the most widely used fastener size on any Asian vehicle.

 

Not for suspension work., but yeah, thousands of 10mm nuts and bolts on a Toyota.

 

Your opening post said you wanted tolls for suspension work. A half inch impact would be great for that.

All the rest can be done with 3/8. I have a 19 volt Porter Cable driver that I use for 90% of the work I do. I use 3/8 drive sockets with this tool. This impact driver is just short if amazing. I have 6 air driven impact wrenches that I haven't used in a year or more.

 

I'm just noticing now that the price difference between Dewalt's 3/8" and 1/2" might be in the fact that the 1/2" is newer and uses a brushless motor. I have Dewalt's newer brushless drill and impact driver, and they are amazing.

 

Tekton sells some pretty good stuff and the quality is getting better as they add more tools to the product line. Most Tekton stuff is made in Taiwan but they are adding tools that are made in the USA. I have a few of their tools and while they may not be Snap On/Proto quality they are better than the Chinese Craftsman tools now lining the walls of Sears stores. The problem with the Chinese Craftsman tools is you're paying a premium for tools you can get much cheaper from HF.

Most of my commonly-used mechanic tools like screwdrivers, nut drivers, ratchets, sockets and wrenches are USA Craftsman that I acquired 10+ years ago, but I've picked up some Tekton tools over the past couple of years for one-off projects or tasks that I don't perform often and can't justify the cost of an expensive tool. For instance, I have a 35mm Tekton impact socket for the front axle nut, a Tekton 3/8" torque wrench for small things like spark plugs and a 24" Tekton breaker bar, and I've been happy with all of them. I also have a set of metric crowfoot wrenches from Tekton and the quality is so-so, but it's hard to find a decent set of low-end crowfoot wrenches anyway.

 

Yep. My impact sockets are Tekton. Good stuff and I like their laser etching to make the sockets readable.

 

Not sure if it comes with battery or not, but the one I saw on Amazon has a max rating of 130 ft-lbs, which is more than enough for 3/8'' drive IMO. The batteries by themselves are pretty darn expensive. I use 3/8'' drive for the smaller stuff or tight spots (brake calipers bolts come to mind). I also use the 3/8'' impact for general construction work and home use. I guess you could get the 3/8'' impact and then buy the high torque 1/2'' for the big jobs and taking off lugnuts.

 

Snapon has everything you need

 

If you can find one still open.

 

I've been looking at getting an impact for some of my general wrenching, been going back and forth with the Makita or Milwaukee.

 

I'm a hd mechanic I personally hate ratcheting wrenches. They bind up over time and If you do buy them make sure they are reversible. Because odds are you got it in a tight place and it's going to be harder toget somthing in there to cut the wrench off with.

Guys electrict impatcts are nice but air is better. That huge honking battery hanging off the end is a pain in the ass to get in tight places .

If anybody needs any real good info on tools please pm I'm a huge tool whore