"twisty" Kobalt wrenches suck

[eljefino]

I got a couple sets of these on clearance for $15. Full polish chrome, made in Taiwan. Look nice.

Theory is your hand gets to hold the "blunt" side opposite the side that's working, as there's a 90 degree twist halfway down the middle.

In practice, I find them near useless. I bang on mine more than I think, and the open end "fork ends" are more uncomfortable than the "circle part". If I use a hammer the not-quite-90-degree twist where I make contact applies unwanted lateral force.

No wonder these things were on clearance.

I guess if you can tolerate the nasty things they'd be good to toss in the car trunk or something. Or just to loan out to people who might otherwise "accidentally" not notice they're not the same as their own.

 

[CharlieJ]

What do they look like? Are they like these X-Beam Gearwrenches?

I have these XL X-Beam ratcheting wrenches and I find them great as long as you have the room and comfortable too. The extra leverage of these long wrenches is great.

 

[Spazdog]

"twisty" Kobalt wrenches suck


Fixed.

I think I can destroy a Kobalt 1/4 drive socket in the same or less time than an AutoZone Duralast socket.

 

[Donald]

Some things have been around long enough you probably will not improve on them significantly. I think wrenches is one of these things. If I really needed to "lean" on a wrench, I would switch to a 6 PT socket if possible. I prefer box end (both end) wrenches.

 

[SuperDave456]

I don't get it. If you could refine your criteria for "suck" that would help.

Is it that they hurt your hands cause the twist is off, or wrong, or not a true 90 degrees?

Do they round off the bolts you are working on?
Are they not the size they say they are?

Or is it that they don't respond well to getting smacked around with a hammer? Do they vibrate like a tuning fork?

I've been looking at some shorty Kobalt wrenches for weekend projects and found some on clearance. Your opinion is wanted.

 

[eljefino]

Having used and abused many a wrench, these are a foreign object to me and slow me down.

The twist is a full 90 degrees but as I grab it somewhere in the middle, I don't get the full 90.

They seem to have a good 'nuf grip. Using the 5/8" on a 16mm is especially pleasantly tight.

I bought the shorties that are on clearance too, but haven't cracked them open yet. I just took a second job, one day a week at a tire store and am doubling up my tools for home and work.