Blue Glove Tool Review: Snap-On 3/8in Ratchet

"DailyTurismo" (thedailyturismo) 12/12/2014 at 13:45 • Filed to: Daily Turismo, Blue Glove Tool Review, Snap-On

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Welcome to a new Daily Turismo special feature, the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , where the nitrile meets the wrench. First up is a review of the Snap-On F80 3/8inch ratcheting socket driver, the best $100 you'll ever spend in your garage.

I've been telling people for months that I've wanted to do tool reviews. Not reviews like you'll see elsewhere on the internet, where an underpaid blogger has been given a shiny new free thing and has to give a good review to keep the free stuff coming. Or worse, the internet sites that live on affiliate links and only get paid when you buy the pile of horse pucky they blindly recommend but have never touched in the flesh. No, the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! is going to be a regular feature where we at the Daily Turismo share some tips/tricks from our late nights of wrenching, drinking, and cursing. Expect to see some affiliate links, because if we are going to recommend a product, we might as well get paid. But, don't expect a crappy offering to be given a pass because they pay us. Ain't gonna happen.

The subject of this feature is the Snap-On 3/8 inch drive F80 ratchet, which you can buy !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! (but we don't get a dime from those cheapskates) !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! used for about $74.99, or you could roll the dice and buy one !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! hoping it isn't a fake imported from China...but I am getting ahead of myself. Typical reviews of tools/junk on the internet involves a few hours of research and some touch time with the product, unless you read articles on self-described premium review sites like !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , where the writers spent 40 hrs reviewing a set of !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! — a device that should never go anywhere near anything resembling a fastener and is best used for home defense to deliver blunt force damage to potential intruders. Not to be outdone, I've spent the last 2 years using this Snap-On 3/8in drive ratchet on a daily basis for everything related to spinny things in my home/garage/shop/man-cave. See those scuffs and marks in the finish? This bad boy has earned this review the hard way.

You might say — hang on, Snap-On tools in a cheapskates garage? What gives? Truth be told, this is my one and only Snap-On tool purchased new (I picked up a used piston ring compression & valve spring tool set at a garage sale a while back), and it was a carefully selected purchase. Many years ago my toolbox started with one of those !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! — a great buy at $300 considering the sheer number of tools involved. However, I had used borrowed Snap-On tools occasionally decided I wanted a premium tool for the most commonly used mechanical part in my toolbox — the 3/8in drive ratchet.

For decades I had used a Craftsman 3/8 drive ratchet available !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! for about $21 (pictured above with the Snap-On F80), but a few years ago I made the critical error of bringing my ratchet into Sears for a "new" one per the lifetime guarantee on all Craftsman tools. The new ratchet I received was arguably worse in slop than the tool I turned in and subsequent exchanges didn't improve things. I think they just put the previously exchanged wrench into a box and you get someone elses old wrench...so on and so forth. Everybody is happy. Blame it on Craftsman tools no longer being made in the USA (notice they don't have the USA logo on them as of a few years ago) or Sears trying to maximize profit — but the basic new Craftsman ratchet mechanism is sloppier than a 35 year old BMW guibo.

The Snap-On F80 on the other hand is laser precise in its ratcheting mechanism, even after being used for 2 years as a ratchet, hammer, inspection mirror, and breaker bar. The F80 has 80 discreet teeth on the gear in its head, meaning that each click of the ratchet is 4.5 degrees, versus a measured 36 clicks on the Craftsman or 10 degrees per click. Add up some additional slop in my particular Craftsman 3/8in driver and I could get up to 15 degrees before getting a click. This means that in tight places you are fighting to get a single click on the Craftsman and getting 3 on the Snap-On. This makes a huge difference.

I did a very scientific test in my garage, that involved clamping the two ratchets into a vise and moving them around. Both had the same amount of up/down travel at the base of the handle, which isn't a bad thing because you sometimes need that additional angle to get a bolt and don't need/want to be perfectly orthogonal to your fastener to get it out. The biggest difference was the distance to a ratchet click and the Snap-On was the clear victor. The Craftsman has a small button on the back of the head to retract the ball holding the socket on, and it does make releasing the socket easier. A greased up socket can be difficult to remove from the Snap-On head, this small edge goes to the Craftsman.

Bottom line: Even at $100, I can't help but be extremely happy with the value in the F80 3/8in ratchet. I don't recommend going out and buying an entire set of Snap-On tools, they are prohibitively expensive (and you won't noticed much difference in a box-end wrench or a socket) but if you are going to splurge on one tool. Get the F80. You can find it !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! used for about $74.99, or buy one !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

Got a tool you want us to write about? Send us a tip here: tips@dailyturismo.com

Originally published as !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! on !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .

Will with a W8 races an E30 > DailyTurismo 12/12/2014 at 14:05

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It would be interesting to hear your thoughts on this:

http://www.amazon.com/Knipex-8603180…

Met a mechanic at a TUDOR race who was waving them around as we chatted, when I asked about them he said he really doesn't use many wrenches anymore, just the pliers wrench and sockets.

ly2v8-Brian > DailyTurismo 12/12/2014 at 14:07

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The Craftsman thing is such a disappointment. The quality is so bad from the Chinese tools. But I don't worry about that much. Let em rot for being stupid.

I have Mac Tools, the quality is great. I sheared a tooth in a ratchet (rusty bolt underneath a dozer) and they fixed it for me fast and free.

DailyTurismo > Will with a W8 races an E30 12/12/2014 at 14:13

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Eck. You know, I'd love to find something to replace the 50-odd combo wrenches in my toolbox, but have you ever tried to put a 4 ft piece of tubing on one of those gimicky things to get more leverage? Its gonna end in tears. Pliers are great for pulling nails out of wood or bending a piece of sheet metal in a vice, but I wouldn't touch a fastener with them, no matter how much they cost. Vice grips on the other hand...love em!

DailyTurismo > ly2v8-Brian 12/12/2014 at 14:19

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Agreed on Craftsman circling the drain. I've picked up a few of Home Despot (Husky) and Lowes (Kobalt) mechanics tools and they aren't bad. Feels like Craftsman from 10 years ago and prices aren't bad when they go on sale. Don't have any Mac tools, but is comparable to Snap-On from what I understand. I would love to try out their equivalent to the F80.

Auggie > DailyTurismo 12/12/2014 at 14:25

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My Dad has all Snap-on tools, and IMO the buttons that "eject" the socket tend to cause issues after a while of use. It's just another place for moisture to enter into the gearing mechanism. Take note that this is on a farm, where getting wet and muddy and forgotten in the rain is pretty common, they might not be an issue for most people.

Will with a W8 races an E30 > DailyTurismo 12/12/2014 at 14:28

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Obviously, it doesn't replace your wrenches, and how often are you putting a 4 ft pipe on an open end wrench anyway? That's what the box of 6 points and the breaker bar are for. Usually the wrenches are used for little things, and getting lost in the toolbox.

The really nice feature about these, and why they are on my Christmas list, is that they are self tightening, like a set of good channel locks, but smooth jawed so you don't chew up the bolt head. The jaws are always parallel like with a crecent wrench, but they tighten down as you turn, so the jaws are unlikely to deflect and round the bolt head. There's also no need to fidget with the adjustment like with a vise grip (really, try some nice channel locks - they will make you throw the vise grips away).

ly2v8-Brian > DailyTurismo 12/12/2014 at 14:36

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Those brands you mentioned are cheap off chutes from the top brands. They do seem similar. Which is good. My Mac 3/8 is only a 30 tooth. The cheapest one in their range, but the 1/4 I have is an 80 that is so nice.

NaturallyAspirated > Will with a W8 races an E30 12/12/2014 at 16:51

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I have a set of those. They are extremely useful.

Tohru > DailyTurismo 12/15/2014 at 14:23

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My 3/8" ratchets are all hand-me-down Craftsmans from my dad (ASE Mechanic), but my 1/4" ratchet is a Snap-On TF936. One of the best $100 tool buys I've done. In 1/4" so many companies have cheap junk because you don't use them often and can't put a lot of force on them. Due to space constraints, I've had to use a "socket on extension" cheater bar on this ratchet and it took it just fine.

FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 > DailyTurismo 12/16/2014 at 22:18

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Agree with you on craftsman. Went in to buy a set of 1/2" sockets, saw that everything was chinese and left in disgust. I bought a really nice set of armstrong sockets which are of very nice quality.

macroprocessor > DailyTurismo 12/17/2014 at 22:06

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AWESOME! I can't wait to see more of your tool reviews!

You have picked the only Snap-On tool I plan to buy. The price they charge for toolboxes and sockets is heart-breaking. But a ratchet is a single tool that you use continuously for years or a lifetime. It is worth every penny.

As for Craftsman, there is some life left in their US production facilities as of December 2014:

Pliers: All US-made (but so are Channellock, which is better)

Hammers: many US-made (as are plenty of other brands)

Nutdrivers: All US-made (I will pick up a set pretty soon)

Screwdrivers: Almost all US-made (I have too many Craftsman screwdrivers already!)

Craftsman only outsourced certain hand tool production relatively recently. The full transformation hasn't happened yet, but it will. I have been following this trend ruefully for a while.

The normal Craftsman ratchets have been Chinese-made and pretty bad for a number of years. But when they came out with the thin-profile ratchets, I was excited. I bought it in 2011 and it was US-made at the time. It is a very nice tool and has no slop whatsoever. At ~$40, this was a good midrange ratchet and it still has the socket release button. Too bad they switched over production to China. It happened in 2012-2013 based on my trips to Sears stores in that time. The button to release the socket used to be all metal. Now it's plastic.

If you want to pay almost Snap-On money, you can actually buy a US-made Craftsman "premium" ratchet, which feels terrific and has 84 teeth, but I think S-O has the edge on quality.

Craftsman wrenches have never been bad, and I had wanted to pick up a new set. I always imagined that they were simple and easy enough to manufacture that they wouldn't be outsourced for a while. At my local stores, they were still US-made as of Christmas 2013. But when I looked at Sears this year, every single wrench set is made in China. They aren't lowering the list prices one penny, but I did see that they were heavily discounted.

I don't think that these replacements are much good, and even discounted, I still wouldn't buy them- I'm going to have to start combing flea markets for decent old US-made tools.

Tattoo of Fornicating Unicorns > ly2v8-Brian 12/22/2014 at 13:26

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The Craftsman decline is sad indeed.

My 1/4" Craftsman ratchet (which replaced one handed down from my grandfather and finally broke) sits idle and is replaced with a "Harbor Freight" brand one. I know many will mock this, but it's 72 teeth (5 degree turns) and very smooth - much better than the Craftsman. Since I don't put any torque on something that small I'm not concerned about the quality of the steel.

I'm not sure why Craftsman can't make a decent wrench in China, because somebody does...