Looking really nice spanners what do you use

[whensparksfly]

Im looking a set of spanners (non ratcheting)6-32 they are alot of crap out there what do you all use? just seen a brand king tony never heard of them

 

[Dapph2]

Harzet or Saltus spanners or socket sets , proper chrome vanadium spanners mine were originally made in Germany some I won two comprehensive sets in a raffle 55 yrs ago , the dull chrome finish is just starting to wear through to a very pale yellow egg yolk colour none of this cheap chrome plated to make them look shiny crap that peels off .
Sthal Willie originals also made in Germany are also very good ..I have a couple of the bigger sizes of DE OS ring sizes too.

Prior to winning the German stuff my military too boxes were black drop forced hard as hell non shiny pre WW " USA & UK stuff and post 1960 Britool . The 12 point bi hex sockets were always splitting.
Despite this I had my own a reasonable Britool socket set including the extras which I sold on for a song after winning the Harzet & Saltus stuff.

 

[MetalMonkey]

How much do you want to spend?

King Tony are a Taiwanese brand, like many of the Taiwanese tools these days they are fairly decent, a far cry from years ago.

I personally like Facom 440 (also now Taiwanese), Stahlwille (I have a few of their different series) and Elora (strong decent and well priced). Gedore too although you have to be careful which ones you buy.
But I've also got sets from old brands such as Armstrong, King Dick, Britool, Gordon, Bedford etc.

Hazet are very good too, but I don't own any.

In all honestly for a simple combination wrench, even the likes of cheapy chinese ones like US Pro are usually good enough thesedays to get the job done.

 

[Ton-up]

Look at the Kennedy range. They are excellent.

 

[Domdom]

I have many sets which I collected over the years.
Britool. Especially the older ones, but the new Hallmark range are strong and comfortable in the hand. They also do extended length combination spanners, lots of leverage.
Kamasa. A great set but years old. Not sure if they still make them.
Bahco. Nice, but expensive.
Facom. I really like these but again, expensive depending on what you want.
King Dick. I have old and new sets. Both very nice to use.
I see Kennedy listed above, but I only have one, a 10mm combination spanner which has been great over the years.
For proper value, Halfords Advanced. Seriously good value for what you get and I’ve not yet broken one. I have a 29mm which I bought for a job to use once, hence buying cheap. Strong, well chromed, and I think they are very underrated. For the money they are almost disposable so abusing them won’t make you feel uneasy.
Snap On. Very good, just 3 times the price they should be. Not worth the money IMO.
US Pro. Cheap, reasonably strong, lots of chrome plating. I tried a couple from the NEC Classic Car Show a couple of years ago. The 13mm stretched when I abused it but in normal use (without a pipe to extend them) they are fine.
Teng Tools. I have a few of these from the 90’s. Still fine and probably my favourite ones on the car, 13mm, 17mm and 19mm.

 

[roofman]

I use most stuff, in the work trucks its just parkside etc as they get lost and abused..in my shop its the good stuff like MAC or Snap On. I find its the application that matters, only use a 12 point to run the nuts/bolts and 6 point for tightness and most spaners will give good service. Dont be tempted to clean your tools with a brake cleaner as it gets into the ratchets and washers the oils out, plus they become victims of rust spots if left outside..clean but oily if you get my meaning.

 

[JohnH]

Elora 205 range for me. I like the offset head.

 

[angellonewolf]

I use most stuff, in the work trucks its just parkside etc as they get lost and abused..in my shop its the good stuff like MAC or Snap On. I find its the application that matters, only use a 12 point to run the nuts/bolts and 6 point for tightness and most spaners will give good service. Dont be tempted to clean your tools with a brake cleaner as it gets into the ratchets and washers the oils out, plus they become victims of rust spots if left outside..clean but oily if you get my meaning.

i dont ever clean spanners rachets only thing i do when putting them away a wipe over with a old towel to wipe dirt off leave an oil film on there that protects them

if ive not used them for a while a quick spray with gt85 and let it soak in then wipe

 

[Bornfree]

Elora 205 range for me. I like the offset head.

Possibly the strongest spanners made.

 

[Barking Mat]

Facom or Halfords Advanced as @Domdom said.

 

[Brad93]

Elora 205
Gedore 1B
Hazet
Kennedy are decent and priced well.
Snap On used - would never buy new.

 

[hotponyshoes]

If you don't want/need a complete set I've got a load of new facom 440 series (all metric) that I haven't sorted through yet, quite a few sizes there but not all. Might be enough to get you started though..

 

[tigdlo]

Facom 440 are nice enough, I have an imperial set, jaws are a bit thick but not an issue 99% of the time though.

I've used MSC brand Paramount and Cromwell brand Kennedy Pro are good enough for the money, JCB Rocester used Kennedy Pro on the Loadall line at the Rocester factory when I was there, although assembly work of new things is about the easiest life tools can get.

Eastern European brands Unior and Tona are worth looking out for too.

 

[brightspark]

Look at the Kennedy range. They are excellent.

yep i have a full set of there professional ones got second hand with a few missing paid 30 quid for em then bought the 2 missing ones for 24 54 quid and there over 100 to buy halfords professional are nice that i have also williams superslim

 

[tom2207]

Look at the Kennedy range. They are excellent.

kennedy are excellent for the money ,,, I had two sets on my boat for years ,,, one set fell into the engine bed in a storm , I didnt notice for a few weeks and when I lifted them out from being submerged in salt water and dried them off they were like new , not a mark on them ,,,, but of course they were sprayed with acf50 before they fell in ,,,, maybe its the acf 50 thats great ,,,, lol
I would undo my prop shaft bolts happily with kennedy spanners , and they were big bolts done up very very tightly.
my home toolbox is about 85% snap on ... but at times I have earned my living with them so I had no issues spending money on spanners . Draper expert are not too bad , but Id take kennedy over them.

 

[addjunkie]

Nother vote for Kennedy, prefer them to the Teng set I have

 

[Smallfry]

For someone looking at their first set, IMO Halfords Advanced. I have a few and have never broken one AND they have a lifetime guarantee.

I have many spanners from the likes of proper Britool, King Dick, Bedford. Acesa, Geodore, Sealey Premiere, Kennedy. Most of which belonged to my dad, but for the money, Halfords Advance take some beating.

 

[Anguz]

Kennedy do a stubby combo metric set which are quite nice for car work

 

[hotponyshoes]

Wurth have some nice ones as well sometimes.
They tend to change suppliers but all of the suppliers are usually decent brands. When they have an offer on they are a lot cheaper than the oem branded ones.
If you can track down a rep they normally do you even more discount on the first order to try.and sign you up..

 

[Craig-SM]

Milwaukee Max Bite are really nice to use. They’re a beam style so thicker at the edges and thinner in the middle making them not digging into your hands when applying a lot of effort. The max bite is the same as Snap-on flank drive so they dig into the flats of the nut meaning they don’t slip or round off. Only comes in a set of 8 through to 22mm, above that they have to be bought individually and it gets pricey so above that I have Halfords Advance.
The Milwaukee’s did well on the Torque Test Channel tests too

If didn’t already have the Wera Joker ratchet spanner’s I’d have the Mikwaukee ratchets too as the Wera dig into your hands so gloves are a must.