Today I acquired...........

[brightspark]

View attachment 490425

About a decade ago when I was only just starting to get into working on cars seriously I remember asking a mate what the point of long ratchets was, when breaker bars were a thing...

It's only taken 5 years from first realising the potential utility of one, to actually getting one.

Not sure if I should have got the 600 rather than the 450 though.

put the sockets with it otherwise its obvious if someone gets a cracked scull

 

[DAPPH]

Honda engine... not starting? Can't use those words in the same sentence .
Pretty bullet proof engines.
Most likely valve adjustment, carburetor cleaning, a new sparkplug and it will start 90%

Engine worn beyond repair .. no one ever changed the engine oil ????

 

[DAPPH]

Do you have a link? I've always been tempted by one but never found a decent length one when I've briefly looked.

Slip a close fitting tube over the ratchet and learn that sometimes you can split the ratchet body trying to undo very high tensile steel stuck bolts

 

[sako243]

Slip a close fitting tube over the ratchet and learn that sometimes you can split the ratchet body trying to undo very high tensile steel stuck bolts

I haven't broken a ratchet yet but I've done that plenty of times. Turns out a P38 steering bar is very thick wall and a perfect fit over a Halfords ratchet. Also got a twist in the end so you can angle it the right way.

I know the limits though, hence why I wanted something better suited to the purpose. The radius/trailing arm bushes on the Land Rover need to be done up to lots of ugga duggas but the big impact won't fit in there. A normal breaker bar if the vehicle isn't a few feet off the ground flexes too much to rotate by 60° to be able to adjust the socket.

 

[Turbo]

There was extendable ratchets in lidl recently.

 

[Memmeddu]

Engine worn beyond repair .. no one ever changed the engine oil ????

Usually small 4 strokes throw a rod .
Now seriously I've seen them fail only when installed on go kart, and they fail pretty badly

 

[Farside]

Slip a close fitting tube over the ratchet and learn that sometimes you can split the ratchet body trying to undo very high tensile steel stuck bolts

What kind of absolute animal uses a ratchet to unbreak a bolt?
Breaker bar first.

 

[Porkypine]

What kind of absolute animal uses a ratchet to unbreak a bolt?
Breaker bar first.

With a bit of scaff over the end

 

[indykid]

A normal breaker bar if the vehicle isn't a few feet off the ground flexes too much to rotate by 60° to be able to adjust the socket.

If you take the socket off the breaker bar and rotate it 90° each time you run out of travel, you get 30° resolution from a single hex socket. It's admittedly a hell of a faff though.

I can see why you'd want a long ratchet...

 

[tigdlo]

Long ratchets are good for bolts that are tight all the way out and you cant get anything else on or the captive nut id bouncing around preventing pregress with an impact wrench, you wouls also look much less of a knob using a long ratchet to undo a tight subframe bolt or similar than walking around in circles holding a breaker bar, if you are working under a lift.

 

[Jelly_Sheffield]

put the sockets with it otherwise its obvious if someone gets a cracked scull

My partner has previously pointed out that if I was to pick up any of the random tools strewn around the house en route to or from the workshop/truck as a defensive weapon against intruders, I might have to show a lot of photos of our general state of chaos to convince a jury it was genuinely to hand.

I believe it was the top-handle chainsaw that inadvertently found a home on the bookshelf outside the bathroom that sparked the thought in her.

I haven't broken a ratchet yet but I've done that plenty of times. Turns out a P38 steering bar is very thick wall and a perfect fit over a Halfords ratchet. Also got a twist in the end so you can angle it the right way.

Tempting fate there by saying you haven't broken one yet.

The radius/trailing arm bushes on the Land Rover need to be done up to lots of ugga duggas but the big impact won't fit in there. A normal breaker bar if the vehicle isn't a few feet off the ground flexes too much to rotate by 60° to be able to adjust the socket.

It was exactly that situation but with the Hilux prop shaft that convinced me on the long ratchet.

As it happened I was able to jack it up enough to get the swing on a breaker bar, but it was a lot of faff for a job I should have been able to do with 4 wheels on the ground.

What kind of absolute animal uses a ratchet to unbreak a bolt?
Breaker bar first.

I suppose next you'll be telling me it's uncivilised to use a ratchet as a slogging spanner too?

If you take the socket off the breaker bar and rotate it 90° each time you run out of travel, you get 30° resolution from a single hex socket. It's admittedly a hell of a faff though.

I can see why you'd want a long ratchet...

You got there about 5 years faster than I did.

 

[Porkypine]

I had to undo a rear hub nut on a Fiesta once, that did in fact take a 13ft scaff tube on the end, the nut gave up in the end with a loud crack ( and yes I was undoing it the correct way round )

 

[Cobbler]

I had to undo a rear hub nut on a Fiesta once, that did in fact take a 13ft scaff tube on the end, the nut gave up in the end with a loud crack ( and yes I was undoing it the correct way round )

We had a Fiesta & I had hell of a job to get the hub off, god knows what torque it had been done up to. If I recall I had to jump on the breaker bar.

 

[Porkypine]

We had a Fiesta & I had hell of a job to get the hub off, god knows what torque it had been done up to. If I recall I had to jump on the breaker bar.

I think it's something totally mental like 235 ft/lbs

 

[MetalMonkey]

I think it's something totally mental like 235 ft/lbs

Just done up a couple of driveshaft nuts - book calls for 360Nm (265ft/lb).
There was no way I was getting those off with a 1/2" breaker bar!

Mid torque impact rattled them off no bother though, new ones torqued up to spec with a Norbar torque multiplier.
Funnily enough my torque wrenches don't go up that high, didn't think I'd need much over 220Nm for cars.... Apparently I was wrong.

 

[JOEPRO]

Crank bolts are another high torque application.

I have a giant 3/4 teng torque wrench for these.

 

[droopsnoot]

Funnily enough my torque wrenches don't go up that high, didn't think I'd need much over 220Nm for cars.... Apparently I was wrong.

The Audi I5 crank pulley / harmonic balancer is 450NM, or 350NM using their special torque multiplier tool. My local dealer were good enough to loan me theirs last time I needed to do the job (it needs to be removed to change the cam belt) but I stupidly didn't think of calling them to see whether they were thinking of disposing of it until years after they'd done just that. Apparently the dimensions for the multiplier are available online somewhere.

 

[Farside]

I suppose next you'll be telling me it's uncivilised to use a ratchet as a slogging spanner too?

Hanging's too good for the likes of that type of person.

 

[OJCar]

A Sealey LED inspection light that was lying in the road.
Was filthy, gave it a wash, it has some gravel rash, got it on charge now but seems to work OK.

 

[Jelly_Sheffield]

Hanging's too good for the likes of that type of person.