socket and ratcheting spanners on board

[PetiteFleur]

I inherited a set of 3/8" & ½" socket set when I bought the boat, seems to have done the majority of jobs on board but the sockets are only hexagon not bi-hexagon, can't remember the brand but a recognized name. I also invested in an Aldi/Lidl 3/8" & socket set, but used it yet... Also various brands of open and ring spanners, if I need a specific spanner I visit our local surplus store who has a fantastic range of branded spanners at cheap prices. Ideal if you have to modify a spanner for a particular job. At home I have a Britool (remember them?) socket set with UNF & Whit & a Metric socket set by Kamasa.

 

[RichardS]

My sets are a deep 1/4” Bacho set, a full set of Draper Expert Ratchet Spanner’s and 3 Bacho adjustable. There is no need for a 1/2” set as the 1/4” goes up to 13mm with the spanner’s dealing with the few bigger jobs. One thing to remember about the cheap sets is that they are more likely to damage or round the nuts.

I might be mis-reading your post but are you saying that you don't have any sockets larger than 13mm? Surely that can't be right?

Richard

 

[Keith-i]

No one has mentioned Teng. I’ve got a few of their sets and have been very happy with them. Lifetime guarantee too which I did claim on once for a crimper which broke whilst being used for something it shouldn’t have been.

 

[Heckler]

My onboard spanners and sockets mishmash kit has been weighed in the balance and found wanting.

The mechanic who fixed a minor issue for me yesterday uses Halfords Pro and Bluepoint sets. I was particularly impressed by the ratcheting spanner which dealt with an awkwardly placed adjuster nut for the belts; seconds rather than the minutes my fixed open-ended ones would have taken.

If I want to kit the boat out with a reliable set of sockets and spanners, what supplier or maker would the forum recommend please ? I think a 1/2 socket drive is big enough, with a 1/4 adapter for tiddly sockets.

TIA

I know about SnapOn and their prices, so No to them, sorry.

Nothing wrong with Silverline today.

 

[john_morris_uk]

Another vote for Halfords professional. I’ve got a couple of Snap On bits and pieces but when I was a student and working in a garage, they were always getting nicked.

I’ve got a very large 1/2”, 3”8” and 1/4”’drive socket and everything set on board. It’s got Allen sockets and the only two sockets I’ve had to add are the special one to remove the injectors in our VP 2040 and the one to undo the crank shaft nut.

I’ve had the set years and it’s excellent. (I like the way it’s got extension sockets as well as standard sockets. And It’s also got a full se of mm spanner’s plus ratchet spanner’s.

 

[William_H]

I have at home an enormous range of mostly cheap Chinese/Japanese sockets and many good brand spanners. mostly inherited from my father. However one of my favourite type sockets is the long reach sockets ie tube spanners especially in 1/4 drive. They make the very short stubby sockets seem mostly useless. Anyway there is no way I would carry a load of tools on my boat. From experience i know what jobs might need to be done while sailing and I keep just the tools for those jobs. So if I had an inboard engine I would select the tools and spares for water pump servicing, drive belt servicing and fuel system work and leave the rest behind. My experience is that tools get a hard time on the boat from likelihood of leaping overboard to rusting.
For the OP I would seek a ratcheting spanner for the belt adjustment. Not a set. However I am amazed at the range of especially sockets but also spanners available at car boot sales. Make a list of what you need. ol'will

 

[john_morris_uk]

I have at home an enormous range of mostly cheap Chinese/Japanese sockets and many good brand spanners. mostly inherited from my father. However one of my favourite type sockets is the long reach sockets ie tube spanners especially in 1/4 drive. They make the very short stubby sockets seem mostly useless. Anyway there is no way I would carry a load of tools on my boat. From experience i know what jobs might need to be done while sailing and I keep just the tools for those jobs. So if I had an inboard engine I would select the tools and spares for water pump servicing, drive belt servicing and fuel system work and leave the rest behind. My experience is that tools get a hard time on the boat from likelihood of leaping overboard to rusting.
For the OP I would seek a ratcheting spanner for the belt adjustment. Not a set. However I am amazed at the range of especially sockets but also spanners available at car boot sales. Make a list of what you need. ol'will

But to be fair. William, it depends on what sort of sailing you do. You have a small boat and mainly go racing locally and day sailing. We have aspirations to circumnavigate and sail far from support and civilisation. Even for the few weeks we’ve been living on board this year, i carry a huge range of spares and tools. From pullers and extensive tools including a multimeters and soldering iron and various solders and fluxes. I’ve got a decent hand drill and sets of cobalt drills, a small vice and everything from all the normal filters etc to gasket material. On a previous boat, I rebuilt the cylinder head of the engine while we were away from home -enough to get it going and back home to change the engine for a new one.

I definitely don’t buy into ‘buy cheap because they rust on board’. Cheap tools can be horrible to work with and be very poor quality. I don’t make a habit of dropping tools overboard either, in fact I can’t remember the last time I dropped a tool in the oggin.

Perhaps it also depends on the size of boat one sails?

 

[john_morris_uk]

I have at home an enormous range of mostly cheap Chinese/Japanese sockets and many good brand spanners. mostly inherited from my father. However one of my favourite type sockets is the long reach sockets ie tube spanners especially in 1/4 drive. They make the very short stubby sockets seem mostly useless. Anyway there is no way I would carry a load of tools on my boat. From experience i know what jobs might need to be done while sailing and I keep just the tools for those jobs. So if I had an inboard engine I would select the tools and spares for water pump servicing, drive belt servicing and fuel system work and leave the rest behind. My experience is that tools get a hard time on the boat from likelihood of leaping overboard to rusting.
For the OP I would seek a ratcheting spanner for the belt adjustment. Not a set. However I am amazed at the range of especially sockets but also spanners available at car boot sales. Make a list of what you need. ol'will

But to be fair. William, it depends on what sort of sailing you do. You have a small boat and mainly go racing locally and day sailing. We have aspirations to circumnavigate and sail far from support and civilisation. Even for the few weeks we’ve been living on board this year, i carry a huge range of spares and tools. From pullers and extensive tools including a multimeters and soldering iron and various solders and fluxes. I’ve got a decent hand drill and sets of cobalt drills, a small vice and everything from all the normal filters etc to gasket material. On a previous boat, I rebuilt the cylinder head of the engine while we were away from home -enough to get it going and back home to change the engine for a new one.

I definitely don’t buy into ‘buy cheap because they rust on board’. Cheap tools can be horrible to work with and be very poor quality. I don’t make a habit of dropping tools overboard either, in fact I can’t remember the last time I dropped a tool in the oggin.

Perhaps it also depends on the size of boat one sails?

 

[Murv]

Yet another +1 for the Halfords advanced and professional ranges, especially when on special offer.
Only slight annoyance with the ratchet spanners is that the offending nut or bolt is invariably too close to something to allow the ring spanner access. But, they are still worth their weight in gold when you can get some sort of access and movement is restricted to a few degrees of movement at a time, usually at arms length and out of sight...
I also have a full set of Aldi/Lidl ring spanners, useful at times and they span a huge range, something like 6mm to 32mm from memory. The largest size has been utilised a couple of times, once for removing the fuel pickup connection, something that would have been difficult even with the largest adjustable wrench. Also, surprisingly good quality for the price.
Like you, I need something that fits properly and works well, jobs on the boat are invariably critical and usually on items that have been in place and exposed to salt for a few decades. Not much point applying something poorly made in those circumstances in my opinion.

 

[lw395]

I've got a real mixture.
I would put in a good word for the Clarke sets of sockets from Machine Mart.
My main 1/2" socket set is Britool. Sockets good for a lifetime, the plastic case not so.
I have a nice 1/4 drive set from Bahco, but use additional deep sockets a lot.
I have a few hinged ratcheting combination spanners which sometimes make life a lot easier.
I also find I use 3/8 drive quite often. stronger than 1/4, much easier in a small space than 1/2.

It depends what you want to do. If you feel the need to be prepared to do an engine rebuild mid-Atlantic, you will need a full quality set.
For the average channel sailor, looking to do odd jobs at will, it's more important to have a modest adequate set of tools, and know exactly what you have on board, so that when you plan a more serious job, you know what else to bring.
There is a lot to be said for getting a cheapo set of spanners, sockets, allens, screwdrivers for 'rough use and lending'. I got a cheap set from a supermarket, I wouldn't use it for worrking on my motorbike, but it's seen a lot of use for bolting on fittings etc on various boats and if a few bits go missing or get rusty, it will be replaced for the price of few beers. Stuff does go overboard when you get involved with outboards and odds and ends on other people's boats. I have a similar set also in my car, useful for work and at the dinghy club. Stuff gets 'borrowed', it's not the end of the world.

The question is, what do you do with all the stupid 11 and 15mm spanners and sockets which seem to breed in toolboxes like the 'ratchet screwdriver fruit'?

 

[Momac]

Anyway there is no way I would carry a load of tools on my boat. From experience i know what jobs might need to be done while sailing and I keep just the tools for those jobs.

I have tried to be selective too. I did buy a small Halfords socket set a few years ago specifically for its lack of bulk and weight , to keep on the boat. I did not have more than one or two metric sockets at the time and the ratchet on my inherited set had become worn. I have small tool box for the boat in an attempt to limit the quantity of tools but this has only been partly successful . I must admit it has become slightly overwhelmed . I must have clear out of tools that aren't needed.

I have found a good allen (hex) key set has been surprisingly useful.

Any reasonably good tools should last a lifetime or longer in DIY use, if not abused. Most of my spanners and some other tools formerly belonged to my father and father in law . I dare say some date back to the 1950's .

 

[cueball]

+1 for draper expert, had my set for 30+ years and they have lived on board for the last 10, no rust, no rounding and relatively cheap.

 

[ghostlymoron]

Spanner wise, I've got two sets of Silver line combination spanners 6 - 18mm, Renshaw brand 1/2" socket set bought from Halfords 40yrs ago and a 1/4" Halfords own brand socket set bought about 25yrs ago for £10. The latter has proved extremely useful on my boats and I've only lost and replaced one socket (7mm) in that time. These are supplemented occasionally with various imperial sized AF and Whitworth gathered from various sources.
The flippy floppy ratchet spanners now available look very convenient but I wonder if they are durable.

 

[JumbleDuck]

The question is, what do you do with all the stupid 11 and 15mm spanners and sockets which seem to breed in toolboxes like the 'ratchet screwdriver fruit'?

I dunno about the 15mm ones, but you donate the 11mm ones (or 7/16", if you're stuck in the past) to owners of classic Citroën DSes, which are almost completely held together by M7 threads with 11mm heads. When I first took off the front valance of mine, I found five 11m spanners which had dropped down behind the headlights. I was responsible for only two of them.

 

[NickRobinson]

The question is, what do you do with all the stupid 11 and 15mm spanners and sockets which seem to breed in toolboxes like the 'ratchet screwdriver fruit'?

I dunno about the 15mm ones, but you donate the 11mm ones (or 7/16", if you're stuck in the past) to owners of classic Citroën DSes, which are almost completely held together by M7 threads with 11mm heads. When I first took off the front valance of mine, I found five 11m spanners which had dropped down behind the headlights. I was responsible for only two of them.

Ditto the 15mm- only thing I've found to fit my 70's Raleigh road bike back wheel- ;-)

 

[ashtead]

Love this post as lots of useful info as I am always at a loss when buying spanners etc. A useful item is a spanner role though. I had one bought in Dartmouth in canvas but I'm sure other sources available .

 

[prv]

A useful item is a spanner role though. I had one bought in Dartmouth in canvas but I'm sure other sources available .

Maybe I'm just buying too-cheap spanners, but all the sets I've bought in rolls have been made of thin plastic that the spanners start poking through quite quickly.

A nice solid canvas roll with velcro strap was the first thing I made on the sewing machine I bought for boat work

Pete

 

[RichardS]

Love this post as lots of useful info as I am always at a loss when buying spanners etc. A useful item is a spanner role though. I had one bought in Dartmouth in canvas but I'm sure other sources available .

Indeed. An enjoyable thread. :encouragement:

If anything comes through as a sort of consensus it would be:

a) if you have to restrict yourself to one large socket set, then go for 3/8". There are a few occasions when a 1/4" or 1/2" will be needed but one can cross that bridge when/if one gets to it.

b) give serious consideration to the Halfords Professional range, especially during their Sales period. It's not fashionable to recommend Halfords but their Professional range is well made and, as several of us have found out, if something does go wrong then any branch of Halfords will swap it immediately, no questions, no receipt.

Richard

 

[PaulRainbow]

The flippy floppy ratchet spanners now available look very convenient but I wonder if they are durable.

Half decent ones are, i use a set for work and they seem to take a lot of abuse.

 

[Hadenough]

There is someone who posts on here, can't remember his moniker, who usually advocates a 12" stilson wrench for anything between 6mm and 30 mm. Surprised he hasn't contributed.