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Spanner set recommendations please?
IanSouthLincs - 27/12/15 at 01:59 PM

The time has come for a new spanner set, having beaten the hell out of my unbranded CV set for the last 25 years without issue, I find I've lost/misplaced/lent out more of the commonly used ones than I have left. I must stress Snap-on, Facom etc are completely out of the question for budget reasons, I'm not overly keen on the Halfords Pro range, while it appears many people like them (and they do look good) there seems to be an awful lot of people saying "when I broke one they replaced it no problem", this does not fill me with confidence. Not to mention my closest Halfords is an hour round trip and doesn't stock a great range.
I'm also slightly concerned about what appears to be mass produced stuff that I assume is Chinese made, looks identical but with laser etched names on the shaft such as Bergen, Siegen and Neilsen which flood eBay and were also in abundance at Stoneleigh this year.
I'd really like a fairly comprehensive set, possibly with half moon, s-shaft and stubbies included, but I'm also open to the idea of buying something better for the most commonly used items and adding others later.
Any thoughts or experiences most appreciated 😀

loggyboy - 27/12/15 at 02:09 PM

Ive had no issue with unbranded spanners, i find its more useful to have several styles so your using the best type of tool over the best make.
I have a set of standard open and ring combinations, ring offset/drophead and a set of stumpys. Also a few lidl/aldi ratchet spanners.
For heavy duty i use sockets and ratchets/breakers where possible which limits spanner use to suit space restricted or bracing situations.

[Edited on 27-12-15 by loggyboy]

furryeggs - 27/12/15 at 02:17 PM

Kennedy, cheapish and good quality, its what work supply us with and they seem to last and take a bit of hammer.

blakep82 - 27/12/15 at 02:24 PM

What I took from that )don't want snap on, don't want halfords pro, don't want cheap ones, kinda reads like you don't want any of them!

Halfords pro for me, I've never managed to break anything.

Ones you get on lidl or aldi are actually surpringly good I think. Certainly for the price.

Slimy38 - 27/12/15 at 02:44 PM

quote:
Originally posted by furryeggs
Kennedy, cheapish and good quality, its what work supply us with and they seem to last and take a bit of hammer.


Coincidentally enough, I was going to suggest Cromwell tools as a source, then I realised their spanner stock is Kennedy!

I wouldn't really call them cheap though, I think 'appropriately priced' is probably more accurate. Unless it's Cromwell lifting the prices and you can get them elsewhere cheaper?

theconrodkid - 27/12/15 at 02:47 PM

Another vote for Lidl tools,they are really good quality for the money,trouble is,they aint in stock every day.

StevieB - 27/12/15 at 03:15 PM

Most of my stuff is Halfords pro and never had an issue with them at all (just got a set of flex head ratchet spanners for Christmas which are decent quality for £40). I wasn't keen when I first got them, and only did so because I'd bought a comprehensive Indy kit, needed tools, funds were low and they were on sale. Never looked back.

I also got a set of Elora spanners in imperial sizes when I had a midget, which are good quality but you can get a lot more halfords stuff for the money.

johnemms - 27/12/15 at 03:45 PM

Bahco 106 is a nice set that I use Linky



[Edited on 27/12/15 by johnemms]

JacksAvon - 27/12/15 at 04:03 PM

Halfords Pro

And they have a sale on

anthony1 - 27/12/15 at 04:10 PM

I have got lots of different makes......just bought some Kamasa imperial spanners cheap off ebay......seem to be ok , also bought quite a few sets of Yato spanners , sockets etc , I've had some Halfords professional sockets/spanners for years and they have been fine , only issue I find with some sets of spanners is how thin the middle is , just thin enough to feel like cutting into your fingers when applying a bit of pressure!!!! Most recent purchase has been a set of Teng metric spanners off ebay.

MikeRJ - 27/12/15 at 05:01 PM

quote:
Originally posted by IanSouthLincs
I'm not overly keen on the Halfords Pro range, while it appears many people like them (and they do look good) there seems to be an awful lot of people saying "when I broke one they replaced it no problem", this does not fill me with confidence.


I doubt many people have managed to break the combination spanners, it's usually things like hex bits and ratchets that are the subject of abuse.

perksy - 27/12/15 at 05:10 PM

Britool or Halfords Pro or Kamasa

Haven't managed to break either brand yet after a few years of abuse


Beware cheap un-branded spanners or sockets, They usually don't fit correctly and if one ever 'lets go' it'll hurt

IanSouthLincs - 27/12/15 at 05:11 PM

Thanks for the replies guys, with the overwhelming majority seeming to approve of the Halfords Pro I think I'll buy a set of combination spanners, then buy a cheap set of half moon and stubbies, which won't get as much use. :-)
Perksy, that's exactly the reason for the question, I have been lucky with my ancient unbranded ones they have been great, though if I could afford Facom I'd buy them. Just don't know anything about the likes of Bergen, they look identical to a few other brands and the names appear to be etched on the shaft not engraved. Are they the same, or different materials used from a similar mould?

[Edited on 27/12/15 by IanSouthLincs]

britishtrident - 27/12/15 at 05:23 PM

How often do spanners actually get used on really tight nuts ? --- almost never with the exception of 18mm upwards.

To me Halfords tools are a bit short of the mark and way over priced ---I never liked them since I bought a set of Pro-Range flank-drive sockets especially for one special job and found the 13mm was way over size.

The other thing is make sure that any set of spanners or sockets goes up in 1mm steps as so many car cars use flange head bolts and nuts that don't have the traditional head size.

B&Q sell very high quality spanners under the Torq brand name but B&Q have recently cut back on their tool range so your local store might not have them.

[Edited on 27/12/15 by britishtrident]

IanSouthLincs - 27/12/15 at 06:43 PM

Well scratch that, I've just found a small set of Taskmaster metric combination spanners for £10 plus delivery and VAT at a military surplus store of all places. I haven't seen Taskmaster for years and I remember them being excellent quality, let's hope they're still the same!

http://www.johnrichardssurplus.co.uk/taskmaster-11-piece-metric-combination-spanner-set.html

Here's the link if anyone else is interested, I think there's 3 sets left now. Just over £17 all in.

loggyboy - 27/12/15 at 07:23 PM

quote:
Originally posted by IanSouthLincs
Well scratch that, I've just found a small set of Taskmaster metric combination spanners for £10 plus delivery and VAT at a military surplus store of all places. I haven't seen Taskmaster for years and I remember them being excellent quality, let's hope they're still the same!

http://www.johnrichardssurplus.co.uk/taskmaster-11-piece-metric-combination-spanner-set.html

Here's the link if anyone else is interested, I think there's 3 sets left now. Just over £17 all in.


Quite a lot of missing sizes in that set. Albeit dowm stupid french design, that set would not suit my clio. Needs 16, 18 and 21 for a fair few tasks.

IanSouthLincs - 27/12/15 at 07:33 PM

quote:
Originally posted by loggyboyQuite a lot of missing sizes in that set. Albeit dowm stupid french design, that set would not suit my clio. Needs 16, 18 and 21 for a fair few tasks.


Actually not an issue for me as all of those plus larger sizes up to 32mm are still present in my old set, however 10, 13, 17 and 19mm are all missing :-)

britishtrident - 27/12/15 at 08:01 PM

15 , 18 and 21 very much required for modern cars.

hizzi - 27/12/15 at 09:13 PM

i bought snapon spanners in the sizes i use all the time 10,13,14,17,19 then i have general sets of different makes for the rest