socket set

[Guest]

Hi im after some decent tools for working on my bike with. i already have a few spanners so wont need spanners in the set. can someone expalin all the different drive sizes there seems to be 3/8 drive and 1/4 drive coming up ?

i found this at halfords a 65 peice socket set

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165572

its on offer at halfords but it seems a bit to cheap. having said that its original price is £50

not sure on the best sizes either i dont even know the size of my wheel nuts but will check later

will i be able to use these sockets on a torque wrench and is there anything else i will need to use a torque wrench ?

is it easier to get more torque using a ratchet and sockets ?

[eastanglianbiker]

looking at that socket set at least half of them are imperial sizes none of which will fit your bike as everything on it is metric

[Guest]

right ok.

the spanner i use just have numbers on like 17, 18 etc

is there a decent range of metric sizes to do most tasks ?

[Martyc]

I use halfords professional. They've taken over 10 years of abuse on cars including being jumped on having 3 foot scaffold bars used on the end for extra leverage for seized bolts, being whacked with hammers and generally being used badly and not broken any tools yet!

[Guest]

wow lol

[caretaker]

Ideally you may be better getting same drive size to suit the torque wrench you have then you will be able to use any sockets with the torque wrench also as has already been mentioned make sure its metric (unless your working on an old british bike)

[Phill_vtr]

I use halfords professional. They've taken over 10 years of abuse on cars including being jumped on having 3 foot scaffold bars used on the end for extra leverage for seized bolts, being whacked with hammers and generally being used badly and not broken any tools yet!

 

I have some halfords pro deep 3/8 drive sockets that I used on an air gun every day for a couple of years (not recommended) as well as everyday normal use for a good few years after that and took some serious punishment. They chipped the chrome but otherwise are still fine.

I tend to use a 3/8 drive ratchet and sockets most but I also have 3/4, 1/2 and 1/4 inch ones. I tend to use the half inch only for anything over 19mm as it gives more leverage (and bigger sockets tend to be 1/2 inch drive). The 1/4 drive set is normally used for anything under 10mm.

If I were starting out buying tools again and I was on a tight budget, I would get a reasonably priced (not cheap) 1/2 drive set that did say, 10mm - 27mm and a cheapish 1/4 drive set. A decent set of spanners, screwdrivers, allen keys and pliers would also be a must.

There are numerous other tools that would be handy but this would be the basic essential tools.

[Guest]

Bugger me you only need a hammer to flog it with.

Oops not at work anymore.

Whenever I get anything stuck and to what most people would call stuck I use a flank drive socket.

http://www.v8register.net/images/265V8NOTE291wheelnut.jpg

They grip the flat of the nut instead of the corners. Absolute life saver and no toolbox should be without them.

Any decent non-plastic socket will do fine.

How often will you use them?

Not very often no need to get expensive, a 30quid set will do then buy the rest as required,

All the time, Get a comprehensive set, I use my sockets for work as well as the bike so they have to with stand alot of abuse,

Do you have a compressor?

If so get a windy gun, it will save you life more times than you care to imagine.

Basically, just by the basics and build up from there, you don't need to be like me, and have a full, 2000sq in snap of top box with bottom cabnet rammed to the gills with tools, then more on the wall. That isn't necessary and it also puts you in about 8k of debt with Mr Snapon.

The different drive sizes are from the good ol' days when we worked in inch's.

If you want to show off and be Mr Big Bollocks, try find a bigger socket than my 18inch socket with 1 1/2drive.

[Guest]

I got the halfords professional (£199) for £99 and its bloody good!

The sizes like 18 and 17 would be the metric sizes, in mm.

[Timmy Tiger]

is there a decent range of metric sizes to do most tasks ?

 

If your working on a bike then 8, 10, 12, 14 are the common sort of sizes required plus one for your spindle nut which could be between 18 - 24.

[Guest akey]

For all basics I would suggest:

Sockets - 6-19mm at least, but contine up to 26mm if you can.

Combination spanners - same range.

Trust me there is nothing more frustrating than getting halfway through a job to find you need a 16mm spanner and you havent got one (or in my case i didnt bring it)

I would also get the appropriate plug socket for your bike and the appropriate oil fliter tool if you need one and a decent set of screwdrivers.

[mattyb]

Plus if that's your bike in your avatar think about buying a set of Torx sockets too as they may well be used in a few places, the calipers are held together with them on my CBR.

I've got quite a few tools but pretty much any job I try to do involves at least one trip down town to get the vital one I'm missing!

[TC]

I got the halfords professional (£199) for £99 and its bloody good!

 

I've just brought myself one of those. Great quality (Lifetime guarantee). Almost every tool you'll ever need.

[Takanta]

I also have that set , lifetime warranty is great lol , we took back one of the sockets cus it was a tad rusty cus we left it out in rain by accident for a few weeks, took it back and halfords replaced it straight away

[NC24]

I got the halfords professional (£199) for £99 and its bloody good!

 

I've just brought myself one of those. Great quality (Lifetime guarantee). Almost every tool you'll ever need.

 

I bought one last year. The ratchets seized up within weeks and have been replaced five times. I've had the breaker bar adaptor shear off twice and four sockets shatter. Took it back for the last time on Monday and got a full refund, eventually!

Bought myself a Bacho set instead for around the same money. Far superior in quality.

[Guest]

right the £20 set sounds like a peice of junk so im now looking at getting the 90 peice set for £60. all tools have a lifetime gurantee so its worth paying the extra.

i rung one local halfords store yesterday and they said they are not completly sure how long the offer will stay on for but probably until the first week in january.

i then ring another halfords store today just to check as i dont wont to miss out and they say they dont know and then they say probably christmas (25th december)

so guess iv now got to rush out and get it. would rather had got one after xmas before new year.

[Guest]

I hear a lot of talk about socket sets here but no body has mentioned one of the most important issues when buying a socket set. Have a good look at the box that it comes in. Think about it. If, after a few months use, the box falls apart then the bits fall out then you might as well bin the whole thing, because you will lose parts of the set and a partial socket set is worse than useless...

I learned this the hard way. I have a quite specialised 1/4" set that has metric, imperial and BA (ask your grandad!) but the insert tray cracked and broke up, I now have a collection of around 50 sockets lying loose in the box that I have to rake through every time I find a different size bolt. Major PIA

ZD

[Phill_vtr]

I learned this the hard way. I have a quite specialised 1/4" set that has metric, imperial and BA (ask your grandad!) but the insert tray cracked and broke up, I now have a collection of around 50 sockets lying loose in the box that I have to rake through every time I find a different size bolt. Major PIA

ZD

 

Get a socket rail or socket tray. Only a few pounds but you get all sockets on there in size order and can easily identify anything missing.