Ok. I know this seems stupid and all but it’s just a question of principle for me… do I really need to invest in one of these to work on my car. I have a complete set of sockets and ratchets and spending a 120$ on a set of Metric and SAE I read around some say metric only is good but on the time I worked on my car I never had to use wrenches. Some say the day you will need one and you don’t have them you will be SOL, but 120$ just for some tools sitting there seems a lot. Or 60$ for just the metric set.
I know it might not seems much and it’s tools that will last me a long time but I’m already spending 100$ on some torque wrenches and another 800$ on a toolbox so I just want general input.
What is the point of owning a torque wrench or a toolbox if you aren’t going to buy any wrenches? There is no way we can say whether or not you will ever use these wrenches repairing your car. Heck, I’m not even sure from your post exactly WHAT wrenches you own now and what you are asking about. No matter, the answer is still the same. We can’t know because we don’t know what jobs you might want to tackle yourself or send to a mechanic.
My advice is, wait until you need it and then go buy it. OR, Wait until the Fathers Day sales or Xmas sales and go buy some.
I’m not aware of any car made that does not require some wrenches for various services. It’s better to have a basic set rather than get part way into something and discover that you’re held up due to lack of.
If you’re going to begin to work on your car you’re going to need to invest in LOTS of wrenches!
Box/open wrenches, stubbies, ratcheting box ends, allen wrenches, adjustable wrenches (good ones only), torque wrenches in different ranges, impact wrenches…
and then there are the limitless sets of sockets; deep sockets, shallow sockets, impact sockets, 1/4" drives, 3/8" drives, 1/2" drives, and on and on and on. It never ends.
Oh, and repair manuals would be a really good investment too… or a subscription to a repair database.
Then there’s the OBD scanner… to get fault codes.
And absolutely you’ll need safety glasses!!! Damage your eyes and you’ll seriously regret not wearing them. These are an absolute MUST.
Cutoff wheels? You have choices.
And I’ve just begun the list.
So now the question is, how compelled do you now feel to working on your own car?
So now the question is, how compelled do you now feel to working on your own car?
I pretty much have everything you listed, except the wrenches and adjustable wrenc and haven’t required them. Though I only changed oil, idle control valve, coolant tank.
I have 2 drawers full of combination wrenches laid out in order plus a 5 gallon pale full of combination wrenches bent for specific purposes and I threw away another 5 gallon pale of custom bent wrencehs a few years ago. Twenty years ago my tool box and the tools in it had a replacement value of $55,000. I can’t imagine what a young mechanic hoping to get a job at a new car dealership would need to invest in order to make a living these days even if he avoided Snap-On when possible. Upwards of $100,000 I expect.
Now I have a few tools, looking occasionally for the /32 to substitute for metric, wenteorth a different scenario, the only tool I have broken on a regular basis is a 1/8 to 1/4 adapter.
This discussion could really become convoluted if Whitworth sizes become involved @Barkydog. Those who have classic British cars using Whitworth fasteners are familiar with them and for the sake of sanity everyone else should just ignore their existance. While most were standard size hex bolts and nuts the wrenches weren’t marked that way and a few were really odd, I recall a 27/64" somewhere on an old MG that was rated as a 3/8 Whitworth.
$800 for a toolbox and you don’t have any wrenches? Your priorities are skewed. Many non pros never own a mechanics style toolbox. My son in law who has bought many cars with blown engines and then found donor cars cheap to strip for parts and bought and restored several cars and usually has 4 or 5 motorcycles keeps his tools in 5 gallon pails. Any tools either one of us need to replace now, we usually pick up at car show flea markets. Although I have thousands of dollars in hand tools, my investment in cabinets is less than $70.
That’s when you’ll need combination wrenches. I can’t imagine trying to work on diy’er car repairs without a set of combination wrenches. But I guess it might be possible depending on what type of repairs you plan to do. For example I used two wrenches today to tighten a connection on my air compressor. That couldn’t be done with sockets.
Well I have to say my mechanic bud has a really nice tool chest, organized very well, and every wrench and socket cleaned before it goes back in, now compared to my where the heck is it collection, it is always great to go looking for a tool, and I am one of the few people that can go grab anything at anytime because it will be returned to the proper place. I respect him and his order, and my tool collection is a shambles in comparison, but everyone calls him a dirty name, because he is so particular, but he and I are great buds because I respect his property.
Yeah you need wrenches too along with a whole lot of other stuff. The thing is you don’t do it all at once but over a long period of time. If you are serious, like with an $800 tool box then you need the quality. If you’re a duffer and DIY guy like me with a $100 tool box and the peg board, Kobalt quality is fine for me. Finally I just decided to get two sets of everything with one set in the car so I can always find at least one of the size I need but geeze I’ve been adding to my collection for 60 years.
One thing is you can sometimes rummage the pawn shops for some stuff if you’re careful, although a lot of it is consumer quality and worn out. I’ve bought nailers though, a planer or two, etc. for stuff that for a few dollars for an overhaul can provide the little used stuff for less money.
If you lived in the United States you would have access to less expensive tools. An 11 piece set of metric Craftsmen wrenches costs $30, Harbor Freight less than $10.
You can’t replace a tie rod end with a socket, you can’t loosen/tighten brake lines with a socket. One day you will need wrenches.
If you plan to only change oil you may not need wrenches but then you also don’t need an $800 tool box.
Agree with all - first, you can buy a decent set of wrenches for $20 at any parts store. Get a set of metric and SAE. As you get more familiar with engines/cars, you will find the need for specific wrenches then, and add to your tool kit. Brake line wrenches are very important and necessary if you’ll be doing that type of work. Six point box end are invaluable in certain situations, and on and on. But to start with a $120 set seems a little wasteful until you really start delving into this type of work.
