What socket set?

[GavinJ]

Hi Guys,

I'm going to get my old man a new socket set for xmas as thanks for doing a mass of welding on my MGB....

Budget is between, £100-£150.

I usually go for Halfords - thats what my kit is but i have managed to break a few rachets recently and the actual case annoys me as nothing is held in 'tight' - slightest kick with the foot whilst your working away and the sockets managed to pop out everywhere!

Any suggestions? Euro car parts list a few sets, but does not mention anything about lifetime warranty etc...

[jabba273]

Bahco have some wicked sets out at the mo

[wyer1972]

do you ever see any of the snap on or mac tools vans , on the snap on van they do a budget range of tools called blue point , i got a 3/8 ths set for less than a hundred , on the mac tools van they do britool , facom and of course mac , the britool ones are on offer at the moment , all the above brands offer a no quibble lifetime guarantee , i hope this is of some help

[Rev. Dick Deluxe]

I have one of these.
Best socket set i've ever bought.
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BLUE-POINT-SNAP-100PC-SOCKET-SPANNER-SET-/200685320312?pt=UK_Hand_Tools_Equipment&hash=item2eb9c6f878

[bortaf]

Cant beat halfords but agree on the cases, i've gone through 3 cases to 1 ratchet broken stuff wise, as to the loose sockets (which anoys the fook out of me as well) i used a cut to size bit of bed roll, squishy and holds em all in place, they do come with a bit of foam but that falls appart in a week or 3
If like me you do the odd pre metric car you can not beat teh halford pro set (allways on special offer at £99).

[ben711200]

I'm a big fan of the Halfords pro stuff but I do also use a separate, coarser 3/8" ratchet for when I'm working in a hamfisted manner. It may or may not be stronger, but it feels stronger. That said, I shouldn't need to do that anyway. I should go up to 1/2" instead but sometimes you can't fit in the gap.. It's also all 12 sided rather than 6, which can be an annoyance.


When I put it like that ^^ I probably wouldn't buy it again. I'd choose a bit more carefully or piece my set together with bits I like from various manufacturers. Then again, I've bought it now and with it's lifetime guarantee that doesn't requirea proof of purchase to be redeemed in any of its hundreds of shops that are all open on Sunday afternoons, I've probably got a good deal

[surprisingskoda]

My 3/8 Halfords ratchets have seen the thick end of a hammer more than once and never broken.
I've two large sets, lots of small Halfords sets, and a Draper set.

That said, my next set would likely be Bahco. Any bits I've been buying recently seem to have been Teng which are also very good.

[chairchild]

I can agree the Halfords extreme ratchets are the dogs danglies - got the 1/4", 3/8", and 1/2" versions ;D The 1/2" has been used with so much force, I should've just grabbed the breaker bar.... still works like new!


I've also used it as a small hammer on more than one occasion (well, they shouldn't make it so usefully heavy!!)


#EDIT#

Only thing I'd like to point out... just those 3 came to about £100... not including any sockets/cases/etc... so annoyingly out of the budget range

[waveman1500]

I have a 3/8" drive SP Tools socket set and am very happy with it. The one thing that I will say about sockets is that 3/8" drive is amazing! I always used to do everything with 1/2" drive, but now that I've tried it I use 3/8" drive for everything except extremely large bolts which are beyond the size range of my 3/8" set! It's so much easier and nicer, even in places where you've got heaps of room for a 1/2" ratchet. My mechanic mate has taken this a step further and even uses 1/4" drive in normal servicing of modern cars.

[bortaf]

I've broken 2 3/8ths halfords ratchets but that was taking off head bolts with a 4 ft scaff tube over it the way i see it if they are stupid enough to put teh splined head tool on a 3/8ths drive they can replace the ratchet when it goes and they did both times still took me 2 years of breaking a new car every week to snap the ratchet though

[Onne]

I use a Gedore ratchet set, and I love it, never had any trouble with it.

[Deleted]

get a decently large set from Halfrauds,then when the most often bits break (ratchet/13mm socket ect) replace with a Snapon/Mac alternative

[dungbug]

Halfrauds pro socket set seems to be pretty good, the chap who lives next door has one & I was impressed with the quality of them, don't seem a bad buy at £99 for the set. Give's you an extra 50 sheets to play with/buy more tools with.

[duncancallum]

if its for a MGB get one thats imperial not metric.

I'll second Teng stuff too.

[mantakev]

Dec 9, 2011 18:42:58 GMT Rev. Dick Deluxe said:

I have one of these.
Best socket set i've ever bought.
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BLUE-POINT-SNAP-100PC-SOCKET-SPANNER-SET-/200685320312?pt=UK_Hand_Tools_Equipment&hash=item2eb9c6f878

Yep i got the same one, awesome bit of kit.
Add a hammer and a pair of pliers and you can fix anything!

[Bob the Fish]

Teng imperial here, and Halford metric.
BSF set and other stuff from baconsdozen.co.uk - can't recall what make but he does decent stuff.

[joem83]

Halfords Pro kit, I have 2 a 14 year old 120 piece & a 6 year old 120 piece. Apart from loosing the odd socket, rachet and extension bars I am yet to break anything and I do tend to use the larger rachets as hammers. The only downside is the case on the oldest one is broken on the hinge but that is partly becuase I threw it at my mate. Could be repaired with a piano hinge though.
The oldest set has stripped several car's down and been quite heavly used.

150 piece set are half price at moment £99 with lifetime guarantee.

www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_173083_categoryId_255215_langId_-1?cm_sp=Intelligent_Offer-_-Product_List_Zone_1-_-Blank&iozone=PLPz1#dtab

*I don not work for and never have worked for halfords lol*

[rusty998]

i bought one of these set's from a local tool shop in Staines middlesex, they are on here too www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Franklin-26pc-Socket-Set-72T-3-8-dr-XL3826-/200412182743?pt=UK_Hand_Tools_Equipment&hash=item2ea97f38d7
i have Snap on, blue point, mac and some halfords tools, they all cost me alot more than the Franklin ones above but i cant knock the Franklins set at all, the best bit is that the sockets can be used on imperial and metric which was great for me as i own cars that need both type, only have a years warranty but they are cheaper than the snap on etc.

[🇿🇼Kingludba🇬🇧]

Britool, best set ever, strong weighty sockets that don't chip/scratch when dropped/thrown in frustration, their ratchets are solid too!! On cheaper side, machine mart do decent sockets too, quality is probably just above HALFRAUDS!

[Mystery Machine]

I am 100% Halfords with the main socket set.

I bought one three years ago and apart from people like Bortaf who use theirs daily for business, I reckon my set has seen about as much abuse as anyone could give. Certainly a LOT more than most peoples sets will see in their lifetime. Some of the people who use my set don't particularly have much, shall we say, 'mechanical sympathy' either...yet only one item has broken in all this time (an allen key socket snapped but got a straight replacement on Sunday afternoon and it meant I could finish the job!)

A few parts have gone missing over time but this is more a legacy of the kit being well used by lots of people at the same time with various parts of the set in various cars all over the unit. I am only talking a few items though and luckily, Halfords sell all the items individually anyway, so replacing a missing part is usually only £3 or £4.

If your budget is £150 I would certainly buy the £100 big set from Halfords and then a rail of 1/2" 6 sided sockets and also a rail of 1/2" deep 6 sided sockets....and a breaker bar. You'll still have change from £150.

The 1/2" six sided ones are invaluable and having a rail of normal and deep really enhances the usability of the Halfords set. I bought mine from B&Q (yes, really!!) and they have actually been superb. Often used instead of impact scokets and they hold up bloody brilliantly.

Another thing I would consider buying (which might take your budget slightly over the £150 IF you're buying 2 x rails of 6 sided sockets as well) is a set of Halfords combi ratchet spanners, the ones with the flexi-head (pivot head) because they are SOOO good for getting into those tight spaces and, again, really enhance the Halfords big set.

Ask anyone who has been to Area 52 and they will all confirm that the main items being used are the ones mentioned above. All the time without question....