2023 test8 productsHand Tools
Which Mechanics Tool Set Brand Wins?
We compared 8 mechanics tool set options head to head. GearWrench came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video.
Winner
GearWrench
Price shown in test: $355, the most expensive kit tested
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Runner-up
Husky
Price shown in test: $169, sold at Home Depot, according to Husky marketing you would spend $700 assembling this kit piece by piece
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The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Scroll sideways to see all measurements. Products are listed in the order they finished.
| Product | Weight | Ratchet teeth / claimed arc swing | Working arc swing test, passes for one 360 degree rotation in a 30 degree space | Back drag | Open end wrench torque, first attempt | Open end wrench torque, second attempt | Closed end wrench torque | Socket adapter failure load | 3/8 inch ratchet failure load | Tool case quality rating | Organization rating | Compact ratchet head size | Items out of position on arrival | Working arc swing test | Hex key set | Tool case quality |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1GearWrench$355, the most expensive kit tested | right at 43 lb | 90 teeth, claims a 4 degree working arc swing | 18 passes, tied for first place with Crescent | 251 g, third place | transcript reads 52.3 in lb, almost certainly a mangled reading missing a digit for roughly 523 in lb given the scale of other brands' results, kept verbatim with ambiguity flagged; described as performing well | transcript reads 51.6 in lb, likely a mangled roughly 516 in lb, moved into second place behind Craftsman | the wrench did not round the coupling nut but bent instead at a peak force of 1,525 in lb, a different failure mode than the other brands | 205.6 ft-lb | 302 ft-lb, the best of any brand tested, the internal drive broke at failure | 1, the best possible rating, tied with Craftsman, DeWalt, and Starwork | 2, the common middle rating | described as the most compact ratchet overall when combining front to back and width dimensions, at about 12.5 mm, with Husky nearly as compact | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested |
| 2Husky$169, sold at Home Depot, according to Husky marketing you would spend $700 assembling this kit piece by piece | 43.2 lb, the heaviest kit tested | 72 teeth, claims a 5 degree working arc swing | not tested | 338 g, described as struggling with excessive back drag | 570 in lb despite the sloppiest jaw fit of any brand tested at 0.057 in, about 60 in lb less than Craftsman | 449.1 in lb, a 21 percent performance loss from the first attempt | 1,534 in lb, third place | 235 ft-lb, the best of any brand tested | 265.7 ft-lb, second place behind GearWrench | not tested | 3, the worst rating, grouped with Pittsburgh and Kobalt | not tested | 14 | 19 passes, best result among the first four brands tested at that point | best assortment among the kits reviewed to that point, up to 3/8 in and 10 mm | not tested |
| 3Craftsman$149, according to Craftsman marketing over $950 in value, kit includes 262 pieces | transcript reads 3.84 lb, almost certainly a mangled reading missing a digit for roughly 38.4 lb given the scale of other kits, kept verbatim with ambiguity flagged | 72 teeth | not tested | 290 g | described as beating Pittsburgh's 41.9 in lb result by over 200 in lb, with a final wrap up figure stating the best initial nut busting torque of any brand at 627.736 in lb; jaw opening measured 0.5045 in, a tighter fit than Pittsburgh's 0.5065 in | transcript reads 63 in lb, almost certainly a mangled reading missing a digit for roughly 637 in lb given it is described as continuing to perform very well and hard to beat, kept verbatim with ambiguity flagged | 1,752 in lb, the best of any brand tested, over 400 in lb better than Pittsburgh | not tested | not given a numeric result in the transcript, only noted that like DeWalt the internal drive was the point of failure | 1, the best possible rating | not in the group of brands rated 3, so presumably received the common rating of 2 | not tested | not tested | 21.9 passes, moved into the lead at that point in testing | not tested | not tested |
| 4Pittsburgh$140 for 225 pieces, sold at Harbor Freight, described as a value price | 26.9 lb | 72 teeth | not tested | 212 g, second place behind Starwork | 41.9 in lb, the weakest of any brand tested, jaw opening measured 0.5065 in | transcript reads 384 in lb, almost certainly a mangled reading for roughly 38.4 in lb, gave up even sooner than the first attempt; jaw had stretched to 0.511 in | 1,344 in lb, the weakest of any wrench brand tested | 221.056 ft-lb per the closing summary, though an earlier passage in the transcript also mentions a figure of 193 ft-lb in a section whose product attribution is ambiguous; the 221.056 figure from the explicit final ranking was used | 245.20 ft-lb, the ratcheting mechanism failed though the drive itself survived | not tested | 3, the worst rating | not tested | 40, and part of the toolbox case arrived already broken | 23.5 passes | not tested | not tested |
| 5DeWalt$155, kit includes 192 pieces | 35.4 lb | 72 teeth, claims a 5 degree arc swing | not tested | 409 g, about twice as much as Pittsburgh, the worst of the first four brands tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | 185 ft-lb, the weakest of the four kits tested for this | 231.7 ft-lb, last place, the internal drive was the point of failure | 1, the best possible rating | not in the group of brands rated 3, so presumably received the common rating of 2 | described as having the most compact ratchet head from side to side of any brand | 0, all items were in the proper location | 24.5 passes, third place behind Pittsburgh at that point, hurt by an extremely wide handle | not tested | not tested |
| 6Kobalt$219, sold at Lowes | transcript reads 34.55%, almost certainly a mangled reading intended as 34.55 lb, kept verbatim with ambiguity flagged | 90 teeth, though the presenter notes the gear set is very sloppy and inefficient for a 90 tooth ratchet | not tested | 271 g, second place behind Pittsburgh at that point | 525.9 in lb | 491.2 in lb, held up better than Husky, moved into second place | 1,586 in lb, second place behind Craftsman | not tested | transcript reads 25.5 ft-lb, almost certainly missing a digit for roughly 255 ft-lb given it is described as trailing Husky's 265.7 result closely, kept verbatim with ambiguity flagged | not tested | 3, the worst rating | not tested | not tested | 21.5 passes, second place behind Husky at that point | not tested | described as the worst of any kit tested, brand new and the tray already falls out of position |
| 7Starwork$240 | 28.1 lb | 90 teeth, gear set described as far more refined than Kobalt's | not tested | 183 g, the best of any brand tested | 494.1 in lb, jaw fit measured a sloppy 0.5075 in | 472.5 in lb, did not lose much performance | the ratcheting mechanism broke during this test at 1,435 in lb | not tested | transcript reads 29.5 ft-lb, almost certainly missing a digit for roughly 295 ft-lb given the final summary places it third behind GearWrench's 302 and Husky's 265.7, kept verbatim with ambiguity flagged | 1, the best possible rating | not in the group of brands rated 3, so presumably received the common rating of 2 | not tested | not tested | 18.3 passes, took the lead from Husky at that point, close behind the 18 pass tie for first | not tested | not tested |
| 8Crescent$253 | just under 31 lb | 72 teeth, claims a 4 degree arc swing | not tested | 282 g, about the same as Craftsman | transcript reads 44.3 in lb, almost certainly missing a digit for roughly 443 in lb given the scale of comparable brands, kept verbatim with ambiguity flagged; jaw fit measured a sloppy 0.506 in | transcript reads 44.1 in lb, likely a similarly mangled roughly 441 in lb, described as losing 50 in lb of performance from the first attempt | transcript reads 1,64 in lb, almost certainly missing a digit, described as underperforming compared to Pittsburgh's 1,344 in lb result, kept verbatim with ambiguity flagged | not tested | 233.1 ft-lb, the internal drive assembly was the point of failure despite having by far the largest ratchet head in the lineup | not tested | not in the group of brands rated 3, so presumably received the common rating of 2 | not tested | not tested | 18 passes, tied for first place with GearWrench | not tested | not tested |
How it was tested
- items out of proper position on arrival and after a controlled tip-over movement test
- tool case and tray build quality and lockability
- 3/8 inch ratchet working arc swing, measured as passes needed for one full 360 degree rotation within a 30 degree space
- 3/8 inch ratchet back drag resistance measured in grams using a 7/8 inch socket, fishing line, and a scale
- combination wrench open end torque to round a soft coupling nut, first and undamaged second attempt, measured in inch pounds
- combination wrench closed end torque to round the same soft coupling nut, measured in inch pounds
- 1/2 to 3/8 inch socket adapter failure load in foot pounds
- 3/8 inch ratchet failure load in foot pounds
- overall socket, wrench, and accessory size range and completeness across drive sizes
“the gear wrench came out on top with the best average finish of 2.4”