Socket Sets: Purchase made, skinned knuckles incoming

[RoadworkUK]

It's recently been my birthday, which means that some folding is in my possession; this very rarely happens.

 

I'm now fully settled into my archi-shite early 90's semi, and its time to get the workshop set up as some kind of working concern. I already have a motley assortment of utility tools, general mixed spanners and stuff which have come as surplus from generations of ex-spannerers and probably should have been binned years ago. It all needs organising properly, really, or burning. Or both.

 

What I need first, I have decided, is a proper socket set. I know that there was a thread on here quite recently and there's a lot of love for Halfords gear. What I need is a bit of help in narrowing it down.

 

To set the scene; this is what it'll be being used for:

 

A) I own a Rover 800 with a KV6 engine. It works fine at the moment but future spannerage seems inevitable

 

I am about to embark on a wholly ill-advised engine teardown of my Audi A4 who's cooling system is full of engine oil.

 

C) Fiancée runs a 306 1.4 (which could probably be completely disassembled with a lolly stick and an eraser).

 

I could probably whang about 150 sovs at something. Before I just go to Halfords and buy the biggest set I can get, all advice on alternatives would be much appreciated.

 

Ta.

[MrDuke]

Halfords' Advanced sets are indeed excellent bits of kit, with everything you'd need inside. In the unlikely event that you break one of the pieces, they'll usually just swap it for a new piece without even bothering with receipts etc. Although I'd wait until they knock them down to £100 (which seems to happen incredibly often) then you'll have an extra £50 to splurge on decent molegrips or a torque wrench or whatever.

[Parky]

What Mr Duke said. Halfords offers often coincide with holidays, maybe next weeks bank holiday will trigger a 24hour sale?

[hairnet]

duke all day

 

do that

[Jim Bell]

+1 For Halfords.

 

Think I caught the last sale and got the £150 set for £79.

Only seen light use, but reasonably comprehensive.

[Skizzer]

I got my Halfords Advanced set for some stupidly low price as a deal when I bought an engine's worth of oil for my Rover 75. It's excellent, and with the addition of a 3' breaker bar has covered every job.

[RoadworkUK]

So, what you're saying is that the £150 al singing all dancing and allegedly should be £300 (!) set is likely to go down still further in one of these "sales"?

 

Blimey.

 

I shall keep cash firmly enpocketed and check Halfords online daily.

 

Thanks!

[meggersdog]

I use my Halfords Advanced set all the time.Aswell as the Allen keys I keep forgetting are there the advanced set also has ratchet spanners which are really handy.

 

This is the latest edition with extra half inch breaker bar

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_862463_langId_-1_categoryId_255215

[crapcarcollector]

No love for Sealey here? Had mine in a storage roll cab chest deal some 12 years ago. beautiful quality 1/2inch and 3/8 inch ratchets, short and long reach sockets on storage rails.

 

Forget what it cost, but I do recall the lot being on offer and an unmissable price. 

[Louise2cv]

Fairplay even my Halfords remedial sockets have been good. I have vowed never to shop there again due to some rubbish service involving selling a child seat that had been recalled, but here I am backing up the above recommendations, often heard the same when others have asked about where to buy tools.

[gordonbennet]

As well as a normal socket set, suggest if you have the money buy a reasonable set of impact sockets (sometimes come with a short extension and sometimes a 1/2 to 3/8 adapter, no ratchets), usually in satin black colour, they will all be six sided, are thicker than the usual sockets.

 

Anywhere likely to be tight if i can fit them i use those impacters, and i also use an old 3 ft long torque wrench for leverage on really tight bolts with as short an extension as i can get away with, once on tight impacters simply do not slip off.

 

I got my impact set online, not mega expensive but not cheap Chinese tat either, never had a problem, even when coupled to the impact gun..

 

On the Outback forum they posters said how difficult it was undoing the front hub nut, with the right sized impact socket and the trusty torgue wrench the hub bolts came undone with ease.

[Guest bangerfan101]

2nd hand halfords tools sell for a pittance on ebay . i purchased a 1/2 inch socket set that had probablly been used once at best for under a fiver plus postage

[the judge]

I always had teng when I was a technician. then less and less stockists for returns. halfords are everywhere and I believe don't muck about changing stuff. Kudos to them!!

All that said,only broke a torx,but no messing

[garethj]

I'd get a general socket set, and spend the rest of the cash on different length extension bars and a few good quality spanners of the common sizes.

[MrDuke]

As well as a normal socket set, suggest if you have the money buy a reasonable set of impact sockets (sometimes come with a short extension and sometimes a 1/2 to 3/8 adapter, no ratchets), usually in satin black colour, they will all be six sided, are thicker than the usual sockets.

 

 

My Halfords set (about 3 years ago) came with 4 or 5 impact sockets, although I forget the sizes. Although most impact drivers will also come with a selection of sockets too.

[gordonbennet]

I didn't get a Halfords socket set, my Teng main socket set from umpteen bloody years ago when my hair was still brown is still going strong, the best ratchets i've ever used.

[Skizzer]

So, what you're saying is that the £150 al singing all dancing and allegedly should be £300 (!) set is likely to go down still further in one of these "sales"?

 

Blimey.

 

I shall keep cash firmly enpocketed and check Halfords online daily.

 

Thanks!

 

Past performance is no guarantee of future performance...

 

I think that was the deal, it might have involved me spending above a certain amount (= whole service kit for the 75, or summat).  I fail at remembering things.

[catsinthewelder]

I'm also after some more tools so I tried to follow Bangerfan 101's advice and it led me to.

 

 

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Halfords-chrome-vanadium-3-8-socket-set-A-F-made-in-England-vintage-classic-car-/301166754700?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item461eeffb8c

[twosmoke300]

With the a4 . Check its not the oil cooler on the filter housing gone. More common than omghgf

[Bren]

The halfords stuff is perfectly good, machine mart is ok, but they offer very little in the way of discounts.

 

Or you could just spend your £150 on a set of snap on screwdrivers - everybody will think you are a pro.

[RichardMoss]

If you plan on doing spanner work on a Rover, I would suggest a hexagon set rather than bi-hexagon set.  They will be much less likely to round off the corners on some of the not-quite-up-to-the-required-quality nuts that Rover seemed to fit.  A 1/4" drive set is handy for the tight spaces around the timing covers etc.

[Richard]

A 3/8" set should be your main socket set, with a 1/4" set for fiddly bits and 1/2" for bigger/tighter stuff.

[RoadworkUK]

With the a4 . Check its not the oil cooler on the filter housing gone. More common than omghgf

 

This intrigues me. It's a '98 1.8T (AEB) and the coolant tank is filling up nicely with yellowy HGF-type mayo, and oil consumption is going up. However, no evidence of any actually being burnt.

 

However, one of the spark-plug wells does have quite a bit of oil seeping into it, so something's amiss somewhere...

 

If you plan on doing spanner work on a Rover, I would suggest a hexagon set rather than bi-hexagon set.  They will be much less likely to round off the corners on some of the not-quite-up-to-the-required-quality nuts that Rover seemed to fit.  A 1/4" drive set is handy for the tight spaces around the timing covers etc.

 

Cheers Richard. I've done the main cambelt on the KV6 already, so know exactly what you're talking about. It would be just my luck for the head gasket to go on the Audi before the Rover!

 

What I'd really like is to meet somebody desperate to get rid of a KV6 cam locking kit....

 

Thanks for your tips so far, chaps. Am taking notes.

[coalnotdole]

I've always used old britool / king dick stuff mainly bought at car boot sales its high quality and in the past it has been quite cheap. Its starting to command premium these days ( as british made engineering tools often do)

 

If i had your budget I'd be looking at buying something like this:

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Britool-3-8-Drive-Socket-Set-NA640J-Metric-AF-Made-In-England-Complete-/131170705172?pt=UK_Hand_Tools_Equipment&hash=item1e8a621f14

 

or this:

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VINTAGE-BRITOOL-MADE-IN-ENGLAND-METRIC-A-F-SOCKET-SET-WITH-EXTRAS-/331181620094?pt=UK_Hand_Tools_Equipment&hash=item4d1bf67b7e

 

Safe in the knowledge that if looked after it won't depreciate.

 

I keep a variety of cheaper sockets for hammering over things.

 

PS all the new britool stuff is actually french.

[Guest bangerfan101]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/HALFORDS-40-PIECE-SOCKET-SET-EXTRA-LEVERAGE-BAR-/111338297542?pt=UK_Hand_Tools_Equipment&hash=item19ec4798c6

 

see

[RoadworkUK]

I spent some time umming and aarrring, and losing eBay auctions and all kinds of procrastinatory pointlessness, I eventually grew a pair and went to the shops.

 

 

Inevitably it's a Halfords set, but it's advanced, you know. So that's OK.

 

There are twelve ratchet spanners in useful looking sizes and lots and lots of lovely sockets, which are nominally six sided but have odd rounded bits in them which are alleged to not round things off. It's a 200 piece set, eventually mine for £135 with a coupon code thing. One day I might have found something better for less but I got a bit bored waiting.

 

Next step is to actually get them dirty and do some bloody work rather than just looking at them.