Ratchet handles

JHZR2

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New Jersey
Looking to get a long handle, flex head, 1/2” drive ratchet. Primarily looking at gently used snap on, like the shlfd80.

Most every ratchet I own, which includes snap on, SK, and US made craftsman, is a metal handle. I do own a comfort soft touch grip 3/8” snap on ratchet.

Im not sure I see the rationale or benefit of the handled ratchets. I LOVE the same materials on my sgdmrc ratcheting screwdrivers - my go to screwdrivers… I just don’t see the need on my ratchets. The smaller, more streamlined, and lighter, the better. I even try to maximize use of 1/4” drive ratchets because of the reduced heft and size.

But a long handle 1/2” drive is a different beast. For that intuitively I’d think that the older style square is hard handle woukd be better to get a grip, than a smaller, round soft touch handle. I can’t tell though what I’d be missing or giving up with just a plain metal handle. Of course if I needed that much torque, I’d pull a breaker bar with a cheater pipe on the end….

So, thoughts on handles on ratchets?
 
The handles that have a slight "Coke bottle" shape are more comfortable to me than the handles that are just round cylinders, knurled or not. They don't have to have plastic or rubber cushioning.
 
I don't think I have a 1/2" other than a breaker bar and a clicker torque wrench. However, I had (can't find one) two of the US made Craftsman 3/8" with the black coated copper direction selector. Those things are great. I remember when they had repair kits sold for a penny. I think that was part of their free warranty, but they needed to charge a penny for some sort of inventory reason.

Sorry about the rambling, but I do remember wrapping one up in some coated (rubbery) gauze wrap. Don't recall what it was called (maybe Gauztex?), but it gave a little better grip, felt a little softer in my hand, and didn't peel off even with a little bit of motor oil. It kind of stuck to itself like medical wrap. I looked up Gauztex, and they seem to sell for all sorts of sports like tennis, golf, and fishing as well as for general medical care.

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I mean, handles are nice in the sense they add a little bit of comfort I guess, but they do wear. I’ve seen them wear pretty badly. And once they get oil on them they can be slippery too. As far as comfort, I really don’t feel all that much difference between a nice smooth snap-on metal handle ratchet. I wear latex gloves, or nitrile, and I don’t think I’ve ever slipped on a handle while wearing them, no matter how humid in the shop it gets.
 
I have the wrench you're referring to w/o the grip. If I'm concerned with my grip on the wrench I slip on a pair of gloves that eliminates that concern. Grip or not it's a great choice in a ratchet imo.
 
My personal preference is all over the place, sometimes I like the comfort grips or composite tool if its very cold and I have no other choice but to do the work outside, eg broken shear pins, tractor battery or starter.
The hard plastic Hazet and Stahlwille grips are nice and comfortable and replacements are easy to obtain and cheap as is the Snap on, other may not be available making it almost a disposable.

The Snap on and Nepros steel are fine, no issues but If I had to pick the best feeling grip it would be on the lightly knurled Williams round heads, and old SK, super comfortable without gloves and no slip.

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I personally like the Snap-on hard plastic grips. That’s pretty much all I’ve bought besides the metal handles a few times. Not a huge fan of the comfort soft grips because they get sticky and the ends where the metal ends are usually weak and break off. And overall I just like the handles better.
 
I prefer the metal knurled handles like most SK Ratchets have. The reason is they are sleeker and easier to fit into tight spaces, and I also find they are easier to keep clean/free of grease.
 
I prefer the plain handles (Snap-on are quite good, as well as the old Craftsman paintbrush handles on their USA thin profile ratchets - ex. #44995).

I have the Snap-on SLF80A (long handle, flex, 1/2" drive, 25" length) and it's a plain metal handle. It's a great tool and sure has been helpful in a few situations.
 
This is a Proto 1/2” J5457F I have from Zoro, around $57, but there are often 20% coupons. Sometimes more with credit card discounts. It is much smaller on the head which moves the joint closer to the socket. The handle is a round bar with knurling on the end. Made in Italy by USAG I believe.
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Looking to get a long handle, flex head, 1/2” drive ratchet. Primarily looking at gently used snap on, like the shlfd80.

Most every ratchet I own, which includes snap on, SK, and US made craftsman, is a metal handle. I do own a comfort soft touch grip 3/8” snap on ratchet.

Im not sure I see the rationale or benefit of the handled ratchets. I LOVE the same materials on my sgdmrc ratcheting screwdrivers - my go to screwdrivers… I just don’t see the need on my ratchets. The smaller, more streamlined, and lighter, the better. I even try to maximize use of 1/4” drive ratchets because of the reduced heft and size.

But a long handle 1/2” drive is a different beast. For that intuitively I’d think that the older style square is hard handle woukd be better to get a grip, than a smaller, round soft touch handle. I can’t tell though what I’d be missing or giving up with just a plain metal handle. Of course if I needed that much torque, I’d pull a breaker bar with a cheater pipe on the end….

So, thoughts on handles on ratchets?
Soft grip handles can be nice, especially in the cold. I was an all-metal ratchet guy for decades and recently picked up some Pittsburg ratchets that have soft grips on them and theyre nice to have.
 
The all composite Pittsburg are a good ratchet. I really like them for the cold and are strong enough for most jobs. At $15 you cant beat it.

But Im looking for a US made flex head 1/2" drive. Buy once, cry once... when I find a decent lightly used one.
 
Comfort grip ratchets IMO are a gimmick. The handles end up getting nasty looking and full of knicks and gouges.
My experience would agree. I have a snap on comfort grip 3/8 I bought used and its OK. The comfort grip on their ratcheting screwdriver is great, but different use, not ad filthy and oil covered when using. The hard handle is more my interest....
 
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