Best tool sources?/Help me find an awesome self-adjustable wrench!

April 5, 2006 2:36 PM

Where can I find a self-adjusting nut wrench? And more broadly, what are your favorite places to go for tools?

Googling for "self-adjusting wrench" -pipe brings up this (but the release for the spring-loady mechanism is kind of far up the wrench) and nothing else. My friend (who turned me on to this whole idea) has an Olympia Power Grip Self-Adjusting Wrench, which is an absolute joy to use, but impossible to find (a call to Olympia gives me a message that they've apparently gone out of business).

So...how would I go about finding other self-adjustable wrench options? Where do you look when you're buying tools?

I'm being so picky because I work in stagecraft, and I spend a lot of time wrenching things, in case you were wondering.

posted by joshuaconner to home & garden (17 comments total)

Do you have access to a Sears?

Next to hardcore professional tools like MAC and stuff, Craftsman from Sears are pretty solid tools.
posted by PurplePorpoise at 2:45 PM on April 5, 2006

PurplePorpoise: Thanks, but I have a nice adjustable (Crescent) wrench, which is what you linked to. I'm looking for a self-adjusting wrench, which Sears doesn't seem to carry.
posted by joshuaconner at 2:51 PM on April 5, 2006

How about this?
posted by sanko at 2:57 PM on April 5, 2006

I got mine from Jensen Tools a long time ago, before they were assimilated by Stanley.
posted by Rash at 3:06 PM on April 5, 2006

I love and use "The Bionic Wrench," despite the dumb name:

http://www.eastwoodco.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemType=PRODUCT&RS=1&itemID=15318&keyword=bionic%2Cwrench


Unless, when you say "Hex Wrench" you mean Allen wrenches (which is what I usually mean when I say "hex wrench." Not that I have any clue... :) )
posted by soulbarn at 3:14 PM on April 5, 2006

Unless, when you say "Hex Wrench" you mean Allen wrenches (which is what I usually mean when I say "hex wrench."

Whoops, I meant "nut wrench." Like, a self-adjusting version of a crescent wrench. Sorry.
posted by joshuaconner at 4:31 PM on April 5, 2006

I talked to Matt, and he fixed the question. Thanks, soulbarn.
posted by joshuaconner at 4:38 PM on April 5, 2006

It looks one of those Olympia wrenches is available on eBay.
posted by mullacc at 4:49 PM on April 5, 2006

Argh, sorry, that's the pipe-wrench not a hex-nut wrench.
posted by mullacc at 4:51 PM on April 5, 2006

It probably won't do you much good, but Canadian Tire has self-adjusting wrenches.
posted by Chuckles at 5:12 PM on April 5, 2006

Also check out Harbor Frieght's catalog. (Note that a lot of what they sell is crap made in the absolute cheapest way possible, so if you're looking for quality don't expect it from a $5 Harbor Freight wrench.)
posted by Rhomboid at 8:01 PM on April 5, 2006

maybe this - I'm still not clear what kind of tool you're looking for.
posted by Rhomboid at 8:07 PM on April 5, 2006

robogrip is god.
posted by weaponsgradecarp at 9:43 PM on April 5, 2006

Rhomboid - that's exactly the kind of tool I'm looking for. I got really excited, too, when I saw that they called it a "talon wrench," thinking I could google for it and find some more. But alas, apparently only Harbor Freight calls it a talon wrench.

Do these things have a name other than "self-adjusting wrench"?
posted by joshuaconner at 11:47 PM on April 5, 2006

I buy all my hand tools at Hardwick's in Seattle (but their web presence is sub-par). Next time I'm there I'll ask them. I've seen these and heard them called nothing but "self-adjusting wrenches," but that's not very resultifying.

Also, I'm not a fan of the RoboGrip. It slips (in my experience).
posted by j.edwards at 5:06 PM on April 6, 2006

Follow-up in case anyone was wondering: one of the Olympia Power Grip Nut Wrenches (actually a set of two) popped up on eBay, and I snatched them up in a bear trap!

Of course, now that all my co-workers and friends have gotten to play around with it, they've all decided the want one for themselves (co-workers) or as a Fathers' Day present for their dads (friends). If you happen to have a bunch of these, my email's in my profile; I'm pretty sure I can fix that for you.
posted by joshuaconner at 3:45 AM on May 11, 2006

Also! I bought a Crescent R2 RapidRench too, just for kicks. I haven't gotten it in the mail yet, but it sure does look neat!
posted by joshuaconner at 3:49 AM on May 11, 2006