I recently used the "candle trick" to remove the lines on a plastic radiator. That technique works well on flared lines and you don't need to break anything.

 

I think Sears makes an easy target but their tools are no worse than any other retail store. I do not own craftsman flare wrenches but have used them and will say that I found them acceptable. I own an SK set and have found them to be very good. The SK chrome on some of my sockets is not so wonderful and when I bought my last SK ratchet the guy at the counter was checking the new ratchet to see if it skipped. When I questioned him about it he said there are good ones and some bad ones, probably quite a few bad ones if he was checking it before I bought it. Unfortunately none of the tool brands available are without flaws.

I work part time at Sears while I go to college and I have rebuilt many ratchets. The ratchets are not very good but many die due to lack of care, aka rust, dirt, and gunk. The amounts of slop in the mechanism and cheep internal materials are the problem with the rest. The only plastic on them is the reverser switch. One of the other problems I see is with the reversing mechanism. The spring tension on the ball bearing is too little allowing the direction changer to move too easily, this is further complicated with a little dirt and rust.

 

What is the candle trick?

 

Do a search here. I guess it is one of those tips listed here from other users that I should put in the FAQ section. Maybe I will find one of those round TUIT's tonight...

 

Torque1st is right on about the tool quality, imo.

I have a lot of tools and the only ones that have broken are the Craftsman and Autozone tools. The reason I still buy Craftsman is because they are easily replaced and I do not keep quality sockets and such in my vehicle where they can be stolen or lost.

My Snap-On ratchet screwdriver is still going strong after almost twenty years and I have only had to replace two broken bits too. If you use tools for a living, Snap-On is about the only way to go. Look at it as they get rid of the inferior stuff (contract specs) before it get to you.

Have an impact socket come apart in your hand and cheap tools are no longer the bargain. Or have a tool break in the middle of a job and have to buy another one before you can proceed can really cost you money.

The only "good" flarenut wrenches I have are SK ones. They have a lot more beef on the outside so they do not open up and wiggle around the nut.

That being said, the worse power tool (3/8 drill) I ever bought came from NAPA/Evercraft. Best flarenut wrenches I have are S/K.

 

My Craftsman flare nut wrenches worked just fine. I had no problems braking the nuts loose, and there was no noticable flex in the wrench. After they were lose, I did switch to a regular open end wrench just becuase it was easier to 'feel' where the nut was. There was no line of sight to the part of the brake line that spun, so the flare nut wrench made it more difficult than it needed to be.

As an aside, don't you hate it when you don't realize until the end of a post that the caps lock key was on?

Matt

 

Do you want to trade flare nut wrenches, mine are junk?

 

The last time I went to sears to return a 1/2" ratchet they refused to give me a new one and only gave me a rebuild kit and sent me home. Then I had to fight the new ball and spring to rebuild it my self. That was the day I swore off buying Sears. No wait it was the day I wanted replacement jaws for my Sears bench vise and they had the rocks to tell me they were worth something over $20? But they wern't in stock I needed to order them.
I'm with Torque1st!!

 

I don't like new Craftsman tools with these plastic things in them.

 

Nah...If yours are as bad as you say they are, aparently I got one of the good sets....I'll keep 'em!

 

I used to make cold heading dies for craftsmen, they at least make some of their own tools, its much easier to go to sears for a replacement then get snapon to come to your home for warrenty. Only had one sears salesman give me a hard time about wornout screwdriver tips, "you can touch them up on a pedastol grinder" passed him a phillips and said show me...

But I admit to a huge quality difference between Proto and stanley tools (same company)