# New Crescent Wrench Variations



## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

2 pretty cool wrenches. Successful Farming.

Regards, Mike

http://www.agriculture.com/machinery/top-shops/cool-tools-crescent-redefines-the-adjustable-wrench


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## PackMan2170 (Oct 6, 2014)

Didn't know there was any way you could improve upon the good ol' "Oklahoma Socket Set" ????


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## glasswrongsize (Sep 15, 2015)

of course, nothing comes without cost...they gained a little bit on the fastener side, but the pounding function of the tried-and-true "crescent hammer" has been compromised.

73, Mark


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## stack em up (Mar 7, 2013)

Mexican speed wrench, that's what we always call them.

Pretty neat honestly.


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## deadmoose (Oct 30, 2011)

Vol said:


> 2 pretty cool wrenches. Successful Farming.
> 
> Regards, Mike
> 
> http://www.agriculture.com/machinery/top-shops/cool-tools-crescent-redefines-the-adjustable-wrench


What is new about the locking adjustable wrench? The soft handle?

I have had one for a handful of years. It is worthless IMHO. Maybe good for breaking glass? Definitely not as good of a wrench, pry bar, or hammer as a regular crescent.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

I have a set of Crescents from T&E tool, very slim line jaws, some exotic alloy, they open extra wide, even the small 6 inch opens to 1 1/4", very handy for cramped spaces like when doing plumbing, transmissions, etc. The large 12 incher opens to 2 1/4".

They were a wee bit more than $42 a piece,


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## r82230 (Mar 1, 2016)

mlappin said:


> I have a set of Crescents from T&E tool, very slim line jaws, some exotic alloy, they open extra wide, even the small 6 inch opens to 1 1/4", very handy for cramped spaces like when doing plumbing, transmissions, etc. The large 12 incher opens to 2 1/4".
> 
> They were a wee bit more than $42 a piece,


Mlappin,

The reason they cost you more because you must have bought the 'metric' version instead of SAE. :lol: :lol: :lol:

Larry


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

r82230 said:


> Mlappin,
> 
> The reason they cost you more because you must have bought the 'metric' version instead of SAE. :lol: :lol: :lol:
> 
> Larry


Nah, these are really good crescent wrenches, no slop in the jaws whatsoever and I've yet to round anything off with em.


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## Coondle (Aug 28, 2013)

Had a locking jaw "portable lathe" in the early 70's. Not a great innovation,ended up giving it to my father in law because he would never get the right spanner.

A tradesman I know refuses to have an adjustable wrench because he says that they are too prone to causing damage. He also says that if he goes out to repair some machinery and takes out a crescent or "shifter" then his client thinks why am I getting him in ,I can use a crescent.He has the skill to immediately identify a nut/bolt head size even between metric, SAE (also known as A/F) and Whitworth. But I guess tat is the difference between wanna be mechanics like me and a highly skilled tradesman.

That said, I have a collection of moveable jaw spanners fom 4 inch up to 23 inch and some antiques with jaws at right angles to the handle. One of the right angle ones with the handle made of steel rod twisted with a loop at the end. These antiques were of a period when farm equipment mostly had four-sided nuts/bolt heads. Only used one in anger once when no other spanner was anywhere nearby.


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## r82230 (Mar 1, 2016)

Coondle said:


> That said, I have a collection of moveable jaw spanners fom 4 inch up to 23 inch and some antiques with jaws at right angles to the handle. One of the right angle ones with the handle made of steel rod twisted with a loop at the end. These antiques were of a period when farm equipment mostly had four-sided nuts/bolt heads. Only used one in anger once when no other spanner was anywhere nearby.


Coondle,

I remember those right angle wrenches, my Grandfather called them a 'Monkey wrench'. And just to pick on the city folk if they were on the farm, he would send them on a witch hunt to get a 'left handed' monkey wrench (or a board stretcher, depending upon is task at hand and he wanting them out of his way). My Dad's favorite trick was, telling out city relatives, that there car sounded like the 'muffler bearings' was going out or our cows could read, because we could put their initials in their grain and they would go right to that spot for stanchion to be milked Thanks for the memories.

Larry


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## glasswrongsize (Sep 15, 2015)

r82230 said:


> Coondle,
> 
> I remember those right angle wrenches, my Grandfather called them a 'Monkey wrench'. And just to pick on the city folk if they were on the farm, he would send them on a witch hunt to get a 'left handed' monkey wrench (or a board stretcher, depending upon is task at hand and he wanting them out of his way). My Dad's favorite trick was, telling out city relatives, that there car sounded like the 'muffler bearings' was going out or our cows could read, because we could put their initials in their grain and they would go right to that spot for stanchion to be milked Thanks for the memories.
> 
> Larry


...and bad knooter valves, too much pressure to the hydraulic floormats, low on blinker fluid, and (one of my personal favorites) speckled paint.

I can agree with the lack of a crescent wrench in the tool bag of a professional mechanic (or at least the lack of displaying it as a fits-all tool kit). On one hand, I avoid using a crescent wrench if possible and in direct contrast to that statement, I carry a 4" crescent wrench with me all the time. I even special ordered a Craftsman 4" wrench because it opens to 11/16 whereas most 4"ers are just shy of 9/16. It gets me out of a bind on occasion and saves me a trip to the shop for the correct tool if I have a breakdown in the field. I used it to take the side shields and battery cables off of the 460 when it tried to have an electrical meltdown in the middle a dry hay field.

73, Mark


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## RuttedField (Apr 24, 2016)

When I worked for the railroad I sent a "Newbee" out to buy a metric Crescent Wrench and I'll be darned if he did not come back with one. You know the little markings where the worm drive adjuster is that shows the size of the jaws? Well the one he had was measured in millimeters instead of fractions of an inch.

He got one on me; yep there is a metric adjustable crescent wrench.


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## Coondle (Aug 28, 2013)

There are moveable jaw wrenches in metric sizes e.g.: 300 mm instead of 12 inch and so on.

Like the older brands e.g. King Dick, and Footprint.

Many spanners/wrenches have brand identification.

The Crescent Tool Company is best known for one style of moveable parallel jaw spanner.

The Stilson Tool Company for its moving jaw single handle locking jaw pipe wrench.

The FootPrint Tool Company for its adjustable locking jaw two handled pipe wrench, one handle moving into the other handle into essentially a folded groove handle.

There are many instances of brand identification in other products e.g. Biro for ball point pens, Kleenex for facial tissues. It is the aim of many producers to have their product as having brand identification as a stratagem to improve sales.


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## r82230 (Mar 1, 2016)

RuttedField said:


> He got one on me; yep there is a metric adjustable crescent wrench.


Guess I better quit using that on newbees. Just have to stick to the muffler bearings and board stretchers, maybe borrow Mark's low on blinker fluid.

Larry


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## Lostin55 (Sep 21, 2013)

.....or just send them after exhaust fluid.....oh. wait a second.....


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## glasswrongsize (Sep 15, 2015)

Lostin55 said:


> .....or just send them after exhaust fluid.....oh. wait a second.....


Yeah, those diesel smog nazis kinda took that one away from us by inventing some, didn't they!! 

73, Mark


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## glasswrongsize (Sep 15, 2015)

Coondle said:


> Had a locking jaw "portable lathe" in the early 70's.


How long has it been since you posted this.... I JUST got that were not talking about a dedicated lathe, but an tool apparently designed to remove metal to make cylindrical.

I'm prolly the only mouth-breathing knuckle-dragger on here that didn't get it right away, but finally I see what you did there....smooth.

73, Mark


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## Coondle (Aug 28, 2013)

My brother who is a lot older than me and a fitter by trade has in my memory always referred to "crescents" as "portable lathes" due to their propensity, particularly when not properly adjusted to round off hexagon heads. The early adjustable jaw spanners were introduced when bolt and nut heads were usually square rather than hexagonal.

Amongst my collection of old spanners from the farm I have some "ring" spanners that are neither 12 point, nor 6 point but 4 point. Yes they are square, so could hardly be called a ring spanner. They are from the days when agricultural implement wheels had oil filled cups on the end which enterprising folks later retro fitted grease nipples to the end. Bearings were lubricated by an oil-filled cup fitted with a fibre wick to have a controlled flow of oil to the plain metal bearing, possibly cast step with a steel shaft. Later improvements saw white metal or bronze bushes to reduce the wear and make the insert replaceable.

Agricultural implements had mixed wooden or iron frames (or mixed wood and iron) bolted together with coarse threaded square headed bolts. The original "agricultural engineering that mechanised the horse drawn era and heralded the tractor drawn era.


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