Based on more recent experience, I now hate universal joints, 1/4 drive, 3/8, or 1/2, I hate them all. They're not stable, hard to use and control, esp as torque and angles increase.

So here's my question to mechanics and other tool junkies are motorheads: Are universl sockets appreciably more stable than universal joints attached to sockets ?

I don't see the point of them unless they are more stable, in addition to being more compact. Are they ?

You're going to have to spend some money, the el cheapo flip-flop swivels u-joint, and swivel sockets, are equally as junky, might as well use them as a weight on your fishing trot line.

I have some Snap On brand swivels that are 30-35 years old and they are just as good as the day I got them.
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The universal sockets are more stable because the socket part is closer to the u-joint than the combination joint and socket. An exaggerated case that would help show this is to put a u-joint between two 6" extensions with a socket and ratchet.

I use Snap On universal sockets and they are very close to the u-joint.

Kinda. It depends.

Wobble sockets are helpful beating flat rate or eliminating ridiculous disassembly steps outlined in a shop manual. Like swapping the alternator on a Honda Fit and removing the intake? Nope, universal socket at an angle gets the bottom bolt out and it slides apart taking an hour off plus new gasket isn't needed.

9 months after the shop had put in on (which took less than 45 minutes hmmm ) the rebuilt died again and I R&R'd the replacement in less than 45 minutes, too. Bolt time was probably less than 15. Flat rate was 2.5 hours or some silly number.

I've used univeral joints on the crank sensor bolts for a 90 Cherokee 4.0 and later found they weren't needed: lay underneath and simply reach straight up with a ratcheting box end. The "preferred" method was a 36" extension from behind the trans at an angle with very little control of where they might drop, like into the bellhousing oh my.

It goes to - use them when you need them, but good luck if that is actually best practice. Better to have and not need than need and not have. At present I have just enough breadth in tools if I can't find where I hid the "right" ones I scrounge up the functionally similar ones and more often than not they work better.

As a retired industrial maintenance mechanic with over 50 years in the trade, I only used universal joints if there was absolutely no other option. The universal joint sockets are slightly better, the main thing is they are a bit shorter in overall length but have most of the same issues of being awkward to say the least. If you do not need a lot of offset from the fastener, a wobble extension works much better. I prefer the type that are designed to have the wobble section backed up with a short square so that the socket can be pushed back and held like a regular extension. If the torque has to be high and no offset required use a regular extension as the wobble capability does weaken the extension.

Try this -- slip a piece of heat-shrink (the kind you apply over a wire repair) then heat it with a lighter. It will work for 10 or so useages.

or

Buy a swivel socket set. I got mine at Lowes (the whole set) for a Buy-one-get-one so I got the SAE and the Metric set was free.

Shop for an impact swivel.

They are spring loaded and that cuts down on the pain-in-the-assery.

Impact swivel sockets work best for me.

Have done a whole bunch of tool turning in my years and the swivel sockets were of no real value for me. While I have them I can only think of a few times I actually used them and that was way before snap-on came out with the swivel extensions.

Now the Snap-on swivel extensions are a very valuable tool to have and if you do any kind of work get them and if you do a bit more then get them all as in all lengths and in sizes 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2".

I have never used any of the off branded swivel extensions but I would guess its like the rest of the cheaper tools then for light use they would be fine but for heavy use or use with impacts them buy quality.

I wrap the universal sockets and regular universals with a couple turns of electrical tape. Works great.

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Back in the day, I would talk to the Snap-on guy when no one else was in the truck.
They sell a lot on credit and have stuff they have taken back. I would buy stuff like that for a substantial discount.
The really are the best tools. In some cases, others are close but they can make the difference in tight quarters and hard to remove fasteners.

Get yourself the impact ones with the ball joint.
Like in this link, not advocating for HB, it was just the first one which popped up.

https://www.harborfreight.com/...9IuPBERoC8-gQAvD_BwE

Flex sockets are better than a swivel adapter. A lot of guys use electrical tape or shrink wrap on the flex joint, largely because the socket tends to flop sometimes, and is harder to align.

Craftsman made some decent flex sockets, but quit making them; snap-ons are my choice. Though hard to find, 12 point flex sockets work best for me, especially on certain applications like turbine engines, due to fastener type and also due to more choices in the way the socket fits over the fastener without having to jocky the extension to get the socket turned to fit over the flats on the fastener.

If I have a choice other than a flex socket, I'll take that choice; the flex socket is the least stable and the least tolerant, especially under a load. Wobble sockets or wobble extensions, for smaller angles are better, and I prefer a torque adapter over a flex socket, if I don't have to turn the fastener very much.

I've bought a lot of tools off ebay. I'm reluctant to pay full price for tools on a truck when I can get them for less elsewhere, and they'll still be warrantied.

For production line tools running hundreds (or thousands) of hits per day we might use Apex wobble sockets for difficult to reach joints. Problem is applied torque drops the more angle you move from straight on. 10 degrees starts to lose applied torque and 15 is about as far as you can go without significant losses. So you have to apply more torque to the tool to get the amount you want in the joint.

Snap On makes good shop tools, but in a production environment their sockets break after a couple thousand hits. Apex lasts a LONG time, and they are made from chrome vanadium steel. Koken is another production grade brand (Japanese).

quote:

Originally posted by OKCGene:
I have some Snap On brand swivels that are 30-35 years old and they are just as good as the day I got them.

When I was in high school I worked in a garage. Bought some stuff off the Snap On truck. With the way inflation has gone, wish I bought a lot more.

Tom Hulse, the Snap On distributor in the Ventura / Santa Paula area, had a bumper stick overhead at the top of the stairs when you walked on the truck. It read, "When you buy the best you only cry once." My boss' rejoinder to that was, "Until you get robbed."

Snap On does make wonderful tools though, they just flat feel right in your hands.

This has saved my bacon many times.



Wrap a spring around the U-joint.
Above is a 1/4 inch with a spring from a transmission valve body. C4 I think.

Use proper ball wobblers for impact drivers. I wore out 3-4 Snap-on wobblers on castiron hemis and trans, and C4 and C6 trannys. Snap-on service is great to keep them going.

Brilliant. Thanks

A one-piece swivel socket, if properly designed, is more compact than a regular socket on top of a universal. This enables it to get into tighter spaces, which, after all, is the whole point. If swivel sockets are to be used with an impact gun, they need to be impact-rated. With transmissions, nearly all of the bellhousing bolts need a swivel socket for access.

About 95% of the time it's a swivel socket that I'm using.
Also have universal swivels 1/4" - 3/4" drive.

Matco has the best ones, I wear them out before they break.
I have two left, Matco stopped showing up so now have a set from Cornwell, Mac and Snap-On.

Sooooo, why aren't all swivel sockets made like impact type ball type swivel joints, which I'm guessing based on the information provided in this thread so far, are more stable than regular joe swivel sockets.


And.. if that is true (being more stable), what is the problem of using only impact ball swivel sockets in place of any and all regular swivel sockets ? If those guys don't flop around as much with increasing angles and torque, would it not be smart to just buy and use those exclusively for regular hand ratcheting ?

quote:

Originally posted by Greymann:
I wrap the universal sockets and regular universals with a couple turns of electrical tape. Works great.

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Same. Learned that trick from my mechanic neighbor when I was a kid.