quote:

Originally posted by Voshterkoff:
Length of steel pipe does the job.

This. In the Navy, I think we called them persuaders.

I’ve used the handle of my hydraulic floor jack a bunch of times.

My grandfather had a tool that looked like a drum brake tool, but was a wrench extension.

It had a post to go through the end of the wrench, and a hook to catch the handle. Could be used on either the open or boxed end if needed.

Unfortunately it disappeared after he died, along with many of his tools (I suspect my cousin sold them for drug money )

I use the handle of my jack. Work great.

Fancy one from Matco:



Not shown is the half-inch drive hole in the end. For some reason it is 90° to the handle instead of parallel.

Also a simple length of exhaust pipe, or the box end of one wrench slipped over the open end of the main wrench. Care must be taken with the latter so it doesn't suddenly fold up. Frequently necessary for jam nuts on tie rods. On those you can only use an open-end.

Used a 2' long piece of pipe yesterday on a breaker bar to get leverage to remove the lock ring on a Ford fuel pump. Worked like a charm.

The extenders work well.
Double wrenching works but I have a few wrenches with a broken open end from doing that.
Sucks when it slips and you smash your hand into something too.

My uncle was an agricultural equipment dealer.
He had a 4 foot long torque multiplying torque wrench so it wasn't an issue for him but he had one piece of equipment he sold that had a series of 15/16 head bolts that had to be extremely tight.
The service rep recommended "as tight as you could get them" with two 15/16 wrenches, stacked as you mentioned, for field repairs by owners in lieu of a proper torque wrench.

I broke an open end wrench jaw off by using a box end as extender on it once...

All that said... My M18 Milwaukee impact has never met a bolt/nut it could not remove... if there is room to get it on the bolt.

I have also been known to strike the free end of the wrench with a hammer. A soft, dead-blow mallet is best. The rounded, hardened faces of most hammers can deflect off the wrench and make my hit my own hand sometimes. That sucks.

The lever… The earliest machine.

aka cheater bars

quote:

Originally posted by Voshterkoff:
Length of steel pipe does the job.

At my now retired from work, my guys had to remove a bushing fitting from a steam heat exchanger head. My solution was to drill 3 holes in the flat part of our service truck bumper and bolt the head to the truck. Then a large pipe wrench and a 6 foot cheater (pipe) broke the bushing free.

I use pipe as a cheater bar.

quote:

Originally posted by 1967Goat:
I use a boxed end wrench hooked into the open end of the wrench.

I have done that many times. If on the job with short combo wrenches, it gives you the leverage needed to loosen a fastener, without having to spend 10 minutes going back to the truck or shop for a longer tool.

Seldom for field expediency. I have tools able to apply sufficient loosening force without cheaters, like a long 3/4" breaker bar and a 3/4" air impact. Also have a 3/4" torque wrench for tightening.

There may be situations where an open end and a cheater are the only option, maybe on brit bike cylinder barrel base nuts.

quote:

Originally posted by .38supersig:
I don't understand the need for such a thing.

Why not just use another wrench?

Understanding things well requires study and experience. True for all fields of endeavor. 20 mins on the internet will answer your question and more. But the short answer is there is a bona fide need and wrench extenders are fantastic problem solvers. So far I think the Germans have the best tool for this application.

I started out my "wrenching" when I was about 8-9 years old when I helped my father change rod bearings in a straight 6 in a old Rambler The was start of learning the types of wrenches and how to use them.
Use of a "cheater" probably started around then also. I was a Millwright at GM for about 33 of my 43 year career. Used cheaters many, many times there.
10+ years retired and I still use them.

quote:

Originally posted by valkyrie1:
I’ve used the handle of my hydraulic floor jack a bunch of times.

I tore down the 13B rotary that was in my former Lotus 7 replica.
The flywheel nut is put on at >300 ft/lb
Strapped the engine to the house, literally, and with the massive 54mm socket on a 3/4" breaker bar & the floor jack handle, both feet off the ground & a few bounces to get a very loud crack as it broke the nut loose.

Another veteran of cheater pipes here.