Sockets are in my opinion a serious STRONG POINT of the S-K tool line. To the point - S-K makes, in my opinion, some of the very best professional grade sockets to be found anywhere, no matter the brand or the price. Point blank - period - they are comparable to the very best, and as good as it gets.
In my personal tool box I have literally hundreds of sockets. Standard height - tall - chrome - impact - 1/4 - 3/8 - 1/2 - you name it - if you need it to work on a car - good chance it's in there. I have sockets from Snap-On, from MAC Tools, Matco, and Cornwell. And I have sockets from S-K. I would say S-K sockets make up at least 25% of all the sockets I own - and they are absolutely fantastic. They grip bolts with rounded off corners with ease. They will turn anything that the big boys sockets will turn. I have put my impacts on 1/2 inch Dynabrade pneumatic impact guns without any deforming on the square attachment hole. What can I say? THEY WORK! They hold up! And they do everything and anything you ask of them to do.
The WORST think I can say about them is that it IS possible to scratch the chrome on the deep well sockets for example if you use them to loosen up a lug nut on a wheel. I did NOT say scratch THROUGH - just a superficial mark on the chrome itself. Now if you used the impacts instead - that is not a problem. I just needed a thin wall socket because of clearance on a Porsche, and noticed this later. Probably any of the others - no matter the brand - would have gotten a mark also - so I do not criticize them for this. Their Chrome seems to be as hard and as thick as any on my Snap-Ons or Macs.
Now about the ratchet handle itself. Folks Mechanics are fairly finicky when it comes to their personal ratchet handles. This is a tool they use all day long every day. They may have 100 sockets - but I guarantee you every mechanic has a favorite ratchet handle that he uses with all of them. This said - I would be surprised if that ratchet handle happened to be the SK handle included in this set. The reason is purely subjective. This ratchet handle is sturdy, durable, well made, and completely capable of providing years of trouble free reliable use. It has a good grip, and by any measure, is excellent. However.... It just does not "FEEL" right to me - particularly in the "click" that I feel. It feels - what is the right word? Harsh? Beyond this I am not a fan of ratchet handles that select direction by rotating on the centerline of the socket. I prefer the Snap-On / Matco design where there is a separate lever you can easily flip with your thumb - one way - or the other. For MY money - I would buy this set for all of the parts - then buy a Snap-On ratchet handle - keeping the SK handle for a backup. Oh - wait - that is EXACTLY what I did and have in my personal tool box!
All in all - a stellar superstar product - at a price the average home mechanic can afford. I give this product 5 stars - only because I can not give it 6...... SK 4147-6 47 Piece 1/2-Inch Drive 6 Point Standard and Metric Socket Super Set'
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