Over the past few weeks we’ve looked at a tap socket to restore damaged threads, a cheap jump-start battery pack that actually works and a brake fluid tester pen that can help you maintain your car’s braking system. This week’s cool tool is a cordless ratchet that can save you so much wrenching time you’ll want to use it for every job.
This suggestion came from a number of readers. I didn’t think this tool was a must-have until I used one to replace brakes on one car and wheel hubs on another. Now I will be adding this tool to my own collection.
A cordless ratchet isn’t going to replace any tools in your toolbox, but it can save you precious time on jobs with lots of long fasteners. If you’ve ever removed a long bolt, you know how annoying it is to sit there going back and forth with your ratchet until the bolt finally frees itself. On a big job, removing these fasteners can gobble up a lot of time, and that time is spent removing an already loose bolt.
I used a cordless ratchet to assist in replacing brake rotors and pads on the Saturn Ion that I delivered to a friend in Tennessee. Later, I used the same tool to help in replacing the wheel hubs on a Chevrolet HHR.
The cordless ratchet made short work of removing the few bolts involved with these jobs. It is as easy as breaking loose the bolts with the tool or a breaker bar then zipping them off with the push of the button. A cordless ratchet won’t save a whole lot of time on jobs with few bolts, but it shines on jobs with lots of fasteners, like body panels or fluid pans.
The tool I used was a very old Matco model, but you don’t need to pay tool-truck prices to get a good cordless ratchet. The Project Farm YouTube channel tested a bunch of these and found that a cheaper tool works fine:
They come with lithium batteries of varying capacities and in the Project Farm test, took from an hour to just short of two hours to charge.
A major downside to a cordless ratchet is its size. If you want to remove a bolt in a tight space, you’re back to doing things with a regular ratchet. Another downside is that cordless ratchets generally put out 30 to 60 lb-ft torque, so don’t expect these to work like an impact.
Prices for cordless ratchets range from about $60 for one from a generic brand to around $500 or more for one from one of those tool trucks that visit professional shops. They can be purchased at your favorite tool store or online.
Do you know of a weird or unique but must-have tool that every wrencher should have? Do you want to see us put a type of tool to the test and see how it performs? Shoot me an email or drop it down in the comments!
DISCUSSION
EXCUSE ME?!
Oh, you said, “cordless ratchet,” not “Unhinged Ratched.” My bad.