Hello Folks,
I have seen a gadget advertised called a "Gator Grip" socket.
It is basically a socket filled with what look like rollers out of a needle roller bearing.
They claim to grip worn nuts and bolts, however badly "rounded off".
Has anyone used one to any good effect? Or is it yet another gadget?
(has anyone seen my pipe wrench and stillsons?)
rg
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I recently saw a test of these devices in a biking magazine.
General conclusion was that they are fine if you don't have room in the toolkit for a full range of spanners, and want something to help get you home, but there is no substitute for real spanners and sockets when the going gets tough.
Most of them either chewed up the nults & bolts by slipping over their faces, or simply exploded in to their component parts, when more than just gentle torque was applied.
/Steve
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Could be handy for removing Alloy wheel lock nuts. If you loose the lock nut?!?
Ross
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Could be handy for removing Alloy wheel lock nuts. If you loose the lock nut?!?
I don\'t think the pins would be up to the job.
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Hi Rob - I have the original Gator Grip wrench and a similar, sightly larger one with square retracting pins which do exactly the same job. They're both BRILLIANT !
Very useful when you have a damaged nut of some type or when the size isn't obvious (saves you having to hunt around for the right size spanner).
Only problems are that the business end of the thing is slightly thicker/wider than a normal socket so sometimes when space is very tight the head won't fit (e.g. if the nut is very close to something or in a narrow gap).
Also if there is a stud protruding from the nut there may not be enough depth inside the head of the wrench to allow it to reach the nut itself.
However, you can tighten/loosen alomst anything which fits the thing - cup hooks, damaged screw heads, bent nails etc. etc. They really are excellent tools. I always keep one in the car and one in my workshop cum garage.
Cost me less than £20 with ratchet and drive adaptor - money very well spent indeed !!
Hope that helps - not often I'm able to assist in this forum !!
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Thanks, all,
Any idea where these are on sale, and a guide price?
rg
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Hi Rob - I've only ever seen them on TV shopping channels (QVC etc.), at ASDA and on the internet. A search for gator grip may yield some other names. I paid about £20 incl. p&p but ASDA was cheaper some time later (nearly bought another one !).
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Any idea where these are on sale, and a guide price?
I got mine a few yrs ago from QVC, but a quick tour on their website doesn't come up with anything.
Have you searched on google?
Expect to pay anywhere between £18 & £24
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QVC uk don't sell them anymore. Loads of links on Google. They are tested to over 150 ft lbs of torque.
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Rob - can't find any UK suppliers on Google - so many listings !! I'm sure there are some though if you look.
The other version I mentioned - same idea but square pins - is available from
bargains.uk.com. @ £19.95 plus P&P. Look under DIY/boxed tools.
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Thank you, one and all,
Volvoman, is this the one you meant?
www.bargains.uk.com/acatalog/Bargains_uk_com_Multi...l
Did you buy yours from there? It looks a bit of a Chiese Clone to me.
rg
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Chinese Clone, I meant...
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Yes Rob - it probably is some form of 'copy' but I find for some jobs it's better than the gator grip and for others it isn't. I'm sure I have seen a larger version of one or the other somewhere but can't remember where :-( This would be handy for someone like you who probably deals with a wider range of sizes.
I'm sure DD will find it for you if it's out there somewhere. Good luck !
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Any idea where these are on sale, and a guide price?
www.newtronic.co.uk/pages/product-pages/tools.html
Sixth item down the page. £11.86 + £7.05 pp
or
orouk.com/products.asp?CatID=457
£17.95 + £6 pp.
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Any idea where these are on sale, and a guide price?
Found another supplier while channel hopping on Sky earlier:-
www.thanedirect.co.uk/products/diy/smartwrench/sma...p
Bit pricer though. £29:95
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Gator Grip sockets may be purchased from Farnell Electronic Components in Leeds. These are genuine Gator Grip, not copies.
Website: www.farnell.com/uk
Telephone number 0870 1200 200
I think they will sell to private individuals if the order is over £10.
They sell three different sizes.
Farnell catalogue reference is Book 6, page 333.
Looks like there's a misprint in the price, though, because a set of three seem to be cheaper than one individual one!
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they have them in Homebase - dunno about price though
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Graham's right & they're on the Homebase.co.uk website listed at £19.99.
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Inspired by this thread I have just used my 'Gator' for the first time. It worked a treat on some very badly corroded exhaust manifold nuts. they were eroded so as to be almost unrecognisable as nuts. The only other solution would have been hours of hacksawing or grinding, followed by extracting and replacing the studs.
I don't think the Gator would be suitable where a lot of torque was needed, but on oddly shaped nuts of moderate torque it really does work.
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Really? I thought exhaust nuts would be very tight(when rusted on). Other people have told me that gator grip is poo, but now i think i might have to go and buy one after all...
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Yes, tight, but not enormously so - they are quite small. I meant that I wouldn't think of using it on, for example, a cross-threaded cylinder head nut.
2 tips I would offer:
clear away any rust or gunge first, and tap the socket on as far as it will go. It might be worth chiselling off the washer too, to get a good overlap on the nut.
Squirt on WD 40 first of course, and again as soon as you get any movement.
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I've always found the best thing to get off rusty rounded off bolts is a small pipe wrench( especially good on exhaust nuts ). These wrenches are very strong, don't know how the gator grip compares.
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The best thing I've found for this are "METRINCH" sockets.
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Please tell us more JC - what ? why ? where ? how much ? etc.
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They're a set of very high quality sockets which drive on the flats ,not on the corners;I know other people make similar but these appear to fit and work much better than those from other makers.I bought my set years ago from Argos-they just appeared in one catalogue,never to be seen again-they were in Halfords at one time and have seen them in motoring mags.My other sockets are Snap-on,Britool,King Dick and Churchill and these out- perform all of them,particularly on round nuts.
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Thanks JC - I think I've seen these too, on QVC IIRC. Yep they did look very good and it's nice to hear they work well. I'm becoming a bit of a 'toolaholic' so I might just treat myself if I can find them again.
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