A reader emailed in, asking for our opinion on Craftsman’s Mach tools. I hadn’t heard of this line before, so I looked it up and found that there’s a new Mach ratchet and a socket set.
The new Craftsman Mach ratchet features 72-tooth gearing, a 3/8″ square drive, and a Yankee screwdriver-style Helix Drive shaft for quicker operation.
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It looks like a swivel-head ratchet, similar to the couple of Wera Zyklop ratchets, and set of Gearwrench Roto Ratchets that I have really grown to like using. Several other brands also make these types of ratchets, and Gearwrench recently introduced palm-style gimbal ratchets.
Swivel-head ratchets can be used in a screwdriver-like manner for quick spinning of loose fasteners, and as ordinary ratchets for final tightening or initial loosening. They can also be used at in-between angles to better access fasteners in tight locations. I tend to prefer using them on socket head screws and hex-head bolts, which aren’t as easy to turn or spin by hand.
Craftsman says that the new Mach ratchet is “built for speed turning sockets 16 times more efficient than a regular ratchet with a swing arch of 60-degrees”. I don’t know what they mean by this, as most ratchets I know of have swing arcs of 3° to 10°.
The new 3/8″ Mach ratchet is regularly priced at $50, and there is also a 54-piece socket set which is regularly priced at $100. The 54pc set comes with an assortment of screwdriver bits, sockets, and adapters, and a carrying case.
Pricing Update: We have seen sale prices as low as $24.99 for the ratchet, and $49.99 for the ratchet and socket set.
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Buy Now(Ratchet via Sears)
Buy Now(Socket Set via Sears)
ETA: May 2014
First Thoughts
Honestly, I am unimpressed. In theory, this could be a great product. Swivel-head ratchets are awesome to use, and the Yankee-style push/pull mechanism might make the ratchet even speedier as a screwdriver.
But can the ratchet be used as a ratchet with the helix shaft fully extended? If not, and the ratchet needs to be closed, then it would be a very short and almost stubby-sized ratchet. Even if the ratchet could be used as a ratchet when the shaft is extended, how strong will the reduced-diameter shaft be compared to Gearwrench, Wera, and other brands’ swivel ratchets?
How often do you see Yankee-style screwdrivers these days? I own one, but never use it. Ratcheting screwdrivers are simply quicker and easier to use.
The product description says that the Mach ratchet combines the speed of a “Push Twisting” screwdriver, a ratcheting screwdriver, and the higher torque and access of a ratchet. To me this suggests the ratchet is designed to be twisted and pushed at the same time when in screwdriver mode, which seems like it could be uncontrolled. I could see a user push/pulling the handle, or twisting the handle, but both at once?
Some of the newer Craftsman tools, such as the dual-head wobble ratchet set seem to be aimed at homeowners and beginner DIYers, so I’m not quite sure what to make of the new Mach Series tools. Right now it looks to me like Craftsman saw the Christmas and Father’s Day seasonal successes of Kobalt’s Double Drive tools and sought to produce something similar. While that by itself is not a bad thing, I cannot help but feel that the new Mach ratchet looks rather impractical.
Then there’s the price. $50 for the ratchet and $100 for the set? That seems a little steep for the target audience I believe Craftsman is going after.
I realize it’s not fair to judge a ratchet I haven’t used or even seen yet, but I have strong concerns about the Mach ratchet.
What do you think – is the Mach ratchet a potential winner, or something you would never consider adding to your toolbox?
fred
Neat.
When I started working, it seemed that nearly every carpenter had at least one Yankee push screwdriver. They were based on an Archimedes screw – just like this ratchet – and were the original “cordless” power screwdriver. Today, they have all but disappeared from the jobsite – perhaps with the exception of those in the Amish community. I think Lee Valley and others sell some adapters to convert a Yankee screwdriver to hex-drive bits and Apex makes an adapter to use it to drive sockets:
http://omegatec.com/yk-250-cooper-tools-adapter-130-male-yankee.aspx?gclid=CJPZv_yTx70CFa47Ogod0kQAwQ
SteveR
Actually, you were impressed by this product–just not favorably. I have not seen or used one yet, but I don’t care for the plastic collar down at the business end. What happens if you drop the tool and the collar breaks or shatters? Is it critical to the functioning of the tool, and can it be easily replaced? The collar seems to add color to the area around the ratchet mechanism, but it’s probably there to enhance the grip. And why did they use brown, both here and on the handle? Red, orange, blue or green would have been more attractive.
It seems to be a niche tool, i.e., for setting difficult-to-reach screws and bolts, but the helix-screw portion is too short to make a difference. If it were longer, I imagine it would set up an unacceptable amount of wobble and wear on the (helix) mechanism. That would also have to be kept oiled to reduce friction, and could be messy to work with; a longer shaft would probably mean a longer handle, as well. A better arrangement is the shaft on Proto’s 3/8-drive ratchet that can also twist 360 degrees when there’s no swing room. And how efficient is this design on final tightening/breaking loose of fasteners when the handle is used at 90 degrees to the ratcheting mechanism?
If I’m trying to set a bolt in a recessed area, I can use my longer extensions to reach down into it, so I’m not sure this variant would be of much use to me. The wide yoke that holds the flex ratchet might also be a problem in a constricted area. How did they determine it was “16 times more efficient than a regular ratchet”? With a 72-tooth ratchet mechanism, the swing is still 5 degrees; as you point out, most are 10 degrees or less, so I’m not sure about their math.
mikeh
this is completely gimmicky but in that category it’s pretty cool – that being said wouldn’t a Dewalt 7.2 volt screwdriver serve the purpose much better with a socket adapter bit and extension if necessary – a lot less user user fatigue…especially at that price point
Mahalo
You hit the nail on the head with the concern about the helical grooves reducing the diameter of the shaft, and therefore possible reducing the torque that can be safely applied. That was definitely my first impression. We all know that design often includes several tradeoffs, and I think that for a serious ratchet, weakening the shaft is not an acceptable one. At least not at the $50 price mark.
Grady
I have a craftsman brand Yankee screwdriver and still use it occasionally. It would get more use if it would accept hex bits. As for this ratchet / Yankee screwdriver thing, I have never had a use for anything this gimmicky until I inherited a car “made in japan.”
fred
Here’s the hex driver adapter that I talked about above:
http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=57809&cat=1,43411,43417
george
if a bit cheaper I would get one. I can see me using it often enough. but agree on the concern of durability. lifetime warranty ? my yankee screwdriver is used more than I expected to use it. sometimes its just quicker than grabbing the electric driver and lookin for bits.
Toolfreak
Just a gimmick tool, like the wobble ratchet and other junk.
Instead of investing in quality, innovative products like they used to do in the past, Sears/Craftsman has been reduced to the same laughably useless junk tools you usually see in stores around the holidays.
The brown color fits it perfectly – to indicate it’s crap.
mcCoy
It’s not brown, fools. It is blood red. I have one and it works decent.
50 bucks is not really a lot of money these days. Everything is getting more and more expensive. But I think it is pretty silly to review a product you haven’t even used or handled.
jesse
I would have some concerns about how well it would work off-axis. If it were held in a right-angle position relative to the fastener like a conventional ratchet, I would think the push-pull mechanism might tend to force the tool off the fastener unless you used both hands.
Sean
Color me unimpressed. If it was just a swivel head ratchet, maybe with an extendable handle, and priced reasonably (this thing is priced as high as the premium 84 tooth Craftsman ratchet) then maybe….but since it’s likely make in PRC, it’s not going into my toolbox any time soon. At that price, it should be made here. And plated with gold.
Big A
Don’t see that working too well when new, let alone after you get some dirt and grit buildup in the helical threads.
Red77
I used some about to expire “points” to get this ratchet. This certainly no $50 ratchet. However, Sears is selling it for $24.99. My guess is that the price will go lower. Sears has at least 3 sales a week plus Craftsman Days plus Shop Your Way Rewards.
For an inexpensive “swivel head” ratchet, I would go with the Gearwrench. Need a cheaper version, go with Tekton. All that being said, the Craftsman works.
Because of the design, the Craftsman is bulkier. The helix or Yankee push screwdriver design adds a little “slop” to the handle when using as a standard ratchet. Not much, but it can change your wrist angle very slightly. The ratchet works with the handle at full extension or compressed
I’m not worried about the helix grooves weakening the tool as I think swivel heads are the weak point for all three of the tools I mentioned. The Craftsman also has a ratchet mechanism in handle and that is probably the true weak point of this tool.
The red ring near the head is just a grip point. You hold on to the ring and push down (or in) on the handle for the Yankee screwdriver action. No real stress in on the ring and it think you would need some serious bad luck to break the ring on a drop. I don’t use this ratchet in high torque applications, I have 6 point wrenches or a breaker bar for those situations.
I think $19.99 is a decent price point for this tool and my guess is that’s where it will end up. While it is more “cool than tool”, I still use it occasionally. It is not a must have, but…
It does have the lifetime warranty (doesn’t matter if you never use the tool).
jesse
I would try it if I thought it was well made, but I tend to doubt that it is.
GMA15R
Rather late to put up a comment on this, but I picked one up a few weeks ago at the post BF price of $19.99. For twenty bucks I figured it was worth a try for a project where I had limited space and needed to drive long (3 and 4 inch) lag bolts through foam insulation before hitting the concrete. I figured the push mechanism would get through the soft stuff and then I could use it as a regular ratchet. As others have said I came away unimpressed. It was bulky and awkward. Slipped out of the lock position more than once, hard to change the ratchet direction. It will end up in the bottom of the box, never to see daylight till the next garage sale.