The Best Allen Keys?

[Rhyolith]

I want a comprohesive set high quality Allen keys, metric and imperial but the latter more important.

I don’t like these ball end ones much as they seem to wear themselves and the screw heads out quickly + brake easily.

Any recommendations?

 

[mbartlett99]

I always get a set of Wera for the boat I'm working on. They do many sets but as you might expect I like the stainless ones - good fit too.

 

[sunnybob]

you shouldnt be using the ball ends for final tightening or first undoing, theyre only there as a kind of speed wrench for unscrewing the bulk of the thread.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I have a JCB branded folding set of imperial ones iirc they were about £7. I was quite surprised to see they are marked S2 - which is a quite high grade steel. There are undoubtedly better around, but they're good for the money. My others are Wera and Wiha. As Bob said - crack the bolts off before using the ball end - it's an inherently weak part.

 

[Trevanion]

I use the Wera Hex plus with the coloured handles, definitely helps me keep track of where they are in the workshop. I'm forever losing allen keys but I've not lost one of these.

 

[Rhyolith]

The screws I’am working with are pretty much always stiff so ball ends are just fully inappropriate. As is anything with a handle, as they don’t fit so well into tight spaces.

So Wera and Wiha the premium makes?

 

[novocaine]

for every day a set of L shaped keys, laser will be fine and dandy, one end is straight and one is ball ended (as all decent sets are), if you want to look cool then teng do a nice set too.
then buy a set of hex socket bits for those times when your working on tight or hard to get to spots, again teng do a great set and well worth the money. 1/2 drive is a good idea.

 

[dibnah]

Pb Swiss toos

 

[Sideways]

I've ended up needing allen keys on several occasions when I didn't have any, so i've bought more sets than I ever expected to over the years. I've had top end wiha, bondhus, and various other quality makes but the best i've ever seen and bought are by "eight" from Japan. Perfect finish, good alloy, wide range. I have no idea if you can buy in the UK but their website is here :

http://www.eight-tool.co.jp

Also, Beta Utensili make excellent long reach, sliding T handle hex wrenches. Capable of hard work and a valued tool for some of the machine tool fitters i've worked with.

 

[Tasky]

Quality is not as important as how you use them.
You could spend a LOT of money on kit that performs no better than much of the cheaper range.
I seem to know (and do work for) an awful lot of mechanics... Every one of them buys the Halfords Professional kit, mainly for the lifetime guarantee. Only one has had to take a key back.
Of course, the key (pun intended) is to not exert too much force on them anyway . These guys are dealing with neglected and abused vehicles on a daily basis, so heavily rusted up bolts are their bread and butter... But if it's too much for a simple allen key they'll crack out other methods, like heat, oil and impact sockets.

 

[Duncan A]

The best hex Allen keys IMO always used to be genuine Allen.
Not sure how widely available they are these days but RS do them: https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/hex-keys-sets/2971572/
Duncan

 

[SteveF]

beta utensili are the mutts

Steve

 

[marcros]

Bondhus. Limited experience with other brands but I have these and they are very good.

 

[n0legs]

beta utensili are the mutts

Steve

Couldn't agree more. Some of mine are near 30 years old and are still bang on.

 

[Andy Kev.]

It might be worth having a look at this page of the Dieter Schmid Website:

https://www.fine-tools.com/winkelschluessel.html

 

[nabs]

Having been forced into the world of mechanic'ing due to my unreliable 3 wheeled van, I finally got fed up with routing around my tool box for the right allen key and order a new set. Has the fact that my new ones are colour coded revealed to all and sundry that I am a hapless amateur, or is this a genuinely useful feature?

 

[cammy9r]

^ That set is missing a 7mm :shock: Thats the most common size when working with brake calipers. I have Snap On keys they are good, halford pro ones too, they are good. I also have rolson keys these have worn/rounded pretty quickly compare to the others.
Although they have been mistreated :twisted: for reasons.......should always have expendable tools ..... :roll: or is it adaptable

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Most sets seem not to have 7mm ones.

 

[AES]

Personally, I like Bondhuus and Wera (both with ball ends, and 1 set I have with moulded-on handles, across the short, non-ball end). Very nice.

BUT I also have at least a couple of cheapo DIY sets without ball ends, AND I collect odds n sods in both Imp and Metric - stuff like the throwaways that come with Ikea furniture for example.

Absolutely agree with above posters that ball-ends are VERY useful indeed, but should NEVER be used for the initial loosening and final tightening. For that/those jobs use a short, non ball end key that fits snugly - if necessary using a thin shim (layer of ali cooking foil) - ior sometimes an Imp in a metric of vice-versa - to ensure snug fit. Remember that lots of the machines of all types we come across these days are fitted with low-cost socket head bolts and machine screws - often made of poor materials and to wide tolerances in the head socket - hence the above ali cooking foil etc tricks.

Remember too that ball ends should ONLY be used at not more than about an (eyeballed) angle of about 15 degrees off centre line. But absolutely invaluable for socket heads that are hard to reach (AFTER loosening with a non-ball end first).

Personally I also make it a practice to replace the socket head bolts on just about every tool I need to strip with high quality/close tolerance fasteners from a local specialist factors. NOT cheap but a relatively small expense to save tears and frustration in the future.

 

[Trevanion]

Has the fact that my new ones are colour coded revealed to all and sundry that I am a hapless amateur, or is this a genuinely useful feature?

These are the ones I was on about in my earlier post, the bright colours make it much easier to find that allen key that you need right this second and you've put it down somewhere. After using them quite a bit I've found they loosen off screws that my standard sets wouldn't as the screws were a little rounded and the regular ones just slipped, the Wera one bite into the screw nicely and pull it out with ease even if it is a little rounded.