Club 80-90 Forums

Hi all,

Not sure where to put this one??

Any advise on which socket set to get. Had a look at the wiki, and seems to suggest Halford Pro.. Problem is I havent got the bucks at the mo.

Is there a decent set for around £50

Need a set that goes upto 30mm ideally. Brake Caliper bolts etc

At the mo for the bigger sizes, I have had to go and borrow stuff off a kind bike shop owner.. Though I reckon Im starting to annoy him

The Halfords Professional range is quite good value for money, particularly if you can pick it up in one of their special offers. Get at least a 3/8" set with sizes ideally from about 6mm to about 22mm and that would go a long way. Don't bother with the Silverline stuff that Toolstation / Screwfix sell - it's not good value even at bargain basement prices.

I use a Sealey impact socket set, can’t mind what I paid but here’s one on offer...

https://www.toolstoday.co.uk/sealey-imp ... gLVE_D_BwE" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I’ve split other cheap sockets when getting brutal, but have been ok with this set.

Funnily enough over thirty years ago I helped this jack the Lad out and he gave me a Halfrauds socket set similar to the spec previously described. It was brand new at the time and I did wonder
Anyway I still have it in regular use all these years later and to be honest apart from a few replacements sockets due to my occasional use of extender bars etc, it has stood me in good stead. (That reminds me of the shovel which lasted for many years having had six new handles and eight new blades ) Whether the same quality standards exist today I couldn't say.
I have found that I do use certain sockets - 13 mm and 17 mm for instance - much more regularly and have considered purchasing superior quality sockets for those times when I feel I might risk breaking one out of the set. I cannot rest until I make the set complete again. Although there must be sized that I have never used.
The funny thing is that many people I know will swear by a particular make although we all know that even the top names are not slow to source from where we know not...
CS

Like Halfords stuff myself buy the biggest set you can, it's cheaper in the long run but double check as the Halfords big sets often have loads of imperial sizes in the mix. The modular sets are pretty cheap especially when on offer. Also really like Bahco. The small set is a godsend.

RogerT wrote:I use a Sealey impact socket set, can’t mind what I paid but here’s one on offer...

https://www.toolstoday.co.uk/sealey-imp ... gLVE_D_BwE" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I’ve split other cheap sockets when getting brutal, but have been ok with this set.

Thanks all.

This looks good value

I just looked online and the halfords sets are currently half price. The £100 one is money well spent and has seen me through 10 years of T25 ownership! I also have the set of ratchet spanners which really help with the often awkward access.

I bought mine in the boxing day sale and I think it was less than it is currently.

Halfords for me too. I got the non professional set so no lifetime guarantee but it has taken such a beating and even the ratchet mechanism still works. Not had any reason to upgrade other than losing some bits of it.

i agree halfords pro stuff is great, its what i use and had no issues

seems like Halfords it is then...

£170 for the 200 bit set.

I suppose if it lasts a lifetime it will be worth the money.

I get paid on Friday, so Ill treat myself, unless anyone has a kit to sell

crazyhorse wrote:seems like Halfords it is then...

£170 for the 200 bit set.

I suppose if it lasts a lifetime it will be worth the money.

I get paid on Friday, so Ill treat myself, unless anyone has a kit to sell

I bought 2 of the smaller metric sets, easier to carry in the van.

crazyhorse wrote:seems like Halfords it is then...

£170 for the 200 bit set.

I suppose if it lasts a lifetime it will be worth the money.

I get paid on Friday, so Ill treat myself, unless anyone has a kit to sell

There is another £20 off if you can find someone with a trade card....
Or blag yourself a trade card - it'll save you a fortune in the long run! Store staff don't usually argue much and once you have a card all sorts of stuff is discounted up to 40% off.

Plenty of threads on google about how to get a card!

Pro tools are excellent.... but as above, you'll likely never use all those imperial sizes!

The other thing to look out for is BluePoint stuff on eBay - this is SnapOn's semi-pro brand offering and really good quality also. I picked up one of their 100 piece general service sets in not very used condition for less money than the larger Halford sets are new. It's got a really good range of socket and spanner sizes plus it's all metric so no useless imperial pieces. It might be worth looking at this as an option although be advised that the used prices really ramp up as we get towards Christmas.

The AF sockets are useful for rusted nuts/bolts (when you need an in-between size hammered on!). EG 1/2" is 12.7mm, perfect for shifting a slightly rounded off 13mm fixing.

ajsimmo wrote:The AF sockets are useful for rusted nuts/bolts (when you need an in-between size hammered on!). EG 1/2" is 12.7mm, perfect for shifting a slightly rounded off 13mm fixing.

Fair point. Although I think that if you are only maintaining say a couple of vehicles then it's probably a bit OTT to pay for all those extra sockets just-in-case.