Skinned knuckles no more

The trouble with adjustable wrenches is that they are adjustable. If the mechanism is at all easy to change from one size nut to another, it's all too easy for it to self-adjust at precisely the wrong moment. And when would that be, you ask? When I am really leaning on the handle to free a frozen fastener. And with what nasty result, you ask? Why, skinned knuckles, blood, and cursing. I'm sure you've been there yourself.

I can't always lug a full kit of wrenches so I'm always evaluating yet another miracle adjustable wrench. I've even bought them off late-night TV. And some do solve the self-adjusting problem, but usually at the price of a new problem: access. A big, fat infinitely adjustable wrench head with a big, fat locking mechanism just won't fit into the little bit of space around the frozen fastener.

You might infer that I was a little bit skeptical when I saw Crescent's new R2 RapidRench, but I bought one anyway (for about $20). I was surprised and delighted to discover that it is easy to adjust, it locks securely, it ratchets in either direction, the jaws aren't impossibly large, the handle is rubberized for comfort, and best of all, it'll fit onto hex nuts, square nuts, and eye bolts no problem. The adjustment range is 1/4 inch to 7/8 inch so it's not the universal answer, but it'll do for most of the nuts and bolts around my homestead. My tool belt also holsters my favorite 6-inch needle-nose Vise-Grip locking plier, which takes care of everything else at the small end.