From The Toolbox: A Rotator Ratchet, Old-School Style
By Chuck Cage
After raving about the utility of tools like Stanley Proto’s Rotator Ratchet — which allows you to drive the ratchet by rotating the handle with your wrist as well as turning it the normal way – I came across the tool pictured above in the bottom of my “spare sockets” drawer. Turning the T-handle at the left rotates the ratchet head.
It’s branded Popular Mechanics, and I can’t imagine that it’s anywhere near new. Most of the stuff in the drawer where I found it came from a similar drawer in my Dad’s roll-away.
Since I found it, I’ve used it a couple of times. It’s certainly handy for situations where clearances are tight, but I’m not much of a fan of the ratcheting mechanism. And turning the T-handle while holding the ratchet in place requires two hands. Though I think I’d like Proto’s wrist-action design better, I imagine I can make more torque with this one.
Of course, there is one big advantage (for me, anyway) of this wrench over the Proto: I already own this one.
Note: If you have a cool old tool lying around in your collection, why not drop us a description and a link to a picture of it using our contact form? I bet other readers would enjoy seeing it, and I know we would.
April 2nd, 2007 at 8:07 pm
Isn’t that a sidewinder ratchet? I always wondered about them but never actually found myself needing one.
April 2nd, 2007 at 8:24 pm
One of those things that look like a great idea in the store, then when you get it home, it winds up in the bottom drawer of the tool chest. Another candidate for Santa’s Secret gift exchange.
April 3rd, 2007 at 10:32 am
I had a Sidewinder, and it was great till I loaned it out and it came back jammed solid. It wasn’t even a ratchet anymore. DON’T try to do anything that requires a lot of torque!
OTOH, I have no idea what that guy did to break mine. He may have welded it to keep it from ratcheting.
April 3rd, 2007 at 9:11 pm
I have the same wrench except that it is called a Sidewinder; thought I would have use for it but only used it once in 5 years …
April 18th, 2007 at 7:43 am
I have had two of them. They are really handy, especially for bolts like starter or bell housings in tight spaces. I have finally found a sight where I could order another. http://www.aircraftspruce.com. John is right They don’t stand a lot of torque either at the “t” or as a ratchet, so use a breaker bar or other ratchet first. Then you can speed it off. Using the “T” handle spins the bolt out at a 4:1 ratio so it is pretty quick.
They run about $29 plus shipping, and yes it might sit in your tool box a while, but when you need it and can only wish you had it……
May 9th, 2007 at 11:26 am
[...] Joe recommends Husky’s rotator ratchet, the consumer version of Stanley Proto’s pro ratchet. The basic idea: you can turn the ratchet either by moving the handle or rotating it with your wrist — perfect for tight spaces. You can’t really apply much torque, but it’s fine for backing off a fastener after you’ve broken it loose. We also wrote about the old-school version we found in an old toolbox – also quite effective. [...]