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Harbor freight sockets.

R

Ray

Well-known Member
I bought a set of metric sockets at harbor freight.They went from number 10 to 19. When I got home and was putting them in my toolbox I noticed there was no 15 or 18 socket.I got to looking at the fine print at the bottom of the box and those two were not included in the set. Why in the world would they do that? Guess i'll go to Napa tomorrow and get a full set.
 
most other brands don't have them also . bought a set from sears both missing HF dose have sets with all in
 
I've found that 18mm sockets are left out of a lot of sets. I needed an 18mm to remove struts on a Dodge and didn't have one in four or five of my metric sets, including an impact set. No 15mm seems a little more surprising. I wonder if other folks have noticed this.
 
I only use an 18 for the knives on the moco. I bought an impact set from HF and it was in there. I use 15 a lot, though. Years ago I bought a set of wrenches and there was no 16 or 18. I never needed a 16 (wrenching on old vws). Now days I had to add to the set because Deere uses lots of 16 stuff on their combines and tractors. They also use 11 whereas 10 used to be more popular. Funny how that all changes.
 
Because they are the two most popular sizes and now you need to buy them separate. I use a 15 and 18 every day!! The old saying "you get what you pay for"
 
I too, run into that on all my metric sets. I think it's because that size matches up really close to an SAE equivalent. Just my guess.
 
I have a Sears metric combination wrench set and grabbed it a couple of days ago when I needed to remove the alternator from my DEERE 322 to install new bearings.

The bolt at the adjusting strap had a 12MM head, and the lower pivot bolt had a 14MM head.

HMMM, no 14MM in the set!

A 9/16" worked to remove it, I grabbed a 14MM from my tool chest when it put it back on.

Just an observation, 35 - 40 years ago, when Toyotas and other Japanese vehicles started showing up around here, it seemed like you could take 90% of things apart under the hood with a 12MM and a 14MM wrench, yet when American cars went metric, you needed a 13MM and a 15MM to do the same jobs. Wonder why?

Also, as to the missing 18MM, that seems particularly ODD, since a 19MM and a 3/4" are virtually identical, you'd have thought the 19MM might be omitted, if any???
 
JIS (Japanese) Din (Germany) ISO (International Standards Org., that should be universal) ANSI Metric Standard (American) have put different nut and bolt head specifications on bolts. At least the threads and thread pitches are common across the differing specifications. Metric has at least three thread pitches for each nominal size. Jim
 
I've run into sets from other manufacturers that didn't have an 18mm. Seems strange there wouldn't be a 15mm 'cause that's pretty popular. A set of combination wrenches I got from HF have all of them .
 
Harbor Freight figures you will use an SAE socket for the 15 and 18. 15mm = .590 so a 9/16 is .563. 18mm = .708 they expect 3/4/.750 will work. This is one reason their sets are cheap.
 
several years ago metric sets did not have 16mm and 18mm socket, or wrenches. Guess what most GM bolt sizes were, 16mm &18mm. Always seemed a little strange to me.
JWO
 
JDSeller :
Don't think you will ever exchange a 15mm to a 9/16 , or vice versa, if there is any torque on the bolt. 18mm to 3/4 will work with a six point socket, there again close but hope.
JWO
 
I do not buy many cheap HF sets because of the missing sizes. There are NO good substitutes for 18mm, 15mm, and 10mm. They simply do not line up with ANY SAE sizes. 18mm is in between 3/4 and 11/16. The 11/16 will simply not go onto an 18mm bolt head and a 3/4 will be too loose and probably round off the corners.
In my travels, I have found that 12mm, 14mm, and 17mm are common sizes on most Asian cars. On the domestic makes, 18mm, 15mm, and 13mm are the more common ones.
Since there are any number of very inexpensive brands of tool out there with similar warranties, I look at the sizes included in a set before I buy it. A set missing critical sizes is no bargain regardless of price.
 
I have a Pittsburgh 10pc set that has the 15mm but not the 18. I don't believe I've ever had a 18mm socket. The set is 10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,19 & 22mm
 
As stated above, just fill in the holes with sockets from open stock at the hardware, auto parts, or even Amazon if you can wait a few days. Truthfully, sockets and ratchets made in Taiwan are pretty good these days, (I still prefer SK)
 
If this were some grandiose money grab like some of you think, why even sell socket sets at all? You can make even more money if you force your customers to buy ALL the sockets piecemeal.

Leaving out the 15mm and 18mm is nothing new, and certainly not unique to Harbor Freight. My 1/2" Craftsman set from 20 years ago is missing those sizes.
 
I have never seen a metric socket set of any make that includes 15 or 18 mm sockets. Combination sets don't include them very often either. When metric bolts first became common, almost nothing used a 15 or 18 mm. head. Everything went from 14mm right to 17mm and then 19mm. Not so these days. You even find a 16 mm. nut occasionally now, too. Those three sizes are almost always "buy extra" sizes.
 
I find that as the sizes increase the adaptability of SAE and Metric merges. With that said and I haven't tested it, you probably have an SAE in your toolbox that would cover what the 18 would otherwise cover. But I just bought a set of ? drive Metric deep impact and it too had sizes (forget which) missing. Now I know why. Thanks guys for that heads up.
 
I have purchased off brand 18mm sockets at pawn shops for $.25. The cross member under the trans on my 91 Ford f250 has 18mm, 3/4" is a little sloppy.
 
Ray,
Your post got my curiosity up so I just had to go and check my set. Mine have them all from 10mm to 24mm. They are S K. brand and I have had them for about twenty years and have never broken any of them.
 
If you think about it, SAE wrenches increment by 1/16", while Metric wrenches increment by a much finer measurement, roughly 1/25". A 2mm jump is only 5/64", a mere 1/64" larger than the standard SAE jump.

I am thoroughly convinced that the 18mm hex head was made up by General Motors engineers who didn't bother to look at their Machinery's Handbook when spec'ing out the bolt sizes for their brake calipers.
 
[i:654c4848f0]...never seen a metric socket set of any make that includes 15 or 18 mm sockets[/i:654c4848f0]

My Craftsmen sets always included 15, but not 16 or 18. Lots of bolts on my air cooled VWs were 15. Nowadays I use 16 a lot more, but haven't bought a new set lately, this was probably 45 years ago.
 
I hate, hate, HATE when they skip sizes. I don't care in the least if the SAE is just about almost kinda the same. I want a full set.
 
[color=darkred:913fa1efcc]I am thoroughly convinced that the 18mm hex head was made up by General Motors engineers [/color:913fa1efcc]
Yes, 16 mm and 18 mm was (and is) very common on general motors vehicles
 
(quoted from post at 17:36:27 12/27/16) [i:16bc816318]...never seen a metric socket set of any make that includes 15 or 18 mm sockets[/i:16bc816318]

My Craftsmen sets always included 15, but not 16 or 18. Lots of bolts on my air cooled VWs were 15. Nowadays I use 16 a lot more, but haven't bought a new set lately, this was probably 45 years ago.
Click to expand...
I have a 3/8"-drive S-K set that I bought in the early 1980's that includes all sizes from 7mm through 19mm.

And, I'm pretty sure the bolt that holds my John Deere mower blades on takes an 18mm socket.
 
15 and 18 mm don't seem to be commonly used on imported vehicles, even though they're quite common on domestic vehicles with metric fasteners.
 
This isn't a coincidence. 15 & 18 are popular sizes, and ARE available from harbor freight in their socket sets, but you have to buy the more expensive set. Which means you got home, realized you missed the one you want, have to go back and buy a new set, but there's a chance you won't return the set you already have, which means they just got a double sale out of a single, and you did all the work.
 
(quoted from post at 06:48:57 12/28/16) This isn't a coincidence. 15 & 18 are popular sizes, and ARE available from harbor freight in their socket sets, but you have to buy the more expensive set. Which means you got home, realized you missed the one you want, have to go back and buy a new set, but there's a chance you won't return the set you already have, which means they just got a double sale out of a single, and you did all the work.
Click to expand...

Harbor Freight must be in collusion with Sears, the tool trucks, and all the big box stores then, since the 1980's.

This is one heck of a long-running conspiracy.
 

First metric impact socket set I bought was missing 15 and 18....had to buy those...
 
Bought a Husky set of combo wrenches from HD for our shop. Missing the 3/4" in SAE and 16,18 in metric. The 16, 18 was not surprising but the 3/4"????? It's used a lot on pneumatic and plumbing fittings. Didn't discover that until I needed it and I was P.O.ed as this was one of the ones missing in our "public" tool box in the shop. Had to go buy an individual one.
 
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