Some tools just ooze quality. You know when you can just tell from the satin finish on the steel that you've got your money's worth? That's what the Bahco SL25 ¼ inch socket set is like.
It’s a small set, but that's part of its appeal. I’ve got a whopping great big socket set that I can barely lift, but what I really needed was a set I could carry with me. Packed into a rugged, bright orange case that’s only 160x85x35mm (LxWxH), the Bahco fills that particular niche really rather well.
For a not-so-whopping £19.50 (although admittedly that was the on-sale price) you get:
Not a bad assortment by any means. I especially like the subtle admission that Phillips drivers and screws are rubbish and you’re going to need two of them — at least.
Isn’t it sweet?
The ratchet handle is short; it has to be to fit in that little case. It means you can’t apply much torque to it, but that’s probably a good thing for a ¼ inch drive — there’s a good reason no-one sells ¼ inch breaker bars. The handle is a nice shape and has a rubber, non-slip coating that feels good in the hand. The ratchet mechanism itself is quite fine and has a very positive click to it; and the direction reversal mechanism is easy to flick from one side to the other without feeling like you might do it accidentally.
When the release button is pressed the sockets pop on and off the handle with a satisfying 'clunk', and feel very firmly held in place the rest of the time. When using the extension bar the sockets have a little more play in them, but that can sometimes be of help when trying to line them up with a bolt or nut in a tight space.
The sockets themselves share the same lovely satin finish as the rest of the set, with a slight knurl on the handle side. On all the bolt-heads and nuts I’ve tested against the fit has been about right for my tastes: not so tight that my nuts get stuck, but not a great deal of slop either. Unlike some cheaper sockets I’ve used there’s a reasonably convex surface to the 'flats' of the sockets. That’s great, because it means the socket grips the flats of the bolt head more than the corners — gripping the corners is a great way to round them off.
The case is actually one of my favourite things about this set. So many tool sets seem to assume you’re going to chuck the case away, leaving the tools scattered around your tool box, and so supply a case worthy only of chucking in the bin. This case is much nicer than that.
As I mentioned: it’s only 160x85x35mm; it fits nicely into one of the pockets on my backpack, ready to let me be the hero who can fix all the things. The plastic is thick and feels sturdy; not at all like it would break should my toddler get hold of it.
The high-density foam liner holds the sockets snugly so they don’t rattle around — or drop all over the floor when you lend it to someone and they inevitably open it upside down. Screen printed (I think) lettering is used to label all the slots in the foam, which is much easier to read than the embossed lettering you tend to get in the cheap molded plastic cases, but I do wonder about its longevity.
That depends. I got mine on sale for £19.50, which isn’t much more than the cheap-and-nasty £15 Stanley set that I nearly bought (that had less bits with it too). The RRP of the Bahco set though, is a slightly less palatable £53.28.
Personally, I reckon if you can find one for less than £30 it would be well worth it; then you could join me in being one of the very few people who EDC a socket set.