Wrenches

Wrenches turn fasteners, and the range divides by what the fastener looks like and how much room there is around it. Straight pipe wrenches bite round stock with hardened, angled teeth that grip harder the more you pull, in lengths from about 10 to 48 inches — aluminum bodies where the tool is carried all day, steel where it takes abuse. Adjustable wrenches cover a spread of sizes from one tool, and extra-capacity patterns open wider than their length suggests. Combination wrenches and sets give a proper fit on hex fasteners, open end at one end and box at the other. Lineman's wrenches, bug wrenches and triple-square patterns are shaped around the specific bolt sizes found on crossarms, clamps and line hardware, often double-ended so one tool covers a pole framing job. Spud wrenches pair a box end with a tapered handle for aligning bolt holes in steel. Strap and chain wrenches grip finished or plated pipe without marking it. Insulated versions extend the same patterns to energized work. Fit matters more than leverage: a wrench that does not seat properly rounds the fastener and costs more time than it saves.