As with the case of tweezers, there is a wide variety of adjustable wrenches and, consequently, also a large disparity of different names for each tool that makes up this large group or types of spanner.
Spanner, French wrench, crescent wrench, wrench dog, monkey wrench they are all curious designations applicable in such cases and generate confusion when purchasing any of these tools.
In this prospect, consequently, the best-known adjustable wrenches can be published (there are many others that are specific to various applications), as well as their main uses.
Due to the multiplicity of names that characterize each of these keys, you will always accompany each description with the corresponding image, so that the reader can simply recognize the tool passed on to as it is called in each region or country.
The adjustable wrenches happen to be used in countless commercial, industrial, and domestic claims, and are essential in any toolbox or workshop.
Its purpose use to be performing manual torsion movements for loosening or adjusting bolts, nuts, screws and cylindrical surfaces of different types of spanner, are available in hardware stores or hypermarkets and are divided into two large groups:
Fixed keys
Their faces are separated by a certain factory distance that cannot be modified, so that the clamping element to loosen or adjust must adapt to them, which is why they only serve a single measure of clamping element and generally.
They are extremely useful in jobs where the use of certain clamping element measures is frequent, for example, in bicycle, motorcycle or automobile workshops.
Adjustable wrenches
Their faces are separated by a distance that the user can adjust at will, in order to adapt to the clamping element to loosen or adjust, which is why they serve for various clamping element measurements.
They are extremely useful in jobs where the use of pipes, pipes and fasteners of many different sizes is frequent, for example, plumbing and gas applications, blacksmithing, installation of refrigeration and heating equipment (HVAC) or at home.
Spanner
Also known, depending on the country or region, as “French key”, “Bahco key”, “Crescent key” or “Swedish key” are by far the most common type of adjustable key.
They have two parallel and smooth faces or jaws, displaced at an angle of 15 degrees relative to the handle, so they can be used in confined spaces.
Wrench options
The market offers wrenches with numerous optional features as needed. For example, many manufacturers have key lines provided with a scale measuring in millimeters or inches, which allows you to quickly visualize the size of the fasteners to be rotated.
Stilton wrench
These kinds of spanner is traditional Stilton key, also known as the “faucet key” or “dog key”, was specifically designed to fit connections and fittings between pipes.
Pipe wrench
The invention of JP Johansson of 1888 special for plumbing applications is still today called “iron hand” and marketed under the name “pipe wrench”, which involves several improvements over the standard Stilton wrench. In other countries it is known as the “Swedish key”.
Monkey wrench
As it is stated above, monkey wrenches were designed more than 150 years ago to adjust wheel nuts on carts, so they were and are very robust tools always used in large-scale jobs.
Because it is not very maneuverable, its popularity has diminished considerably in recent times in favor of the Stilton key, since the latter can fulfill all the functions of a monkey key, while the opposite is not always applicable.