Milwaukee has come out with a new 12″ smooth jaw pipe wrench, model 48-22-7186.
It was announced in 2018 as part of Milwaukee’s pipe wrench expansion, and started shipping late last Fall, but I think it’s still fair to describe it as new.
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The new Milwaukee smooth jaw pipe wrench provides a parallel grip and should provide a secure hold on fittings and fasteners, without damaging them. It’s specifically designed for use on chrome plumbing fittings.
Milwaukee says that the handle has an ergonomic shape that won’t dig into your palms, and that its design helps to prevent fatigue and slipping.
- 11.5″ length
- 2-5/8″ jaw capacity
- Weighs 2.9 lbs
Milwaukee’s product imagery shows the wrench in use on a commercial toilet fixture.
Price: $32
Buy Now(12″ smooth jaw wrench via Acme Tools)
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Offset Hex Pipe Wrench
Milwaukee also makes an offset pipe wrench with hex-style smooth steel jaws, model 48-22-7171.
- 10.5″ length, 14.29″ height
- 2-5/8″ jaw capacity
- Weighs 1.8 lbs
The Milwaukee offset hex smooth jaw pipe wrench allows for 3 points of contact, and like the 12″ wrench, it’s designed for non-marring use on chrome-finished fittings and other similar plumbing fixtures.
Price: $30
Buy Now(Offset wrench via Acme Tools)
First Thoughts
I have smooth-jaw pliers, and they come out when I need to work on finished plumbing fittings and fixtures. Despite the smooth jaws, I usually tape the jaws, just to be safe.
These pipe wrenches look a bit too big for things like shower head installs, which is why I think they’re more aimed at commercial plumbers than residential. But maybe there are some residential plumbing applications?
I’m curious to see what a pro plumber thinks of these Milwaukee pipe wrenches, especially if you do commercial installations or maintenance.
What about the offset hex wrench? That looks like it could be a handy problem-solver when working in tight spaces or very specific scenarios.
Philip Proctor
Commercial plumber specialty tool.
Nabeel
Not a fan of the pipe wrenches. Too much slop and movement in jaws compared to Ridgid pipe wrenches. You can tell they are inferior to the Ridgid the moment you have one in your hand. Only Milwaukee plumbing tool I actually like is their pex cutters. When it comes to pipe wrenches or cutters, stick with Ridgid.
Steven
Agreed. Certain hand tools are okay, not great. My ridgid pipe wrenches teeth have worn out, cost to renew more than new tool…. milwaukees are significantly cheaper(18” and 14”), but thats the only bonus. Hook is super sloppy between the springs and you have to jam your finger between the thread and handle to engage the teeth on smooth surface steel pipe 40% of the time…..very frustrating if you want a clean finish.
You cant really screw up a spud wrench or a hook jaw wrench? Can you?
My work errs closer to residential/light commercial/boiler mechanical gas fitting. Only once have I said “i could really use a spud wrench” my knipex pliers wrench has a very large jaw to accommodate lots of varried sizes. I could be coerced into a spud wrench if price was right, however! My tool box is already heavy enough and have already removed alot of “dusty” tools.
fred
Teeth do wear out – and its a pity that replacement jaws now cost so much. Its a tragic part of our “throwaway society” – and might have to do with little demand for replacements driving the unit price up.
The first hook wrenches came from Japan via a company called Weil. They were high-class tools. Once their patents ran out – we got lots of copies – of different shades of quality and performance.
Toolboxes too heavy? Our boss plumbers got the helpers to carry things like those and the nipple boxes.
BTW the loose fit on a pipe wrench is designed in so that you can use a sort of ratcheting action when making up a fitting – remembering (of course) to maintain a 3-point wrench-to-pipe contact in high-torque situations.
Also “cheaper” for Milwaukee versus Ridgid, Reed or Wheeler-Rex might have something to do with COO – although I don’t know which brands (Ridgid, Reed, Wheeler Rex) are still made in the USA.
Spud wrenches were also probably more popular when steam heat was more common. They were good at making up the unions on radiator spuds/valves without buggering them up. I was told that a guy called Charles Moncky – invented the “monkey” wrench just prior to the Civil War. When I was a kid – we had a version that my dad called a “Ford Wrench” – that he said came with his Model A – bought when he graduated college during the Depression.
Steven
Journeyman plumber, i dont always have apprentices to lug in my equipment and we equally share load in and out. Heavy tool boxes are not good. Not only is it unproductive, bottoms blow out from stress and accellerate wear.
The “loose” is actually extremely loose compared to ridgid. I had another journeyman use my milwaukee pipe wrenches today and was equally disappointed. Milwaukees wrenches were between 30-50$ cheaper than the ridgids which was my driving decision…..I got exactly what I paid.
I actually hoped replacement hook and heel would be cheaper cause the bodies have alot more life left…..shame
fred
I should have put a smiley face or “ha ha” – after my comment about having helpers lug the heavy stuff – just my misplaced sense of humor. The only lugging by “others” for us was having the ironworkers or operating engineers raise our Knaack boxes up to a working elevation if elevators were not in use on hi-rise jobs.
Good to know about the “extremely loose” on the Milwaukee’s – not that I’d be buying any (sold up and retired as I am) – but others might want to be wary.
Also I do agree that we trash too many tools – when worn parts would be easy to replace – but seem to just cost too much compared to buying a new tool.
Mosh
Still have some older homes that have Flushometer style toilets
Adam
The offset style also works well for tightening the spuds on antique toilets, if anyone besides me still repairs those.
Corey Moore
Other than the presumably larger size offerings, what would the benefit of these over a theoretically equal see pliers wrench? Pretty sure they come as large as a 16″ size in knipex. I almost exclusively use my pipe wrenches for big-azz pipes/unions and the like in sealed process stuff and then +3″ rigid conduit. The smooth jaws aren’t really a necessity for my work, but it’s great for never shredding surface work, and that transfer of force is too hard to give up lol several of my rigids have grown legs the last several years and I’m in the market to replace them, if there’s still a general use benefit over knipex somewhere. Appreciate any info and/or experiences ?
Stuart
With Pliers Wrench, you need to squeeze the tool to maintain contact and engagement. With a pipe wrench, you adjust the jaw opening width, and can put your focus and strength into turning the fastener.
The width or thickness of the jaws can be a potential consideration. I haven’t compared the two directly, but I would assume that the pipe wrench jaws are thicker, which would increase the contact surface. This might make a difference to help reduce slippage on thinner fittings. I would emphasize that this is a “maybe.”
fred
There are lots of different ways to accomplish the same task – and some of what you grab may be based on personal preference. As you move up in the size of pipe (e.g. from what we use in residential settings to what’s found in commercial settings, hi-rise buildings, industrial applications, oilfields and pipelines) so do the size of the tools.
Some plumbers seem to use pump-pliers and channellocks more than conventional wrenches. My guys certainly took to using Knipex plier wrenches – especially on polished fittings – once we tried them (about 18 years ago). But like all tools they have limitations. Even if you made a pliers big enough – how big would your hands have to be to us it on a 12 or 18 inch pipe. That’s why they make chain tongs – to help rotate big pipe into position for bolt-up or welding.
Rick
When applicable, a pipe wrench works considerably better than channel locks types. It’s bites harder the more force you apply. Channel locks still require you to squeeze. But a good functioning cresent wrench also works well, and seems to be somewhat under rated. A medium sized can pretty much cover any residential gas fitting (with a flat) valve,, or water line, and won’t mar up the surface .
fred
Both wrenches pictured seem to be quite similar to their Ridgid/Reed/Wheeler-Rex counterparts. The corner stress relief circular cutouts on the Milwaukee seem a bit deeper and more pronounced than the one on the Ridgid E-110 or similar ones from Reed . The other Milwaukee looks a lot like the Ridgid Spud wrench (31400) or similar ones from Reed and Wheeler Rex. We liked the Wheeler Rex’s narrow jaws that seemed to fit into tight spots a bit better than the Ridgid
TravisF
The monkey wrench is the only way to remove the Sloan valve cap and not ruin it, like in the first picture. Next time you take a leak at a restaurant, look for the teeth marks on the top of the flush valve. The Ridgid hex head wrench is a classic with narrow jaws, but becomes wobbly when high torque is used due to the slim build. Milwaukee engineers have been boldly fine tuning and improving time tested tool designs for a couple of years now with great results.
fred
Some Sloan Valve caps are completely round (no flats) so a monkey wrench won’t have anything to grab on to. The polished chrome makes this style – sometimes hard to remove even with a strap wrench . Sometimes a bit of hot air from a heat gun will help soften up the crap (a plumbing term of art) that is gumming up the threads. Other times – or when impatient “plumbers” have been at work – it’s why you may see teeth marks on those urinal Sloan Valve caps
Tom A.
If you’re having trouble getting the chrome cap off of the flush valve, I’ve found that if you loosen the flush handle it releases the vapor lock and the caps come right off
Wayne R.
I don’t use these tools, but there seems to be an aluminum versus steel thing that I would always expect to swing toward aluminum, especially for those who use (carry) them a lot. For these I’d have expected they’re mainly aluminum but it appears that’s wrong.
Anyone elaborate on why they’d choose one metal over the other, please?
Nathan
wear and corrosion and cost. For a pipe wrench like these if you ever had to really pull on it – like opening a rusted and old gas pipe. you will but alot of stress at the joint of the thread boss for the adjuster and alot on the top hook/jaw.
So you might as well make it steel. If you made it AL you might well save 1-2 lbs maybe a but more but the cost would go up significantly. Meanwhile someone that carries one every day – probably wouldn’t even notice with other plumbing tools you’d carry most days.
Then corrosion – steel can rust and still retain alot of strength. So your 10 year old rusty pipe wrench – though ugly – is still solid. AL if corroded significantly – is not strong. It can be brittle, it can crack easily depending on the speciifics of the alloy.
What you might see is a move to plastic instead. fixes the corrosion issue – fibre fill plastic would carry the strength – and still save the weight. In theory cheaper to make too.
fred
Some of the guys wanted me to buy some aluminum offset jaw wrenches. We bought Ridgid 31125’s. They liked them for reaching into tight spots – and said that overhead – lighter was better. We bought our first ones in the late 1990′ – but they still make them:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-18-in-Model-18-Aluminum-Offset-Wrench-31125/202826803
Wayne R.
Yeah, for that wrench I can easily see the adjustable part being steel (it is, right?) and both jaws, and the big chunk being aluminum.
Maybe plumbers don’t carry hundreds of tools at a time so their load is different than what I would guess…
Tom
Ridgid…still the best and made in America..
Flotsam
with my house replumbed with PEX not much need for me
fred
My old plumbing business was divided into subsidiary businesses. One worked in a city where PEX was (and still is) prohibited by code. Plastic was OK for waste lines – but only for residential applications – and not in buildings over 5 stories high. Plastic pipe of any sort was prohibited for all commercial work. For many years in that locale – sweat fitted copper was also prohibited – and we used threaded copper/red-brass pipe and fittings for water supply.
TonyT
Interesting how the local codes may vary so much.
Right now I’m dealing with a massive (>300gal/day, but no visible water) leak in the hot water piping, probably where the pipes run in or more likely under the concrete slab. When I did some research on building codes, I found that California does not prohibit this, but some cities (such as Livermore) do, or place additional restrictions. (IIRC, Livermore says the ground is too acidic, so the pipes corrode quickly).
Allen
Isn’t that just a “Ford” wrench ?
fred
What most folks seem to call “Ford” wrenches or monkey wrenches are slightly different – although they might accomplish the same tasks.
In the “Ford” wrench – the hook (top) jaw is part of the handle and the heel (lower) jaw moves and is adjusted up and down via knurled worm screw along the teeth of a rack built into the handle.
On the spud wrench the hook (top) jaw is a separate piece that rides up and down against the fixed heel (lower) jaw – adjusted with a knurled nut.
https://www.zoro.com/facom-monkey-wrench-9-l-steel-fa-105230/i/G5051575/feature-product?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI9YiN8Zju4QIVVgOGCh1LTwpHEAQYBSABEgIKFPD_BwE
Christopher Maria
The offset hex wrench (Ridgid Brand) is carried by a lot of guys in the HVACR industry for the purpose of changing the Thermostatic Expansion Valve (TXV) powerheads. It can get into the tight space that other adjustable wrenches can’t. It’s perfect for that application and I’ve had mine for a long time now.
Vinny
Given the amount of replacing flushometer parts in commercial office building and my bosses correct attitude, this is IT when removing and reinstalling chrome plated parts. If I elected to use ornery channel lock pliers, I would be fired.