Snap-on redesigns socket system

After 50 years, Snap-on Tools has given the first redesign to its Flank Drive Xtra (FDX) socket system.

Introduced in 1965, the company said the changes offer greater turning power, more secure fastening engagement and greater efficiency.

“Snap-on has taken its genius, often imitated Flank Drive design and completely reimagined a new, improved socket that delivers even better performance than before,” said Brian Benes, a Snap-on Tools product manager.

There are five unique benefits, the company said:

1. Small but mighty: in an improved design that grips fasteners further off the corners, the FDX offers up to 25 percent more strength than Flank Drive sockets.
2. Rounded corner, no problem: with its angled contour, the socket wall grips damaged fasteners more closely for 50 percent more turning power.
3. Upgraded shape: an optimally chamfered lip on both the hex and drive ends of the socket allows for a better grip and more turning power, especially for shallow-headed fasteners and fasteners with limited top clearance.
4. Efficiently engineered: FDX sockets feature grooved, grippable outer walls, a unique design feature that makes them easier to remove.
5. Easily identified: easier identification and improved readability are both achieved through large, distinctive markings on the socket exterior.