Black & Decker AAW100 8-Inch Auto Wrench Adjusting Wrench

I was surprised at some of the negative comments about this wrench. First of all, it seems to me to be as effective as the equivalent manually adjustable "crescent" wrench -- with the emphasis on adjustable. There are some rare times when an adjustable wrench won't do and an exactly size open end wrench from a set of wrenches may be necessary. In those cases, this wrench won't do the trick any more than a manually adjustable crescent wrench will.But lets talk of the 97.98% of cases where an adjustable open-end wrench is just what is wanted and needed. Here's one that adds something useful -- it adjusts wider and narrower at the touch of a button. Well, a spring-loaded momentary-on rocker switch, actually. Convenient for your thumb -- doesn't matter whether you're right-handed or left-handed -- there's this rocker switch. Press one end of the switch and the wrench width opens up. Press the other end and it closes up. It doesn't take much practice to get the hang of it, and in an instant you can resize the wrench to fit your application.My first use the other day involved replacing the fill-valve inside my toilet tank. Where I needed a wrench was to loosen the supply tube's hex nut -- you know the one, it holds the bottom end of the water supply tube to the shut-off valve that comes out of the wall below the tank. I also needed it to tighten the same nut when I installed the new tube. It did the job admirably. Yes, my old manually adjustable crescent wrench would have worked, but that takes a bit more effort to get the wrench jaws to the right diameter. With this battery-operated wrench, the adjustment was performed in an instant with the push of the rocker switch with my thumb, and without trial and error.I'll be using this wrench a lot in the future, no doubt about it.Yes, the grip is a bit bulkier because of the rubber coated battery compartment that forms the grip on the handle, and the handle is a bit wider than a manually adjustable wrench. But it was actually more comfortable for me, perhaps because I have fairly large hands. (I suspect that people with small hands might find a manually adjustable wrench with a slimmer handle better for them.)Anyway, the other thing is, this is a fun wrench to use, too, a nice toy for people who do handy things. Well worth the $24 and change, I find.

Item arrived with totally dead batteries, which was of no surprise, when I noticed that the "warranty' contained a Black & Decker contest, which, ended on December 31st, 2007! AND a preprinted price label of $12.99 with a scratched-out product barcode; all clearly indicating that this product had sat on some shelf for over 18 YEARS before going up for sale by this vendor and marked up to $29.99.

I bought this for my father, a "toolhound", who has every old-timey tool on earth. Originally I sort of bought it as a gag, but when I got in the mail and tested it out after opening, I was actually impressed.First of all, this thing is huge. You can use it to tighten relatively big bolts. (There are measurement marks carved on the jaws of the wrench and it shows that it can accomodate a bolt head 1.25 inches wide.)Second, the opening and closing is almost instantaneous. I thought it would be a lot slower. No. Instead, when you open it (by the press of a button) the wrench shoots open, and when you close it, it slams closed.It seems perfectly safe, as I put my finger in the "maw" of the device and closed it (just to see what it would do...) As soon as the jaws reached my finger, they stopped immediately -barely applying any pressure. So, if there are little kids around this is not likely to pinch anyone's fingers...One thing I was thinking about after I bought this was how useful it would be to someone who had problems with their hands. You really can see how you could easily wield the tool with one hand, and with a limited range of motion.I was pleasantly surprised by this product, and think it makes a great Christmas gift!

I gave this wrench to my husband for Christmas since he is always looking for the "right size" wrench when he is working on something.When we first opened it I thought it seemed very loose when it got smaller and I wondered if it would be able to hold onto a bolt. But later that day we assembled a crib and we needed a wrench. We tested out the new wrench and were pleasantly surprised at how well the wrench adjusted to the size and how well it gripped the bolt.

Although I bought this item to cannibalize it for its parts, I actually decided to use it for its created function, as a wrench. It locks in nicely and holds to the position you set it to and the action is surprisingly fast. The metal parts of the casing are solid and it has a good heft. Too bad it seems to have not caught on. It can also be spotted for deep discounts at TJ Maxx.

I was very surprised that Black & Decker would make a tool that is this bad. They are a very old company and usually you can count on quality products from them. I bought this wrench for use around my ranch as a "do all" for light work. I thought I would use it for maybe holding nuts or bolts while I used a quality ratchet or wrench to do the "power" work. This thing does not tighten up enough to prevent slipping even under the slightest pressure. It also seems to have a mind of it's own when it comes to staying closed on a nut or bolt. It will open up when slight pressure is applied. I'm not sure if I want to keep it or not. Ralph

I seen these and thought it was a cool idea, but once I received the tool it was obvious that it wasn't meant to be used for anything much but very light duty if anything. It's more like a toy.

My husband has one of these and he loves it so much that I purchased 4 more for Christmas presents for family members. It is so easy to use and it doesn't slip. You can use this one handed so that makes a lot of jobs easier and one you press the button and it locks down on something, it stays. The gears are very well made and it will stand up to the toughest jobs. This is one tool that we both use all the time and don't want to be without.