Stanley Proto J5469 1/2-Inch Drive Hinge Handle, 24-Inch

Stanley's line of USA made professional tools. I have this and several other of their items, and they are all very nice quality USA lifetime warranty tools. This is a meaty breaker bar at a very reasonable price. Ive read reviews where people have said they come bent right out of the box. They might be able to bend it, with a 6ft cheater bar while bouncing on it like a pogo stick. Mine was straight as an arrow, and I find it hard to believe that as long as they have been making tools, and as many tool companies they own, their quality control would be that poor to be making bent breaker bars. Look up Stanley tool works and see the tool companies they own under different names, and you'll be surprised. MAC tools, Dewalt, and Black and Decker just to name a few. The bottom line is great product, period.

I have the 1/2" drive 25 inch Pittsburgh pro breaker bar witch is thicker then this PROTO. But with that being said the PROTO feels heavier which means it has a higher density steel then the Pittsburgh weaker steel alloy. Nothing is worse then having a breaker bar shatter midway in a job, which is why I bought this PROTO for something more reliable and stronger.

Works great for me. Made in USA, heavy, and good attention to detail. Feels like a high quality tool. I've had excellent experiences with Proto stuff, in fact its all I generally buy now. Used it to break loose the lugs nuts on my F-350 dually that the tire shop over tightened, and to removed the leaf spring packs. Worked great and made the job much easier. Highly recommend

Used this breaker bar the first day I got it to loosen some stubborn lug nuts. Took all my strength to break them loose, the Proto bar held up great. I was more worried about the socket breaking than the bar! Proto is Stanley’s USA made professional tool brand and is really one of the better values in a pro USA made tool.

Sturdy; reasonable cost and helped to finish a project.

So I know three stars looks bad, but if you read my whole review it might not seem so bad. I know, it's long.My biggest issue was honestly that the head was a little scratched up when I received it, and the chrome finish looked a little nicked and like it hadn't been done completely under the hinged head. It looked like it may have been slightly used was my first thought. And on close inspection, I found the handle to be warped/bent as a few other people have mentioned on here. I have one star removed for the scratches and one for the bent handle. However I know both these issues may have been out of this sellers control, or this seller may specifically be sending some bad/returned ones and trying to get away with it. I try to give people the benefit of the doubt, but enough people have now mentioned this in the reviews that if anyone wants an absolutely perfect one, maybe don't buy from this seller, or just be prepared to return a few until you get one you want. Some people have said theirs are perfectly straight, I don't know if that is the case or they are just not noticing the bends, but Proto should be able to get it consistent with either all bent or not for as much money as they're charging. Buuuut:The bending/warping in the handle is so minor that many people may not even notice it, and I'm certain it won't affect it's operation. It actually happens to be bent exactly in the way I would want it to be to give a little more clearance for your hands and to become straight once experiencing some slight deflection, assuming you are always torquing the bar with the brand name facing where your thumb would be pointing during rotation if you're using the right hand rule for torque as learned in engineering. This is the optimum design to protect the labeling, which is all one side, from being scratched, while giving what appears to be an intended direction of use, although it is obviously reversible with the hinge handle, which in the end just allows still more potential helpfulness. A perfectly straight bar will actually prevent you from being able to get on a nut/bolt in some instances.I studied the bar fairly thoroughly and after thinking about it, it does seem like the bend might be totally on purpose and awesomely helpful. As I said, in the direction I would want to push mine using that right hand rule to have the brand name facing up toward me if I'm trying to loosen a bolt (rotating counterclockwise), the bar is pre-bent just ever so slightly in the opposite direction that it will deflect. With a 24 inch handle, and a 1/2 inch drive, there is a lot of stress that could be developed in that handle. The way that it is bent makes it so that instead of having your handle bend beyond straight and cause you to lose torque on your turn once the bar starts deflecting, the handle actually bends straighter. Only to a point obviously, eventually the pre-bend will lose to the total deflection and you will get a torque-reducing bend forming. But that's another awesome thing about this bar, the handle is so thick I don't think you could bend it that far before just shearing the drive head off.Maybe I got lucky with that pre-bend in mine which is exactly in the direction I would want it to be for the way I plan to use it. Maybe I got a used one that has been welded back together and refurbished and I'm just being excessively and incorrectly optimistic. I guess I will never know for sure, but it is hard enough to tell and the bar still seems plenty solid enough that I am not going to return mine and just choose to be very happy with it. The handle is ridiculously solid compared to competitors. It just feels really good. Sorry to proto and the seller for having to knock a few stars off for the scratches/bend though. If it's supposed to be straight it supposed to be straight, and other people's have said theirs are.Basically: If you're looking for an excellent breaker bar, give it a chance.

Arrived ever so slightly bent. Some people probably wouldn't even have noticed, it's very subtle. It will definitely not effect it's performance, and it's understandable due to the length. Other than that, I would say this is one of the more robustly constructed and comfortable to use hinge handles I've ever had the pleasure of owning. Plenty of torque for the most stubborn fasteners. A much better option than giving yourself a hernia and/or potentially damaging your favorite ratchet. Also happy whenever I see an American made product, it's rare these days.

Excellent breaker bar. I've put it through its paces and it hasn't failed, bent, or otherwise deformed. A must-have for heavy duty automotive work. Hard to beat the price and quality for a tool Made in USA.

As others have mentioned, the shaft on this bar is slightly bent... perhaps it is by design. I have not used the tool extensively, and as a DIY, I don't expect to, so I cannot comment on long term durability. The finish is very good, it appears to be a quality made product and at 24", I'm hoping I don't have to use a "cheater bar" as I have with other tools in the past.