OTHER than craftsman - who makes good tools?

[zixxer]

I really don't want to go into the quality of craftsman ratchets/wrenches -

who makes good stuff other than them? I have a snap-on ratchet, but it doesn't feel like it has very many 'clicks' per revolution...

what about mac? matco?

 

[Mr N8]

Snap-On, Mac, and SK tend to have very nice tools.

 

[nutxo]

Originally posted by: zixxer
I really don't want to go into the quality of craftsman ratchets/wrenches -

who makes good stuff other than them? I have a snap-on ratchet, but it doesn't feel like it has very many 'clicks' per revolution...

what about mac? matco?

Snap on and matco are nice but at a price. I think for anyone not a professional mechanic anything higher end than craftsman is just pretentious.

 

[BoomerD]

Snap-On is usually considered to be the best you can buy. PERIOD. Mac and Matco make good "professional-grade" tools, S&K makes great tools, (industry leader for decades...I have one 1/2" set that's about 30 yrs old) and I've heard good things about HOme Depot's "Husky" brand as well as Lowe's "Kobalt" tools as well.
What kind of use are they going to be getting? Obviously, you're not a "professional mechanic", of you'd probably already know these things, so...
general homeowner use?
"shade-tree mechanic" use?

For the kind of occasional useage that most people put them through, the Husky, Kobalt, Craftsman, or S&K tools should suffice.

 

[GuitarDaddy]

You hit the biggies snapon,mac,matco,craftsman

Snapon is the best but is also the most expensive, mac and matco are also more expensive than craftsman. Best bang for the buck for the DIY'er is probably craftsman, check out ebay you can get some insane deals on craftsman.

If your more budget minded the Lowes/Home depot brands are pretty good Rigid and ??? can't remember. Also Stanley makes decent hand tools.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Snapon, Mac, Matco, and SK are all professional grade tools. The difference between a Craftsman and a Mac wrench is that a Craftsman is likely to last you a life time. A Mac is likely to last the guy who uses the wrench all day every day a lifetime.

Husky seems about on par with Craftsman.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Some other good brands:
Cresent
Klein

 

[alien42]

no mention of DeWalt? afaik they have a great reputation.

 

[zixxer]

Originally posted by: alien42
no mention of DeWalt? afaik they have a great reputation.

wtf for power tools, yes. We're talking about mechanics tools (ratchets, etc)

 

[zixxer]

Originally posted by: BoomerD
Snap-On is usually considered to be the best you can buy. PERIOD. Mac and Matco make good "professional-grade" tools, S&K makes great tools, (industry leader for decades...I have one 1/2" set that's about 30 yrs old) and I've heard good things about HOme Depot's "Husky" brand as well as Lowe's "Kobalt" tools as well.
What kind of use are they going to be getting? Obviously, you're not a "professional mechanic", of you'd probably already know these things, so...
general homeowner use?
"shade-tree mechanic" use?

For the kind of occasional useage that most people put them through, the Husky, Kobalt, Craftsman, or S&K tools should suffice.

I get more use out of my tools than a 'general homeowner'.. I'd say 'shadetree mechanic'. I do all of my own maintainence, own a couple cars and bikes - and am normally helping friends with their crap as well. If a tool breaks it's not like I'm losing money though

 

[Megatomic]

Originally posted by: Demon-Xanth
Some other good brands:
Cresent
Klein

That's what I was going to contribute. But don't forget Channel-Lock. I'm an I&C guy at a power plant and those three companies make 95% of my hand tools. Fluke makes the other 5%.

 

[GuitarDaddy]

I bought one of these a few years back and it's served me well

Craftsman 245pc set

 

[MikeMike]

the original manufacturer of Craftsman, now makes Husky tools for HD, you can return a broken craftsman to HD and get a Husky in place of it.

they are the cheapest you will find for warranties like that

Snap-Ons are amazing though.

 

[jlbenedict]

Anyone remember those Popular Mechanics tools that were sold in Walmart years and years ago? I don't believe that brand exists anymore.. but those were pretty decent tools in their time.

 

[Tobolo]

NO ONE

 

[tfinch2]

I've been very happy with my Craftsman tools.

 

[jimbob200521]

My dad has been making custom cabinets & woodworking for nearly 30 years, and Makita has usually been his tool of choice.

 

[Vette73]

Mac, Husky, the lowes store brand, Pop. mechanics (wal-mart), etc..= Stanley

Kobalt at Lowes is mostly snap ons blue point stuff.


Stanley makes good tools so i went with Lowes store brand for my basic sockets and what. I have logged 100's of repairs on them so they hold up well.

 

[Bateluer]

We've got several sets of Snap-On tools at work. Generally, they've been very good, but we have broken a few. Particularly, taps and drill bits. We've broken a few torque wrench too. We've only broken a single screw driver though. It should be noted that these tools are very well maintained, cleaned and oiled on a monthly basis.

 

[Ausm]

Snap-on

/thread


Ausm

 

[Specop 007]

I'm going to break the mold here.

I think Snap on is a bit of a waste really. I use Stanley/Craftsmen myself. The Chinese sh1t (And for the most part, it is sh1t) works just as well under light duty applications. Get out the 6 foot breaker bar and the Chinese stuff starts to break but for light duty stuff I see nothing wrong with budget gear.

And even in higher stress/higher p[erformance apps, I still contend Craftsmen/Stanley will perform for all practical purposes as well as the higher end stuff.

The only time I might vary on this is measurement tools such as a torque wrench.

 

[AmigaMan]

I'm definitely not a shade-tree mechanic. More like "changes his own oil but runs screaming like a little girl to a real mechanic if anything else is wrong" type of mechanic. That being said, I like my Kobalt socket set I got from Lowe's a couple years ago. I also have a set of assorted Craftsman tools my dad gave to me when I left the house for college. All have held up well to my non-professional usage.

 

[lokiju]

I've been buying Husky (Home Depot brand) tools lately and haven't regretted it at all, life time warranty like Craftsman and good build quality IMO.

Snap-On is just crazy money, but if you like to spend then go for it.

 

[Vic]

Craftsman are the best tools for the shadetree mechanic.

Snap-on, Mac Tools (Stanley), and Matco are all more expensive professional-grade tools.

 

[zixxer]

Originally posted by: lokiju
I've been buying Husky (Home Depot brand) tools lately and haven't regretted it at all, life time warranty like Craftsman and good build quality IMO.

Snap-On is just crazy money, but if you like to spend then go for it.

I have a husky ratchet that is decent. A tooth in it broke though - so sometimes it would 'slip'... very aggravating. Took it back and customer service had no clue about the warranty. I basically left with some "husky rotator" thing that is like 1 step above a toy.

I'm a little leary after that...