Which tool brand do you prefer?

Mastercraft Canadian tire carries them, cheap to buy on sale and carry a lifetime warranty on most things. For tools I don't use often I usually go with cheaper brands or make my own. I wrench as a hobby and not every day. I have friends who work on heavy equipment for a living and they all swear by snap-on. I have a few select snap-on tools I have collected over the years but I couldn't justify spending the money on a complete set.

 

Crafstman for me Can't convince my accountant, I mean my wife, that I need anything more expensive. I do have 2 sets of Pittsburgh (Harbor Freight) impact sockets. Got them cheap, lifetime replacement, and they have never failed me. Wouldn't buy anything with moving parts from HF though, unless I planned on throwing it away.

 

I like the matco ratchets a lot.

I also decided to try one of the HF composite ones, 72 tooth 3/8. Haven't really gotten to put it to the test yet but for 8$ - 20% and with the reviews it has I figured why the hell not.

 

I love these Snap-on torque wrenches.



I think you can buy better air and power tools though. Their ratchets are nice but I still think the matco ones I've played with are nicer. Though I haven't had a chance to use the matco ones like I have Snap-on.

SK Proto Williams Blackhawk Craftsman Snap-on Matco, I'll buy whatever is cost effective and reliable and makes life a little easier. Maybe a little HF.

 

Many sears tools are china now. Im grabbing all the leftover old stock usa stuff

 

They are all the same to me, but I buy all craftsman just because I'm anal and if I have missmatched brands all over I'll go crazy.

And they are lifetime warranteed.

 

I have that torque wrenches. Few problems with it. Broke like one week after the warranty was out. 100 to fix. The numbers gets ridiculous dirty to the pout you can read them. Had to pull it apart to fix it, not a huge deal. Snap on quality is questionable at times.

 

Haha, we have 6 of the 3/8 and a few of the 1/2 ones and they all kick ass, no problems. We got em last year and we've got a few monkeys in our shop and so far so good. They save so much time too. I think you're just hard on shit!

 

Nooo I'm nice to my tools. They're giving us Canadians defective tools!

 

It's a ploy to take over Canada. >: D

 

Flat out the best, most versatile, strongest, most time saving air tool ever made. The Snap-On IM-32.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/SNAP-ON-IM3...=&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

 

My hand tools are a motley mix of name brands, usually picked up mostly random after something else broke. My sockets are GearWrench, wrenches Pittsburgh, and so on. I have yet to find a truly reliable screwdriver set (tried many), but my current Dewalt set (picked up on a lark from Lowes after a Stanley screwdriver broke) is actually holding up surprisingly well. Other than one or two Craftsman items, don't have anything from those in the poll list.

 

I am a big fan of Armstrong Tools. Get them from Fastenal and they are made in America with a lifetime warranty. http://www.armstrongtools.com/clientextensions/danaher/pages/default.aspx

 

99% of my tools are Craftsman. Would love to have Snap on but I can't justify the expense when I only use them on weekends. By no means do I think Craftsman tools are the best, but they're reasonably priced, readily available and come with a lifetime warranty.

 

Craftsman for most of my stuff...Snap on for ratchets..cause they are just that awesome

Will now add Matco to my list..got a wrench set for $150 on ebay (Normally $361 )

 

Use to work on cars for a living, when I first started I thought ( as many do) that to be the best tech, you need the highest priced tools. Well one day I was given a little nugget of wisdom. If you want to be rich do what rich people do. So I went down to part time at the shop, got my ass in school, asked a few questions around the shop and kept my mouth shut. First lesson i was taught was NO, YOU DO NOT NEED HIGH END TOOLS TO BE A GREAT TECH. The highest paid guy in out shop was a whiz kid. He was at the time 30 years old, and did it all. He was the main dirveabilty tech, was the trans tech, and did a lit of general repair work. Did he have a 10K Snap On tool box, filled with 50K worth of tools? Nope, he had a old 52 inch craftsman top and bottom box full of various tools. I asked him why, and the answer i got was " well, Snap on is a good tool, and i do own many of them, but dollar for dollar, you save more and get a better tool if you shop around". All his sockets were Matco, his wrenches were Snap-on, his ratchests were Mac ( before they went to shit), air tools were IR, elec tools were Fluke, so on and so on. Yall may be thinking yeah well big deal, but this guy has no weekly tool truck payment, had no trouble getting things replaced if they broke, and had a rock soild set of tool that made him around 90K a year.

Now as for me, I love Matco tools for sockets, ratchets, screw drivers and so on. Wrenches I have a set of Snap-on;s in both metric, and SAE, but I use my gear wrench ones more then anything. See i own a small part time motorcycle repair shop, and i set up flat track bikes. SO I need a tool I can count on, cause unlike in a car if a bolt backs out on a motorcycle going 100 MPH sideways inches from 10 other bikes someone gets hurt.

 

I'm happy with my Westward stuff

http://www.westwardtools.ca/

 

I have snap on,matco and craftsman..they all made me money equally. I'd prefer to have a box full of snap on, but who can afford that.


Used to do it professionally, im in the "use my tools 8 hours a day crowd".

 

Work in shop, some tools (and opinions) as follows:

Air Guns/Ratchets:
1/2: Ingersoll Rand Titantium (great gun, very popular)
3/8: Snap-On MG325 (amazing gun for the most part, not often I grab a 1/2 to break something loose, unless it's a fucking GM truck/van)
Ingersoll Rand: Air ratchet[3/8]/Die Grinder-Whiz Wheel

Sockets:
1/2 Semi Deep Impact: Snap On (Swivel incl.)
3/8 Semi Deep Impact: Snap On (Swivel incl.)

I do not own shallow/deep sockets. Semi Deeps are where it's at. It's rare that I actually need a deep socket, rare enough that I only worry about borrowing one when I need it. I can live with those 2 sets for the most part.

Now, one I have not seen mentioned yet is GEARWRENCH/K&D Tools

I really like their stuff. I think very highly of thier tools. I have not had a problem with any of their tools other than the occasional ratchet wrench that jacks up, but I tear the shit out of those things and they take a beating and more. And thier affordable. I tore a 3/8 ratchet apart, but I stressed it pretty bad.

Their ratcheting wrenches are amazing.
KD alxe nut sockets
KD brake tools
KD Serp Belt tool set(amazing tool set, so many more uses than just belts)

 

i also wrench professionally... i have majority snap on. the money is worth it. quality, reliability and warranty are a must when u use them every day professionally.... i also have a few mac and matco.... but at home i got the cheap stuff