What tools?

I use snap-on for the ratchets. Everything else is craftsman or Lowes stuff. I have broke just about every other ratchet besides snap-on. I have had to wait wait a few hours one time cause I broke every single ratchet in my toolbox on some rusty bolts. When my only car at the time had a bad clutch. That sucked really bad. I had everything I needed to do the job and my craftsman and Matco ratchets failed. I waited on my brother to get home from work (6 hours) to bring me his snap-on ratchet. I never gave it back. Lol That 3 hour job took untill midnight. I had to get and go to work at 4am.

ditchdigger wrote: After I discovered how nice the euro stuff like Hazet and Facom was I went looking for something similar at a lower price point and ended up with Toptul. Their satin finished european style tools are pretty freaking great and cost about the same as craftsman.

Where are you finding Toptul? Their website sucks and gives no indication of where you might, say, purchase their tools... Google shopping isn't giving much in the way of results either.

I have a lot of old Craftsman I inherited from my dad. I've been impressed recently on the quality of Stanley tools. Comparable w/Kobalt (Lowes) IMHO. Daughters gave me a nice roll-around tool box and I'm slowly filling it with Kobalt and Stanley tools, and some select on sale Craftsman. Keeping my old tools in the old tool boxes.
I would love to have a complete Snap-On tool box but can't justify the $$ since I know longer make a living bending wrench and now just tinker on my own stuff. When I did though, tools were provided to me.

My aircraft and automotive tool set have recently been combined since my new job provides the tools due to their control scheme.

I found a while ago that even though Snap On makes some top notch tools that it really sucks when the truck comes around on Wednesday and you drop your square on Thursday and break it. Then when they come around on next Wednesday and don't have it on the truck you get it Wednesday after that with a new one, pretty much 3 weeks after I broke the damn tool.

Most of my sockets and ratchets are from Channellock set my parents gave me 10 years ago, a little LPS2 in the ratchet makes them feel real nice. Wrenches and many of the pliers and dykes are Craftsman only because they have a tendency to fall off aircraft or be used to the point where they actually wear out and the Sears is right down the road rather than 3 weeks off.

I have 2 or 3 rolls of Harbor Freight wrenches as well because when working on different planes I always need some specialty tool to get in some weird place at some weird angle and cheap wrenches can be modified without a huge amount of expense. This is something I would seriously recommend because of how useful it is. Screwdrivers are the same way.

I have some ratcheting screwdrivers from SnapOn and a gearless ratchet only because it saved a significant amount of effort on a number of projects and no one else manufactured a good one.

I am a cheap bastard so Harbor Freight and Stanley for the win.

Mostly Craftsman hand tools, with a small amount of SK (torque wrenches) and Snapon (ratchets). I also have some low-use tools from Harbor Freight like the 12-ton press, as well as some air tools.

I have been tracking the Craftsman overseas decline and am actually hoarding a few of their older, larger sets.

Blue Point and Craftsman, some Kobalt.

amateur hobby car guy.

I have primarily Snap-On and Mac for sockets/wratchets, and a set of Matco impact swivels. Gear wrenches and Snap-on flat wrenches, with Craftsman "extras" for most everthing. Ingersoll Rand and Snap-On air impacts/wratchets. I have built virtually my entire tool collection for cheap, trades, or used via Craigslist or otherwise. Good stuff is good stuff, I don't care how new and shiny it is.

All my electric stuff is Dewalt/Makita/Milwaukee, those items I do buy new.

That said, it's all in a Harbor Freight box. I can't see spending the huge money on a tool box that guys spend for a hobby mechanic. The tools do the work, I'm not banging toolbox doors all day every day for a living so I could almost care less what the tools are stored in, other than being able to have a big enough box to store and organize them adequately and efficiently. I'd rather spend the loot a fancy box would cost on any number of things including my car.

I have no shame in filling in the limited use tools from Harbor Freight. I use their cutoff wheels, die grinders, etc., and own some cheap pry bars and dead blow hammers for bashing on stuff.

it depends.

sometimes it is craftsman, sometime it is whatever is at harbor freight.

ransom wrote: Where are you finding Toptul?

Two places I have ordered from.

http://www.ultimategarage.com/shop/index.php?cPath=755

http://www.thetoolchest.ca/brands/Toptul-.html

And occasionally good deals pop up on ebay. A very undervalued brand with virtually no name recognition so when used they are worthless.

I have Proto hand tools, Channellock pliers, Ingersoll Rand pneumatic impacts, and a Milwaukee electric impact. My die grinders and such are all from HF.

Most of my stuff is Craftsman. I have a couple cheap-o sockets and wrenches here and there, and then one or two really nice pieces like a Snap On hex set.

Everyone complains about Craftsman...I think they're still fairly good, mid-grade tools. Sure, they're not German-made $37-a-socket tools, but they are alright for what I use them for.

Just looked through my work toolbox. I am a millwright at a glue factory. Lots of proto ratchets, sockets and wrenches. A fair bit of williams. My "good" pliers are all Knipex, the Channellock stuff is what I use if I have to stick them into something nasty (a lot of that around in a hot melt glue factory) After getting used to Knipex cobras and alligators I just can't see myself ever buying another slipjoint plier. Ratcheting wrenches are blackhawk and gearwrench. All allen wrenches are Bondhus.

Marking punches, scribes and layout type stuff seems to be mainly "General" brand.

A fair bit of Harbor Freight is scattered throughout.

I order most of my work tools from Mcmaster-Carr because it is convenient. As a millwright I really don't care what brand tools I am breaking at the time and if I need to heat and bend a 1.75" end wrench to reach into the guts of a chopper or conveyor I am sure not going to keep snap-on priced stuff around to defile like that.

This thread prompted to start a holiday list for me... only problem is... i don't even know what i need anymore.

The0retical wrote: I found a while ago that even though Snap On makes some top notch tools that it really sucks when the truck comes around on Wednesday and you drop your square on Thursday and break it. Then when they come around on next Wednesday and don't have it on the truck you get it Wednesday after that with a new one, pretty much 3 weeks after I broke the damn tool.

I've been trying to work this out, and I can't come up with more than "just under 2 weeks" Still sucks though - especially when you have a shop in the middle of nowhere and the Snap-On guy doesn't want to make the drive.

Most of my stuff is Craftsman, based on a tool set I won as part of a pit stop competition in 1996. No complaints here, although they did replace a broken 3/8" drive with a crappier one a few years back. My main 1/4" ratchet is a little swivel head unit I bought for about $10 at NAPA years ago, it's awesome. My 1/2" ratchet used to be a Craftsman, but someone "borrowed" it at the FM track day and it's gone away now - a good reason to have affordable tools. I have a set of HF ratcheting wrenches and a set of shorty Gearwrench ratcheting wrenches. There's some Mastercraft (?) brand stuff in there as well, which is the Canadian Tire house brand. My only Snap-On is a Bluepoint brake flaring kit and a Snap-On torque wrench.

I am hell on cordless drills at work. Big bits and hole saws really abuse the poor things but I ain't dragging an extension cord with me 30 feet in the air in a cage on a forklift. Blow through a dewalt a year(plastic gearboxes strip out like clockwork), My Bosch crapped out in the summer heat (the motor got hot enough to melt the plastic body of the drill and spun inside) and I am now onto a white and black Makita that my boss gave me. Said it was the only cordless 1/2" drill that had actual metal gears in it. We will see.

92CelicaHalfTrac wrote: This thread prompted to start a holiday list for me... only problem is... i don't even know what i need anymore.

Same here, except the opposite problem. I need to prioritize to make sure Santa brings the most important bits.

Edit: deleted link since shouldn't be valid now that its after midnight. Twas no canoe though, just trying to pass on a good deal.

Most of my tools are stanley though, got a set as a present. then bought a large craftsman toolbox off craigslist, full of random tools, including some snap-on stuff. and a nice tap and die set. it was a steal. Just purchased the link i had previously posted, so now i have a bunch of craftsman stuff.

ditchdigger wrote: I am hell on cordless drills at work. Big bits and hole saws really abuse the poor things but I ain't dragging an extension cord with me 30 feet in the air in a cage on a forklift. Blow through a dewalt a year(plastic gearboxes strip out like clockwork), My Bosch crapped out in the summer heat (the motor got hot enough to melt the plastic body of the drill and spun inside) and I am now onto a white and black Makita that my boss gave me. Said it was the only cordless 1/2" drill that had actual metal gears in it. We will see.

I've been using a Makita for about 18 months now. No problems so far. It spends most of it's time running 1/4 drill and taps in steel and hole saws.

Harbor Freight
Miller

Or crap I make

canoe

Toyman01 wrote:

ditchdigger wrote: I am hell on cordless drills at work. Big bits and hole saws really abuse the poor things but I ain't dragging an extension cord with me 30 feet in the air in a cage on a forklift. Blow through a dewalt a year(plastic gearboxes strip out like clockwork), My Bosch crapped out in the summer heat (the motor got hot enough to melt the plastic body of the drill and spun inside) and I am now onto a white and black Makita that my boss gave me. Said it was the only cordless 1/2" drill that had actual metal gears in it. We will see.

I've been using a Makita for about 18 months now. No problems so far. It spends most of it's time running 1/4 drill and taps in steel and hole saws.

Real drills have cords. I have retractable reels hanging from the ceiling for both power and air. Super easy - need one, just reach up and grab it, then let it retract when you're done. We also put a 220v socket on our lifts at work so we can plug the welder in right there.

I have purchased a Snap On air ratchet from the flea market odd "Box 'o' Stuff", a full, hundred and some odd number, Stanley set from wally world, and I have purchased from the trucks at work. If I bought it cheep, I don't expect much from it or cry when it breaks, if I shelled out the bucks for it, it's usually my go to product. When the high dollar stuff breaks (rarely), there is a tantrum involved because I have to bother myself with having to get it replaced. When the cheap stuff breaks (often), I scrap it and buy another. On another note, power tools, Festool will be the last, but most expensive power tool you ever buy.

fritzsch wrote: not trying to be a canoe, but last day for a decent set at a nice discount. ends at midnight. http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00941309000P?blockNo=1&blockType=G1&prdNo=1&i_cntr=1319157292611 Most of my tools are stanley though, got a set as a present. then bought a toolbox off craigslist, full of random tools, including some snap-on stuff. and a nice tap and die set. it was a steal

I actually bought this very set a few months back, was on sale sale sale for $170. VERY nice set, has just about everything you need. I need to go through and figure out how to round it out.

Oh, and if you get that thing, make sure you get a bunch of socket organizers. That's one thing i need to invest in.

Twin_Cam wrote: Most of my stuff is Craftsman. I have a couple cheap-o sockets and wrenches here and there, and then one or two really nice pieces like a Snap On hex set. Everyone complains about Craftsman...I think they're still fairly good, mid-grade tools. Sure, they're not German-made $37-a-socket tools, but they are alright for what I use them for.

I am in the same boat. Most of my stuff is Craftsman with a scattering of Snap-On, GearWrench and HF.