Who Makes Quality Tools (Ratchets, Sockets, etc.)?

Hi Everyone,

Apologies if this topic has been covered, I didn't find anything helpful searching.  I busted two 13mm sockets on a brake job last weekend.  I probably bought these sockets 20 years ago at Sears (Craftsman). 

Who sells quality sockets, rachets, etc now? I went to SnapOn online and it was the Shipping ($20) for two 13mm sockets that caused me to not press the Pay button. 

Thanks,

Paul (who used to drive a beautiful Championship White ITR, and now drives a Championship White Town and Country minivan). 

eastside Tim introduced me to the world of Tekton tools and I've been pretty happy with the 3/8 socket set that I got from them.

I've also had good luck with Tekton. And I have no complaints with the Harbor Freight sockets. 

If you want USA made, Wright Tool is good quality. 

Take the sockets to Lowes and get two free replacements. 

Harbor Freight has a new buyer who is tasked to make the sockets , ratchets and wrench's as good as the old USA Craftsmen , and do it in the USA , 

Lets see if it works out !

+1 for Tekton I've had a plastic 3/8 ratchet from them for 8 years now that been used as a hammer as much as a ratchet.  Their sockets and wrenches I believe are forged in Taiwan, not mainland China.  Taiwan built hand tools are about as good as you can get for import hand tools tools before stepping up to US or German made but those are a whole different price bracket.

I have a lot of Milwaukee sockets and hand tools I acquired during my time there, also Taiwanese forged.  The Hart brand (TTI Walmart) used the same exact suppliers and even the same molds that Milwaukee used for the brand launch in 2019. I'm not sure what they are doing these days but not a bad option if you are shopping at the box stores.

If you are looking at Snap-on stuff, Williams is an excellent alternative that is essentially the off label Snap-on at a pretty good discount.

I like the Kobalt stuff I have and Craftsman.  

I use a lot of sunex sockets. I’ve always been satisfied  with the quality of manufacturing and performance. 

Taiwan is the Switzerland of Southeast Asia as far as I’m concerned. 

I like the Gearwrench tools- have been happy with them as supplement to old craftsman set. Otherwise, hf tools have really come a long way. 

Grew up with craftsman in my hand, but that wasa really long trip. And craftsmen did not survive the trip; maybe even worse than me!

I switched to Kobalt stuff, years ago. Unfortunately, one of the big wigs that put seats out of business, moved over to lowes. Not that lowes carries craftsman, they carry a LOT less kobalt. And kobalt ain't what it used to be, either. Still like em better than craftsman, and a bit less expensive. 

Great feedback all. Many thanks!

Tekton and Gearwrench are my two go-to's for slightly higher quality ratchets/sockets. Love my GW 1/4 Flex head 120xp 1/4" ratchet!

Husky is pretty good and they sell the individual sockets at Home Depot locally. I bought a couple 12pts to use as sacrificial sockets for removing locking lug nuts I couldn't get the keys to, and they survived the massive abuse just fine. That's after having split a couple sockets on that job. I wouldn't hesitate to use husky sockets after that. 

I bought a bunch of used Snap On over time and really like it, but for tools to keep in my somewhat damp workshop, I've really come to like the HF Icon line. Seems to be well made and pretty good quality.

I'll jump in on the Tekton bandwagon.  Most of my regular use sockets are Taiwan-made Tekton or Kobalt, with a smattering of my old USA-made Craftsman sockets.  I do also have a Husky set I use when working on stuff away from home that seems very well made.  For socket wrenches, I have a mishmash, but have been slowly upgrading to 90 tooth Tekton wrenches, way nicer to use than my old 36, 60, and 72 tooth wrenches.

I'm a little afraid to ask, but what part of the brake job destroyed the craftsman sockets?  Even when they moved production out of the US, they still seemed reasonably durable.  You may want to also invest in a cheap set of 3/8" metric impact sockets.  Brand probably doesn't matter too much as they should be way beefier than regular sockets no matter who makes them.

In reply to eastsideTim :

Believe it or not, the 13mm bolt was for the bottom brake caliper guide pin. I think the last person to work on it used an impact wrench at a max setting. The caliper pin slides just fine. I was able get the upper 13mm loose and shimmy the whole thing off (and shimmy it right back on). 

I can tell you who DOESN'T anymore: S-K

Went to the S-K dealer recently to buy some lost tools and replace some warranty stuff. No joy. S-K is currently in limbo, kinda out of business, but bought by a Chinesium corporation that has no interest in taking care of the brand. No warranty anymore and no new stock to sell.

Between the loss of Sears and now S-K, I'm in the same boat as OP. Time to check out Tekton, Wright, Williams...

Gonna hijack this slightly as I use all Harbor Freight stuff to keep it replaceable- anyone have a choice they like for a decent quality "homeowner toolkit" type deal?  My dad needs something decent and I don't want to just get him the $30 HF cheapy that I would use.

ChrisTropea said:

I like the Kobalt stuff I have and Craftsman.  

Came in to say the same. Most of my stuff is from a several hundred piece craftsman set the wife bought me before she was my wife. Ratchets I've been buying Kobalt. 

In reply to ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ :

I have a kit similar to this that lives in my truck and its worked great for basic repair stuff. Its not the typical "homeowner toolkit" but I keep an adjustable wrench and some vise-grips with it and I usually have everything I need.

I use the Kobalt sockets but recently switched out the ratchets for gear wrench, I was always bumping the adjusters on the Kobalt ratchets. 

In reply to pcorad01 :

The worst tools I've bought in my life had the Kobalt brand label on them.

I have a lot of Williams USA tools.  I honestly think the best deal in tools right now are the Williams tools made in Taiwan.  You'd be hard pressed to find a better value and quality. 

It seems like the S-K brand keeps having different major events that leave it in either drastically better or worse state over the years.  Also agreeing with previous posts about Tekton, at least a home hobbiest who isn't that hard on tools, being a good brand to consider.

Project Farm is a good resource for reviews of tools.  

pres589 (djronnebaum) said:

Project Farm is a good resource for reviews of tools.  

Was just going to say this.  Not the most exciting presentation-wise, but he does a good job finding what is the best, and what is the best value.  Have to say, of the ones I've watched recently, HF stuff tends to do pretty well.  Maybe not the lowest grade (ie, Pittsburgh), but the next step up usually compares pretty favorably with Snap On, MAC, etc. at about 25% the price.