Favorite Brand

[rbattelle]

My absolute favorite pliers on Earth are Channel Lock.



-Ryan

 

[MKoth]

So are you saying Snap-On makes Kobalt for Lowe's?

Who makes Husky for Home Depot?

Stanley owns Husky, as well as Mac and Blackhawk tools.





I used to have a lot of Blackhawk stuff, but there quality went to heck when they got bought by Stanley, so most of my tools are SK and Snap-on, with a few Mac and Cornewell things. All my air tools are IR and Mac, and my power tools are a DeWalt.

 

[LesStallings]

Everytime Sears comes out with a new Craftsman Professional tool, they just send it to me and bill my credit card that is on file...



If I did this stuff for a living I'd buy Snapon, but since I do it all day as a hobby, cost has to be factored into the purchase decision.

 

[HOBrian]

SK for me, started collecting in high school. Now I have a pretty good set of tools.

 

[Nightram]

I am from Kenosha, Wisconsin, and I used to have a lot of friends that worked at Snap-On, but when they came through and just closed the place down for no real good reason, I walked away and found a BETTER tool company, SK. There's my $. 02.

 

[JoshPeters]

I've got mostly Snap-on and Matco. I have a set of Craftsman stuff at home... MAN can you tell a difference when you use them everyday!



Josh

 

[rrausch]

I love my S-K wrenches and socket sets. I've used them for years. I also have an old set of Williams Super-Wrenches which I like.

 

[ndurbin]

The only thing I dislike about my Snap-on wrenches is the handles are a bit thin at the edge and cut into my hand when I really torque on them (but that can be fixed with either gloves or wrap a shop rag around it). The only Snap-on stuff I have broke so far are a pair of 6" 3/8 drive extensions and a Prybar handle (broke after it went flying across the parking lot and hit a wrecked truck).



Did have one friend who was a die hard Craftsman guy but once he broke a few and had to drive 60 miles to get it replaced he started buying off the Mac truck that came around.



Nathan

 

[Dl5treez]

The only thing I dislike about my Snap-on wrenches is the handles are a bit thin at the edge and cut into my hand when I really torque on them (but that can be fixed with either gloves or wrap a shop rag around it).

I echo that complaint, plus they get more slippery than a fish when covered in oil & coolant. I've found that my Proto Professional wrenches are thin like the Snap-on's but have a rougher finish with rounded edges. They are much much more gentle on the hands, and have plenty of strength, so for 99% of the jobs I do the Protos get grabbed first.

 

[rbattelle]

The only thing I dislike about my Snap-on wrenches is the handles are a bit thin at the edge and cut into my hand when I really torque on them

I think the same thing about the Craftsman wrenches I have. Extremely uncomfortable to use. But I figured all brands are like this, to some degree.



-Ryan

 

[jkeyes]

Cornwell has got the best combo wrenches that I have used yet. The shanks are square and tend not to dig into your hands.



-J-

 

[DKayser]

Anything Old!

I like Snap- On finish & quality, especially on handles- ratchets, breakers. But Old Craftsman, Proto,& even some old Cornwell & Williams tools are really nice tools. I think everyone`s quality went out the window the last 10-15 years. Good tools are not expensive, they are priced according to their worth. Use them all day like some of us, and you`ll know why we feel that way. Just buy the best tools you can afford. DK.

 

[RKerner]

another Snap On vote

I like Snap- On finish & quality, especially on handles- ratchets, breakers. Use them all day like some of us, and you`ll know why we feel that way. Just buy the best tools you can afford. DK.

Started with SK, got some MAC and Matco stuff then moved to Snap-On. They fit ergonomically, had the right options at the right time and just plain worked. And, if you spent enough dough, the clocks (Miss November woohooo), knives,coffee cups and shotguns were fine rewards for the investment.

Rick(member of the $20K tool club)

 

[Fishin Guide]

Snap on.



Dave

 

[Mhannink]

i like craftsmen but i have stanley kobalt and some cheapos as well tho im phasing those out

 

[jwduke]

Another vote, for Sears Craftsman, but their tools don't seem to be as good as they were 25 years ago... .....

 

[JJuday]

It all depends on the specific tool or tools you are talking about. For example... Irwin Vise Grip brand adjustable locking pliers, no other company makes them like the original. Adjustable wrenches are a toss-up for me, I really like to stick with the Crescent brand or Rigid. I buy what works well and has a good reputation for cost/quality/quantity. All the companies have some good tools, and some mediocre ones also. Snap-On just dosen't make any sense to me, as I can buy three good tools for the cost of one of their "superior" tools. Case-in-point, I needed a pair of diagonal side cutters and the Mac guy told me 32$ and the Snap-on guy told me 45$ and Menards told me 15$ for a pair of 7" Channel Lock side cuts. I was born at night, but not last night! :-laf

 

[rbattelle]

Lately I've been ordering a lot of hand tools from McMaster-Carr (great prices). So far, every one has turned out to be US-made: either Armstrong or Williams (can't find their website). The local tool shop also introduced me to Wright ($$$$). This got me to thinking, what are some others that I don't know about?



It appears to me (from ownership and some light reading at various online tool-oriented sites) that Armstrong, Wright, and Williams are at least as good as Snap-On, Mac, and Matco and in some cases superior.



What are some other brands? What about Proto? Just got a couple sockets from McMaster that turned out to be Proto's. They seem all right (not great, but all right).



I must admit, I'm really impressed with the Armstrong stuff.



Ryan

 

[TFlory]

Craftsman at home, Snap-On at work. Voted Craftsman.

 

[MA2LA]

Mostlt Husky but lately their selection sucks, for more important tools"specialty tools" its mostly MAC . I need to buy a good complete set soon for my new shop but its tough to find a good set that dosen't have a bunch of BS. I'm looked at kobalt but they don't have any big sets. I will most likey get the black husky set that has about 250 piecies and supliment with other stuf when needed.