I was just curious as to what brand of tools you prefur , like snap on matco or mac , and why . I just purchased a snap on 1/2 " drive torque wrench that cost a weeks pay , and a angle grinder and straight grinder kit from mac . Tools are so damd expensive its kinda hard for me to justify spending that much but I need the tools . I thought about going to harbor frieght but we all know you get what you pay for . I could spend my hole pay check every week and still not have all the tools I need . But I figure if I buy the good stuff I could aways sell them when I'm ready to retire .

 

I'm not a huge fan of the price tag on the Snap on line because of the cost not because of quality. I prefer the Craftsman line a little less expensive and a bit easier to collect a nice set for a reasonable price. I will say I've had my original starter set for 20 years now and have not broke anything, but have surely added.

The one that dies with the most tools wins......My wife says shes ahead in this one?

 

i have mastercraft right now, but when i start going to school probably mac or snap on

 

Mostly Master crap for me, if I was a fulltime mechanic I would buy the best, but I'm not so cheap does me fine lol. I just don't see the logic in paying that much on something that I don't use often enough, or breakfor that matter.

 

I have a combination of Mac, Matco, Snap-On and Craftsman. I have a Mac and Craftsman tool box.

 

at work almost all of my stuff is snap on. at home its either craftsman or kobalt. All three have a life time warranty but i can easily tell a difference in quality and durability.

 

snap-onnnnn

 

Craftsman. I seem to break alot of them,but with them having a lifetime warranty on them and me living 15 min from a sears,they are easily replaced for free

 

Another thing I didn't get through after some birthday beers last night (lol) is that Full time wrenchers (i.e. professional mechanics) working at a garage are the ones who benefit most from the quality of snap on and other equivalents. Although they're very expensive when's the last time you've broken a snap on ratchet? I've broken a few mastercraft ratchets. While both have lifetime warranty it's not a big deal for the guy in his driveway to get up and drive 15 minutes to the store to get a warranty replacement.

BUT, a mechanic is paid by the hour, and only alotted a certain amount of time for a warranty job and if you have a tool break on you, you can't go running 15 minutes 1 way to Sears, because by the time you drive out there, look around, find the wrench, go find the guy to say "Yup, that's warranty", then drive back, you're looking at a delay of anywhere from 1 to 1.5 hours, at least. Those tools are your livelihood, and the amount of time lost due to broken tools would probably eventually pay for an entire tool box full of Snap On. That's why Snap On etc. are a mechanic's best friend, but at the same time the cost outweighs the benefits for the backyard mechanic who's wrenching on his own stuff as a hobby.

*breathe*

 

When I worked in the mechanical field Snap-On was all I used. When I went to work for a Crew Chief that was Salt Walters Crew Chief at the Indy 500 for three years. The first question he asked me was what type of tools did I use. When I told him Snap-On the job was mine.