Which Tools?

[Umby]

Hey guys.

A little off topic here, but I've been working my first gig a pro mechanic for a little while now and its really time to start getting my tools up to snuff.

As a shadetree good 'ol Craftsman did the job and did it well, but now that the tools I use are feeding my family I want to step up.

What do you recommend? Snap On, Mac, Matco?

Tell me some of your experiences.

Thanx!

 

[Strype]

Craftsman

 

[1slowfiveoh]

Cornwell

 

[dragnazz5.0]

snap 0n 0r mac

 

[sunil6784]

Ampro

 

[carbed87]

+2 for cornwell, how can you not like their cute little logo

 

[1slowfiveoh]

+2 for cornwell, how can you not like their cute little logo

My friend's dad sells their tools and he has sold tools from the big 3 in the past but prefers Cornwell. Good quality stuff.

Also, since he races N.A.S.A. they sponsor him as well.

 

[85ragtop]

Craftsman

+1

 

[jrichker]

Craftsman tools are OK for home but not for a professional mechanic. There is a vast difference in fit between Snap On and Craftsman. The Snap On tools I have are all old, but the sockets & wrenches fit tighter than the new Craftsman stuff I have.

 

[BROWNSFAN]

I use craftsman for basic hand tools and snap-on for all the stuff you can't get at sears.

 

[z2o_what]

kobalt, ampro, or (dare i say) great neck

the only reason i buy ampro and greatneck is because autozone and advance are about 1 mile from my house which makes them fast to get.

 

[Bolt on 5.0]

Ive had theses same questions. Cornwell stopped selling on LI so I do not buy their tools. I have broken many cornwell torx bits anyways. I think they are junk. Mac is good but the guys are pretty unreliable and the trucks usually do not have alot of tools. Mac and snap on in my opinion are the best. Snap on being alot more expensive but in my opinion worth the extra money. I bought a o2 sensor socket from matco and the walls on it are to thick to fit through the heat shields. It was $17 verses snap on $37 but what good is a toll that you cant use. I also bout some hose clamp pliers from matco that do not work. Buy mac or snap on if your mac guy carries alot of tools go with them, they are cheap and have good quality tools.

 

[tonys88lx]

real mechanics use real tools, snap on is the best tool and box maker around. all their things are still made in the usa and have awesome testing to back up their claims, i will be startin a mentor program with snap on, as a drivers assistant to see if i want to become a driver with them. i went around with the guy for a couple days and u wont believe what people say about other tool companys, and snap on will never go out of business, it will always be around, not to mention they have awesome financing to help u get what u want and need, plus if u have a good snap on guy he will be at ur shop every week, making sure ur good to go ,and they can fix alot of tools if something happens right on the truck, and if it has to go out to snap on, it s one of the quickest repair turn arounds in the business. now some people will say snap on is garbage, blah blah blah, but its the drivers who make or break ur trustt in the company, not snap on itself, but any real mechanic knows that to be professional u have to use professinal tools. now if ur a home shadetree mechanic u cant beat cratfsman, but if u own or work at a shop , snap on is the way to go, and did u know Mac stopped making their boxes n the use in 2003, something to think about.

 

[stang8urimport]

lol.. You're highly wrong there about the Made In USA thing. I have both Matco and Snap-on. All of the air tools I own from both has "Taiwan" right on the bottom. When I noticed this, I asked the tool guy "WTF I'm playing 350 bucks for an air hammer that was made by slave labor??? That's bull****!" He just sorta looked at me. lol. It works nice, not saying it doesn't... but I was pissed that the air tools aren't made in the USA.

 

[Umby]

Thanx for your opinions... I had a feeling that Mac and Snap-on would probably take the lead on this one...

The other guy in the shop uses Mac and the driver usually comes once a week so I might give them a try but I'm strongly leaning toward starting a relationship with Snap-On just from what I've heard about their customer service.

 

[bynummustang]

Ampro here, I've broke too many snap on things, when the ampro tools hold up better.

 

[wythors]

Honestly, it really comes down to your rep. I have a cross section of tools and have found that most of the stuff off the trucks to be interchangable, quality-wise. This doesn't apply to some things, but if you have a good Mac rep, I'd buy from him rather than Snap0n and vice versa. In my shop, the Mac dude is MUCH better to deal with than the Snappy guy so I deal with him.

That said, these are my tool preferences:

Screwdrivers - S*K
Sockets - Mac
Ratchets - Two Macs are my "go to" 3/8 ratchets, but I have a 1/4 Snappy that I love as well as an antique S*K that kicks ass.
Extensions - Cornwell
Wrenches - Craftsman Professional. I have owned and sold both SnapOn and Mac and like these better.
Pliers - Channellock
Everything else is a mixture of whatever I was able to find when I needed it.

 

[90mustangGT]

I'm a ASE Master Tech... SNAP ON all the way.

A profesional mechanic with a toolbox filled with ampro and craftsman tools...

 

[Mike92GT]

I've got a little bit of everything, but I prefer my Snap-On stuff. Here's some crappy pics

 

[Adams91LX]

Craftsman... yep
-a