Snap on tools

[Mr.Slave]

Any one have opinions on them, other than them being expensive?
Had a head honcho sales guy come in to class to give his spiel, and after a couple other students were saying all you're paying for is the name. and how they got 800 dollar costco tool boxes compared to the 4 grand a snap on one would run..

I am a firm believer in buy quality once. I also like that it's American made and not just from some mail order catalog from a Chinese factory where all they did was put their name on it. I believe that you will actually be better off in the long run if you spend more of your own money on something that is made locally (relatively anyways) that employs local people, than you would buying the thing that might work fine, cost a lot less but comes from overseas.

Well those are my opinions what about yours?

 

[RcBro]

What are you looking to purchase? Sockets, wrenches, tool box etc??

We have snap-on, matco, mac and cornwell that come into work.

I will say first hand a costco or sears box do not compare to any of these trucks boxes. After careful consideration of all 4 companies I ended up with a cornwell tool box. Turns out snap-on has the same box, made in the same factory and its $1500 more then what I paid. So some stuff is simply re-labeled per manufacturer. I've seen this with OBD2 scanners too.

When it comes to sockets it really depends on what your after. I myself have snap-on because they are sleak and thinwalled which I need for my job. For wrenches, T handles allens and T handle Torx I have cornwell. For screw drivers and body panel poppers I have snap-on. For ratchets I have matco.

As you can see, there qualities vary and some may have something better then the other. I'm lucky and get to try all the brands before I make my purchase. You will find some die hard snapon geeks that won't own anything else. These guys are also the ones with $5,000+ bills.

If you don't have a tool truck that comes to your class or work you can call the area rep and he'll tell you what route they use and you can normally meet them at there stop to checkout there goods. If you want them to come to your work or class, tell the rep and they will go there.

 

[riflerockmafia]

The thing with the Snap-On tools is the lifetime warranty. If it breaks u derived normal use and proper care they have to replace it.

 

[transambill]

The thing with the Snap-On tools is the lifetime warranty. If it breaks u derived normal use and proper care they will replace it free of charge. That is why it is so expensive.

Craftsmen has the same warrenty.
I have a mixture of Craftsman, Mac, and Snap On and have yet to see enough of a difference to make up for the price difference.

 

[CmdrZod]

The thing with the Snap-On tools is the lifetime warranty. If it breaks u derived normal use and proper care they have to replace it.

Its the same way with most of the American made tool company's.

As far as Snap-on vs. everything else.... Just do your homework and get what you believe is better for your situation. Because yours is different than mine and both of ours are different than RcBro's.

Good luck"thumbsup"

 

[riflerockmafia]

Craftsman VS "PRO" Tools (Snap On, Matco, etc) - Ford Explorer Ranger Enthusiasts "Serious Explorations"® there a whole other thread on it on another forum.

 

[Mr.Slave]

The thing with the Snap-On tools is the lifetime warranty. If it breaks u derived normal use and proper care they will replace it free of charge. That is why it is so expensive.

A lot of the overseas brands now offer lifetime warranties as well, I assume they are actually losing money by doing that and only doing it to take business away from the more expensive domestically made brands.

I am going to school to be a Heavy Duty/Diesel Mech.
Obviously you only buy what you need when you start needing it.
My personal tools are just a basic set of sockets and wrenches, and a set of ratchet wrenches, so I've got a fair bit that I will end up having to get still.
Can't get super specific just yet, but I'm assuming impact gun and sockets, torque wrench, tool box.. Things I will need both in the field and in the shop, since I will still need to find a job after school and not sure where exactly I will find it as I don't want to rule anything out.

I know all about the cheap costco boxes, the service truck at my old work had one and it lasted all of 6 months before the drawers were starting to get ****ed. Again, you get what you pay for.

 

[Mr.Slave]

Craftsmen has the same warrenty.
I have a mixture of Craftsman, Mac, and Snap On and have yet to see enough of a difference to make up for the price difference.

For me the price difference is all about the whole spend money locally thing.

 

[vltchkr]

My old roommate is a GM mechanic and has over 100000 in snap on tools. He swears by the brand. I used some of his diagnostic tools and found them easy to use with good instructions. Pricey is an understatement, just one of his tool cabinets was like 15000. I myself use craftman Cause It's easy to put tools on my Sears card:shock:

 

[RcBro]

Sounds like you have the right idea. Just shop around and compare alot. For instance, my mac 1/2 drive impact I own is nearly half the size of the big dog snapon impact and is only 60ftlbs less. To top it all off, it was $220 less then snapons. Holds a lifetime warranty too. You know how hard it is to fit a huge impact into a spot where you actually need it? lol.

Luckily we have 10 other guys here at the shop, I get to watch what they buy and decide if I want it or not. Same goes for them when I buy stuff, so we often feed off what we all buy. Your best bet is to find someone doing the job you are doing and see what they own. Ask them what they like about it, and what they dont. Most men like to talk about the tools so dont be shy.

 

[easyroller]

I've always used snap on tools and swear by them

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk 2

 

[Mr.Slave]

Thanks for the advice guys, 'preciate it.

My dad is a tool and die maker, and I remember him telling me all about tools when ever he had to buy some new specialty tool.
I'm going to see him on Friday to see what he says, It just might be worth it to take advantage of a 30% discount while I'm going to school if he's able to front me some money. Sucks going in the red but you can't really work without tools.

 

[SDheavymetal]

I use Snap on, MAC, Cornwell, Matco. I like the Snap on wrenches the best. I had a old timer at work use one of my Snap on screw drivers and he went out to the tool truck and bought a hole set of Snap on srew drivers. The best screw driver in the bussness!. I like Mac impact swivels. they swivel more then Snap on's. I use craftsman for 1/4 drive stuff. Also Ingersol Rand for 1/2 inpact's. I like the titunuim 1/2" drive. Good luck and bust some knuckles. Matt

 

[rangair94]

30%? Last time I was on there student website it was 50%. Anyone that has a college email address can sign up on the website to get those prices. Around here we really only have a snap on guy. The mac guy went out of business probably 3 years ago and hasn't been replaced. Matco went through guys every 6 months or so and they wouldn't warranty anything that they didn't personally sell, so we told matco to hit the road. I think there is a huge difference between pro tools snap on, mac, and so on over the cheap tools you buy at a store to include craftsman. A side not on craftsman is that less and less of their tools are being made in the US. every couple years they take bids from manufactures, lowest bid wins. The quality of there tools has gone down hill from when I started 9 years ago.

I would say buy what you can afford. I started with craftsman and expanded and replaced with snap on and mac as I started to make more money and could afford them.

 

[rangair94]

Also not all the warranties are the same. Mac will warranty drill bits, snap on will not. Snap on warranties taps, mac does not. Just something to keep in mind ans ask about when you are buying.

 

[Mr.Slave]

30%? Last time I was on there student website it was 50%. Anyone that has a college email address can sign up on the website to get those prices. Around here we really only have a snap on guy. The mac guy went out of business probably 3 years ago and hasn't been replaced. Matco went through guys every 6 months or so and they wouldn't warranty anything that they didn't personally sell, so we told matco to hit the road. I think there is a huge difference between pro tools snap on, mac, and so on over the cheap tools you buy at a store to include craftsman. A side not on craftsman is that less and less of their tools are being made in the US. every couple years they take bids from manufactures, lowest bid wins. The quality of there tools has gone down hill from when I started 9 years ago.

I would say buy what you can afford. I started with craftsman and expanded and replaced with snap on and mac as I started to make more money and could afford them.

He said the discount varies.. I'm supposed to email him a list of what I want and he'll work out a quote. Plus I'm in Canada and as with most things, we pay more for stuff.

 

[00racer]

I know it can be a bit dicey but keep your eye on craigs list for boxes and tools. My dad bought a snap on box on c/l that retailed for 8500 he paid 1300.

 

[SMR 510RR]

I have a decent set of Snap On and I like them. I got my box and "starter set" when I graduated for 50% off and it was a really good deal. If you are working at a dealership or shop where the trucks come by it pays for itself to buy off the trucks vs. something like craftsman because if something breaks you know the truck will be by and you can get your stuff replaced without having to drive to sears or anything. If you are going to do it for a living I do recommend going with one of the truck brands, professional tools are worth it when you use them all day. The difference between a Craftsman ratchet and a Snap On ratchet becomes apparent when you hold it for a couple hours a day.

There is some stuff that doesnt matter like oil filter wrenches, who cares what it is its going to work fine. Hell I didnt even have any when I started working at a dealership I just put a screwdriver through the side of them and used that to take them off.

Buy a good box and make sure it is bigger than you think you need...Trust me, you will accumulate tools and other stuff and its nice to be able to organize it right so you can get to what you need when you need it.

 

[TLTCrawlin]

Pleasure or business is a huge factor.

No point in going all out unless you're using it daily and to pay bills.

I like craftsman but they break a lot (free replacement but not efficient if you break it on the job)

Expensive doesn't mean quality. Quality and customer service doesn't come cheap usually though

 

[crash]

I have been a tech for over 20 years and I can tell you one nice thing about buying tools off the truck (snap on, matco, mac,ect) is far better than anyplace you "have to go" to get them. Its worht the extra cost to not have to go someplace to get a tool replaced or fixed.

I have close to 80k worth of tooling and a good portion of that is snap on. Good product and the snap on guys I have had always take care of you..