Tool Brand Question

[bigwhitey]

I use the Craftsman hand tools but all my power tools are Makita. I found these to be built alot better and never had any problems with them bogging down or not running straight.

 

[xuv-this]

I use the Craftsman hand tools but all my power tools are Makita. I found these to be built alot better and never had any problems with them bogging down or not running straight.

ditto.

 

[Mr.OverKill]

cordless power tool list

1. De Walt
2. Mikita

all others have good and bad points, (mainly i cant think of their names :laugh3: )
i personally prefer pnumatic tools and will use them over any other if given a decent air supply ( CP and IR are my choice )

 

[blackandwhiteXJ]

I have Kobalt tools also. Snap on is always my first choice for specialty tools (love my new brake bleeder setup). I think Kobalt is made by snap on or is owned by them.

K

What are you talking about man i have never heard that nonsense

 

[Roll-over]

harbor freight :laugh3:

ROCK ON!!!

 

[corbinafly]

What are you talking about man i have never heard that nonsense

I saw that on one of the Kobalt pamphlets that I picked up at Lowe's a couple years ago. That's why I decided to give them a try. Otherwise, I would have saved more of my hard earned $$ and bought Snap On stuff.

K

 

[RKBA]

Last year I was looking for information about who made what hand tools.

The consensus that I found on the web went something like this:

Stanley makes: Stanley, Husky, Mac, Proto, Blackhawk and Craftsman prior to 1994, and probably dozens of others

Danaher Tools makes: Current Craftsman, K-D, Armstrong and Matco

Snap-On: Snap-On and most likely the Lowe's Kobalt line from cheaper forgings

I would take that for what it's worth, as that info came from the web.

Craftsman portable power tools are similar to Kenmore appliances in that they are made by different manufacturers depending on model and year of manufacture. I have two Craftsman cordless drills and one is identical to a Ryobi and the other is a Black and Decker twin.

 

[MudDawg]

No single vendor makes every tool you will need....It took forever to find a beam type inch pound torque wrench....Bumper to Bumper auto parts....it is a KD. My tools range from Snap-On to Craftsman...to China Man. And I own about eveything in the DeWalt cordless catalog. The only real difference between a cheap tool that WORKS and an expensive tool is HOW MANY times it will work...I just bought all the special tools to install new gears....the dial indicator, caliper and small torque wrench and bearing puller were less than 150 clams. I wouldn't use the bearing puller for production work, but for 30 bucks I figure I can do at least 6 axles. I already had a 1" breaker bar and a 48" pipe wrench to torque the pinion.

 

[XJ_ranger]

Most likely it's not 'new' stuff though; they try to replace broken tools with a selection of refurb'd or returned stuff first...I've noticed Sears is less prone to just grab a similar replacement off the shelf but instead they need to get management approval first...

every time i need to exchange a broken tool, i go to the rack, pick up the new tool, and bring them the broken and the new tool, and leave with the NEW tool i picked out...

blown up a few too many sockets using them as impact sockets, starting to buy the right tools, just so i dont have to stop working all the time...

sure i could break and return a million 3/4" and 21mm sockets, but i have to stop working and get a new one....

i now own metric and standard deep impact sockets...

 

[Bent]

Make sure to pick yourself up a full set of GearWrench combination wrenches, NOT the Craftsman version.

 

[Matt S.]

Since I wrench professionally, I have a different view. Personally I but 99% snap-on. Air tools are only IR brand. Electric tools are only makita. I have some old craftsman impact sockets that I use (because you cant break them) and then I have all the gear wrenches. Everything else is snap-on. I tried MAC and Matco, there stuff just isnt strong enough. I used to use craftsman wrenches, but after the open end side expanded, I got rid of them. I also used craftsman 1/4" sockets because I thought that those would never break. Bust some how I have broken almost half of the standard 1/4" drive ones.

Personally, I believe that tools are a GOOD investment. Whether you are professional or a hobbiest. Invest in the best, and you will not regret. I have a full set of snap-on wrenches and 1/2" sockets that are from the 40s. Of course I dont use them, but snap on values them at ALOT. Good tools dont loose value.

Matt

 

[xuv-this]

also used craftsman 1/4" sockets because I thought that those would never break. Bust some how I have broken almost half of the standard 1/4" drive ones.

yup, done that before, too. but is it just me, or do some chinaman metric sockets fit bolts on jeeps better?

 

[Matt S.]

yup, done that before, too. but is it just me, or do some chinaman metric sockets fit bolts on jeeps better?

SO TRUE!!! You know it is funny that some sockets fit better than others. Same with wrenches. It is from HOW they are made. Once again quality is important.

 

[xuv-this]

SO TRUE!!! You know it is funny that some sockets fit better than others. Same with wrenches. It is from HOW they are made. Once again quality is important.

yup. when i was a kid my old man used to tell me that "you could buy a metric bolt in VA and go out to CA and get the same thing and they would be slightly different sizes" what he meant is that there is no universal standard in metric stuff. china uses 1 set of tolerences and tawian uses another.:wierd:

 

[aduke]

I have a craftsmen tool set that my father gave me for my 15 birthday. its from the 70's. its awesome. ive used the tools a lot! and the ratchets are orgional. my cousin bought a brand new craftsmen set similar to mine last year and has gone though at least 4 or 5 3/8" ratchets. the quality just isnt there any more. other that my craftmens set most of our tools are mac and mikita. there great. and lots of misc. ocean state job lot tools that succk!

 

[MaXJohnson]

...what he meant is that there is no universal standard in metric stuff.

edited from a quick Google:

In 1799, originally intended to be one ten-millionth part of the quadrant of the earth, the so called Meter of the Archives was based on a measurement of a meridian between Dunkirk and Barcelona. A platinum bar with a rectangular cross section and polished parallel ends was made to embody the meter. The meter was defined as the distance between the polished end faces at a specified temperature and it was the international standard for most of the 19th century. It was compared to other bars with optical comparators as a means of disseminating the unit.

The current definition states that the meter is the length of the path traveled by light in vacuum during a time interval of 1/299,792,458 of a second.

The speed of light is: 299,792,458 meter/second

The second is determined to an uncertainty, U = 1 part in 1014 by the Cesium clock, with an estimated relative standard uncertainty of: ± 1 in 2,500,000,000,000. The General Conference made the iodine stabilized Helium-Neon laser a recommended radiation for realizing the meter at this time.

The wavelength of this laser is: 632.99139822 nanometers

That appears to be a very precise standard. Metric or otherwise, the question is how well do they adhere to the standard.

 

[Lincoln]

That appears to be a very precise standard. Metric or otherwise, the question is how well do they adhere to the standard.

I thought you were above dumb questions.

It depends on if they are making it for us or themselves.

 

[StuckXJ]

IMHO Craftsman for the hobbiest and truck tools for the pros. Unless you are wrenching every day non stop for 8+ hours you really SHOULDN'T have to worry about braking a tool all the time. I buy snap-on from my friend who buys them from the truck when it comes to his shop, its much easier to just hit the local sears or home depot or w/e you buy your tools. I recomend opting for the liftime warenty tools over the others. Ex: Craftsman over compainion.
Just my opion
-Steve D

 

[MaXJohnson]

I thought you were above dumb questions.

It depends on if they are making it for us or themselves.

I like to poke bugs with sticks

 

[Thumpersdriver]

I use Proto. Most of mine are hand me downs from my father. He bought them when I was 12. Im 38 now. Ive managed to break ONE socket, a spark plug puller, but only because I was using it with a torque wrench on a lug nut. :laugh3: