Tool Brands

[4x4Junkie90]

I use to use a good bit of craftsman and matco when i first started the dealership as a oil changer and very minor repair tech but then we got a snap on guy and he gives you a discount on literally every single thing you get from him. not to mention always giving out free tshirts, hats, monthly drawings for all kinds of stuff like tools, gift cards, novelty items, even one time a roll cart (http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item....re&dir=catalog) (this year i won front row seats and pit passes to the all-star race this past may)

[brutal]

snap on and matco for me

[K20 Bowtie]

not if you had our local snap-on rep...he ruins their enitre company's reputation--denies replacement, etc

Correction; I've upgraded to pretty much all snap on and I have a great sales rep (gives major discounts) but still isn't cheap but I fill it's worth it now that I use them daily for work.

[matt167]

I use Stanley hand tools. I don't wrench proffessionally.. power tools, I use whatever I might need and can afford, So I have a mix of harbor freight, Skil, Ridgid and Black and Decker..

FWIW, Stanley, Mac, Proto, Matco, Craftsmen and Husky are all owned by Danaher.

[oliveskate]

Snap on, blue point, mac tools, craftsman. Only if tools weren't sooooo expensive!

[RichLockyer]

Craftsman in the garage, some Husky.
I have some Kobalt, but I don't care for the texture. They tried to go for the old Craftsman look and feel and ended up with a Harbor-Freight look and feel, and they're lighter than a comparable Craftsman or Husky.
Husky is Home Depot's brand, and I honestly have a hard time telling them apart from my Craftsman tools by feel.
The Kobalt sets are in the truck and the saddlebags on the bike. That's my "cheap" set.

I've got a few Craftsman torque wrenches in the inch/pound and low to medium ft/lb ratings, but for the "gorilla" torques (lug nuts, motorcycle axle/swingarm), I've got a Husky that goes to 150... I figure when 80 is required, it's going to be close enough.

[454Cowgirl]

Umm hand tools- everything. Craftsman, Snap-on, Matco stuff, S-K, Proto, a Husky set, K-Tool (semi-local company dang good quality for the money buy it over craftsman any day of the week). All air tools are IR, CP or the K-Tool stuff, no problems to date with any.

Power tools: Dewalt

When your dad fixes anything and everything (cars(does very infrequently mainly only our vehicles), trucks, boats, ships, trains, planes, cranes, gas turbine generators etc etc etc you have more tools than an person should need) I tell him I'm gonna be cursing him when he dies. Because I'll have to clean out his 3500 Van which tips the scales at 11,230lbs, plain jane 1-ton Chevy work van. Thats how much stuff is in it alone (yes its been mega beefed in the suspension to carry it). The 2.5 car garage can only fit one vehicle barely because of all the tools and that doesn't include the fact that our Arc welder, plasma cutter, lath, and bridgeport are kept else where with even more stuff.

I never need to buy a dang thing, LOL.

[farmboy1466]

handtools are Mac, with maybe a few odds and ends of matco/sk/snap on etc.
power tools are mostly either dewalt or milwaukee, recently purchased a dewalt cordless impact and was probably the best investment we made in a long time!

[nickl011]

Since I started school I've upgraded to all Snap On, cuz I get a stupid good discount. Not that extensive of a tool set, but I have everything I'll need for now. The craftsman stuff rides in the old Craftsman Handy man style tool box in the back of the truck. Here's a pic of my box

[PA.REDNECK]

For hand toold I usually try for craftsman because of their lifetime warranty but if but I also have a few off brands laying around and cheap stuff like stanley, which has help up pretty well for the price but I usually prefer craftsman
For power tools I have craftsman and bosch a drill in each and the impact is bosch, no complaints from either brand, I also like mikita and milwalkie and dewalt.
As with anything you get what you pay for most of the time, but there are those times where you buy the cheap crap and get a decent tool

[nickl011]

Well my box is entirely too small after starting at the Mack/Volvo dealership I currently work for. The contents of my box has grown considerably since I first started school. Now I have a bit of everything, mainly snap on but also Mac, Matco, craftsman and some cheaply harbour freight stuff that has yet to fail me. Also, I've got snap on, Mac, bluepoint, central pneumatic and Matco air tools along with dewalt battery tools like my 12v screw gun, dewalt radio and 18v drill. That screw gun is my favorite tho.

[6.0 Bowtie HD]

Well my box is entirely too small after starting at the Mack/Volvo dealership I currently work for. The contents of my box has grown considerably since I first started school. Now I have a bit of everything, mainly snap on but also Mac, Matco, craftsman and some cheaply harbour freight stuff that has yet to fail me. Also, I've got snap on, Mac, bluepoint, central pneumatic and Matco air tools along with dewalt battery tools like my 12v screw gun, dewalt radio and 18v drill. That screw gun is my favorite tho.

Nick it seems we both got out of school around the same time and started in Mack dealers. It didnt take long for me to upgrade to a new box either. Got a snap on twin bay. Im probably going to be adding a top box on it here soon as well. Working at the Mack dealer was nice because they used alot of the same size stuff. Then I moved to a shop that does everything from lawn mowers to combines, pickups to giant cat dump trucks. Lots of additional tools to buy. But I prefer the diversity of the work. What school did you go through? Also its just odd Im Nick as well. just thought it was strange.

box pic the day I got it

[todd1969]

Not a pro wrencher, but I use Stanley and Craftsman hand wrenches and sockets. I'm hell on ratchets, and have broken Lord knows how many by stripping their internals. I've yet to find a great 3/8 or 1/2 ratchet that lasts more than 2 years, even at the hobbyist level of use. I'd probably spring for a Snap-On but I've read where they are nto so hot and WAYYYY overpriced too. Have some Kobalt wrenches from Lowes and like them too.

Use to own a Kennedy rolling toolbox, smaller one with 4 or 5 drawers. I bought it through MSC Industrial Supply and loved it. Think it was about $600 in late 1990's or early 2000's. Had a stackable Craftsman box that was nice enough for a hobbyist like me, but it did not have roller bearing drawers which I would have liked.

Love my Milwaukee cordless drill and impact, had a Craftsman 30 gallon air compressor too and it never gave any trouble. Again, it was used only lightly.

[6.0 Bowtie HD]

I have a couple snap on 80 tooth ratchets their newest ones available. I've broken them all. Mac, Matco, snap on, all home stores. The 3/8" internals are pretty light duty. Use a 1/2" drive and you will have better luck. However I've broken them and even 3/4" ratchets also. The nice thing about the big brands is lifetime warranty and there's a truck at my shop weekly. But if you don't see a truck regularly not worth the price. By a warrantied home store brand.

[nickl011]

Nick, what you probably didnt realize is that we are friends on facebook and both apart of the Tailgate group. Anyway, my little 40" snap on box is full and I keep buying tools as we have Mac, Matco, Snap On, and Cornwell trucks coming to the shop weekly. I recently bought a craftsman top box to last me until I can afford to buy a bigger box. I used to use my box as sort of a work bench, but with the top box, my battery drill and dewalt radio on my box, space is limited. I'm a second year diesel student at NDSCS in Wahpeton, ND btw.

[6.0 Bowtie HD]

I got a bunch of FSC and TTG guys on my fb. I figured it out though you just got a Harley not too long ago iirc? I'll probably end up biting the bullet and trading my box in for a triple bay if I can get a deal out the tool guys

[nickl011]

Yep that would be me. But yeah as soon as I graduate I've got my eyes on a KRL7022 in Extreme green

[6.0 Bowtie HD]

That's the same one I got. But mines black. Only downside is I hate the 2" tall drawers especially the three small 16" wide ones. PITA to fit stuff in there. I tried to trade 2 small for one 4" one but the snap on guy said they were discontinued. I'll sell you a black one less than a year old.

[keepitdroped]

i have mostly cornwell since i get a pretty decent discount thru my job all matco boxes and craftsman hand tools

[Franswa]

I'm a silvermeister Porsche tech and I've got a snap-on master box filled with all snap-on. My box is probably close to $30k as it sits, not bragging and I've got nothing against other brands, I started with them, i just prefer uniformity and love snap-on tools my dad was a tech and he had a sticker on his box that said "I make my living with my snap-on tools, please don't ask to borrow them" and it always stuck with me. Also I know when a customer comes out to check on their $150,000 turbo and they see a clean bay and and an organized box they feel better about me working on their car. I've had customers tell me even if they don't know a ratchet from a pry bar they still somehow know the name snap-on and know I take my job seriously. I am a little crazy about my tools though my last purchase was the giant metric wrench set that goes from 8mm to 36mm and the impact set from 10-36mm, that hurt the wallet but I like tools and can take my old sets home now.