Snap-On tools. Are they worth it?

I need some new ratcheting wrenches. I don't like buying crap but I don't want to waste my money on a name. Snap-On is probably twice the price of a similar Craftsmen set I'm looking at. Cheap tools break, wear out fast and need to be replaced so I want a good set of ratcheting wrenches. I have some Craftsmen sockets and they are decent that I've been happy with. I do own some ratcheting wrenches from Canadian Tire (probably a step down from the better Craftsmen stuff) and the quality is not so great.

Yay or nay to Snap-On?

Snap-on is great if you run a shop for a living and you have a good Snap-on rep who comes around once a week to take care of your broken stuff and come up with those special tools you need now. Since I now longer run a large shop I seldom put out the bucks for Snap-on stuff. The biggest difference is the warrenty service. If you want snap-on stuff and don't need it now just search e-bay. Snap-on stuff goes for pennies on the dollar. Jim

I have broken and bent many cheap tools over the years. When I was crew chief on a race team we had a chest of Snap-On tools. There is something to be said about using a quality product. It fits your hand better and it is a pleasure to use. The job seems to go faster with good tools. Cheap tools you curse evertime you pick it up. Swap meets, flea markets and E-bay are all good ways to pick up on tools at a good price. Even if you treat yourself to new consider it a guilty pleasure after all you have a Norton don't you.

It may be akin to putting a silk hat on a pig but the "maximum" series from Crappy Tire, IMO, has provided very decent service. I've never had to make a warranty claim.

When I was working I'd order all nice stuff wiha, snap on, proto, but I didn't have to pay for any of it. Most of my personal tools are craftsmen. Decent and free replacement...

Lowe's sells Kobalt brand which is manufactured by Proto. Pretty nice stuff competitively priced with Craftsman.

I am still using Snap on tools I bought in the 60s. I worked as an aircraft engineer and the recomended tools were Snap on, Proto and latterly Facom.
Even now that I am no longer working on aircraft I still buy Snap on, I know they will last me out.

Craftsman tools are good quality and you probably pay 1/2 the price. However, nothing fits better in my hands like my Snap-On ratchets & wrenches. I won't buy cheap stuff and Snap-On produces the finest mechanic's tools known to mankind.I will pass these tools on to my nieces & nephews (I have no children).

IMO if you are not using them to make a living then buy a good set that feels good in your hands but maybe not the best. I have used alot of Craftman and the new set of open end / rachet end that my wife bought me have a great feel to them and I alway grab them first. My olded Craftman are fine but I like the feel of the new ones.

I look at it this way, if you are happy with something like Craftman vs Snap-on you can buy twice as many. A man can never have to many tools.

Chuck

One of my riding buddies is a diesel truck mechanic and he swears by Matco. For some reason (probably the price and the atitude of his local Snap-On man) he is not fond of Snap-On. Many pro mechanics say there's only two kinds of tools; Snap-On and snap off. I know they are of the highest quality but they should be considering they are also the highest priced. For the shade-tree mechanic, there are tools that will serve just as well for less than half the price.

I got 4 x ratchet ring end swivel / open end spanners dedicated to the Notrun (its in bits this weekend). These are 3/8, 7/16, 1/2 and 9/16. That combo pretty much does most of the external (UNF) fasteners. The brand is ER Italia, made in Italy beautiful quality,nicely balanced, fine degree ratchet action and tough as nails. The rest of the most used tools are 1/4 drive and 3/8 drive deep sockets, and a handy a set of AF long shank Allen keys with a ratchet T handle, made in Japan. The Whitworth stuff for the inside is Elora from Germany, pricey but everlasting. I got one King Dick from England. That hangs on the wall for amusement.

Mick

acadian said:

It may be akin to putting a silk hat on a pig but the "maximum" series from Crappy Tire, IMO, has provided very decent service. I've never had to make a warranty claim.

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They are decent quality but the ratcheting wrenches seem not so good. The ratchet mechanism has a lot of play. Maybe I got a bum set.

The regular wrench sets there are really nice for the preice, especially since they go half price very few months.

ChuckW said:

IMO if you are not using them to make a living then buy a good set that feels good in your hands but maybe not the best. I have used alot of Craftman and the new set of open end / rachet end that my wife bought me have a great feel to them and I alway grab them first. My olded Craftman are fine but I like the feel of the new ones.

I look at it this way, if you are happy with something like Craftman vs Snap-on you can buy twice as many. A man can never have to many tools.

Chuck

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I want to splurge on the ratheting ones as I use them the most so it will be the only wrench set I buy from snap on. My whitworth stuff is King Dick which was a bit pricey but they are nice open ended wrenches for sure.

Most my tools I buy when they go on for half price at Sears or Canadian Tire so I won't feel too bad buying a enw set of snap-on ratcheting wrenches but I'll save cash where I can. I'll start peeping on ebay.

ML said:

The rest of the most used tools are 1/4 drive and 3/8 drive deep sockets, and a handy a set of AF long shank Allen keys with a ratchet T handle, made in Japan.

Mick

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I bought a nice set of Bondhus T-handles and they are really good. Better than most no-name stuff.

I've got a set of snapon shorty combination wrenches and a set of open ends I had to buy in college back in the 70's. We had to buy snapon. I screamed bloody murder at the price. But I've still got'em and they're a work of art. Whenever I use quality stuff it seems to inspire me. Browning a5 shotguns, smith&wesson revolvers, Belgian sheepdogs, good homebrew, d2 toolsteel all bring out the best in me

One thing about buying Snap-on tools. Got to write my check every week to SOB. [snap on bandit] He never complained as long as he got my money. Jim

"Yay or nay to Snap-On?"

Yes, they are worth the money. HOWEVER, it's also worth asking yourself if a less expensive tool brand would do the job just fine for the amount/level of work that you do. I have a lot of Snap On tools but I also have a fair number of other brands that I use a lot with no problems - including a Craftsman set my parents gave me when I was 14.

Re Craftsman/Snap on. 20 years ago I would have said that Craftsman handtools were excellent. I would not say that now. Take a look at their torque wrenches as one example. Then look at the Snap On in the same drive size. It's like looking at a plastic kids toy as opposed to the real thing. Yeah, the Craftsman only costs 40 bucks and the SO costs nearly 200 but the quality (and the accuracy/certification) is worth every cent IMHO.

I sort of look at it as the "criticality" of the the work. For my Commando, non- SO tools are fine so most of the hand tools I brought here to Mexico are either (old) craftsman or current Husky. All my Snap-On tools are on our boat in the Chesapeake Bay, where I also keep an old sports car in a storage garage. For the boat/car, which is much more critical for me, it's mostly Snap On.

Buying good ratchets does make sense. Try an experiment. Take a few ratchets of different brands and tighten a nut till you hear one click and measure how far back you have to move the handle to grab the next gear. Snap on will have fine teeth inside without a lot of slop. Also check how much you can wiggle the handle around when you're locked on a tight nut. When you are in tight places and have no room to swing the handle (ie: a Norton m/c) a good ratchet will need less room to work and could mean you can use the tool in that situation or not. I have found Hazet sockets and wrenches to be excellent in that they have thin walls and fit into tight spots while having good strength for tough work. I have never even seen a Hazet ratchet though but I'd bet they are excellent too. Bluepoint is another line of Snap-on and they are supposed to be pretty good too.

Craftsmen does make a pro line of torque wrenches too, not just the cheap one with the plastic adjuster.

One of the very best things that Snap On has is their wobble extensions - it's one of those, "why did no one else think of this" kind of things. Another "worth every penny" item.

I found a MAC clicker torque wrench for the head bolts on ebay which was good quality and a lot cheaper. Also found a 1/4" W Snap-On shorty wrench that fits the rear center cylinder nut nicely. I think I will stick with the used Snap-On stuff. If it has initials engraved (which I don't care about) it is not that expensive. Very nice feel to it!