I've been trying cheap sockets from ebay and I was trying to take a rusty exhaust bolt off my friend Mazda and the insides of the impact socket were sheared and couldn't hold the bolt properly. I wasn't even using an Impact WRENCH!!! Just a regular 1/2 drive ratchet

 

Bump for good tool feed back.

 

craftsman

 

snap on

 

craftsman tools are the shiznit. decent prices and a forever guaruntee. I built my whole tool collection with craftsman tools because of the guaruntee. in fact i am still using some of my grandfather's old craftsman tools that are about 40 yrs old, and guess what....still guarunteed forever. lots of mechanics speak highly of snap on and matco and such, but considering a 44 piece snap on socket set costs over 500.00 (believe me i checked) and i can buy over 400 pieces from craftsman for less than that, i'll stick with my craftsman tools. even if snap on quality is higher, who cares, cuz my craftsman tools will be guarunteed even after i'm a wrinkled up
old fart on medicare, if i break it i just take it back and get a new one, and i still only spent a fraction of the price of what the
mechanic down the road spent on his snap-on tools.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by hondaxsimike &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">craftsman tools are the shiznit. decent prices and a forever guaruntee. I built my whole tool collection with craftsman tools because of the guaruntee. in fact i am still using some of my grandfather's old craftsman tools that are about 40 yrs old, and guess what....still guarunteed forever. lots of mechanics speak highly of snap on and matco and such, but considering a 44 piece snap on socket set costs over 500.00 (believe me i checked) and i can buy over 400 pieces from craftsman for less than that, i'll stick with my craftsman tools. even if snap on quality is higher, who cares, cuz my craftsman tools will be guarunteed even after i'm a wrinkled up
old fart on medicare, if i break it i just take it back and get a new one, and i still only spent a fraction of the price of what the
mechanic down the road spent on his snap-on tools.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Good clearences on studs you say? This cheap crap I have has such poor clearences on bolts... Fits loose as hell.

 

i dont understand why people buy shitty *** tools. craftsman and snap on both offer lifetime no questions asked, just buy a good socket set if you snap a socket then u get a new one free.

 

the difference between snap-on and craftsman hand tools for the average person is that both are of good enough quality but the craftsman you can hop in a car and get tools exchanged at the mall. snap-on is a pain you usually have to wait for a snap-on rep to come to you. the main reason that people go with the big names (matco snap-on) is because they offer financing and are geared more towards large businesses. craftsman hand tools are marketed to the weekend mechanic and are plenty good enough.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Hella_JDM &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i dont understand why people buy shitty *** tools. craftsman and snap on both offer lifetime no questions asked, just buy a good socket set if you snap a socket then u get a new one free.</TD></TR></TABLE>

yeah that really bothers me. whats the point in buying wrenches sockets ect that will just snap/break on you the first time you try and use them and dont fit right to begin with. i have NEVER really actually broken a quality socket wrench ratchet or screwdriver. even with the 6 ft pipe on my craftsman 1/2" ratchet its still as good as the first time i used it.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JCushing &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">the difference between snap-on and craftsman hand tools for the average person is that both are of good enough quality but the craftsman you can hop in a car and get tools exchanged at the mall. snap-on is a pain you usually have to wait for a snap-on rep to come to you. the main reason that people go with the big names (matco snap-on) is because they offer financing and are geared more towards large businesses. craftsman hand tools are marketed to the weekend mechanic and are plenty good enough.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Good explaination

 

Im a mechanic by trade, and all my wrenches,sockets,screwdrivers,pliars etc. are all craftsman. The only thing I buy from match or snap-on is specialty tools that I cant get elsewhere.

 

I rock a full set of Facom tools.... I wish.

Craftsman is the way to go. I've broken so many tools and they replace them time after time without question.

 

i just purchased ~$600 in SK ratchets, and sockets alone...i love them more than snap-on...the quality of the ratchets is simply amazing..and the fine tooth ratcheting is very handy in close quarters

 

only things that I buy snap on and matco are their open ended wrenches, they just FEEL better and dont break up your hands. Thats my problem with the craftsman ones, I cant work with them all day or my hands get torn up.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by daveG &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I rock a full set of Facom tools.... I wish.

Craftsman is the way to go. I've broken so many tools and they replace them time after time without question. </TD></TR></TABLE>

i use facom! they are the ****

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JCushing &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">the difference between snap-on and craftsman hand tools for the average person is that both are of good enough quality but the craftsman you can hop in a car and get tools exchanged at the mall. snap-on is a pain you usually have to wait for a snap-on rep to come to you. the main reason that people go with the big names (matco snap-on) is because they offer financing and are geared more towards large businesses. craftsman hand tools are marketed to the weekend mechanic and are plenty good enough.</TD></TR></TABLE>

not to mention convenience, mechanics never have to leave the shop to exchange busted tools and sockest, cuz they will have a snapon truck or what not come weekly.

though for the home users craftsman is best, because we have no snap on trucks coming or homes weekly

 

Are you guys saying that a 10mm socket from craftmen fits more loose than a 10mm snap-on socket?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Eddiebx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

not to mention convenience, mechanics never have to leave the shop to exchange busted tools and sockest, cuz they will have a snapon truck or what not come weekly.

though for the home users craftsman is best, because we have no snap on trucks coming or homes weekly </TD></TR></TABLE>

i dont understand this argument at all. so you would rather buy Snap-On because a guy will come to you to exchange your broken tools? say the guy comes on Mondays, you break a socket on Tuesday. what do you use for the rest of the week? i would rather have the ability to go to Sears and get one than to wait a week for a new one. i would rather leave the shop to get a new tool than leave the shop to go home for the rest of the week because you dont have your tool until the tool man comes to finish your project. can someone explain the convenience of Snap-On?

i have 2 sets of Craftsman tools and have never broken one. i have a set for home and a set for my car that is used for work. i do commercial construction so my tools are beat to hell. i use mostly wrenches over an inch that are on tight as hell and still havent broken any

 

I think craftsman tools suck....at least all their sockets. I'm a mechanic by trade, and I absolutely refuse to buy any sockets from them. The snap-on sockets have a shoulder about 1/4" down, so if you set a nut inside, it doesn't drop all the way to the bottom of the socket. This is especially handy when doing oil pans, with short bolts and studs. I alway set the bolt or nut in the socket (on a long extension) and get them all started. With the crapsman sockets, the nut or short bolt drops down to far into the socket and you can't usually catch any threads with nuts or short fastners. I use deep sockets everywhere I can to get a better angle in tight places, plus they're easier to grab onto with greasy hands. I also have to bitch about their 6mm allen wrench sockets. I have 4 in my toolbox as we speak, 2 of them won't fit in the bolt head, one of them is correct, and 1 of them is to small and rounds out the head. All are marked 6mm and were bought new from a sears store. I agree that for the weekend warrior, craftsman is probably the most cost effective solution. But when you're doing it all day, convenience makes things faster, and faster makes more money. Snap-on is more convenient.

 

One thing that hasn't been mentioned is that a 6point socket will offer more strength and MUCH less chance of stripping the bolt and/or the socket. The only drawback is that they are not quite as well in tight places.

I keep some 6pt stuff around for the tough bolts like exhaust stuff that always seems to be softened up by repeated heat cycling, but yet are stuck on like hell.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 98AccordEX &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i dont understand this argument at all. so you would rather buy Snap-On because a guy will come to you to exchange your broken tools? say the guy comes on Mondays, you break a socket on Tuesday. what do you use for the rest of the week? i would rather have the ability to go to Sears and get one than to wait a week for a new one. i would rather leave the shop to get a new tool than leave the shop to go home for the rest of the week because you dont have your tool until the tool man comes to finish your project. can someone explain the convenience of Snap-On?

i have 2 sets of Craftsman tools and have never broken one. i have a set for home and a set for my car that is used for work. i do commercial construction so my tools are beat to hell. i use mostly wrenches over an inch that are on tight as hell and still havent broken any</TD></TR></TABLE>

if you aren't breaking craftsman stuff you arent using them as hard as you think

so your life as a mechanic will come to an end if you break say a 10mm socket? if you can't figure out how to go on working w/o that socket then you should go home and take the week off.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Engloid &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">One thing that hasn't been mentioned is that a 6point socket will offer more strength and MUCH less chance of stripping the bolt and/or the socket. The only drawback is that they are not quite as well in tight places.

I keep some 6pt stuff around for the tough bolts like exhaust stuff that always seems to be softened up by repeated heat cycling, but yet are stuck on like hell.</TD></TR></TABLE>

for really stuck stuff like that i someimtes just heat teh bolt up, then hammer on a slightly smaller socket, or just go at it wth vise grips

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Eddiebx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">if you can't figure out how to go on working w/o that socket then you should go home and take the week off.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I'd rather have to make-do till the end of the day and drop by Sears on the way home than have to make-do for a week till the Snap-on dude comes by to suck up to everybody and try to make sales.

 

haha, nah i'm just saying, it's not as dramatic as the other dood made it seem, it's not like you can't go on with life if you break a tool. if its nothing special, like a socket or something, you'd probably have spare ones anyway, and if its some really special tool, your not gonna find it at sears either.

personally i have a **** load of craftsman tools right now, why? because I don't work as a mechanic in a shop, i am a hobbyist working out of my own home garage. but i've worked in shops in the past too.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Eddiebx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">haha, nah i'm just saying, it's not as dramatic as the other dood made it seem, it's not like you can't go on with life if you break a tool. if its nothing special, like a socket or something, you'd probably have spare ones anyway, and if its some really special tool, your not gonna find it at sears either.
.</TD></TR></TABLE>

i understand your point of craftsman not having some specialty tools that snap-on makes. i can see buying snap-on in them because you dont have a choice. but why would you buy a snap-on socket? you say that if it breaks then you usually have a backup. so do you buy 2 snap-on sockets? 1 to use and 1 for a backup? so your 30 piece set that is $500 now turns into a $1000 set. i'm not saying snap-on sucks because i havent used them much. i am just asking questions. i dont understand why people say that they are more convenient when you have to wait for someone to come to you to exchange a broken tool. i would rather jump in my car and go to the store. but whatever. if you want the bling then snap-on it is. if you want the best bang for your buck, in my opinion, then get craftsman