Foo - Is buying Snap On tools paying for a name?

Not that I'm considering buying any, I'm only wondering if broad brushing them as a rip off is fair. I talked to a rep in the student excellence program, and he went off on why Snap On and Blue Point tools were the best on the market. I don't get it. I've used Snap On/Blue Point tools, and they never seemed to work any better than any other good tools.

Is paying 10-15 times what other brands cost actually worth it in some cases? Anybody have any opinions on Snap On/Blue Point tools?

Good warranty, but the main issue is convenience to a working mechanic. Snap On comes to them at the shop in their little van. Sears doesn't.

Good warranty, but the main issue is convenience to a working mechanic. Snap On comes to them at the shop in their little van. Sears doesn't.

That and they've probably got a pretty firm hold on the marketshare. Most shops go with the status quo because that's what everyone has done for years.

back when i was a motorcycle mechanic the snap-on guy took care of me, i still have my 1/4 snap on ratchet. i was going through a craftsman one about every 3 months. plus most of the snap-on tools have rebuild kits

Snap-On also has a much better design than say Craftsman when it comes to having to use a tool in a very confined space.

I actually know a mechanic who broke several Snap On wrenches, and now swears by Craftsman. On the opposite side of the equation there is me. Craftsman tools have broken on me several times, and I have heard more than a couple stories of their mechanics trying to scam people when people bring in motorized tools for repair work, since obviously the motorized tools aren't covered by their famous warranty.

Snap-On also has a much better design than say Craftsman when it comes to having to use a tool in a very confined space.

How so? I've found confined spaces call for using a wide variety of tools, not just one specific brand. Is there a specific tool you're talking about?

Yes it is. My father was the vice president of a domestic hand tool manufacturer. They made their own line of tools and tools for others under private label. They also imported tools. His contention was that many of the house brand tools all came from the same sources in the Far East.

As long as you stay with similare quality you are probably not going to notice much difference. Snap On spends a ton on advertising and promotion (racing, etc.) to create the "professional' image. I think that Cobalt, or Craftsman or the Home Depot brand will serve you just as well.

My 1/4 Snap-On socket driver is the best I've ever had or used. I didn't pay full price though, it came from a garage sale.

How so? I've found confined spaces call for using a wide variety of tools, not just one specific brand. Is there a specific tool you're talking about?

Ratchets for example. Take a look at the head size of a Craftsman and a Snap-On 1/4 ratchet, the Snap-On is far smaller, allowing it to be used in smaller spaces. For the shade tree mechanic it's not really an issue, but for someone who wrenches all day it is.

I have a Craftsman set which I putter around with. My very good friend who is a professional mechanic uses Facom.

As long as you stay with similar quality you are probably not going to notice much difference. Snap On spends a ton on advertising and promotion (racing, etc.) to create the "professional' image. I think that Cobalt, or Craftsman or the Home Depot brand will serve you just as well.

I have a set of PowerBuilt rachets I got from Murrays. I've tried very hard many times to break them with hard use. I've used the socket wrench as a hammer to remove brake discs, I've hit them with a hammer on them to pull motor mounts, and no problems. I broke Performance Tool's crap with much less hard use.

Ratchets for example. Take a look at the head size of a Craftsman and a Snap-On 1/4 ratchet, the Snap-On is far smaller, allowing it to be used in smaller spaces. For the shade tree mechanic it's not really an issue, but for someone who wrenches all day it is.

I have a Craftsman set which I putter around with. My very good friend who is a professional mechanic uses Facom.

Do you mean like a gear wrench? I don't have much experience with those. I've always used regular wrenches when the space gets that tight. I can see the investment paying off when you work on cars all day.

Edit: Brain fart, you said 1/4" ratchet. I actually used such a set recently, and in several instances it was still too big. Sometimes a flat wrench is the only way to go. Especially with PITA American front wheel drive cars.

I have a set of PowerBuilt rachets I got from Murrays. I've tried very hard many times to break them with hard use. I've used the socket wrench as a hammer to remove brake discs, I've hit them with a hammer on them to pull motor mounts, and no problems. I broke Performance Tool's crap with much less hard use.

You are a carpenter, no? Can you notice a difference between Skilz brand power tools and Mikita?

Being a screw machinist I've always preferred the finish on Craftsman. The smooth finish on Snap On is too slick with oily hands.

I like my older Craftsman from the early 80's. The newer stuff does not seem as good.

You are a carpenter, no? Can you notice a difference between Skilz brand power tools and Mikita?

Carpenter, roofer, window installer, electrician, HVAC tech (haven't done that in 4 years) abatement worker, and recently I've got into auto mechanics.

Do you mean Skill brand? I have a Skill table saw and a Makita belt sander. Both are good tools. Although, I never did like Makita drills. In the world of Construction tools, a lot depends on what type of tools you're talking about.

I like my older Craftsman from the early 80's. The newer stuff does not seem as good.

I've got a Craftsman Industrial Grade reciprocating saw from the early 80's. I use it hard, all the time. I had to fix the trigger, and a couple times fix the cord, but it refuses to quit. I should call that thing Old Faithful.

Snap On .. Matco .. Mac .. SK tools..
i have them in my box.. all the places where i worked for always has a truck that comes by every week to collect money an tease you with new tools.. saves me alot of time then going to Sears.. the Sockets an wrenches are much better fit on the hands an on tight spaces

I suppose if you're making 125 grand a year saving an hour trip to sears every few weeks would be worth it. But I still don't see the tight spaces thing. Any gear wrench will fit into as tight of a space as anything.

I've always liked the feel of a Craftsman wrench over a Snap-On. Their combination wrenches are wider thru the cross section whereas Snap-On seems to be more knife edge. The ratchet handles on a Craftsman wrench are boxy, Snap-On's are round. The wider profile is easier on the hand when you have to bump the wrench with the heel of your hand to break a nut loose. The box section of the Craftsman ratchet makes positioning a socket with greasy hands more positive and the wrench doesn't tend to roll between your fingers.

Just my $0.02

I've always liked the feel of a Craftsman wrench over a Snap-On. Their combination wrenches are wider thru the cross section whereas Snap-On seems to be more knife edge. The ratchet handles on a Craftsman wrench are boxy, Snap-On's are round. The wider profile is easier on the hand when you have to bump the wrench with the heel of your hand to break a nut loose. The box section of the Craftsman ratchet makes positioning a socket with greasy hands more positive and the wrench doesn't tend to roll between your fingers.

Just my $0.02

Yeah, what Stacy said...:)

Here's what I like for breaking nuts loose:D

http://www.menintools.com/images/261.jpg

Show off! :)

I don't have much to show off. Few of the tools I use to work on cars are mine.

The installation crews that used to do work on projects I oversaw used Craftsman all the time. They'd buy a bunch of ratchets, adjustable wrenches, flat wrenches, etc., break them on one or two installation jobs and take 'em back to Sears to get new ones.

Yeah, what Stacy said...:)

I second that!

I agree with stacey, I've worked in a few garages and have used a bunch of snap on tools.

But, I can't speak from personal experience, Snap-On tools won't fail as much as craftsman, according to most people I've worked with.

But unless you're a fulltime mechanic or use them all day everyday, I'd stay with craftsmen or another brand that offers a lifetime guarantee.

Yeah, Craftsman is fine for most people. Not really necessary to spend 10-20x as much money for Snap-on. I do notice that the fit of the Snap-on is better and the tools seem to be of better materials and manufacturing. But does that directly relate to effectiveness or profitability? Well, not directly as I didn't make 10-20x more profit in my auto-shop from using Snap-on. And it still takes me 40-60 hours to pull an engine and rebuild it and the Snap-on doesn't somehow magically decrease the hours to 5.

As already mentioned, a lot of that extra expense is overhead in the Snap-on operation in hiring the drivers and trucks to bring the tools to you. Heck, they could stock the truck with Craftsman tools and would then have to charge 5-10x more for them than what Sears does simply for the convenience.


BTW, here's the impact wrench I like. When you have to hold a wrench for hours a day, lighter weight does matter. And look at the lb*ft torque rating on that sucker!!!

Ingersoll-Rand 2135ti impact wrench
http://i10.ebayimg.com/06/i/000/79/75/8ae9_2.JPG (http://cgi.ebay.com/Ingersoll-Rand-2135Ti-1-2-Titanium-Impact-Wrench-IR_W0QQitemZ170052628263QQihZ007QQcategoryZ22663QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem)

I keep several 3/8, 5/16 and 1/4 Craftsman combo wrenches in my box. The open ends stretch out on the smaller sizes. I'll take 3 or 4 of each size back to sears at once.

In a pinch I've squeezed them in a vice to close them up.

Like it was said before, for the garage mechanic the Crafstman's are great. But with Snap-On and others like that the ability to get them to come to you is a huge plus.

I've had my Craftsman ratchet set for close to 15 years and they have been great for my general auto and house repairs. It's the quality I need since I'm just tooling around at home.

Is it just me, or are all tool companies starting to try to cut corners with stuff made today compared to socket sets and wrenches made 10-20 years ago?

Never used Snap-On, but Sears is local so i've bought afew Craftsman wrenches if it's for myself (my dad doesn't like it when i "borrow" tools out of the garage to stash in the car or something). :lol:

My favorite wrench set: Metrinch

I use it on the car and bicycles all the time. They're awesome! :D

I buy craftsmen because that's at my price point. But I think snap on is better quality and has a better "feel".

I broke a snap on tool when I worked at a shop, can't recall what it was. One of their trucks happened to be right outside. Just handed them the broken one, got a replacement as soon as they could find it.

It's a premium brand, and you always pay more than normal for premium goods....that's why they call them premium goods.

Snap-on are fantastic tools, I just refuse to pay that much...instead I get some cheaper auto-parts store house brands that have lifetime warranties. It works out fine for me, and I spend around $20 for a 30-piece combination wrench set (metric and SAE, huzzah!)

Breakage is a huge factor for some people...pro mechanics, their bread and butter is how much work they can get done, and a broken tool can have a serious impact...if that tool was $60, and two hours of work was lost (That was what the average rate was in california when I went looking for a mechanic)....time that a $90 tool could have avoided (if it actually performs that much better)...then the purchase of the $90 tool is actually more profitable.

OOooo I like this thread. All the guys are coming out and showing off their tools and Stacey's word is queen. :D










Craftsman here. ;)

Siu, since when have you been up at 4am....or am i just being unobservant like usual :p

You've been unobservant, Cat. I work at 5 or 6am, silly. Well at least for that last two months. This is my last week of it though. I'll be going back to nights in November. :(

Ugh, shift changes :(

Good luck with the night-owl crowd.

I know a guy who sold tools out of a van from a Snap-on competitor. He would finance the tools; the mechanics would pay every week. As soon as one tool was paid off, the mechanics tended to buy another cool tool.

I've heard this saying before in the shop, don't know how true it is but they said sears tools are guaranteed forever, snap-on tools will last forever.

That said, I wouldn't say it's "worth" it but their sockets seem to fit a little better and the ratchets are a little tighter but that's due to the way they're designed, a design that sears can easily mimic but just re-tooling their dies when they make their tools. It kind of feels like the campagnolo record of tools when I can pretty much get by with ultegra for everyday use.

Snap On does that financing thing for students who want to buy their tools at their half price for students deal. If you want Snap On tools it is a good deal, but I think it's pretty stupid when college kids plummet themselves into more debt.

their sockets seem to fit a little better and the ratchets are a little tighter but that's due to the way they're designed

According to the guy I talked to, their wrenches and sockets grab the flat part of nuts and bolts, as opposed to everything else which grabs the corners, and thus their tools are less likely to round nuts and bolts off. Of course, if you use the right size and maybe some rust penetrator, the odds of rounding something off are pretty tiny.

Is paying 10-15 times what other brands cost actually worth it in some cases? Anybody have any opinions on Snap On/Blue Point tools?


Thank you....

You will make a great student , Grasshoppah !
The reputation Snap-On enjoys is unfounded to me, too.
They are a great tool but there are plenty of equals.
One problem I have seen with Snap-On is when a mechanic tried to
return a faulty ratchet the Rep argued he would have had to use
a pipe on it to damage it the way it was damaged. Obviously
that wasnt the case. With Craftsman the 18 year old kid behind the
counter takes it back no-questions-asked and goes back to texting thier friend.
On the off-chance you might get questioned about it, make sure you say you
were working at home because Crftsman Tools are technically not warrantied
for 'professional' use. The only really substandard tool Ive seen recently has been
Stanley air tools. Chinese junk.
No matter how expensive a tool is its only as good as the guy turning it. :)

My wife is a mechanic and says Snap-On tools are high quality, but not without equal, and they cost a LOT more than tools of similar quality by other brands. The thing is when a tool has just broken or something and she needs it ASAP and the snap-on van pulls up right there, also they have credit so she doesn't have to pay right away. so she picks out all the stuff and the guy puts it in the computer and she gets hit with a bill at the end of the month just like a credit card. however, if it's a tool that breaks and she can wait to get a new one she does not usually buy Snap-On, she has a 2nd job at Autozone and gets 30% off anything in the store, which is great for my bike tool collection too :D

According to the guy I talked to, their wrenches and sockets grab the flat part of nuts and bolts, as opposed to everything else which grabs the corners, and thus their tools are less likely to round nuts and bolts off. Of course, if you use the right size and maybe some rust penetrator, the odds of rounding something off are pretty tiny.

That's the thing, it's not some like, space aged material or fancy alloy that makes em special, it's just a different geometry (granted it's better), something that sears could've re-tooled their dies for easily and produced the same "quality" parts as snap-on for much cheaper, granted its after amortizing the cost of tooling.

Not that I'm considering buying any, I'm only wondering if broad brushing them as a rip off is fair. I talked to a rep in the student excellence program, and he went off on why Snap On and Blue Point tools were the best on the market. I don't get it. I've used Snap On/Blue Point tools, and they never seemed to work any better than any other good tools.

Is paying 10-15 times what other brands cost actually worth it in some cases? Anybody have any opinions on Snap On/Blue Point tools?

It depends. When I worked in a heavy-duty truck shop, the guy would come once every two weeks, like clockwork. You could tour the truck and look at the new products. Plus he would finance you if you needed a little extra time to pay for stuff. You can't get that at Sears. They're also made in the USA. However, the price really will kill you. Some of the boxes alone are worth thousands of dollars! I mostly stuck with Craftsman. I did get one MAC tools airgun because my dad knew the rep in his area. Hard to say. My vote: not worth the money

About those 2 thousand dollar boxes, I saw an ad with 6 snap on tool chests holding up a semi truck. But seriously, who the hell cares? A bedroom dresser can hold tools if it has to.

she has a 2nd job at Autozone and gets 30% off anything in the store, which is great for my bike tool collection too :D

I've noticed Autozone sells a lot nicer tools than a lot of other places like Murrays.

About those 2 thousand dollar boxes, I saw an ad with 6 snap on tool chests holding up a semi truck. But seriously, who the hell cares? A bedroom dresser can hold tools if it has to.

A well built hardwood bedroom dresser can also hold up a semi truck.

Especially if reinforced with I beams.

Especially if reinforced with I beams.

What about ME beams?