Who makes the best lower priced hand tools?

[Focused Gunfire]

I am looking for some wrenches and such for a job on my truck. A friend of mine pointed out Kobalt brand, saying it was Lowe’s owned, American, and had a lifetime guarantee. Said I could get a good set for about thirty bucks. Any opinions on tools, and tool brands? Suggestions are welcome.

[El Laton Caliente]

Kobalt is good, I also like Cresent and Stanley. Cresent and Stanley both make 100 to 200 piece sets that fold up in a plastic case and carry in a car/truck well.


The 170 piece Cresent runs about $120...


I have this 148 piece set in my truck:

[mrkalashnikov]

Stanley used to make nice American-manufactured hand tools; wrenches, socket sets, screw drivers, etc etc.. @ reasonable prices. Now I believe all their stuff is made in China, like most other crap in this country.

All my wrench and socket sets are S-K Wayne, which I bought back in the early 70's. They still look & work as good as when I first got them.

[Kadmos]

Kobalt don't suck as bad as some of the Chinese crap, but they still suck.

Craftsman is the lowest quality sockets and wrenches that I will buy, anything below that is only worth having in an emergency when nothing else is available.

Got a flea market nearby? Likely you can find some craftsman stuff pretty cheap.

A small but quality socket set under $20...it was on sale over christmas for $10 but you missed the boat on that one

http://www.craftsman.com/craftsman-1...4000P?prdNo=27

It's not a lot of sockets, but it will do most things you need on a car.


Decent wrench set, same price
http://www.craftsman.com/craftsman-8...3&blockType=G3

It would be nice to go at least one set up on each as some of the other wrenches and sockets do come in handy, but both those sets will get you started pretty easy.

Also check out garage sales, yard sales, and be sure to ask about tools if they don't have them out.

[rci2950]

"Power Fist" is a good cheap brand. I have a number of tools by this name and they are great value for the money. My torque wrench in particular is 100% as good as the big names

[Gunner1558]

Back when K-Mart was K-Mart, they sold Buffalo tools.

Buffalo tools were 1/2 the price of Craftsman and carried the same, " You break it, we replace it" guarantee.

[Helen Keller]

i still have my craftsman sets BUT I've been buying up the brand that advanced auto sells that has the socket size in GIANT numbers on them.


GO to a sears lately?? Craftsman stuff is CHEAP and constantly on sale.
Unless you're using the shit 8+ hours a day even the Harbor freight stuff will work.


Only thing I wont skimp on are Box wrenches.

[GreenhawK]

S-K is a good brand that is more expensive than Kobalt or Craftsman, but is not as high as your Snap On or Matco type stuff. I have also bought some great tools from Jegs and Summit Racing.

[El Laton Caliente]

I got pissed off at Sears anyway, but I will say IMO Craftsman tools are not what they once were. I've broke several craftsman and will not buy them. The only set I broke more of was an old brand Auto Zone sold name TRW that I haven't seen for sale in years.

I highly recommend the Cresent line I posted above.

Harbor Freight has improved the line quite a bit and it is cheap.

[El Laton Caliente]

S-K is a good brand that is more expensive than Kobalt or Craftsman, but is not as high as your Snap On or Matco type stuff. I have also bought some great tools from Jegs and Summit Racing.

Others in that class are Williams and Proto. We use a lot of those brands in industry.

[coppertales]

The tools that I have bought over the last 5 years or so have been from Harbor Freight. I have never had a problem with any of them and they have a lifetime warranty. I can get a whole set of wrenches for the same price of one wrench at Sears. I have been a Craftsman fan for 50 years but they have priced themselves out of my market. The Kobalt tools from Lowes look alright but Harbor Freight is cheaper. I have never been able to afford Snap on tools even though I have a few. They work no better than the cheaper brands. chris3

[btcave]

I too have my shop stocked with mostly Craftsman tools. That being said, I always keep an eye out for quality bargains of any other brand.

My torque wrenches and my air impact tools are made by other brands. These tools need to last and won't if you buy cheap. I think I paid $150 for a DeWalt cordless drill 2 weeks ago. That's a rare purchase, but oh so worth it.

[davepool]

I like Kobalt, not pro tools, but they do the job for occasional wrenching around the house

I picked up a full set of metric and standard after the snap-on tools i inherited from my aircraft mechanic dad were stolen while i was on vacation. His tools were his living and he always bought the best

[FunkyPertwee]

Kobalt isn't bad for easy stuff.

I usually go Harbor Freight for my ultra cheap tools, but I have encountered split sockets while trying to remove super-stuck bolts while using a cheater bar.

[El Laton Caliente]

The tools that I have bought over the last 5 years or so have been from Harbor Freight. I have never had a problem with any of them and they have a lifetime warranty. I can get a whole set of wrenches for the same price of one wrench at Sears. I have been a Craftsman fan for 50 years but they have priced themselves out of my market. The Kobalt tools from Lowes look alright but Harbor Freight is cheaper. I have never been able to afford Snap on tools even though I have a few. They work no better than the cheaper brands. chris3

I buy HF for stuff I don't use much but need to have around. My wrenches over 1¼" are HF, as are my service wrenches and ¾" drive socket set.

[Focused Gunfire]

Those thieves managed to steel something expensive, personal, and useful all in one go.

[coppertales]

Those thieves managed to steel something expensive, personal, and useful all in one go.

Trouble is, they don't use them, they take them to the nearest pawn shop......chris3

[El Laton Caliente]

I think I paid $150 for a DeWalt cordless drill 2 weeks ago. That's a rare purchase, but oh so worth it.

Dewalt has been owned by Black & Decker for a while now. I've gone to Milwaukee for cordless... more power, batteries last longer and hold a charge longer. I like Milwaukee's corded power tools also, but they get expensive. I have picked a few up used.

We also like Mikita and Ridgid, Royibi isn't bad either.

[Krupski]

I am looking for some wrenches and such for a job on my truck. A friend of mine pointed out Kobalt brand, saying it was Lowe’s owned, American, and had a lifetime guarantee. Said I could get a good set for about thirty bucks. Any opinions on tools, and tool brands? Suggestions are welcome.

You should be looking for a tag that says "Made in USA", not the price tag.

[Krupski]

Kobalt don't suck as bad as some of the Chinese crap, but they still suck.

Craftsman is the lowest quality sockets and wrenches that I will buy, anything below that is only worth having in an emergency when nothing else is available.

Got a flea market nearby? Likely you can find some craftsman stuff pretty cheap.

What's wrong with Craftsman? Almost all my tools are Craftsman (purchased 20+ years ago). They are all USA made. ALL my tools are US made except for a few things (Japanese and German made measuring tools like micrometers and calipers).

As far as flea markets, I have gotten AMAZING buys (usually from old ladies selling their deceased husband's tool collection). I've gotten things like a complete Proto 1/2 inch drive 6 point impact socket set in a beautiful dovetail wooden box for $5.00 (yes, five bucks!). Also got a CP (Chicago Pneumatic) 1/2 drive air impact wrench at the same garage sale - $20! Got a 1 inch micrometer for a dollar. Not a cheap-o either... a Mitoyo.

She had a nice medium sized drill press WITH an X-Y table bolted to it for $50 - but another guy got it before I did (dammit!). I also missed out on a nice 3/4 horse, 4 cylinder air compressor with a large tank (don't recall how many gallon - but it was about 24" diameter and about 4 feet long) with a regulator and drier for $50.