The tool thread

[SP 7M]

Lets conversate about tools.

What tools and brands do you like or dislike? What new purposes have you found for certain tools? Do you have your own name for certain tools (for example: "crescent hammer")?

It's just all about tools. Discuss.

 

[oneandgone]

Snap-On and Craftsman are pretty much all I will buy. Snap-On sockets are the best hands down. I make my living with my tools, so for me it's worth the extra money.

 

[oldskool-nick]

Snap-On. I just had a bunch of my old screwdrivers re-handled, and some sockets replaced, all for free. Plus, their quality is unmatched IMO. I have some craftsmen and huskey tools too, and they're not bad for the money, but there IS a difference.

 

[Slow Poopra 7MGTE]

snap on and craftsman, although my air tools are all matco( i got a deal on them)

 

[Mr.SelfDestruct]

craftsman, but only cause I cant afford anything better. I still havnt even gotten a full set.

 

[americanjebus]

cratsman bassically cus they wont let me down when i need them, and i can replace them for LIFE.

one thing i dont like about craftsman is the bulkyness of their tools in general. they make their sockets generally thicker than most and on the longer spark plug sockets the inner radius is actually smaller as you go in so when doing head studs they will only go onto the stud a certain amount before the stud hits the inner radius of the socket.

had to take the socket to my friend working at a machien shop, put it on the lathe, and drill out the inside to a bigger diameter. worked like a charm and just took it back to sears and got a new one.

snap on, used it on hg, tuff and easy to use, all other brands just piss me off cus something doesnt work right, they fall off of the ratchet head, they slip off of the bolts or something.

one use i found for a good size 18mm long socket and a set of assorted extensions is that they make GREAT breaker bars for tight situations where a different size bar is needed.

 

[mkiiSupraMan18]

Craftsman breaker bars = shit
I think I've broken.... Im gonna say just shy of 10, maybe 8. But, they replace them for free so.....

all the sockets are about the same, always crack at the worste times, but then I just drive 30 mins to get a new one....

ratchet wrenches (gear wrenches) are the shit... no doubts about it......
I would say everyone should get a set of these....

Also, those "sockets' for the rounded off bolts work awesome, if you have the right size easy-off, or whatever they call them. With a full set, they're "unstoppable".

MDC says they're junk, but I think he's just jealous about the craftsman "aluminum race jacks" in the garage..... but a word on those, the first one I got was only good for about.... 6 months.... then it didnt go all the way up with 3 pumps like it does now, a good jack makes life a lot easier, I guess a lift would be best but I doubt many of us can afford one of those.

One last thing, anyone else have problems with the Craftsman ratchets "sticking" and not ratcheting either way until you hit it against something? Because that really pisses me off when it happens.

Anyone else have a problem keeping 10mm sockets/wrenches?

 

[americanjebus]

i only manage to lose my tools while im workin on the car then i gotta get up walk arround car scratch head, inspect pockets, the little spot onfront of radiator and edges near panels before i can find each socket/wrench/ or ratchet.

 

[Mr.SelfDestruct]

^^ same here, and I just use the coolant hardline off of a 13b rotary as my cheater bar

 

[lanky189]

::chants:: DOZER IS A TOOL.......DOZER IS A TOOL


cuz im poor, i use whatver tools i have..snap on, husky, craftsman, cheapshit...as long as it works.. i use it.

 

[SupraMario]

::chants:: DOZER IS A TOOL.......DOZER IS A TOOL


cuz im poor, i use whatver tools i have..snap on, husky, craftsman, cheapshit...as long as it works.. i use it.

damn straight.
if you dont have the correct tool you make do with whats lying around. I use the bar for the jack as a breaker bar plenty of times. works pretty well.

 

[drunk_medic]

Craftsman breaker bars = shit
I think I've broken.... Im gonna say just shy of 10, maybe 8. But, they replace them for free so.....

I've seen at least three 1/2" breaker bars from Snap-On that were sheared/snapped, and countless 3/8" ones.

Stahlwille tools are pretty damn decent. They tend to fit bolts better than Craftsman and Snap-On. What I mean by this is that when you put the tool on the head of a bolt, there is NO play whatsoever, but it's not tough to get the tool ON the bolt, whereas at work and home, between Craftsman and Snap-On, there is a little bit of play.

I am in the military, and we use Snap-On at work for aircraft maintenance. I think that says enough. I can't afford Snap-On at home, so Craftsman does me quite well.

 

[GrimJack]

I use mostly Craftsman. The only thing from them that I've broken on a regular basis is the allen key sockets - everything else appears to stand up to the abuse quite well.

Careful with the warranty - they have dropped their warranty over the years. Used to be lifetime on everything, then it was only on non-powered items, and now they don't cover things like torque wrenches and ratcheting wrenches either. Scum!

 

[souprat]

craftsman is.........i dunno what but i love it.
99% of my stuff is craftman. never had a problem. did once break a 1/4dr. swivel socket. because i was using it to loosen a bellhousing bolt(didnt have a larger dr. size that would have taken the torque). the two tools that i have that are not craftsman are my torque wrench and one ratchet. the torque wrench is a K-D 25-250ft/lb. i really like it. especally the locking mechanism which is a ring around the handle you turn instead of the collar you have to hold down to unlock it(like the snap-on torque wrenches). The only thing i dont like about my torque wrench is that the handle is rubberized plastic, would rather have it be metal like the S-K or snap-on ones. the other tool that i have that is not crafsman is a snap-on 3/8dr. ratchet :drool: came across it in my grandfathers toolbox(he was a machinist at NASA back in the day) now hes legaly blind and doesnt use tools anymore so he gave it to me. it's an older model ratchet, the teeth are way bigger than whats in craftsman ratchets, so i imagine much tougher. however it takes a bigger stroke to get to the next click. my only problem with having snap-on is that when it breaks you have to track down the snap-on truck, which can be a pain. sears is alot easier to find on saterday morning when you break something.

 

[Ckanderson]

Snap on. rocks. break a tool? call the guy up and meet him. i have craftsman, broke a socket yesterday... they didnt have a replacement.. i was sad. air tools? SNAP ON or MAC. i have a craftsman air gun and it SUCKS... my snap on air ratchet is stronger and its 3/8's! granted it also cost like 350 bucks...

 

[americanjebus]

k my dad has an air ratchet but the thing is new and never been used and i've never used air tools

its got so many stupid little things on it, its a no name brand. its got this oil line turbe thing that goes between the gun and the hose and some oil aplicator bottle. and some other adjuster thing on it, i look at it and im like WTF then the instructions were translated from japanese or dutch to english so the grammer is retarded and all i have is a diagram tahts like
the + connects to the ^ before the & adjacent to the @$@ WARNING:OIL FIRST: then attatch to the !() !caution! somethign about oil and breaking your hand.

the thing is retarded so all i ever use is a breaker bar.

how do you guys set up your air wrenches from hte line to the gun. do you just plug and play or do you oil the shit.

 

[Ckanderson]

oil it.

 

[IJ.]

AJ: I just plumb mine with quick disconnects and don't bother with an Oiler.

A squirt of oil into the air in before use is fine as you're not spinning the thing for an 8 hour shift !

 

[SP 7M]

I'm glad to see that this thread took off like it did.

My own collection of tools is all Craftsman and I use primarily Snap On at work. Out of my own tools, I've broken a 1/2"-3/8" step-down, a 3/8" extention and whatever range torque wrench I had that I used to torque my head, as far as I can remember. The only thing that has made me unhappy with Craftsman is that the torque wrench broke [from misuse] over a year after I bought it. The warranty was only good for one year, so there goes that $75. I know how to use torque wrenches, as I do nearly every day at work. It's just that I chose to misuse my own. Bad call since I can't just take it to our tool rep. at work to have it recalibrated for free.

Wratchet wrenches kick ass, as one of you has already mentioned.

What is the highest torque that any of you have ever torqued anything to? I was on a job last week that had a component that required 500 ft./lbs. That was by far the highest for me and I think the closest torque to that was 282 ft./lbs.

 

[americanjebus]

heh my highest was 90ftlbs on a dsm.

wtf needed 500?, and how did ya do that? 15 foot handle?