* Craftsman
* Snap-On
* S&K
* Blue Point
* IR


I get most of my tools from an old fellar right down the road from me thats a mechanic. Even bought my box from him.

A.Y.

 

Stahlwille and Gedore for nuts and ratchets, some Beta stuff for wrenches but mostly the first two, Stubai for screwdrivers. With that stuff I very rarely kill something and if I do I know why it broke. Swapping front axle on a 15 year old Toyota HJ60 (Landcruiser) from our rust belt is a job for a 3/8" ratchet set with a loooooooooooooooooooooong cheater bar. Tools come away unscathed, mechanic....not quite.

AlpineRAM

 

I'm Craftsman loyal.
Funny i had a Husky long handle rachet ( work tool) that broke, took it to Homedepot they didn't have it, called the 800 number gave them the pn on the rachet they sent me a new one told me to throw away the old one, Husky rachet in a Stanley box (address on the box)

 

The fun of inheriting tools from a machinist

For me, when I need to be a mechanic, I need the tools to work. But it's not everyday that a truck goes down, so I'm what I guess you call a "value" shopper

Ratchets: Snap On
Sockets: Gray (very old, and super tough), Proto, Mastercraft Professional Series and some old Craftsman
Wrenches: Williams (old), and Mastercraft Professional Series
Screwdrivers: Mastercraft again
3/4 drive sockets: Princess Auto, and I've yet to break one
3/8, 1/2, 3/4 Drive Impact Sockets: Also PA, and also yet to break one

Pliers I try to stick with Channel Lock or Vise Grips. Taps/Dies I try and also get good quality (the big stuff is either Rigid or PA).

Essentially, all my core tools are decent quality. Anything I use as "secondary" or specialty stuff like soft hammers, magnetic mirrors, gear pullers, bearing pullers, clutch alignment tools etc I buy from PA. Canadian guys will know that PA is outstanding for tools like this that only get used on occassion; you can buy a crapload of stuff for very little money. I don't like thier hand ratchets or hand sockets, but lots of other tools are decent quality and you can return if needed.

(It's a nice perk of the garbage business that I find alot of tools being thrown out...Snap-on included!)

And...I've heard a couple of times that the current Mastercraft Professional line (now called "Maximum") is formed using Snap-On's old tooling. We've compared the two side by side, and wow...I think for once this rumour might be correct! Anyone know for sure?

Oh...for the Canucks: Cdn Tire has been putting alot of their good socket sets on sale once a year, usually around Christmas. I picked up two 200+ piece kits for the trucks, for only $150.00 on sale (over 2/3rds off reg price!) Those kits have already paid for themselves in roadside repairs, and they fit very nicely behind the driver's seat. Great buy when they go on sale.