an interesting tool conversatiion with a mechanic

[BenJAMin]

I have a friend who has a shop in a smaller town with about 5,000 people. The tool trucks that I know for a fact make the rounds there are Snap-On, Mac, and Matco. My friend used to mostly buy his tools from Matco but the driver seems to have flaked out. The other two have given him issues with warranty replacement.

What I thought was interesting is that he says the owner of the local Auto-Value store has made a real push in the tool department and is stocking SK among other brands. He said if one of the tools breaks he can call up the auto parts store and they will exchange the tool as soon as they can get to him, around 10 minutes.

I suppose SK may not be the same caliber, but with that kind of service the convenience factor is higher than some truck that come sporadically. I also think this is a brilliant move on the part of the parts store to get in on the mobile tool sales market without having the truck or the wait!

[Coach James]

I wish we had SK available locally. Closest place selling SK is 45 minutes away.

Caoch

[myslow2002gt]

SK is a good alternative to Matco/Snap On in my opinion. Not quite as good, but a major step up over Craftsman. What little SK I have, or have used has been great quality. Like mentioned though, I wish SK was more readily available, especially with warranties.

[fatfillup]

I've had good luck with SK, really like their rachets (but I like most good rachets). Where to warranty is an issue though. Our local NAPA store sells some decent tools and warranty service is great for their stuff.

[Gregster]

The autoparts store I deal with at work sells a wide range of high quality tools including SK. Great idea because service is good. However I hate explaining exactly what I need to the guy on the phone.. it can be very frustrating.

[clueless]

anytime we get a matco or mac dealer he doesnt last long,maybe a yr or so,snapon has been the same for over 25 yrs.plus my dealer is pretty good on warranty replacement too!!

[Danglerb]

SK is pro quality, but plenty of mechanics also have no trouble with many Craftsman tools, which get replaced as needed on the way home from work.

[Bull]

Local auto parts store here is also an SK dealer. Good stuff.

[autoace]

See my "Truck" tool, re-labels thread. I am starting to use autoparts stores for tool service too!:thumbup:

[krusty the clown]

i will usually buy lisle from the parts store. we have 3 parts store's here, two carry taiwan crap for hardline the other carry's KD/danaher so i wait for the snap on truck.

years ago o'reilly carried SK but would not warranty them.

[Fedwrench]

I wish my servicing auto parts stores had SK. Our Carquest stocks their own branded line of Chinese made hand tools but, we can also order most OTC items, IR, CP and house brand air tools, and other specialty tools. Our Napa guys can get us pretty much anything in their tool and equipment catalog from the warehouse within a few hours. The only problem is with their pricing. We can get auto parts from them real cheap but, tools are a completely different story. The online vendors such as toolwarehouse or tooltopia beat them every time by a wide margin.

[billymade]

I've noticed that our Carquest "house brand" many times are rebadged and packaged, Lisle tools... have you noticed that? They can usually get any Lisle/Carquest tools for us the next day or sometimes a little longer from the warehouse as well!

[Paladin]

I wish we had an SK dealer nearby. The closest to me is 1hr away. I have a lot of SK sockets, fortunately I have never broken one. I'm not sure I'd be willing to drive an hour to get it swaped out. Cheaper to go to Sears and buy a new socket.

[autoace]

I've noticed that our Carquest "house brand" many times are rebadged and packaged, Lisle tools... have you noticed that? They can usually get any Lisle/Carquest tools for us the next day or sometimes a little longer from the warehouse as well!

Be wary of Lisle sockets and non-specialty hand tools, they are junk with a USA stamp. The one purpose specialty tools are good though.

[Nik_95Cobra]

We have an SK truck in our area. I don't buy much SK stuff though.

[Uncle Buck]

I have not seen a store vender for SK in my area for years. The nearest I can think of is Clark tool in KC MO.

[billymade]

Autoace; we bought the Lisle 39510 30MM 12 Point Axle Nut Socket for the axles on Mark IV VWs and the Lisle 48500 Push Rod Remover tool for GM V6's to fix the notorious intake coolant leak issue; so far both have been ok! These are occasionally use but I think they are both pretty well made; the metal on the socket hasn't seemed to mushroom but we only used it one time! :) It was very reasonable compared to Snapon/Matco/Hazet options! Ironically enough; the Matco tool is a Hazet badged socket, interesting, eh? The Matco price is higher off their truck, then buying it from a Hazet dealer! Go, figure!
http://www.sjdiscounttools.com/lis39510.html
http://www.sjdiscounttools.com/lis48500.html

[r6_cannibal]

meh! just missed it. There's some stuff I've been meaning to pick up there too. oh well, next time