thetoolguy37
Active member
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- Jan 20, 2024
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Are they good tools from Napa? Do people like them who own stuff from them?
Thoughts on carlyle tools
- Thread starter thetoolguy37
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fourjeepin
Well-known member
I have a few pieces. All seem to be high quality and I believe they are warrantied.
OP
thetoolguy37
Active member
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- Jan 20, 2024
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Nice okay. I own a rachet set that is very nice however I didn't know if all there products were that nice
nadogail
Well-known member
They have a good reputation and enjoy the respect of many.
I had an odd experience swapping a Carlyle 3/8" ratchet not too long ago. Something internally had broken, so the gear would lock up and render it essentially a breaker bar. Took it back to one of the local NAPA's, guy said "We can exchange it this one time". Walked in the back, handed me a replacement, and that was it. What's odd, I never once signed anything, they didn't ask for my information, so I have no idea how they would possibly know how many times it had been replaced.
Pen & Wrench
Well-known member
I have a set of half inch standard and metric impact sockets and they seem very good. I just bought a set of large metric end wrenches and they seem fine too. What I have is lifetime warrantied.
LB-1911
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Thread you may find of interest.
Show off your.... Carlyle Tools!!!
Ordered the 21, 22 and 23 6pt combination wrenches individually this am. The 20 is out of stock hopefully they're still making them. The 21-23 were under $10 each so needed to add something to get order to $35 for free shipping. I ordered a Carlyle 9/11mm flare wrench. Guess ill have to fill...
www.garagejournal.com
They done some very nice compact head ratchets and at very cheap money for they quality/warranty potential .
All the products are indeed not that nice.
Really a case of picking the cream and milking the deals (deals not so amazing currently)
I have a set of their six point metric combination Wrenches,
they are so beautiful. I almost hate to use them roughly
they are the most expensive wrenches I’ve ever purchased about 100 bucks for the set
Normally, I’d buy HarborFreight but most everything is 12 point
No regrets with the Carlyle
they are so beautiful. I almost hate to use them roughly
they are the most expensive wrenches I’ve ever purchased about 100 bucks for the setNormally, I’d buy HarborFreight but most everything is 12 point
No regrets with the Carlyle
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I have several Carlyle wrench sets, impact sets, ratchets and breaker bars. They were always a little high priced, but their prices are now laughable. They're literally charging SnapOn and Matco prices for some of thier tools. I kind of just quit shopping at NAPA all together because of it. They are blatantly price gouging Taiwan made tools that are no better than ICON or Tekton.
Their 72 tooth ratchets are quite nice and deals can be found on them. I've heard the 90 tooth are nice but no experience with anything except the 72's which I like. Their prices and other's reviews have kept me from going deeper but if prices weren't so high I would try other items. Particularly the bolstered screwdrivers (that I don't need more of).
Ton ton
Well-known member
Avoid the Carlyle wire strippers. They're junk. I was able to get a pair replaced under warranty but the replacements are not much better.
I have a couple wrench sets and a pulley removal kit I like them. I picked the wrenches because they seem to be patterned after the Snapon set that I had to sell. I recently bought another set no where near as expensive as Snapon. My main set ordered from Napa online during one of their sales probably was about $300 for 6 to 27 no gaps. Snapon would have been at least double that. I like them but not a pro.
KnurledNut
Well-known member
My biggest concern with Carlyle is them switching suppliers and the tools changing, or being NLA.
Drunkonunleaded
Well-known member
Which did happen with the first run of flex head ratchets. There's still rebuild kits available for the old ones and stores will swap for a newer one if you warranty an older ratchet.
@ OP - Most of my box is Carlyle. I post in the main Carlyle thread often. Overall, I have no complaints and would happily buy them again. I've gotten some deals here and there, but otherwise wouldn't hesitate to pay full price if I really needed something.
Quality wise, I'd put them on par with the other "premium" Taiwanese imports (Blue Point, Icon, etc.). The benefit is that not only is NAPA kind of a one-stop shop as far as tool coverage goes, but every town in America has one.
scooby074
Well-known member
Seriously, please explain this to me. Why is this 3/8" ratchet $158.99 but the 1/2" is cheaper, but still around $100 for a Taiwan made tool? Great ratchets, whacky pricing.
Website error. Seems to be corrected. $48 USD or $48CAD for the Ultrapro equivalent. Good deal. Nice ratchets, I have a couple.
Website error. Seems to be corrected. $48 USD or $48CAD for the Ultrapro equivalent. Good deal. Nice ratchets, I have a couple.
Lol, still showing $143.09 for me even after I put in my cart. Their website is rather sucky though.
Unfortunately, it’s still showing the same for me. I bought most of the Power 90 ratchets when they first came out. I believe someone above mentioned a supplier change. They are wonderful ratchets, but NAPA’s website and pricing is all over the place. I can’t keep up.Website error. Seems to be corrected. $48 USD or $48CAD for the Ultrapro equivalent. Good deal. Nice ratchets, I have a couple.
Pricing changes based on what you select as your Napa store. I couldn't find one that gave me the $48 price, but I did find one listing it for $78. The weird thing about this is this pricing change is still honored even if you ship to home. In the past it had to be sent to that store for the price to be honored. Then a few years ago that seemed to change. Now all you have to do is try to find the Napa store with the best prices and you are good to go.
zmotorsports
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I have a small assortment of Carlyle tools that I've purchased from my local NAPA. I think they are pretty good quality, comparable to the ICON and Tekton I believe being Taiwanese made tools.
I have a couple of socket sets, their extra long flex heat ratcheting wrenches which are the exact same ones as Cornwell, EZ Red, Mountain, etc. and I haven't had any issues. I cannot comment on things like wire strippers, pliers or screwdrivers as I don't have any of them.
To be honest, I think the older NAPA tools that were made by Danaher were a bit better but I have had no issues with the few Carlyle tools I own. I have quite a few of the older Danaher made tools though and they are still going strong decades later.
I have a couple of socket sets, their extra long flex heat ratcheting wrenches which are the exact same ones as Cornwell, EZ Red, Mountain, etc. and I haven't had any issues. I cannot comment on things like wire strippers, pliers or screwdrivers as I don't have any of them.
To be honest, I think the older NAPA tools that were made by Danaher were a bit better but I have had no issues with the few Carlyle tools I own. I have quite a few of the older Danaher made tools though and they are still going strong decades later.
scooby074
Well-known member
Well thats interesting. I dont think Ive ever seen different prices by store up here but I could be wrong.
Best deal is to buy it in Canada ! Same price as USD but make money on the conversion
Edit: Well thats interesting, I selected 04401, Bangor Me. and the price shot up to $143.09. Wow. The US Napa site really is wacky.
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I have noticed that with parts... price changes depending on which store you pick. Odd. I've noticed many NAPA stores in my area no longer stock Carlyle tools. I know there were severe supply line issues during the lockdowns hopefully that's improved.
nicks78camaro
Well-known member
Corporate vs franchised locations
Rogue_Ryder
Member
I picked up an awesome underhood rechargeable LED light from Menards for like $50 or less:
https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/NBCCL801 but NAPA wants $236!
I'm not sure if it's been mentioned but from what I've seen the Wrenches and ratchets seem to be nearly identical to some of the stuff Harbor Freight has and they charge significantly less money. Their half inch Taiwanese Ratchet even marked down to $65 from $188 is nearly identical to what's available at HFT for $20 less.
vs
www.harborfreight.com
You could do a lot better than Carlye for $65
And I'm sure if you looked hard enough you could find a 1/2 Ratchet out of that Factory for even less money. The markup for this line of tools is just not worth it in my opinion. Unless you're a shop with a NAPA account (usually pay less than retail) I don't really see a reason to buy these tools when there's equivalents out there less money.
https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/NBCCL801 but NAPA wants $236!
I'm not sure if it's been mentioned but from what I've seen the Wrenches and ratchets seem to be nearly identical to some of the stuff Harbor Freight has and they charge significantly less money. Their half inch Taiwanese Ratchet even marked down to $65 from $188 is nearly identical to what's available at HFT for $20 less.
vs
1/2 in. Drive Professional Low-Profile Ratchet with Comfort Grip
Amazing deals on this 1/2In Dr Pro Grip Low Profile Ratchet at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.
www.harborfreight.com
And I'm sure if you looked hard enough you could find a 1/2 Ratchet out of that Factory for even less money. The markup for this line of tools is just not worth it in my opinion. Unless you're a shop with a NAPA account (usually pay less than retail) I don't really see a reason to buy these tools when there's equivalents out there less money.
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nicks78camaro
Well-known member
Carlyle real deals were actually deals about 5-7yrs ago, not so much anymore, and their normal "list prices" are insane.
I looked at getting a set of Carlyle metric box wrenches a few years ago. The NAPA was downtown, on the other end of town from me. Pricing wasn't bad, seemed like nice tools, warranty was fine. Ended up going another way, but I wouldn't feel like I got taken had I bought those wrenches.
milky2k
Well-known member
Carlyle tools are generally good but only worth getting them on sale. There was a pretty good sale late last year, this quarter is not as great. They source from multiple vendors so one tool may be very good while another may be nothing special. If you are comparing against another brand of similar, go with whoever is easier to get support /warranty from. I’ve only had to warranty one ratchet that was clearly abused. The guy at the counter took it from me and gave me the same tool off the rack and I was done in less than a minute.
Jerrysends
Well-known member
- Joined
- Feb 22, 2024
- Messages
- 68
Bought the Channel lock & Tekton after looking at NAPA Carlyle. I think the ratchets, sockets, & wrenches come from the same Taiwan factory.
Ton ton
Well-known member
This is a key point.
So I shouldn’t buy Carlyle tools unless they’re on sale? 
Seems like they are either good, or they are not price cutting always seems to be part of the “race to the bottom” everybody seems to lament about with other struggling companies
Seems like they are either good, or they are not price cutting always seems to be part of the “race to the bottom” everybody seems to lament about with other struggling companies
nicks78camaro
Well-known member
So I shouldn’t buy Carlyle tools unless they’re on sale?
Seems like they are either good, or they are not price cutting always seems to be part of the “race to the bottom” everybody seems to lament about with other struggling companies
They're decent deals when on sale. But at full price they're pretty overpriced compared to other Taiwan made tools.
So I shouldn’t buy Carlyle tools unless they’re on sale?
Seems like they are either good, or they are not price cutting always seems to be part of the “race to the bottom” everybody seems to lament about with other struggling companies
If you think spending $150 on a made in Taiwan ratchet or set of wrenches is a good idea buy them all up, I don't give a **** how you spend your money.
Ton ton
Well-known member
Napa also sells Proto. Not sure if they are competitively priced or not. Proto seems to have a solid reputation on garage journal.So I shouldn’t buy Carlyle tools unless they’re on sale?
Seems like they are either good, or they are not price cutting always seems to be part of the “race to the bottom” everybody seems to lament about with other struggling companies
How much should they cost? Fair enough expected response, for sure, but we all know the drill.
Someday, when they move the manufacturing to China, or even India, we’ll complain about it, and pretend like we don’t know how it all went down.