USAG 285x

[ajfcc]

Ordered a set of USAG 285x from Mister Worker, they finally came in. The wrenches look nice, but I can peel the chrome off of the 16mm with my fingernail.

 

[liliysdad]

Well that makes that decision easier for me....

 

[mreisner]

I would say that's a rarity, I've had a couple sets of them also couple sets of the Mac rbrt which are the same wrench and no problems with the Chrome whatsoever.

 

[oldschoolcraft]

Aren't they made in the same factory as the Mac ones? In which case other than being easier to warranty, this doesnt push one against buying these.

The main hesitance for me is that I like to have SAE too, because I'm weird, and when I looked at Mister Worker, the USAG 285 didn't come with SAE available so I'd have to pay full price for those at Mac and then the total price of the full Metric/SAE becomes more than I want to spend, given I dont deal with rusted fasteners often.

I also assume as this technology advances, everyone will be making RBRT clones in a few years. Hopefully Tekton!

 

[ChevyEFI]

Shame the Sidchrome 440 sets aren't available in the U.S. I wanted the skips in the long 440 Facom to come in stock and buy from Ultimate Garage. Another SBD clusterflop of distribution and marketing.

 

[mreisner]

Aren't they made in the same factory as the Mac ones? In which case other than being easier to warranty, this doesnt push one against buying these.

The main hesitance for me is that I like to have SAE too, because I'm weird, and when I looked at Mister Worker, the USAG 285 didn't come with SAE available so I'd have to pay full price for those at Mac and then the total price of the full Metric/SAE becomes more than I want to spend, given I dont deal with rusted fasteners often.

I also assume as this technology advances, everyone will be making RBRT clones in a few years. Hopefully Tekton!

Same way, I needed SAE so I had to buy stuff from the Mac guy they have a deal now if you buy the metric set they have a free set of flex head ratcheting wrenches you could sell those off and take some of the hurt out of buying it also the max it has a couple more wrenches including the 19mm in it.

 

[VolvoRyan]

Have you pinged Mister Worker about what would be seen as a defective wrench?

-Ryan

 

[Dave455]

I would say that’s a major defect!

Simply e mail Mister Worker, perhaps include those pictures, and I’m sure they will replace it.

I have a few of those and they’re great.

Although it’s interesting that Facom opted for a different finish on theirs.

 

[ajfcc]

I emailed them, they’ll probably get back on Monday.

 

[Shoreline_]

Mine don't have an issue. I have the same ones

 

[Andres26tnt]

Probably a lemon. Make a claim with misterworker/usag to get a replacement. I had the same thing happen to me with a SK ratchet, won't affect the usage of the wrench.

 

[Callelle]

Well that makes that decision easier for me....

Because one person out of thousands had an issue? I've never understood that mentality.

 

[liliysdad]

Because one person out of thousands had an issue? I've never understood that mentality.

Absolutely not the only reason, just another data point. Other factors include the fact that they are pretty difficult to get to begin with, and likely just as onerous to warranty. The fact that they are not available in SAE is the biggest hurdle for me, but I have still been tempted.

Like I said, this just makes that decision easier.

 

[dukefx]

I can peel the chrome off of the 16mm with my fingernail.

That's what warranty is for. My set is perfectly fine.

 

[tamaraw]

Everyone has defective coatings at some point or another, I would just try to exchange it out on a new tool. Is it just on that one wrench or the whole set?

Haven't had issues with my Facom/Usag stuff but I did have a chrome bubble on a Koken socket of all things. It happens

 

[ajfcc]

 

[liliysdad]

And yet another reason to pass....at least from that seller.

 

[KSJeff]

I almost bought those, but I asked about a holder for those and sent a request and received a response like that. About a week later I got an answer. I ended up buying the Capri Wavedrive while I wait for the Craftsman Overdrive to make a full set.

Sorry to see that. I've heard good things about those wrenches so I'm sure they'll get it squared away. Frustrating.

 

[Andres26tnt]

When buying tools not offered in the USA, you have to make amends with he fact that they might not honour the warranty. Now most of this tools are cheaper and for the most part they don't have any defects. Once in a while you will get a lemon. Mister worker is just like Lowes and HD, they sell tools but don't warranty themselves, the manufacturer set the warranty. It's also a completely different way of doing business as this company is from Germany(if I remember). They will probably exchange the item in good faith, expect to wait tho. The 285X is hugely popular and was sold out for a bit.

 

[dukefx]

It's an Italian middleman company. They probably have 0 stock and everything comes and goes directly from/to the manufacturer. There should be no issues with warranty tho. It's a defect and should def. be covered. The only real issues are time and shipping.

 

[VolvoRyan]

Mister Worker is excellent. Can't say enough good about them. Buying tools from Europe is just a little bit slower for us Yanks.

-Ryan

 

[liliysdad]

Mister Worker is excellent. Can't say enough good about them. Buying tools from Europe is just a little bit slower for us Yanks.

-Ryan

If they were excellent, they would replace the wrench and deal with the manufacturer on the back side.

They may be a good seller, but that email alone is enough to ensure I won't buy from them. I am not saying its wrong, its just not the way I care to deal with that sort of thing.

 

[Dave455]

Not really acceptable.

I suspect that under European law, the purchaser has a “contract” with the supplier, and it’s down to the supplier to put things right.

Whether the manufacturer agrees, disagrees, or just says “wibble wibble” is an irrelevance.

I’d get straight back onto them.

 

[VolvoRyan]

If they were excellent, they would replace the wrench and deal with the manufacturer on the back side.

They may be a good seller, but that email alone is enough to ensure I won't buy from them. I am not saying its wrong, its just not the way I care to deal with that sort of thing.

You've made that clear. Having actually dealt with Mister Worker with an order problem (not their fault), your opinion means nothing to me. And the nature of your opinion means that your future opinions will me nothing to me. I just don't fly that way.

Go chase down a MAC truck and buy the same tools for $300-400.

-Ryan

 

[liliysdad]

You've made that clear. Having actually dealt with Mister Worker with an order problem (not their fault), your opinion means nothing to me. And the nature of your opinion means that your future opinions will me nothing to me. I just don't fly that way.

Go chase down a MAC truck and buy the same tools for $300-400.

-Ryan

At least I can buy them in SAE.

I have been intrigued by the entire RBRT/USAG/Facom/Overdrive design, and would love to see how they compare to the WrightGrip 2.0s and Proto ASDs already in my box. The USAGs seemed to be the best offering in that world, but their lack of SAE made that immediately unattractive. I doubt I would spring the money for Mac for what amounts to a curiosity. I could see myself trying the Craftsmans, however.

As to this discussion, having to wait for a decision from a middleman for a warranty issue is simple nonsense regardless of continent. It either has a warranty, or it doesn't. Again, I am confused why Mister Worker doesn't simply replace the wrench and deal with the manufacturer on their own.

 

[Andres26tnt]

At least I can buy them in SAE.

I have been intrigued by the entire RBRT/USAG/Facom/Overdrive design, and would love to see how they compare to the WrightGrip 2.0s and Proto ASDs already in my box. The USAGs seemed to be the best offering in that world, but their lack of SAE made that immediately unattractive. I doubt I would spring the money for Mac for what amounts to a curiosity. I could see myself trying the Craftsmans, however.

As to this discussion, having to wait for a decision from a middleman for a warranty issue is simple nonsense regardless of continent. It either has a warranty, or it doesn't. Again, I am confused why Mister Worker doesn't simply replace the wrench and deal with the manufacturer on their own.

As we explained mister worker is a middle man. They have stock, but most tools ships from the factory. The said wrenches that need to be warranty are the very popular 285x, they won't have any, most on here had to wait to for theirs. It's like hd or lowes, if they don't have any stock, they ain't going to give ya anything. What they will do is either contact the manufacturers or tell ya to get with the manufacturer. Example, people trying to warranty their sears craftsman tools, that Lowes and SB&D has no stock for.

If ya need SAE then don't even consider usag. Go strait to MAC or Craftsman. Tools manufacturers outside of the USA don't care or offer much SAE. They have SAE but mostly for A&P mechs. For that field, you almost never need this type of wrench. As an A&P, Stuck or cammed screws is what I encountered.

I buy tools in their website all the time. they offer great deals, I've also never had any issues with them. But I understand how they operate, and only buy what I don't need immediately.

 

[liliysdad]

I buy tools in their website all the time. they offer great deals, I've also never had any issues with them. But I understand how they operate, and only buy what I don't need immediately.

Thank you very much, much appreciated. It’s a shame, they seem to have some pretty nice stuff, and I’ve filled a cart a couple of times…just never have pushed the “purchase” button.

 

[Chrome Vanadium Cody]

I’m Italian and Misterworker seems to operate the same way all my family members do. (Which I’ve tried to grow out of!) Take from that what you will.

 

[demarpaint]

I had good experiences with Mister Worker. After seeing this thread I'll pass on them and those wrenches I had bookmarked from them. Maybe I'll change my mind depending on how this gets settled for the OP.

 

[dukefx]

My one and only experience was having to wait half a year for my order to arrive. I didn't want to make the same mistake twice and got my USAG wrenches from a different Italian store.

 

[ajfcc]

At least I can buy them in SAE.

I have been intrigued by the entire RBRT/USAG/Facom/Overdrive design, and would love to see how they compare to the WrightGrip 2.0s and Proto ASDs already in my box. The USAGs seemed to be the best offering in that world, but their lack of SAE made that immediately unattractive. I doubt I would spring the money for Mac for what amounts to a curiosity. I could see myself trying the Craftsmans, however.

As to this discussion, having to wait for a decision from a middleman for a warranty issue is simple nonsense regardless of continent. It either has a warranty, or it doesn't. Again, I am confused why Mister Worker doesn't simply replace the wrench and deal with the manufacturer on their own.

The craftsman V- series are great, I have a couple sets

 

[Andres26tnt]

My one and only experience was having to wait half a year for my order to arrive. I didn't want to make the same mistake twice and got my USAG wrenches from a different Italian store.

Yep they had a huge back order on those, they have finally caught up . It's probably the most popular item they have for sale. Mostly what they sell comes straight from the factory. They don't keep huge amount of stock. On the flip side where else can you get usag? Maybe some obscure Italian websites. Fiy it's also hard to get usag in Europe outside of Italy . Facom is more popular.

 

[Andres26tnt]

The craftsman V- series are great, I have a couple sets

People just don't understand how good of a value the V line is. The equivalent 3/8 socket set from Facom is almost 300$ compared to the V-line. Only real difference is the ratchet. The facom 72t ratchet is better, but not 150$ better. The sockets/extension are the same or near the quality of the facom.

The wrench we all know it's the same, wish they had the 440XL. But Stanley B&D isn't going to cannibalized MAC sales.

 

[drtyler]

I had good experiences with Mister Worker. After seeing this thread I'll pass on them and those wrenches I had bookmarked from them. Maybe I'll change my mind depending on how this gets settled for the OP.

You may be aware of this already, but the USAG 285X wrenches are available in the US from Ultimate Garage in New Jersey. Price is probably a little higher, but products have US warranty and are in-stock.

(441.JP12)-Grip Series Mid-length Comb Wrench Set-12pc (8-19mm)(

USAG 285X Series "Grip Series" Mid-length Combination Wrench Set (285X/B12) -ide - auto parts for your vehicle at Ultimate Garage

www.ultimategarage.com

 

[VolvoRyan]

For us Yanks, Mister Worker is great for "tooling up" on the cheap. If you need tools yesterday, there are some options here Stateside..... but priced accordingly. It adds a lot of overhead to keep stuff on the shelf.

All in (I had some discounts and a sale to take part in), my set of 285X wrenches, shipped, was half the price of Ultimate Garage. Took about a month to ship, but then 2-3 days to go from Italy to my doorstep.

FWIW, the USAG 285X are probably backlogged ever since the cat got out of the bag that these are the same tools as RBRT. The Torque Test Channel showed the MAC branded ones doing better than the Wright 2.0. Soooo.... big demand for the USAG.

I love my Wright Grip 2.0's, but the USAG's offer some different features. And they were a steal of a deal for $100 at the time. I buy lots of tools/parts from across the pond, so I'm used to the little snigs and snags that come up. Never been burned once. Wish I could say the same about American based companies. But I can't.

-Ryan

 

[dukefx]

On the flip side where else can you get usag? Maybe some obscure Italian websites.

workshopitaly.net and amazon.de mostly. They both ship internationally. Other than those there is a local supplier about ~25 km from where I live, but no webshop, prices, nor anything. It's the really old fashioned type of shop that's rather meant for large orders like outfitting an entire workshop where you sit down with their salesman. It's probably expensive as well. Unfortunately Facom doesn't have the same stuff and when they do they are like ~30% more expensive than the USAG brand.

 

[Andres26tnt]

workshopitaly.net and amazon.de mostly. They both ship internationally. Other than those there is a local supplier about ~25 km from where I live, but no webshop, prices, nor anything. It's the really old fashioned type of shop that's rather meant for large orders like outfitting an entire workshop where you sit down with their salesman. It's probably expensive as well. Unfortunately Facom doesn't have the same stuff and when they do they are like ~30% more expensive than the USAG brand.

Yep No where is it cheaper, you can get the full line of both facom and usag on mister. Amazon.de has limited tools for those, mostly at inflated prices. Most of the stuff you don't have to wait months for. Also perspective, some people think mister is bad, but Amazon is worse, I had way more issues with them. Like when they delivered an empty box to my house, or my stahlwille no.14 with half of the tool kit missing. Most of the mister worker stuff has been better packaged and cheaper for me.

 

[dukefx]

What? Mr. Worker is the expensive one. I bought the USAG U04580313 hex bit set from Amazon for 35.35 Euros, that includes taxes. The exact same thing at Mr. Worker is 40.40 Euros WITHOUT taxes (48.48 incl. taxes). Add shipping for various EU countries (0 at Amazon) vs 12-20 Euros at Mr. Worker and the price difference is basically double. It's true that Amazon has limited stock, but they only list what they can actually supply vs Mr. Worker listing everything they can't even get their hands on. When I had to wait half a year for my stuff and kept asking about it they promised a little discount on my next purchase. I thought to myself: no way in hell am I going to order from them again.

As for Amazon being worse... Personally I never had any issues. Even if I did their return policy is great.

 

[Andres26tnt]

What? Mr. Worker is the expensive one. I bought the USAG U04580313 hex bit set from Amazon for 35.35 Euros, that includes taxes. The exact same thing at Mr. Worker is 40.40 Euros WITHOUT taxes (48.48 incl. taxes). Add shipping for various EU countries (0 at Amazon) vs 12-20 Euros at Mr. Worker and the price difference is basically double. It's true that Amazon has limited stock, but they only list what they can actually supply vs Mr. Worker listing everything they can't even get their hands on. When I had to wait half a year for my stuff and kept asking about it they promised a little discount on my next purchase. I thought to myself: no way in hell am I going to order from them again.

As for Amazon being worse... Personally I never had any issues. Even if I did their return policy is great.

I'm talking sales/clearance, I don't buy from them at full price. I don't buy anything full price anywhere. Also Amazon is not always 0 Shipping, paid lots for shipping on there, specially Amazon jp. 3rd party vendors are the worst in there too. Anyway not everyone can be 100% satisfied. We derailed this thread long enough. Hope he gets a replacement for those excellent wrenches.

 

[ajfcc]

Still no update