Your .02??

[kams1973]

I've been pricing new SAE combination wrenches lately (3/8"-1") from manufactures such as proto, williams, gearwrench, genius, etc..., and I have concluded if I am going to pay over $150, the best bet (IMHO is to just buy a used SO set for the same price or less. What do you think?

 

[Red Green]

I have been very happy with my C-man raised panel wrenches.

But if I was in the market to spend $150+ I would look for a set of used wrenches. Then again most of my tools have been bought used.

 

[5toes]

Ive been reading into Wright... good stuff

 

[back2class]

New....Craftsman Professional. But I would rather get a used Snap-on set for $100ish than a new Craftsman set for about the same. I don't see much price difference on ebay between snap-on and others like Wright and and Proto. May as well get the snap-on's as you will get better support and as good a wrench as money can buy.

 

[Packard V8]

Retail is for the guys making living with their tools and time is money.

Used is for the rest of us. I've got more tools than most working techs, but every one of them was bought used at garage sales, estate sales and craigslist.

As much as I love the GJ classifieds, with all the tool sharks here, you won't find many bargains. Use the GJ classifieds to find the upper limit of what a used tool is worth and then you'll recognize a bargain when you find it locally.

Even though most of my tools are Snap-on, the bargains will probably be Wright, S-K, Williams, Bonney, Easco, New Britain, Proto or Craftsman Pro. Any of these are more than good enough for professional use.

jack vines

 

[cheap bastard]

Welcome to the enlightened side.

 

[JayL]

Me I'd go with SO wrenches even if used. Best wrenches I've used and seen considering I've had limited or no experience with the good German Made ones.

 

[MattT]

Me I'd go with SO wrenches even if used. Best wrenches I've used and seen considering I've had limited or no experience with the good German Made ones.

You ain't missed out on anything. Only advantage german wrenches offer are special engineered finishes that are easier to grip with soft, lotiony, hands and won't blind you in direct sunlight

Snap-on or lesser brands, that are harder to warranty, for the same money is a no brainer.

 

[Fedwrench]

I rarely use SAE wrenches so, I would opt for a US made Craftsman pro set because I'm cheap..
However, there's nothing wrong with used truck brands sets as long as the price is right.

 

[RRmech]

Take the time to really look on flea-bay, and you can find some GREAT deals, on NOS American-made wrenches.

I paid $20 for an 11 piece set of KAL combination SAE wrenches.
Another $20, bought me a set of Duro-Chrome Metric box wrenches.

Since these companies have long been defunct, you don't get a warranty.
But at around $2/wrench, for QUALITY American-made wrenches, it's worth it, IMO.

Steve

 

[rsanter]

good used snap on

look on here, the sets keep coming up for sale

bob

 

[tyndall]

Good new wrenches that you could warranty over the counter at a local industrial supplier vs. used that you most likely have to mail in. I've used SO wrenches, they're no better than SK, Proto or Williams and are nowhere near as good as Wright. A wrench isn't exactly a specialized tool. No need to pay extra or settle for used just for a name.

 

[Danglerb]

I'm not a Snapon fanboy, but I do like there combo wrenches, and used they aren't that bad. I still didn't buy a full set, just my most used sizes, followed by buying when I find one at a good price.

OTOH NFW am I spending Snapon prices, even used prices for wrenches I rarely use, so I have Craftsman, Pittsburg, whatever to fill out sets, plus of course all the cheap GearWrench sets.

 

[american lockpicker]

You ain't missed out on anything. Only advantage german wrenches offer are special engineered finishes that are easier to grip with soft, lotiony, hands and won't blind you in direct sunlight

 

[mrholeshot]

I have more than several sets of Snap-On wrenches. I've always been satisfied with them. I also own a set of older Craftsman Pro and a set of Stanley Pro that are 10-12 years old I'm satisfied with. I've never had to warranty any of them. The Snap-Ons are a little older (about 15-20 depending on which set. In real life the 12 year old Stanly Pro work just as well as the Snap-On that cost nearly 10X as much. The fit and the finish on each brand is great on all of them. I just bought a new set of Craftsman Pro USA in sae and metric (13 pc sets) and after you get them off that stupid display board you can't tell them from a tool truck brand other than the name. My Stanley Pro 13 pc sets came from Wal-Mart 12 years ago and cost about 30 dollars a set. Overall I think the USA Craftsman pros are the best for the money and thats only because they are built in the US. Other than that the Stanley Pro is as good as any. Buy what you like. The options are really great out there. No big advandtage to Snap-On wrenches now. There was 20 -30 years ago. Times have changed

 

[wrenchr]

With SO you have a higher resale value as well, you never know what might happen down the road.

 

[Steve_P]

For SAE, search Amazon for Bahco wrench set. They have a beautiful set 1/4-1" for $80. USA made. There are multiple short thread about them here. I also have wrenches by Snap On and USA Cman pros and these are every bit as nice, or nicer, and less $.

Re the snap on "resale value"- Of course Snap On resales for more- it should when you pay 3X as much for it. If you buy a set of cman pro or bahco wrenches you won't lose more than $100 on them because you paid that much for them. If you spend $300 for a set of SO you will lose just as much money, or more at resale. It's like buying a $60k BMW and selling it 3 yrs later for $40k. Yeah, it has a higher used resale than a Camry that costs $25k new- but does that make it smarter financially?

 

[wrenchr]

Buy used @ over 1/2 off of new and that is what you will get if you have to sell them. You loose no money.

 

[3 at 8]

I have more than several sets of Snap-On wrenches. I've always been satisfied with them. I also own a set of older Craftsman Pro and a set of Stanley Pro that are 10-12 years old I'm satisfied with. I've never had to warranty any of them. The Snap-Ons are a little older (about 15-20 depending on which set. In real life the 12 year old Stanly Pro work just as well as the Snap-On that cost nearly 10X as much. My Stanley Pro 13 pc sets came from Wal-Mart 12 years ago and cost about 30 dollars a set. . Other than that the Stanley Pro is as good as any.

Does Wall Mart still sell Stanley wrenches? Iv'e never looked for tools there. Whats the COO? How doe they (fit, finish,etc.) compare to your set of 12 years ago? Any comment or thoughts appreciated. Thanks

 

[dabirdguy]

For a regular job, I always reach for my Snap-on wrench first.
For a ratcheting wrench job I go to my SK set.
With my sockets.... SK first then Snap-ON

Craftsman if I don't have the exact wrench otherwise.

ALL bought used. The deals are out there, they just take some time to find. Garage sales, C-List are your friends. I bought my complete set of Snap-On boxes for $20 at a garage sale.

 

[Bull]

I could probably source you a complete or nearly complete set of SAE Blackhawks, of the USA-made variety, in unused condition for well under $150. Want me to look into it?

 

[kams1973]

I could probably source you a complete or nearly complete set of SAE Blackhawks, of the USA-made variety, in unused condition for well under $150. Want me to look into it?

Though tempting, I'll have to pass this time.

Thanks

 

[Bull]

Though tempting, I'll have to pass this time.

Thanks

No problem!

I think I was into my metric set, complete from like 7mm up to 32mm for under $100 shipped. Missing the 15 and 18, though.

Good luck in the hunt

 

[mrholeshot]

Does Wall Mart still sell Stanley wrenches? Iv'e never looked for tools there. Whats the COO? How doe they (fit, finish,etc.) compare to your set of 12 years ago? Any comment or thoughts appreciated. Thanks

I beleive the COO on my older set is China but not 100% (could be Taiwan) but not USA for certain. They no longer sell them in Wal-Mart but can be purchaced at Wal-Mart.com and a few other places. Look for the 13 pc sets. I have a few recent sets and I don't like them as much as the ones from 12 years ago they still are quite nice. As far as fit goes I notice no differance between Snap-On, Craftsman Pro and Stanley Pro. They all have the flank style drive on the box end and the bottom line is they all do the same job and all are quality made. 20-30 years ago there wasn't to many wrenches that could hang on like a Snap-On. My Stanleys didn't just sit in my box as a secondary wrench. They saw as much action as the Snap-On and Mac wrenches. Most people that pick up my 12 years old Stanly Pro wrenches are shocked to see Stanley on them. Truth of the matter is I could make just as much money with a Stanley wrench as a Snap-On. To be fair with Snap-On it's not just about quality, About any company can build a professional quality wrench but with SO it's also about prestige. It's like driving a Toyota Camry and a Bentley. Both of them will get you to where you want to go but Snap-On and Bentley say youve arrived. prestige is a costly thing. Nothing wrong with it if you can take care of business in the rest of your life.

 

[Rickster]

I've got a really nice set of Snap-on SAE long's available.....

 

[sberry]

Re the snap on "resale value"- Of course Snap On resales for more- it should when you pay 3X as much for it. If you buy a set of cman pro or bahco wrenches you won't lose more than $100 on them because you paid that much for them. If you spend $300 for a set of SO you will lose just as much money, or more at resale. It's like buying a $60k BMW and selling it 3 yrs later for $40k. Yeah, it has a higher used resale than a Camry that costs $25k new- but does that make it smarter financially?

Yes, never was sure how it made sense to pay 10k more for something today so several years later I could get 5k more out of it.

I'm not a Snapon fanboy, but I do like there combo wrenches, and used they aren't that bad. I still didn't buy a full set, just my most used sizes, followed by buying when I find one at a good price.

I am with this, bought a few in smaller sizes, 6 pt flank drive back in the day, there is a place for them but 99% of the time a bolt doesn't know what wrench turns it. Actually the most profitable wrenches I own are some USA stuff I bought at fleas, etc and imports at 1.50 a piece, almost disposable prices.

 

[sberry]

BTW, I bought a wrench from Rickster to fill out a set, good to do biz with.