WOW. I could write a five page response for all the BS in this thread. This topic has been worn to the ponit of becoming pathetic, the Chevy vs Ford argument of the tool world. I second the earlier notion to ban the next member to bring up this thread and lock all future Snap-On vs Craftsman threads. This topic has been around the world and back. It jumped from the quality of different brands made by the same manufacturer to Snap On vs Cman to who makes Craftsmans wrenches to specialty tools and back again several times.
The difference between Craftsman and Snap On is that Craftsman has to make a quality tool with a decent price to appeal to the general public, from people who need tools to tune up their lawnmower and fix things around the house to the weekend warrior who restores cars in his garage. Snap on is marketing directly to professional mechanics. They make professional quality tools and charge a professional price. You are comparing two different tool companies that are making tools for two completely different people.
The reason this arugument is completely worthless is that you are comparing two different companies with totally different target markets. On this board we have guys who just collect tools, who rotate tires and change oil, wrench nights and weekends, and guys who use their tools to make money. The spectrum is covered from novice to professional That's four different classses of "mechanics" who use their tools differently for different things. A guy who only changes his oil every 3000 miles and rotates his tires is gonna be a bit easier on his tools than a full time mechanic who is more likely to abuse his tools because time is money. So we have millions of different OPINIONS from different types of tool users.
No tool brand makes perfect tools. Who cares what other people think is best. Use whatever works best and feels best. If it works for you - use it. This argument has become a "my dad can beat up your dad" scenario. "My tools are better that your tools." "No they're not." "Yes they are."
My personal belief is that Snap on does make the best product, that doesn't mean i use them. They are out of my budget. Take a poll of full time mechanics and see how many use Cman Pro. I think the brand of tool use use depends on what you use it for and how much you abuse tools in general.
Most people believe that Snap On makes the best ratchets and many people, including myself, don't like the Craftsman ratchets. I don't use either becuase i don't like either. Just becuase one brand is best doesn't mean it is best for you. For the most part, the differences between Craftsman and Snap On are only obvious when used at the professional level
As far as the warranty goes, Snap On, Craftsman, and HF Pittsburgh all have lifetime warrantys. The difference is the quality of the tool. If you bought 50 of each wrench and used them for 10 yrs, 47 HF would break, 18 Cman would break and 2 Snap on would break. There was a post earlier by wilbilt who stated similar #'s of returns for Cman and Snap On, so that's where i got those #'s and we all know about the quality of HF tools. For a professional mechanic using Cman, that would mean 18 trips to sears, where the snap on user would have to walk out to the "Snap On Store" in the parking lot of his garage only twice - quicker and more convienient, hence a higher price.
For the sake of settling this stupid argument, I think it would be interesting if Consumer Reports torture tested both Snap On and Craftsman Pro.
There are too many egos on this board that are hell bent on convinving everyone else that the brand of tools they use are the best. There are also people who have never used the tools that they are arguing against. Just because you don't think Snap On is better doesn't mean it's true. Use whatever you like and F^%@ whatever everyone else says. Too many people getting their ******* in a bunch over a bunch of opinions. The only opinion that matters is your own.
