I have an eclectic assortment of tools, but have gravitated to mostly Proto, Snap-on, Williams, and some Indestro. On the way there I had quite a bit of Bonney, SK, Wright, Thorsen, Allen, Duro, Armstrong, Craftsman, Herbrand, Mustang, Wizard, and a whole host of other stuff.
How I got there is quite convoluted. My Father had a comprehensive homeowner Craftsman set of 1/4 through 1/2 drive sockets and attachments, a set of open end and combination wrenches, and a few screwdrivers. We did all of our farm maintenance with these, plus a motley assortment of other stuff acquired at farm auctions. He considered Craftsman to be top of the heap.
I started putting my tools together from assortments got at auction. I took what I could get, but aimed to get Craftsman when I could. When I went to college, I had a fold up duplex type air force surplus tool box with a pretty comprehensive set that weighed about 120 to 150 pounds. I could do most rudimentary work with those, and did alternator and starter replacements, brake jobs, etc for friends to make extra money and help them out. I also began to have a preference for some better brands. One summer I got a second job as a service station mechanic, doing minor drop in work in the evenings (replace a fan belt, replace a headlight, do oil changes, and occasionally do brake jobs and such to fill slow times). The mechanics tools were locked up, I had to use my own. I bought other tools to supplement what I had, and settled on SK as the cheap alternative to nicer stuff, as I could get it readily used and for a good price. It was cheaper than the Craftsman that everybody valued more. I put together a lot of SK, and continued to do so while I went to college, ending up with a pretty good set. I used those tools for a lot of years, and still have many of them in an old box that I should get rid of because I don't use them any more.
At the time I worked in the service station, local automotive parts shops carried Proto, and that's what the mechanics had nice sets of. I set my sights on acquiring those. I had a few, and really liked the quality. About a year after I got out of college, I acquired my first piece of snap-on. I found a black handle #2 phillips in the road. It had a fan belt groove in the handle, where it had been lost in an engine compartment and got in the wrong place for a while. I began to use that screwdriver, and noticed that it would work on screws that were stripped out or rusted or damaged that a Craftsman wouldn't even begin to touch. I had never heard of that brand before, but it opened up my eyes to the fact that there were tools out there that were a LOT better than Craftsman. I still have that screwdriver today, and the blade is still sharp. I use it as a favorite even now.
I got a different job, in an office next to the tire shop. The snap on man stopped there every Wednesday. I went over and bought a couple of screwdrivers from him. About $15 apiece!!!!! I almost fell over in shock! I had no idea of the price Snap-on commanded, I was used to 20 piece sets of craftsman for $7.99 being advertised in the weekend paper. So, I continued to look for used tools; and added Snap-on to the list to look for.
A friend opened a pawn shop, and I opened my own office a few doors down. I'd stop in at lunch or after work and talk to him. I cut a deal with him where I bought all the tool boxes that defaulted, at the pawn ticket price. I sorted those boxes, and kept the high quality tools, selling the remainder to pay for the investment. This gave me a good chance to try a lot of different stuff. I found that the top brands were Snap-on, Proto, Williams, Bonney, Indestro, and some Mac and Matco. I soon came to the conclusion I would never get enough Bonney to match, and Snap-on was rare in the boxes, so I started to amass a Proto set, in nostalgia for when I had briefly worked as a mechanic.
25 years later, I have a very extensive collection of Proto, and a quite comprehensive user set of Snap-on. There are a few others mixed in, like Indestro ratchets, some Williams stuff, some Mac wrenches I really like, and even a very few old Craftsman that I like.
So, that's where I ended up, and how I got there. One answer, not necessarily the best one, of what tools are the best.
What will work best is to try the different tools, find what you like and what works for you in the price you can afford, and acquire those. You may find you have preferences for different brands for different types of tools, like I have. Or you may enjoy having a matched set in one brand. Either way is fun.
