lightning02
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anyone ever heard or used Teng Tools? if so whats your take on them?
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Teng Tools
- Thread starter lightning02
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knobby
Well-known member
Sniff sniff smells like toptul JS.
Andres26tnt
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Whats up with this influx of expensive new imported tool brands?
Teng and Sonic are decent Taiwanese manufacture but the price points are comical. They need the extra revenue for big marketing budgets. If I’m going upmarket my preference is for North American manufacture but to each his own.
mrborohachi
Well-known member
Buy KOKEN or KTC from Japan
Exactly. Does anyone in the U.S. actually buy these brands?
sevt_chevelle
Well-known member
I have one Teng tools product, a body hammer. It came from Amazon.de for 14-15 bucks shipped. That same item from the Teng website is pushing 40 bucks. For 40 bucks I can get an American made body hammer, Martin tools, with a proven track record dating back to the 1930's, an OEM to MAC, Snap on, Matco and Cornwell.
Teng are quite common here in Australia, and relatively well priced (certainly better than truck tools, and on par with everything else of the same quality).
Better than Chinese manufacture, and better than Australian..... oh wait, we have no local manufacturing.
Better than Chinese manufacture, and better than Australian..... oh wait, we have no local manufacturing.
dnschmidt
Well-known member
I always considered them to be one step below TOPTUL and three times the price. I have no idea as to what the attraction is.
Fedwrench
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I have a few things from Teng & sonic purchased on clearance or Black Friday sales last year to try out. The finish on Teng takes some getting used to, it's a rough satin, more grey than silver. I think that most Sonic tools are well made but, they're more like Taiwan versions of German tools. Their ratchets are bulky and 45 teeth isn't really competitive. Their sockets closely resemble OEM tools but, at a much higher price. Sonic & Teng definite make me miss toptul.
I think sonic & Teng are into shadowed foam or modular plastic tray sets that although are well organized, eat up a lot of space.
I think one would be better off with OEM tools, Carlyle, or even Gearwrench than sonic or Teng when you consider their pricing.
txvwnut
Well-known member
I have this kit,
https://tengtoolsusa.com/collection...-piece-3-8-inch-drive-metric-and-sae-tool-set
I use it as a travel kit, I like the way everything feels with maybe the exception of the ratchet but that’s just cause I’m a snapon user and prefer SO ratchets.
https://tengtoolsusa.com/collection...-piece-3-8-inch-drive-metric-and-sae-tool-set
I use it as a travel kit, I like the way everything feels with maybe the exception of the ratchet but that’s just cause I’m a snapon user and prefer SO ratchets.
Kasal
Well-known member
Someone has populated with King Tony, they are from Taiwan but they have a good price, (at least in my country).
I have several tools and quite happy with them.
They also make the M7 pneumatic pistol, it has a lot of strength and it is small and very good price.
I have several tools and quite happy with them.
They also make the M7 pneumatic pistol, it has a lot of strength and it is small and very good price.
OP
lightning02
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i just seem them on amazon today. i never heard of them either. i dont have any tools from Teng/Sonic/King Tony/TOPTUL/KOKEN/KTC
i cant say i wouldn't want a few things from TOPTUL and KOKEN. maybe one day lol
My view is similar to others, I own sets of Teng screwdrivers, hook & pick, 1/4 & 3/8 sockets & a T-handle hex set. They are perfectly 'decent' acceptable tools from Taiwan but so are many others. Most of Europe & the works has heard of Teng, for this to happen they must spend up on advertising and marketing. So their tools have a bigger mark up than many generic Taiwan tools. I suppose though many big name Taiwan tool co's do the same sort of thing, time & time again we see quality and design has little to do with the msrp of a tool. If your a big name you can charge more.
this comment nails it. Decent tools if you can get a heavy discount. Amazon is quite good for them. They are very widely available here in ireland and their marketing is very effective, so much so that to many here they are an aspirational brand
. Much prefer Toptul which is becoming very widespread here.sqaurelizard
Well-known member
this comment nails it. Decent tools if you can get a heavy discount. Amazon is quite good for them. They are very widely available here in ireland and their marketing is very effective, so much so that to many here they are an aspirational brand
They got decent market share here in Ireland when there was little other option with regards mid price decent quality tools. There sockets and spanners have decent fit and finish. I have a 1/2 set that has been used and abused in a workshop environment for about 10 years and its showing very little wear, ratchets are very coarse (1/4 drive one is a horrible thing).
I agree Toptul is getting a decent bit of availability and generally offering better price and quality.
Dave455
Well-known member
Low grade tools with high grade marketing.
They first appeared in the U.K. back in the late 80’s or early 90’s if memory serves. The old Japanese made Kamasa had built up a bit of a following here, but the firm had been sold and poor quality (real low end) Taiwanese tools had been substituted. Story put out back then was that Teng was started by the same family behind Kamasa, but that may have been bull - most of it seems to be!
Back then I seem to recall that they were pretending to be Japanese tools - lots of Japanese imagery and so on. The reality was they were Taiwanese made tools, and not top end either. Most Taiwanese makers can manage decent looking chrome but the Teng stuff was matte finish at best, dog rough at worst. Largely plastic ratchets were shite too.
Move the clock forward 25 years and they’re nowhere in the quality stakes but still plugging away at the marketing. The only places you find them are the British equivalents of Harbor Freight, but it’s still overpriced. If I visit a market or boot fair I can usually find a trader with boxes of Taiwan tools. Usually plenty of Teng included but nobody buys and I suspect it gets scrapped!
I gather they are now trying to move into the U.S. market, but now pretending to be Swedish. Sure they are - you find the name ‘Teng’ in the Stockholm phone book right between ‘Suzuki’ and ‘Yamamoto’! Suspect it’s the same old shite but perhaps with even better marketing. Can’t imagine why anyone in the U.S. who can buy U.S. made Williams at reasonable prices, not to mention makers such as Wright, would be interested!
If you really want Taiwanese you can get much better than Teng now, and probably for no more money! But wait it hasn’t got that shite matte (sorry - European style) finish...!
They first appeared in the U.K. back in the late 80’s or early 90’s if memory serves. The old Japanese made Kamasa had built up a bit of a following here, but the firm had been sold and poor quality (real low end) Taiwanese tools had been substituted. Story put out back then was that Teng was started by the same family behind Kamasa, but that may have been bull - most of it seems to be!
Back then I seem to recall that they were pretending to be Japanese tools - lots of Japanese imagery and so on. The reality was they were Taiwanese made tools, and not top end either. Most Taiwanese makers can manage decent looking chrome but the Teng stuff was matte finish at best, dog rough at worst. Largely plastic ratchets were shite too.
Move the clock forward 25 years and they’re nowhere in the quality stakes but still plugging away at the marketing. The only places you find them are the British equivalents of Harbor Freight, but it’s still overpriced. If I visit a market or boot fair I can usually find a trader with boxes of Taiwan tools. Usually plenty of Teng included but nobody buys and I suspect it gets scrapped!
I gather they are now trying to move into the U.S. market, but now pretending to be Swedish. Sure they are - you find the name ‘Teng’ in the Stockholm phone book right between ‘Suzuki’ and ‘Yamamoto’! Suspect it’s the same old shite but perhaps with even better marketing. Can’t imagine why anyone in the U.S. who can buy U.S. made Williams at reasonable prices, not to mention makers such as Wright, would be interested!
If you really want Taiwanese you can get much better than Teng now, and probably for no more money! But wait it hasn’t got that shite matte (sorry - European style) finish...!
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Interesting story Dave. I didn't realize they were trying to come across as Swedish, at least I never got that. Personally I like matte finish tools over polished. But still, as has been pointed out in this thread, Teng pricing is a joke here in the U.S.
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WTF is "Swedish design" in the tool world? What are they, trying to get into the furniture business too?
I wish I knew what that was supposed to mean. Maybe that's the explanation for those weird partially plastic ratchets.
ETA: I went to their international website. Teng Tools is headquartered in Sweden.
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Ahhh, there it is. Thanks
Fedwrench
ALLIANCE MEMBER
What's up with that pair of eyes and nose on teng's tool box lids?
I believe sonic is based in the Netherlands.
I believe sonic is based in the Netherlands.
I looked up teng tools and was looking for reviews when I came across this thread.
The founder was part of the kamasa (SP?) bankruptcy. His name was Henri Tengvall and he was a swedish business man living in the UK at the time.
He figured out that he should build a tool brand between the diy cheap tool pricing and the high end stuff like bahco (sandvik) and snapon. 5 years later he sold the business to a swedish industrialist who had been distributing the brand in a business known as Luna. They kept on building the brand focusing heavily on tools and tool organization and integrating those into vertical industries. Henri retired to Sweden and focused on country side issues, farming and non business things (I read his obituary).
The name teng according to their website in sweden is based on some Japanese village tale of a strong folkhero. I don't know. Maybe it's the teng from the founders last name Tengvall that its named after but in the 80s a Japanese angle was cool so he made that up after the fact?
The team claims to design the tools and the workflows in Sweden and manufacture in Taiwan. According to swedish tax authors there doesn't seem to be a lot of personnel that designs stuff or they just run the company very lean. They certainly are located in a city with heavy industrialised base of industry.
Current claim to fame is that Volvo cars use their told and tool organization across all of Volvo.
So does sandvik after they sold bahco to snapon. Boliden, a big mining firm does the same. My favourite was that I found a bunch of Chinese truck and bus manufacturers use teng tools, largely due to the strong post sales support.
If I read the tax registry right they do about $300m USD in sales annually.
I kind of like the story, but dang it took some digging to figure it out. From the name I thought it was Chinese. I speak swedish although I've lived in California for most of my life. If I didn't speak swedish I don't think I would have figured this out. I left Sweden before they imported this brand there so I never heard about it when I lived in Sweden.
I wish they would put a little swedish flag on it and get rid of that will logo. Or at least write underneath it "founded by Henri Tengvall in 1985". They don't even tell the story on the website.
Ive no idea if the stuff is junk or not. I just asked the CEO to connect on LinkedIn, it would be nice to learn from him how much design they actually do.
I'm far more interested in buying from the brand knowing their story now vs when I thought they where a Chinese brand. But if it's just a marketing brand and everything is a relabel of Chinese import them I'm not so interested...
The founder was part of the kamasa (SP?) bankruptcy. His name was Henri Tengvall and he was a swedish business man living in the UK at the time.
He figured out that he should build a tool brand between the diy cheap tool pricing and the high end stuff like bahco (sandvik) and snapon. 5 years later he sold the business to a swedish industrialist who had been distributing the brand in a business known as Luna. They kept on building the brand focusing heavily on tools and tool organization and integrating those into vertical industries. Henri retired to Sweden and focused on country side issues, farming and non business things (I read his obituary).
The name teng according to their website in sweden is based on some Japanese village tale of a strong folkhero. I don't know. Maybe it's the teng from the founders last name Tengvall that its named after but in the 80s a Japanese angle was cool so he made that up after the fact?
The team claims to design the tools and the workflows in Sweden and manufacture in Taiwan. According to swedish tax authors there doesn't seem to be a lot of personnel that designs stuff or they just run the company very lean. They certainly are located in a city with heavy industrialised base of industry.
Current claim to fame is that Volvo cars use their told and tool organization across all of Volvo.
So does sandvik after they sold bahco to snapon. Boliden, a big mining firm does the same. My favourite was that I found a bunch of Chinese truck and bus manufacturers use teng tools, largely due to the strong post sales support.
If I read the tax registry right they do about $300m USD in sales annually.
I kind of like the story, but dang it took some digging to figure it out. From the name I thought it was Chinese. I speak swedish although I've lived in California for most of my life. If I didn't speak swedish I don't think I would have figured this out. I left Sweden before they imported this brand there so I never heard about it when I lived in Sweden.
I wish they would put a little swedish flag on it and get rid of that will logo. Or at least write underneath it "founded by Henri Tengvall in 1985". They don't even tell the story on the website.
Ive no idea if the stuff is junk or not. I just asked the CEO to connect on LinkedIn, it would be nice to learn from him how much design they actually do.
I'm far more interested in buying from the brand knowing their story now vs when I thought they where a Chinese brand. But if it's just a marketing brand and everything is a relabel of Chinese import them I'm not so interested...
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anndel
Well-known member
No, I buy Snap-on, SK, Astro, Ko-Ken and Engineer tools.
Revere Cycles
Well-known member
Teng has made a big push recently to market to YouTube DIY channels. Tavarish, SaabKyle04, and Rob Dahm all got big Teng kits this year.
Honestly, the kits seem well designed, and I like the organization system. I've spent most of my adult life collecting premium hand tools, but I see the value in the offerings from Teng for a beginner or hobbyist. If I had a son or daughter who was interested in working on cars, I would seriously consider buying a smaller Teng kit as a starter set over similar kit from Craftsman or DeWalt.
It's interesting to see Volvo switch to Teng, since all my old Volvo tech tools were made by Bahco. As a whole, Volvo is a pretty conservative company that doesn't like to take risks or cut corners.
Honestly, the kits seem well designed, and I like the organization system. I've spent most of my adult life collecting premium hand tools, but I see the value in the offerings from Teng for a beginner or hobbyist. If I had a son or daughter who was interested in working on cars, I would seriously consider buying a smaller Teng kit as a starter set over similar kit from Craftsman or DeWalt.
It's interesting to see Volvo switch to Teng, since all my old Volvo tech tools were made by Bahco. As a whole, Volvo is a pretty conservative company that doesn't like to take risks or cut corners.
What I like the most about teng is the tool organization trays or box so it's all fits in perfect to toolbox.. Wish I could do that or make myself,, but thinking it would take a long time doing it and still not come out that organized..
Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
Volvo was previously owned by Ford and is currently owned by a Chinese company. I don't know if their old ideals and philosophies are still held. Always been interesting cars though.
I know a bit about Volvo. They are owned by a Chinese conglomerate for many years now (Geely) and the fear was that the Chinese would bastardize the product and move factories to China.
That has largely not happened, the chinese infused them with cash and largely left them alone. That led to the award winning xc90 and an increase in quality.
The Chinese opened up a factory in China, but largely to serve the domestic Chinese market. Volvo had also made investments to begin manufacturing in the US.
I researched this because I'm in the market for a new car. My old Volvo xc90 is 11 years old and it's time to upgrade it. Planning to do a European delivery this spring and visit some relatives. I had to make sure that Volvo was as good as it used to be as I loved my old xc90 but didn't want a low quality Chinese car.
I learned that Volvo's Chinese owners behave more like investors, the CEO (who is swedish) told the press in an interview that he does monthly calls with the Geely for updates but that they largely stay out of the way after initially infusing them with cash. They never tell the ceo what to do.
Full disclosure, the company I work at is a (small) supplier of technology in the artificial intelligence space to Volvo cars and Volvo trucks for their self driving car program. I've heard similar comments as above from the teams I've interacted with.
That has largely not happened, the chinese infused them with cash and largely left them alone. That led to the award winning xc90 and an increase in quality.
The Chinese opened up a factory in China, but largely to serve the domestic Chinese market. Volvo had also made investments to begin manufacturing in the US.
I researched this because I'm in the market for a new car. My old Volvo xc90 is 11 years old and it's time to upgrade it. Planning to do a European delivery this spring and visit some relatives. I had to make sure that Volvo was as good as it used to be as I loved my old xc90 but didn't want a low quality Chinese car.
I learned that Volvo's Chinese owners behave more like investors, the CEO (who is swedish) told the press in an interview that he does monthly calls with the Geely for updates but that they largely stay out of the way after initially infusing them with cash. They never tell the ceo what to do.
Full disclosure, the company I work at is a (small) supplier of technology in the artificial intelligence space to Volvo cars and Volvo trucks for their self driving car program. I've heard similar comments as above from the teams I've interacted with.
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Good to know that Volvo are still doing their own thing. The demise of Saab left Volvo as the only mainstream cars in the UK with any character IMHO. Would be interesting to know what Volvo techs think about Teng tools.
rhys99
Well-known member
I agree, the new Volvo's are looking excellent. Would much rather have one over the swarms of boring German saloons which seem to be every other car nowadays.
dnschmidt
Well-known member
Since I'm no longer in the business I can make this statement objectively, "Compared to TOPTUL Teng and Sonic are both overpriced junk."
I have an air ratchet made by 'Luna tools' which has Teng 3/8 impact sockets in its set. Pretty decent air ratchet actually but I agree with others about Tent tools in general, they are no better than other Taiwan tools at a fraction of the cost. But many 'name brand' Taiwan tools are like this. Interesting posts by Parb.