Has snap on tools changed (for better or worse?)

[noid]

Is old snap on better/equal/worse then new snap on in terms of quality?

 

[rodm1]

As a company they are rapidly going down hill! I don't see massive differences in there hard line items yet.

 

[Skin]

theres many areas where i believe many tool companies in general have improved but in terms of chrome plating and the quality of the steels used i think all companies have downgraded.

 

[GBNZ]

Snap On trucks this side of the globe are pushing there bluepoint brand more to get back some sales against there competitors.

 

[snapmom]

I think the s/o tools from the late 40s were the best.

 

[WHT]

I have a number of Snap-on wrench sets purchased in the 1990s and four sets purchased recently. The newer sets are not finished as well (poorer chrome plating in the broaching and more tool marks in the open-end faces.

 

[back2class]

I am not an expert, but the pliers from about 40 years ago are far superior in terms of finish detail. The new ones may be just as good at getting the job done, but the quality of how they are finished is night and day. Now screwdrivers, the newer ones seem just as good and are in fact a "nicer" product.

 

[woody 73]

In my opinion I feel that every company has a golden period, for example the golden period for postage stamps was from 1847-1940,comic books late 30's and the 1940's,not sure about the golden period for baseball cards,but you get the idea.

I believe that snap-mom might be on to something when she said the 1940's were the golden years.

Some companies make an amazing comeback as in the case of lionel trains,they had their golden years in the 1950's,then they went downhill in the 1960's. When general mills owned them they were not very good at making trains. Somehow the man that bought the company (Richard Kughn) made an amazing turn around with the company.

I also think that with newer technology you can have some really great products like air bags,seat belts,power windows,power seats,power mirrors etc. that the old cars did not have.

Not sure if I answered your question,sometimes it is the leadership of the company that makes them great,and sometimes when you have bad leadership (make a profit at all costs),that trips them up.

Maybe you could call this the silver years for snap-on...

 

[chad s]

looking at ratchets alone, having examples of every era of snap on ratchet in my collection, in my opinion the current dual 80's are the best they have ever made.

 

[Strouty]

Give them another ten years, they will probably make a deal with Target so they can compete with craftsman. LOL

 

[Moose-LandTran]

I am not an expert, but the pliers from about 40 years ago are far superior in terms of finish detail. The new ones may be just as good at getting the job done, but the quality of how they are finished is night and day. Now screwdrivers, the newer ones seem just as good and are in fact a "nicer" product.

I bought some of their really long side cutters a couple weeks ago. Overall they're good, the fit and finish is good, the handles are nice and grippy but you have to squeeze really hard for the jaws to close completely. I looked at every pair my dealer had and they're all the same. This is a £54 pair of pliers, they should be perfect. I hold my NWS cutters up to the light and the cutting jaws meet perfectly with no light passing through. That's a £15 pair of pliers.

It seems to me that in some places Snap-on is riding on their reputation.

 

[caper]

I've certainly noticed a downturn in quality the last few years.Phillips screwdriver shanks,and flatheads for that matter,are nowhere near what they were in the eighties.I strip the phillips replacement tips easily now.The original tips were in the drivers over ten years,the replacements are tore up in a year.I have new impact sockets that have way more wear than their 20 yr old counterparts.A recent 10mm chrome deepwall is so sloppy I can't even use it on tight bolts,rounds them every time.They have definitely dropped in quality in the twenty or more years I've been buying from the truck.Don't get me started on the laser engraved pliers which I believe are going to be a way of getting out of warranty down the road.

 

[Hiball]

looking at ratchets alone, having examples of every era of snap on ratchet in my collection, in my opinion the current dual 80's are the best they have ever made.

I guess its personal preference, I personally prefer the ratchets from the 80's into the 90's. I do think the Dual 80's carry more bells and whistles, but im not to found of the square, sharp edges. I have a feeling over the years that area will be prone to chrome chipping, As far as durability is concerned we need to re-visit this thread in 10 years. In my mind Time is the best indicator of how a company is doing in the finish department, We all know you can still purchase Snap on Ratchets from the 80's that have solid chrome. We'll see....

 

[billymade]

While I like my dual 80s; I agree that the CAD/CNC nature of production today.... seems to create these sharp edged designs and they lose some of the "organic" quality of the earlier ratchets. If you look at the bodies of the ratchets from the 50s and into the 90s they progressively got less so but the dual 80s are very geometric, less comfortable. I think when the production and tooling becomes more computer driven, we seem to lose this quality; I don't thinking it has to be this way but possibly it maybe easier to machine as well.... I like the organic smoothness of the earlier ratchets!

Chrome is a obvious issue but because of the environmental issues, EPA standards... they have changed the chrome plating process from the earlier ones! The older processes seem to have produced a better and durable finish. Probably another reason that the import tools chrome looks so great.

I think the Snap-On tools from the 80s/90s feel more solid then the currently shipping ones and the 40s, 50s.... still look amazing when you clean them up with evaprust. I have some tools from this era that look brand new... this tells you something! They were doing something right!

 

[djb2]

The chrome situation is easy to explain. Environmental pressures and resulting laws made it much more difficult and expensive to plate parts in the U.S. Filtering and chemically removing contaminants from a plating bath is more expensive and much more failure prone than just dumping the chemicals and using a fresh bath.

Great chrome plating also requires process experience and an interest in quality. That's still a mixed situation in mainland China, but it's something that can be partially imported e.g. Taiwanese companies operating in the mainland.

Tool steel is another aspect. German led the world in many aspects of metallurgy until part way through WWII, followed by the British. The Germans continued to make advances while the mills were converted to war production, but by the end of the war the loss of mills and most sources of alloying elements practically halted advances in quality production. They famously could no longer make the high-spec steel for tank drive gears. Their armor plate changed from hard enough to break up incoming projectiles to brittle enough to shatter.

At the end of the war their best people were either allowed to emigrate to the west, or forced to move to soviet Russia. Some technologies, such as welding and light metal alloys, went almost entirely to the soviet side. (Fascinating picture: in the Apollo-Soyuz docking compare the smooth light alloy welded spheres of the Soviet equipment with the riveted and bolted US craft.)

In the meantime the U.S. was making great advances. Advanced development (with some minor British help) widened from how to make bulk structural steel cheaply, to the complete range of products. The explosion of the automotive industry became the focus of innovation in the 1950s and 1960s. SAE standards were The Word.

As some of you might remember, the U.S. made some really crappy steel and some great steel during the time. All of the really crappy things broke and rusted right away, so we only have the good stuff left.

Wow, that was really long-winded, and I'm not even half-way through the story. And likely everyone is bored. So I'll skip to the end: it's the Chinese golden age, with a few real gems buried in a sea of rapidly evolving ****.

 

[seagravedriver]

Trying to get quality chrome work used to be opening the phone book, (remember those?) and I had my choice of several shops in the Tacoma/Puyallup area. While there are still a couple of shops around, they shipped big stuff like my bumpers out of area. The ones I used to use have been shut down.

 

[RachetGuy64]

I guess its personal preference, I personally prefer the ratchets from the 80's into the 90's. I do think the Dual 80's carry more bells and whistles, but im not to found of the square, sharp edges. I have a feeling over the years that area will be prone to chrome chipping, As far as durability is concerned we need to re-visit this thread in 10 years. In my mind Time is the best indicator of how a company is doing in the finish department, We all know you can still purchase Snap on Ratchets from the 80's that have solid chrome. We'll see....

So, since we’ve had 10 years, how have these tools stood the test of time and does new snap on quality stand up to the old stuff?

 

[jonshonda]

Are you seriously asking a bunch of old men if the new stuff is better then the old...and expecting an objective answer?

 

[Hiball]

So, since we’ve had 10 years, how have these tools stood the test of time and does new snap on quality stand up to the old stuff?

Oh.. I’d have to say my 10+ year old post lacked any substance in regards to Snap On’s chroming ability, even on the sharp edges. I’ve dropped them, slid them, can’t say I’ve ever thrown one in a fit of rage, but I’ve thought about it.. Ha!

I don’t think I’ve encountered any chrome issues on any of the ratchets, I’d say the finish is more prone to fine scratches from purely a cosmetic stance, but then again there is quite a bit more surface area involved versus the older rats. I Definitely Dont recall any issues with flaking chrome across my personal collection, Nor buying and selling in the secondary market.

PS I’m not a old man, I played with transformers and He-Man action figures as a Kid.

 

[dnschmidt]

Are you seriously asking a bunch of old men if the new stuff is better then the old...and expecting an objective answer?

Excellent comment. Clearly the pick of the litter.

 

[Fly YX]

I had some problems with some tools I got on the SEP last year. Now a at a new place and am trying to get a order for a few hundred dollars from the new Snap On guy and he won’t stop in. I texted him last week and this week was going to be in @ 830 but no call no show. Wtf. Never had this problem buying from them but they have always been at the hanger just like the other tool trucks. I guess he feels he won’t make any money from me. I will just have to get online but then again it will be a pita if I have to warrantee anything. It’s hard enough to try to buy something USA. Sorry for yelling at the clouds.

 

[charger 73]

FLY YX I have had the exact same dealer issues, during the spring I ordered a 9/32 1/4 drive universal socket from our dealer for the air port . two months of back and forth no socket. I went online to the snap on store on a Saturday after noon and ordered the socket, and it was in my mailbox Thursday afternoon. Never have heard a word to this day from the dealer. I have used snap on customer service for warranty and placing a few small orders and it has been great. they have been extremally helpful and efficient. with this I will never waste my time with our local dealer again. orders with him took forever and the excuse was always backorder or I forgot it at home .

 

[Steve_P]

You can still do beautiful nickel + hexavalent chromium plating in the US- you just have to follow the rules and not dump the waste out back. SK's plating was beautiful blue chromium up until the sale. Snap On and Williams seem to have switched to trivalent chromium ~10 years ago as it now has a yellow tint to it. It's nicer than nickel, but not as pretty as the hex.
I had a restoration type (bumpers, etc) chrome plater near me, and they closed ~5 years ago. Not because of EPA issues, but the owners were in their 60s and operating the shop for 40+ years and retired. And I'm sure this is happening everywhere. Small chrome plating shops for hobbyists is a dying business as classic car restorations have vastly declined in the last 10-15 years. It's like finding a radiator, alternator, starter.... repair shop. ~5 years ago, I took an auto heater core for a restoration project in, and the guy said the only way he's still in business is because of commercial radiators - large trucks, buses, etc; he said he does almost nothing for cars unless it's vintage/restoration stuff as the import replacements are cheaper than he can do a repair for.

 

[Fly YX]

FLY YX I have had the exact same dealer issues, during the spring I ordered a 9/32 1/4 drive universal socket from our dealer for the air port . two months of back and forth no socket. I went online to the snap on store on a Saturday after noon and ordered the socket, and it was in my mailbox Thursday afternoon. Never have heard a word to this day from the dealer. I have used snap on customer service for warranty and placing a few small orders and it has been great. they have been extremally helpful and efficient. with this I will never waste my time with our local dealer again. orders with him took forever and the excuse was always backorder or I forgot it at home .

I was in commercial aviation for 20 years even at out stations never had problems with the so dealer. The last two have been a pita but it’s only me and I pay in cash so they probably don’t make any money on me.

 

[VolvoRyan]

I had some problems with some tools I got on the SEP last year. Now a at a new place and am trying to get a order for a few hundred dollars from the new Snap On guy and he won’t stop in. I texted him last week and this week was going to be in @ 830 but no call no show. Wtf. Never had this problem buying from them but they have always been at the hanger just like the other tool trucks. I guess he feels he won’t make any money from me. I will just have to get online but then again it will be a pita if I have to warrantee anything. It’s hard enough to try to buy something USA. Sorry for yelling at the clouds.

I've warranteed a few things through email. Surprisingly fast.

-Ryan

 

[Fly YX]

I guess I’m just old school if I’m paying that much for top quality Snap On tools and don’t get a truck to go on then wtf. I can order off of Amazon and have there truck come by but then I won’t have Impulse buy like I do so I guess that works out for me. I can call and email Wright Tekton and Capri Tool and get the same service if I wanted to.

 

[charger 73]

I was in commercial aviation for 20 years even at out stations never had problems with the so dealer. The last two have been a pita but it’s only me and I pay in cash so they probably don’t make any money on me.

In the 33 years I have been dealing with so I had some really good dealers, if this guy was my first so rep experience I probably would have quit with so. there are guys here at the airport who have said they would like to buy so but not as long as he's the dealer. myself I am in the tail end of my career so I buy very little now, so I guess I'm not worth his while.

 

[f121]

A big issue with snap on, in the UK at least, is they are trying to maintain their growth by cutting costs - the latest way to do this is by holding as little stock as possible and pushing it to the franchisees. This looks good on paper for snap on UK, because they've made a ton of sales to franchisees and have no money ******* in assets. It works out badly for franchisees because they are under pressure to have more stock, and badly for customers because if something isn't in stock, it has to come in from America...then covid happened and shipping stuff got super slow and stock got harder to find for everyone, and suddenly it takes months for stuff to arrive. Franchisees are under pressure to sell what SO have stock of, not what the customer wants.

In terms of quality of the tools, no complaints Maybe the screwdriver tips aren't as tough as they were 20 years ago, they seem to wear quicker, but the ratchets and wrenches are still great.

 

[CGarage]

Tool steel is another aspect. German led the world in many aspects of metallurgy until part way through WWII, followed by the British. The Germans continued to make advances while the mills were converted to war production, but by the end of the war the loss of mills and most sources of alloying elements practically halted advances in quality production. They famously could no longer make the high-spec steel for tank drive gears.

Great post, but Germany was not the metallurgy expert that we all think. It was Scandinavia, and in particular, Sweden. The Swedish iron ore was critical to the German war effort and was a primary reason why Germany invaded Norway to pressure neutral Sweden into supplying them with nearly 2-3 times the quantity of iron ore they were able to produce domestically.

 

[CGarage]

I like Snap-On and think it is an iconic American brand, sort of like Coca-Cola. I think the best period for them was the 1970s through mid 1990s. They charge astronomical amounts for tools that are not cutting edge.
They have done a phenomenal job building brand loyalty via the Snap-On Truck and have been able to ride the coattails of this decades long effort into the digital age.

If you do not believe that Japan, Taiwan, Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland, etc are able to produce tools of equal or better quality to Snap-On, you are sorely mistaken.
Some are able to do it for less cost to the consumer. And some make ordering even easier, via Amazon and other online venues.

 

[BlakeTheCarGuy]

It seems to me the chrome was worse back then than it is now just from my experience because I’ve got tons of older sockets that the chrome has started to peel on and none of the new ones seem to do that. Which makes me wonder if they will replace them because I consider it a defect. Also I hate the rust on my newer pliers but oh well. Screwdriver tips seem to be great so do the newer plastic handles for them. Fortunately my dealer warrantied my old handles that were falling apart.

 

[Wrench97]

I like Snap-On and think it is an iconic American brand, sort of like Coca-Cola. I think the best period for them was the 1970s through mid 1990s. They charge astronomical amounts for tools that are not cutting edge.
They have done a phenomenal job building brand loyalty via the Snap-On Truck and have been able to ride the coattails of this decades long effort into the digital age.

If you do not believe that Japan, Taiwan, Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland, etc are able to produce tools of equal or better quality to Snap-On, you are sorely mistaken.
Some are able to do it for less cost to the consumer. And some make ordering even easier, via Amazon and other online venues.

Yes there many very good tool makers in the world but around here only one of them shows up within a couple hours to fix a broken tool you need to do a job or to sell you a tool you need to do a job sitting on a lift half apart. He's not the cheapest guy in town but what he is selling is service and a good product.
For example if you have a Autel scan tool and it breaks you have to ship it to them for repair, if my Snap on breaks the tool man will show up pick up the tool and give me a demo to use.

 

[CGarage]

Yes there many very good tool makers in the world but around here only one of them shows up within a couple hours to fix a broken tool you need to do a job or to sell you a tool you need to do a job sitting on a lift half apart. He's not the cheapest guy in town but what he is selling is service and a good product.
For example if you have a Autel scan tool and it breaks you have to ship it to them for repair, if my Snap on breaks the tool man will show up pick up the tool and give me a demo to use.

You’re right. At some point, you have to realize you need to buy tools from alternate sources and have doubles and triples of common use items to get ahead of the game. Otherwise, your success or failure is tied to an expensive truck.

 

[Zewnten]

I think Snap On quality peaked in the 2000's based on my collection. Late 90's flank drive plus are lighter compared to my after 2010's set. Pick points are now easy to bend, blunt and thick compared to my older ones.

 

[Formula]

My new Snap On tools are just as nice as the ones I bought 30 years ago. The new pliers are much nicer now compared to the older ones. If anything, they evolved and continued to improve in areas that needed improving. They've always been reliable and the best.

 

[VolvoRyan]

Snap-On still makes a heck of a good hand tool. They also have a good amount of innovation happening. As a company, they've been really good to deal with.

-Ryan

 

[CS454]

Bumping this up...unfortunately no pics to share but a coworker bought a KRSC242 off the Rock and Roll truck, and after several months of delays it arrived.

Visible spot welds everywhere, areas left unpainted, the corner bumpers aren't tight to the body...for the near $4000 CDN they charge for it he was rightfully appalled. Driver is still negotiating the discount with him.

The beams on ny Snap On wrenches seem to mark up far easier than my Mac or Matco units, and my X-Long 1/4" ratchet arrived with a bent handle. I still enjoy the tools, but man the QA has gone downhill.

 

[CGarage]

He should offer 50 cents on the dollar for that tool box, otherwise tell them to come and pick it up. That is unacceptable for the money spent on a new item from a premium brand. Don’t let the truck driver get in the way if negotiations turn bad. Call the head office if you are not able to come to terms.

 

[CS454]

He should offer 50 cents on the dollar for that tool box, otherwise tell them to come and pick it up. That is unacceptable for the money spent on a new item from a premium brand. Don’t let the truck driver get in the way if negotiations turn bad. Call the head office if you are not able to come to terms.

He's aiming for 35 cents on the dollar, said anything more than 40 it goes back to Snappy.

 

[CGarage]

He's aiming for 35 cents on the dollar, said anything more than 40 it goes back to Snappy.

I like that even better. Great stuff.