duralast tools must haves?

bayoutoolguy · Oct 13, 2011

ive become a considerable fan of duralast tools, namely the ratchets and sockets, pretty good quality and pretty tough. ive heard they will be getting rid of the good line of tools, and replacing it with great neck, :sad:

so my question is, what are some tools i should grab up before they replace it all with great neck? ive got the good ratchets, going to get the 40 pc. 3/8 drive socket set to keep in my truck, one member on here said its one of the best values offered and a decent set. can i still order the comfort handle ratchets or are they no longer made?

NWphotog · Oct 13, 2011

bayoutoolguy said:
ive become a considerable fan of duralast tools, namely the ratchets and sockets, pretty good quality and pretty tough. ive heard they will be getting rid of the good line of tools, and replacing it with great neck, so my question is, what are some tools i should grab up before they replace it all with great neck? ive got the good ratchets, going to get the 40 pc. 3/8 drive socket set to keep in my truck, one member on here said its one of the best values offered and a decent set. can i still order the comfort handle ratchets or are they no longer made?

I don't think AZ is replacing Duralast with rebranded Great Neck (at least not yet). What they have done is added rebranded GN tools to the regular Duralast stuff. Will they discontinue the good items in the future? No idea. :eyecrazy:

bayoutoolguy · Oct 13, 2011

so what are some of the genuine duralast tools and are there any markings, differences, etc. so i can distinguish them from rebranded great neck?

CD1 · Oct 13, 2011

The comfort handled ratchets are still available. The 3/8" drive CH is now $10 less than last spring.

John316 · Oct 14, 2011

The "good" duralast sockets are pretty much gone with a few exceptions:

You may still be able to special order the master SAE socket set which is p/n: 70-322. The metric equivalent #70-324 is gone.

I think also you can special order the socket sets #70-501 (22pc) and #70-502 (40pc)

Aside from that you may see a few old style sockets here and there in stores, but you have to be able to spot the differences to be sure which is which. Once you see the older style they stand out compared to the new ones. The chrome is way better on the old and the bevel is different on the deep wells. The older style has the long bevel like a snap-on.

The "good" wrenches are available in stores as singles and as of a month ago you could still special order the good sets which are #70-001 metric and #70-003 SAE for $24.99 ea which is a steal IMHO. The sets in stores are the new rebranded greatneck quality. You want the ones with the red or blue dots.

The good ratchets are still in stores along side some rebranded china crapsters. Last I knew you could still special order the comfort grips and stubby. The ratchet #'s are:

1/4" Chrome #71-416
1/4" Chrome Flex #71-417
3/8" Chrome #73-870
3/8" Chrome Flex #73-871
3/8" Chrome Stubby #73-872
3/8" Comfort Grip #73-873
1/2" Chrome #72-126
1/2" Comfort Grip #72-127

The old style breaker bar is special order for $19.99 #72-124

The Screwdrivers are being phased out with Chinese "knock offs" of what are the better Taiwan screwdrivers. The better ones have a red surrounding the shank at the top of the handles. You may still be able to special order the better set which is #70-200

The pliers were always China I believe and I am not sure how the ratcheting wrenches or anything else is/was.

The special order process if great in my area. I go in store and pay for the items and they usually call the next day with the item. YMMV, but it beats paying shipping and waiting for a week. Also keep in mind that they may use the same part numbers for future "versions" of these tools (as with the screwdrivers), so the p/n may not guarantee you get the better quality Duralast in the future, although I think the special order stuff is safe until it's gone.

Ritter4.0 · Oct 14, 2011

Any screwdrivers that have the red in the handle are good, the new all blue handled ones are supposedly not to good. I don't have any of the new ones, but have some of the blue/red handled ones and they're pretty good so far.

Check the plastic hanger, if it says taiwan, or chromoly anywhere on it, then its probably one of the better Duralast tools. The ratchets and extensions are worth getting while they're good.

The older necked down sockets are supposed to be good, but getting harder and harder to find. There is a newer necked down style that doesn't look as good.

The ratcheting wrenches with the knurled look and "Guaranteed for Life" stamped in them are great too. They're very flat and thin.

db130 · Oct 14, 2011

their website offers free shipping for orders that total $75 or more and right now they are offering a $15 GC for puchases that total $100 or more.

i have their 1/4" flex and the 3/8" ratchet

John316 · Oct 14, 2011

I also have the "Double Duty" wrench sets #70-008 and #70-009 which are very similar to the Grearwrench Quadbox wrenches. The quality is great, but they raised the price from $19.99 a set, which was borderline expensive, to $29.99 a set which is ridiculous.

bimmer630 · Oct 14, 2011

I looked at duralast stuff at AZ a few years ago and thought it all looked like ****. But thats just me

chewy7 · Oct 14, 2011

NJHandyGuy · Oct 14, 2011

John316 said:
I also have the "Double Duty" wrench sets #70-008 and #70-009 which are very similar to the Grearwrench Quadbox wrenches. The quality is great, but they raised the price from $19.99 a set, which was borderline expensive, to $29.99 a set which is ridiculous.

as the only tool i have i haven't destroyed from duralast i will say these are great but too expensive for what you get

AZ_Catskinner · Oct 14, 2011

I bought a set of Duralast sockets recently (3/8" Metric deep) and they are the rebranded Great Necks. Crappy fit, crappy finish, crappy sockets. Not even close to being worth the $14.99 I paid for them.

If it hadn't been for an immediate need (I carry no metric in the Bronco and we needed to change an alternator on an Aveo in a motel parking lot), I'd have turned up my nose at them.

FergusonTO35 · Oct 14, 2011

I used to work part time at the Zone. The Duralast story of declining quality is just how I remember that place. Helpful employees, dreadfully cheap parts. I'll stick to buying used tools from Fleabay.

rocco · Oct 14, 2011

i quite enjoy beating on the teardrop 1/2, 3/8 and 1/4 ratchets i bought at AutoZone last spring - they've become my go to ratchets as they work nice, i could care less if i scuff them up or drop them and that's a nice feeling to have about what seems to actually be a quality tool.

Pro-Painter · Oct 14, 2011

Almost all of the old duralast tools are outstanding quality for any brand. USA or imported. Their sealed ratchets, old sockets, old (turned down) style extensions, long combo wrenches, screwdrivers (with red), S2 torx/hex sockets, spark plug sockets, etc are all great quality. The strength, fit, finish and styles are much better then the local Danaher/Stanley store brands (Craftsman, Kobalt,Allen, Gearwrench, Husky, Stanley etc).

The new Duralast tools are HF/wal mart quality and not worth the steel they are made from. They may do the job, but they are nothing like the old tools.

Ive read many, many people on this forum make claims that they broke the old duralast tools, yet Ive only seen ONE person describe, and show pictures of the broken tool and he admitted that he had to use a very long cheater bar to make it fail.
For some reason their is a huge hate towered Duralast tools across all tool forums. I can only assume that it has to do with their close likeness to Snap-on, and the fact that autozone sells them. However, Me and a few others on this forum use and abuse Duralast tools every day in a professional setting. I abuse my tools. I don't like 1/2" drive hand tools much so I'm always using a 1/4" and 3/8" drive where I should be using a larger drive. It's common for me to use a floor jack handle as a cheater bar on my 3/8" drive ratchets. And even with my lack of proper tool selection, Ive yet to have a Duralast tool fail me.

So if you do buy Duralast, Buy NOS or used, and don't believe all the Duralast bashes stories because most are just that... stories.

diesel research · Oct 14, 2011

I thought you liquidated your duralast collection and moved up to northern brand? I woulda swore I saw such a classified ad?

Pro-Painter · Oct 14, 2011

diesel research said:
I thought you liquidated your duralast collection and moved up to northern brand? I woulda swore I saw such a classified ad?

me? Ive not sold any of my Duralast tools nor would I. However, I did sell some northern combo's recently. Before I found Duralast, Most of my tools where either Williams, Williams made Kobalt or NAPA USA tools (Danaher).

Northern tools, although good for the price are nothing compared to the old duralast.

powertrip · Oct 14, 2011

What features or markings am i looking for when i purchase one of the older/better quality ratchets?

John316 · Oct 14, 2011

The good ratchets all have the small metal selector like the one below.
All the ratchet part numbers in my above post are the older good ones.
The standard chrome and flex versions are available in stores and you
can special order the comfort grip and stubby versions.

powertrip · Oct 14, 2011

Thanks

Pro-Painter · Oct 14, 2011

wrenches: The old wrenches are very long. (1/4 & 7mm" wrench is 5.5" long) They have dumb blue/red dots on them and say "Guaranteed for life" on the back, they also have the size stamped on the open end. The new wrenches are very short, china made and sold in sets only.

Sockets are a bit more tricky. The picture below shows all 3 styles of sockets.
:Left socket is the old style CR-MO sockets that came in sets and singles.
:Middle socket is the china made (great neck) sockets that come in the new sets only.
:Right socket is the new CR-V singles that are sold in store. The new singles are still Taiwan made, and are better quality then the sets but still pretty ******.

Torx/hex sockets: Old sockets have a yellow band around the bottom, made in Taiwan and have S2 steel bits. The new ones are china made and made of CR-V.

Screwdrivers: Old screwdrivers have blue and black handles with a red ring on top where the blade attached to the handle. The new style does not have any red on it and the overall quality of the handle will be very apparent.

Extensions: The old extensions are "turned down". Meaning they are thiner in the middle and have a bulge at the bottom where the socket attached. The new ones are very thick from start to bottom. The quickest way to tell is by the tag. The old extensions are made of chrome molly, new ones are CR-V.

U-Joint extensions: Old u-joints have a black drive joint in the center, flat on the drive end and have torx screws that hold them together. The new ones are much larger in size, all chrome, and have pins that hold them together.

Ratcheting wrenches: New style have a textured "non slip" finish. The old ones are polished chrome.

Spark plug sockets: Old sockets are magnetic, long and have knurled centers. News ones have a rubber insert, and no knurling.

bayoutoolguy · Oct 15, 2011

i def agree despite what other people say those tools are very high quality.

John316 · Oct 15, 2011

I wonder what ever happened to the factory in Taiwan that was making Duralast tools. If they:
1. cut ties with AZ and improved the branding/marketing
2. expanded what they offered to include some fine tooth ratchets in more variations.
3. Dropped the backward red/blue color scheme (or at least reverse it)
4. Maintain the level of quality that the former Duralast line was and refuse to brand any crappy product so that people can trust the brand.

They could become a major player in the US hand tool market. Too bad AZ is more interested in capitalizing on the guy who is in a jam than building a trustworthy brand of anything.

CHRIS LUCKYMAN · Oct 15, 2011

A couple of months ago, I found a small set of deep 1/4" duralast sockets. The 10mm deep comes in handy when you use it as a drift to drive out bushings. I've found I get the best results when using a larger hammer. The socket makes a great drift, I haven't broken it yet, but have deformed the drive end with the hammer. Definitely a high quality tool.

Blacknwhitepit · Oct 19, 2011

Duralast... Not again.....

__________________
"durolastelphia masked as misplaced intelligence"

bayoutoolguy · Oct 19, 2011

i guess youre not a duralast fan lol

Catamount · Oct 19, 2011

Add me to the list of happy Duralast users... the "old" stuff at least. Actually, based on the recommendation of someone where I took apart all of the heads tonight and slathered in some white lithium grease. They are incredibly smooth now and blow away my Craftsman wrenches.

Pro-Painter · Oct 19, 2011

bayoutoolguy said:
i guess youre not a duralast fan lol

Here at GJ, we just can't get enough of the "not this **** again" pictures and comments. In fact, We like them so much that we like to restore 5 DAY OLD threads just to say "Not this thread again!"

What would we do without all the useless "not this thread again" comments... Talk about tools? Nah that would be just crazy.

It's even better when they don't have enough room in their comment, and make a very clever signature to expresses their hate of others tools. It's especially cool when they copy another members signature, add made up words to make it kinda sound like the brand that member likes, and bash him for it!.

bayoutoolguy · Oct 20, 2011

catamount, did you do the spring clip mood too or just greased them?

FergusonTO35 · Oct 20, 2011

The facepalm pic is how I feel whenever the owner or retailer of a respectable tool brand decides to ***** it out for increased sales. This is precisely what happened to Kobalt and the trend is now claiming formerly stalwart USA brands like Channellock and Estwing.

4x4gearhead · Oct 20, 2011

I was unaware of this upcoming change, it seems that turning everything to the great neck brand would be one of the worst things they could do. I have a couple of their real duralast ratchets, a little coarse but very tough (seeing how they are obviously the old snap on 936 patents). I will make it a point to buy a few more. Anyways their sockets and wrenches are on the top of the must haves for sure. I havent used their screwdrivers, and honestly I have enough sets of screwdrivers to draw the line on buying them. I wish I could do the same with ratchets but, I guess I just love ratchets and having options.

HandyManny · Oct 20, 2011

Pro-Painter said:
Almost all of the old duralast tools are outstanding quality for any brand. USA or imported. Their sealed ratchets, old sockets, old (turned down) style extensions, long combo wrenches, screwdrivers (with red), S2 torx/hex sockets, spark plug sockets, etc are all great quality. The strength, fit, finish and styles are much better then the local Danaher/Stanley store brands (Craftsman, Kobalt,Allen, Gearwrench, Husky, Stanley etc).

The new Duralast tools are HF/wal mart quality and not worth the steel they are made from. They may do the job, but they are nothing like the old tools.

Ive read many, many people on this forum make claims that they broke the old duralast tools, yet Ive only seen ONE person describe, and show pictures of the broken tool and he admitted that he had to use a very long cheater bar to make it fail.
For some reason their is a huge hate towered Duralast tools across all tool forums. I can only assume that it has to do with their close likeness to Snap-on, and the fact that autozone sells them. However, Me and a few others on this forum use and abuse Duralast tools every day in a professional setting. I abuse my tools. I don't like 1/2" drive hand tools much so I'm always using a 1/4" and 3/8" drive where I should be using a larger drive. It's common for me to use a floor jack handle as a cheater bar on my 3/8" drive ratchets. And even with my lack of proper tool selection, Ive yet to have a Duralast tool fail me.

So if you do buy Duralast, Buy NOS or used, and don't believe all the Duralast bashes stories because most are just that... stories.

That has been my experience with the handful of Duralast tools I bought a couple years ago. The ones I have are the older Taiwan made tools. To my observation the Duralast that I bought are very high quality when compared to many of the recent common/pedestrian USA made offerings, like the brands you named above. I actually have been quite impressed with my few Duralast tools Heard they scaled down their quality recently and now are sourcing their basic handtools from a different maker in China. Don't know, haven't picked up any new Duralast hand tools in about a year. Too bad if they have changed their quality and maker.

Have to admit that 99% of all my hand tools are older high quality USA made tools from various makers. These Duralast are the few imports I have in my arsenal.

HandyManny · Oct 20, 2011

FergusonTO35 said:
The facepalm pic is how I feel whenever the owner or retailer of a respectable tool brand decides to ***** it out for increased sales. This is precisely what happened to Kobalt and the trend is now claiming formerly stalwart USA brands like Channellock and Estwing.

I have seen where Estwing is changing very recently, more and more Taiwan imported Estwing tools. Seeing this very recently at Home Depot.

I was not aware that Channellock has started doning the same thing :headscrat

. As far as I know nearly all genuine Channellock pliers are still being made in one of two facilities in Meadville, PA by American workers. Unless you are refering to the cheap knock-off Channellock branded tool kits that were sold through Sams Club a while back. But Snap-On has been kind of doing the same thing through both Costco and Ace Hardware with some knock off rebranded products. To me this does nothing but ruin a brands reputation when they do this type of stuff.

Blacknwhitepit · Oct 22, 2011

Guess you are an old timer here Mr. Painter........ I was posting here only a mere 5 years before you became a "member".

Pro Painter.... You seem to like speaking for the entire board. I'm sorry, I missed your election and ascendancy to President and spokesman for Garage Journal...

I suppose no one is allowed to disagree with your highness...

The facepalm is for the lovefest that Pro Painter and 3 other people on this board have started for Duralast... Very akin to the Pump and dump mentality on stock message boards in the late 90's...

But really sickens me are members like Pro-Painter who intentionally post RACIST and HATE inspiring, derisive messages.....

The quote in Pro Painters signature block is truly a message of hate intended to divide people.

Last rules I saw, hate speech was not tolerated on GJ.

-BWP

John316 · Oct 22, 2011

Someone started a discussion thread about tools sold at an auto parts store and is bashed for it. Please, would an "old timer" here please post a list of tool brands "approved" for discussion at GJ?

jeffk14 · Oct 22, 2011

Blacknwhitepit said:
Guess you are an old timer here Mr. Painter........ I was posting here only a mere 5 years before you became a "member".

Pro Painter.... You seem to like speaking for the entire board. I'm sorry, I missed your election and ascendancy to President and spokesman for Garage Journal...

I suppose no one is allowed to disagree with your highness...

The facepalm is for the lovefest that Pro Painter and 3 other people on this board have started for Duralast... Very akin to the Pump and dump mentality on stock message boards in the late 90's...

But really sickens me are members like Pro-Painter who intentionally post RACIST and HATE inspiring, derisive messages.....

The quote in Pro Painters signature block is truly a message of hate intended to divide people.

Last rules I saw, hate speech was not tolerated on GJ.

-BWP

So much dickheadery in one post. :wtf:

Where to begin? :headscrat

north · Oct 22, 2011

If people could go back to posting about their Duralast experiences and take the other stuff to PM's? I would like to learn about tools here.
If you don't think a thread is worthy, don't post to keep it alive.
Thanks.

NWphotog · Oct 22, 2011

north said:
If people could go back to posting about their Duralast experiences and take the other stuff to PM's? I would like to learn about tools here.
If you don't think a thread is worthy, don't post to keep it alive.
Thanks.

x1000 especially the part about not posting in threads that are unworthy. This has been an informative thread thanks to Pro Painter and many others. Thanks!

bayoutoolguy · Oct 23, 2011

yes, exactly what nwphotog said.

USMCdodge · Oct 23, 2011

I have a 3 ton floor jack made by duralast. Not sure if its the "good old kind" or new but its pretty much indestructible.

duralast tools must haves?

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