Tools you thought would be **** but turned out ok

Chromdome35 · Apr 2, 2018

What tools have you bought or been given that you thought would be junk/****/gimmick but actually turned out ok?

For me, it was this magnetic wristband my kids gave me for Christmas one year.

I have found myself using it frequently, especially when I'm up on a ladder.

Michael_in_DE · Apr 2, 2018

I love that wrist strap piece. so useful.

For me it's the medical grade forceps I found in a dumpster while on base in the AF.

bwringer · Apr 2, 2018

HF 20T hydraulic press.

It's big and gross-looking, but hasn't given me any trouble. I bought it to do wheel bearings (in a fit of anger at after an incompetent assclown at a machine shop charged me $40 to ruin an expensive bearing), but daggum, I never anticipated how often I would encounter the need to carefully and slowly apply a large force to something.

Corndoggeh · Apr 2, 2018

HF angle grinder
The 40 pc for $15 wrench set i bought as an emergency vehicle set.
Theres actually a lot that i cant even recall right now.

ratdoggy · Apr 2, 2018

Step drill bits....I thought they were a joke but I use them almost exclusively

engineer2 · Apr 2, 2018

Inherited a "GM Goodwrench" brand 3/8 ratchet from my dad. It's actually pretty nice.

When the kids were little, they were playing with Cable Cuffs at HD because they thought they were handcuffs. I bought a few and ended up liking them for air hose storage.

Chromdome35 · Apr 2, 2018

engineer2 said:
Inherited a "GM Goodwrench" brand 3/8 ratchet from my dad. It's actually pretty nice.

When the kids were little, they were playing with Cable Cuffs at HD because they thought they were handcuffs. I bought a few and ended up liking them for air hose storage.

I have some of these and I like them as well for cords and air hoses.

Coach James · Apr 2, 2018

My Blue Hawk 1/2 ratchet. It has become my go to 1/2 inch as the head is smaller than any of my other ratchets. Used it on everything from very low torque stuff to suspension work. Never a problem with it.

Coach

Tallpilot · Apr 2, 2018

bwringer said:
HF 20T hydraulic press.

It's big and gross-looking, but hasn't given me any trouble. I bought it to do wheel bearings (in a fit of anger at after an incompetent assclown at a machine shop charged me $40 to ruin an expensive bearing), but daggum, I never anticipated how often I would encounter the need to carefully and slowly apply a large force to something.

It is a life saver and once you have one you find more uses for it. As one reviewer commented you couldn't buy the steel to make it for the coupon price.

plinker · Apr 2, 2018

Gear ties. They seemed useful, but I wasnt sure about them. Once I actually started to use them on a few thing they found new uses.

kctyphoon · Apr 2, 2018

The $19 HF sawzall.. I had one for years.. $13 corded drill too.. first use on the drill, a guy dropped it from 20' up onto concrete. Case cracked, still worked.. sawzall saw a few good years of use and even lived to be passed onto someone else. It's probably still going..

kctyphoon · Apr 2, 2018

plinker said:
Gear ties. They seemed useful, but I wasnt sure about them. Once I actually started to use them on a few thing they found new uses.

Ditto.. I have the biggest ones holding down a 28' ladder now..

neblinc · Apr 2, 2018

Wife bought me a Craftsman 12v right angle impact years ago for X-mas. Never used it until I started my pex crawlspace project and was the best thing for attaching the clips to the floor joist with the tight quarters I had.

Randy

Dingleburry · Apr 2, 2018

Honestly the pliers wrench. Didnt think it was gonna be "****" but more gimmick. They my fav pliers along with cobra

bwringer · Apr 3, 2018

Corndoggeh said:
HF angle grinder

I haven't actually managed to kill one of these yet. They're noisy and they get hot, but by damn they keep spinning.

They're so friggin' cheap it's not even worth changing the wheel or disc -- just cough up another $10 or so so you have an assortment with various wire wheels, flap discs, cutting wheels, grinding wheels, etc.

Roberts210 · Apr 3, 2018

Harbor Freight needle scaler. I used it 4-5 hours a day for weeks on end and it never let me down.

kctyphoon · Apr 3, 2018

Chromdome35 said:
What tools have you bought or been given that you thought would be junk/****/gimmick but actually turned out ok?

For me, it was this magnetic wristband my kids gave me for Christmas one year.

I have found myself using it frequently, especially when I'm up on a ladder.

To add to this - the ambidextrous drill holsters. I bought 2 on Amazon for like $11 each. Love them. Use them to hold my m12 hammer drill and impact driver

MagnoGrip 002-580 Magnetic Drill Holster - Left and Right Handed, Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00P9AVTZQ/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Parrothead · Apr 3, 2018

I’ve got a whole bunch of stuff I own that I thought would be junk, but wasn’t.

Great Neck metric socket set purchased at least 20 years ago from Autozone. The ratchet was complete **** but the sockets held up great! It’s funny to see my dad with his Snap-on ratchet and Great Neck sockets, but they work.

Titan comfort grip ratchets. I bought them cheap and actively tried to break them...couldn’t including a 250+ lb man jumping on it trying to get seized lug nuts off a Denali

Performance Tool sockets. Bought them when my tools got stolen as a quick replacement and as I waited on an insurance check that never came. Used in a professional environment and held up great. They’re still being used in my junkyard box.

Husky black handled import screwdrivers. Bought them on Black Friday and I find myself grabbing them over other “better” screwdrivers.

Husky ratcheting screwdriver. I like it better than my Snap-on ratcheting screwdriver.

Task Force round head ratchets made in Taiwan. I also bought these when my tools were stolen and they’re impressive and took a beating in a professional environment.

Craftsman Robogrip pliers. They get blasted here a lot, but they’re great for removing showerheads and aerators because they have enough touch to do so without maring the surface.

Stanley torx socket set from Walmart. I bought those assuming they’d fail, and haven’t. Made in Taiwan. They’ve taken a beating too!

Pittsburg torx drivers. When I bought them they were made in Taiwan. They’re not any better or worse than my Craftsman Professional torx bit drivers

I’ve got all kinds of tools from Snap-on to Dollar Tree and you’d be surprised how well some of the “cheap ****” actually works. A tool snob I am not.

jeepinerdeep · Apr 3, 2018

HF Pneumatic sheet metal shear. Just can't kill it. I don't recall paying more than about 35 bucks for it. And I generally loathe the place. But I'm giving credit where due.

6PTsocket · Apr 3, 2018

Tallpilot said:
It is a life saver and once you have one you find more uses for it. As one reviewer commented you couldn't buy the steel to make it for the coupon price.

Thats true of a lot of their stuff. I have some 1/2 barrel style planters that we move around on the deck. The price of garden store mobile bases is ridiculous. I put them on the 'always on sale' HF dollies. I couldn't buy the casters for what they cost. They have been left out in the NJ weather for several years with no problem. I am always amazed that that the freebie DMM works as well as it does.

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Jason280 · Apr 3, 2018

I was very skeptical of the HF impact sockets, but they turned out to be one of my better buys....Ive beat on them for years, and they just keep working.

Nineeightyone · Apr 3, 2018

Jason280 said:
I was very skeptical of the HF impact sockets, but they turned out to be one of my better buys....Ive beat on them for years, and they just keep working.

I've had my eye on these for a while, I want a good 6-point set of 1/2" drive sockets for hand tools and eventually for when I upgrade to a cordless/air model. Glad to hear they've treated you well, I was up between the HF and the Kobalt ones.

Not that I thought it was going to be garbage in the first place, but I'm impressed with how well my HF low-profile floor jack has held up over the years. Over a decade it's been the only jack I have (bought it when I was 17 and didn't have much money), and it's never let me down (pun intended) and shows no signs of stopping. I'm in the market for another jack, and I might just buy the regular profile version to even things out.

crewchief888 · Apr 3, 2018

i have a couple of the old ($9.99 on sale) HF orange grinders.

at least 10 years old, and i havent been able to kill them yet either :thumbup:

HF 1/2" dr impact swivel sockets have held up for almost 10 years, and ive beat on a couple of them with a 3/4" dr gun.

tool shop ( $10 @ menards) pad sander i bought 13 years ago for 1 project, i cant believe it still works with all the drywall ive sanded with it :eyecrazy:

Kev442 · Apr 3, 2018

HF impact and HF Pittsburgh (not pro) six point socket sets. The laser etching turned out to be ****, but the sockets themselves have been my go to for a decade or more. I just upgraded to Gearwrench six points last year, but it is still about 50\50 in usage.
I also used to buy the 9.99 grinders, but two have died, so I am moving up to 29.99 non HF ones from now on.They gave good service as has the 9.99 vsr drill. I have many hours of scotchbrite and other sanding with it.

ken w. · Apr 3, 2018

I'm not sure if this counts but I was walking through a scrap yard and tripped on a ratchet handle sticking out of the ground. It was an SK 1/2" ratchet. It was so rusted that there wasn't a speck of finish on it. I was going to whip it in a scrap heap , but I put it in my pocket and took it home instead. I wire wheeled it and saw the SK logo and kept cleaning it. I soaked in a mix of trans fluid / kroil for a few weeks. When it came out I had to smack it with a hammer a dozen or so times and got it to turn and ratchet. I got the ball to work. I couldn't get the retaining ring off , I broke it. With a little work and another soak in Kroil , I got it to work really good. It still looks like **** , but it now sits in my IH tractor tool box as a beater ratchet. I don't think anyone will steal this one.

Druder · Apr 4, 2018

A Stanley ratchet and socket set I got when I was young. My dad is famous for getting super cheap thoughtless Xmas gifts last minute so they must have had these at the discount store down the street. They've been in the trunk of three cars now and while I don't use them super often they're my go to for my hitch mount bike rack. They have a grip ring on the head for hand loosening that's really useful.

mikegt4 · Apr 4, 2018

I had a Clarke (china) 4 1/2" angle grinder that seemed to run forever outlasting a Milwaukee and a DeWalt. When it finally died I couldn't even put it in the trash for a year.

MTNSleder · Apr 4, 2018

Dingleburry said:
Honestly the pliers wrench. Didnt think it was gonna be "****" but more gimmick. They my fav pliers along with cobra

Same. Really like my pliers wrench.

rustbucket5 · Apr 4, 2018

when just starting out i had to make do with princess auto sockets (chrome) figuring when i broke them id upgrade.......3 years later and they show no sign of breaking and this is using on impacts mostly.

matthew · Apr 4, 2018

Inspection mirror with LED light. I had needed a new mirror, it was on sale, so I tried it. I had thought the LED was gimmicky and would either not be bright enough compared to using a flashlight or would burn through batteries like mad, but it's proven to be really really useful - it may put out less light, but it actually puts it exactly where you're looking, so it just works.

racinfarmer · Apr 4, 2018

Druder said:
A Stanley ratchet and socket set I got when I was young. My dad is famous for getting super cheap thoughtless Xmas gifts last minute so they must have had these at the discount store down the street. They've been in the trunk of three cars now and while I don't use them super often they're my go to for my hitch mount bike rack. They have a grip ring on the head for hand loosening that's really useful.

Look to see if the ratchet and sockets are made in the US. If they are, I think they may be rebranded Proto or Challenger stuff.

For me, the HF punch sets have been surprisingly good.

Ohmthis · Apr 5, 2018

mikegt4 said:
I had a Clarke (china) 4 1/2" angle grinder that seemed to run forever outlasting a Milwaukee and a DeWalt. When it finally died I couldn't even put it in the trash for a year.

I bought on of these at a farm and fleet years ago. I overheated that thing until the plastic actually defotmed. It never died on me. Then one day I went to use it and the factory installed smoke just came out and it never worked again. It was a sad day in the shop.

crane operator · Apr 5, 2018

The gear reducer lug nut remover tools. Someone recommended it to me when I was battling some over tightened lugs on a lowboy. It works.

The plastic case is junk, but you just wheel away on the handle and on a really tight one you can see the whole thing twisting up with the torque on it, then crack and they break loose. It's a lifesaver on the side of the road with heavy equipment.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MI0DOW6/?tag=atomicindus08-20

JMQ4 · Apr 5, 2018

Craftsman universal Max access ratchet/socket set, 1/4 & 3/8, metric and sae. Saw them while passing through Sears one day. Watched online for a while until they went on sale, for some reason just couldn’t justify paying full price for something I thought was a gimmick. I haven’t used them a lot, but there are times when they are really handy, not absolutely necessary, but handy. Example - I just did shocks on my truck, and they were perfect for the top nut on the fronts.

rq375 · Apr 6, 2018

Jason280 said:
I was very skeptical of the HF impact sockets, but they turned out to be one of my better buys....Ive beat on them for years, and they just keep working.

A couple of my HF SAE deeps are starting to look worn enough to replace... I have been using them for all kinds of automotive work since about 1990 though.

mdog892001 · Apr 7, 2018

Stanley Walmart 12pt metric socket set. Iv stripped a few out but most are still alive

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Bryanthegreat · Apr 7, 2018

Powertorque 12v 3/8 impact from O’reillys. It was on sale a month ago for around 50.00. I bought it not expecting much but it has been a decent gun so far for light disassembly it is rated at 100 ft lbs. It had to work a little but I was able to loosen Lug nuts on a Ford Edge that were torqued to 100ft lbs

Negen · Jul 2, 2018

I had a gm pass through socket set that I used for oil changes and other things on three cars we had used it for five years till the ball barring popped out best 24$ socket set I ever had.

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turnthewrench 2.0 · Jul 2, 2018

Ryobi corded drill. Paid $39.00 in Lowe's back in '10, still going strong.

Al Borland · Jul 2, 2018

racinfarmer said:
Look to see if the ratchet and sockets are made in the US. If they are, I think they may be rebranded Proto or Challenger stuff.

If they were the ones with the grip ring on top by the selector, it may be US or Taiwan made. Either is a strong dual-pawl ratchet sold as Challenger, Task Force, and still available as a Stanley. Bulky but strong.

Tools you thought would be **** but turned out ok

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