black chrome sockets

[chipper]

I was at walmart earlier today browsing the hardware dept. while the wife shops and i was checking out the stanley set of black chrome sockets my question is what's the benefit of these they cost about 50% more then the traditional stanley set. anybody ever use these and have rewiews?

 

[CNGsaves]

Marketing, man marketing. Black chrome is "new" product. Actually probably cheaper for them to produce black chrome than regular chrome . . . . but they've got you convinced that it should have HIGHER price!!

Next they'll sell pink ones for womem and be 30% higher yet!!

 

[chris142]

Gotta have them for those ugly black wheels on every truck and Jeep in town

 

[TAMPAGT07]

Black chrome is sexier then regular chrome.....Just say a hottie is walking through pit row...She sees a dweeb using regular chrome sockets, but right next to the dweeb she sees "Joe Cool" with his "Black Chrome" sockets.......Who do think is gettin laid??? Black chrome all the way.....

 

[Texican]

As far as I can tell, the black chrome is just for a different look. A few years ago, I bought a set of each of the black, blue and red sets. Gave those to my boy and his cousins to play around with. I kind of liked the way the blue set looked but the coating was fairly cheap and peeled easily.

 

[dirtydogintex]

Black chrome is sexier then regular chrome.....Just say a hottie is walking through pit row...She sees a dweeb using regular chrome sockets, but right next to the dweeb she sees "Joe Cool" with his "Black Chrome" sockets.......Who do think is gettin laid??? Black chrome all the way.....

script for a real cool dude beer commercial?
keysomething??

 

[allinon72]

It's just a coating so I wouldn't expect it to last very long, especially on a low end Stanley set.

 

[wise]

I pulled a set of the black chrome stanley sets out of a dumpster of a Canadian Tire I worked at years ago... The coatings did peel really easily and the sockets wern't very good quality and I broke a few. If you leave them on the hood of a truck on a really hot sunny summer day they heat up feirce as well. I don't know what happened to them, but I used the 8mm 1/4 socket for years until I replaced my 1/4 set with a snap-on set I found at a pawn shop last week, and payed a song for.

 

[tyndall]

Drop a socket in the dark and you'll see how beneficial black chrome is.

 

[Spudland_Dave]

It's just a coating so I wouldn't expect it to last very long, especially on a low end Stanley set.

I wonder what coating it really is..on a stanley cheapie set...it certianly wont be the following, BUT...Black Nitride Finishing as you can see in hydraulic cylinder rods is far superior to any industrial hard chrome...same can be said for gun barrels.

 

[allinon72]

I'm willing to bet its some sort of spray on transparent coating that goes right over the regular chrome. That's how they do aftermarket rims and they are not very durable.

 

[Skin]

It's just a coating so I wouldn't expect it to last very long, especially on a low end Stanley set.

it isn't just a coating. Its not like an impact, the plating is actually black. That said its still a stupid idea for reasons already stated.

 

[SO/PW newbie]

Gotta have them for those ugly black wheels on every truck and Jeep in town

Agreed!!

 

[ckadams00]

I have a set of sockets that were chromed, then had a black chrome coat applied, followed by a matte chrome coat then a flat black and finally another glossy black "chrome". They cost $87 each and are made in China.

 

[jmm]

I got some cheap black chrome sockets several years ago from a local import dealer -- basically an indy HF. 2 sets -- 3/8 shallow, metric and sae; they're made by a cheap-o brand called GRIP, but they've performed surprisingly well in about 5 years of junk yard runs and whatever else I could throw at em (they live under the seat in my pick-up). Before then I'd buy the sets in the dollar bin that were about as solid as butter -- these black chrome sockets are way better. I've put serious weight behind them plenty, and haven't broken one. The black finish is wearing off. Where there is no black, the finish looks like regular chrome without the sheen. I don't think any of these sockets have stamps, so eventually the numbering will wear off. There's no problem with peeling though. For the money I paid for these (less than 15 bucks for both sets), they're winners.

 

[toolz]

Drop a socket in the dark and you'll see how beneficial black chrome is.

Too true! Had to strip and rebuild a boiler, lots of black iron pipe, diesel soot, etc - the steamfitter had a set of those black Stanley tools, what a pain...

 

[Gmonkee]

I have the Stanley black set as well, the color wears away but nothing in the set has broken yet even with heavy use. That has 5 years with me now.

I also have the colored AZ deep sockets (just like the HF sets) and soon will have two 1/4" HF sets of the different anodized colors.
They will be used long after the colors have worn away too if I have it my way.

As the black goes I try to not work in the dark or under poor lighting when possible. I've not lost one yet.
Some need all one brand or another, full Hansen trays or whatever, that is their choice.

I like my stuff to be distinct from my co-workers stuff for easier pick up at the end of a job.