Cheapest place to buy individual sockets

[Traule]

Hey guys,

So I recently purchased I set of socket trays for my sockets, and although I am very happy with my purchase, the fact that I'm missing a bunch of sockets is driving. me. nuts.

So being the good OCD guy that I am, I did an inventory and figured I'm missing exactly 44 sockets. Now I am not a professional mechanic, even saying i'm a DIY'er is almost pushing it, I just like having tools lol.

So basically, what's the best (read: cheapest) place to look for individual sockets? Right now I have mastercraft maximum sockets that I really like, but I can't see myself spending 5-12$ per sockets

Thanks !

 

[reynoldston]

If you are not going to use them professionally. I would say Harbor Freight.

 

[Brownsfan]

Harbor Freight doesn't sell singles anymore. Plus I think the OP is in Canada. I have never seen the Master Craft brand in the states. Have you checked Sears or Home Depot. I remember Home Depot having Husky singles pretty cheap. But that was in the US.

 

[lightning02]

HF is hit or miss. they skip alot of sizes. try kobalt at lowes but stay away from there china stuff. there usa/taiwan made sockets are very good tho.

 

[nine4gmc]

I tried filling my sets piece at a time, even trading with other members and hitting every pawn shop in town for months. I finally bought a brand new full set of sockets and sold my partial sets. Even with the full sets, there are a few skipped sizes but it's better than what I had going on.

 

[Traule]

Harbor Freight doesn't sell singles anymore. Plus I think the OP is in Canada. I have never seen the Master Craft brand in the states. Have you checked Sears or Home Depot. I remember Home Depot having Husky singles pretty cheap. But that was in the US.

Thanks for the replies guys, I forgot some essential details. I am from Montreal (go habs go), but I don't mind purchasing online. I checked Canadian Tire and I seem to have every socket made by Mastercraft, so I'll have to check elsewere.

I saw the Husky sockets, and while the price looks right, they don't seem to have a chrome finish, or maybe that's just the way they look in pictures.

 

[lightning02]

anther idea and in most times even cheaper is to buy a new set of tools that have your sizes and sell off the rest. once you add up all 44 sockets it sometimes just cheaper to buy a large kit and take what you need.

 

[Brownsfan]

Thanks for the replies guys, I forgot some essential details. I am from Montreal (go habs go), but I don't mind purchasing online. I checked Canadian Tire and I seem to have every socket made by Mastercraft, so I'll have to check elsewere.

I saw the Husky sockets, and while the price looks right, they don't seem to have a chrome finish, or maybe that's just the way they look in pictures.

They are chrome. At least they are in the USA. They are virtually identical to Gearwrench.

 

[erty67]

Cripe Distrubuting or try swap meets/flea markets for used.

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[thebeekeeper1]

I did well online at MSC Industrial and Zoro. If you have NAPA up dere, hey, they have individual Carlisles that are reasonable.

 

[franzdom]

India?

 

[buba]

Thanks for the replies guys, I forgot some essential details. I am from Montreal (go habs go), but I don't mind purchasing online. I checked Canadian Tire and I seem to have every socket made by Mastercraft, so I'll have to check elsewere.

Slip down over the boarder to the Tool Shed in Worchester MA. Buckets full of sockets 50 cents to 1 dollar US each. Come on, you know you need a road trip. How you explain the trunk full of sockets to the boarder agents is your 'own lookout'.

 

[1950mercury]

Blue point?

 

[BoostAddiction]

I made up the missing pieces in my Hansen trays with sockets from McMaster.

Sockets were a mix of brands, but all looked decent.

 

[Empty Pockets]

As time has gone on, I have picked up many odd sized sockets in box lots at auction. These are usually measured in 32nd. The problem is by then I have adopted the other tools in the lot and will soon need a bigger garage.

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[Fugio]

Sears or Lowe's are my only options here. I do best, by far, and pawn shops and thrift stores.

 

[stihlntime]

I would start at Cripe Distributing. I've ordered several items and they have had great service. Code welcome back gets something like 10 percent off.

 

[Ponchoguy]

There are several Ebay sellers that sell USA Craftsman by the socket individually. I've bought through them to fill in my sets over the years, worked out well.

 

[Steevo]

Can you buy from Tooltopia? I have filled in a lot of individual sockets through them.
http://www.tooltopia.com/

 

[Jacobson]

You don't need sockets, you need therapy or medication for your OCD.

 

[Tenex]

I'm in the process of doing the same for my SK 1/4" set and Sunex 3/8" impact set. The cheapest place I've found so far for both brands is JB Tools Sales. My OCD level requires that I finish out the set with sockets of the same brand.

 

[JettaGetUpandGo]

Your OCD will not be satisfied if your "filler" sockets are a different brand or look significantly different.

I bought one of the 263 piece US Made socket sets from Sears a number of years ago. I filled in as I needed with add-on sets or individuals from the store after they started the laser etching, then production in China. My trays are labeled, so the fact that I don't need to see all of the labels on the sockets makes me forget some have the laser etching. They look identical otherwise.

What about selling your current sockets and purchasing a quality budget brand like Tekton or Sunex. They both make just about every size imaginable, are a decent quality, and are very reasonably priced (especially in sets compared to individual sockets).

My impact sockets are all Sunex and were an excellent value. 1/4"-1/2" shallow and deep sets for $350ish.

 

[Shiftless]

Maybe you could post a list of what you need and the generous members of GJ could go through their buckets of extras and mail them to you. I have quite a few USA Craftsman extras. Gotta have 100 posts to post in GJ classifieds.

If you're on a tight budget, and as long as you don't mind Chinese tools, like Jetta said, wouldn't your OCD be better satisfied if you simply went to Harbor Freight, bought all new matching sets along with new organizing racks, and then sold off your old stuff?
Watch for sales on sets at Canadian Tire, right?
If you don't already have a rollaway box, I can recommend the HF 44 inch box.

 

[XxToolAholicxX]

,Sears has a huge inventory on single sockets and reasonable priced... Or hit the flea market on weekends...

 

[scissorman]

I've bought alot of single IR impact sockets from www.flexibleindustrial.com and they were cheap on pricing. If the order is over $100 then free shipping otherwise shipping is usually close or more than the pricing of the sockets.

 

[JettaGetUpandGo]

If you're on a tight budget, and as long as you don't mind Chinese tools, like Jetta said, wouldn't your OCD be better satisfied if you simply went to Harbor Freight, bought all new matching sets along with new organizing racks, and then sold off your old stuff?
Watch for sales on sets at Canadian Tire, right?
If you don't already have a rollaway box, I can recommend the HF 44 inch box.

The Harbor Freight sets tend to skip a lot of sizes. Since there is no open stock, it's impossible to fill them in. Tekton and Sunex are both Taiwan, not Chinese. That's not to say all Chinese tools are garbage. The Craftsman sockets are honestly nearly identical to the USA, new, better ratchets are out, and Harbor Freight's quality seems to be improving (especially their ratchets).

I would have no issues with buying a large Chinese Craftsman set, but the Taiwan options are likely cheaper than Craftsman pricing.

 

[Shiftless]

The Harbor Freight sets tend to skip a lot of sizes. Since there is no open stock, it's impossible to fill them in. Tekton and Sunex are both Taiwan, not Chinese. That's not to say all Chinese tools are garbage. The Craftsman sockets are honestly nearly identical to the USA, new, better ratchets are out, and Harbor Freight's quality seems to be improving (especially their ratchets).

I would have no issues with buying a large Chinese Craftsman set, but the Taiwan options are likely cheaper than Craftsman pricing.

All you pro mechanics can chime in on this, but I always thought that the "holes" in the sets are because there are no fasteners anywhere that require those odd sizes. Is that right?

 

[AmishFury]

Your OCD will not be satisfied if your "filler" sockets are a different brand or look significantly different.

tell me about it... bought a 7/8" Pro-Grade brand 3/8 drive socket it's noticably shorter than my other SAE shallows... every time i'm in rural king i stop and think about just buying the Pro-Grade SAE set

 

[JettaGetUpandGo]

All you pro mechanics can chime in on this, but I always thought that the "holes" in the sets are because there are no fasteners anywhere that require those odd sizes. Is that right?

Clearly you don't own a Volkswagen. 16, 18, 20, 21, and 23 are commonly skipped sizes. I've used 16, 18, and 21 on my Jetta. I have yet to find a 20 or 23mm fastener, but will be prepared if I do!

 

[Shiftless]

Clearly you don't own a Volkswagen. 16, 18, 20, 21, and 23 are commonly skipped sizes. I've used 16, 18, and 21 on my Jetta. I have yet to find a 20 or 23mm fastener, but will be prepared if I do!

Thanks for the answer...I was looking for input on that question. I wonder why the sizes are skipped if there are real world needs for those sizes. One answer might be if there are SAE equivalents for those sizes and the manufacturers assume, rightly or wrongly, that mechanics have complete sets of metric AND SAE.

 

[Traule]

Thanks for all of your answers guys! Out of interest, here are the sockets i'm missing.

1/2 Drive - SAE
1-1/4"
Deep
1"
1-1/16"
1-1/8"
1-1/4"

1/2 Drive - Metric
10
21
23
25
Deep
20
21
22
23
24
25
27

3/8 Drive - SAE
1/4
Deep
1/4
5/16
13/16
7/8
15/16
1

3/8 Drive - Metric

Deep
6
7
8
9
11
19
20


1/4 Drive - SAE
7/16
5/8
Deep
3/16
7/32
9/32
9/16
5/8

1/4 Drive - Metric
4.5
15
Deep
4
4.5
5
5.5
14
15

 

[ravenzfusion]

Auto Zone has a good stock of Duralast taiwanese open stock at decent prices. Lots of different sizes too

 

[03protege]

anther idea and in most times even cheaper is to buy a new set of tools that have your sizes and sell off the rest. once you add up all 44 sockets it sometimes just cheaper to buy a large kit and take what you need.

That's the truth.

Unless you are dealing with a brand such as Snap On where the price doesn't change it is almost always cheaper to buy the large sets. Doubly so when they are on sale.

 

[Shiftless]

Traule:

So you don't mind so much if the fill in sockets don't match?

 

[altersaddle]

The cheapest place around here is the flea market. After that, thrift stores and maybe pawn shops. I've had the best luck with the Re-Store. However, these places stock tools based on what people donate / sell, so you'll only find the commonly used sizes in abundance. The extreme ends of the Hansen trays are very uncommon.

I bought a few singles from Canadian Tire, it gets pricey at $5-6 each for the big ones though. They also don't make all the sizes - to my knowledge, you can't get a Mastercraft 5/8" socket in 1/4" drive.

I've also mail ordered a few from China through eBay. For the extreme sizes that you probably won't ever use this makes a lot of sense. They took a while to get here, and I haven't yet had an opportunity to turn a bolt with them, but they look OK in the rack.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/261942283582?item=261942283582&var=560762704174&viewitem=&vxp=mtr

One thing, though - the cheap sockets often have metal left inside (it's cheaper to leave it there than knock it out) and won't go on the Hansen trays.

 

[lightning02]

One thing, though - the cheap sockets often have metal left inside (it's cheaper to leave it there than knock it out) and won't go on the Hansen trays.

had a friend with hansen trays. he bought some taiwan sockets. cant remember if they where kobalt or tekton that had the hole thru the sockets but there just alittle to tight to fit over the pegs. he drilled out the sockets to make them little bit bigger. it was only a few. maybe 3 or 4 of them. that was out of the whole MM and SAE trays so it wasnt to bad.

 

[stage20]

there is not a place. ebay or amazon shipping kills the deal most of the time and lowes, napa, etc are just too much for sockets you will probably never use.

i too once had a list like yours and im down to only 4 that i need, but its stupid to buy them, i can say for sure i wont use them.

still looking for them at sales, though.

on the smaller sockets, husky is about the cheapest if you have a home depot nearby.

flea market and pawn shops best place.

 

[Traule]

Traule:

So you don't mind so much if the fill in sockets don't match?

nope not at all

 

[montanafordman]

Racemart: http://www.speedassociates.com/Sockets_c_824.html

I like the KT Pro stuff I've gotten from them.

That's what I'd do. I filled in all the holes in my Harbor Freight impact socket sets with King Tony impacts from racemart and they seem nice enough for my occasional home use.

Also the Lowes Kobalt sockets are a good inexpensive choice.