Scout3918
Well-known member
I bought a Williams 24mm box/open wrench. I thought they made is USA. They are made in Taiwan. Seems solid but was disappointed.
Guess i need do better research..
- Thread starter Scout3918
- Start date
Musicinabottle
Banned
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I used to do work for a retired detective who love Elvis. One time he went on a trip across the country and bought a definitive collection of Elvis songs only to realize upon return home that they were Elvis songs that were covers. Man that poor old guy was sure let down.
earlthegoat2
Well-known member
Was the wrench a SuperCombo? Im pretty sure those are always labeled USA.
jakemac
Well-known member
Some are US and some are Taiwan. Something about the part number being numbers or letters, or a combination. I can't remember.
pepi
Well-known member
Not to worry one wrench bought and not made is the USA will not hurt the American worker .
Bet your cell in not US made ........ LOL the irony of it all
Bet your cell in not US made ........ LOL the irony of it all
TheEuronater
Well-known member
I have satin finish Williams wrenches that are also taiwanese, got them at the pawn shop so i knew beforehand though
Not to worry one wrench bought and not made is the USA will not hurt the American worker .
Bet your cell in not US made ........ LOL the irony of it all
I didnt say i was againt anything not made in USA did I? I was under impression Williams were made in USA, and that was deciding factor in my purchase.
And btw if you look at my avatar you might see its a Yamaha. Its not made in USA. Smh
Super Sport
Well-known member
Williams offers both imported tools and USA made tools. If the item # is five numbers, it's made overseas. If it's a mix of numbers and letters, it's likely made in the US.
uncwstudent
Well-known member
Taiwan is good stuff though. I know its not what you wanted but it is great quality!
Wamsutta
Well-known member
Just for future reference, Williams will never have USA and Taiwan made tools on the same catalog page. That's a nice looking wrench.
Not to worry. The bolts were probably made in China. They won't care.
kelpaso1
MEMBER EMERITUS
What is the with dislike for Taiwan? They can make very high quality tools. Sorry, but made in the USA is pretty much gone these day's when other foreign country's can make the same quality at 1/3 the price.
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Fedwrench
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I haven't seen a polished Williams wrench that was made in Taiwan. The Taiwan made wrenches used to be satin finished. 
Roberts210
Well-known member
At least Taiwan-made is better than China-made.
dkoch1982
Member
USA Williams tools part number starts with letter then numbers. Amazon got a lot USA Williams just need to look at part numbers
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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
JR 42
Well-known member
Pretty sure you can get polished and satin Williams wrenches made in Taiwan, and polished Supercombos made in the US. If the wrench or set set part number is all numeric, it's made in Taiwan; if it includes letters it's made in the US. Toolsdelivered.com carries most of the Williams stuff.
JR
JR
I haven't seen a polished Williams wrench that was made in Taiwan. The Taiwan made wrenches used to be satin finished.
They can be had in satin or polished. Here's an example of their polished wrenches. http://www.toolsdelivered.com/Willi...nches-Combination-SAE-Combination-Wrench-Sets
The horror...a product not made in the good ol' US of A. It's as though the humans in other parts of the world are incapable of building a product to the specifications as dictated by the manufacturer. You really think because it was built in the USA it's magically better?
B_Bimmer
Well-known member
Not magic, reality guided by experience. My life is much better because I seek out products made here, or in another country with some level of pride. If something else works for you, knock yourself out, it's a free country. The more I work on and do though, the more sure I am that the chinese can not in fact make anything that is actually built to last. It will probably look very similar to a good product, but it will not last.
Wamsutta
Well-known member
Most of the time yes.
It's not the chinese that are the problem, it's the manufacturer specifying lesser materials, processes and QC checks on the product in combination with moving production to China to save costs to help their bottom line and line the pockets of their share holders and CEOs.
Rather than saying "Chinese stuff is ****" you should be saying "Williams is cheaping out".
Sal Bandini
Well-known member
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2012
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Your wrenches aren't lined up the same way. When I clicked on the pic the sight of the 11/16 tilted me to no end.
HanShotFirst
Well-known member
First...take heart. Williams doesn't do junk (at least that I have seen).
Next - Sometimes tools made in Taiwan can be world class.
I bought a set of Proto Black Chrome Reversible Ratcheting Spline combination wrenches with ASD open ends. These are world class wrenches in every way, I like them better than SnapOn even. These were NOT CHEAP, they’re like $539.00 on Amazon. I later found out they were made in Taiwan and I was UPSET to say the least.
Come to find out, these wrenches are straight up world class. The ASD feature on the open end is really slick. Unlike Flank Drive or WrightGrip it doesn’t damage the fastener unless you REALLY bear down. Even then the mark it leaves is a subtle “dent” rather than chewed up teeth marks you get from SnapOn or Wright. And as best I can tell, the Proto ASD is every bit as effective.
I mistakenly used a 19mm wrench on a rusted up 18mm nut on the suspension of my truck, and the 19mm open end took off the rusted on nut (and I REALLY had to bear down) without stripping the fastener! To say I was impressed is an understatement!
The spline design on the ratcheting box end is quite brilliant as well. The splines aren’t rounded like most spline wrenches, it’s “faceted”…think of a hex fastner, then shrink it down to the size of little splines. So the “shoulders” of the facets on the spline drive subtly dig into the fastener (again with only a fraction of the damage that a FlankDrive or WrightGrip would cause), and now you have an “anti-slip” hold on all 6 sides. It’s a really impressive design, and I really think these ASD reversible ratcheting wrenches are the second best wrenches in the world; PERIOD!
Regardless of country of origin, reglardless of cost, regardless of manufacture…these are the second best wrenches in the world (just my opinion). The number 1 is the US version of this wrench. But unfortunately the US version is twice the price…that’s just over $1,000.00 for a set of 20 (That’s over $50.00 per wrench!). I’m a weekend warrior who mostly works on motorcycles in my garage…I was hard enough to justify $550.00 for the Taiwan set I have…no way I could ever drop a grand on a set of combination wrenches.
All this is to make a point. While I completely understand how frustrating it is to buy a tool thinking it’s US made, only to realize you just paid US prices for a Taiwan tool. SOMETIMES…just sometimes…it turns out that tool is still world class…Taiwan and all.
Next - Sometimes tools made in Taiwan can be world class.
I bought a set of Proto Black Chrome Reversible Ratcheting Spline combination wrenches with ASD open ends. These are world class wrenches in every way, I like them better than SnapOn even. These were NOT CHEAP, they’re like $539.00 on Amazon. I later found out they were made in Taiwan and I was UPSET to say the least.
Come to find out, these wrenches are straight up world class. The ASD feature on the open end is really slick. Unlike Flank Drive or WrightGrip it doesn’t damage the fastener unless you REALLY bear down. Even then the mark it leaves is a subtle “dent” rather than chewed up teeth marks you get from SnapOn or Wright. And as best I can tell, the Proto ASD is every bit as effective.
I mistakenly used a 19mm wrench on a rusted up 18mm nut on the suspension of my truck, and the 19mm open end took off the rusted on nut (and I REALLY had to bear down) without stripping the fastener! To say I was impressed is an understatement!
The spline design on the ratcheting box end is quite brilliant as well. The splines aren’t rounded like most spline wrenches, it’s “faceted”…think of a hex fastner, then shrink it down to the size of little splines. So the “shoulders” of the facets on the spline drive subtly dig into the fastener (again with only a fraction of the damage that a FlankDrive or WrightGrip would cause), and now you have an “anti-slip” hold on all 6 sides. It’s a really impressive design, and I really think these ASD reversible ratcheting wrenches are the second best wrenches in the world; PERIOD!
Regardless of country of origin, reglardless of cost, regardless of manufacture…these are the second best wrenches in the world (just my opinion). The number 1 is the US version of this wrench. But unfortunately the US version is twice the price…that’s just over $1,000.00 for a set of 20 (That’s over $50.00 per wrench!). I’m a weekend warrior who mostly works on motorcycles in my garage…I was hard enough to justify $550.00 for the Taiwan set I have…no way I could ever drop a grand on a set of combination wrenches.
All this is to make a point. While I completely understand how frustrating it is to buy a tool thinking it’s US made, only to realize you just paid US prices for a Taiwan tool. SOMETIMES…just sometimes…it turns out that tool is still world class…Taiwan and all.
You missed the point, it's not about where the tool is from...the fact that country of origin matters this much to some people in a purchase is absurd. A quality tool is a quality tool no matter where it's made. There's no need for people to be crying about things not made in the USA or only buying USA made tools because they're "superior" it is a narrow minded and foolish way to live.
crankshaftdan II
Well-known member
Never ending!
tonyciambrone
Well-known member
Did you ever stop to realize that if it's absurd that the country of origin matters to some people it is equally absurd that you are this worked up about it? Leave the guy alone and enjoy Canadistan
Hah! Yeah that's bugging me too
I had been pulling them out flipping , checking , etc.
Seth
I guess I'm the only one who is sick of reading dozens of threads each day where people are all concerned about something being made or not being made in the USA like it really makes a difference where the thing is made.
Wamsutta
Well-known member
I just thought of something:
I wonder if it's the same Taiwanese manufacturer that makes Matco's non-ratcheting combination wrenches. Wouldn't that be a hoot?
I wonder if it's the same Taiwanese manufacturer that makes Matco's non-ratcheting combination wrenches. Wouldn't that be a hoot?