HF punch and chisel set

[Jwych]

so I bought a punch and chisel set from HF a few days ago and today went to use the center punch. wow what a POS, the thing mushroomed after 3 hits with a 24 oz ball peen lol. guess I cant cheap out on some tools. staying away from HF for my work tools from now on!


anyone have a good punch and chisel set that holds to the test of time? sk?

 

[Ruger_556]

My center punches are Starrett for a reason...

 

[SteveCh]

Amazes me people keep buying stuff there

 

[Jwych]

Amazes me people keep buying stuff there

I have definetly learned my lesson. will not be going in there for tools anymore!

 

[sloppy]

My center punches are Starrett for a reason...

Some of their new punch's are pretty crappy to..

 

[Ruger_556]

Some of their new punch's are pretty crappy to..

Beat the **** out of it for 3 months and I have yet to dull it. I don't know what more you want out of a punch

 

[CJM8515]

Have an older pittsburg 12pc (I think its 12pc) set, suckers are very good. Over the years the only thing I ever did was bend one of the very long taper punches by abusing it. Newer stuff looks nothing what I have.

 

[ihateminimumwage]

Some of their new punch's are pretty crappy to..

I think they're doing the same as Mayhew, where they have a cheap line and a pro line. I made the mistake of thinking I was getting a set of Mayhew punches for $30 instead of $60-100. The chisels would dent with every use, versus my 50 year old Proto chisels and punches that I inherited that have held up perfectly.

 

[wafrederick]

The tool truck brands are expensive.I bought a Matco 25 piece set,retail price is about $500.00 and bought it when it was on sale.Have not mushroomed one yet in the set.

 

[jeepinerdeep]

I bought a set for home use, they were so brittle it was dangerous. I had to chuck em.

I have to give a giggle about Chinese metal products, they look like the real thing, but they are always too hard or too soft, very rarely just right.

 

[sloppy]

I think they're doing the same as Mayhew, where they have a cheap line and a pro line. I made the mistake of thinking I was getting a set of Mayhew punches for $30 instead of $60-100. The chisels would dent with every use, versus my 50 year old Proto chisels and punches that I inherited that have held up perfectly.

I am sure its just a We have to compete thing.. It ***** buying the high end named products and getting a low end tool.. The pricing is still never really low end either..

 

[d.mcfarland]

Wilde are like $11 for Epsteins.

 

[strutaeng]

I'm a hobby mechanic/machinist, so I don't use these a lot, but every now and then I realized the right tool to use was a punch. I finally bought this set at the hardware store: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Dasco-Pro-Punch-and-Chisel-Set-12-Piece-88/100169756

I have used it several times and the quality is good. I'm happy.

 

[rlitman]

I bought a set for home use, they were so brittle it was dangerous. I had to chuck em.

I have to give a giggle about Chinese metal products, they look like the real thing, but they are always too hard or too soft, very rarely just right.

And too brittle is the fear I have when thinking about an HF punch set. Not too worried about them mushrooming.

I've got a bunch of punches and chisels I like.
Snap On punches and chisels, excellent.
Starrett punches, excellent.
Enderes chisels, excellent, although the finish on their punches doesn't live up to Starrett. Still, these are my go-to chisels.
Craftsman. The older chromed square ones were ok. The newer red hex ones are soft, but seem safe to use.
HF. I mushroomed a transfer punch making a dimple on wood. Need I say more. Wouldn't touch their chisels with a 10 foot pole.

 

[SMKS]

I'm no HF hater, but there are affordable, good quality USA-made punches.

I have a bunch of Wilde purchased from Harry Epstein and some Enderes. They're not the most expensive and probably not as good as the high-dollar punches, but they have worked well for me.

 

[JBradley500]

I just got a 12 pack of USA Craftsman punch/chisels for 11.95 the other day. Can't say about the quality but the price seemed ok.

 

[cheechi]

I have a set of punch/chisels from Northern, I remember the coupon price was better at Northern than at HF so I got them. Well the punches were ****, but the chisels have held up better than the Kobalts and no names (probably several from HF) that I have had in the past.

I know my usage of them could sometimes be considered severely abusing them. No issues with them.

 

[Big Pete]

I've had excellent results with the HF transfer punches, centre pops are generally reground taps or end mills in my shop, but I do have a couple of cheapies that seem to be holding up OK. I can live with mushroomimg, it's better than sending shrapnel around, regular cleanup is just maintenance.

 

[ecotec]

I'm a hobby mechanic/machinist, so I don't use these a lot, but every now and then I realized the right tool to use was a punch. I finally bought this set at the hardware store: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Dasco-Pro-Punch-and-Chisel-Set-12-Piece-88/100169756

I have used it several times and the quality is good. I'm happy.

I considered that set a couple times, but I never pulled the trigger. I have the scratch awl that is in that set.

 

[Danglerb]

Lots of cheaper tools have bad heat treating.

For all the hit it with something type of tool, I look for good condition old tools.

 

[upndown]

Still using my Starrett punches I bought 40+ years ago.

 

[monomach]

Amazes me people keep buying stuff there

Some of their tools are ****. Some are excellent and are widely used by pros.

You can't just say what you said like everything is bad.

Now, as for punches...I dunno why anyone would get them from HF unless they knew they were going to misuse and ruin them; punches are something you can get cheap from a US manufacturer if you intend to use them properly.

 

[bcradio]

Anyone try the new Chineesium Craftsman punches?

 

[Danglerb]

Now, as for punches...I dunno why anyone would get them from HF unless they knew they were going to misuse and ruin them; punches are something you can get cheap from a US manufacturer if you intend to use them properly.

I needed to take out some roll pin asap, the set of roll pin punches at HF was less than $10, quality sucked, bent easily, but I got all the pins out and straightened the punches and put them away for another day.

 

[SunsetsAndFriends]

I purchased a Pittsburgh Pro set from HF that have really served me well so far. I paid $8 or so on sale with coupon. Some of the stuff is junk. Some are real nice. Their Taiwan made sockets are very nice.


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[MattPersman]

Good punches and chisels that will last a good portion of your life are expensive. There isn't really any way around it. 10 or 20 bucks for a set they are not gonna be worth a damn if you use them much. May be cheaper just to buy one or two good ones individually as needed than try to get a 10 piece set. Those can be 10-25 each for a good one.