I have all their ratchets and they've worked well although I'm not in a professional setting, purely backyard mechanic and DIYer ****. The warranty is what sold them to me - if it ever breaks, I can get a new one, similar to the old Craftsman business model. Just posted in another thread but if they ever break, despite that warranty, might seriously consider Gearwrench since they tested the best in Project Farm's test.
Icon Tools
- Thread starter TJCowher
- Start date
and what happened to craftsman tools and warranty !
Much the same likely happen with ICON given time .
Only warranty that truly any good long term is self warranty .
wafrederick
Well-known member
I see Harbor Freight facing lawsuits over the ball joint press now. Now users have received lacerations broken bones in their hands from them breaking. They need to pull them off the shelf and recall them
According to who? All I see is a screenshot of one person who experienced a broken tool.
Do you have a link to this lawsuit(s) or evidence of more than 1 person sharing their experience?
For the record, I don't own the Icon press nor do I care nor am I affected if HF does in fact get sued. I just prefer facts over internet bias on social media.
wafrederick
Well-known member
MrSubaru1387 put out a video out on it an hour ago showing someone's arm wrapped up. Ball joint press broke lacerating their hand breaking a bone in one hand
Hopefully the $600 he saved over buying the BJP1 will cover his ER copay.
I'm sure the SO has never failed like that...
(and of course he has no idea of whether the tool was being used properly - that's as dangerous as anything when it comes to stuff like this. It's a click-driver for him)
I can't say whether the tool is at fault here or not (and neither can Mr. Subaru). It's definitely worth looking at for sure. But there are many tools like this out there that he'd claim "rips off" SO - it's a completely common design. SO didn't invent this tool. I'm sure they make a good one, but I'd be willing to bet they've broken and injured people. Some percentage of those were doing something incorrect with the tool. Being a pro doesn't mean much sometimes - I've watched a couple pros nearly get themselves severely hurt of killed using the clamp-style spring compressors (which is why I own a plate-style and still have a very-healthy amount of respect/caution when using them).
KnurledNut
Well-known member
I have this same adaptor and Snap-on already crunched the numbers.
It’s stamped right on the tool: “Max Torque 5600 IN LB”.
Which is 467 FT LB.
Either way, 600 was pushing it. There is a safety factor figured into max torque recommendations, so its possible it may have succeeded but was still overloaded.
Sorry for the continued thread derailment.
A ball joint press seems like one of those tools where. whatever you’re trying to press is not moving, the easiest course of action is to keep cranking on it, or even better put an impact gun on it.
Keep it up until something gives.
Keep it up until something gives.
I haven't seen anything about a lawsuit either, and I feel like it is unlikely.
I'm in the HF Reddit sub pretty consistently, and I have seen three or maybe four posts about this breaking. At least one or two of those seemed to be improper use (binding/alignment), but I have zero qualifications to judge. That said, I wonder is people are following this warning in the instructions:
So...Icon Manual 'Important Safety Information said:
Which is more likely: Badly-flawed tool or people getting happy with the uggas?
I think people just want something to complain about and there is going to be obvious bias anytime HF and Snap On are involved in the conversation.
But as another user pointed out, the Icon press tool isn't a novel design. There are plenty of similar designs from both unknown manufacturers found on Amazon and well known manufacturers like Astro and others.
If there is a flaw in the Icon manufacturing, it needs to be addressed. But I'd frankly be more concerned with the Chinese pot metal garbage sold on Amazon. I would expect to see those tools failing far more commonly and causing more injuries.
The fact there are people who are literally saying you have to spend $800+ vs $200+ on a tool to avoid injury is frankly ignorant and insulting. But then again, reality and facts don't matter to most people these days. Afterall, everything on the internet is fact and cannot be questioned.
That could be a summation of Mr. Subaru's channel for me...
wafrederick
Well-known member
Weak metal
I'm sure the SO has never failed like that...
(and of course he has no idea of whether the tool was being used properly - that's as dangerous as anything when it comes to stuff like this. It's a click-driver for him)
I can't say whether the tool is at fault here or not (and neither can Mr. Subaru). It's definitely worth looking at for sure. But there are many tools like this out there that he'd claim "rips off" SO - it's a completely common design. SO didn't invent this tool. I'm sure they make a good one, but I'd be willing to bet they've broken and injured people. Some percentage of those were doing something incorrect with the tool. Being a pro doesn't mean much sometimes - I've watched a couple pros nearly get themselves severely hurt of killed using the clamp-style spring compressors (which is why I own a plate-style and still have a very-healthy amount of respect/caution when using them).
four.cycle
Well-known member
So.... anecdotally we have four or five reports of failures, and at least one documented in a YouTube video? How far off am I?
In the larger picture, that's meaningless.
How many of those units has Harbor Freight sold?
Certainly more than half a dozen.
^ That right there tells me "There is a possibility of failure caused by user error."
I wouldn't be condemning the product - and certainly not Harbor Freight - on such scant evidence.
In the larger picture, that's meaningless.
How many of those units has Harbor Freight sold?
Certainly more than half a dozen.
ICON - quoted by @M635_Guy above said:
^ That right there tells me "There is a possibility of failure caused by user error."
I wouldn't be condemning the product - and certainly not Harbor Freight - on such scant evidence.
2ndGearRubber
Well-known member
A ball joint press seems like one of those tools where. whatever you’re trying to press is not moving, the easiest course of action is to keep cranking on it, or even better put an impact gun on it.
Keep it up until something gives.
In fairness, that's the literal function of the tool. You run it until it stops with a high torque and then put the torch to the control arm if that still doesn't work. Usually the forcing screw is running in the single digit rpm when the ball joint breaks free to the point you can watch it turn; cue the guys who think they can remove them with a hammer. LOL
Ideally the tool needs to fail in a way that isn't catastrophic. Having pressed many a rust-belt ball joint, there is basically zero situation the C-frame should ever fail. I've smashed, bent, and oblonged OTC, harbor freight, and Astro cups, they're supposed to be the fuse. If something goes crooked or is out of alignment the press will slowly walk sideways and off center with the target until it renders itself useless. At which point you're crushing adapters or it will get so crooked it simply relives the tension. Sometimes you can "send 'er home" even with the press running a little crooked if you're installing. Try that on removal and a cup might go flying or be totally destroyed.
There's been two or three pictures of broken Icon C-frames since they released, for all I know people score the back side with a cut-off wheel and break them for rage-bait. Regardless, during use the C-frame failing is not acceptable, ever. It would be like a bomb going off, it could kill someone just as a spring compressor could. I generally prefer a 498 air hammer and torch to remove ball joints when possible, as removal uses way more force than install and you can easily crush cups in the process.
IDK why the idea is "Icon broke, need to buy snap on", but that's what gets engagement I suppose.
I think there are definitely HF trolls on the Reddit sub who do exactly that (and return it to the store for a refund). I don't think every failure is due to that, but some have been pretty obvious.
I obviously don't think it was purposeful for the one shown in the video, but I don't have a lot of confidence it wasn't the result of misuse of some kind.
You Basically just said use a tool until you assess that it is not going to work, then use something else.
Pretty much standard in any repair job
I don’t know if they used a torch to help loosen up whatever wouldn’t move in those instances where they broke, but I kind of doubt they did.
Maybe if the thread strip stripped out first that might’ve meant for less injuries, but maybe more :dunno
nh_yota
Well-known member
I have tools from an assortment of brands including some Icon pliers but my go-to brand for sockets and wrenches lately has been Tekton. Unlike Harbor Freight they will replace individual pieces under warranty and their process is painless - just email them a picture of the broken tool and they will mail you out a new one. The best way to buy them is through Zoro tools with a 20% off coupon like I just did last week.
A ball joint press should yield first and not experience what appears to be brittle fracture shown in the pic; the hardness of the Icon appears to be too high. Yielding serves as a warning of impending failure and tells the user to stop. Either way, even if you keep going, something with sufficient ductility doesn't explode. Something like this shouldn't be RC 55; it's not a pair of pliers or screwdriver where that hardness is required. I don't see any elongation/ductility in that picture and that's not good IMO.
Anyone here failed a SO BJ press in a similar manner?
Anyone here failed a SO BJ press in a similar manner?
Model A Fan
Well-known member
I'd frankly just build the set out of eBay purchased Snap-On, Mac or Craftsman Professional (nicer ones from the early 2000s that are US made). Sure, they're "used", but they'll last you a long time and you'd get a superior quality product that may wind up being similarly priced to the new China made stuff.
The BJP1 has an impressive amount of gravity in it. Like Scott said above, I believe the adaptors or whatever you're pressing will fail long before the "C" does. You can break anything if you try hard enough, but I'd be impressed if someone broke a BJP1 frame during its intended use.
2ndGearRubber
Well-known member
My thought was that assessing there is no further progress to be made is inherently subjective. Hard to say when to draw the line, so I can't expect someone reading the directions to guess where the safety limit is. Infinite ugga-dugga is the standard use case.
I don't know how one could misuse a ball joint press. Even using it as a hammer to drive a 4x4 fence post should be within its design, it's just a chunk of steel. How could you hurt it? Throw it off the roof of your house, it will be fine.
Exactly. I've bent a HF and an OTC C-frame. That's the failure mode, the C is supposed to go out of square. If the Icon failures are indeed legitimate, it's completely unacceptable as a failure mode.
To the OPs original question, a coworker bought some 3/8 semi-deeps and 1/4 extensions from Icon. I thought both were nice, good knurling on the extensions. I owned a set of Carlyle combo wrenches which use the same design as the Icon with the big teeth on the open end. I was not impressed. But my preference for a set of Wright Grips would be $100+ more, and they're a bit shorter as well. I think almost anything you buy will be nicer than lowes/home depot offers.
1Bad55Chevy
Well-known member
- Joined
- Feb 20, 2025
- Messages
- 623
Everyone talking about the Snappy BPJ1 but Everyone forgot the real swinging D mac daddy!
www.matcotools.com
Thats what I use when things get real! Like Dodge 4x4 front axle!
BALL JOINT PRESS BJP18100 | Matco Tools
Thats what I use when things get real! Like Dodge 4x4 front axle!
Theronswanson
Well-known member
- Joined
- May 13, 2023
- Messages
- 540
Came to post this. That thing is a BEAST.Everyone talking about the Snappy BPJ1 but Everyone forgot the real swinging D mac daddy!
BALL JOINT PRESS BJP18100 | Matco Tools
Thats what I use when things get real! Like Dodge 4x4 front axle!
Regardless of whether the picture above is real, a forged C frame shouldn't catastrophically fail in an explosive brittle fracture. That is just unacceptable, and there is no "oh, it was misused" excuse that's valid. It's supposed to be put in maximum bending by the strongest impact gun available. And in the PF test below, your test at the factory is exactly what he did. If it bends, fine; buying a replacement is much cheaper than buying an exploded replacement AND a trip to the ER- which is going to be well over $1K.
Below is the PF c-clamp test. Fast forward to 13 minutes to see the failure test. I do not believe that any of the forged clamps exploded in a brittle fracture. Which was my point above: they should NOT fail in this manner as this is what can send you to the hospital.
Below is the PF c-clamp test. Fast forward to 13 minutes to see the failure test. I do not believe that any of the forged clamps exploded in a brittle fracture. Which was my point above: they should NOT fail in this manner as this is what can send you to the hospital.
four.cycle
Well-known member
B_Bimmer
Well-known member
Every time one of these threads comes up I'm glad there's a bjp1 in the garage for me to horribly misuse in safety so I don't have to try and pretend a crappy cheap look alike is just as good. The high cost of quality tools that work isn't that hard to justify over the many years of reliable performance in tough conditions.
four.cycle
Well-known member
^ It would be interesting to see exactly how many of those units were manufactured for Harbor Freight, how many of them have been sold, and how many of them were actually put into service, and then compare those numbers to the actual number of documented instances where the same unit has failed.
Anecdote ≠ empirical data
Anecdote ≠ empirical data
You're taking all of the fun out of life today.
Even the usage case contains variables. If you live in Georgia or Arizona and only press ball joints out of stamped steel control arms, any cheese-grade tool from who knows where will likely work just fine. If you're in the rust belt regularly pressing ball joints out of solid axle trucks (like my photo above) the results will likely be different.
At a selling price of $200 bucks, Icon is copying the SO design to a tee, but they are cutting corners by saving a few cents for good quality steel and proper heat treating.
Makes perfect sense.
That may very well be the case, but Snap On prices are not a direct result of quality or any of the variables that might dictate quality (or a lack thereof).
I'm just sayin' there are lot of factors that go into why an item costs whatever it does. This post is neither pro nor con for HF or SO.
True but I'm assumption that most - if not all Snap On tools are top quality.
Agree, the price of either mostly is mostly meaningless. Chinese product are Govt subsidized and likely SO tools seem to generally have more than a small amount of price markup.
Just making a comment that for making a copy of a product, there is not much reason not to go all in.
I don't see CoO for this, but most Icon tools are made in Taiwan or USA.
You're also making an assumption that corners were cut/etc. A few pictures on the internet and an accusatory video are not evidence.
I should have worded it better and the
at the bottom was that the point was sarcastic - should have used the /sUsed to be all China tools were somewhat crappy, because well, that's all they knew how to make. Even though some like to think otherwise, that ship pretty much set sail years ago.
My view is that they now have the technology and have realized, that it really does not cost much more to make high quality products. They could probably design their own ball joint press, but from a business standpoint, makes more sense to copy an existing, well made brand.
If they are US made, the price difference almost seems ludicrous.