ICON vs snap on video
- Thread starter bratwurst
- Start date
Farmall450
Well-known member
Does this honestly surprise anyone?
Slednut
Well-known member
Torque wrench comparison.
The $100 ICON beats the $400 SO.
The $100 ICON beats the $400 SO.
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I would possibly try some if they were priced right but I don’t see any compelling reason to. You can get whole sets of equally well finished import tools for the price. For example you’d spend over $200 to get a similar SAE assortment to that $80 Craftsman Ultimate collection set I bought a little while ago and the finish of the Icons looks no better.
I guess if I want cheap imported stuff I want it to be cheap and good quality, if I am going to pay a premium then I might as well seek out USA made stuff.
Edit: Actually it reminds me of a Kennedy clone tool box I picked up at Tractor Supply on clearance. It was reasonable quality but only $20. The Kennedy one is like $130. Of course it’s chinese. The quality is decent enough but you wouldn’t spend $80 for it just because it’s kind of like a Kennedy clone. You can still tell the difference.
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The wrench is weakened by the radiused cut-outs and spreads. There is a reason tool companies had an epiphany and copied the ancient roman arch (other than Cornwell).
I'm sure they're still better than a standard open end.
I'm sure they're still better than a standard open end.
BDT/NWMN
Well-known member
I stopped the video the second time He said "grade 8 metric bolt" WHat the heck ? Looks like a CLASS 8.8 to Me. If He cannot properly describe a bolt, I have little interest in viewing the video any further.
That's a weird thing to have an issue with
These are the same wrenches as Carlyle. I did the same test with Carlyle vs Snap on for myself to see the difference. I bought a 1/2 Carlyle wrench and a bunch of grade 5 bolts (not 8) and even those were deforming the open end on the Carlyle wrench.
Cheapskate
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It looks like the design of the anti slip on the HF ratcheting wrenches is superior to the design on the HF non-ratcheting wrenches. The ratcheting wrench was able to twist the head off the bolt without any damage to the wrench almost as well as the snap-on wrench. They should probably switch the non-ratcheting wrenches over to that design.
Odd they would have two different designs.
Odd they would have two different designs.
The guys posting the videos are making money on them. That's why there are SO many HF tool videos.
Ss95003
Well-known member
I agree it seems like some people didn’t watch the whole video or glossed over this as fast as the guy who made the video. I though the ratcheting wrench performed just as well.
bobcatdan
Well-known member
I laughed out loud when he said grade 8 M12 bolt.
Yea I find something weird on the video as well...other than the marking on the bolts are weird.. Class 8.8 SJ marking M12 bolts with a 19mm head? or was that Grade 8.8 SJ M12 bolts with a 3/4 head? ?
The Snap-on demo seems like street magic.. Not that I have look up the torsional strength of those SJ bolts ... He some how effortlessly shared off the head of a bolt yes, a padding of a towel, doesn't seems to use cheater bar. Must have super strength as a pro mechanic.
Also in the video, some how he kept avoiding showing the "other side" of the broken head... where it broke off... only a quick flip for some weird reason... not sure if that is a good demo. Remind me of the days where I kept seeing those infomercials of Slick50 demo... or was that the Metinch thing...
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BrandoJames
Well-known member
I was just in my local HF this morning. The Icon display has shrunk by half since this summer. Now there’s just two peg boards dedicated to the Icon line: one peg board for Icon ratchets/sockets, and one peg board for Icon wrenches. That’s it. And still no Icon tool boxes in my local HF—it’s as if they never existed. And we’re one week away from Christmas.
Anyone who’s managed retail will tell you that this is a disaster. Particularly when you consider how much advertising/promotion was spent on the Icon line this year. I managed retail back in the day, and retail is still retail. For any given product, you have to get “X” amount of sales from “Y” amount of floor space. If you don’t, then the product loses floor space. It’s pretty clear the Icon line just isn’t selling in my local HF.
Anyone who’s managed retail will tell you that this is a disaster. Particularly when you consider how much advertising/promotion was spent on the Icon line this year. I managed retail back in the day, and retail is still retail. For any given product, you have to get “X” amount of sales from “Y” amount of floor space. If you don’t, then the product loses floor space. It’s pretty clear the Icon line just isn’t selling in my local HF.
I stopped by one HF that is far away from me last Friday.. I did the quick step test...when no one was looking ... more like sitting
.... it did hold my weight fine no flex/bend.. on one of the larger draws Couldn't play with the wrenches, it's in packaging... but this HF (~30 miles from me) does have a pretty good floor space at that HF compare to the one that is 2 miles from me...
This HF has it..
https://www.google.com/maps/place/3...ce993c3acc2f27!8m2!3d40.6453276!4d-74.2293962
BrandoJames
Well-known member
I stopped by one HF that is far away from me last Friday.. I did the quick step test...when no one was looking ... more like sitting
This HF has it..
https://www.google.com/maps/place/3...ce993c3acc2f27!8m2!3d40.6453276!4d-74.2293962
I get that, but many GJ members here have reported there’s not even one Icon display box at their local HF. I mean, that’s crazy. If I’m the store manager of my local HF, I’d ask for just one Icon tool box. I’d build it myself and put it out on the floor. Just one. It might start selling. Even though I’m an Icon skeptic, people may see the box on display, check it over, and want to order it. Worst case, we can always discount the display box and sell it.
Here’s what I do know: we’ll sell zero boxes if we don’t have a display model.
Ss95003
Well-known member
Not sure why I am defending HF and Icon but I am not sure if the store you visited is listed as one of the icon stores or not. They are not being carried in all stores. They have a list of stores on their site.
Professional Tool User
Well-known member
The only brands that Icon is capable of competing against are brands like Gearwrench and Tekton. Even at that, they've left a very poor first impression with the recalls, hype, and high cost when compared to other made in Taiwan options. Snap on and Wright better have superior heat treatment if they cost a few times more. There's more than one brand that rebrands wrenches with this kind of open end teeth and I am just going to go with whoever gives me the best deal.
These days when someone has an agenda or vendetta it wouldn't surprise me at all to stoop low. That being said I have the metric ratcheting wrenches and love them. Mine dont have a mark on em and the last two weekends I've been hard on them removing the subframe, steering rack, suspension and transmission bolts out of my project car especially the 14/17/19
Cheapskate
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If you watched the full video the ratcheting HF wrenches seemed to do as well as the snap-on wrenches. They were able to snap the head off the "Grade 8 bolt" with no damage to the wrench. Looked like they competed quite well and at 1/4 the price.
Also the ICON torque wrench not only competes with snap-on but BEAT snap-on according to this video:
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ck_O5U1Tyz8" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Recalls? I only remember one recall that was on the 3/8 flexhead ratchet. Was there more I am unaware of?
Brownsfan
Well-known member
My local HF has only a few things left in stock from icon. Its almost like they haven't restocked since the initial roll out. I think there was the biggest 1/2 drive flex and the 1/4 non flex. All rotos gone. Wrench sets and sockets sets just a few left
It was the Metrinch thing but Metrinch actually does what it professes to do. The lobed design makes the sidewalls of the socket stronger. You’d be hard pressed to break one even with cheater bars so I doubt they used any sort of trickery.
At least you got them, ours they basically started showing up around the week of Black Friday.
Stuey
Well-known member
They wouldn't be making money if people weren't interested and watching.
I bought a couple of Icon tools for eval b/c there is so much strong interest for it.
The web interest in HF tools rivals the interest in Milwaukee and Dewalt.
BDT/NWMN
Well-known member
I was laughing as well.... We understand that a metric class 8.8 bolt is comparable is strength to a grade 5 bolt, and it would take a metric class 10.9 to be comparable to a grade 8.
We bought our wrenches to turn bolts. This guy comes on U-Tube to demonstrate the strength of his wrenches on a so called "grade 8" bolt; without having a clue as to what the basis of his test bolt actually is.
I am still laughing
Not sure, I haven't see those Metrinch sets for a while... but the image in my mind was some one holding a long breaker bar over something .... I just don't remember that was in the early 90's infomercial (before 1992)... slick50 have something similar that they apply to something and it just slips ....
Then again I bought into those dual-saw focking late billy may and his fake fireman /fire fighter sawing that car in half sold that to me
... anyways the point is some of the things seems edited and magic is all I am saying. I tried to go back to the video few times, I couldn't find the part where the jaw of that wrench was damaged during the nut removal... He did try two times with this anti slip wrench...neither time I can find an image where it was damaged. except the very end.....
OTOH he did admit he was bias ... so ... I dunno.
I dunno about their Icon line, I can say their Pittsburgher long handle line *****... looks great feels great, but when I try to unbolt an exhaust flange bolt 17mm wrench, that **** just rolls over, still no damaged jaw like that video though... but it works fine in any other normal nuts not frozen...
woody 73
Well-known member
For my two cents and I do hope it counts a little bit on the GJ; I was not bothered in the least about the wrong bolt information at all, but what I found very disturbing was the deformed teeth on the new Icon wrench in question.
After seeing that it would discourage me somewhat if I needed to buy that set of wrenches.
Again just my two cents...
After seeing that it would discourage me somewhat if I needed to buy that set of wrenches.
Again just my two cents...
Not sure, I haven't see those Metrinch sets for a while... but the image in my mind was some one holding a long breaker bar over something .... I just don't remember that was in the early 90's infomercial (before 1992)... slick50 have something similar that they apply to something and it just slips ....
Then again I bought into those dual-saw focking late billy may and his fake fireman /fire fighter sawing that car in half sold that to me
I tried to go back to the video few times, I couldn't find the part where the jaw of that wrench was damaged during the nut removal... He did try two times with this anti slip wrench...neither time I can find an image where it was damaged. except the very end.....
OTOH he did admit he was bias ... so ... I dunno.
The whole Metrinch informercial is on YouTube
Metrinch works, and works well, the largest flaw was the slop of the sockets but with 90 tooth ratchets available these days it’s not such a big deal. They don’t sell it through informercials these days and it costs a lot. The commercial though doesn’t tell you that they fit looser though either.
I’m somewhat biased against Icon (well at least the hand tools) because it largely seems to be expensive versions of older Duralast tools, I couldn’t see paying a premium for that stuff. The toolboxes I can’t really even evaluate since they don’t have any locally.
Edit looks like a Metrinch relaunch might be in the works
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For my two cents and I do hope it counts a little bit on the GJ; I was not bothered in the least about the wrong bolt information at all, but what I found very disturbing was the deformed teeth on the new Icon wrench in question.
After seeing that it would discourage me somewhat if I needed to buy that set of wrenches.
Again just my two cents...
I think the worrisome part about it deforming is I’ve done worse than he did in the video to stuff like cheap Great Neck wrenches without an issue. Years ago my dad and I were trying to take the top shock bolts out of a car that were badly seized and used a Cummins wrench from one of those truck sales and hammered it and it didn’t deform at all. That was a $20 giant pouch roll of the cheapest wrenches you could possibly find.
I mean they warrant them which is fine, but if I pay more I expect more.
For my two cents and I do hope it counts a little bit on the GJ; I was not bothered in the least about the wrong bolt information at all, but what I found very disturbing was the deformed teeth on the new Icon wrench in question.
After seeing that it would discourage me somewhat if I needed to buy that set of wrenches.
Again just my two cents...
for me, the disturbing part is how those jaws got deformed... I couldn't find any video frames of it deformed during his bolt tighten sections (there was two he tried with that same wrench) The damage magically just appeared at the end of the video during the comments. Reminds me of that Justin guy... Hollywood Magic.. I am not against HF/Snap-on or any youtuber that does real reviews... but video walking lines of fabricated claims... well... All I can say is regardless which audiences he gets, a view is a view and he gets paid for views and some people go extend to get views. This video was released is about the same time frame that Justin video about the HF sockets you posted few weeks ago I believe...
I am just saying if you don't like HF tools, just don't buy them, and I don't like a lot of tools just because they are **** or have like my bad customer service experience with ChannelLock.. but please don't use videos like these as a justification...It just shows how mindless or subliminally they are fueling what you wanted to hear.
take you choices. some what to this extended in the old saying..
1) the devil will always tell you what you wanted to hear...
2) the devil will prey on the weak/gullible and your desires/greed...
3) there is a sucker for everyone.
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I think this infomercial video...........
Oh right there was an older video of Metrinch where the guy was twisting some steel or something with the metrnch socket... can't find that one.
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