Mechanics tool sets

[DrB2319]

Is it worth buying them as a set, IE: at Sears, or is it better to piece together only getting the individual tools you need?

I've got a decent amount of 3/8 & 1/2 inch drive sockets & ratchets but have always found 50% of the sizes in sets (including allen wrenches) go rarely used. Seems like paying $125-150 for a 200 pc set is over kill and redundant.

 

[TAMPAGT07]

You do realize that you re asking a bunch of tool hoarders if you should buy more then you will need? The answer is "You can never have enough tools, so just keep buying."

 

[DrB2319]

You do realize that you re asking a bunch of tool hoarders if you should buy more then you will need? The answer is "You can never have enough tools, so just keep buying."

LOL.

Trust me I'm similar but I need to consolidate my efforts and be a bit more mindful of buying things I don't use.

Truth be told I'm a bit like Mel Gibson in Conspiracy Theory when he has to buy the book Catcher in the Rye every time he sees it, except my fetish is with multipurpose screw drivers. I own like 20 of them, have em all over the house.

 

[kmkalf]

there may be many months or years that a particular tool will sit and never see the light of day and that one time it will be the only thing keeping you from finishing a job or waiting until you purchase said tool

 

[TAMPAGT07]

It really depends on the individual...Most of us have been buying tools for a long time (I'm 43 now, and have been buying tools since I was like 12)...I only buy tools if I need them now, but i still watch Craigslist, like a hawk, and if I see a tool or piece of equipment that will save me money on a job or project that I have coming up I will jump on it. For instance, I have some sand blasting and cement work that I need to do next month, so I will buy a used blaster (Pot style for outdoor use) and cement mixer, use them and put them back up for sale..As far as hand tools (sockets, wrenches, ratchets, screwdrivers,etc), I buy them as I need them. Keep in mind, many of us have literely thousands of tools...

 

[Conor]

I bought a 200pc set to start and then after that any time i needed an additional tool i bought it individually.

 

[Zeke]

there may be many months or years that a particular tool will sit and never see the light of day and that one time it will be the only thing keeping you from finishing a job or waiting until you purchase said tool

Yep, I bought a used set of 3/4 drive sockets 20 years ago and have used one size once. I don't want to get rid of them but I wish I didn't buy them. Just another drawer that is full and can't be used for something practical.

I say buy what you need when you need it. Sets give you redundancy. I have 12 sets of Allens. Now that's useful, huh?

 

[airmecha]

it really depends on what your using the tools for. Im an aircraft mechanic so buying those sets arent for me since I cant use half of the tools included. If your a hobbyist yeah buy the whole sets itll be nice but if its for your line of work, individually buy your specialty tools

 

[Nova_Guy]

The only bad part about some of the set IMO is that you get the same size several times over. You will get a 1/4 drive 1/2 socket 6 and 12 point and a 3/8 drive 1/2 socket 6 and 12 point and a 1/2 drive 1/2 socket 6 and 12 point. Normally you will get both regular and deep of both also. So you may get 12 sockets of the same size just different drive depth or number of points.
That pattern will continue for over several sizes.
All the extra sockets are nice at time, but how often do you need a 1/4 drive 3/8 deep well 12 point socket over a 3/8 drive 6 point regular socket? When you need it you need it but not that often.
The big advantage is the cost per wrench goes down when you buy the big set. You may get 500 pieces at the cost of 250 pieces at the individual cost.

 

[Stephenw]

You will definitely get the most for your money buying one of the larger Craftsman sets.

Unless something has recently changed, the sets should also contain mostly USA made tools.

 

[KEH]

Someone on here said it was no cheaper to buy sets of Snap On, I've never figured it up and I don't know if you are looking at that level oftool buying or not. One thing I would recommend is to try to find some extra used ratchets so if you are doing a job requiring different sockets, you could install different sockets on the extra ratchets and save a little time.

I would also recommend that you get some top quality screwdrivers, especially Phillips, and also get some cheap used ones to beat and pry on things with.

KEH

 

[John in OH]

You will definitely get the most for your money buying one of the larger Craftsman sets.

+1

But it kind of depends on where you stand regarding your tooling. If you are just starting out and don't have many tools, then buying a set ... just about any good brand ... is your best bang for the buck. But if you already have a good basic set of tools, then buy additional items only as you need them. I've got loads of tools that I've picked up over the years at garage sales, good ebay deals, etc. and they just sit in the tool box. Many have never been used. But I personally enjoy seeing them in the tool box because ... maybe ... who knows ... someday ... I'll need one!

 

[ClwFLGator]

I am just about ready to buy a big, lockable tool chest. After that (very soon) I will be filling up said tool chest with lots of new tools. So, like you, I have been looking around a lot lately for a new starter tool set for the shop (I have had lots of tools over the years, but always bought cheap ones because they kept disappearing out of the shop. Now many of those sets are incomplete, so let's just say I'm basically starting from scratch, and will be looking to buy "good" tools I plan to keep forever, now that I will be able to secure them). So I'm basically in the same position as you. Anyway...

I looked at the Craftsman sets, they seem pretty pricey and have a lot of **** you don't need. Lots of allen keys, bit drivers, and 12 point sockets. When considering $ per piece, really take a hard look at what all those pieces are, exactly. Nowadays, they seem to get that piece count up by adding in a lot of fluff.

What I have decided I am going to do is buy a bunch of basic tools at Harbor Freight. I might get flamed for this here, but I have been looking at their Pittsburgh hand tools and they look fine to me. A full set of wrenches (metric or SAE) is right now on sale for $9.99. I figure for a couple hundred bucks (maybe less?) I will be able to buy all the basic 1/4, 3/8, 1/2 sockets (deep and shallow), ratchets, extensions, screwdrivers, and wrenches without getting any **** I don't need. I am basically "making my own kit" for the same money, or less, and getting exactly what I want, to start out. Try to do that at Sears, and you will be spending $400+ (maybe more?)!

I am sure I will start out mostly with things that are on sale (a lot of the basic things just happen to be on sale at the moment). Then I can always go back later and pick up other things as I need/want them, or in the case of HF, as they go on sale (watch those flyers!).

The Pittsburgh tools have a lifetime warranty, although I have gotten different answers from 2 different stores I have asked about needing the receipt or not (one said yes, the other no). I will note that the official policy of HF is to require the receipt (I plan on keeping all my new tool receipts safe and sound in one of the drawers in my new toolbox, just in case ).

I dunno, I just think Craftsman have gotten too expensive anymore, and they are not much better than what you can get at HF for much, much less money. And the HF stuff has a lifetime warranty anyway, so what's the difference?

Here's another comparison: I bought a full set of deep drive, 3/8" impact sockets a couple years ago at HF for 19.99 (iirc). I don't know what they go for now, but probably not too much more than that. They also came in a nice blow molded case. The same set at Sears is probably $80-90. Now that's just getting ridiculous. And I don't even want to know what Snap On would charge for something like that.

Anyway, not to go off on a rant, I'm just sick of being squeezed all the time by big companies. Thank goodness for HF and competition. Check out their stuff, their hand tools are fine and getting better all the time (the latest HF wrenches are shiny, thin, and long and kind of almost look like Snap On ones, lol). Also their toolboxes are the best bang for your buck right now, by far (I will be getting one of those too!). I would continue to be careful exactly what you buy in there though, there is still plenty of junk (electric tools, etc.).

 

[littletoes]

Guess I'm like many here, I have quite a few "repeat" tools, but if something is hard to turn, I surely won't grab my 1/4" set to try and turn a stubborn bolt, I'll grab the 1/2" or 3/4" if needed.

I work on small engines on occasion, and I'll tell you what, the 1/4" stuff is sure handy!

Like TAMPAGT07 said....don't ask us Tool Hoarders if you should buy MORE!

 

[srmofo]

Personally I bought the craftsman 281 piece set (I think its gone up a pieces since then and got rid of the nut drivers) but it was an incredible value and I still use many of the sockets to this day. Its nice knowing that regardless what you encounter you will have the right socket, whether its a 12pt 17mm on a honda flywheel or a 5.5mm nut on a ford battery terminal, or stubborn frozen 1/2 lag bolt on your kids swing set. You will have the right socket to get the job done. I couldnt imagine what it would cost to but all those sockets individually but Im sure it would be above $1000 and the set can be purchased between $200-$300 depending on the current sales.

like others have said dont ask us if you should buy more tools, I just bought a 20 piece gearwrench set because I left my 10mm under the hood of a car.....I had already purchased a replacement (entire set)but it was reversible and had an angled head while my other set wasnt, And I like to have both styles because they both have their advantages. Yes the addiction gets bad

 

[Mattlt]

When I started buying tools I bought about a 100 piece set from Sears and have been adding to it as needed.

The thing that bugs me somewhat is what actually makes up some of the piece count of those sets - namely screwdriver bits, allen wrenches, small ignition wrenches. I think Sears really tries to play up on the "It's only $1 per piece" (or less!) marketing strategy, but some of those pieces are worth much less than $1. You need to be aware of what you are actually getting in each set.

People rarely bring this up, but you WILL need repeat tools. Have you ever tried to remove a nut only to have the bolt spin? At minimum you'll need a socket and a wrench of the same sizes. Good excuse to buy more tools!

 

[cjbcpa]

If you go with the Craftsman set(s) check out their online store. There are many other sets available beyond the ones promoted in the stores. Some are more narrowly focused on certain sizes with less variety. This way you get more of what you want. You can also avoid the sets that hide an inflated piece count by including the useless items to pad out the count.

 

[Mgraves235]

Just a head's up, yesterday I managed to get the last 138 pc Kobalt tool set at my local Lowes. It was marked down from $119 to $50. Apparently this set is discontinued now. Your local store might still have some on the shelf. I was really impressed by the quality for the money.
Great kit for the car or truck, or as a good starter set.

 

[DrB2319]

For 10 bucks I just got a 40pc socket ratchet set (1/4 & 3/8), and 32pc bit screw driver set from HF (Pittsburgh tools). Now they might not be the "best" tools around but with a lifetime guarantee considering the moderate duty purpose of the tools I can't see how I could go wrong.

Not the biggest fan of bit screw drivers but I will probably have myself covered when that rare case comes up that you need a special bit. Have the needed regular screw drivers from Craftsmen already.

 

[Cars&Classic]

200 Piece Do they sell them that small???????if so Why????

 

[Greatwhitewing]

I too started with a several hundred kit from Sears and now I just about filled a 72" tool box. That kit started 25 years ago or more and still have many pieces and added a lot as needed. I also scored a nice cache of SK and SO stuff from a crate my son my son got for a few bucks. Lot of nice impact sockets mostly.

 

[JimVonBaden]

The biggest problem with those large kits is that they have so many tools you will never need. I own nothing that uses SAE tools anymore. I gave away all of them, but it is hard to find decent kits in metric only for the same kind of pricing.

Jim

 

[DrB2319]

For 10 bucks I just got a 40pc socket ratchet set (1/4 & 3/8), and 32pc bit screw driver set from HF (Pittsburgh tools). Now they might not be the "best" tools around but with a lifetime guarantee considering the moderate duty purpose of the tools I can't see how I could go wrong.

Not the biggest fan of bit screw drivers but I will probably have myself covered when that rare case comes up that you need a special bit. Have the needed regular screw drivers from Craftsmen already.

I will admit I just opened everything up and used a couple of each and you can feel the "lack" of quality in them, but no HD uses intended so they should be OK.