Old Matco Warranty question

[TheGrooveking]

I was talking to a guy I worked with in the early 80's and the subject turned to tools. In that I was the guy who turned him on to the new tool company Matco and he bought a few thousand worth back then. Well fast forward, a little over 6 months ago he said he tracked down a Matco dealer where he lives now and brought two 3/8" drive ratchets in for warranty. Well with these being originally made by Wright for Matco they are long gone from the line up.

He said the driver looked at them, found the date code, looked them up and then offered him the price he paid for them towards new ratchets. He was pissed, he's been long out of turning wrenches for a living, but expected his Matco tools to be warrantied/exchanged since that was the deal when he bought them. I reported that I've not had to warranty Matco items except the Compothane hammers I bought way back then and that they didn't cover them because they didn't say Matco on them (I bought the before Matco had them private labeled for them).

So with that does the other truck brands pull the same ****? I've read that many guys have brought in broken older Snap On ratchets and were handed new S80/F80's.

TheGrooveking

 

[warmpancakes]

send them to matco they will swap them for brand new ratchets, truck driver tried to screw him

 

[SpiderGearsMan]

my round head matco ratchets are wright ?

 

[wxm]

Why not try the customer service? I replaced a ratcheting screwdriver through them. I contacted the customer service online, shipped the broken one in on their instruction and got a new one back in a week. Good service. You might need to establish an account with them if you have never done it before.

Here is the warranty info.

Good luck

 

[billymade]

Allot of the older Matco ratchets round heads were Wright (I couldn't stand mine; always free wheeled and were hard to get the selector to change directions, I sold them), as were sockets and the wrenches were made by Bonney! I'm sure you could get rebuild kits from Wright but I would just call Matco and get them warranted. I'm always disgusted with the stories on here; how so many dealers rip people off when it comes to warranties and charge people more money to get an exchange that should be free. One of my dealers has his "policy" that wasn't even the way Snap-On did it; of course I didn't owe him 10k either! Another example about it depends on who you are dealing with; call Matco and get it done!

http://www.matcotools.com/CustomerCare/custserv_care.jsp

This is a example of a Wright ratchet that looked like my old re-badged Matco's! The handle was a kind of rounded off square shape with a bulge where the palm of your hand would rest.

http://store.harryepstein.com/cp/Ratchets/2426.html

 

[Hiball]

Outside of Exchanging the Older Wright made ratchets for a Matco Newer version i dont really see the problem. As i was reading your story i was expecting the worst, Offering to reiburse your friend his purchase price seems like a decent response (Unless they were lowball offers). Obviously the best move would have been to Replace the Wright/Matco version with the comparable Matco version, But it could have been worse. I would just have your friend send them into Matco.

 

[Hiball]

my round head matco ratchets are wright ?

Yes... LOL

 

[TheGrooveking]

Well they offered him somewhere in the low $30 range, which of course is a far cry from the price of a new MAtco 88. Wright doesn't have rebuild kits for those older single pawl ratchets, at least per the customer service lady I spoke to last year and because of that I've put them on the do not use list for fear of breaking them and not being able to get them fixed.

Here are a few of my old Matco ratchets, note the handles have more pronounced curves than the newer Wrights do, plus the neck near the head is thinner too.

TheGrooveking

 

[Hiball]

$30 bucks is terrible, but expecting a 88 tooth ratchet in exchange is a bit greedy itself. I'm sure the single paw kits are still available, as they still have single paw ratchets. I know I have some old rebuild kits and have a source if your interested.

 

[GoBlue]

If the dealer couldnt fix the ratchets than he should have given new ones to replace them...end of story. I would have thrown the ratchets at him an called Mac or Snap on...what a load of ****.

Indv. dealers are so important and this is why. My Matco dealer is the best of any of my truck dealers and would have handled this no questions asked. I dont care how old that damn ratchet was...we pay the outlandish prices for SERVICE...LONG TERM SERVICE.

 

[Roots]

I would just mail them into Matco's Warranty department.

I'm certain it's understandable to some extent for an independent dealer to be leery of giving away a hundred dollars of his own money, to a complete stranger, for something like this where he might very well not be fully reimbursed.

 

[daveblank]

I was talking to a guy I worked with in the early 80's and the subject turned to tools. In that I was the guy who turned him on to the new tool company Matco and he bought a few thousand worth back then. Well fast forward, a little over 6 months ago he said he tracked down a Matco dealer where he lived now and brought two 3/8" drive ratchets in for warranty. Well with these being originally made by Wright for Matco they are long gone from the line up.

He said the driver looked at them, found the date code, looked them up and then offered him the price he paid for them towards new ratchets. He was pissed, he's been long out of turning wrenches for a living, but expected his Matco tools to be warrantied/exchanged since that was the deal whe he bought them. I reported that I've not had to warranty Matco items except the Compothane hammers I bought way back then and that they didn't cover them because they didn't say Matco on them (I bought the before Matco had them private labeled for them).

So with that does the other truck brands pull the same ****? I've read that many guys have brought in broken older Snap On ratchets and were handed new S80/F80's.

TheGrooveking

That's a tough situation for the distributor to be in. Matco will only give us ** credit on a deleted item. If it's a regular customer, I'll take a loss & get them fixed up. If it's someone off the street, what's my incentive to take a loss? I'll usually look up my current cost & offer to let them make up the difference. That way, I'm not loosing any money or making any either. If that resolution isn't good enough for them I ask them to take it up with corporate.

 

[Hiball]

That's a tough situation for the distributor to be in. Matco will only give us ** credit on a deleted item. If it's a regular customer, I'll take a loss & get them fixed up. If it's someone off the street, what's my incentive to take a loss? I'll usually look up my current cost & offer to let them make up the difference. That way, I'm not loosing any money or making any either. If that resolution isn't good enough for them I ask them to take it up with corporate.

Seems Very Reasonable...

 

[DetroitDIESEL444]

you seriously have a "do not use" list because you dont want to break something???

Wow... i have a few old tools that were my dead uncles that i keep in a seperate box but i would use them if i had to..

 

[scott37300]

That's a tough situation for the distributor to be in. Matco will only give us ** credit on a deleted item. If it's a regular customer, I'll take a loss & get them fixed up. If it's someone off the street, what's my incentive to take a loss? I'll usually look up my current cost & offer to let them make up the difference. That way, I'm not loosing any money or making any either. If that resolution isn't good enough for them I ask them to take it up with corporate.

That ***** that matco puts you guys in this situation. I can understand the dealer not wanting to take a loss. But in the same sense I thought the ratchet was warrantied for life? Evidently not in these situations, matco switches ratchets and then everyone that bought the old ones originally are just out of luck? Kind of leaving the customer out to dry. Why would I want to spend 100+ bucks on a matco ratchet and hope they never change the design/maker, knowing if they ever do and run out of repair kits I'll only get some change back?

 

[Hiball]

That ***** that matco puts you guys in this situation. I can understand the dealer not wanting to take a loss. But in the same sense I thought the ratchet was warrantied for life? Evidently not in these situations, matco switches ratchets and then everyone that bought the old ones originally are just out of luck? Kind of leaving the customer out to dry. Why would I want to spend 100+ bucks on a matco ratchet and hope they never change the design/maker, knowing if they ever do and run out of repair kits I'll only get some change back?

Matco will not leave them out to dry, All you have to do is send the ratchet in and they will Replace them.

 

[treasureseeker]

This is a little off topic but it relates how inconsistent warranty can be. My neighbor was telling me how easy it is to get obsolete Snap On ratchets warrantied. He had some from his father as did I. We separately sent in the ratchets and other broken items. I got back new extensions and sockets but no ratchets. He got back only the one ratchet that superseded and the other items. My neighbor called Snap On and they sent out the items that day. For mine it took a month. They first had to get the weight of my shipment when arrived then got an Ok from management. When the items didn’t arrive a week later they did the same process over again even getting the weight again. When that didn’t arrive Snap On wanted to know where I purchased the ratchets from before they would ship when I called them again. As my father had purchase them from Snap On I just answered Snap On and three days later they arrived.

 

[Hiball]

This is a little off topic but it relates how inconsistent warranty can be. My neighbor was telling me how easy it is to get obsolete Snap On ratchets warrantied. He had some from his father as did I. We separately sent in the ratchets and other broken items. I got back new extensions and sockets but no ratchets. He got back only the one ratchet that superseded and the other items. My neighbor called Snap On and they sent out the items that day. For mine it took a month. They first had to get the weight of my shipment when arrived then got an Ok from management. When the items didn’t arrive a week later they did the same process over again even getting the weight again. When that didn’t arrive Snap On wanted to know where I purchased the ratchets from before they would ship when I called them again. As my father had purchase them from Snap On I just answered Snap On and three days later they arrived.

Yep Inconsistant from HF to Snap-on, You can find horror stories from just about every brand alive if you look hard enough.

 

[billymade]

The last time I sent stuff into Snap-On; the customer service rep, told me it is best to call first, tell them all the part #'s of the stuff you need, that way it is on records with a rma or order # and they can refer to the order, if things don't show up. Makes sense and easier to deal with; if things go wrong with the order. It also seems better to already have the "new" superseded number figured out before you call; thats if the tool is no longer made... speeds up the process and makes sure you get the right tool as a exchange, not everyone knows tools like we do! Especially, someone who is looking at a computer and cannot handle the tools in their hand!

 

[daveblank]

That ***** that matco puts you guys in this situation. I can understand the dealer not wanting to take a loss. But in the same sense I thought the ratchet was warrantied for life? Evidently not in these situations, matco switches ratchets and then everyone that bought the old ones originally are just out of luck? Kind of leaving the customer out to dry. Why would I want to spend 100+ bucks on a matco ratchet and hope they never change the design/maker, knowing if they ever do and run out of repair kits I'll only get some change back?

Yes, it does **** for us & the consumer. Like I said I take care of my guys. Otherwise, I give them the choice. Pay the difference at cost with me & get it today or send it to Matco. I've only had to do it 2-3 times & the difference was $10-15. If it were me in their shoes I's pay & do it now. Why do you ask? It's going to cost me some money to ship, which I am now saving, & there is no anxiety of waiting & wondering when my replacement part will be here.

 

[transamfan]

had this same thing happen to me with a bolt grip puller set. the threaded rod was messed up after years of use. it was discontinued and had to swap out the whole set for the new set they carried now. I had to pay like $75 difference i think it was. what really got me pissed was the old set was USA made, the new one TAIWAN made! plus like most all of MATCO tool cases it came in some hugely oversized blow molded case that was way too big to fit in the drawer where my old puller laid nice and neat. So, I swapped the POS off to Snap on for their USA made product in a case thats slim enough to fit in a normal drawer.

 

[scott37300]

Yes, it does **** for us & the consumer. Like I said I take care of my guys. Otherwise, I give them the choice. Pay the difference at cost with me & get it today or send it to Matco. I've only had to do it 2-3 times & the difference was $10-15. If it were me in their shoes I's pay & do it now. Why do you ask? It's going to cost me some money to ship, which I am now saving, & there is no anxiety of waiting & wondering when my replacement part will be here.

10-15 dollar difference isn't bad at all. From what the OP said he was offered something like 30 bucks which I think is way lower than any ratchet matco sells, unless dealer cost brings it much closer.

 

[treasureseeker]

The last time I sent stuff into Snap-On; the customer service rep, told me it is best to call first, tell them all the part #'s of the stuff you need, that way it is on records with a rma or order # and they can refer to the order, if things don't show up. Makes sense and easier to deal with; if things go wrong with the order. It also seems better to already have the "new" superseded number figured out before you call; thats if the tool is no longer made... speeds up the process and makes sure you get the right tool as a exchange, not everyone knows tools like we do! Especially, someone who is looking at a computer and cannot handle the tools in their hand!

According to Snap on they went to call tags only eight months ago.

 

[otis66]

I was talking to a guy I worked with in the early 80's and the subject turned to tools. In that I was the guy who turned him on to the new tool company Matco and he bought a few thousand worth back then. Well fast forward, a little over 6 months ago he said he tracked down a Matco dealer where he lives now and brought two 3/8" drive ratchets in for warranty. Well with these being originally made by Wright for Matco they are long gone from the line up.

He said the driver looked at them, found the date code, looked them up and then offered him the price he paid for them towards new ratchets. He was pissed, he's been long out of turning wrenches for a living, but expected his Matco tools to be warrantied/exchanged since that was the deal when he bought them. I reported that I've not had to warranty Matco items except the Compothane hammers I bought way back then and that they didn't cover them because they didn't say Matco on them (I bought the before Matco had them private labeled for them).

So with that does the other truck brands pull the same ****? I've read that many guys have brought in broken older Snap On ratchets and were handed new S80/F80's.

TheGrooveking

If the old style Matco/Wright ratchet was broken the dealer should have replaced it with a new Matco/Danaher ratchet...No charge.

 

[Sokoloff]

Wright doesn't have rebuild kits for those older single pawl ratchets, at least per the customer service lady I spoke to last year and because of that I've put them on the do not use list for fear of breaking them and not being able to get them fixed.

Why bother? What you're effectively saying is "I'll stop using it today, to avoid the chance of having to stop using someday in the future if it breaks." You're actually making it worse: taking a known loss of use now instead of a chance of loss of use later.

 

[4x4gearhead]

Ive seen that happen with the snap on dist. old flex head ratchets with the floppy head syndrome and spread yoke, and my dist. told my co worker to buy another because "snap on isnt going to take that".

 

[chadster1]

If the old style Matco/Wright ratchet was broken the dealer should have replaced it with a new Matco/Danaher ratchet...No charge.

I guess you did not read daveblanks' response on this.

That's a tough situation for the distributor to be in. Matco will only give us ** credit on a deleted item. If it's a regular customer, I'll take a loss & get them fixed up. If it's someone off the street, what's my incentive to take a loss? I'll usually look up my current cost & offer to let them make up the difference. That way, I'm not loosing any money or making any either. If that resolution isn't good enough for them I ask them to take it up with corporate.

 

[Hiball]

I just called a couple weeks ago for a discontinued screwdriver and they sent me a brand new ratcheting screwdriver no problem whatsoever. I've sent in a ratchet in the past and got a new dual 80 back in it's place.

Snap-on warranty is top notch. If the dealer is giving any of you guys a hard time just call Snappy and tell with them directly. That's what I have done in the past with crappy dealers.

Your not telling me anything I don't already know but even with the first rate service I've received from snappy there is always someone else creating a thread bashing there warranty service. I suspect there is always 2 sides to every story and we only get to hear 1 side here at Gj.

 

[Hiball]

I guess you did not read daveblanks' response on this.

But... But it has a lifetime warranty. Lmao! I'm sure you already know people don't understand reasoning very well.

 

[mike7]

You can reach Matco for customer service at 866-289-8665. If you tell them the part number of a discontinued tool, they will tell you what it will be replaced with under warranty from their current line up. Just did this myself last week. Had a discontinued 12" 3/8" drive breaker bar. Best they could do for me was 10". Told me to ship it in, at my cost, and they'd ship me the new one. In my opinion, best way would be to go this route, and then ship it to their corporate office, using an attention line directed to the customer service rep they spoke with. The corporate office is located at 4403 Allen Rd. Stow, OH 44224. Or you could ship it to their warranty address which is 4191 Murfreesboro Pike Antioch, TN 37013.

 

[chadster1]

But... But it has a lifetime warranty. Lmao! I'm sure you already know people don't understand reasoning very well.

People dont understand that its a manufacturers warranty. I have yet to see any tool truck that is manufacturing tools in the back of the truck.

 

[Hiball]

People dont understand that its a manufacturers warranty. I have yet to see any tool truck that is manufacturing tools in the back of the truck.

Smoke and mirrors... You tool truck dealers will do anything to keep from warranting tools. Quit trying to confuse us with reason and honesty.

 

[otis66]

I guess you did not read daveblanks' response on this.

I asked my Matco Dealer... He told me if my old Wright/ Matco BR8 ratchet broke it would be replaced with a BR8T Matco ratchet. If they stop making or if the BR8T is no longer available I would get a 3/8 drive Matco 88. I have never broken a Matco ratchet. My Snap On dealer informed me that he still has rebuild kits for all of my older Snap On ratchets but if there comes a time when he could not rebuild or repair any of my Snap On ratchets he would replace it with the newest model ratchet.

 

[otis66]

I guess you did not read daveblanks' response on this.

If my Matco dealer said this to me I would not buy anything else from him. Buy a ratchet with a lifetime warranty then when the ratchet brakes pay $10-$15 dollars for a warranty.

 

[db130]

i have a matco 3/8" flex ratchet that was made for them by new britain(it has a loose head that could probably be repaired by driving out the flex head pin and then replacing the spring underneath the detent ball). if i enter the part number on their website, the website says "not eligible for warranty but eligible for repair." if my ratchet was actually broken and i came across their stance on their warranty, i'd not be a happy camper!

 

[billymade]

I think I would just call Matco; talk to a human....see what they can do for you.