should i go with snap-on???

[AddictioN]

well im 18 years old and am attending diesel mechanic school. first off i never have ever used a "professional" grade tool i have always used craftsman or kobalt. but i know i will be going to be turning wrenches for 10+ hours a day in just 2 years for the rest of my life. anyways im looking into buying a snap-on set we got tools at 60% off right now which is the only reason im considering buying though snap-on. just making sure it is the right thing to do.

 

[woody 73]

Hi if you are getting a student discount yes by all means use it Now listen up:

If the snap on company uses other companies tools only they rebrand them with the snap on name then that is telling you they like those tools, because they hold up very well, with the exception of the fast warranty (but you will be saving on the upfront cost and the tool should last a long time).

Example: Snap on use the trusty cook company for their hammers instead of buying the snap on ball peen (pein) buy the trusty cook hammer.

Snap on owns the williams company instead of buying the snap on screwdriver why not buy the williams screwdriver (same as the snap on screwdriver at half the cost).

I could go on but you get the idea, trust me been there done that.

Woody

 

[Redmanf1]

Above is good info.

 

[Hawk]

Yes use your discount, but ONLY buy what you can pay for. It looks so easy to use their credit, but you are too young to be saddled with many years of payments when you do not have a job in the field yet.

 

[Hyster Gareth]

Great idea to use the discount.

Don't get drawn into buying the biggest tool box. Always better to have the best hand tools than a tool box.

The tools earn you a living not the box!! Good luck with your future career

 

[Squankum]

Cash beats credit.

Used beats new.

Paid for beats debt.

Debt costs you, and can sneak up on you, and wind up being a cage keeping you from future options.

Craigslist and ebay now exist and are awesome.

That being said, student discount is very tempting!

 

[TinKnocker]

Cash beats credit.

Used beats new.

Paid for beats debt.

Debt costs you, and can sneak up on you, and wind up being a cage keeping you from future options.

Craigslist and ebay now exist and are awesome.

That being said, student discount is very tempting!

all of this. i dont turn wrenches for a living, so craftsman is my tool of choice. stay out of debt. good luck

 

[AutoTek]

well im 18 years old and am attending diesel mechanic school. first off i never have ever used a "professional" grade tool i have always used craftsman or kobalt. but i know i will be going to be turning wrenches for 10+ hours a day in just 2 years for the rest of my life. anyways im looking into buying a snap-on set we got tools at 60% off right now which is the only reason im considering buying though snap-on. just making sure it is the right thing to do.

I would buy the new Snap-on tools with your student discount if you can afford them, they are marked down ALOT for students, and at them prices it's definately the best deal you can get......

 

[Matt018]

I'll be in school soon aswell and i plan on buying as much half off 60% off snap on as i can afford.

 

[AddictioN]

Thanks guys and I should be buying some soon I sent the rep the tools I want and I'm going to go with a tool cart for now as I don't need the big box right now I'm Guna put some on credit but I'll be paying it off b4 90 days the rest I'm paying cash for

 

[Matt018]

Just be careful to not get in over your head, Some light things on credit might not be bad, but its easy to work up a 10,000 dollar truck bill

 

[CWP1616L]

just making sure it is the right thing to do.

It's the right thing to do, YES.

 

[AddictioN]

Haha I hear ya we r only allowed to spend 9500 while in school and 6500 worth of credit I'm Guna get about 2500 worth and put a good bit down on it

 

[RECox286]

SO is a well respected name, but not the only watering hole in town.

Pick and choose over the tools and costs per tool. Nothing wrong with

Cman. Lots of fellers twist their stuff. HF offers tool boxes that are

maybe not as 'heafty' as the others, but they still hold tools for a good

long while, and have most of the same features. Take a look at some of

the other trucks that are in the area; MAC, Matco, Cornwell. For sockets

and wrenches, if you are serious, stick with SO, other stuff you can pick and

choose. Try to stay out of debt, b/c it's not easy when you go tool

hunting...and it will come back to bite you in the ****.

Uncle Bob

 

[AddictioN]

I know this is a old thread and i know the people that were a part of it or anyone reading it may not care but i now have been a diesel tech for about a year and have fallowed through with what i originally planned. Thanks to yall i did not go "in too deep" with snap-on. I took advantage of the discount to get my box and my basic tools. I have found other trucks that have some better deals of certain items like impact sockets and specialty sockets. I have everything from HF to mac to GP to snap-on. Thanks for the help way back 3 years ago!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[nationalminer84]

Nice to see you check back in.... I was working in a used car lot as a detailer when I started out I did light stuff and learned a lot from the owner Using his tools. I got my certificate and fully expected to get his next technician opening and a pay raise. He told me that he did like me and appreciated what I did but he could not have me as a technician using his tools I had to have my own so obviously my first thought was take the snappy discount and roll a huge new box in there.... Thank god he stopped me before I did that... We worked out a deal where I would buy myself a basic set and box. Any new to me jobs I needed tools for I could borrow but if it was something I was going to need regularly he expected me to buy it sooner rather than later. He let me charge parts store tools to the shop and pay him off and would sell me a few. He got me into garage sales and pawn shops for tools. I did have to buy some truck tools but over all I spent very little on the truck and never carried more than 5k on their credit from that basic purchase until I paid them off. Had he not put me on that path I could have spent 20k easily to get all name brand of what I have then after 4 years I went industrial anyways so my tools sit at home.... Good luck to you


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[nationalminer84]

Best advise he ever gave me was that "the box doesn't make you money" he had a craftsman box for his first
14 years until he upgraded himself to a snap on when he could afford it... I bought a 42" stainless box for under a grand with the same idea. Still have it since its in my home shop now


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[AddictioN]

[emoji106][emoji106][emoji106][emoji106] only reason i went with the snappy box is because it was only about $650 after my discount. My school snap on acc is now paid off and i keep my trucks under $1000. My snap on man when i first started he told me to only buy what i need , and to find out what you need by having to barrow a tool for the job. And im soooo glad i didnt jump right into buying random things when i first started as a diesel tech. Because im sure i would have a lot of un used tools in the box. Dont get me wrong its hard getting on the truck and passing up on those shiny sockets and colored pliers that i dont even have the slightest idea of what they are used for lol. But having a small bill and buying the package deals is the way to roll on the truck. [emoji16]

 

[espyking83]

Dont go into serious debt out of school, I would try to keep it under $2k. Buy tools, not their boxes. Also, as other members have said, Snap On doesnt make all their tools, and their Industrial lines are every bit as good as Snap On.

Generally I think Snap On is overpriced, but with the student discount they are certainly worth it. Just dont go crazy with it, it's an investment--not a shopping spree. You have to pay that **** back.

 

[espyking83]

I stand corrected, $650 is a great price for a SO box.

 

[espyking83]

And I just realized this is an old thread..... I need my goddamned coffee

 

[Tronyadorable]

Use your discount and buy items that work out as cheap(or close) as the Taiwanese equivalents....and I DO mean equivalents. Stick to their specialty stuff.

 

[dnschmidt]

Absolutely you should buy Snap-On. I'm a shareholder.

 

[wornoutoldman]

Dont go into serious debt out of school but with the student discount, it's an investment--not a shopping spree. You have to pay that **** back.

Truth! Apologies for the edit.

 

[AddictioN]

Sorry everyone for wakening my old thread lol! Just wanted to let the originally people who gave me advice that it did help and wanted them to see where i am today!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ChrisPace]

wow 60% off!! That's smoking, sounds like a screwdriver set would be around $50-$60 bucks. which if you were ever in a cash crunch Snap On sells for near retail on eBay.

If I ever had one regret was that when I was in your position and going through body tech school I didn't buy Snap On. I bought the Blackhawk kit the school offered and financed. The used Blackhawk has zero resale value and it is all clunky. I still have it. It was heavy duty. The screwdrivers lasted a year and then I threw them out and ended up with Snap On screwdrivers anyway. Looking back I would have been way better off with Craftsman too. It least I could have had easy access to replacements and warranty. I have had this same thought many times over the years. Craftsman has a student program too.

My other regrets are I wish I would have bought that 63 split window from my friend for $7000, a 73 Trans am Super Duty for $2000 and had enough left over to buy a 68 Chevy stepside for $500.

 

[JNB]

You will never regret the quality and durability of Snap-On. Their tools are more expensive, but also more comfortable to use in day-to-day repairs because they are engineered with the end-user in mind. They are also guaranteed against breakage. With a 60% disount, you can't go wrong!

 

[woody 73]

Glad we could help you out and thank you for letting us know how things are going.

 

[Zrexxer]

I know this is a old thread and i know the people that were a part of it or anyone reading it may not care but i now have been a diesel tech for about a year and have fallowed through with what i originally planned.

OK, enough about SO discounts - tell us, how are you liking your chosen career, after you've been working in it awhile?

Is it what you expected? Or as is sometimes the case, completely different than you thought it'd be?

What are you working on?

 

[AddictioN]

OK, enough about SO discounts - tell us, how are you liking your chosen career, after you've been working in it awhile?

Is it what you expected? Or as is sometimes the case, completely different than you thought it'd be?

What are you working on?

So far i love it ive always loved working on my own vehicles. Im big into diesel performance which is what led me to school and a career. My primary job is a diesel tech at mobile truck and trailer repair. And we work on anything and everything most big trucks but do get a lot of mid sized stuff. I also have a shop part time that i do on the side me and a buddy and we just do performance work and repairs on mid sized diesel trucks.
Heres my box now at my main job.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[stikman56]

I turn wrenches for a living and still never once went into debt to buy my tools. Do research ,look on Craigslist, ebay, buy used etc. It can be done and there are some great tools out there beside Snap-On as well, that will hold up and do the job well. Example,Sears sells 20 piece gearwrench sets on sale all the time for 50 bucks. Their 3 piece pry bar set goes on sale for 20 bucks, etc.

 

[ihateminimumwage]

Welcome back, and glad you didn't get in too over your head in debt (watched plenty of guys at jobs impulse buying off the truck).

Here's a lot of good info on Tool Truck Equivalents:
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=249851
I don't mean for it to seem like a shameless plug, but it will help the wallet now that the SEP discount is over.

Definitely look into the "Diesel Mechanics Projects" thread if you're sticking around.

 

[Jweebothee]

And I just realized this is an old thread..... I need my goddamned coffee

I hate when that happens, lol,

 

[Jweebothee]

I love reading old threads like this, it's always awesome to read the beginning of someone's story, and then for them to come back quite a while later and give an update