Show off your.... Carlyle Tools!!!

[2JZGTESC300]

I went to Napa to get a 3/8 Ratchet from my brother in law (he works there and just got back from a week vacation), and he told me they are ****. Then he told me they look like Snap on Ratchets but don't be fooled by them. The reason why they have Soft Grip Handle is because Snap on never patent it when they came out with it. Just for that reason, the company is knocking off from it. Also stated tools are made in Taiwan.

Then another guy went on telling me about Fram Oil Filters. He said Fram is smart, when they came out with the textured grip on their Oil Filters, it was patent. No other Oil Filters company out there can knock off it's design.

Is this true!?

Oh well, Snap on will be here tomorrow. New toys!

 

[CaisedoA]

i havent seen many going crazy about them. maybe going crazy claiming they are overpriced before using them. but they havent been out long enough for anyone to be going all that crazy. this forum has been especially harsh about the price and COO.

correct me if im wrong but i think a brand thats comparable to this would be gearwrench since theyre good quality tools and imported, but from what ive seen so far carlyle tools are priced quite a bit higher, i try to buy usa tools most of the time and am willing to pay more just for that, but i think imported tools should reflect COO on the price, i own some gearwrench stuff and know that a good tool can come from taiwan or anywhere else, but i paid about 1/4 of the price for say a gearwrench ratchet than what i paid for a usa snap on.

 

[BrokewrenchLS1]

I went to Napa to get a 3/8 Ratchet from my brother in law (he works there and just got back from a week vacation), and he told me they are ****. Then he told me they look like Snap on Ratchets but don't be fooled by them. The reason why they have Soft Grip Handle is because Snap on never patent it when they came out with it. Just for that reason, the company is knocking off from it. Also stated tools are made in Taiwan.

Then another guy went on telling me about Fram Oil Filters. He said Fram is smart, when they came out with the textured grip on their Oil Filters, it was patent. No other Oil Filters company out there can knock off it's design.

Is this true!?

Oh well, Snap on will be here tomorrow. New toys!

Lots and lots of other manufacturers have soft handles on their ratchets...it Matco junk because they're "stealing" Snap-on's soft handle idea?

Patents also only last so long before they become essentially open market - I'm not sure when Snap-on introduced soft handles, but even if they did put a patent on them, it very well could be expired now.

 

[NC-Fordguy]

I dont mean to be an *** or anything like that but i dont get what the big deal is with these tools, from what ive seen so far i think theyre kind of overpriced for imports and dont really see anything special about them, im not saying they are not good tools because i havent tried any of them yet, but maybe im missing something because ive seen a lot of people going crazy about them.

This topic was beat to death exponentially in other threads. So much to the point I'm really done trying in vain to have an actual discusion about the tools themselves or posting pics of tools I have bought.

With this being a new tool line, the price point nor durability of the tools can be reasonably discussed. Only time will tell.

The point I and others were trying to stress was this is just a new tool line and some were interested in sharing about what we bought and give initial first impressions.

Unfortunately it got finger fawked to death.

I did quote you, but my response is not directed at you nor anyone in the preceding posts. It's Just merely an FYI about the discusion history of past threads

 

[BrokewrenchLS1]

correct me if im wrong but i think a brand thats comparable to this would be gearwrench since theyre good quality tools and imported, but from what ive seen so far carlyle tools are priced quite a bit higher, i try to buy usa tools most of the time and am willing to pay more just for that, but i think imported tools should reflect COO on the price, i own some gearwrench stuff and know that a good tool can come from taiwan or anywhere else, but i paid about 1/4 of the price for say a gearwrench ratchet than what i paid for a usa snap on.

Retail on a Gearwrench 3/8" ratchet is higher (at least where I checked) than an SK 3/8", but it doesn't seem like anyone ever brings that up. Gearwrench is at US-produced prices now, but people still seem to love the brand...and then turn around and ***** about Taiwanese tools.

Country of origin can be important, but quality should trump COO.

I won't argue that Carlyle seems to be priced too high (about 200% to me), but the pricing on a lot of good-quality Taiwan tools is increasing to the point where it's almost at, if it hasn't surpassed, SK, Proto, Wright, Armstrong, etc.

 

[Hiball]

I went to Napa to get a 3/8 Ratchet from my brother in law (he works there and just got back from a week vacation), and he told me they are ****. Then he told me they look like Snap on Ratchets but don't be fooled by them. The reason why they have Soft Grip Handle is because Snap on never patent it when they came out with it. Just for that reason, the company is knocking off from it. Also stated tools are made in Taiwan.

Then another guy went on telling me about Fram Oil Filters. He said Fram is smart, when they came out with the textured grip on their Oil Filters, it was patent. No other Oil Filters company out there can knock off it's design.

Is this true!?

Oh well, Snap on will be here tomorrow. New toys!

Sure hope Napa doesnt do Random Drug tests on Employees... LOL

In all Seriousness... There are Tons of Ratchets that Carry a Soft Grip, US Patents dont carry much clout overseas and the only thing that looks similar to Snap on is the Pear Head/Grip and the same can be said for Many Manufacturers..

 

[TwoInch]

correct me if im wrong but i think a brand thats comparable to this would be gearwrench since theyre good quality tools and imported, but from what ive seen so far carlyle tools are priced quite a bit higher, i try to buy usa tools most of the time and am willing to pay more just for that, but i think imported tools should reflect COO on the price, i own some gearwrench stuff and know that a good tool can come from taiwan or anywhere else, but i paid about 1/4 of the price for say a gearwrench ratchet than what i paid for a usa snap on.

but you are only guessing that they are comparable to gearwrench. what makes you think that? gearwrench is mostly all china made now, so it isnt COO...

i have had the Carlyle wrenches and sockets in my hands, and i can tell you from that fact, that they are considerably nicer than any gearwrench products i have used or seen.

to me, most of the gearwrench stuff is over rated. the ratchets being the exception. the ratcheting wrenches are nice too. but the sockets and non-ratcheting wrenches are just decent in my eyes. the carlyle stuff are very nice tools, only time will tell on the strength and durability of them. but my guess is that they are pretty high quality tools, and truly higher than gearwrench quality in all aspects.

 

[CaisedoA]

This topic was beat to death exponentially in other threads. So much to the point I'm really done trying in vain to have an actual discusion about the tools themselves or posting pics of tools I have bought.

With this being a new tool line, the price point nor durability of the tools can be reasonably discussed. Only time will tell.

The point I and others were trying to stress was this is just a new tool line and some were interested in sharing about what we bought and give initial first impressions.

Unfortunately it got finger fawked to death.

I did quote you, but my response is not directed at you nor anyone in the preceding posts. It's Just merely an FYI about the discusion history of past threads

Im not trying to bash on the brand, just trying to figure out why so many people are talking about them, what do you think about them so far?

 

[TwoInch]

correct me if im wrong but i think a brand thats comparable to this would be gearwrench since theyre good quality tools and imported, but from what ive seen so far carlyle tools are priced quite a bit higher, i try to buy usa tools most of the time and am willing to pay more just for that, but i think imported tools should reflect COO on the price, i own some gearwrench stuff and know that a good tool can come from taiwan or anywhere else, but i paid about 1/4 of the price for say a gearwrench ratchet than what i paid for a usa snap on.

lets just say for the sake of argument, that carlyle is just as good as the coveted, dare i say it... Snap on.

quality being equal, would the price be more acceptable? to me, absolutely. they are expensive tools, and NAPA admits they were not trying to put another mid level tool line out on the market. they are trying to offer top of the line tools, at a more reasonable price. if they are of great quality, they may very well be worth the money.

int he end, COO only has a small impact on price. why are german tools so expensive? do you really believe taiwan factory CANT make a comparable product that germany makes? they absolutely can, thats a fact. any country CAN make top of the line tools, its just that companies use the asian companies to make cheap tools. people need to realize that fact. if a company says make me a 20 dollar wrench set, thats what they make.

 

[Hiball]

Im not trying to bash on the brand, just trying to figure out why so many people are talking about them, what do you think about them so far?

1. There New ( Genius, Toptul, Nepros, Beta etc.. They all had there Hay day here at GJ)
2. Some of there Products are Inovative so it makes them interesting.















































3. Price.

LOL

 

[CaisedoA]

but you are only guessing that they are comparable to gearwrench. what makes you think that? gearwrench is mostly all china made now, so it isnt COO...

i have had the Carlyle wrenches and sockets in my hands, and i can tell you from that fact, that they are considerably nicer than any gearwrench products i have used or seen.

to me, most of the gearwrench stuff is over rated. the ratchets being the exception. the ratcheting wrenches are nice too. but the sockets and non-ratcheting wrenches are just decent in my eyes. the carlyle stuff are very nice tools, only time will tell on the strength and durability of them. but my guess is that they are pretty high quality tools, and truly higher than gearwrench quality in all aspects.

i guess ill have to stop by napa and check them out then, how would you say the wrenches and sockets that you saw compare to snap on?, the gearwrench stuff that i own or have used is the ratchets and ratcheting wrenches, maybe thats why i think highly of the brand since i havent used their sockets or regular wrenches.

 

[CaisedoA]

lets just say for the sake of argument, that carlyle is just as good as the coveted, dare i say it... Snap on.

quality being equal, would the price be more acceptable? to me, absolutely. they are expensive tools, and NAPA admits they were not trying to put another mid level tool line out on the market. they are trying to offer top of the line tools, at a more reasonable price. if they are of great quality, they may very well be worth the money.

int he end, COO only has a small impact on price. why are german tools so expensive? do you really believe taiwan factory CANT make a comparable product that germany makes? they absolutely can, thats a fact. any country CAN make top of the line tools, its just that companies use the asian companies to make cheap tools. people need to realize that fact. if a company says make me a 20 dollar wrench set, thats what they make.

i agree, if these tools are comparable with snap on in quality, i would be happy to pay those prices regardless of COO, but i guess we'll have to wait and see, like i said before, i know a good tool can come from just about anywhere and the reason i would rather buy usa tools is mostly to help our economy, not because i think its better just cuz its made here, look at the little bit of craftsman thats still made in the US, i think its **** and around the same quality as most HF stuff

 

[NC-Fordguy]

Im not trying to bash on the brand, just trying to figure out why so many people are talking about them, what do you think about them so far?

Well................

I'm not under the assumption you're bashing at all. If folks want to have a rational discussion about the tools I think it's a great thing. This is in part why this forums exist.

Right now I'm in the body work phase of a clients truck so I haven't used the tools a lot.

I've bought a couple ratchets, a set of long pattern wrenches and a set of saltus wrenches.

I like the long pattern wrenches. They have a flank drive type of grip on the open end. The grip a fastener well. These are priced in line with wrenches from wright and s&k

The ratchets seem well made. I've used then a few times and I think they are on par both performance wise and price wise with the crafty thin profile ratchets. Now the ones I bought are chrome handles and have 48 teeth. The ratchets that have the fine tooth count have girly grips which I don't care for. Another reason I bought these versus the high tooth count ratchets is these have quick release mechanisms which I prefer especially when my hand are greasy or have fluids on them.

My first impressions is these are quality tools. Some are priced well and some IMO isn't in line. I talked to my napa dealer about this and his response since this is a new tool line, he felt there will likely be adjustments as these tools find their respective places in the market.

The real answer to how well these tools will be can only be answered in time as they are used.

 

[CaisedoA]

I might check out the fine tooth ratchets with the "girly grips" , i preffer them cuz the chrome ones are too small for my hands and i cant get a grip on them when i take hydraulic oil showers working under heavy equipment, hahaha , have you ever used snap on's flank drive plus wrenches? if you have how do they compare to the carlyle long pattern?

 

[Fedwrench]

Perhaps instead of comparing Carlyle pricing with Gearwrench, it should be compared to KT Pro (King Tony Pro). Why? Gearwench is mostly PRC made these days. Gearwrench is dumped 2-3 times a year during half price sales at sears and with the extensive buy one get one free promotions at places like national tool warehouse. On the other hand KT Pro is Taiwan made, and tries to cater to pro mechanics through the toolwarehouse.net and other online channels. They even have their own online store.
Time and heavy use will determine if Carlyle tools can hang or not. Right now everyone seems to be hung up on NAPA pricing. Nothing is cheap at Napa. As for being from Taiwan, there are established brands coming from Taiwan such as grey pneumatic and many formerly european brands are now hawking Taiwan made tools.

 

[NC-Fordguy]

I might check out the fine tooth ratchets with the "girly grips" , i preffer them cuz the chrome ones are too small for my hands and i cant get a grip on them when i take hydraulic oil showers working under heavy equipment, hahaha , have you ever used snap on's flank drive plus wrenches? if you have how do they compare to the carlyle long pattern?

Got a set of 6 point snappys. Carlyle set is 12 point

Initial impressions it's a toss up. I'll know after some long term serious wrenching how well the carlyle holds up

 

[concealer404]

i was told by the local napa guys that the rep claimed there will be the pro line carlyle, and a cheaper DIY level carlyle line.

anyone else hear this? im guessing it would replace the evercraft stuff?

Doubtful. From what i understand, Evercraft is probably sticking around.

 

[concealer404]

I dont mean to be an *** or anything like that but i dont get what the big deal is with these tools, from what ive seen so far i think theyre kind of overpriced for imports and dont really see anything special about them, im not saying they are not good tools because i havent tried any of them yet, but maybe im missing something because ive seen a lot of people going crazy about them.

I fail to see what "for imports" has to do with it.

 

[concealer404]

I went to Napa to get a 3/8 Ratchet from my brother in law (he works there and just got back from a week vacation), and he told me they are ****. Then he told me they look like Snap on Ratchets but don't be fooled by them. The reason why they have Soft Grip Handle is because Snap on never patent it when they came out with it. Just for that reason, the company is knocking off from it. Also stated tools are made in Taiwan.

Then another guy went on telling me about Fram Oil Filters. He said Fram is smart, when they came out with the textured grip on their Oil Filters, it was patent. No other Oil Filters company out there can knock off it's design.

Is this true!?

Oh well, Snap on will be here tomorrow. New toys!

Weird. So it's a big deal when Carlyle blatantly rips off SnapOn's grip, but not when anyone else does? (Cough cough Gearwrench, just to start.)

Strangely, everyone i know that works at Balkamp say the ratchets are the ****.

And yes, they're made in Taiwan. That's been pointed out at least 5 times in every thread so far, nobody is hiding it. I fail to see what it has to do with anything. I'll give 10:1 odds that your brother in law says they're **** simply because they're made in Taiwan. I'll give 20:1 odds that your brother in law hasn't spent enough time with said ratchets to be able to pass judgement on them.

 

[concealer404]

Nice to see this thread went exactly as i figured it would. I'm proud of you guys for holding off until the 2nd page, though!

 

[CaisedoA]

I fail to see what "for imports" has to do with it.

As I said earlier Im willing to pay more for US tools to help our economy and I understand the higher prices on them because manufacturing costs more here. So if i have to pay more but it means a job stays here rather than going overseas, im ok with that as long as the quality is good.

 

[Coach James]

Fram is not the only oil filter with a textured grip. Advance Auto caries a store brand oil filter that has that also and it is not made by Fram. The box actually states that it is not made by the same company that manufactures Fram.

Coach

 

[NC-Fordguy]

As I said earlier Im willing to pay more for US tools to help our economy and I understand the higher prices on them because manufacturing costs more here. So if i have to pay more but it means a job stays here rather than going overseas, im ok with that as long as the quality is good.

I too prefer USA made tools but I posted my reasoning on this in another thread.

My local Napa is small locally owned business. They have always been good to me. Good discounts, made in USA parts availability, Great Service. They have stayed open late for me so I could pick up parts and have helped me figure out some oddball things I've run into. (Ever try to get a carburator rebuild kit for a 1966 Kaiser M-715 from advance auto parts?)

So I have no problem spending my money at a small locally owned business

 

[CaisedoA]

I too prefer USA made tools but I posted my reasoning on this in another thread.

My local Napa is small locally owned business. They have always been good to me. Good discounts, made in USA parts availability, Great Service. They have stayed open late for me so I could pick up parts and have helped me figure out some oddball things I've run into. (Ever try to get a carburator rebuild kit for a 1966 Kaiser M-715 from advance auto parts?)

So I have no problem spending my money at a small locally owned business

I agree, I think choosing where and how you spend your money has a big impact in our economy and how well our country is doing overall, but I guess this its way off topic from what this thread was about so I'll stop before I piss more people off, hahaha

 

[TwoInch]

i agree, if these tools are comparable with snap on in quality, i would be happy to pay those prices regardless of COO, but i guess we'll have to wait and see, like i said before, i know a good tool can come from just about anywhere and the reason i would rather buy usa tools is mostly to help our economy, not because i think its better just cuz its made here, look at the little bit of craftsman thats still made in the US, i think its **** and around the same quality as most HF stuff

good, i see you get what i was going for then. in all reality COO has very little to do with quality or price. compare craftsman and snap on, both USA and of seriously different quality and price ranges. there is no reason the carlyle couldnt be worth every dime they cost. not saying they are, but they might be.

now wanting to buy USA for reasons other than quality, that has nothing to do with these tools. i try to buy USA as much as i can, but i can not afford to buy snap on tools for everything. maybe one day, not now though. i buy what i can USA, and if i need something bad enough, i will buy what i can afford be it taiwan or chinese.

i also think its a serious stretch to compare the USA craftsman stuff with HF quality. i get why everyone is upset with craftsman, but i dont see the quality issues. maybe quality control, but not true quality of the tools. i believe they are still an amazing bargain for USA made middle level tools. they work well, and dont break often(minus RP ratchets). the USA craftsman of the last 10 years is pretty damn close to what they have been for the 20 or more years before that. i have Cman sockets and wrenches from many different makes and years, lots of -V- stuff,-vv- stuff, and i dont think its much better than the recent stuff. todays Cman toolboxes are obviously garbage. no doubt some has gone down hill. But USA hardline is about what its been all along in my eyes.

 

[concealer404]

As I said earlier Im willing to pay more for US tools to help our economy and I understand the higher prices on them because manufacturing costs more here. So if i have to pay more but it means a job stays here rather than going overseas, im ok with that as long as the quality is good.

Sure, but being that we're talking about a company whose entire line up (as far as we know) is made in Taiwan, you're pretty much implying the inverse as well when you make comments like "Priced kind of high for imports."

What sort of price should imports be at? I'm interested how you can tell if they're priced too high without having used the tools.

 

[concealer404]

I agree, I think choosing where and how you spend your money has a big impact in our economy and how well our country is doing overall, but I guess this its way off topic from what this thread was about so I'll stop before I piss more people off, hahaha

Heh, i don't think anyone is really getting pissed. (Myself included.) It's just a bit funny watching the same exact discussions take place that have in at least 5 other threads now.

And apparently i'm the only person who has Carlyle tools.

 

[CaisedoA]

Heh, i don't think anyone is really getting pissed. (Myself included.) It's just a bit funny watching the same exact discussions take place that have in at least 5 other threads now.

And apparently i'm the only person who has Carlyle tools.

I'm pretty new around here so I guess I haven't really gone trough all the other threads about this, that's my bad, but I guess I'll check these tools out next time I stop by napa and compare them to some of the stuff I already have, and I'll keep checking on updates from those of you that are actually using them and with time we'll figure out if theyre worth the price or not

 

[concealer404]

I'm pretty new around here so I guess I haven't really gone trough all the other threads about this, that's my bad, but I guess I'll check these tools out next time I stop by napa and compare them to some of the stuff I already have, and I'll keep checking on updates from those of you that are actually using them and with time we'll figure out if theyre worth the price or not

Heh, it's no big deal.


Errr i mean.... SEARCH NOOB!!!!!

 

[CaisedoA]

Had u guys going for a while there though, not bad for a noob, hahaha

 

[CaisedoA]

Getting back to the tools though, I don't like the handles on those screw drivers, but then again I've been spoiled with snap on instinct ones, on the other hand the wrenches look pretty nice.

 

[concealer404]

Getting back to the tools though, I don't like the handles on those screw drivers, but then again I've been spoiled with snap on instinct ones, on the other hand the wrenches look pretty nice.

I didn't like the way they LOOKED, either...

They feel pretty awesome, though.

That said, i'm not sure if i'd choose them over the Instinct screwdrivers all things being equal, but they aren't.

 

[NC-Fordguy]

And apparently i'm the only person who has Carlyle tools.

At least you get to demonstrate your uniqueness

 

[concealer404]

how is the quality on that set of deep sockets?

They're certainly heavy...

I'll take some pictures. They aren't perfect, but i'm happy with them overall.

 

[franzdom]

They're certainly heavy...

I'll take some pictures. They aren't perfect, but i'm happy with them overall.

More pics please

 

[CaisedoA]

i'd like to see some close ups on the sockets also

 

[NC-Fordguy]

Perhaps instead of comparing Carlyle pricing with Gearwrench, it should be compared to KT Pro (King Tony Pro). Why? Gearwench is mostly PRC made these days. Gearwrench is dumped 2-3 times a year during half price sales at sears and with the extensive buy one get one free promotions at places like national tool warehouse. On the other hand KT Pro is Taiwan made, and tries to cater to pro mechanics through the toolwarehouse.net and other online channels. They even have their own online store.
Time and heavy use will determine if Carlyle tools can hang or not. Right now everyone seems to be hung up on NAPA pricing. Nothing is cheap at Napa. As for being from Taiwan, there are established brands coming from Taiwan such as grey pneumatic and many formerly european brands are now hawking Taiwan made tools.

Is KT pro the same brand as K-tool? I've seen k-tool advertised in some fliers at my local napa

 

[Fedwrench]

Is KT pro the same brand as K-tool? I've seen k-tool advertised in some fliers at my local napa

Not the same. KT Pro = King Tony Pro. thetoolwarehouse.net has a few KT Pro offerings.

 

[plinker]

My local Napa rep stopped at work today, and said the NHT line of tool's is being clearenced out at the store. About 70% off of what's in stock to make room for the new line.

The Napa quarterly flyer list's the Carlyle long pattern wrench set at 129.00. Not bad for the price from the look's of it. I'm sure I'll end up with some of the new stuff sooner or later, likely in the form of torx bit socket's

 

[NC-Fordguy]

Thats for the heads up guys on k-tool KT-pro

I think it's a good thing to have so many brands/choices these days. It spurs new ideas, inovations and pricing which benefits the end user