Snap-on Canada Warranty ?

[Downwindtracker 2]

I just got off the phone. no warranty. It was a 3/8" breaker bar that came with a set of old 1960 S-K sockets. It was a factory defect, they had too rapidly cooled the handle end and it was brittle so when the original owner reefed, it broke. The head should have given way first. Since I didn't buy it off the truck, I'm honest, no warranty. It's 3/8 breaker bar, the only use I have for one is undoing the oil pan drain on my CTD. So no rant, just warning, used Snap-On tools have questionable warranty.

This is in sharp contrast with Proto. Another fleamarket find, a 3/8" sliding T-handle. This time I was able to E-mail headquarters to get the address of the Canadian customer relations. The reply was very prompt, with I'm very sorry to hear that. Excellent ! In the cover letter I explained how I came into it, and how I used Proto tools for work. I'm a retired millwright. Again it was a factory defect, they had overly annealed the head and it worn sloppy. They sent me a new one.

 

[3baygarage]

I'm probably not the only guy here who wants to see how it broke.

 

[Stooge]

Doesn't really sound like any sort of warning or evidence of a questionable warranty to me, it just sounds like you bought an old, obviously broken tool and tried your luck at getting a new one and were rightfully turned down.

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

The warning is about buying used Snap-On tools. If you are honest, the tools have no warranty. At least in Canada.

For heavens sake, it was a 3/8" breaker bar ! But I do now know about buying used Snap-On, which was the whole purpose of this exercise. Since I'm not a mechanic that buys off the truck, I'll value used Snap-On tools as throwaways .Like Britool, Armstrong, or Herbrand. I won't lie.
That was a factory defect, they ran the line too fast, or more likely, didn't design a process to cool correctly.

 

[Professional Tool User]

If you have a good Snap on guy who wants your business, warranty is not an issue. I bought a few used Snap on air hammer bits that were older than I was. One of them was broken. My Snap on guy took care of it and I don't even buy that much off him.

The same goes for any other tool brand where you know a distribution channel that will replace your broken tools without hassling you.

 

[Professional Tool User]

Doesn't really sound like any sort of warning or evidence of a questionable warranty to me, it just sounds like you bought an old, obviously broken tool and tried your luck at getting a new one and were rightfully turned down.

You go tell that to those people who actually spend a lot of money on the Snap on truck. They'll be threatening to cancel stuff they have on back order if their Snap on guy refuses to warranty the odd flea market item.

 

[Stooge]

You go tell that to those people who actually spend a lot of money on the Snap on truck. They'll be threatening to cancel stuff they have on back order if their Snap on guy refuses to warranty the odd flea market item.

Huh? If they are spending big on the snap on truck, why would they be calling snap on customer service about a flea market tool that they bought broken rather than just going to their driver, where if they have a good relationship and the driver wants to keep their business, will warranty it no problem. OP doesnt sound like he fits into your example of a lucrative snap on customer,(says he doesnt buy off the truck, his used tool purchases arent making SO any money) just that he took a chance on trying to get a free tool and was turned down, but calls it an exercise to make it sound less ****** and more like a social experiment or something.

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

This was aimed at those guys who boast about having Snap-On, but bought them used for their homeshop. Fine tools, but I bet I would have better luck getting warranty on the three other breaker bars I found in the drawer, a HD Husky, a Blackhawk I didn't know I had, and a =V= Craftsman.

I was upfront about it.

 

[MWEric]

Bummer you don’t have a truck, my dealer warrants everything I’ve brought him no question asked.

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

Thanks for the kind words, Eric. Their customer relations line was toll free, so I wasn't even out the dime. Seriously, the tool didn't matter, it was a let's see what happens.

The breaker bar was defective, no question about that. Now a days they use much better controlled heating and cooling. At work we did some very expensive up grading just to deal with that. The old guy who had it, bought the S-K 1/2 set between 1958 and 1963, the sockets are distinctive , so you can guess the breaker bar was a '60s product. I had broken the handle off a 1/2 Challenger by Proto, a late '60s. Only I repaired it with some exotic high tensile welding rod, and left it over night in vermiculite. The next time it broke, it was at the head, which is to be expected. I got that nut off with a Mastercraft sliding T-handle that I had to go buy, so cheaply made the head was hollow. I never even thought to bother with warranty, but I did tease a Proto rep about it.

I decided to look up the Snap-On price, $85, in Canadian dollars, $113. To compare, a Gray was $36, so you pay over 300% more for an inferior tool.

 

[wafrederick]

The Snap-On tool review's dealer Tyler Ross warranties broken tools.The Snap-On tool review is from Canada,BC area

 

[Handyandy23]

Even without a dealer, you might get different results phoning the customer service line again. I doubt it's one person sitting there fielding all of the calls that come in. It's the same trying to do warranty claims in-person at a brick and mortar store. If you go in one day and get some old crank or a manager that thinks they're going to run the corporation one day, you might get the run around. If you go in the next day and part time Sally is working, she probably doesn't GAF and will just warranty it and move on.

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

Very true.

The tool company reps, like Proto or Jet, aren't too helpful, either. Doing warranty claims means extra work. Face it, they are salesmen, they make their living by talking, not by working. This is from a retailer's point of view. Heck, they don't even keep the tool boards full. That's why I thought to just send off to headquarters, a $4 gamble, and let them sort it out. Yeh or Nay. Snap-On Canada wouldn't even give out an address.

As far as tool trucks go, I've bought one thing off a MAC truck 40 years ago, a snap ring plier set, a set common to all brands. As a millwright I would buy from the industrial suppliers using the company discount. But unlike auto mechanics we got by with a lot fewer tools, and if I needed a specialty tool, I would make it during the quiet times.

 

[dalehsc]

I'm sorry,have I gone daft. When did S-K & Snappy become brothers? I would never step on my Snappy dealers truck & ask for warranty for a S-K tool.

He can be a bit of an *** sometimes. A friend of mine worked for a utility company & needed a couple of drag link adjuster sockets replaced. I presented them to my Snappy guy,he asked who owned them. I told him & got," he never bought them from me" & here's the address for warranty in Calgary,Alberta. My buddy sent them out,2 wks later he had his replacements.

Knock on wood,I've never had an issue with him. Gruff most trips. But every 2 wks,at the dealership. Only 3-4 of our 7 techs buy from him.

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

I'm sorry if I wasn't clear, the original owner had pretty good taste in tools. From the looks of them, he earned his living with them. I bought a top tray, with neatly welded in dividers . His 1/2" set was a S-K with a couple of MAC replacements. Like lot of us, the 3/8" weren't a full set, he just got the common sizes in S-K and MAC. The ratchet was a S-K. but the breaker bar was the Snap-On.