Tekton - brief initial impression...

[akatsuki]

So I see mention of them here and there. I just bought a socket hex driver by them since I needed one quickly and Amazon had same day on it.

I can see people hating the trilobe handles, but I think I might be in love. If you have larger hands, they are pretty great. although I think the individual finger grips are a bit overkill.

It feels fine, if not quite as hefty as an Irazola/Bahco (which can often feel a bit too heavy for day in/day out use). The finishing on the shaft and end looks solidly middle market, not those perfectly chiseled angles a PB Swiss or Nepros would have. I wish the driver was stainless steel over the mottled black grey that the hex driver is, or I wish the finish was just a bit more even.

Obviously I just got it and I won't be putting it through the ringer in any way - the purpose i have it for is fairly light duty. But was curious about how they stack against other brands? I know they are made in the US, but by who?

 

[Handyandy23]

I believe they make all their own drivers. They have really started to expand their own designs and in house manufacturing in the US.

Contrary to what some say, they aren't just rebranding other people's tools. In some cases they do, but screw drivers, pry bars, and some other stuff are made in the US by Tekton.

 

[visionguru]

I believe they make all their own drivers. They have really started to expand their own designs and in house manufacturing in the US.

Contrary to what some say, they aren't just rebranding other people's tools. In some cases they do, but screw drivers, pry bars, and some other stuff are made in the US by Tekton.

LOL.
Have you seen the pry bars made by Wilde? As far as I know, they supply them to Craftsman, Menards, Walmart too. Craftsman designed it once, Menards twice, Walmart..., then designed by Tekton. Yeah, like there is a lot of profit making screw drivers, so much that Tekton decides to make them.

 

[Jrboulder]

LOL.
Have you seen the pry bars made by Wilde? As far as I know, they supply them to Craftsman, Menards, Walmart too. Craftsman designed it once, Menards twice, Walmart..., then designed by Tekton.

And it's hard to believe Artisan didn't have anything to do with the screwdrivers.

 

[Professional Tool User]

I believe they make all their own drivers. They have really started to expand their own designs and in house manufacturing in the US.

Contrary to what some say, they aren't just rebranding other people's tools. In some cases they do, but screw drivers, pry bars, and some other stuff are made in the US by Tekton.

I highly doubt they make anything themselves. The pry bars are definitely Wilde. The new screwdrivers they came up with their own design and farmed it out.

 

[Handyandy23]

I highly doubt they make anything themselves. The pry bars are definitely Wilde. The new screwdrivers they came up with their own design and farmed it out.

The quote below is from Tekton's "About Us" page. Their head office is in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and they design and test a lot of their tools there.

According to them they have "developed a local supply chain" using local manufacturing to make their tools. Reading between the lines, it sounds like maybe they use local steel plant A to produce the first part of the assembly, and then have those shipped to local rubber plant B to have handles added.

I guess you can call that what you like, it kind of comes down to semantics. Do they not build their own tools because they don't own a giant factory with Tekton on the side? Or do they produce their own tools because they fully designed them and employ local existing production companies to build them to their specs?

It's kind of like building a car. Does GM and Ford not build their own cars because they only design them and then they're made up of several thousand parts that are spec'ed out by their engineers, but actually produced in other supplier's plants? Is a Dodge not a Dodge if the body side panels were stamped by a third party stamping facility?

The coolest part about what we do is something new taking place here in West Michigan, one of the world’s leading manufacturing hubs. All sorts of high-level, cutting edge fabrication methods are found here to meet the needs of the automotive, furniture, and medical device industries at globally competitive costs.

Why, we wondered, don’t we employ the resources right in our backyard to make tools like no one has ever made them? So we did. We built our own specialized local supply chains to roll out products like our Angle Head Wrenches, Screwdrivers, and Nut Drivers—and more are on the way.

https://www.tekton.com/about-us

 

[dnschmidt]

Who cares? If they sell great tools for a good price none of this matters.

 

[Tallpilot]

Who cares? If they sell great tools for a good price none of this matters.

Exactly Dennis. I think that has become the reason for all of the silly arguments we’ve had here of late. There are so many good and reasonably priced tools in the mid range that we are debating nuances.

 

[visionguru]

Exactly Dennis. I think that has become the reason for all of the silly arguments we’ve had here of late. There are so many good and reasonably priced tools in the mid range that we are debating nuances.

Facts = silly nuances?
@Handyandy23 seems clueless about what he's talking about.

 

[M6erfan]

Facts = silly nuances?
@Handyandy23 seems clueless about what he's talking about.

You mean facts like "Tekton designs nothing, they simply sourced from already existing products."???

 

[visionguru]

You mean facts like "Tekton designs nothing, they simply sourced from already existing products."???

Pretty much. All the store brands are designing their own tools? Harbor Freight design their own tools? Walmart? .....Tekton is no different than other store brands. You obvious don't see enough, thinking Tekton is special. Designing packaging and changing specs are not exactly "design".

 

[PelicanPines]

Who cares? If they sell great tools for a good price none of this matters.

Like button... PRESSED

 

[kb1982]

I wont lie. Im a fan of the allien phallus screwdrivers. Didnt have a single issue with the metric wrenches, wilde prybars or usa made pliers. Everything i have used from them has been fine thus far.

Sent from my LML713DL using Tapatalk

 

[M6erfan]

Pretty much. All the store brands are designing their own tools? Harbor Freight design their own tools? Walmart? .....Tekton is no different than other store brands. You obvious don't see enough, thinking Tekton is special. Designing packaging and changing specs are not exactly "design".

Nice try at a pivot, but we are talking tools here, not packaging. So where are the identical latest 90t Tekton ratchets and socket designs, from another supplier, that they "copied"?

 

[ChrisLS8]

Pretty much. All the store brands are designing their own tools? Harbor Freight design their own tools? Walmart? .....Tekton is no different than other store brands. You obvious don't see enough, thinking Tekton is special. Designing packaging and changing specs are not exactly "design".

Find me us made machined angle wrenches just like theirs. I'll wait

 

[M6erfan]

so where are the identical latest 90t tekton ratchets and socket designs, from another supplier, that they "copied"?

find me us made machined angle wrenches just like theirs. I'll wait

 

[Handyandy23]

In before visionguru moves the goalposts again and says "you can get 90+ tooth ratchets at HF / Lowe's / Home Depot so Tekton's isn't special".

 

[Blind1]

So much for visionguru’s opinion.

 

[M6erfan]

In before visionguru moves the goalposts again and says "you can get 90+ tooth ratchets at HF / Lowe's / Home Depot so Tekton's isn't special".

So much for visionguru’s opinion.

When pressed on specifics... ****.

 

[sk farmer]

if you guys like tekton that is fine. i have no issue with them. maybe they do have some exclusive deal with the ratchets. could be.

but the usa pliers? wilde...

the usa pry bars? wilde....

the usa screwdrivers? pretty sure they are similar to and made by proto.

the usa angle wrenches? somebody is making them but it sure isn't tekton. they may be made to their specs for them but trust me, nobody is going to fire up a plant just to make angle wrenches when the only wrenches sold in less volume may be doe or dbe wrenches.

the nano sockets? well maybe made to their specs but sure they sure look damn close to the astro versions, all taiwan made.

the building cars argument? come on. that doesn't hold water. a car a is a sum of all pieces, gathered together and assembled in one location. nobody is making glass, gaskets, rims, tires sheet metal, cast iron, cast aluminum, wire or any of the thousands of parts that make up a vehicle in one location. it only becomes a car when it is completed

a wrench, or socket are only one peice. ratchets screwdrivers, extensions and pliers have 2, 3 or at the most a dozen parts. if those few parts are not made in a tekton factory by a tekton employee and put in a tekton package, tekton didn't make it.

again. i have no issues with tekton but at best they make a very small percentage of items themselves. plain and simple.

 

[M6erfan]

It's smart business to contract out the manufacturing. That doesn't mean a company can't or does not design anything or have any unique products, and everything they sell is just a rebrand. That's just hogwash.

Sure, Tekton rebrands tools under their own name. Guess what, so does Snap-on, Mac, Matco, SK, GearWrench, etc., etc. I'm not sure what the point of these arguments is.

 

[Tallpilot]

I don't know SKFarmer. These arguments are getting rediculous. Does Snap-on make their own steel or do they specify a formulation from a mill? What difference does it make if Tekton owns a factory or not?

They spec the tools and they support them. They use USA based manufacturers when it makes sense. They are a good mid tier option and they keep improving their products. Do better options exist with a higher budget? Probably. But that doesn't diminish their value.

 

[sk farmer]

I don't know SKFarmer. These arguments are getting rediculous. Does Snap-on make their own steel or do they specify a formulation from a mill? What difference does it make if Tekton owns a factory or not?

They spec the tools and they support them. They use USA based manufacturers when it makes sense. They are a good mid tier option and they keep improving their products. Do better options exist with a higher budget? Probably. But that doesn't diminish their value.

did you not read anything i said. i am not argueing about whether tekton is good or bad. there seems to be a lot of proof that they have some really good stuff at a good price point.

i do think their website can say anything it wants and has little to back it up. tell me the address of their company. it's not on their website, are they anything more than a po box someplace? how are they connected to grip (grand rapids industrial products) or mit (michigan industrial tool), both located nearby.

 

[Tallpilot]

did you not read anything i said. i am not arguing about whether tekton is good or bad. there seems to be a lot of proof that they have some really good stuff at a good price point.

i do think their website can say anything it wants and has little to back it up. tell me the address of their company. it's not on their website, are they anything more than a po box someplace? how are they connected to grip (grand rapids industrial products) or mit (michigan industrial tool), both located nearby.

Tekton is a trademark owned by MIT. I don't believe they are associated with GRIP but perhaps someone else knows about that.

 

[sk farmer]

Tekton is a trademark owned by MIT. I don't believe they are associated with GRIP but perhaps someone else knows about that.

see, i knew that but i wanted someone else to say it. tekton may have some decent products and i will give them an attaboy for what they are doing but being owned my mit..........


you can color it any way you want but mit, a **** brand owns tekton and a few paragraphs on tektons website does not convince me of everything they are trying to promote.

 

[Rabid Badger]

see, i knew that but i wanted someone else to say it. tekton may have some decent products and i will give them an attaboy for what they are doing but being owned my mit..........


you can color it any way you want but mit, a **** brand owns tekton and a few paragraphs on tektons website does not convince me of everything they are trying to promote.

How long does a **** company have to sell quality product before they stop being a **** company?

 

[M6erfan]

Why is MIT a **** brand?

 

[sk farmer]

How long does a **** company have to sell quality product before they stop being a **** company?

great question and i don't have the answer.

i do know this. people are comparing tekton to other well know companies and saying that tekton is designing making and producing a majority of their own tools when the company that owns them doesn't. like i have said and will say again, tekton is doing a lot of the right things but they don't make their own tools someone else does.

 

[Farmall450]

if you guys like tekton that is fine. i have no issue with them. maybe they do have some exclusive deal with the ratchets. could be.

but the usa pliers? wilde...

the usa pry bars? wilde....

the usa screwdrivers? pretty sure they are similar to and made by proto.

the usa angle wrenches? somebody is making them but it sure isn't tekton. they may be made to their specs for them but trust me, nobody is going to fire up a plant just to make angle wrenches when the only wrenches sold in less volume may be doe or dbe wrenches.

the nano sockets? well maybe made to their specs but sure they sure look damn close to the astro versions, all taiwan made.

the building cars argument? come on. that doesn't hold water. a car a is a sum of all pieces, gathered together and assembled in one location. nobody is making glass, gaskets, rims, tires sheet metal, cast iron, cast aluminum, wire or any of the thousands of parts that make up a vehicle in one location. it only becomes a car when it is completed

a wrench, or socket are only one peice. ratchets screwdrivers, extensions and pliers have 2, 3 or at the most a dozen parts. if those few parts are not made in a tekton factory by a tekton employee and put in a tekton package, tekton didn't make it.

again. i have no issues with tekton but at best they make a very small percentage of items themselves. plain and simple.

This

 

[ChrisLS8]

Who was claiming they manufactured their own tools?

 

[sk farmer]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0038M4KMG/?tag=atomicindus08-20

this a good enough example of mit tools?

hell, don't take my word for it. search out mit branded tools for yourself. this is typical of the **** they sell. maybe you guys would like the floral tape measures and utility knives better.

 

[M6erfan]

Who was claiming they manufactured their own tools?

AFAIK, no one.

 

[Handyandy23]

It's smart business to contract out the manufacturing. That doesn't mean a company can't or does not design anything or have any unique products, and everything they sell is just a rebrand. That's just hogwash.

Sure, Tekton rebrands tools under their own name. Guess what, so does Snap-on, Mac, Matco, SK, GearWrench, etc., etc. I'm not sure what the point of these arguments is.

I don't know SKFarmer. These arguments are getting rediculous. Does Snap-on make their own steel or do they specify a formulation from a mill? What difference does it make if Tekton owns a factory or not?

They spec the tools and they support them. They use USA based manufacturers when it makes sense. They are a good mid tier option and they keep improving their products. Do better options exist with a higher budget? Probably. But that doesn't diminish their value.

 

[M6erfan]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0038M4KMG/?tag=atomicindus08-20

this a good enough example of mit tools?

hell, don't take my word for it. search out mit branded tools for yourself. this is typical of the **** they sell. maybe you guys would like the floral tape measures and utility knives better.

Lol, I had no idea...

 

[ChrisLS8]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0038M4KMG/?tag=atomicindus08-20

this a good enough example of mit tools?

hell, don't take my word for it. search out mit branded tools for yourself. this is typical of the **** they sell. maybe you guys would like the floral tape measures and utility knives better.

And? I don't like black and Decker but I like Proto and many of their other brands. Your reasoning isn't though out very well since you are realllllyyy reaching at straws right now

MIT may own Tekton but they aren't pumping out the same stuff.

 

[sk farmer]

And? I don't like black and Decker but I like Proto and many of their other brands. Your reasoning isn't though out very well since you are realllllyyy reaching at straws right now

MIT may own Tekton but they aren't pumping out the same stuff.

the term is grasping at straws and refers to a drowning man who will do anything to save himself. if you wish to accuse me of something i am not doing at least get the phrase right.

know your tool history. proto is a well known respected brand with it's own production facilities that was purchased by stanley black and decker. since you don't believe anything i say, look it up, it is pretty easy and a well known fact. there are even books about plomb and proto history.

tekton? that is a name that mit pulled out of a hat. it means about as much and has about as much history as hercules, pittsburgh and us general. tekton is "not' proto and in fact more than likely sources tools from them.

in other words, having a conversation and stating facts is not grasping for straws just because you may not agree with me.

 

[Tallpilot]

see, i knew that but i wanted someone else to say it. tekton may have some decent products and i will give them an attaboy for what they are doing but being owned my mit..........


you can color it any way you want but mit, a **** brand owns tekton and a few paragraphs on tektons website does not convince me of everything they are trying to promote.

I can’t disagree with your assessment of old stock MIT products. As I said in a different thread they earned the capital to launch Tekton by importing cheap junk. The Indian forged first gen Tekton combination wrenches were not very impressive either.

I like that they are moving in the right direction and just like Astro I like that they listen to ideas from this board. As far as I can tell any of that stuff you see on Amazon is old stock sold by third parties. They are probably embarrassed by it now but it got them started.

I do understand your point though. I don’t think Kia when I think of luxury cars and that will be a problem for their Genesis line.

 

[LilEngineeringBoy]

They are very cost effective for me, they have a great website that is easy to order from, and the quality so far has been fine for my purposes. For less than $50, I got 3/8" tall and short impacts I've been using with a DeWalt 20v impact. I've been doing a lot of suspension work on a few different cars now that spring is here, and they've been fine.

As far as the packaging, I do like the cases...I throw those and my 1/2" HF impacts and head to the pick a part. No complaints so far.

 

[AngryJoe]

That went off the rails quick... What is the Tekton guy name here? Dave? Where is Dave when you need him?

"Dave's not here man"

 

[Fedwrench]

Wow!! another garage journal thread arguing about the origins and parentage of a company instead of talking about the tools they make

I've said this in other threads, there is no perfect tool company nor one brand that makes the best of everything.

I don't really care who owns which brand or what other products the parent company churns out. I only care about the tools themselves.

I personally feel that Tekton over the last couple of years has done more to improve their tool offerings than any other brand. From screwdrivers, ratcheting wrenches, angle wrenches, and 90 tooth ratchets, on to probably the widest range of chrome sockets being released this summer, no one else has brought as many new items to a tool box lately.

Tekton continues to evolve, improve, and offer great tools at affordable prices. Not everything they offer is a winner-winner chicken dinner but, most tools are. They have great customer service, free shipping on their site along with rewards which to me, is icing on the cake that they sell direct.

I just don't understand why everything has to be a fight. why can't you use the tools you like and let the other guy use what he likes? just because you might not like their choice doesn't make it wrong. end of rant