Tool Buyers Remorse

[ThrifyGarage]

I wanted to see everyone's thoughts on tool buyers remorse.

What tools have you bought that you regretted not getting the opposite or a different one? Could be more expensive/less expensive, definitely expound.

Check out my video on Tool Buyers Remorse:


Here are some of my tools for example I have regretted:
Bought Kreg Jig Jr. but wish I would have bought the full blown Kreg Jig.
Stanley (GARBAGE) vs Craftsman Screwdrivers
Love my cheap multimeter and it works great!
Same with my craftsman wrenches, $ for $ I'd take them over my Mac, Matco, Snap-On, etc...

Support your thoughts with photos if possible!

 

[amlv20]

Snapo on ct8810
And most recently
Snap on bk5600 bore scope,mainly because I haven't had kind of work I planned to use it for.been pretty slow lately and have only used like once.

 

[Wamsutta]

I never have any buyer's remorse when it comes to tools. Wish I could say the same about underwear.

 

[cja245]

I've never really regretted buying any tools. I've bought a lot of cheap tools out of necessity. I've replaced a lot of them with better ones, but that just means I get to take the lesser one home, put it in a vehicle kit, etc. You can never really have enough tools. Regardless of how many you have you still wont be able to find the one you need when you need it.

As far as big ticket items like power tools and pro grade hand tools, I tend to do a lot of research before buying.

 

[four.cycle]

anything that said "Black and Decker" on it or anything that came from Harbor Freight.

 

[jakemac]

Bought a Poulan chainsaw because I didn't think I'd use it as often as I ended up doing. Big mistake, I had problems with it from the very start. I ended up getting a Husqvarna and haven't had any trouble since.

 

[Derek420]

Buys remorse kinda I do got a bunch of those Stanley screwdrivers in a box in the garage taking up way to much space along with craftsman screwdrivers but I buy only used tools as I got 6 kids but I've done well when it comes to buying tools other than power tools I've not paid more than 5 bucks for a truck brand tool and I got all truck and pro brands to the most part but a bunch of craftsman also that I like just as good but I got a lot of tools like 6 tool boxes full and here lately I'm out of room and I'm having to use card board boxes to store all my new purchases can't wait to get a bigger box.. Anyways I forgot I do got 1 item I bought and now have remorse a 85th anniversary B&D all aluminium bodied 14.4 v 3/8 drill... It ***** bad it is the only thing I got new and I paid 65 for it and I regret it. I tried to use it a few times and it's always dead even when I keep charging it. But I bought a makita 18v white set like yours used for 40 and got bag and flash light with the drill and driver and 2 batteries and I love those to death they are always charged and ready and just work great I love the lithium. I don't really have any more regrets as I am very proud of my tool collection and it's 90% USA except for Williams tools and European brands like hazet, facom, beta. I love my wright tools the most followed by my so.. I just started buying tools this year and picking brands and I've spent 5-600 and got over 13k in retail I was just taught to shop around in flea markets and pawn shops. I stay out of HF and off the tool truck.. Craigslist has been good 2...I got the same Mac screwdrivers and I love those things always 1st I grab.

 

[Derek420]

anything that said "Black and Decker" on it or anything that came from Harbor Freight.

Haha yes I'm not the only one.. Although I do like the hf 100 pc security bit set lol it is good for electronics.. But I'll stick to my snap on ratcheting screwdriver for Phillips flat

I hate my B&D drill but my mother in law thinks her ****** 20v is the best there is and tried to act like she paid 300 for it lol but I seen it at Wally for 60 bucks. I don't know why she lies or exagerates on prices she has all craftsman in just a small 3 stack and some lawn tools and cheap sanders shes got 70k in tools oh God help me.. She'd hate to see my collection as I act like I only got a small tool bag because she has stolen my tools a few times.. Sorry to stray from subject OP nice video

 

[HCNDM]

Hitachi cordless ecosystem. Not horrible but not nearly good enough for the premium paid.

Should have gone makita or milwaukee at that price


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[Aquamoose]

...any hand tools that I bought to replace the ones that later showed up.


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[BDT/NWMN]

I regret buying most of the tools I have been kind enough to loan out..
And,
I regret buying Craftsman 3/8 ratchets, HF combination wrenches, cheapo hammers, 1" drive HF impact wrench. and a host of others.. I have given some of this cheapo stuff a fair try, and a good share of it has ended up given away or scrapped.

 

[71goldss]

Kinda hate having bought my Milwaukee M18 Fuel Sawzall kit. I purchased it during one of the Zoro 30% off sales about two or three years ago and have never used it! Thought I would use it somewhat often, but find myself reaching for my M12 Hackzall most of the time, and on larger jobs grabbing my Craftsman C3 Sawzall because it's handy and still does the job at hand. At least if the Craftsman ever dies I'll have a great backup! I should probably break in the Milwaukee before the warranty is up though, if it's not up already? Oh well!

 

[WWheeler]

Bought a Poulan chainsaw because I didn't think I'd use it as often as I ended up doing. Big mistake, I had problems with it from the very start. I ended up getting a Husqvarna and haven't had any trouble since.

hahaha. Brings back memories. I worked for several years right out of high school trimming trees from the power lines using Stihl & Husky saws at work before the time came I needed one at home and that first personal chainsaw was a Poulan because it was on sale, and right out of the box I was a Poulan, and a Poulan, and a Poulan on the Poul-chord. I wound up tossing that saw from about 65' up in a tree out of frustration. What was left of it went to the dump.

Been buying nothing but Husky and Stihl saws ever since. Never have I regretted another chainsaw purchase.

 

[HomeTheaterMan]

Pretty much most of the stuff I've gotten from Harbor Freight. I've broken most of the things that I got there and the others are too sorry to really use.

 

[6PTsocket]

Hitachi cordless ecosystem. Not horrible but not nearly good enough for the premium paid.

Should have gone makita or milwaukee at that price


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Or Bosch.

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[HCNDM]

Or Bosch.

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Bosch blue would be great yes. Bosch is a little more expensive in holland though.

I have decided on Makita when funds become available. Largely because I have a dealer 50 yards from my house. One I trust and that gives good service and discount.

Milwaukee is still entering the market here and local support is not readily available yet. I don't want to have to deal with webshops (like my hitachis) or have to drive an hour.

Keep in mind that a fuel m18 or comparable Makita drill and driver set are 150 dollars more expensive here than in the US.


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[MN_Runner]

I have no regrets on auto/home tool purchases but a few on OPE (outdoor power equipment). In 1996, I bought a Toro lawnmower but it was very difficult to start. From the beginning I wanted a Honda lawnmower but it was $150 more. The Home Depot was nice enough to give me a full refund and allowed me to trade it in for a Honda lawnmower. No more starting issue after that. 14 years later, I got tired of shoveling snow so I bought a Honda snowblower. I really wanted the 9 hp (HS928) model instead of the 7 hp (HS724) model but again I could not justify spending over $2000 for a snowblower so I brought a HS724. After a major snow storm, it was fairly evident that HS724 is under powered. My Honda dealer said I can trade it up so I paid the difference and got HS928.

 

[bczygan]

OP,
Watched your video, and just thought it wrong, when you said it was time to warranty the screwdriver with the bent shaft.

That isn't a manufacturers defect. It is abuse of the tool and should not be warrantied.

Bill

 

[BK13]

I regret not buying more Hazet when I had the extra cash coming in.... I regret buying the bucket full of tools that some jackwagon stole from my garage. Ditto the Milwaukee 2404.


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[WhiffySpark]

Snapo on ct8810
And most recently
Snap on bk5600 bore scope,mainly because I haven't had kind of work I planned to use it for.been pretty slow lately and have only used like once.

I have that borescope. It sits on my box for days at a time. But when it's needed it can be invaluable

 

[Den69rs96]

I bought an inch pound torque wrench. I thought it said 20-960 inch pounds, however when I got it home, it said 120-960 inch pounds. I was with my kids and they were starting to get out of control, so I just picked it up with a few others things and left asap. I doubt I'll use it much if at all. It is much smaller than my regular 3/8 torque so who knows.

The lesson I learned is I will not shop for tools when my kids are with me.

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

Anything Craftsman from about 1995-2002, when I finally quit buying tools there.

 

[dnschmidt]

Have I ever regretted buying tools: NO, NEVER and YOU MUST BE KIDDING.

 

[CoogarXR]

I have several impulse-buy power tools that are still in the box that I have never used. Some have been sitting for 15 years, lol. I kinda regret buying them in the sense that I probably could have used the money more efficiently. But oh well. I'll use them "someday" dagnabbit.

 

[txvwnut]

Anything Makita. I don't know if it's the tool brand or me but I've never had good luck with Makita.

 

[Roberts210]

I wanted one of those high-intensity L.E.D. flashlights--the ones that are super bright. Went to Walmart and got their house brand for about $24. When I opened it up and looked at it I realized it depended on a very strong spring to push the batteries against the contacts and the end cap that screwed on was only stamped aluminum. That end cap would have blown out with very much use, AND altho the flashlight looked like it took bigger batteries, it only took AAs. Well you can't return things at my Walmart unless something is wrong with it, so I only screwed the end cap on a small amount and brought it back. Got a Maglight super bright LED instead. Love it. It takes C batteries and is a great flashlight.

Edit: I didn't damage the Walmart flashlight in order to return it--I only set it up so that it looked like the end cap was on, but in reality it wasn't on far enough for the light to work. They can sell it again.

 

[48fordnut]

Well after all is said and done .I made a living in acft maint. and as a hobby. I have lots of 18 volt B&D stuff and think its pretty good.
I bought 2 of the 6k lumini cheap flash light about a yr ago off e bay and they are great. about 10 bucks shipped.

Yours may be different from mine.

 

[Dave455]

The only stuff I've ever regretted buying is the cheaper stuff!

The cheap Screwfix (British answer to Harbor Freight) angle grinder that I bought to do one job! It's the shittiest most dangerous thing I've ever owned. Ended up buying a Fein anyway, so might as well have done that in the first place and saved!

 

[619DioFan]

I would say my only " remorse " is not buying a much larger toolbox when I had the chance. my current set up is a craftsman 40'' top and bottom ( older model - 9 drawer top and 15 drawer bottom ) also has the 40'' single drawer middle box. I have had the craftsman part of the set up for 20 years. added the HF side locker and the HF 7 drawer side cabinet. it is stuffed full. currently looking for a 72 '' triple bay, thinking about getting the 72'' from HF and putting the HF 56'' top box on it and adding my HF locker and 7 drawer. then perhaps I will have " enough toolbox " LOL.

 

[riscal33]

Harbor Freight pry bar set

 

[2oolhound]

A 4" B&D grinder. I went in to get a 4.5" Makita but the salesman really worked me to buy the B&D. It turned out to be a big disappointment. This was in the 70's. I found out later B&D had a promotion on where any salesman who sold X amount of B&D tools could win a Hawaiian vacation. I've never trusted a salesman since.

 

[crewchief888]

nothing comes to mind...

i'm pretty picky about the tools i buy, especially "working" tools..

i'm in the "buy once, cry once" club...

my boxes are full of truck and industrial brands, along with some HF quality stuff...

i took at the "failure" of a tool as my fault, due to the amount of abuse i give them, both at home and at work.

99.99% of failures are from my abuse.
i'm in the sacrifice the tool for the job club too

 

[four.cycle]

I've never trusted a salesman since.

You mean you trusted them before?
Over 30 years in sales and marketing here. It is the salesman's duty to close the deal. That is his job. Doesn't matter what it takes - the objective is to close the deal.
Doesn't matter what sort of **** you're selling - it's the best thing since sliced bread.
Analogous to getting the ******* off: tell them whatever they want to hear and close the deal.

 

[JUNK-MAN]

nothing comes to mind...

i'm pretty picky about the tools i buy, especially "working" tools..

i'm in the "buy once, cry once" club...

my boxes are full of truck and industrial brands, along with some HF quality stuff...

i took at the "failure" of a tool as my fault, due to the amount of abuse i give them, both at home and at work.

99.99% of failures are from my abuse.
i'm in the sacrifice the tool for the job club too

I agree though, I have had poor quality tools in the past most only broke when I abused them. I have rarely regretted a tool even if I only use it once I feel after jus one use the tool has paid for itself.

 

[MikeF2316]

I agree, since I'm not a pro, I don't wear out tools. If something breaks (rarely) it is mostly my fault. Although the only thing I can remember breaking recently (other than drill bits) is my 3 mm ball end hex 3/8 drive bit. I shouldn't have been using my M12 cordless drill-driver...

Regrets usually come from ****** service from the guy I'm giving my money to. As in, "That guy doesn't deserve my business, I shouldn't have bought this from him."

 

[hangfirew8]

Only regretted:
Black & Decker power tools (several)
Anything I never use (not much)
Accidental duplicates (rare)

 

[four.cycle]

I have to wonder if any of the marketing executives at Black & Decker are reading this thread.

 

[the gypsy]

I had purchased a set of 18v Mastercraft tools including, recip saw, vacuum, circ saw, drill and flashlight. I bought the set when I was working on a renovation where I was going to leave the tools on site. I figured if I was going to get stolen, they can have the cheap stuff. Well let me tell you, I should have bought the better stuff and carry it with me when needed. I am careful with my tools and never abuse them. Now I have nice tools with non functioning batteries and holding on to them in the hope that I will find the time to repair them either to use and abuse or sell.

I should never have bought them because knowing they are not quality tools, I don't think I will ever find the time to repair them, and don't want to throw them away or sell cheap. So this is my catch 22 situation.

In conclusion if they were quality tools and non working I would have had them repaired and working asap either by DIY or sending to a shop.

 

[Empty Pockets]

Several years ago, I bought a Bosch router, in part because I have 2 Bosch jig saws (1 corded and 1 cordless) that I really like. I used it a couple of times, the tool worked as it should, but it didn't fit my hand comfortably.

Off to eBay, that router went, and I bought another Porter Cable Model 100, I never looked back

 

[Shawn S]

Another Poulan chainsaw here. I think I paid around $150 for it, sold it two weeks later for $10 on craigslist. The buyer was thrilled, and I had never been so happy to sell something for so little money. GOOD RIDDANCE!