Yeah, if you are unfamiliar with manufacturing, I could see how that video might not look impressive. From 10,000 feet up, I would expect the basic process would be similar in factories around the world. You might even say, identical.
It's the
details in manufacturing that make the difference, and they aren't obvious. The tolerances inside a socket are EXTREMELY tight. Those tolerances are a function of the broaching dies, their material, their surface finish, and the machines that drive them. The force required to cold broach steel is
tremendously high. Any moving part on the broaching machine will be subject to wear. Inspecting that wear is no laughing matter. All those machine components would need constant lubrication. That lubrication needs to be clean. The holding fixtures that hold the stock must be
super rigid. When you watch the video, you can see a lot of things moving, but everything looks rock solid.
Later in the video we see some workers loading fixtures but not holding anything. There are skilled workers grinding etc. Surface finish is important for high strength. It's not just there for pretty. Even the smallest scratches can become stress concentrations leading to failures later.
It has been pointed out in the past that the markings shown are for a Williams socket. It is believed both Snap On and Williams sockets are made in the same plant in Milkwaukee Wisconsin. That has caused some here to believe they are therefore identical sockets. Factories don't work that way. The broaching machines would need frequently maintenance, the broaching dies would need to be renewed. The time sockets spend in grinding, polishing, can greatly impact their performance and cost. We know from TTC tests the Williams tools are not equivalents to their Snap On cousins. My guess is, at a certain point, a machine will switch from making SO sockets to making Williams. It could have a little more wear, more slop, run broaches longer, and this is how factories can produce 2 products for different costs.
Here is a Chinese socket factory video I found on YouTube:
Notice the basic operations are similar. But testing of sockets similar to these indicates much poorer performance. So we know the output is not the same. Reasons why probably have more to do with what we don't see than what we can. Steel quality and heat treat precision would be my first thoughts. We know from testing, the steel quality varies pretty dramatically.
In general, the machines appear to be much older and lacking the automation present in the US plant. The machines, the floors all look filthy. If this was a restaurant, I wouldn't eat there. People who work in factories (as I do) care about such things.
Time =0:38 those look like some sort of punches getting manually loaded. They are using towels as guards over their heads.
T=0:54 they are using rollers to straighten the round stock before it goes into a filthy shear. Output has scrap along with product. Keep in mind, in manufacturing, the quality of any upstream operation affects the down stream operations. So even a simple shear operation can impact the finished part.
T=1:03 they are making bit sockets, holding them under a machine by hand, no safety glasses, of course. Notice the mandrel doesn't appear to be lined up with the center of press. The worker appears to be protecting her hands, keep them out from under the press. Yikes
At 1:19 notice how beat up the extension looks, huge burr around the ball bearing detent hole. Assume they haven't gotten to grinding yet, but we didn't see anything like that in the Snap On video. That mark came from a low quality machine upstream from where we are, since the ends have already been machined/formed.
At 1:50 the unfinished sockets appear stored in filthy, rusting containers in what appears to be a building with no climate control. That's going to be a problem at plating. Any rust pits would be a problem structurally. That looks like a lot of stock waiting to be plated.
2:27 packaging. Packaging often requires labor. Here is a long line of workers, cooled by shop fans, loading sockets into every one's favorite blow molded cases. Looks like a lot of cost. Imagine if those were American union laborers, each making $20/hr, with healthcare, 401k, maybe pension benefits. Modern factory could be $100/hr or more for them (each). Makes sense why we don't see those sorts of cases from US manufacturers.
This is probably a good look at what the factories look like that produce all your favorite imported tools. Our factories looked like this in the 1950s. Know that these folks WILL catch up and your continued unwavering support will help them do that. Other industries are more state of the art in China. But industry is a team sport, and they need everybody to be functioning in the 21st century or issues they are currently having will continue.
