What happens to broken Snapon tools?

[azchrisf]

When you do a warranty exchange for a unbroken one, and the dealer sends them back, do they remelt the steel and reuse it to make new ones, or what happens?

Just something I thought about today...

 

[2ndGearRubber]

Dealers ship them back. I imagine they get scrapped securely (metal parts) to prevent them from re-entering circulation and being re-warrantied.

 

[Bogie1632]

They're melted down in Taiwan or China and reborn as HF, Tekton, or Craftsman tools.

JK.

V/R
Bogie

 

[The Cobbler]

likely scraped by third party under secure contract

 

[PugetDude]

They scrap them out, it gets shredded and sent in bulk to China; comes back a few months later as new Harbor Freight tools.
It's where the "compare to Snap-On" comes from.

 

[eyeball]

They throw them in a shoebox and then whe it is full after a year or two they ship it off to the recycler.

 

[Junkdrawer Dog]

My FIL was a rep for Bonney, Utica and Herbrand for many years. He used to take them to the county dump until some of these warrantied tools began to magically find their way back to him for yet another warranty claim. His solution was to wait until a sufficient number of tools had been collected, then he and his youngest son would drive, in the wee hours of the morning, to a highway bridge that crossed a deep river. Said tools would be flung hither and yon into the river.

 

[harley jim]

Had a buddy that owned a landfill, Sears would fill a 55 gallon drum of craftsman returns adding paint as they filled it up bolt on the lid and he was under contract to burry it. Same with toys and clothing.

Sent from my SM-A102U using Tapatalk

 

[junkyardwarrior]

I work right up the road from a snap on place. Great big place, don't know what they do there....they won't tell me, so probably has some DOD stuff or whatever back there. What I do know is that about 3 times a year a great big 48' long trailer (18 wheeler) that is normally used for scrap comes past the shop where I work, FULL of snap-on tool boxes; headed for the scrap yard. I was looking for work bench material a while back at the scrap yard and seen a lot of remainders of what appeared to be the last load of scrapped snap on tool boxes. Pretty sad, but I also know that they were scrapped for a reason, whatever that reason might be.

 

[CGarage]

I wish members would answer this in a serious and truthful manner. Dumping them in a river is bad for the environment and classless.

 

[sberry]

They got a little bitty hospital, looks like a truck where they gently care for and rehab them to give to poor homeless children.

 

[Bogie1632]

Per their site they recycle. Not crystal clear on their process getting all those broken tools back or to what extent the go on specific recyclable content, but regardless they recycle.

It would be interesting to see or read more about their process. I'd be more interested if their tools came with some indicator of recycled content, something akin to what you often see on paper products.

https://www.snapon.com/EN/Investors/Sustainability-Commitment/Environment

V/R
Bogie

 

[Elsinore13]

I wish members would answer this in a serious and truthful manner. Dumping them in a river is bad for the environment and classless.

Not to mention claiming that Sears buries 55 gallon drums of paint at the local landfill... I’m sure one of those Gubmint alphabet agencies would like to know more about that.

 

[CGarage]

Really a disservice when members invent fictitious answers to serious questions on here, attempting humor.

 

[CGarage]

Not to mention claiming that Sears buries 55 gallon drums of paint at the local landfill... I’m sure one of those Gubmint alphabet agencies would like to know more about that.

I agree.

 

[Legion Prime]

I'm pretty sure they send it out to be shredded and then melted down to be reused. We've been reusing metal since at least the bronze age.

 

[harley jim]

Not to mention claiming that Sears buries 55 gallon drums of paint at the local landfill...[emoji15] I’m sure one of those Gubmint alphabet agencies would like to know more about that.

Not a claim a fact that I witnessed.

Sent from my SM-A102U using Tapatalk

 

[finn]

Most likely a Bonded scrap yard.

We used to scrap a lot of prototype Diesel engines through a regular scrapyard until we started getting calls for replacement parts foe engines with serial numbers assigned to prototypes. Seems the yard was reselling them to unsuspecting customers that didn’t realize that no replacement parts were available. Changed the policy to one where a supervisor had to follow the semi loaded with obsolete experimental engines and parts to the shredder and observe the destruction.

When I worked as a co-op in college, my second story office window overlooked the route to the shredder where Ford sent prototypes to the crusher. Probably four or five flatbeds per week loaded with what looked, from a distance, to be new cars. They were either mules or “crushers”, prototypes that couldn’t be sold.

 

[Junkdrawer Dog]

I wish members would answer this in a serious and truthful manner. Dumping them in a river is bad for the environment and classless.

I'm sorry his solution offends modern sensibilities, but if you, Peabody and Sherman jumped in the WAYBAC machine and traveled back in time to the immediate post WWII timeframe, his method wouldn't seem so far out after all.

 

[1cargarage]

[Comment deleted by Skynet]

 

[Shiftless]

I'm sorry his solution offends modern sensibilities, but if you, Peabody and Sherman jumped in the WAYBAC machine and traveled back in time to the immediate post WWII timeframe, his method wouldn't seem so far out after all.

Stuff like that happens...
This from 1975
(Wartime...ya gotta do what you gotta do)

 

[jimindm]

I was on a factory tour in the SO Milwaukee plant. I sort of asked the question of what happens to the seconds and what QC deems not satisfactory.

Did not get an exact answer, but said they are sold for scrap price. The gal said the people used in the scraping process are paid very well by SO to assure that the scrap is just that.

 

[Sloper0204]

Not to mention claiming that Sears buries 55 gallon drums of paint at the local landfill... I’m sure one of those Gubmint alphabet agencies would like to know more about that.

It's called a Consent Decree, and they are most likely very aware. Also, go look up what a Superfund Site is and what it means.

 

[PugetDude]

Really a disservice when members invent fictitious answers to serious questions on here, attempting humor.

A bigger disservice is when some grump pisses on a thread because he doesn’t like the responses.

Broken tools (and many other steel products) are scrapped, sold as a commodity to the highest bidder, where they are then melted, blended with the requisite alloying agents, sold as alloy bars, and subsequently remanufactured into a myriad of steel products.

Happy?

 

[CGarage]

A bigger disservice is when some grump pisses on a thread because he doesn’t like the responses.

Broken tools (and many other steel products) are scrapped, sold as a commodity to the highest bidder, where they are then melted, blended with the requisite alloying agents, sold as alloy bars, and subsequently remanufactured into a myriad of steel products.

Happy?

Not a grump at all. It’s pure white noise and a total waste of time to read multiple stupid posts which are not remotely funny, accurate, or relevant. Thank you for writing an appropriate and factual response. I did not know the answer and was curious as to what happens to these products.

 

[Farmall450]

Not to mention claiming that Sears buries 55 gallon drums of paint at the local landfill... I’m sure one of those Gubmint alphabet agencies would like to know more about that.

I don't think that was made up...

 

[Batscat]

Tools are serious business.

 

[Bobioz1]

I was told Cornwell was the biggest buyer of Snap on scrap.

 

[Semi-hole mechanic]

I know that RedBrand Fence uses a lot of scrap steel, mostly from junk cars. Keystone Wire (Red Brand's manufacturer) in Peoria, IL buys a lot of scrap steel from Sol Tick in Decatur and Morris Tick in Bloomington. I read somewhere that steel is one of the easiest metals to recycle.

 

[ER70S-2]

I'm shocked that nobody that responded actually knows the answer to the question.

 

[PugetDude]

I'm shocked that nobody that responded actually knows the answer to the question.

Enlighten us.

 

[MarvinBerry]

I worked Sears hardware in the 90s as my high school job.

All busted tools went into a 55 gallon drum in the stockroom. Impact sockets, screwdrivers, ratchets you name it. Had an r2d2 contraption with narrow slot on top. Tools went in & weren't coming out. Not easily.

Worked there for a few years, never once saw paint poured in but I also dunno what happened after that drum left. I was told the contents were recycled.

Loaded up it obviously weighed a **** ton. Not sure what good adding paint would do.

 

[PugetDude]

Not sure what good adding paint would do.

It was done to mark them as scrap to keep them out of the garage sale perpetual warranty chain. Sears stores in Spokane used to spray paint them international orange and witness them being buried at the landfill.

 

[sweet victory]

Per their site they recycle. Not crystal clear on their process getting all those broken tools back or to what extent the go on specific recyclable content, but regardless they recycle.

It would be interesting to see or read more about their process. I'd be more interested if their tools came with some indicator of recycled content, something akin to what you often see on paper products.

https://www.snapon.com/EN/Investors/Sustainability-Commitment/Environment

V/R
Bogie

I believe I read somewhere where they only use virgin materials in products they manufacture themselves.

 

[gungatim]

I'm pretty sure they send it out to be shredded and then melted down to be reused. We've been reusing metal since at least the bronze age.

I mentioned this before, they go to the scrap yard and are supposed to be scrapped and not sold.

I know this because my FIL while working on the railroad passed a scrap yard regularly and stopped in occasionally to pick.

he bought a number of 5 gal buckets of scrapped snap-on tools under the table and resold them.

yes, he's an A-hole, so don't start. Just pointing out that they are supposed to go to the scrap yard but may occasionally end up being re-sold by unscrupulous folks...

 

[exmaxima1]

I'm pretty sure they send it out to be shredded and then melted down to be reused. We've been reusing metal since at least the bronze age.

I've love to see the machine that could "shred" my broken Snap-On breaker bar. I'm sure it is possible, so that would have to be a massive machine.

 

[finn]

I believe I read somewhere where they only use virgin materials in products they manufacture themselves.

I doubt there is a steel mill in the world that uses only virgin iron ore or taconite to make steel. Steel doesn’t come out of the ground as steel. It’s iron ore, usually low grade, which is mostly iron bearing rock The low grade ore is often pre processed and converted to taconite on the iron ranges near the mines.

The steel itself is produced in furnaces and rolling mills where the chemistry is altered with heat and alloys.

Not sure where the misinformation that “virgin” steel is somehow superior to steel with recycle content ever came from.

 

[finn]

I've love to see the machine that could "shred" my broken Snap-On breaker bar. I'm sure it is possible, so that would have to be a massive machine.

A 2500 lb Diesel engine with a several hundred lb forged steel crankshaft goes into the shredder whole, with no problem and comes out in tiny pieces. I’m sure a 2 lb Snapon wrench doesn’t stand a chance.

 

[exmaxima1]

A 2500 lb Diesel engine with a several hundred lb forged steel crankshaft goes into the shredder whole, with no problem and comes out in tiny pieces. I’m sure a 2 lb Snapon wrench doesn’t stand a chance.

Just found the newer "Super shredders" that can handle the formerly unshreddable hardened steels like truck axles. 6000 hp. Amazing technology.

 

[Bogie1632]

I sent an e-mail to Snap-on asking what information they can provide.

If/when I get a response I let ya'll know what they say.

V/R
Bogie