When you cant buy used.

[plinker]

In my area (middle of nowhere it seems) it's really hard to find good used tools/equipment on ebay/craigslist/other that are not beat to **** or overpriced, so more often then not you end up having to buy something new.

For example, these are some of the things I'm refering to;

Drill press
Bench grinder
air compressor
tool box/cabinet
bench vise
floor jack
shop press
ete......


If you had to buy a new one of these what would you buy?

It'd be nice to start a list of tools & equipment that are decent enough to buy new and will last a while.

Based on what I've read here, The Craftsman (pro ?) red vise would be one item on the list, The Harbor freight and Masterforce tool boxes would be there too.

What other new tools and equipment would you buy/recommend if you could not find a good used USA version? Some may say to wait and try for a usa made piece to show up, but that option isnt always available, at least in my experiance.




More or less I'm just thinking out loud here (shouldnt that be typing?).

 

[Need4racin]

Well technically you can use old metal business cabinets instead of buying a toolbox or cabinet organizers. And most of the time they are free. Sears and HF both put on good deals on tool boxes on black friday. A couple yrs ago I bought a roller bearing from sears for 50% off. I didn't need it, just wanted one.

Really the only nice floor jacks are really old and need rebuilt. A lot of times on back friday sears will do 2 jack stands and a floor jack for $99. All the floor jacks and jack stands are going to be imports, generally made by the same company just relabeled. I'd say go with the cheapest price.

Get a compressor that takes oil. So used..

The vise and grinders are going to be cheap import **** sold at majority of stores.

Sears does 50% off on their tool kits on black friday. That's always better than buying the tools separate. The sockets and wrenches are decent. The ratchets ****.

 

[Danglerb]

I say road trip.

Most of those items are massively cheaper purchased used even compared to modern junk. Only exception is a decent toolbox, and those aren't much cheaper used at all except for the truck brands.

I wouldn't buy a Sears jack unless its one of the few models they sell without terrible reviews. HF on the toolbox, press, and jack, but I would look used first for all but the toolbox maybe.

 

[Flatland Dave]

Farm auctions if there are any up there. Takes time and research, but they can be a good source of what you are looking for.

Was at one yesterday that had a 1/2 hp Cman grinder for 40 bucks.

 

[Displaced Hokie]

I used to live in Horicon WI, and you'd think there would be and abundance of shop tools there given all the industry. I know I had some good yard sale experiences when I lived up there. But I also know "up north" WI is quite a bit different and far more rural.

Don't feel bad, Craigslist here is sad as well. Relatively little action, and what does show up is ****. I think you need to live near a big city for it to be interesting. Auctions can be fun, as long as you can live with the fact that you'll go to 10 crappy ones before you ever hit that good one where the deals are. So it take some patience.

If it was me, I'd:

Drill press - really anywhere. The Rigid at HD look good. Sears too.
Bench grinder - have a Sears I like
air compressor - Lowe's Kobalt
tool box/cabinet - Sears for narrow, HF for wide. Costco also has some cool ones.
bench vise - I like that red Sears copy of a Wilton bullet that sells for @ $100
floor jack - HF or Costco
shop press - HF

 

[Lost Road]

Are you anywhere near Duluth? I just checked CL there, and there is a ton of good stuff. I love road tripping for tools. I have even done overnight trips. I usually plot several buys in the same area and hit a garage or estate sale to boot. I got some of my best deals this way, including a toolbox that had a gold nugget!

 

[kythri]

Drill press = don't own one yet, no experience, but if forced to buy new and affordable, I'd probably look at both Craftsman and Ryobi

Bench grinder = I own a Craftsman mounted to a Harbor Freight stand. Works fantastically.

air compressor = I bought an 80-gallon CH used (not from CL), but still keep my 30-gallon Craftsman that I bought new.

tool box/cabinet = I'm vacating my Craftsman and Husky small boxes and moving into my Eaton/Wright Line Optimedia cabinets (that I bought when a former employer went out of business) until I find the right box. I don' t have any quality issues with the Craftsman or Husky stuff, I just want something significantly bigger that will hold everything I've got, instead of multiple small cabinets.

bench vise = Other than the finish on mine, which I have yet to see reported by anyone else, my Craftsman Pro 4.5" (by Wilton) is a great vise. My 8" Wilton import that I just picked up is pretty nice, too, but no long-term experience.

floor jack = OTC Stinger gifted by my dad a few years ago, Arcan "low-profile" that still is reported to be available at Costco (if it is, get one!), and a huge Dayton 3ZC66 5-ton that was one of those rare Craigslist deals.

shop press = Don't have one yet, would likely buy an Harbor Freight model if/when the time comes (I know a LOT of AK builders that swear by the thing).

What other new tools and equipment would you buy/recommend if you could not find a good used USA version? Some may say to wait and try for a usa made piece to show up, but that option isnt always available, at least in my experiance.

Waiting around isn't regularly an option if you want the stuff within a finite timeframe. From my list above, the only thing I acquired via CL is the big Dayton jack, and I already owned my OTC at that point.

Everything else, I had to source elsewhere, and much of it was new.

"Good, used and US-made" are all acceptable (and even preferrable) options, but ultimately, "good, new and imported" are viable, valid choices if you have the need but don't have the green for "new and US-made", or time to wait for used.

 

[Al Bundy]

Sorry but this is all I've shopped for so far.

Drill press - Ridgid DP1550
Bench grinder - ?
air compressor - IR SS5L5
tool box/cabinet - not sure but never a truck brand
bench vise - ?
floor jack - Craftsman 3 ton

 

[woody 73]

I hear you big time I used to live in Northern WI. and it was murder getting any tools,my mind is blank at this time but in the central part of the state they had a fantastic tool store and I am almost %99.999 percent sure that it is still there today. (The reason I am so sure is because on another post about six months ago someone was talking about it). I had to drive to Stevens point and then drive south ,maybe if you can ask other members from WI if they could recall the name of that great tool store. Darn it will come to me a 3am on some winter night 3 months from now!

 

[j.c.whitney]

If you are in a hurry, the best deals won't be found.
Farm auctions can be a Goldmine but it takes study and patience. I went to this one and bought some nice stuff
http://midwestauction.com/henry.htm
even met a couple of fellows on GJ.
Midwestauction has a Wisconsin section iirc.
http://bidopia.auctionflex.com/showlots.ap?co=2&weid=20179&weiid=0&lso=lotnumasc&pagenum=1&lang=en
Use Searchtempest and set up Google alerts.
You'll find some deals, have cash and be willing to travel.

 

[May Pop]

Farm and Fleet Chipewa Falls
Tractor Supply
Northern tool Appleton
www1.mscdirect.com/ some USA stuff fast delivery sometimes free
With Craigslist youve got to look 5-10 times a day or the good cheap stuff is gone.
Living in the middle of nowhere has its ups and downs. Get your name out that you buy these kinds of things and people will call when they spot them. Like others have said ROAD TRIP. There is a used tool store in Rockford Illinois thats pretty good. Get a Craigs list buddy in a large town that will buy for you. But thats a lot to ask cause some of the things you want are expensive or need to be tested and hauled.
Ron

 

[Peacefrog]

I am from St Paul and end up taking regular trips out to the middle of WI for craigslist. I have been working up near Ironwood for the last 3 weeks, out that way all the time, usually looking for stuff. Cool stuff shows up much less frequently out there, less people have the internet.

Get out to the local flea markets and antique stores. Bought a '41 Dodge pickup out of Cable for 400 bucks, stopped to talk to the old fella while I was working and noticed he had a truck I'd like, made an offer instantly and came up that weekend to pick it up.

For searching Craigslist in the local areas I use google, because it picks up misspelled words. I used the query below to find a real nice 78 CB750 for just over $500. In google you can set it to show only things posted in the last 24h and search every couple hours until you find what you want within a reasonable driving distance. You have to be willing and ready to move if you want something. Although the farther you get from a big city, people are usually nicer.

honda 750 -shadow -atv -nighthawk site:rmn.craigslist.org | site:stcloud.craigslist.org | site:minneapolis.craigslist.org | site:marshall.craigslist.org | site:mankato.craigslist.org | site:lacrosse.craigslist.org | site:eauclaire.craigslist.org | site:duluth.craigslist.org | site:northernwi.craigslist.org

Site specific searches make Google the best. Vise site:Garagejournal.com gets you hours of reading.

 

[IndyGarage]

I can't imagine you can't find decent versions of every one of those on craigslist.

The trick with Craigslist is you have to look at the pictures, and know the good stuff from the cheap stuff, and you have to use the search function. Know your prices, watch it over the course of a few weeks and you will find a screaming deal on whatever you want.

 

[MastoidPress]

Drill press - Brobo
Bench grinder - Brobo
air compressor - Saylor-Beall or Quincy
tool box/cabinet - Kennedy
bench vise - Yost
floor jack - ?
shop press - ?

 

[TAftw]

How much of a budget are you on for the tool chest? Lista makes a great product that IMO beats the snot out of the truck brands, and they're pretty affordable.

 

[CoryZ]

I don't think I'd buy a used floor jack, jack stands, etc. Anything safety related I'm buying new. Tool boxes may be worth the couple hours drive to the big metro area. Milwaukee CL for instance has some great deals on older SO boxes at times.

Not sure where in N. WI you are. For the used stuff you're probably looking at a road trip to MKE, Madison, Green Bay, Eau Claire, etc. to find more selection. New stuff you have Menards, Fleet Farm, Farm & Fleet, etc.

I've gotten a ton of good deals on the smaller stuff via ebay, but the big stuff isn't cost effective unless you find a "local pickup" option. I've had pretty good luck with that in the past.

 

[plinker]

Something I should clairifiy, I am not looking at buying all the stuff I listed, as I already have several of tools I listed.

More or less what I want to acomplish is to make a list similar to the Harbor freight good/bad list, but one that deals with all brands.

I.E. a list of tools/equipment that are decent enough quality to buy new or until something else comes along. Example; If someone cant wait to find a drill press, what the best option for buying new?


Travel for some may not be an option due to gas prices or time. Just going to Menards, Home depot or Fleet farm for me, it' about an hour away. I'm not against going to pick something up, I have done it before (Snap-on upper box and Compressor). I'm just saying not always the most practical thing to do for everyone.

Waiting around isn't regularly an option if you want the stuff within a finite timeframe. From my list above, the only thing I acquired via CL is the big Dayton jack, and I already owned my OTC at that point.

Everything else, I had to source elsewhere, and much of it was new.

"Good, used and US-made" are all acceptable (and even preferrable) options, but ultimately, "good, new and imported" are viable, valid choices if you have the need but don't have the green for "new and US-made", or time to wait for used.

Exactly what I'm refering to. Hence my reasoning to make a list of the decent import stuff.

 

[Need4racin]

http://bfads.net/Sears-Black-Friday-Craftsman-3-ton-Floor-Jack-Jack-Stands-and-Creeper-Set