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Why do people grind on snap ring pliers?

iamhomeless

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Found these in a community box at work, no idea why the hell someone would take these to the grinder instead of turning them in for a warranty claim. They are completely unusable and ground unevenly.

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Private Lugnutz

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Because the snap ring had teeny tiny holes that it wouldn't fit in.
:+1: Smaller than the original tips on those, anyway.

Some light further reading for all you guys who didn't know that snap rings came from ladies dresses. Not kidding!

 

bwringer

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Sometimes ya gotta GSD there and then instead of waiting for the Snap-On man.

Also, they may not have been damaged, just not small enough or the right shape for something. Hard to tell whether this was a modification, or trying to get a tool with broken tips back in action for one last snap ring.


The ******* move is not modifying a tool, it's tossing it back into the box and walking away instead of replacing it immediately.

I've made and modified tools many times, but I have to admit I've never used Snap-On as raw material. I'm not that damn wealthy...
 
OP
I

iamhomeless

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Because the snap ring had teeny tiny holes that it wouldn't fit in.

They did a poor job but it probably got the job done.
I doubt they got any job done, the tips are at different heights and aren't ground straight at all
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larry_g

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oregon
I worked in manufacturing where down time was in the $10 to $15 per SECOND range. So sacrificing a tool to get a machine back online was no big deal, and I did a lot. However the problem you have is that the tool was not replaced with a stock one.

Have you placed the order to have them replaced? If not then you are part of the problem.

lg
no neat sig line
 

silvertina

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Seems like someone got into the community box and swapped them. Probably have a not so friendly relationship with the Snap-on guy so can't warranty their own pliers
 
OP
I

iamhomeless

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I worked in manufacturing where down time was in the $10 to $15 per SECOND range. So sacrificing a tool to get a machine back online was no big deal, and I did a lot. However the problem you have is that the tool was not replaced with a stock one.

Have you placed the order to have them replaced? If not then you are part of the problem.

lg
no neat sig line
Yes, I put them in the junk drawer next to the tools that need to be warrantied, and I have a full set of snap ring pliers on order.
 

2ndGearRubber

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**** like this needs referenced any time "employer supplier tools" are mentioned.

Employer didn't have the right tool in the first place. Strike 1

Employee needed to modify something to attempt to make it usable. Strike 2

Modified tool continues to exist, rather than replacement purchased for the original AND a proper tool for the job we didn't have the tool for in the first place. Strike 3
 

dougf

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Missouri
Near-sighted people who will modify a tool for an odd job and not think about the future use of that tool. I'm guilty of that for a few things myself. Oh, and meth.
 
OP
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iamhomeless

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**** like this needs referenced any time "employer supplier tools" are mentioned.

Employer didn't have the right tool in the first place. Strike 1

Employee needed to modify something to attempt to make it usable. Strike 2

Modified tool continues to exist, rather than replacement purchased for the original AND a proper tool for the job we didn't have the tool for in the first place. Strike 3
This probably is the core of the problem. Everything here is company owned, so there are vastly different mentalities in how people treat tools. I have nicer tools at home than I do at work, alot of what is gathering dust in my barn was bought from a tool truck, so when I see truck tools ground on I am quite confused.
 

dchawk81

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Near-sighted people who will modify a tool for an odd job and not think about the future use of that tool. I'm guilty of that for a few things myself. Oh, and meth.
I don't know that I call it near sighted when it was to get a job done. It's not like it's an irreplaceable tool.
 
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bwringer

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Not to open another container of annelids, but... Does Snap-On actually warranty broken snap ring pliers?

And the separate question is: will they "warranty" that abomination? Does the "story" matter? "Hey, this POS broke, so I ground new points into the tips..."

Or maybe it's a lucrative industrial account and the Snap-On truck dude won't bat an eye.


And yeah, the guy who would do this and then toss them back into the drawer would wipe his *** with the last square of toilet paper without a thought about fetching more (let alone putting it on the holder), drink the last beer without even offering to buy more, and probably drank the last ounce of milk and ate the last egg this morning. A scurrilous scoundrel and an unrepentant nogoodnik of the lowest order.
 
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2ndGearRubber

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Not to open another container of annelids, but... Does Snap-On actually warranty broken snap ring pliers?

And the separate question is: will they "warranty" that abomination? Does the "story" matter? "Hey, this POS broke, so I ground new points into the tips..."

Or maybe it's a lucrative industrial account and the Snap-On truck dude won't bat an eye.

Snap on will basically warranty anything. The driver tosses it in a box, it gets weighed to roughly determine contents, and they get a credit.
 

racinfarmer

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Having had to manage the assembly floor and snap ring pliers being the bane of my existence during that time, where should I start?

How much time does everyone have?
 

racinfarmer

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We do contract assembly work, where everything is kitted to the job and the assembly line. I swear, my manufacturing group are gloried babysitters at times.

They didn't fit in the holes well enough.

I broke the last 3 pairs you gave me, these are junk.

I wanted them like this.

I needed them like this.

I needed a set of pliers to take this apart and this is all that is in the kit.

I dropped them.

I needed them now and you didn't answer your phone to bring me another pair.

These work better.

I needed something to expand that thing over there and didn't have a tool for it.

I don't know.

The hole was too small and I couldn't find the set.

They weren't in the assembly kit for this product, so I grabbed some from another line.

Why can't I have the ones with the tips that change? That is what we really need.

I don't know.

No one trained me! (We provide pretty much a 30 minute class on them their first morning)

I don't know.

They were the first ones I found.

These work better then the tweezers on the assembly line.

The machine shop gave them to me.

The model shop gave them to me.

They were the only one in the line supervisors toolbox.

I dunno.

I have to bring tools from home because you won't give me what I need.

I have to bring tools from home because I don't like the ones in the assembly kits.

I have to bring tools from home because I don't like the brand you buy us.

The tips keep breaking, so I brought them home and fixed them.

Because they are better.

Are those expanders or squeezers?
 
OP
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iamhomeless

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Indy
We do contract assembly work, where everything is kitted to the job and the assembly line. I swear, my manufacturing group are gloried babysitters at times.

They didn't fit in the holes well enough.

I broke the last 3 pairs you gave me, these are junk.

I wanted them like this.

I needed them like this.

I needed a set of pliers to take this apart and this is all that is in the kit.

I dropped them.

I needed them now and you didn't answer your phone to bring me another pair.

These work better.

I needed something to expand that thing over there and didn't have a tool for it.

I don't know.

The hole was too small and I couldn't find the set.

They weren't in the assembly kit for this product, so I grabbed some from another line.

Why can't I have the ones with the tips that change? That is what we really need.

I don't know.

No one trained me! (We provide pretty much a 30 minute class on them their first morning)

I don't know.

They were the first ones I found.

These work better then the tweezers on the assembly line.

The machine shop gave them to me.

The model shop gave them to me.

They were the only one in the line supervisors toolbox.

I dunno.

I have to bring tools from home because you won't give me what I need.

I have to bring tools from home because I don't like the ones in the assembly kits.

I have to bring tools from home because I don't like the brand you buy us.

The tips keep breaking, so I brought them home and fixed them.

Because they are better.

Are those expanders or squeezers?
Sounds like a lot of those employees need to be promoted to customer.
 

2ndGearRubber

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That's because it was already bought 5 times the first time.

That's built into the price for sure. They don't really make garbage either. IDK mine are knipex and lang, yet the air hammer and a flat head are my preference for most of my work. Rotten and rusted wheel bearing internal snap rings. SO snap ring pliers are really nice though, and not wildly more expensive than knipex. Their convertible pliers are like 30-40 per pair. I like the smaller profile of knipex, but then you need twice as many to make a set.
 

dchawk81

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Jul 31, 2014
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We do contract assembly work, where everything is kitted to the job and the assembly line. I swear, my manufacturing group are gloried babysitters at times.

They didn't fit in the holes well enough.

I broke the last 3 pairs you gave me, these are junk.

I wanted them like this.

I needed them like this.

I needed a set of pliers to take this apart and this is all that is in the kit.

I dropped them.

I needed them now and you didn't answer your phone to bring me another pair.

These work better.

I needed something to expand that thing over there and didn't have a tool for it.

I don't know.

The hole was too small and I couldn't find the set.

They weren't in the assembly kit for this product, so I grabbed some from another line.

Why can't I have the ones with the tips that change? That is what we really need.

I don't know.

No one trained me! (We provide pretty much a 30 minute class on them their first morning)

I don't know.

They were the first ones I found.

These work better then the tweezers on the assembly line.

The machine shop gave them to me.

The model shop gave them to me.

They were the only one in the line supervisors toolbox.

I dunno.

I have to bring tools from home because you won't give me what I need.

I have to bring tools from home because I don't like the ones in the assembly kits.

I have to bring tools from home because I don't like the brand you buy us.

The tips keep breaking, so I brought them home and fixed them.

Because they are better.

Are those expanders or squeezers?
I don't know is good. I'd just go with
that every time.

Or maybe blank stare and drool.
 

dnschmidt

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Phoenix, AZ
Well I've lived a charmed life. At Westinghouse R&D Center our tool crib had EVERYTHING and I mean everything. The tool crib binder, from which you picked want you wanted, was two inches thick. All tools were always in calibration and sharp. If you had a dull milling cutter you gave it to the attendant and he put into a box and it was sent out for sharpening and returned the next week. I always loved peeling off the goo on the sharpened cutters. Don't ask me why I was just into it. If the tool crib didn't have what you wanted they immediately ordered it from Snap-On or Plant Service Company. LIFE'S BEEN GOOD TO ME SO FAR.
 

racinfarmer

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Minnesota/Utah
I don't know is good. I'd just go with
that every time.

Or maybe blank stare and drool.

The blank stare or the stare like an alien is talking to them was also common.

I think we've released most of the people I've complained about back to the employment hunt.

Let some other companies scrap the bottom of the barrel for assemblers for a while.
 

American Locomotive

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Rhode Island
**** like this needs referenced any time "employer supplier tools" are mentioned.

Employer didn't have the right tool in the first place. Strike 1

Employee needed to modify something to attempt to make it usable. Strike 2

Modified tool continues to exist, rather than replacement purchased for the original AND a proper tool for the job we didn't have the tool for in the first place. Strike 3
All of those are easy to overcome in an "employer supplied tools" situation. Plus, in an "employer supplied tools" situation, it's unlikely your pay is directly contingent on the work being finished within a certain amount of time.

At the company I worked for, we all had individual boxes, with company purchased tools. There were also a few "community" tool boxes with random tools that were a bit of a mess.
 

2ndGearRubber

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Messages
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Location
Pittsburgh
All of those are easy to overcome in an "employer supplied tools" situation. Plus, in an "employer supplied tools" situation, it's unlikely your pay is directly contingent on the work being finished within a certain amount of time.

At the company I worked for, we all had individual boxes, with company purchased tools. There were also a few "community" tool boxes with random tools that were a bit of a mess.


Guessing your company paid hourly. My pay is directly contingent on time. Less time means I do more work and make more money. Or go home having already made my money. The 3 hour water pump being done in 2 means I can move onto another job, absorb the time I lost on another job, or get me out the door faster.

If you're hourly, for some people it doesn't matter. I'm too high strung to waste time, so I can't stand garbage tooling no matter the pay structure. Opening a drawer and seeing those pliers would piss me off beyond belief.
 

Leaflessshadetree

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Don't ask.
I have a very similar set, I ground them to fit a snap-ring with small holes. I then put them back in my box and have used them a few times.
I'm not the original purchaser and wouldn't try to claim warranty (though I do know a few people that regularly get visits from a Snap-On truck).
 

speed bump

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Butte Montana
I'm guilty of modifying snap ring pliers. When I worked in the oilfield we had a kit inventory that they never updated the snap ring size and after they changed it so you had a tiny snap ring and some bigger pliers and you were an hour+ from a hardware store that may or may not have what you needed (and you rarely got the same kit back). Sometimes you did a good job and sometimes you didn't but you usually did good enough. Its a tool it shouldn't get in the way of getting a job done.

Where I am now we provide all the tools (literally I can't think of a tool we haven't bought for our guys) and if for some reason we don't have something but can make it I will 100% have them do it because equipment being repaired is more important than a $50 tool.
 

dchawk81

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Guessing your company paid hourly. My pay is directly contingent on time. Less time means I do more work and make more money. Or go home having already made my money. The 3 hour water pump being done in 2 means I can move onto another job, absorb the time I lost on another job, or get me out the door faster.

If you're hourly, for some people it doesn't matter. I'm too high strung to waste time, so I can't stand garbage tooling no matter the pay structure. Opening a drawer and seeing those pliers would piss me off beyond belief.
You'd be singing a different tune if your choice was either modify a tool or lose revenue.
 
OP
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iamhomeless

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I have a very similar set, I ground them to fit a snap-ring with small holes. I then put them back in my box and have used them a few times.
I'm not the original purchaser and wouldn't try to claim warranty (though I do know a few people that regularly get visits from a Snap-On truck).
I don't know many toolguys that will warranty a tool with grinder marks on it.
 
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