Williams Tools poor quality

[SMKS]

They are legit economy line Williams

http://www.powertool-box.com/Williams-4-Piece-Comfort-grip-adjustable-Wrench.html

This.

The wrenches are clearly not counterfeit if you take the time to google the part numbers the OP gave us. If they're not in the Williams catalog perhaps they were discontinued because they're junk. The plain "Williams" script is one that's commonly used on Williams tools.

People on the Internet like to claim "counterfeit" in way, way, way too many examples when the items aren't counterfeit and there's a reasonable explanation. Why would someone counterfeit a little known tool brand that only tool nerds are familiar with?

I also think people shouldn't have jumped so hard on the OP. He very well might have got some low-quality Williams items. I've read complaints about some of the other Williams tools, specifically the imported combo wrenches. Heck, I've complained about the USA pear head ratchets for having too much drag out of the box.

And, here's another legitimate seller that has a Williams wrench with the OP's part number:
http://www.sjdiscounttools.com/13210.html

 

[sberry]

Something isn't right, I believe he got a sloppy tool but even a counterfeit is good these days. I got a few Pittsburgs, the finish isn't great on a couple but they work. I got some ATD I got at the auto parts store and they are just about perfect, I think the ultra low price was about 17$ on sale set of 4 with 12 inch.

The wrench would pass no matter who's name you put on it. In fact I think it came off the same line, didn't even bother with a stamp, they inked it on. I think the blank is from a plant in China where they rebrand.

Look at the hand operated can openers at Walmart sometime for in insight in to tools. Look at the price, design features and brands. A little like the water heater with longer warranty and Menards carrys a base toaster under 15$ that is the base chassis to many of the hi end models. Some of the mid lines are cheapened.

 

[scaron]

i have a fair number of williams supercombo wrenches stamped USA and i have been very happy with them. top quality. you have to pay attention, though, not everything that is sold under the williams name is domestically produced; i guess you got some of the junky imported stuff. i do wish they wouldn't dilute their brand by selling that junk.

 

[sberry]

I got a snappy adjustable and most of it is good except for the extra semi skilled buff in the handle web where they were trying to clean up a crappy forge. You don't notice till you look close but its hand done. The ATD clone,,, looks to be from the exact die would chrome as good or better.

The trick to getting cheap and good is to get it where its generic. Like screwdrivers and nut drivers. There are probably 2 or 3 standard quality tips, cheap for cheap handle and toy and good ones and then hard bits. You buy a pallet of blades and insert in any brand handle, I have see it missed where the good bit is in a cheap handle but I got **** that has survived I got from the junk 1$ pile.

Every one in a while a guy should toss a Phillips in the trash and get a new one but ours have a hard life and half the screwdrivers are flea mkt stuff at 15$ a set, half of them still in service and out worked Kliens. Mr Home Hobby suburb cant live long enough to brutalize tools.

Parts of our place have been a good proving ground where the duty cycle is higher than any one man can give it. I have seen similar class 8 truck and farm type shops where the use is way higher than some dealer car type would ever see where he works with a few tools out of his own box vs the whole crew rammin company tools. My guys are not apes but I got one I tell not to pound the chrome deep on, duh but for the most part no one babys it either and I provide all the tools.

A tape measure with a better blade cost about a dollar more than one with a flimsy one and lasts 90% as long as a super duper 5X the cost.

 

[sberry]

Point is,, loss is often higher risk than failure and I got to replace a tape every year, a razor knife or 2, a couple screwdrivers, add a couple nut drivers. It would add up at truck prices and after a rough service life price has not been the sole factor in quality or usability.
Many of these expensive purchases will never pay back, no way could I "upgrade" any hard line tool I own and make it back. Another 4$ single missing in a common size yes, A 40$ one no. A guy uses about 1/2 the sockets in a set, sure most last a long time.

 

[sberry]

Heck, I've complained about the USA pear head ratchets for having too much drag out of the box.

Sears should have got who ever made the driveline in these to do theirs. I was in a Meijers the other day, a fine feeling ratchet,, over priced at 15 in a comparitive market but very good and they are not a tool store, had 20 on the shelf, bet they aint warrantied 1 ,,?? The handle fell off 15 plus years in, still works super, no grease, no maint, not one loose screw. No reason to believe it wont work near indefinitely.

 

[Subyroo651]

..

Man where is Merk when you need him.. I see Berry is arguing with himself again..

 

[truckdriver]

I hear what you're saying but the flip side of that is, you can't join a site and then after one month and 30 posts start a thread ripping on some product with no evidence to support your assertions.

Then again, I also hate the replies like "while I don't have the product you are talking about, I do have other products by that company so based on that experience I say you're wrong"

IMO, everyone of the major tool companies including Snap On have some products that are great and some that are not so great. Just because your Williams US made impact sockets are great doesn't mean that their adjustable wrenches are also great. Conversely, just because their adjustable wrenches aren't great, that doesn't mean everything they make is ****.

I am not brand loyal. I judge all tools on their own merits. If these non-US made Williams\BAHCO knock offs ****, then they **** but I'm not going to judge all Williams labeled tools based of of that.

I agree about him being a new member and this particular thread may have been trolling after all. But we will never know. I have just seen way too many post that were taken over by the "pics or your a liar" crowd. Or just as bad the ones who don't help the OP, but use it as a soap box. The Cordless battery thread and the stolen Olds 442 are 2 perfect examples in the past week.

 

[foreverfalcon40]

I got a Adjustable Wrench and 3/4 Drive Ratchet directly from Williams about a Month ago and it is COO U.S.A.

 

[Conductor562]

Did anybody ask him if he got them from CamaroToolMan?

But seriously, the existence of a ******, import, Williams line, isn't exactly breaking news. He's a new member and not yet aware that pics are 200% required and bashing anything connected to Snap-On is highly contested. Cut him a break.

 

[Gmonkee]

I have high quality Asain adjustables that cost less than USA made economy line. With less jaw play and good fit and finish.
I once had good brand name adjustables that were low grade cheap with really shiny chrome and tolerances way out of reasonable range. I even have one German made adjustable that is midrange at best.

Judging a tool in hand is much easier than online, it has been demonstrated many times a brand name does not a quality tool guarantee. It can however be a guide to avoid the worst.

 

[Strouty]

..
I see Berry is arguing with himself again..

 

[CWP1616L]

The wrenches are clearly not counterfeit if you take the time to google the part numbers the OP gave us.

I did Google those part numbers as stated in my previous posts. The only results I got was SJ Discount tools and Ebay. Usually when I Google a part number I get a lot more results than just two sources; couple that with the fact that the part numbers are not in the Williams catalog is why I'm calling counterfeit.

 

[SMKS]

To settle this once and for all, THESE ARE NOT COUNTERFEIT.


They aren't listed in the current Williams catalog because they have been discontinued. That's why they aren't sold at most retailers. I

Here is a link to a page from a past Williams catalog, which clearly lists the wrenches (I'll also attach a screen grab):
http://www.jhwilliamstoolgroup.com/...groupcom/Commerce/ProductImages/pdf002246.pdf

 

[Wakefield]

On Williams that are not USA,should there be a country such as Taiwan (or that other place) name stamped on the tool?

 

[neophyte]

Well...how much more than harbor freight were they? If they were the same price no biggie.

I don't think they really make a whole lot of tools in pakistan (knives though) and india (except certain iron (?) stuff such as hatchets and hacksaw frames and other hardware). I found some hacksaw frames in the 99 cents store from india they were so good I went and bought a couple more; I've seen some of their hatchets and they also look good.

This is probably just run of the mill china stuff...probably not taiwanese though.

Pakistan actually has a large manufacturing industry for certain types of tools. Economy jewelers pliers are routinely sourced from pakistan. I've also seen a number of stainless medical tools such as hemostats and pliers that are sourced from Pakistan. Some of the Aven stainless tools are made there as well.

 

[Roverbo]

... I've also seen a number of stainless medical tools such as hemostats and pliers that are sourced from Pakistan. Some of the Aven stainless tools are made there as well.

+1 to this. There was a big scandal here in Scandinavia some years ago, when it was revealed that one of the major suppliers to the Swedish public healthcare bought most of the tools from Pakistan; some days later, footage was shown on TV, the tools were made with child labor.

 

[justanengineer]

Personally speaking, my overall experience with the new SO owned Williams has been terrible. I collect vintage JH Williams as it was a local to some of my relatives NY company originally, and I personally found the quality to be among the highest. Ive been given a lot of new Williams by relatives at Xmas/birthday time and it ranges from total **** (China) to mediocre (US). Ive got heavily used 50+ year old JH Williams adjustables that still have close enough tolerances not to rattle, good luck with that on a new one.

The funny part to me is that when SO brought the Williams name back a few years ago it started out as an entirely Chinese made line of tools. Just before they started rebranding the lesser SO products to Williams, they renamed the parent company JH Williams Tool Group, making the low quality offshore brand the prominent "owner." Apparently they caught enough flak to rename it "SO Industrial."

 

[jeremy v]

To settle this once and for all, THESE ARE NOT COUNTERFEIT.

People on the internet need to do some googling and the most basic research before screaming "counterfeit" every time someone isn't satisfied with an item.

They aren't listed in the current Williams catalog because they have been discontinued. That's why they aren't sold at most retailers. It's the obvious, simple explanation that people here would have discovered if they spent two minutes googling instead of jumping to asinine conclusions.

Here is a link to a page from a past Williams catalog, which clearly lists the wrenches (I'll also attach a screen grab):
http://www.jhwilliamstoolgroup.com/...groupcom/Commerce/ProductImages/pdf002246.pdf

Everyone can take off their tinfoil hats now...

I think I would like to keep my tinfoil hat on for now, I feel safer. The problem with your argument is that a pdf file of a "past Williams catalog" is also very easy to counterfeit. I am just messing with you, I hope you don't take offense. I sincerely thank you for finding that pdf for us so we can all now see that these were true Williams wrenches, and I think we are also all starting to see why they are no longer a part of their product line. It sounds like maybe they cleaned house a little bit in order to bring quality levels back up, and if the new catalog only shows US made Willams adjustables that is a welcome change of pace which should be noted.

 

[nicksnothereman]

I have a Chinese Williams adjustable, got it from Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Williams-13608-Adjustable-Wrench-8-Inch/dp/B004XZKMMY/

My condolences.