What a journeyman taught me was a tool you use every day you want quality. For something you use only now and then get harbor freight as you'll only be using it so little over its lifetime
For the younger techs getting into the trade; there is absolutely nothing wrong with buying the bulk of your tools from harbor freight, craftsman, tekton and/or gearwrench. Hop on the tool truck from time to time but keep your bill low and manageable. Over time you will phase out some of your cheaper tools and they will be fine tools to keep at home when you need to wrench on your personal vehicle.
Agree with everything you said. Not to mention all of those brands have lifetime warranty these days. So really it all just comes down to convenience and personal preference.
I use some Harbor Freight tools. Most are just fine and they will warranty it if it has a problem. I love their extendable ratchets. I can't see spending big bucks on Snap-On and Matco etc.. Socket sets I get from Amazon. Been using Kobalt, Craftsmen, and a variety of others for 20+ years and just fine.
I love my deep metric kobalt 1/2 impact sockets I have abused them and all they have done is waller out a little so the hog ring on my m18 high torque will drop the most worn ones and my 3/8 12 point chrome set has seen some impacting as well for taking out rod bearings of a engine with a broken rod so i can use my air hammer to move the crank and move up all the spun rods off the crank so the torque converter can be removed.
Kind of surprised you haven't broken any sunnex impact sockets. When I started out I had craftsman tools, it's what I could afford and a sears was always close by, infact the first shop I worked at with my own tools was a Monroe and Sears front door was 100 yards away. I always got crap for having craftsman tools. Then I moved on to a diesel truck shop, those coworkers didn't care what brand you had but I needed heavy duty impact sockets and one suggested sunnex and I bought a set, I ended up breaking the 1", 3/4", 11/16", 5/8", and 9/16" deep sockets. To be honest thick chrome taiwanese sockets held up better. I replaced the sunnex with craftsman and never broke a single craftsman deep 1/2 drive impact socket. Their 3/8 drive impact sockets were a different story, they never broke with a 3/8 impact but would break with a long breaker bar. The opposite was true with 1/2 drive, the craftsman breaker bars were weaker than their sockets. At that time in the mid 90's I don't remember having harbor freight stores but there were traveling tool sales like Homeier, they sold cheap tools like Buffalo that were true garbage, though I have a few buffalo 3 jaw pullers, hub pullers, and a bearing separator that have held up for nearly 30 years. I have no snap on, Mac, or matco tools. I only ever bought 1 snap on tool and it was a swivel impact socket, it broke the second day I had it, it was really expensive and the tool truck didn't show up the next week. I walked the 100 yards to sears on my lunch break and bought a craftsman impact swivel, I still have that swivel and it gets used a lot. The snap on was returned for a refund. That one encounter showed me that tool truck brands aren't more reliable, I started noticing that everyone had a stash of broken tools waiting on the tool man to stop by, which was a tedious affair when the truck owner was seemingly always on vacation. With my craftsman stuff I would just swing by a sears after work if I broke something. I think harbor freight Icon tools are a similar deal.
A friend and I have a mechanic friend who is now retired but when he still had his shop open he had a lot of Snap-On tools, about $30K worth or more. He used to work on my old 2004 Silverado for me when I still had it and that truck quite literally showed him how over priced his Snap-On stuff was. He literally broke two of his Snap-On ratchets, three wrenches and a couple of sockets trying to get the exhaust bolts off so he could install the new catalytic converter y-pipe. Regardless of how many tools he broke in the process he said he always liked working on my truck for me. He eventually just started buying his stuff from Harbor Freight and if anything broke he got it replaced same day instead of waiting for the tool truck.
I still use most of the craftsman tools my parents bought for me when I was younger, with various snap on, MAC tools and a few other off brand tools mixed in there. I’ve upgraded my most used tools to snap on and MAC tools over time. I agree with the statement, buy what you can afford and then upgrade as your budget grows. I’ve spent many weekends, lunch hours and evenings after work work at sears, Lowes warranting tools that I’ve broken that day or week.
The redhead from Mythbusters said it best when he said: If you think you need a new tool buy the cheaest, and when you break it from use, you know you need it, go buy the best you can get.
UK here, When I set out as an apprentice plant mechanic in 1969, I bought the best tools I could afford as I had to earn my living with them. I had a motto, never struggle to undo a fastener, there's a tool to do it easier. So tool kit expanded over the years, 1/2" sockets first, then 3/8" and eventually 1/4" & 3/4" drive. Never had an air impact wrench (electric ones weren't invented then) Mainly Britool, some Snap On, Stahwilli, ETC Industrial (Japanese), all served me well. Only ever broke 1 socket, 17mm undoing a wheel bolt on an Audi car, 1/2" 24" breaker bar plus bit of scaffold tube. Someone at the tyre depot had dogged the bolt up with an impact wrench. We ended up getting a 3/4 drive 17mm and a bigger bit of scaffold tube... I moved into workshop management after 10 years on the tools, Snap On tool box locked up and bolted to the my bench in the back of my garage. Opened the door to get the mower out one day, big space where the box was - Stolen. I was gutted. Insurance asked for details of the contents- how do you remember all the kit over the last decade.. Eventually got it priced up as a replacement. I was shocked, just under £5750 to replace like for like. As I was no longer on the tools I came to an agreement with the insurers re a settlement. Moral... keep an up to date inventory of your tools and get decent insurance..
Thanks for the shout-out, brother! Glad I could make you something for the channel, you contribute a lot to us fellow gearheads, so It's nice to be able to give something back.
Harbor freight tools are great for that job when you gotta cut, chop, bend, modify a wrench to fit. You don't want to destroy a good Mac, matco, snapon.
Im all for snap on tools i have a lot of them but i think snap on sockets and wrenches are a complete waste of money I've used lots of impact sockets that aren't snap on never had a problem i have a few snap on sockets i wish i wouldn't of bought them same with wrenches no wrench set is worth the money snap on wants buy some wright tools wrenches or if you want the best wrenches if you want good cheap wrenches you cant beat tekton, if you get them used or from a pawn shop or a bogo deal that's one thing but i wouldn't pay full price for snap on wrenches or sockets in a million years.
Great video Josh. I too am a Caterpillar mechanic, I work on the machinery side. I would recommend to younger techs that if you are in a school/vocational program use your student discount to purchase a beginner tool set from either Snap-On or Matco. Both are good choices and as a student you get something crazy like 50-60% off list price. Harbor Freight works perfectly fine for the larger wrench sets, like 1 3/8 inch to 2 inch wrenches. Also the slimmer wrench sets for hydraulics fittings, the "martin"" style wrenches that harbor freight has are good/work well. You wont be crying/worried about the price if you have you modify one of them either.
For someone getting started, HF is a LOT better than they use to be. There are other much higher quality brands outside of HF bottom dollar stuff. HF sells Quinn and Icon. Both are major upgrades... as are Tekton and Gear Wrench.
I’ve got all Clarke gear (uk, same as harbour freight) I earn just as much as the snap on tooltarts that I work with. Except I have more money to spend on my family/life. I’d one breaks I’ll just buy another. Snap on is a ripoff
Unless that one that breaks stops you from doing the job that makes you money. Or, some junk socket rounds a bolt/nut and now you’ve lost time having to get a rounded bolt off. You can obviously have problems with expensive stuff too, but the bottom level stuff is not worth it in a professional setting. The icon stuff is typically much better and worth it, but is also a higher price. Now the “high” end harbor freight stuff is about the cost of mid grade name brand. Generally the high end name brand stuff is way overpriced. Most of the premium is paying for the truck to come to the shop.
I don’t even have to buy another if one breaks, just bring it in for a lifetime warranty replacement (hand tools, they’re the only things I buy from the fright)
They have some junk, and a lot of decent stuff. If you’re happy paying outrageous prices for shine and a name, have at it. I have no problem paying more for quality, but not snap off prices.I got over that shine crapola a long time ago.
I find gearwrench to be a good value price/performance in most sizes. They make quite good ratchets and sockets. Nice ratcheting wrenches and fixed wrenches that are not too thick. I do have some harbor, freight tools, the tools that I pick up from there are tools that are fairly unique to them… Huge 24 inch crescent wrenches, really, large box end wrenches and breaker bars. Sure you can get a really big breaker bar from snap on but you’ll pay so much money for it and it doesn’t do anything that one from Harbor freight won’t do. They also make pretty decent prybars And a perfectly serviceable sledgehammer or deadblow hammer, brass punches, slide hammer, and a number of other things. One rule that I have when it comes to Harbor freight. If I’m only going to need it once or twice and probably never again then I’ll probably buy it from them but if it’s some thing that I’m going to be needing all the time then I’ll probably look for a better one… I generally can figure out what it is that they’ve copied and if the original unit is within 25% more than sometimes it’s just better to get that. One thing they make a particularly good copy of though for a good price is there a three drawer tool cart. I have four of them now, they sell the accessories for them to hold a box of gloves, and a roll of shop towels, and a tray of spray cleaner and inside the drawer, there’s a place to put all your screwdrivers… it really is a great rolling cart to pull out beside what you’re working on. It’s not going to be your only cart, but it’s a good shop cart. I bought one for the shop and one for my shop at home plus one for the garage and one to give to my dad for his shop. They’re just priced to competitively not to jump on.
If you can afford top tier tools especially as a professional completely understand buying them. They have advantages as they are usually best* quality but definitely don't mortgage your life to own them. I know mechanics that get by very well with using majority of non truck brand hand tools. Most Taiwan made hand tools are very good quality imo. As for power tools if it's used often stick to brand names if you can.
Snap on are quality but you pay a lot for it. More so then they're actaully worth. Harbor Freight is okay but not great. Personally i like matco mac etc.
My son buys so much stuff from there he should have stock in the place. LOL. For a person that needs tools for home or is just starting out. Harbor freight is fine.
The main advantage snap on has is you can pay in installments, in the UK and Europe there are some brands that are equal to snap on. Things to always get the best you can are torque wrenches and cordless. Some snap on dealers are a pain when you have problems. Snap on is good but not worth the premium prices in my view.
I f you have too many broken strap on tools the strap on guy will quit coming to your shop I have piles of broken strap on tools & can’t get them replaced it is like a hit & run with them thieves.
I'd be great for you to cover the "mid range" for new mechanics or more serious hobbyists. Gearwrench, Tekton, Proto, etc. I tend to gravitate towards these as I don't really have a great line to a tool truck (nor do I want to pay the premium!) but use my tools enough that the bargain basement stuff breaks or wears out. I'm Canadian so our Harbour Freight equivalent is Princess Auto (Canadian Tire is ~1 tier above), and the stuff there is a real mixed bag.
Princess Auto pricing has gone way up over the years. However, so has the quality. I remember a fellow mechanic buying a cheap wrench set from them almost 20 years ago and the wrenches were so cheap almost all of them broke on the first use. Cheap pot metal made in the shape of a wrench was all they were. However I still have a 3/4" impact socket set I got 1/2 off for $20.00 that I still use to this day. I checked a couple years ago and the 3/4" sockets sets they sell now are like $150.00. So, it really depends on the tool.
The ones you listed are the ones you want. I like the tekton because if you brake it just send them a pic and they send a new one. Don’t need to get on the tool unless you like debit. 15 years working on aircraft 20 on heavy equipment and I have hardly any tool truck tools.
Josh, I do agree. I like the icon. And yes, I have snap-on , Mac, Matco, Craftsman, SK, Williams, most of my specialty tools are the tool truck brands. There, earthquake air tools are very good. Just my opinion.
I have 29years as a Mercedes mechanic with his own shop. I love their tools. These are excellent tools. After 2 1/2 impact gunst failed in less than 1 year from the tool truck. I bought the $49 Earthquake 1/2 impact. I still have it and it works. I consider HF over snap on. I have never broken a US General socket. Also HF has way better warranty. If you are a mechanic try the Pittsburgh pro ratchets and Icon. they are awesome. I have had a 17mm deep impact 1/2 from snap on. I have had to replace it 4 times in 25 years. the last time they refused because as an independent mechanic the tool truck refused. when i began as a mechanic i bought the colored sockets from HF. 29 years later I still have them! You can not blame your tools for your work good or bad. I like my Capri wrenches more than my s/o. My snap on ratchet comfort grip broke the first week when the grip slipped off. I was told that part is not under warranty. back in 97 that was 165$ waste of money. My snap on tool box was band new. the paint would wipe off with a rag. no warranty. Looked like crap after 6mo. I now have the Gen 2 US GENERAL 72 tool box and love it. The quality of tools from Taiwan are second to none now. If you are unsure I suggest you buy an Icon or Pittsburgh pro socket set and their flex head comfort grip ratchet. try their inexpensive 1/2 impact earthquake red aluminum gun. I am an older guy. Do not know how to use my i phone. I am about to retire at 54yo. I have worked on the hardest cars made. If you have a question about HF tools let me know and I will give you my advice. Also when it comes to glove. get DIamond grip. No other gloves compare.
I’m a Milwaukee tools guy and the only truck I normally buy off of is Cornwell. I have Harbor Freight large wrenches but that’s about it. I’m a heavy equipment diesel mechanic. Honestly I bypass the tool trucks most of the time and order directly from Amazon. The best thing about a tool truck is I can make payments on bigger tool purchases that I don’t want to spend a grand or two right out of pocket. I think harbor freight is great for DIY guys and home use. If you’re in the industry I think you’re better off in the long haul with higher quality tools. I’ve been on service calls hours from the closest tool store and I’d be pissed if a cheap tool I owned broke and prevented me from repairing a piece of equipment. When you’re on a service call in the middle of nowhere, you want tools you can depend on.
9+ years working on heavy equipment semis dump trucks big water pumps etc 75% of my hand tools come from harbor freight till this day I haven't busted any sockets even using all my milwaukee power tools
I'm a retired heavy equipment mechanic turned owner operator trucker. I have a"road box" full of harbor freight tools. My snap-on stays home safe and sound. If I happen to lose one, not a big deal.
I'm an OTR car hauler. I have a tool bag full of harbor freight tools. I have never had an issue with them. The craftsman trade stack bag holds a huge amount of tools and keeps them organized. The best part is that it fits in the side box of my 379 no issues.
I have a mix of Harbor Freight Snap-on Matco Craftsman stuff I've been collecting since I was 17. But you talked about traveling with tools, considering crime the way it is these days I think I'd rather bring the cheap stuff with me so if it gets boosted no big deal.
I also use the Harbor Freight tool boxes. I have 5 of them and they work just fine. As long as you take care of your stuff and don't let others mess with it it will hold up.
I do use all of mine daily. My big roll around I have had for probably 5 years and no issues. I can no longer roll it around due to how many tools are in it and I added side cabinets and a locker on it(that was not made for it but I made it work). My smaller roll around is 1.5 years old and I use it daily very much and no issues. I am thinking about buying either the ICON or the large US General but not sure yet. My other two roll arounds I have one for electrical and the other for A/C. Then one at home that does not get used that often. @@MrJbfixer
Started at my local cat dealer a year ago from the bottom now an apprentice. I have never stepped on a tool truck. I probably have 90% of my hand tools through tekton. I try to buy a lot of the "cheap" usa tools. Only get knipex for pliers, aircat or HF chief for air tools. Icon is the exact same as matco, mac, and Cornwell with all their rebrands now.
You can break any tool if you try hard enough. But as a general rule of thumb, made in the US breaks less often. I've been hurt using cheaper tools and I've seen others get hurt using cheaper tools. So since I do this for a living myself, I have over the years upgraded to good quality tools. My body thanks me every morning. You have to be careful with mac and matco nowadays because so much of their Tools are from overseas And they still want to charge tool truck price for cheap tools so you have to be careful.
Since I have been in the business just a little while (43 plus years). I have some Snap - On tools that are like me, obsolete. Maybe when I retire (not long) Josh will come down and buy me out. I will put him on the FIFTY plan. Fifty dollars down, fifty dollars a week for fifty years. One of John's motto's is who makes the best? Answer nobody. Everything sooner or later will wear out or break. Purchase what you have the best luck with. So most of my stuff was new Snap-On, better longevity for me over the years. I have a Snap-On torque wrench that is 43 years old and has passed calibration test every time.
when i started, after the craftsman, made in usa,( with killer warranty), ibought tools of the tool trucks that came weekky to the shop (snapon, matco etc) because they were available and payment terms were easy, there were very few weeks that i didnt get something. If i needed a large wrench, meaning 1- 1/4 and up i would go to wholesale tool and save a bunch of money, lately i have been buying braun battery drills and such and have been pleasantly surprised ( consider myself a milwaukee guy,) but when they started making stuff in china, and still charged usa prices I decided to give hf a shot, their drills impacts etc have been as good as milwaukee. I suggest you get a few of the tools and try them, do a comparison, thx
I have the HF boxes and tool carts and they work well and do what they should. Had them for years, moved shops, moved across the country, still work good. The tools are hit or miss from icon to Pittsburgh. I bought the icon metric ratcheting wrenches and three different sizes started rounding off bolts on the open end size so I stopped using them. Pittsburgh dead blow hammers are junk and will break with little use. Generally the sockets are decent. The different size adapters will break pretty fast. Icon hammers and wrenches seem pretty decent but the couple I have I don’t use day to day. What people forget about is the small details. Snap on ratchets are usually a smaller head so they can reach into tighter areas and they weigh less because they are made from higher quality materials. Look at a Pittsburgh swivel head socket and compare it to the size of snap on. The Pitt is WAY thicker which limits where you can use it. Also figure the wear and tear on your body. You are using more energy if every socket and tool you have weighs more. When you turn wrenches for a living, it adds up.
And a field mechanic will carry doubles of some things. 3/8 impact swivels. 16 and 18mm on newer Cat, 9/16 and 3/4 for older stuff. The biggest time saver for me is a 3/8 cordless ratchet. Doesn't have to be real strong, therefore won't bust your knuckles. Definitely need to carry some 12pt sockets and spare T27 and 4mm allen wrenches
I’m a retired building equipment mechanic and have used tools from Snap-On to China crap. Overall Harbor Freight has upped there game in the past few years. Undoubtedly Snap-On etc are much higher quality tools, but as he said Do Not go into debt starting out buy what you can afford. The older Craftsman are good tools but overvalued and big and clunky. Due to tools “walking away” from my truck, I purchased a new new set of tools the Quinn and a US General tool box from Harbor Freight, so far so good. Never Buy the cheapest HF tools!! As for an impact wrench the 1/2” high torque Milwaukee is a beast don’t buy a cheap brand.
Snap-On; their products were 'bulletproof' many years ago, even their teardrop head ratchet wrenches. Their current oval head ratchets are JUNK; as in I stripped the gears out when attempting to loosen 13mm 8mm diameter nuts on tie rod sleeves. Not once mind you but twice with two new Snap-On tools. I grabbed my $25 H-F cheapies; the multi colored ones, grabbed the 13mm and proceeded to loosen said nuts, that H-F tool held up With both wrenches; my hands only, no cheater involved. New Snap-On 1/2" swivel head; its gears also shattered despite hand use only. Was pissed and bought a $25 H-F version, it didn't fail me
One of the plus’s of Snap On is the fact that you can wear out a tool you can break it, and Snap On will replace it without question, done it many times in the last 45 years, I also have inexpensive tools for various reasons, for some reason people like to ask mechanics what tool brand they should buy ,I guess ultimately we / they really want good tools, many years ago I was changing a starter on 3126, cat ,don’t quote me on the engine size it’s been years ago, they use a 10mm 12 point bolt and it’s very difficult to get in there ,so fortunately my Snap On dealer showed up that afternoon and he had a 10 mm 12 point universal socket in 3/8 Drive, I had called a couple of parts houses in town to see if anybody had one and nobody showed that particular universal socket available , I think I’ve only used that socket two or three times ,but without it, it would’ve been very difficult to get that one bolt out. So when you’re bragging about the price of your import tools ,just remember they don’t make everything and they don’t make a lot of special tools or pullers.
I know the exact bolt you're talking about I was on a road service I needed the 10 mm universal. I found a Snap-On truck I was able to purchase one and get the job done. Only to find out when I got back to the shop I had one in my box. Oh well no I have an extra
It’s worth noting who is actually making their own tools vs outsourcing. Mac Tools has a lot of things made in Taiwan now that they are part of Stanley Black and Decker. They still make some great US made tools though. Matco is another brand that outsources a lot. Most of Snap-On is US made but some of it is identical to brands they have make it for them. The Snap-On vice grips for example are made by Malco (still great quality). Most of their adjustable wrenches are made by Bahco (again, great quality). As for the other tools, generally speaking tools made in Taiwan are pretty good and tools made in China or India are junk. For example, Milwaukee, Tekton, Capri, HF Icon, Gearwrench…all from Taiwan and all similar quality. Of the tool truck brands, Snap-On is the best and Cornwell likely next best. Yet for specific tools, there may be better brands. For example, Vessel or PB Swiss screwdrivers are better than the Snap-On screwdrivers. Even for a professional mechanic, it’s OK to have a mix. One thing HF has with their Icon line is the no questions asked warranty. You break a tool, they will replace it today, right now. With a tool truck tool, yes they will replace it but not until the truck comes back in a week. Many of the Taiwanese brands also have lifetime warranty which they will honor, but it’s through the mail and not as convenient.
Harbour freight tools are perfect for apprentice techs getting into the game - $500 will get you the basic hand tools to turn up with on the first day. $2K will get you fairly well equipped for first 5 years. Young guns, STAY OFF THE TOOL TRUCKS! The shiny, posh tools can come a few years down the road once your making good money. The big advantage of apprenticeships is your getting paid to learn whereas anything else your getting head over heals in student loan debt. Dont exchange student debt for SnapOn tool truck debt!
I miss USA made craftsmans. It was the best option for us back yard mechanics. Craftsman pro were really good quality, especially the screw drivers. One of my favorite tools is a 3/8th drive flex head USA made craftsman ratchet that’s gotta be over 15 years old now and still going strong. I’m buying alot more icon from HF and klutch from northern. They’re good quality and have lifetime warranties.
Harbor freight makes dogwater to great tools. It all depends on what you get.i have had great success with the Pittsburgh Pro line. I am a weekend warrior at BEST. However, if i haven't bwwn able to break a reachet, extension or socket yet , a "real" mechanic shouldn't break them either as they would be more likely to use the correct tool for the application . You might find that their sockets and/or wrenches might not be what they are labeled. That could be the case. 12mm for example could be more like 12.2. Lol but im also NOT buying a $200 rachet and a $30 socket to remove a 46 cent bolt. There are good tools between hf trash and the tool truck .(regardless of vendor). Bottom line: buy what you can afford and, buy quality tools that need to be reliable and accurate. I wouldn't buy a HF micrometer or caliper, for example. Other than that any tool that can drive or remove a faster without damaging the faster or breaking from normal use is the proper quality and the proper tool.
The most important tool you need to take care of is your body. Not going into debt is just good sense for your life, except for buying a home. Tool selection is very dependent on task. I have many different brands, and all have their uses. I won't hesitate to cut or bend a cheap tool, or weld something together. Something to remember. Dropped my brand new 3/8 flex head Snap on ratchet in the belly pan of a machine. Couldn't see it. Had to drop the belly pan to find it. Don't know if i would have done that for my old craftsman ratchet. At 9pm at night, in drizzling rain.
Buyer beware ! I purchased a vertical press and when I inspected the welds they looked like a 12 year old had welded on it. Partial welds, lack of penetration welds. Absoutly unacceptable. When I returned it they ask me if I wanted to exchange it? HECK NO, and got my money back There are rumors out there about the quality of There jack stands.😢
Real mechanics (of the sort not deeply in the spectrum) ruthlessly use what works for OUR use case. I've wrenched everything from F-16s to lawnmowers and where HF fit they're worth owning. For example my painter bros use HF spray guns because they're cheaper than Binks for shooting primer etc and you can throw them away instead of overhauling them (they keep the paint cups and tops of course). HF engine stands have become cheap universal stands users modify for whatever we want. They're cheap enough to give every removed engine a stand. When Uncle Sam was buying it was no contest for hand tools (Snappy mostly) when I outfitted Air Force tool rooms. I prefer Lista tool boxes and storage systems BY FAR to all the rest (and even got the Snap-on and Lista reps to cooperate laser cutting tool foam for our Phase dock) but they're so expensive new most folks are better off with HF brands. If you manage to wear out a tool box you can afford to upgrade because it made your money. I don't bother with their electrical crap.
The Harbor Freight local to me now requires an ID to warranty lifetime tools even if the tool shows whatever brand Harbor Freight decides to mark it with. And that's with being an Inside Track Club member. So they had my full purchase history, I've have only had two warranty claims in five years. One was for a Pittsburgh dead blow, they took care of it, Nice. The second claim was for a $2.99 mini side cutter. wanted ID or get lost. Not going waste my time, amazon has cheap stuff without the trip and need for a slow checkout process.
I work in an industrial setting, a lot of guys will buy cheaper sets. There is no tool truck showing up each week. As the most commonly used items start to break, people generally buy good quality singles of said item. I still have a handful of HF items, but the majority of my tools are Proto, Wright, Williams, SK, etc. now. Mostly purchased off of eBay used, some bought new when a deal showed up. I still break stuff, just a little more rare now.
Buy tools to INCREASE your Capacity to Do Work……. Take certain jobs just to give you the reason to increase your capacity, when you are done you are even but have to tool(s) for next time to bank that $$$….
I appreciate your view that you bought inexpensive and “upgraded”. Some people buy Snap on and swear that is the only and best. They claim to buy them because of the warranty. Spending $1000 on a set of wrenches, they better not break. I think some people abuse their tools and are suckers for spending that kind of money. $100 per wrench is asinine in my opinion. I have Wright and Williams that each set was $220ish. They do the same thing a Snap on set will do. They are USA made and have a lifetime warranty. I think there is a lot of Koolaid being consumed to justify the price. Just my opinion. My father was a lifetime mechanic and had tool truck stuff. But that was in a time before other good options were readily available. We live in a wonderful time where great tools are available off the truck.
I have been buying from harbor freight and santa fe tools. Inpac tools. Some are usable some are garbage. I like their 12 buck crowfoot flare nut wrench sets. Their 1/4" drive torx sockets as it comes with an E-4 size for gm steering column work. The icon 3/8 drive shallow sockets are a good buy. I am going to buy their 3/8 mid depth socket sets.
I always say Harbor Freight is the Walmart of tools. I take the same attitude toward both as far as quality goes: it's hit or miss. You never quite know whether the tool you're going to buy is going to be a good one or not. Also, you can't buy individual sockets or wrenches at HF, which is annoying. What I usually do is buy a set from HF, then fill in the blanks, or replace the broken ones with Husky from Home Depot.
Impact sockets get Sunnex or Chicago pneumatics. Ratchets Snap on. Chrome sockets go with Tekton. Screw drivers get something reasonable. If you are starting out don't be afraid of Harbor freight. If you break something, upgrade to a more expensive brand. You will not break a whole lot. I love high quality tools, but don't try to buy all the best immediately. It takes time. Make sure that turning wrenches is what you will do for a career. I've bought so many snap on tools at a discount from guys who decided it wasn't for them.
Odd, the only deep well socket I've ever split was a ... 1/2" drive 17 mm. Coincidence? I've used the set without mercy, on my 1300 ft lb snap on impact ( reputed to be 1300)
90% of snap-on/matco/mac are just rebranded tools. I run mostly Mac/snap-on stuff. but things i know im gonna pound on ill happily use a cheapy from HF. HF tool carts are not bad. I have one of their 5 drawer carts. does exactly what I need it for and at 1/3 yhe cost of a comparable Mac tool cart.
Nothing wrong with most Harbor Freight stuff. I’ve got a set of their sockets I’ve used for almost 10 years. The Icon stuff is pretty nice. I personally have only bought a few Icon things though. Their impact sockets are nice. Really I prefer getting my tools from the auto parts stores though just for convenience I have more in my area than Harbor Freight and the quality is just as good. Harbor Freight has really come a long way on their tools which is a good thing. A lot of my coworkers have Harbor Freight stuff too. My boxes are all Harbor Freight. Definitely good and bad stuff there. Personally I love their Earthquake air tools so I do disagree about not buying air tools there.
For an average shade tree mechanic, harbor freight is just fine. I'd say at least Pittsburgh pro or Quinn. My Quinn sockets are durable as hell, and my Pittsburgh extendable 3/8 ratchet is perfect. If you are not doing every day work, it will suit you just fine. Take care of your stuff, that is the key. Don't do stupid shit unless you don't care about the tool.
Snapon and Matco and all those ridiculously expensive brands are a total ripoff, you’re just paying for a name. I don’t care how expensive it is…..I can break it, or need to cut/weld/modify it to get into a tight spot and I’d rather hack up a wrench I got for 25cents at a farm auction than a $30 snap on wrench.
I’ve seen so many cracked snap on tools ! It’s a rip off. Specially the ratchets. Craftsman, Super Maximum etc works perfectly! I like Canadian Tire warranty with no questions.
Matco does not make tools. All rebrands. Maybe made to there specs But Mac usa I would pick before Matco Yes usa Snapon hard to beat. Can ya get buy with Harbor Freight yes kinda somewhat for short time depending on tool. Nice video! Ya gonna get some fan boys slamming ya for this video so should do your channel good. lol. Keep it up.
I've only broken one impact socket in 10 years and it was a 1/2 drive sunex 15/16 that had been heated up multiple times and cooled while being hammered by a snapon 3/4 impact so I don't blame it for dying.
I have all harbor freight toolboxes filled with 90% tool truck tools. HF odds and ends for things i dont use super often. If i was just starting out id buy a lot more stuff from HF but when i was buying all my core tools in 06-09 HF was know for making nothing but cheap junk.
Cheap tools have their place. I wouldn't want to be a heavy truck mechanic with a box full of chinesium, but more homeowners/backyarders would have no problem using them. My set consists of mostly 40yr old+ Craftsman, which are far better quality than current Craftsman, a small bit of snap on and a brand called Mastercraft, a store brand here in Canada. It's more important not to abuse the tools you have and if they are cheap really don't abuse them. Great info and content!
20 years ago HF tools were aimed at the low end diyer. For at least the last 10 years the quality has done nothing but go up. I'm a heavy truck/ trash truck mechanic and at this point, after having my tool box stolen, 90 % of my tools are harbor freight and I don't have any problem with them. If I'd had to buy off the tool trucks I'd have had to retire.
Everyone has to work they’re at up and tools are like steps on the ladder of money and wealth…. Save money use them set money aside from working the tools , give them to young relatives or sell them at a garage…. Always have some dry powder for a great deal or sale on something …. BUY based on increasing your CAPACITY To Do a Certain Job or Type of work…
I started with Harbor Freight and to me there tools are not bad as a mater of fact I've broken snapon shocks to my experience if you break a shock removing a bolt or nut it's frozen and you will have to try another technique to remove. In a shop brand name tools is also a status symbol between mechanics . I have gotten serious repairs done on the road buying a cheap Harbor freight tool set because I didn't have any tools on me. Harbor freight will save you in a bind.
The only real part missed i think Josh is the Change in tool make and marketing now days is a lot different from relying on the tool truck to show thye new stuff ! If you're new / younger, it pays to do your research on tools, Even easier now we have Phones and RU-vid! Plenty of tool truck brand tools are made by smaller and well known manufactures at much cheaper prices. If you can get by or don't rely on the warranty processes these companies offer, it's an excellent option. Often every tech has a heap of cheaper tools and stuff as backups piled somewhere if you need to get by, and we modify them for jobs that require weird tools that we won't or don't know a solution for, and a lot of older techs are better for this mentality, but sometimes it's better to buy when it's a common use or heavy use tool especially if the "no homemade tool" policy applies (Looking at you Spanner extender/ Hydraulic pipe). Anyway if you were to take only so many tools to a remote location like Alaska Josh is that sometimes the wear and tare on gear in transport and in poor watery and salty conditions I found in (poor environments) is that you often loose, Damage or straight out the conditions destroy a lot off tools. Even had my Box "lost" by a transport company so packing cheaper gear that is still good quality especially when it comes to power/pneumatic tools and hand tools is better in the long run, a lot of the time when it ends up back at home anything that moved will be rusted and seized or beat up and burred that it's not going to be repaired just replaced. Even worse, no tool truck come past when you're in the middle of the planet hoth, so don't count on them to! Great way to put it otherwise. I would like to see some of your most used / longest owned tools and if you lost or broke them if you would replace with tool truck or non tool truck variants of these and why ? And some of the stuff that you find breaks often ? (besides ratchets w/ cheater bars !) Cheers Josh
Being a field mechanic is a completely different ball game when it comes to tool quality/reliability. There's nowhere to buy anything. However Alaska Airlines loses luggage on the regular so I'd rather lose junk
The harbor freight guys that say things like “I can just buy another”, and I save money! Well upfront yes, but in the long run, you are spending more, which will in the long run, cause you to spend less on your family! Sorry, but it’s the truth!
They make stuff cheap with the knowledge that a few tools sneak out the door with flaws. That's why they have the warranty- they factored in a 15% ÷/- failure rate. I wouldn't own an entire tool set from them, but seldom used, or the need to fabricate a tool from their tools or even just to replace until I get around to purchasing exactly what I want? Definitely.
When i see a Harbor Freight tool truck rolling down the street 😳 I still have a set of 1/2 inch dr. deep impact sock set i bought about 25 years ago , and used the 💩out of them,still have and use the same complete set from Harbor Freight.
They harbor freight stuff has gotten considerably better, especially some of the higher end stuff they sell like Doyle, Quinn and Icon. But majority of the stuff they will replace with no question when it breaks.
I kind of soured on Snap On after they refused to warranty a Blue Point 1/2 inch impact that died on me. Told me the best that could be done was $250.00 rebuild.
All my sockets and spanners (wrenches) are Bahco, except for a tight access set of Bosch, which I actually have 4 identical sets. But I also only deal with metric.
Icon I’ve used is just as good, for what snap on asks for a set of wrenches 19mm to 8mm is ridiculous! The only issue is the bigger stuff if non existent.
I love all my snap on and matco tools.. but when it comes to "re"buying something, i go to harbor freight. It really ticks me off paying 10 bucks for a snap on socket that grew legs and walked away
All tools should be bought on a cost vrs use basis. Rarely used tools cheaper is better and if break it buy better quality to replace it. Now tool boxes on other hand $1000 box and $10,000 in tools or $10,000 box and $1000 in tools choose wisely.
I see the tool chests EVERYWHERE at my job, all the mechanics use them, mainly the jumbo chests and some of the guys have 2, one for normal hand tools and one smaller one separate for just power tools, air tools and speciality stuff like scan tools, multimeters, leak detectors, injector testers etc.
i have found the best bang for the buck is tekton for hand tools. snap on prices are just too damn expensive, even for professional mechanics. a couple hundred bucks for a simple 3/8" socket set with ratchet? that's the most basic of tools.
I worked 45 years as a mechanic. I Was taught to buy good tools as i could afford them a Never-ending process . Never owned hf or tools not made in the USA until two years before I retired . Bought some nice to have but not really needed stuff from hf. Turned out the hf hand tools i got worked quite well the few times i needed to use them. Hf would not be my choice as a professional, but good enough for the shade tree mechanic. Ut
hypertough at walmart usually outperforms harbor freight Pittsburgh products but they are both about the same. pittsburgh is just worse. warrior products seemed decent
My rule has always been stay away from anything electrical from HF. When it comes to hand tools HF is great for tools to modify or loose. I agree i buy cheap and upgrade anything i break on use a TON.
I spent many years doing custom chopping and manure pumping, didnt have a whole lot of time to get to the store and buy tools…but the snap on truck never failed to show up when we had a small break in the madness. My dealer would give you the shirt off his back. Never hesitated to warranty any tool that broke, hell he would even drive out of his way to replace or repair a broken tool…and when he wasn’t able to make it to us he would send one of his employees out to the jobsite or the shop to replace the broken tool. He made buying snap on tools easy, yea they’re spendy, but you dont get service like that out of harbor freight. Harbor freight does make a good tool with all that being said, I simply prefer to buy and use snap-on!
In my opinion, starting out I think HF is perfectly fine, especially if you have a store you can warranty your stuff near by. However once you break something or find it isn't really doing well at what you need it for that's when id upgrade
I too am a diesel mechanic. Harbor freight sockets were great when I started in my career. I only bought them to start, but now that I have "tool money" I try to only buy made in the USA only stuff to stop supporting china.
I started with craftsman in the 90s. the things i used everyday wore out in a couple of years and i eventually upgraded to snap on. i agree with spending what you need to get started with as little debt as possible. the HF Icon line is impressive and a long way from what HF was in the 90s. anyone remember the overwhelming smell of chinese rubber? spend any time in the store and it stuck in your clothes almost like cigarette smoke even.
