Snap on Tools

[Hew]

From the posts I can gather, for professional spanner men, buying Snap On Tools is money well spent. Most of us DIY mechanics baulk at the cost and find cheaper alternatives.
It all makes sense really.

 

[trotsky]

I work on both the GS and the push bike fairly regularly and worked happily for years with an old 120 piece Kamasa set until I eventually replaced it with a similar sized Halfords Professional set when it dropped to £99 some time ago. I have also, over the years when I had easy access to a Snap-on van, bought odd bits and bobs that the toolkit didn't give me. I still have an old 10mm spanner which was bought for adjusting the valves on a Honda 250T (needed a very slight angle on the ring end which only Snap-on delivered) and which still does the business on the GS. I also have a few Park Tools specialist bits and bobs for the push bike.

I'm with Steptoe on the "good set" and "bad set" of tools - it is nice to have a set of sockets you are fairly confident won't split if you have to put the torque setting up high. At the same time having a box of assorted sockets that can be hammered on to a recalcitrant nut that's been rounded off by some ham fisted idiot is a godsend.

Would I like a full Snap-on set? Oh yes, but I couldn't justify it without winning the lottery and just buying it as a luxury toy. I'd also buy the full £3,000 Park Tools workshop kit. And a big double garage to keep it all in. And a good security system...

 

[cookie]

i know from experience that snap on 6 sided sockets & combination spanners will shift corroded nuts that cheaper stuff will just round off. as earlier poster said, they also have thinner walls than most other stuff which can be very handy. the 3/8 socket sets are very nice for bike use.

the screwdrivers tips however are now seemingly made of cheese (the old ones lasted forever) & the hex keys are really soft. avoid.

generally though, snap on tools are things of beauty & a joy forever. if you don't understand that, buy halfords which are fine for most DIY uses.

if you need something special for a particular job, buy it from snap on

 

[NorthernBoy]

I think that pretty much clinches it! Despite the tight wads and amateurs Snap-On are the best.

That is true, but we do not all just go out and buy the best, irrespective of cost. I think that if you are not a professional, or very, very rich, that there is a very good argument for getting good, but less expensive kit. Used properly, with the amount of use a set gets for the casual twiddler, something like halfords professional will be absolutely perfect.

You can save literally thousands of pounds, and, in the rare event that you break a piece (and I have never broken any of my "decent" tools), you can try to get it replaced. If they won't replace it, you are still much better off buying another one.

Or even, replacing just that piece with snap-on.

After all, we do not all buy an F430 when we want a sports car, or an R1200GS when we want a motorbike...

 

[brassmonkey001]

When I earned my living with tools I bought Snap On and Britool because they were my livelihood. Now that I am an occasional spanner wielder I cannot justify the cost.
My advice to the hobbyist would be buy Halfords or similar quality and if you find you break something more than once then replace it with Snap On.

Can I also give a mention to King Dick?

 

[argentifa]

....just how good is the snap on guarantee when you loose a piece, or have something nicked....they're just tools.....
....twenty years ago perhaps snap on could justify their retail cost...better quality etc....but nowdays, there's not such a quality differential...75% of the stuff you come across will do the job just as well for a fraction of the cost.....and for what some of the cheap end stuff costs anyway, who cares if it snaps...just go out and buy another dozen...it'll still work out cheaper....much cheaper...
in reality, snap on these days is just a bit of toolbox bling........I tend to buy tools that feel "just right" in my hands....bit difficult to explain...but it seems to make the job a bit easier...

 

[Steptoe]

....just how good is the snap on guarantee when you loose a piece, or have something nicked....they're just tools.....
....

, who cares if it snaps...just go out and buy another dozen...it'll still work out cheaper....much cheaper...
...

Look after your tools. And you won't lose them. Especially if they're expensive. Snap on guarantee is for the tools, not the idiots that lose them

I care if they snap, it means i could lose a days earnings. And how cheap is it having to run around buying yet more cheap tools that'll break on you again. And in 20 years time when your stillbuying your cheap tools,they won't look so cheap then And what if your on a tour and it snaps

I could go on. But it's better for people to learn their own lessons . And be happy with what they've got.

 

[Shep]

The Snap on 3/8 drive socket set i have, is a flank drive pattern which helps not to round off the points on damaged bolt heads. Top quality kit

Best Snap on item apart from the socket set? The pry bar, IMO an unbreakable item used/abused mine for 30 years (15 of those in heavy engineering) now still does the job its designed for and many others, top tool

 

[cookie]

note: snap on guarantee on torque wrenches & electronic bits is 12 months, not for life. if you ahve them repair any such item, the guarantee is only 3 months

75% of the stuff you come across will do the job just as well for a fraction of the cost....

that is very true. but they're not the same

 

[STUBBS]

as my dad taught me a good tool for a good job a bad tool for a bodge mind you the most expensive are not always the best