Searching for quality hand tools

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rawhide

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I'm not sure why they'd say that. They have a lot of pure Chinesium, but that's not all they have. I'm pretty sure they carry Klein Tools, which are American made, and I have a pair Irwin Vise Grips lineman's pliers that I bought there a two years ago that is pretty clearly stamped "Made In Germany" (they're actually sitting on the end table next to me now). I'm pretty sure I saw SK tools in the locked glass wall cases, too.
I asked only about combination wrenches.
 

okiebertt

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I have a lot of Snap-on, Mac and Craftsman tools all American made so I know about quality. But I also have a set of Pittsburgh brand combination wrenches that are still going good after 15 years. Probably the only thing sold by Harbor Freight that is worth a s**t. It cracks me up that they give American names to the chinese junk they sell like Chicago Electric, U.S. General, Pittsburgh, Portland, Bunker Hill, etc. Anyhow yard sales are a good place to pick up good tools at a good price, you just got to do a lot of leg work getting around and shopping.
 

emapples

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Where can one find quality made in the USA hand tools that are not sold from a truck? Preferably in Tulsa, but OKC is not out of the question. Specifically I'm looking at some quality wrenches and possibly other hand tools. My research has me looking at Wright or maybe the more affordable Blackhawk by Proto.

If time allows I may hit pawn shops to acquire a mix of good tools, but I'd like to find a good set of new or like new without spending Snap On prices. I did see a decent selection of Bonney wrenches on the Epstein website. While those should be good, they will not have a warranty.
I have a few snap on ratchets to sell, I don’t use them anymore
 

TwoForFlinching

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I have a lot of Snap-on, Mac and Craftsman tools all American made so I know about quality. But I also have a set of Pittsburgh brand combination wrenches that are still going good after 15 years. Probably the only thing sold by Harbor Freight that is worth a s**t. It cracks me up that they give American names to the chinese junk they sell like Chicago Electric, U.S. General, Pittsburgh, Portland, Bunker Hill, etc. Anyhow yard sales are a good place to pick up good tools at a good price, you just got to do a lot of leg work getting around and shopping.

I also have a bunch of harbor freight tools. I like their long wrenches, can't beat the warrantee. When people ask to borrow/use my tools, they get those.
 

Snattlerake

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I remember one hilarious LawDog post about the thief who stole a construction crew's tool trailer. Then the next day he came back to the same site to try to sell them their tools. He had to call the police to be rescued after locking himself in his vehicle.....the construction workers were in the process of cutting the top off his vehicle with their recip saws.

I wish I could have seen that.

My coworker lost a new Dewalt drill when he went to the portapotty. He looked all over the jobsite. He reported the loss and the forman bought him a new one. He lost it the next day while going to the portapotty.

The beef I have with the truck brands is warrantying them. All my tools are for personal home use but if I have to warranty one, its a major PITA to find a truck nearby and wait for the warranty to go through if they dont have what you need. I've had to warranty two Snap On items and the hunt was on to find a place where the truck would be and you almost feel like youre conning the guy into doing a warranty. That being said, almost all my ratchets are Snap On. They are amazing!
Just call him and get on his route. He will come to you.
 

rawhide

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I'm not sure why they'd say that. They have a lot of pure Chinesium, but that's not all they have. I'm pretty sure they carry Klein Tools, which are American made, and I have a pair Irwin Vise Grips lineman's pliers that I bought there a two years ago that is pretty clearly stamped "Made In Germany" (they're actually sitting on the end table next to me now). I'm pretty sure I saw SK tools in the locked glass wall cases, too.
I'm not sure why they told me that on the phone also. Went to the Tulsa store on Admiral today and a lot of Chinese stuff, but locked behind glass were nice Blackhawk wrenches & sockets priced better than any place I've seen.
 

HoLeChit

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I'm gonna catch a lot of crap for this, but Amazon. Also, The only reason I would buy Craftsman is if i needed something cheap that I could return or warranty at the nearest Lowes. You can also find a lot of good tools at Steves wholesale tools, garage sales, pawn shops, and places like J&E fastener or Delco Diesel here in the OKC stockyards. might look around and see if you Have something comparable up in Tulsa. With that being said I've been turning wrenches on construction equipment and cranes for almost 13 years. Got out, looking to start my own business doing something less strenuous. This is a rough list of the brands I like, use, or have used, and believe it or not, you can find most of them on Amazon. Snap on, Mac, and Matco rebrand a lot of them to be their own.

Wright Tools- Wrenches, sockets.
Blackhawk- Wrenches and sockets. they're pretty nice.
Williams-Snap on industrial line, in my opinion, the best wrenches in the business. Definitely all I use, aside from the odd snap on or the big 1 1/2"+ wright wrenches. The also make decent older style ratchets, screwdrivers, and I like their sockets.
SK-awesome sockets, ratchets, and wrenches.
Proto- sockets, wrenches, and breaker bars.
Martin- Body work tools, hammers, wrenches, etc. They make good stuff.
Grey Pnuematic- Also called GP, their sockets are rebranded by lots of companies, they make great stuff. 90% of my sockets are made by them.
Sunex: Believe it or not, they make good socket sets. almost as good as GP even.
EZ Red- The make good ratchets, esp the odd specialty 1/4 drive, and their 3/4 drive extendable ratchet is great.
Bahco- Snap on brand, look at their universal pipe wrenches. They're great., and most of their stuff gets rebranded on the trucks.
Wera- best dang screwdrivers on the planet in my opinion. they also make some awesome ratchets and wrenches if you have money to burn.
Knipex- the best pliers and cutters in the business. Period.
klien- good cutters and screwdrivers if you want a cheap option.
Wilton- great hammers and vices
irwin and proto- most companies rebrand their extractors and tap/die sets.
Mayhew- great punches and prybars, rebranded by the trucks.
OTC- specialty tools. make a lot of specialty tools for OEMs.
Eastwing- Dead blow and regular hammers.
Flir- IR cameras
Fluke-multimeters and IR thermometers. Dont buy anything else.
CDI-torque wrenches.
Sioux- air tools, snap on rebrands them.
Florida Pnuematic- Good brand, lots of companies rebrand them.
Aircat- Great pnuematic tools.
Chicago Pnuematic- NOT sold by harbor freight, great air tools.
Carlyle- Sold by NAPA, great tools. I especially like their wrenches.
Power probe- diagnostic equipment and soldering/heat shrink torches.


If there's something on this list that is missing, that you've seen on the truck, let me know. Or if you just need a different tool, let me know. I bet I can find something comparable or the company that makes it for the tool truck. Feel free to reach out.
 

rawhide

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I'm gonna catch a lot of crap for this, but Amazon. Also, The only reason I would buy Craftsman is if i needed something cheap that I could return or warranty at the nearest Lowes. You can also find a lot of good tools at Steves wholesale tools, garage sales, pawn shops, and places like J&E fastener or Delco Diesel here in the OKC stockyards. might look around and see if you Have something comparable up in Tulsa. With that being said I've been turning wrenches on construction equipment and cranes for almost 13 years. Got out, looking to start my own business doing something less strenuous. This is a rough list of the brands I like, use, or have used, and believe it or not, you can find most of them on Amazon. Snap on, Mac, and Matco rebrand a lot of them to be their own.

Wright Tools- Wrenches, sockets.
Blackhawk- Wrenches and sockets. they're pretty nice.
Williams-Snap on industrial line, in my opinion, the best wrenches in the business. Definitely all I use, aside from the odd snap on or the big 1 1/2"+ wright wrenches. The also make decent older style ratchets, screwdrivers, and I like their sockets.
SK-awesome sockets, ratchets, and wrenches.
Proto- sockets, wrenches, and breaker bars.
Martin- Body work tools, hammers, wrenches, etc. They make good stuff.
Grey Pnuematic- Also called GP, their sockets are rebranded by lots of companies, they make great stuff. 90% of my sockets are made by them.
Sunex: Believe it or not, they make good socket sets. almost as good as GP even.
EZ Red- The make good ratchets, esp the odd specialty 1/4 drive, and their 3/4 drive extendable ratchet is great.
Bahco- Snap on brand, look at their universal pipe wrenches. They're great., and most of their stuff gets rebranded on the trucks.
Wera- best dang screwdrivers on the planet in my opinion. they also make some awesome ratchets and wrenches if you have money to burn.
Knipex- the best pliers and cutters in the business. Period.
klien- good cutters and screwdrivers if you want a cheap option.
Wilton- great hammers and vices
irwin and proto- most companies rebrand their extractors and tap/die sets.
Mayhew- great punches and prybars, rebranded by the trucks.
OTC- specialty tools. make a lot of specialty tools for OEMs.
Eastwing- Dead blow and regular hammers.
Flir- IR cameras
Fluke-multimeters and IR thermometers. Dont buy anything else.
CDI-torque wrenches.
Sioux- air tools, snap on rebrands them.
Florida Pnuematic- Good brand, lots of companies rebrand them.
Aircat- Great pnuematic tools.
Chicago Pnuematic- NOT sold by harbor freight, great air tools.
Carlyle- Sold by NAPA, great tools. I especially like their wrenches.
Power probe- diagnostic equipment and soldering/heat shrink torches.


If there's something on this list that is missing, that you've seen on the truck, let me know. Or if you just need a different tool, let me know. I bet I can find something comparable or the company that makes it for the tool truck. Feel free to reach out.
Thanks for the info.
 

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