Priced right off the Snap-On truck

AZjeff said:
Can a mechanic making a living at a dealership or indie shop make enough to justify high end tools? Has the cost of tools gotten away from income?

OTOH, if you can afford nice things and appreciate the feel of really good stuff buy it!
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Many tech programs have a deal cut with tool companies where the students can get 1/2 price tools. Many buy a decent starter set at 1/2 price and build on from there.

If a kid coming out of school wants to have the big nice tool box and all the fancy gadgets they'll be in a world of debt real fast. I've seen that happen many times. I've also seen some of the best techs using an old Craftsman set they got in high school with only name brand specialty tools added on or broken tools replaced by the big name brands.

A top of the line Senior Master tech in my area can pretty well name their price as they tend to be leaving the industry for greener pastures(fleet maintenance, computer programming, industrial maintenance) with no one left to replace them. So they can afford what they want but the ones I work with or keep in touch with from previous jobs all watch their spending as they are already planning their exit from the dealership world.
 
Open up a factory, buy the building, land, or rent it. Hire people, buy machinery. Have a phone staff. Office and supplies. I bet no one can make it for that price. They only can do it because they have so much legacy structure behind them.
It's higher than Wright ,but that's what it takes to make things in the USA. Thanks to the people who still buy this. Otherwise there will be zero US manufacturers of tools. Maybe one less starbucks a day, or a little less this or that, and there is the money for the set.
 
If I was a mechanic or course I'd have two of most common sockets etc just in case one breaks during use and you can't afford to have down time.

I would never justify to myself to pay those very high prices. I'd rather just have two complete sets of HF sockets and ratchets etc. When one breaks get a new warranty one and that becomes the backup.
 
JC1 said:
If I was a mechanic or course I'd have two of most common sockets etc just in case one breaks during use and you can't afford to have down time.

I would never justify to myself to pay those very high prices. I'd rather just have two complete sets of HF sockets and ratchets etc. When one breaks get a new warranty one and that becomes the backup.
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My mechanic goes nuts if he thinks he forgot a tool or lost one. That's probably where those extra sockets end up. He's pretty well organized, puts all his tools back after the job and scans to make sure he didn't leave any tools sitting around.
 
i had a lot of used sockets ratchets adapters etc and i’d buy random blue point stuff to keep the truck man happy when i had to warranty the used stuff.

in truck repair we broke everything you could imagine so i had a full set of harbor freight backups for everything.
 
Snap-On model works when you have a relationship with the driver... buy once and they'll replace for life (even consumables). Those air hammer bits are very good from SO, I think Ajax was the manufactorer.

But for the average joe, their a hard pill to swallow in terms of cost. There's certain SO tools I wouldn't trade and I'd pay a premium for. Others, not so much. Lately I've been buying Japanese tools: Nepros, Koken and Apex. Nepros quality is amazing, priced at a premium. Koken is really good and the price is very reasonable (their knurled extensions and universals are awesome). Apex is mostly bits and drivers, again priced well.
 
I have the 1/4 set and love it. Probably the most used for day to day little stuff. I have a mix of every brand but most used items that I will be using for life get Snap-on or Blue-point or something I will enjoy using. I hate grabbing a Pittsburgh tool but don’t mind if I’m beating on it with a sledgehammer to break something loose. I figure the money I save fixing cars, motorcycles and anything else I can spoil my self a little with a quality product.
 
JC1 said:
If I was a mechanic or course I'd have two of most common sockets etc just in case one breaks during use and you can't afford to have down time.

I would never justify to myself to pay those very high prices. I'd rather just have two complete sets of HF sockets and ratchets etc. When one breaks get a new warranty one and that becomes the backup.
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That's how I do it. Only exception is if the tool isn't fit for what I need it, then it's always better to pay what it takes to get something that is properly made.

Sometimes the cheap stuff is nicer to work with, made more slender....
 
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stchman said:
If one insists that the HF set is beneath them then Tekton makes a pretty nice set for $60.

www.tekton.com

1/4 Inch Drive 6-Point Socket and Ratchet Set (29-Piece) | TEKTON® | SKT05101

Hand drive chrome sockets with extra-large stamped markings for visibility.
www.tekton.com www.tekton.com
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Tekton really is a "sleeper" so to speak, Crescent too for that matter. I bought some of their stuff on a whim, and was really impressed, anytime I need a new hand tool I look over at Tekton and Crescent to see what they offer.

$360 for that set is mind boggling. It's not anywhere near the same quality but I got a Stanley 1/4” drive set on clearance a few years ago for about $15-20 bucks, I've used it twice and each time it's allowed me to get the job done. I don't see how paying an extra $340 would have made either of those jobs any easier.
 
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I still have all of my S-O tools that I bought when I was wrenching motorcycles and it totaled well over $10k including top chest and roll cabinets. All late 70s/early 80s vintage stuff that was so well made back then that over the past 45 years only had a handful of warranty items. I'd say well worth the investment and will go to my son when I can't pick them up anymore. Then probably to his son.

Yeah, driver relationship was key. As a new mech mine sucked me in, but always sold me some items at half price to keep me hooked. Bought a lot of returned items too at dirt cheap money. Still, did revolving account to keep HIM hooked too, but never went more than a couple months before paying full balance. It was a pretty symbiotic and I did get lots of nice shiny tools. I use them everyday and have never regretted for a minute what I paid above and beyond cheaper tools for them. I shop eBay alot these days for the older tools at very good prices. Can't beat the quality IMHO.
 
bmwpowere36m3 said:
Snap-On model works when you have a relationship with the driver... buy once and they'll replace for life (even consumables). Those air hammer bits are very good from SO, I think Ajax was the manufactorer.

But for the average joe, their a hard pill to swallow in terms of cost. There's certain SO tools I wouldn't trade and I'd pay a premium for. Others, not so much. Lately I've been buying Japanese tools: Nepros, Koken and Apex. Nepros quality is amazing, priced at Koken is really good and the price is very reasonable (their knurled extensions and universals are awesome). Apex is mostly bits and drivers, again priced well.a premium.
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"Koken price very reasonable..". Crazy expensive on Amazon
 
You guys wanna hear something sick? I used to have a ten thousand dollar line of credit on the Snap On truck. The Snap On guy actually wrote me a letter of recommendation when I was going to buy my first house since I had no other credit.
 
shortyb said:
Yeah, driver relationship was key. As a new mech mine sucked me in, but always sold me some items at half price to keep me hooked.
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I always presumed that the prices for "good" customers was always negotiable or there's (at least) 2 sets of prices for everything.
 
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