Guys, I am a little reluctant to chime in here again because I am certainly biased in my opinions when it come to tools. To be honest, no one brand makes the best of everything. They all have some dogs, but most of the stuff on the trucks is good quality, regardless of brand name. It should come down to what is the best value for you, personally. I do know one thing. Being the most expensive does not automatically make it the best but, being the cheapest usually means it is. I say if you are a professional wrench then you will not be happy with Craftsman. They are a DIY tool that is made to be sold at a price that won't scare customers out of the store. The tool truck tools are made for guys that make their living with tools. They need tools that are designed for the work they do and will hold up to lots of abuse. And it is nice to have someone come to your place of work and service them and show you the new stuff. The last thing most pros with a few years under their belt want to do after a long day under a hood is go tool shopping. You see them all day, why would you want to look at them at night, too?

Bottom line is, and this it what I tell new mechanics and people that come off the street looking for tools, unless you are a pro, Craftsman is a good tool for the money. You will never get your money's worth buying $25-$100 wrenches and $15-$40 sockets from a truck. In most cases you can buy a whole set of Craftsman for about the price of one piece from a truck. Just buy what you think is best for you.

Just for the record, Mac Tools is a part of the Stanley Works. One of, if not the largest tool companies in the world. They have invested very heavily in Mac over the years and I just don't see that going away. The rumors of Mac going out of business have been out there for years. Most of them are started by the competition. I guess they must be worried.

Ingersoll-Rand does make some of the best air tools. The very best Mac air impact wrenches are specially built-to-spec I-R tools. They are made to outperform the best I-R over the counter models. This is a fact.

See ya, Doug the Mac Man (Since 1983)

Hey Groove, I don't win there are people making a lot more than I am with a 50 cent pen. My wife being one of them. But at least I get to ride what I make my living on, only a pimp and a motorcycle tech. can say that.

I agree with MacDad260, I have some Mac tool's because what I needed they were better than Snap On. The big problem with Mac where I'am at is the Rep. wont show every week. But I work on bike's and Snap On socket's and wrenches are thiner walled and fit into the small place's better. But Mac make's some nice air tools.

Also, on the Mac subject, they did a time-buy for the Monster Garage Series it had nothing to do with the Snap-On dealer not doing a good job. The production has to be paid for by an advertiser. Several companies were pitched and Mac decided to be the sponsor. The company has a very large advertising budget because of the ownership by Stanley. Recently, Stanley has decided to push the Mac brand more heavily than in the past. As a result, Mac sponsors Monster Garage. They are also considering several other television sponsorship pitches at the moment at least one of which was created by a television production company I've done some consulting to. Long and short of it is, that the quality of the products had nothing to do with the association with Monster Garage. You cannot assume that Mac is either good or bad as result. Just like Craftsman's deal to sponsor NASCAR (they are the official tool of NASCAR) has nothing to do with the quality of Craftsman tools.

Hey Miller, I understand that quality has nothing to do with the sponsorship of Monster garage and the Nascar truck series. I have a friend on the inside with Jesse James and rumor has it the dealer that serviced West Coast Choppers really pissed him off. So when snap on wanted to sponsor the show he made damn sure they were not picked.

Mrgoodwrench, that might be. As I understand it, Mac had agreed to pay the most money to sponsor the show and that's why they are the lead advertiser. The television production guys said that Snap-On just didn't want to pay as much as Mac was willing to. What's funny, however, is that whenever you see someone going back to West Coast Choppers to fabricate a part for the Monster Garage, you see the Snap-On logos in the background. So, they're getting free advertising on a Mac show.

One thing to look at for purchasing tools (Snap On, Matco and MAC) is eBay. A lot of times, you can get new (or lightly used) tools at 50% off the truck retail.

When I was an A & P mechanic (aircraft), I got all my stuff off the truck. Since I "changed" careers, eBay has been a really good source. Also, all 3 companies have web sites where you can purchase tools direct.

Just a thought :)

Brand of truck? Brand of beer? Time for a new poll!:D :D :p

(FORD) (Coors Light):D :D

I had owned a Snap On Tools dealership for 18 yrs and I have toured the factories many times. When you see how the wrenches are made it is truly amazing that they can sell them as cheap as they do!:eek: I really mean it!

And as for the 0 percent, It is real. The profit margin at the dealer level is pretty small. A successful dealer needs to have a lot of volume to be profitable

As I had said MANY times over the years,,,,I would rather have to explain the price of quality than apologize for anything less :D :D

Kurt :cool:

Re: OT: Favorite Tool Manufacturer
 

It's all Snap-On now!! Got my custom made box a month or so ago.......Artic silver with anodized blue handles, stainless drawer tops and a full stainless top!! :cool: