i like teng, but would go for draper as ive had them for years snap ons a bit too serious for me (and expensive)
if its your trade i think snap on is worth it as the tools will wear so a lifetime warranty gives you that peace of mind im another teng fan, good value and solid kit have killed a bit of halfords pro 3/8 stuff
Most of my tools are Draper. Amazon were running some good offers when I had a bit of a spending spree after an accident
Snap on is great if you can justify the price to yourself, for the hobbyist they are overkill, but that doesn't stop them being nice to have , the digital torque wrench is awesome, and they do the best ratchet screwdriver ever, and their turbo sockets are great for bailing you out. Halfords, as everyone has said are very good quality, and so are Teng. If you can't afford snap-on but want the closest thing, then great deals can be had with Blue-Point, snap-on's more economy concious brand. i think the warranty is different on them but you're pretty much getting the same thing. Also Snap-on's lifetime guarantee is for the lifetime of the model range, not the tool itself, but you'd need to find a complete c**t of a snap-on man to use that as an excuse for not exchanging a snapped breaker bar! Bondhus make all of snap-on's allen keys, you can't really go wrong with bondhus.
cheers all most helpful - been in contact with a man-with-a-van and he is coming to an event I'm organising next year always wanted a rummage in the back of a SnapOn van
Isn't snap on made in the far east now? Have a few snap on tools, lovely stuff but have a right odd ball mixture of tools collected over the years that do what is needed have found best source of tools to buy 2nd hand from autojumbles (ebay) in good cond with a decent known brand name have also made quite a few of my own specialist tools up on my lathe
As others said - Halfords tools are decent quality. And their professional range comes with a lifetime guarantee. Also I heard on some other forum that if yo have any engineering background or work in mechanics you should be able to get a lot of stuff from them (including tools) at trade prices.
Nick, snap-on drills, allen keys, torx bits, punches and chisels are crap. PB Baumann (Swiss Tools) make superb allen keys. PB SWISS TOOLS: QUALITY HAND TOOLS (QHT) Beta make good t-bar and sliding T's http://www.kartpartsuk.com/category.php?id=241
Hi I am in the trade, Mercedes diagnostic technician 15 years, Snap on and Mac make great tools and alot of cheap stuff rebranded (blue point mainly) but the main reason for me and most other mechanics snap on is best for convienience you have a dealer come to your place of work weekly offer you finance replace broken tools give you monthly deals, this is great if your tools are your trade but as a hobby im not so sure there are alot of other brands that now compete mainly Halfords pro Draper & Teng that offer life time warrantys, if you really want to buy snap on then there boxes are the best by far i have a master series box that beats any other toolbox hands down but that comes a a priemum I wolud look at a second hand bargin on ebay or ask the snap on dealer to look out for a second hand box they are often in great condition as when you spend that much on a toolbox you tend to look after it. as for there tools I really like there ratchets I would not buy another brand. but like with anyting try before you buy feel the tool for comfort quality weight balance etc some tools are proper sh** but you cand usually tell what they will be like just by holding them. Hope this helps
another Teng fan here. You will get 35% off list and they have a lifetime guarantee. I have a couple of snap on and blue point tools but some of my Teng kit is 25+ years old and going strong.
I used to get all my snap on stuff bought for me by my previous emplyer. Although it was free, some of it was made of cheese and as I said before, other makes are better for different applications. Halfords professional stuff doesn't live up to being used in a continual proffesional environment. I don't care about warranty, I want tools I can rely on.
I have a few SnapOn tools and a few Halfords Pro tbh, but virtually all my kit is Teng. Bought it new 9 years ago, used and abused it daily and other than servicing the rachets, not one tool has let me down. I check the torque wrenches regularly and they are still in calibration to. The only stuff I've broken has been my snapon 3/8 hex drivers. Yep, it gets replaced FOC but when it breaks I'm in the lurch and I don't need that hassle. The Beta stuff is nice and I've used USAG and found that to be good as well. For me, Snapon is too expensive nowadays and in my experience not reliable enough to warrant the costs. For home use I'd suggest Halfords Pro or Teng. Get some good deals on eBay but also on toolshack.co.uk
Oddly enough the only spanner that's ever broken with me is a Snap On. Back in 1980 or thereabouts I bought a Snap On 16mm combination spanner to undo the head nuts on my 900SS. The first time I used it the jaws broke trying to undo a head nut. I took it back and got another. The next time I used it for the same job the replacement broke too. I took it back and got yet another. I still have the 3rd spanner intact about 32 years later. :smile:
