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this a good idea?

MTChevy

MTChevy

3/4 ton status
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Well since i get 50 percent of from the 3 major dudes i thought id do this. Get a snap on box... then split my tools in 3rds... a third snap on, third mac, third matco... this a good idea? that way i can tell what tools I like most and what i should purchase in the future. ya or na
 
I dont' have experience in this, but i think it would be easier to just buy all one, then you know what your tools look like, and could probably work a deal with the 1 company over such a big purchase. Just mine 0.02
 
The problem with that is when you wrench somewhere, you don't usually get visited by all three. I prefer to do my business with one, the more business you give to somebody the likelier they are to bend the rules when you need something replaced, etc. Plus, I've got OCD when it comes to my tools, I want everything to look alike and be in it's place. Some things are cheaper from different manufacturers though, so that may influence your decision. I don't think you'll go wrong with any of them, they all make great tools.
 
I personally would buy Snap-On tools. I own some Snap-On, and Mac but no Matco stuff whatsoever. The reason for the Snap-On over the others is because i see the Snap-On truck all over town every week and rarely see the Mac truck and have NEVER seen the Matco truck in this town. I mostly own Craftsman tools but i do have a full set of Nice Snap-On screw drivers and a few wrenches from Snap-On and a couple Mac wrenches.
 
hey man, buy snap-on, if you're gonna be wrenching full time as a professional.... 50% off snap-on is less than a dealer pays for his tools... dont ask me how i know that, but.... my personal preference is snap-on, you will walk into a shop, and ask them what tool guys come through the shop, 9 out of 10 shops will have a snap-on dealer, and maybe 4 will say mac or matco and 2 will say cornwell... you want reliability in the tools, AND dealer force, the support force makes a big difference...
 
they are right in the fact that most shops simply don't have a Matco guy. More have Mac guys, and most have a Snap On guy. Mac in my experience has the highest turnover rate for truck guys. One reason I don't care for purchasing Mac products. My one buddy bought about 20K worth of Mac tools when he was in school (20K at 50% discount!!) and has been without a Mac guy for over a year now!
 
in the local area, we just had 4 mac guys turnout... mac's starting inventory is not quite half of snap-ons.... they dont have enough investment to care enough...
 
i own some of all. all companys have good products, but, times call for a mix of brands due to design of the tool. use(purchas) what does the job without flying apart and tearing up what you are working on.
 
MTChevy said:
Get a snap on box... then split my tools in 3rds... a third snap on, third mac, third matco... this a good idea?
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Thats a hard one. SOme guys will have NOTHING but one brand, and some guys will have every brand in their box.

I have a mix of Snap-On, Blue Point, John Deere, and Use all Ingersoll Rand impact sockets. I have mainly Snappy and JD for wrenches, wratchets, sockets, and screwdrivers but I'm also a deal watcher. I have stubby ratchet wrenches from Pittsburg (Harbor brand) because they hardly ever get used, are as shiney as everything else, and sit in the corner of my drawr where you can't see the name anyway.

I'm a deal watcher and don't have a lot of money for tools, so I buy what I think is a good deal, which is why I have a lot of JD tools.

I don't think I would mix two "big" name brands, but maybe mix one big name with a cheaper name to help save some money on tools you don't use much. Like have a Snap-on/Stanley box (thats what I have, Stanley makes JD), or a Mac/Craftsman box. There are a lot of tools that you just won't use very often that you don't need to pay big money for, at least thats my opinion.

Another thing, go with Ingersoll Rand on your Air tools, again IMHO, but Ingersoll makes most of the Snap-On/Blue Point air tools and just put their name on the side for them.
 
I am very happy with the way I went. Few K worth of Craftsman tools and Ingersoll Air tools to start out with. Pieceing together from Mac, Matco(mostly Matco), and Snap-On since. Working great for me. ANd I still paid less than Snap-On at 50% off. You learn quick which tools fall short and just replace those with the good name stuff. Thats the way I have done it, and have been quite happy in that. Just my opinion.
 
Confedneck79K30 said:
hey man, buy snap-on, if you're gonna be wrenching full time as a professional.... 50% off snap-on is less than a dealer pays for his tools... dont ask me how i know that, but.... my personal preference is snap-on, you will walk into a shop, and ask them what tool guys come through the shop, 9 out of 10 shops will have a snap-on dealer, and maybe 4 will say mac or matco and 2 will say cornwell... you want reliability in the tools, AND dealer force, the support force makes a big difference...
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a true salesman... :rolleyes:

anybody who reads the forums regularly can tell exactly how you know that. as for the 50% thing, around here, everything is marked up 300%, so if he pays $100 for something, he sells it for $300, unless you're bargaining.

so please, do tell why overpriced tools are a great idea for a beginning tech?

personally, i started out with the bare essentials, in Craftsman (picked from my own box at home), and have since built up the work box, and brought the "borrowed" stuff home. buy a little at a time, and buy only what you know you need. we've got an unspoken policy at the shop, if you have to borrow it 3 times, you have to buy one.

as for buying a Snap On box right off the bat... owning a Snap On box myself, its great. was it worth the $4K i spent on it? probably not. one of my buddies bought a Mac box at the same time i bought mine, both roughly the same size, and even both in black. as far as quality goes, i like the feel of the Mac box a little better, but both are holding up just as well. oh, and he paid $1500 for his, on sale from $1800. :doah:
 
overpriced? hardly... 300%? hardly close...

there is a tremendous difference in tolerances and manufacturing processes... did you know it takes 7 days to make a snap-on wrench, and we are the only company that uses pure PA steel... also, we are the only company whos toolbox is entirely built and assembled in America... there is a difference, anyways, like i've said, it all comes down to personal preference. I wouldnt own anything but snap-on wrenches, sockets or ratchets or even screwdrivers... the basics are covered with concenctric broaching which allows wrenches and sockets to be the exact same thickness all the way around, for tighter tolerance wrenching, also the open end of a snap-on wrench has a continuous arch instead of a v-notch, which allows more torque to be applied to the sides and relieve spreading... screwdriver tips that are vapor blasted and pliers that are "married" which means they are made as a pair from the beginning, whereas other companies make a left and a right side and piece them together... longer life and more precision cutting edges...

so in all fairness, ask a few of your good friends who are technicians or mechanics for a living, what they prefer, ask to handle and use them on something small and see what YOU PREFER...
 
in all fairness, i think that MTChevy should know that someone posting in this thread is awfully biased, being a Snap On dealer and all... :rolleyes:
 
beater_k20 said:
in all fairness, i think that MTChevy should know that someone posting in this thread is awfully biased, being a Snap On dealer and all... :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

im sure its gonna be that way. Its kinda hard to base my descision with what he says being a snap on dealer and all, but ive liked a lot of the snap on stuff ive used, and a lot of mac or matco stuff ive touched. The main purchase i want to be sure of is a box, and it seems everyone likes a snap-on. Ive never touched a matco box before so im not sure exactly. Price is pretty important too. and snap on is expensive as hell.
 
pretty biased, im giving you my opinions from when i was a technician, i owned TWO tools that were not snap-on, because my snap-on dealer didnt have them and i needed them, one is a matco diegrinder and the other is a mac fuel line disconnect tool set (kd tools)

so take it and use it, or ignore it, but my professional technicians opinion is snap-on, but then, i figure its easier to pay ONE tool bill than 3... you may pay cash for all this, but when you get into a dealership or shop position, and you buy tools on time, it is easier to pay the one dealer than all 3...
 
If you can afford to purchase Snap-on, you will not be disappointed. If you cannot, then get whatever you can afford. It is more important to have a variety of tools than a few higher quality tools. There is no reason to spend lots of money on a tool that will spend most of it's time in your box. Another consideration- this may sound rediculous though- When you work at a shop, and the tool truck shows up, it's a lot easier to disappear once a week and drool over tools than two or three times a week, especially if you're busy or have a strict boss. I like to spend as much time as possible on the truck (within reason.)
 
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