Snap On verses Harbor Freight

big tee

Well-known Member
Saw this just now--I like it.---Tee
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In 20 years those 60K $ in Snap On tools will be worth 100K or more. Harbor Freight tools will be junk in a few years. You get what you pay for.
 
I love Snap On tools but don't count on used ones being more valuable in a few years,I've bought a lot at auctions for 20% or less than they sold for new.
Harbor Freight has its place they are good for some non critical tools especially ones that are not used much and really I don't think Snap On is the quality they
used to be.
 
DasHund IMHO top of the line tools in any trade are worth every dime you pay for them especially if you use them everyday all day long. Now if you are a weekend warrior, Harbor Frieght tools may work just fine. Snap-on tools are not cheap and they certainly are not junk.
 
My Craftsman luck ran out no more Sears stores the hardware store that handled em closed.I went to Lowes to exchange some broken Craftsman tools and they said they are not exchanging tools "we are not set up for it yet"and they did not know when it would happen..so that is the bad luck Ive had so far and I live near a big city.
 
Correction gmccool,,,Harbor freight tools will be junk the first time you try to use them,,it is a China box store..
 
I agree Craftsman is great. However I found a 12" Snap-On crescent wrench one afternoon along the highway, when I was bicycling along. WOW, what a good tool. Works great, calibrated accurately, beautiful, chrome. Can just sit at the desk and admire it.
 

I bought a Snap-On starter set when I graduated auto mechanics back in 1971. I have since acquired tools of many different brands, including some Harbor-Freight junk. The original Snap-On tools are still my "go-to" tools.
 
(quoted from post at 07:15:23 01/06/19) Never could understand their high end toolboxes you need a step ladder to get into.

It's really pretty simple. Lets say you own a dealership with hired mechanics who have to provide their own tools. The more vehicles/tractors ECT you can get in the shop at one time the higher the profit margin. That shop space cost money to build, maintain and heat. So a mechanic start outgrowing the space he has for a tool box what other options are there?

Rick
 
I can't tell--Does the one in the picture have living quarters built into it???---Tee
 

I would wager that snap-on box has well over double 60K worth of tools in it by the end of his career maybe 250K... If you make your living with them thru a career you will ware them out two times some 3 times and some 4 times it don't mater who you buy them from...

Y'all just need to be happy you can not buy a quality tool at HF are your local auto parts store it has not always been that way.. I needed a E18 1/2" drive socket Thursday night I was going to have to run down a tool truck Friday and knew I was going to pay $200 for a set of'em.... The worst part I have some and gonna double up on'em.. I went to Advance Auto on line ordered one it was in the store Friday morning $7 :)

I put a wheel bearing on a 02 Tahoe Friday the bolts that hold it in are a bear to break loose. I grabbed a 40 year old Mac Box end wrench put a pipe on it, it did not want to stay on the bolt head, I grabbed a seldom used Snap on wrench it was worst than the 40 year old Mac. I then grabbed a Gearwrench wrench it fit it like a glove and powered thru the job.

I have some Mac Snap on tools I brought 40 years ago that are now 4/5 times the price I paid for them so yes they will fetch double what I paid for them and I got to use a quality tool thru my career... A trusted tool a tool with a warranty one I could run down a tool truck and get replaced no questions asked.

When you talk about a guy that buys the best remember he is making his living with them its not a hobby... Maybe an addiction tho one that a top gun can afford... A top gun can make over 100K a year its his BMW...
 
I don't have any experience with snap on tools. All I can say is I have a lot of Harbor Freight wrenches and have never broken any of them. I don't see any reason to pay more.
 
There are some...I repeat...SOME Harbor Freight tools that are worth it. But they are few and far between. Currently, the only difference between a newly-manufactured Craftsman tool and a Harbor Freight tool is...(drum roll please)...the price. I will admit that Harbor Freight quality is improving where Craftsman quality is dropping fast.
Everyone here will agree that Snap On has a great line of tools. It's just that Snap On isn't right for everybody. If you don't make your living wrenching, I'm not going to recommend that go out an purchase them, at least not buying them new. Heck, the previous place that I worked for, the Snap On man simply stopped coming around and PO'ed every one off.
For the middleman who likes good wrenches and wants to buy some new American-made wrenches (mostly), but doesn't want to break the bank, I recommend visiting this site:

https://www.harryepstein.com/

At the very least, it's a good site to browse.
 
Most of my work was what you would call light work.I didn't need a overpriced wrench to remove a volt meter. I have noticed I don't see as many tool trucks around. As you use to.
 
I won't take sides here for I have both--BUT-does Snap On give 'FREE' tools away?---Tee
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The tools don't make the mechanic, the mechanic makes the tools...
I have broken 10 times more Snap-Off tools than HF tools. The only good thing about Snap-Off is the warranty. I know several shops of full time mechanics that won't use Snap-Off because of the price and breakage. They do fine with HF.
It's all in what we've been brain washed into thinking - that high, over priced tools are the best tools.
 
When you are working in the shop, the Snap-On tools are very good. So are Mac, Matco, Cornwell, and S-K Wayne. All are quality tools, and they cost like it.

But, when I go to the U-Pull-It, I take the Harbor Freight tools. Why? Well, if I lose a Snap-On socket or wrench, it will cost a lot to replace it. If I lose a Harbor Freight socket or wrench, I can replace the whole set for less than the Snap-On socket costs.
 
Neighbor has a earthquake impact wrench and they don;t treat their tool kindly and it seem to be holding up very well.
 
FBH ...... how does a person calibrate a "crescent wrench"? Are you referring to an adjustable wrench?

Actually, as a side comment, Crescent is actually a brand name which has invaded the tool industry over the years and is used as a term in the same way that Kleenex is used for multiple brands of the same thing.
 
I carry a lot of hf tools in my daily driver. They get used quite a bit. Have had most over a year with no complaints. If lost or misplaced by a coworker or myself I don't feel too bad about it. Not saying I don't care, but would be more upset if it was something more expensive out of my box at home which has snap on, Mac, bluepoint, sk and other "good tools.
 
I worked in road construction before I retired. I found snap-on tools on the roadsides right along with the no-name stuff.
 
25 years as professional mechanic I don't think I ever owned a Snap On tool. Had one or two Mac. Most my stuff was Craftsman way back then. Guys I worked with were always buying off the Snap On truck. I seemed to be able to do the same work they did but they always seemed to be broke while I always seemed to have money in my pocket. I admit I did pi$$ away all that extra cash on stupid things like paying off my mortgage early but each to their own. When I got out of the mechanic business I didn't feel bad that I didn't have a fortune tied up in tools that now sat for lengthy periods. I buy a lot of HF tools these days and have very little if any issues with them. Wish they were around when I was in the business.
 
OK guys lets be honest.
You bought over priced Snap On tools because the salesman came to your work place and allowed you to pay for the tools $20 a week.
Whereas to get Harbor Freight tools you had to go to the store and pay for them all at once.

When your cheapest 1/4 inch ratchet is $70 I can afford to break a few Harbor Freight ratchets.
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I’ve had nothing but good luck with harbor freight. I once bought an angle grinder and saw all there. That was around 16 years ago, both still run great and in that time I’ve broken another angle grinder and saw all, bith dewalt. The dewalts arent snap on. Yet they are 3-4 times more cost than the harbor freight.

I also have a cement mixer that still works great, had it for 4 years, auger for digging post holes, still works great and a small flux core welder from harbor freight that at 2 years still works great.

I’d say most of the expensive name brand tools are probably made in China too.
 
It's not about breakage, snap-on stuff breaks too. And sometimes more than the cheap stuff. What is different is that when you can't get a cheap one on because of room, or it slips and ruins the head, or it's hard to hold on to, that is the difference. And it's a huge difference. Snap-on and the others are expensive because they are worth it. Doesn't take long using both side by side to see that. Now when it comes to ratchets I have ones from Napa, same quality as Craftsman, bit available locally. Most of my sockets, wrenches, screwdrivers, and prybars are snap-on and I wouldn't trade those for the cheap ones. I have lots of the cheapies arwound to take to the field and such.
 
One thing that gets missed in these HF vs Snap On discussions is the VAST improvements HF has made to their tools over the past 10 years.

Back in the day, there literally was no comparison. HF tools were cheap, they looked cheap, they functioned somewhere between badly and OK "for the price". They were basically one job wonders or at least that was the general expectation.

Well HF has upped their game each and every year. Look at say the Earthquake series of impact wrenches today vs what HF offered 10 years ago. This tool has in each and every way caught up to the high priced brands in terms of build quality, durability, and function. There is no way you could have had an impact wrench 10 years ago that was as good as the Earthquake series for the price HF is now selling them at, but now you can.

Same thing with HF's tool storage cabinets. Sorry, but objectively speaking HF has not just caught, but clearly blown right by Snap On in terms of function, quality, and value. I realize that most of the appeal of a huge wall of Snap On cabinets is shouting "I'm a pro now!", but they cannot be justified any other way.

HF has done that improvement from poor to very good across many, many tools. The wrench set I bought last year from HF is night and day different from the 20-year-old set of HF wrenches hanging in the shed. The dimensions of the new wrenches are precise, the plating is flawless, and I have already used them more without bending one than I have the old rough set from 20 years ago where i bent one with the first use.

Sure there's a difference right now between HF and Snap On. That difference gets smaller and smaller every year.

If this continues, I'm going to predict that HF starts a tool truck service in 5-7 years. Paying Snap On prices at some point will simply not be justified even by the truck service angle.

Grouse
 
(quoted from post at 08:09:38 01/06/19) I don't have any experience with snap on tools. All I can say is I have a lot of Harbor Freight wrenches and have never broken any of them. I don't see any reason to pay more.

I've never broken any of my Harbor-Freight tools either. The fit and finish is so poor that I seldom use them.
 
Needed a couple of large sae wrenches bought a set of 1? to 2? for less than a nice Dinner out don?t use them a whole lot they have served there purpose well. Had to cut one off to get into a tight spot no guilt. I do have a roll away full of mostly older craftsman they have been good tools but when hip deep in mud, manure and a down pour they seem to get lost just as easy. Snap are definitely nice tools your a pro way to go. But for my money I think I will stick with something that I can lose that I don?t have to have a credit check to buy.
 
I have a large assortment of very good quality tools Snap On,Craftsman,JD,Williams,Greenfield,Rigid etc that I have bought paying Harbor Freight prices or less by buying at
auctions,yard sales,CL ads over the years.Best of both worlds.Plus I have had enough 'cheapies' thrown in to stock most of my tractor tool boxes for emergencies repairs where any tool is better than no tool.
 

When I first began earning a living as a mechanic, back in the '70s, Snap-On and Mac were about the only choices we had. Both brands were equal in quality and priced about the same. J.C. Whitney sold Indestro-Select tools. Also very good and priced about the same. I have used and abused all of those brands and never had a single failure. We didn't even know about Harbor-Freight back then, but in the '80s I started getting HF catalogs in the mail. I liked the prices, so I bought a few. Turned out to be total junk. Most of them got tossed into the trash. My opinion of HF has not changed. I will not darken their doors. If I brought anything to a shop in town and saw the mechanic was using HF tools, I would go elsewhere quickly.
 
That is funny ! My last few missions to H-F were failures due to poorer quality than I wanted to spend on .Came out empty handed.
 
I have my share of Snap On tools.
Even got one of those nice stickers for my box that says I make my living with snap on tools.

40 years ago I would agree that snap on was worth the extra cost for the quality.
They were also worth the cost for the customer service from the salesman.

Today not so much.

Little know fact about snap on.
Those tools I have do not have a warranty any longer.
While a truck salesman will warranty the tools because he knows you and wants to sell you some more tools; IE good customer service; the snap on factory will only warranty the tool with orginal proof of purchase.
 
I just found a snap-on 38 drive rachet the other day on the street. The only snap-on i have are the ones i have found.
 
I was a snap on dealer in the early 80s and I have to admit it was hard to swallow the prices . good tools but come on , that guys boxes probably 30k empty
 
"Little know fact about snap on.
Those tools I have do not have a warranty any longer.
While a truck salesman will warranty the tools because he knows you and wants to sell you some more tools; IE good customer service; the snap on factory will only warranty the tool with orginal proof of purchase."


So what you are saying is......Horror Freight has a better warranty than Snap on? LOL!
 
Snap-on ratchets use a fine gear drive. They are nice and smooth, but will easily strip if you use a strong arm. Williams end wrenches (especially in the larger size) are second to none. Proto makes good tools & the old Craftmans have stood the test of time. I have a couple of long handle Williams ratchets that I have used a cheater on w/o any problem. I have NO experience with HF.
 
"Same thing with HF's tool storage cabinets. Sorry, but objectively speaking HF has not just caught, but clearly blown right by Snap On in terms of function, quality, and value. I realize that most of the appeal of a huge wall of Snap On cabinets is shouting "I'm a pro now!", but they cannot be justified any other way. "

I do not own a Harbor Freight tool box, but they ARE a very good quality box. This is one area where I wouldn't throw money at Snap On.


"If this continues, I'm going to predict that HF starts a tool truck service in 5-7 years."

Meh, this is one area where I disagree with you. Running those trucks is a money pit. But, stranger things have happened.
 
Changing the subject a little bit, guys, but....do a little research and see who the owner of Horror Freight throws his money to. It may (or may not) surprise you.
 
Well myself i really can't afford a cheap tool when i am out on a service call trying to get a guy back up and running and have a tool failure i need tools that will deliver . Now at home dabbling with my termite food production and not being of Norm ABREMS (sp) of wood working i do have some across the pond tools and some harbor freight are they good ah well ah not really , some my harbor freight chair clamps are JUNK as they will not really grip the pipe and slip , there drill bit work ok in pine but don't try and drill metal for drill bits that last i use Ohio Drill C clamps are ok as long as you don't stress them to much , there cross slide vice works ok for making the hats for the snowmen i make , the hole center punches are great for even hard wood but junk when usen them to mark steel as the tip will break off on the first hit of the hammer in mild steel. There dial indicator is ok for dialing in the table saw trunion to miter slot or setting the planer head for level , might be ok for setting back lash on a ring and pinion or checking crank end play and run out , there ten ton porta power worked ok when we had to straighten out my friend round baler when he plugged it up and bent the whole bale chamber and ever bar on the chain . There air die grinders hold up well as i needed one one time and left my good one at the shop seventy miles away and for like 20 bucks i got every thing i needed and figure iif it made it thru this one job it paid for it's self that was fifteen years ago and still going . There 9 and 15 dollar spray guns work for me but i am not apinter never have been and never will be but i was able to use them to spray all the urethane on all the wood trim in the remodel of this old house , . And that alone was well worth it when doing all that 8 inch base board 1/4 round cap molding and other trim . layed down a nice smooth finish .
 
Buddy owns a lot of HF stuff. He bought an Earth quake 1/2 impact a year ago fall. Great reviews and all. He might used it twice a month. He brought it over about two weeks ago. It had quit working. He had took it back to HF. No warranty just 90 days unless you buy a longer one. I took it apart and the hammer had broke in two pieces. You could see it was a porous casting. Clearly a manufacture defect. Call HF no parts available.

By the time you added in that warranty you can buy a pretty good quality Impact of other brands. Not Snap On/Mac but Ingersoll/CP and some others. We looked on Ebay and found the same model of Ingersoll that I have had for over 30 years. Cost $100, NOS. Looked online and found rebuild kits with hammers in them for the Ingersoll, cost $35 delivered.

So I say watch HF on what you buy. Yes I have some HF stuff. Usually the one time stuff but I have not had good luck with ratchets, grinders, and that type of stuff. Sockets seem good for road box. Pry bars OK. Even floor jacks seem OK.

I laugh at the HF ads comparing there stuff to Snap on. Yes Snap On is too expensive for most of there stuff but HF is not near that level of quality. I would say more Like Craftsman would be more like it.
 
(quoted from post at 19:07:54 01/06/19) Changing the subject a little bit, guys, but....do a little research and see who the owner of Horror Freight throws his money to. It may (or may not) surprise you.
Any discussion of Eric Smidt's spending habits would need to include the millions of dollars he's put into vocational education.
 
I looked it up on Wikipedia and found nothing bad-A family named Snidt own it and give a lot of $$$ to charity. Maybe I missed something? Help us out---Tee
 
I spelled it wrong down a little farther-Hey a guy named Smidt can't be all bad-even though they spelled it wrong! That's my beer---Tee
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(quoted from post at 22:38:24 01/06/19)




When your cheapest 1/4 inch ratchet is $70 I can afford to break a few Harbor Freight ratchets.

A snap-on ratchet will ware out a dozen HF/Taiwan/craftsman ratchets... Those cheap ratchets will not hold up in a production environment... I spec I can put my hands on at least a dozen I have tried in the long run they were a waist of money...

I like my old SK ratchets in the long run snap-on beats them... You have not lived till you use a good snap-on ratchet you will never go back to cheap ones... I wish I could say that about junk snap-on air tools they are garbage...
 
I have no experience with HF tools:

Here's some pictures to show the cost of Fasteners approved for AERO Applications...and why the proper / best tool is used:

These Fasteners can be subjected to operating conditions of 1000F > 1500F> and at times under full power of 15,000>18,000 hp higher temperatures develop.

Typically the exotic alloys used in these Bolts / Nuts can account for a SPLINE NUT,28 TPI costing... Minimum ...$25.00 > + per nut:

With proper training and a SNAP-ON SPLINE wrench,I've removed and Installed the same set of Gas Generator to Power Turbine fasteners many many times:

Same is said for the internal fasteners (areas of intense heat)on these four classes of gas Generators:

Rolls Royce Gas Generator... Model..."SPEY"
General Electric ....Model LM1600
General Electric.....Model LM1500
General Electric.....Model LM2500

Bob Retied Power Engineer....

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I work for a gas pipeline company. Where I used to work we had Pratt Whitney Gg3C-4Ss driving a Cooper Bessemer RT-48 power turbine driving a Cooperative Bessemer RFB-36 compressor. Your photos bring back memories. We also had locations that used the PW GG3 driving Ingersoll Rand equipment. Where I?m at now we have two Solar Titan 130s driving Solar C652 compressors. Pretty neat stuff! Tool wise personally I have a mixture, at work we use Proto by and large, good industrial quality at an affordable price. Not that I don?t like Snap-On. I enjoyed your photos!
 
I have a Snap-on 3/8 drive ratchet and a screwdriver both found on the road I can't say as they are any better than my other tools, most of my work tools are Proto and Indestro bought in the 70's. I also bought quite a few Craftsman tools for home projects. Now that I am retired they are all home. My neighbor was a Snap on dealer recently retired, he would toss the Air tools that he took in trade in the steel pile. I grabbed several impact wrenches one being an almost new 1/2" drive Huskey ( Home Depot) which I like better than my Blue Point. I figured a young fellow starting out was probably shamed into trading it in on a Snap on.
 


Free garbage is still garbage. I haven't been in a Harbor Freight in 10 years or so. Can't remember last time I bought something from them.

Rick
 
Good day JustIn Case:

I've spent many hours both operating and maintenance on the Copper RT 45..little sister to the RT 48,and only read about the Pratt Whitney Gg3C-4Ss.

Good to see there are Technicians on "YT" with a back ground in Gas Generators/ Natural Gas Transmission:


Bob......................:)
 
I always kept a hand box full of HF tools on the back of my roll backs and a bow full in the side compartment of my Land Dall trailer also a cheep box of 3/4's. What I likes about them is they wouldn't break if you put a pipe on them. They are so cheep they only bend and not brake. Also I never had a box stolen off the back of the roll backs in 30 years of being a jockey and parked at auctions all over like Archibald O. Vaughn at Stilesville In. and Freddie Goodrich's at Newark Vally N Y.
 
Actually yes. I've heard of several people who have Harbor Freight hand tools and they supposedly have a lifetime no questions asked warranty. I have none personally but I do have a Snap On ratchet in my shed right now that's broken. Been that way for a few years. I can't seem to track down a truck to get it fixed. Don't know any routes now.
 
The guy does terrible things. He supports a children?s hospital, funded a technology high school in LA, where he is from, then he has supported skilled trade programs all over the country. And even more disgusting, he hasn?t gone bankrupt! To add to it, he has contributed to charities all over the country.

If he is a bad guy we need a lot more like hiim. Btw, you?re a idiot.
 
First couple days On my job through college I was talking to the boss and told him I had 900$ in crapsman tools he said I didn?t know craftsman had 900$ worth of tools
 
Gambles if you haven't actually been in the store you should go! Its like walking into a time machine back to the 50's you name it....its in there
 
The point was that even if you did track down a route driver he is under no obligation to exchange or fix your ratchet if you did not buy it from him and can prove it with proof of purchase.

The warranty does not extend to anyone that did not personally buy the tool including your kids.
 
Well your beer and harbor freight tools have one thing in common...no one will try to bum either from you!
 
NEAT--Don't know what the heck I am looking at besides a jet engine and expensive stuff!---Tee
 
That Hurts--My Son told me take every other letter out of the name and you have it-SHI?---Tee
 
I found the same thing about harbor freight no parts support st all they do not have anything available it?s kinda like buying a disposable tractor . I use quite a bit of harbor freight stuff but anything that isn?t lifetime warranty or really really cheap I don?t buy no matter how careful you are tools will still break
 
However I found a 12" Snap-On crescent wrench one afternoon along the highway, when I was bicycling along.

Back around 1956 or 57 when I was bicycling along a dirt road I found a 10" Crescent "Crescent" wrench.
At 15 or 16 I had never had a real good tool before that.....
It is in my toolbox yet today and I use it regularly.
 
My response to you got poofed because I said a political party. Funny . Guy is a real jerk giving money to charity like that !
 
Only thing I found worth the extra money from Snap On were the clicker type torque wrenches. They would out last any of the cheep ones we bought from our tire equipment suppliers.
 
Where I work now I have a tool box. Inside is a motley collection of garage sale leftovers filled in with new HF stuff. The Hazard Fraught stuff of the last few years is quite decent and I haven't had any problems with it in normal use and they frequently have to endure abnormal use. This is in-plant industrial work; up the air, under things, heavy things, dirty things. Install, demo, weld, cut, modify, rebuild, machine, etc.

One thing about the HF tools is that I can leave them scattered out and go to break or lunch or go home and when I come back they're still all there. I can loan them out and they come back. Need to customize one? No sweat!

I use dial calipers a lot and that one is HF too. Good thing as one pair got destroyed a couple of months ago. Would've been a shame if it was a $200 Starrett. At home I have Starrett this and that but too risky up there.

The hand tool quality is on par with current Craftsman, probably come out of the same facility too.

If I had to do automotive type repair work where I used the hand tools all day long constantly then it might be a different story.
 
I have a lot of back in the day USA. made Craftsman tools, If one should fail, I can't bear it being replaced with a new China made Craftsman tool. So to me if I wanted Chinese tools I would have went to Harbor Freight to begin with & probably paid less for them. I do have a couple of Snap on but the are specialty tools, I guess the reason I have Craftsman they were a good tool & affordable. Does Any body make a affordable USA tools Dave F.
 
I have some of everything except Harbor freight tools. Mostly pawn shop stuff. Proto,mac snap-on,s-k and some others. Screw drivers might as well be HF as screw drivers don't last long before they get twisted or striped if Philips.
 

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