My First Snap-On (1 Viewer)

[CDN_Cruiser]

Well, I finally did it, I was wondering around in a local mall (left the cruiser behind so as not to reinforce the mall cruiser myth) and went into a Snap-on store (interesting concept). I left with a very nice ratcheting screw driver (standard size with two extensions and five bits) that was on sale (~US$55) - overall a lovely piece of equipment.

It has a wonderful action, very fine, a nice large handle with a perfect fit for my hand and feels very well made (eg the extensions seem to weight as much as my usual screw drivers). I could see investing in some other tools over time, but not until I get a garage where I can do more of my own work

I also have a question - there is a Sears in this mall and in the discount bin I managed to buy a 3/4" breaker bar (~30") for ~US$25. Given that it was so cheap, I though I would leave it in the truck for (1) removing lug nuts (2) to have for using with the 54mm hub socket for 80s (and for added security this thing weighs a TON). As I pondered this last night, I wondered if I should keep it, or just buy a 1/2" breaker bar - thoughts?

 

[Gumby]

You could keep it for use with 3/4 drive sockets like hub sockets and buy an adapter to 1/2 to use it as a 1/2 drive breaker bar.
Did you happen to look at the price of that breaker bar at the Snap on store?
Nice tools, but I have much more important things to spend the difference in money on.

 

[CDN_Cruiser]

I was thinking about keeping it, but after a quick look at the Sears site, I couldn't seem to find a 3/4" to 1/2" adaptor ???. I also couldn't seem to find a 3/4" drive 21mm socket for lug nuts.

I agree, Snap-on stuff is crazy expensive, I can just imagine what a long 3/4" bar would go for - more than my mortgage I figured it was a reasonable price on sale, something that I use a lot and I can test and see if the added $ are worth it.

Cheers, Hugh

 

[Riley]

Related but still a thread hijack. My father died about 5 years ago. His second wife kept most of the estate but I did manage to get some of his old snap-on sockets and ratchet from her.

The rachet is about 50 years old or more and the handle is sooo nicely worn. Has a great feel to it. It's a great tool to have in the workshop to remind me of him (he loved snap-on tools but couldn't really afford any except the socket set). 8)

Only problem is that the pawl is a little screwed up and it's not working very well but still nice to have.

I also have a set of his "double action pliers" in which the jaws always maintain a parallel face to each other.

If anyone knows how to fix the pawl in a 50 year old ratchet, let me know.

Returning to your regularly scheduled program thread.

Riley

 

[Gumby]

Take it to the Snap on man. They often replace parts rather than just giving you a new one, although yours is probably too old. That used to piss me off to no end. If I've got a two year old screwdriver with a beat up handle and it breaks the tip, the Snap on guy gives me greif about it before he puts a new blade in the old handle. Look, if you charge me 10 times what the tool is worth I expect you to give me a new one when the old one wears out. Craftsman doesn't even care if the old one is worn out. If you give them a tool, they will give you a new one. No questions asked.
Seriously, if you need a new part, they are the only real option.

 

[Beowulf]

Riley,
I had a very old Snap-On long handle 3/8" drive ratchet that wasn't working very well. I found a truck stopped at a dealer and asked the guy to take a look at it. He cheerfully replaced the internal mechanism and told me he would replace the complete tool if I wanted because the chrome was flaking and it was an OSHA hazard. I had no emotional attachment to the tool but he didn't have the same one in stock and told me any Snap-On dealer would gladly replace it. Not true!

While this guy was very nice, I had 5 or 6 others give me a total run-around for months and months. Took my number, said they would order one, never called. Stopped another guy about 5 times and he finally told me he was too busy and didn't want to fool with it. "Take it to someone else and quit bothering me!" He was a total A$$hole. I tried several others and got nowhere. Finally gave it to my neighbor who is a mechanic at the Porsche dealer. He got it replaced in a few days and the guy got the Snap-On guy to give me (as in free) a rubber hood for my Snap-On impact wrench. It's who ya know I guess.

As Gumby said, Sears/Craftsman will replace tools with no questions. Always. And they're open at night and on Sunday and you don't have to chase down a truck and beg someone to call you.

-B-

 

[Rich]

[quote author=CDN_Cruiser link=board=14;threadid=6782;start=msg55676#msg55676 date=1067270683]

I also have a question - there is a Sears in this mall and in the discount bin I managed to buy a 3/4" breaker bar (~30") for ~US$25. Given that it was so cheap, I though I would leave it in the truck for (1) removing lug nuts (2) to have for using with the 54mm hub socket for 80s (and for added security this thing weighs a TON). As I pondered this last night, I wondered if I should keep it, or just buy a 1/2" breaker bar - thoughts?
[/quote]

A long 1/2" breaker bar is plenty big enough to remove lug nuts. It is also small enough that it can be enclosed by the toyota tool bag straps and then secured by the toyota rubber bungee along side the jack. I try to save weight where possible and there are lot of other tools, pound for pound, more useful to carry than a 3/4" breaker bar. Leave it in the garage on the off chance you find a deal on a set of 3/4" drive sockets.

 

[CDN_Cruiser]

[quote author=Beowulf link=board=14;threadid=6782;start=msg55975#msg55975 date=1067319832]
... I had 5 or 6 others give me a total run-around for months and months. Took my number, said they would order one, never called. Stopped another guy about 5 times and he finally told me he was too busy and didn't want to fool with it. "Take it to someone else and quit bothering me!" He was a total A$$hole. I tried several others and got nowhere. Finally gave it to my neighbor who is a mechanic at the Porsche dealer. He got it replaced in a few days and the guy got the Snap-On guy to give me (as in free) a rubber hood for my Snap-On impact wrench. It's who ya know I guess.

As Gumby said, Sears/Craftsman will replace tools with no questions[/quote]

I guess that's what has always worried me about Snap-on - it can be hard to get service. Their business model is really focused on professional garages (understandable, I guess it takes a lot of screw driver purchases to cover the value to the owner of a new mechanics tool set, rolling cabinet, etc) and they have very little interest in 'retail'. Now that they have Internet ordering, it will be interesting to see how they handle returns.

The challenge I have with Sears is that they don't really carry a lot of tools in Canada and I've heard that the quality of the tools has deteriorated (changed manufacturer?) - true?

Cheers, Hugh

 

[Landpimp]

I have that ratcheting screwdriver, it came free(lol) when I bought the set of Snap On screw drivers. Luckly I have a local Snap On guy, he even stops by my house or office(real estate)

Snap On makes nice stuff but I look for deals, they always have something on sale or special and more often then not they have tools that are repoed or that a mech has upgraded.

Just picked up a Raytek non contact thermo, its was less from the Snap On guy than anyplace else. And if your paying cash......work him for a deal.....I always do

I have replaced most my Craftsman sockets, rachets and wrenchs with Snap On in the last few years, the Craftsman stuff has moved to my car tool kits.

A real nice set off wrenchs that I use prolly more than any others are the Gear Wrenchs, that have the flez head.......damn those are handy. I got the set for under $100(retail is $180)

John H

 

[CDN_Cruiser]

John:

Man, does the snap-on guy have to do the repos as well - that can't be fun I've thought that I could look in pawn shops as well. It sounds like you have a good guy to deal with - as with many things, your experience depends entirely on the person providing the service. Now I'll have to see if I can find a Snap-on guy that will drive by my house Fortunately, I have an understanding wife. I told her about the screw driver and she did a bit of the - I quickly countered by running around the house tightening things with my twins following proclaiming that this was the best tool ever

So, how do you find the comparison of the sears stuff vs. SO - what do you notice the most? I have a set of (fixed head) gear wrenches from Sears that I also love - the 5* arc is a great feature and the flex head sounds great as well for all that hard to reach stuff.

Cheers, Hugh

 

[Man Jerk]

I've recently taken a job at sears to offset the cost of my wifes graduate degree. Fortunately for me they had an opening in the tool dept.

Craftsman stuff is nice, but not when compared to snap on. On the other hand, there is a no questions asked policy. If it's broken, you get a new one. When it comes to ratchets and tape measures our policy is to supply a rebuilt one in lieu of a new one if we have any rebuids in stock. Use a 3' breaker bar ona 3/8" drive ratchet and break it, bring it in a get a working one.

The gear wrenches are awesome. Keep a good look out for the weekly fliers. A few weeks ago they had a set of 8 ratchet wrenches for like $60. And if no one knows about the craftsman club, sign up at sears.com . certain days of each month they have a 10% across the board discount for club members.

 

[Gumby]

[quote author=CDN_Cruiser link=board=14;threadid=6782;start=msg56102#msg56102 date=1067363052]

Man, does the snap-on guy have to do the repos as well [/quote]

They sure do. They will give you instant credit and encourage you to buy big ticket stuff like $5000+ tool chests. Then they come by every week for a check. Many wrenches are paid by the flat rate hour. You might buy a lot this time of year when the cars are rolling in and be starving in Feburary. Snap on doesn't care. They will come and take your junk.

 

[Poser]

[quote author=Gumby link=board=14;threadid=6782;start=msg56272#msg56272 date=1067384724]
They sure do. They will give you instant credit and encourage you to buy big ticket stuff like $5000+ tool chests. Then they come by every week for a check. Many wrenches are paid by the flat rate hour. You might buy a lot this time of year when the cars are rolling in and be starving in Feburary. Snap on doesn't care. They will come and take your junk.
[/quote]

Been on the wrong end of this Gumby?

 

[Poser]

Stopped using my fathers tools and started purchasing tools in '82(was 12). Sears. Still have some, some were stolen when the shop was broken into in '93. Decided to make a living pulling a wrench in 1988, (aircraft mech)quiclkly learned the value of quality tools. Left that industry, and went head first into Diesel and heavy equipment in '92. Have dealt with at least seven different Snap On dealers on a weekly basis over the years, and many while out state on the road fixing things or wheeling. Not once have I had anything not warrantied by them, ones I do buisness with, and ones I do not. I have invested alot of money in my tools, as I still use them daily, they make me money, and will continue to do so, for a long time.

Some of the dealers do have attitudes, some don't. Some Cruiser people are dinks, some arn't. This is something that you will find the same no matter where you go, or what you apply it to. I have stopped by Snap On dealers homes, ones I do not know, and had things taken care of, or purchased things from them on Sunday, at 10pm. Just lucky I guess...

-Steve

 

[woody]

I have a hand ful of snap-on tools. it is a hassle to chase down the truck to get things repaired/replaced.

IMO, sears sockets are fine but their ratchets are useless garbage. I'll keep my SnapOn stuff for that, thank you.

 

[Gumby]

[quote author=Poser link=board=14;threadid=6782;start=msg56285#msg56285 date=1067386569]
Been on the wrong end of this Gumby?
[/quote]

I haven't had tools repossed, but I have certainly been deep in debt to the tool guys. The culture of tool-snobbery in some shops promotes the over-buying of too expensive tools. There is a place for high quality tools. There's no doubt about it. I have a set of Snap on line wrenches that are way better than anything I've ever seen. They have saved me lots of money and aggravation. have they paid for themselves? They were about $350. That's a lot of working for no pay to cover the cost of the tool. I have a snap-on swivel-head long handle ratchet that works head and shoulders above my Craftsman ratchets. (Which have declined in quality) The damn pin falls out of the swivel about 6 months after I get it fixed. After 10 years of getting it fixed, it has sat in two peices in my tool box for the last 5. Too much of a pain to get it repaired anymore and they won't just replace it.
My Snap on scan tool gets used every day. It works great. It's been made obsolete by the new one that cost $7000 without all the extras. I lost my #2 key for the OBD-II adapter. 3 months after telling my rep I needed a new one, I tracked down a truck in a parking lot and bought another key. If I was trying to pay for that MT2500 and it was unusable for 3 months, i'd be ready to kill somebody.

Yeah, Snap-on has pissed me off with their over-pricing and poor customer service. It really pisses me off when one of my students goes into a dealer and gets deep in debt because other wrenches tells him other tools are junk and he needs to drop $10,000 on Snap-on stuff. It takes years to work out from under that debt. It's far better, IMO, to get tools that work and find out which tools need to be the best and start collecting those as you need them.

Anybody particular in mind with the "dinks" coment, poser?

 

[CDN_Cruiser]

The plot thickens. I agree that it really has to suck to be some young guy starting out and end up in huge debt with a lovely rolling case full of tools

How do returns impact the dealers - this has to be part of the story. If they can take anything and get full credit from corporate, what's the big deal? Teir unwillingness to handle this stuff suggests that there is a big hassle for them to get credit as well? If something breaks that I bough from their Internet site, I'll send it in and expect full replacement

Cheers, Hugh

 

[Poser]

Todd/Gumby

You bring up a very valid point in that there are mechanics out there that do say things to people right out of school or whatever, that can lead to them getting in over thier heads on the truck. I think that "box poor" was a statement that I heard many years ago, that reflected many people getting large boxes, having a huge payment, and not being able to put anything in the box.


I can not refute anything that you say about dealers providing poor customer service, as I have not witnessed this first hand, in your situation, and have heard the same thing from others concerning ALL tool dealers, not just Snappy. Again, some are good, and some are bad.

Your opinion on how to aquire tools is a good idea to share with people, and for their sake, I hope that they listen.



And on your "dinks" question:

I do not hide behind insinuations. If I had a problem with you, or anyone, they would know about it. The world IS black and white. There are good people and bad people everywhere, in everything, ESPECIALLY hobbiests, who take their hobby and selves WAY TOO SERIOUS.


CDN_Cruiser:

From what I have been told by Snap-On dealers, they wait to get reimbursed for what they warranty(sometimes a few months), and they have to PAY FOR EVERYTHING on the wagon. So, if I give you, a Joe off the street, that is not a customer of mine, a punch, socket or ratchet kit, I now do not have this to sell, or provide my customer base with the service that they pay for, and this does not generate any income for them, which is not good for keeping fuel in the tank, momma and the 2.5 kids happy at home, Snap-on paid to keep the tools flowing to the truck, and reflects negativly to the average Joe. So, how do you win?

-Steve

 

[Beowulf]

Steve,

>> So, if I give you, a Joe off the street, that is not a customer of mine, ... <<

There's the basic problem. The tool truck dealer's mentality that a "Joe off the street" is *not* a customer. With that attitude, Joe will certainly not be a happy customer because the Snappy dealer treated him like crap and made it clear that he didn't want Joe's business.

Would you have loyalty to any brand (i.e. restaurant, tyres, repair parts) if their store-front employees treated you as sub-class because you weren't a frequent flyer? Most of us won't.

Snap-On's business model isn't the CUSTOMER's problem... it is the company's problem. They have to deal with it and the dealers should be giving service with a smile to EVERYONE that wants to buy a single socket, and then take it up with Snap-On if they aren't getting reimbursed as fast as they need to be. I'm not saying they should FedEx a socket to me or deliver it to my house or anything that adds significant cost. But placing an order and calling a customer when it comes in, even if it's a tool replacement, is just common courtesy that should be extended to all customers, high volume, or low volume.

Case in point. C-Dan and his staff treats me as good, if not better, as their high volume auto repair shops. They don't deliver parts to me and I'm sure shops get a jobber price but they take my order and call me when it comes it. My last order was for a $2 green "condom."

Same service level for me, same service level for their big customers. As it should be.

-B-

 

[bad_religion_au]

the heading to this reads like "my first hard-on"