Hey Red Beard I just wanted to say you are 100% right on #2. I in fact was one of these guys. I had no credit and the truck financed me. Well long story short is i was involved in a car accident and missed a $75.00 weekly payment due to being hospitalized and the snap on truck repossessed my tools. It ended up costing me my job and i still had to pay for tools I didn't have anymore. Now understand how I felt after spending some time in a hospital and finally being able to return to work and when i get to work my tools are not there. No warnings no sorry all I basically got was it sucks to be you. I will never buy another snap on or as i call them now strap on tool tool again. Yup the old strap on company gave it to me really hard and couldn't even apply a little lube.
So you're saying you literally don't hold a couple months rent in your bank, and a couple months worth of car and tool payments in your bank? You're paycheck to paycheck and it's your fault.
They repossessed your tools after 1 missed payment? You had never kissed one before? You contacted your dealer and told him you were in the hospital? As someone who’s bought from them for decades with truck credit and company credit, this story isn’t adding up to me.
@@sasquatchrosefarts I can’t be convinced he got repossessed after 1 missed payment. We had a guy miss nearly a year of work with a medical situation and or dealer held him down and even raised money for him. He’s back and still has an account today. I’m not saying they’re cheap or the tools for everyone to buy. But I’ve never experienced anything but honesty and good business from my truck…
@@Carelocksome tool truck guys are just assholes, there's been multiple shops I've been too where some of the tool truck guys have been told don't come back.
I'm a life long Snap-On tool snob/customer. My dad took me (as a kid) to the local Snap-On dealers house in the early 60's & I still remember seeing that old red/white van (like in your video) with all those chrome tools laid out on red felt which left me with a life long impression. I'm now in my 60's & I've been buying Snap-On tools since the 70's up until just last week. A short time back I had given a bunch of tools to the local dealer with disintegrated black screw driver handles for warranty & he lost them. When I confronted him with it he literally laughed at me and told "those tools aren't worth anything!!!"... to which I answered, "they were worth something when I bought them!!!" I took the situation to Snap-On Corporate and explained to them that I was a life long customer, had worked on Snap-On sponsored race teams & that there were many other tool brand choices in the world today... not to mention your dealer was down right rude! To their credit... Snap-On Corporate asked me to put a value on my loss and they sent me a gift card in that amount. Good on Snap-On Corporate... not so much for the Snap-On dealer. :-(
You laid it out there , we are lifetime snap-on tools owners we don't cry about the price we just get what we need our portfolio of purchase shows the man we don't play, by the way. I didn't have children or wife's starting my career. It damn sure paid off after 40yrs.
@josephrochefort9989 I see people’s channels on here and it’s wild how they brag about all the snap on tools they have lol. And they get very, very triggered if someone says they went to a place like harbor freight or Home Depot and got a tool that was like $400 cheaper
13 years as an auto mechanic and I can’t dispute anything in your video. The biggest suckers for the strap on truck were the new oil changers who thought they could buy respect with their tool purchase- 90% of them never did anymore than change oil then quit to do something else after buying thousands of dollars of snappy that they could have bought for hundreds at harbor freight.
I was a tire and lube tech and bought $10k my first week. I quit after a year and work in a factory now 😂 but I’m glad I got them when I did I collect tools as a hobby now
If you don't own a shop, the tool truck guys treat you like dirt. Once I tried to replace a ratchet at a buddies shop. The tool truck guy blew me off. Tells me he doesn't have a replacement. My buddy comes out, and asks for the ratchet. He smears some oil on it from his hands, and takes it to the truck. Walks away with a new one, and hands it to me. Never again. After watching this, I understand why. This company disgusts me.
That's just a terrible TERRIBLE sales /truck guy. I have never had that happen. I even text my snap on guy pictures of tools to see if he has them. Always replies
@@RoboDriller A guy once told me that the older drivers had different contracts. They weren't required to take returns from anyone that they didn't sell an item to. Not sure if that's true though. Random source.
Must have a bad dealer. I walked off the street into trucks an they were nice as anything. I always bought something small from them like $10-15 weird tool I was looking for. Best is to call up snap on when you have a problem Easier.
I have a customer I make keys for regularly. His dealer died. The new dealer won’t warranty his equipment and told to call corporate. Corporate told him to go to the new dealer. They won’t warranty his equipment and he has the largest amount of snap on tools I’ve Ever seen. He’s a retired mechanic and has spent easily over 100k on tools. Snap won’t help. He no longer has receipts as it was years ago. Such crap
But they're legacy tools that can you can pass down to your kids. Cuz that's what your kids want! They don't want money in the bank collecting interests. They want your old used and sometimes broken snapon tools.
Same exact thing here. New dealer not interested in warranty, corporate not interested at all. I asked for the name of another dealer within 25 miles of me, corporate said can't do that. I'm replacing my broken Snap On junk with SK now.
@@johnz8210 go to a garage outside of that dealers area or talk to a mechanic that deals with that dealer if you have a lot of broken stuff offer to get him a case of beer for his time to do it for you Better that then the alternative to rebuy everything again
I've got Snap On tools that I've been waiting since 1981 to get replaced. When I went from working at a dealership to being a mechanic for a steel company's fleet of trucks I couldn't get a Snap On Jerk off to come and replace any of my tools. Calls to corporate were just a waste of time, they just gave me lip service. After a year or so I just gave up. After that I had an independent tool truck guy who would stop around who was pretty good. He sold all kinds of brands and even lots of used tools. He was good and way way cheaper. But then he disappeared after a few years. I was visiting a friend who lived in a trailer park and guess who I saw next door, I went over and talked to him and the poor guy was blind. He told me that is why he stopped coming around with his truck. Such a shame
I work harbor we sometimes ask how did it break but it's to understand our tools. I'm honest sales and if I can't buy the tool I I do bunch of reviews or have my customers let me know how it was so I can tell others this one broke cuz a Customer used a 4ft cheater bar on my Pittsburgh breaker bar I say grab new one and have great day. We have real warranty our tools I used in shops and broke harbor tools but also broke snap on just as much and snap on refused a warranty cuz they had said it was missed used at harbor we don't say that cuz we stand by the tools.
John Handcock every time I’ve warrantied from snap on they sent me out the tool with no questions asked. Didn’t even have to send back the old one. Snap on tool quality is one of the best. MAC is good too. Makes all the difference between lower quality tools. But you have to get them on sale for a deal
I doubt that he will ever do it. The HF fan boys will throw fit. HF fan boys are the glock fan boys. Nothing is better than. Except that red is not a glock fan so he ha that going for him.
@@valleydotphysicals7286 were not worried about that, What stacey is saying is to do it yourself privately! The one downfall is that the warranty wouldnt work, but still this would be a great money maker if we had a box truck rolling around loaded with hft stuff. Theres no law preventing us from buying them and reselling for profit.
@@SDMFTommySick I dont think harbor freight will warranty 25 ratchets at a time especially when its transferred ownership. Once in awhile youll go in there personallyand they wont question a thing but if its a bulk thing I dont think they would be as kind.
Alexander Flieger the guy that works in the bay next to mine always jokes and we refer to Harbor Freight as “the Snap On store” 😂 just like with any tool company Harbor Freight has some good stuff that will always hold up and get the job done and then there are some tools that I wouldn’t necessarily recommend but they’re not what some people make them out to be.
I'm proud to be a 19-year-old technician technician who goes on the snap-on truck and gets told by the snap-on guy to get the hell off my truck before I change my mind
@TheHiddenArchives system tracking and focus sales. Tells them what areas have more returns, less returns, what tools get returned and so on. They use your number as a way to track trends, not specific sales. Remember you don't have to give it to them, you can say "sorry" you can also give a fake number, they will never know.
Unfortunately your warranty is only as good as the dealer. I know a guy who warranties his snap on once a year at Carisle. He has more than one of everything because he's been in the trade so long.
Harbor Freight's Pittsburgh Pro line doesn't suck. They are pretty good tools. I have a couple of the 25" breaker bars and several ratchets. I'm slowly building up a set of tools in that line. My closest Harbor Freight store is about 100 miles away.
I work at a cat dealership and I'm amazed how many of the other young fresh out of trade school guys think buying nothing but stuff out of the tool trucks is a good idea just because they can make payments. I'm almost certain one of the guys I graduated with doesn't even have reliable transportation but is still looking at a 6000$ box off the truck when harbor freight would sell him a bigger box for 600$.
I was an Industrial Salesman for Snap-On when they first started in Australia in the early 1990’s. Back then the roll out was happening feverishly quick. Many dealers were signed up, given a new truck full of tools and an area to work with no capital outlay required. They were lured into what seemed like a successful money making business. Most did quite well as I recall until a year or so on when they were pressured to finance everything. We’re talking a lot of money here and many with no cash equity behind them suddenly hit the wall. From memory the Snap-On tool plan allowed customers 6 weeks to pay off their tools and Snap-On wanted their money from the dealer in 4 weeks. So the dealer was essentially extending a line of credit to his customers for 2 weeks. That’s my understanding from then and it may be different now. But I’m not surprised in the least if the turnover is high with dealer franchises when they are trying to sell insanely expensive tools and be a line of credit that may also never be repaid.
Fascinating information Graham, and to the best of my personal experience in the USA until 2007 when I retired your input ws correct and likely still is so. When I was a truck distributor competing with Snap-on one of our industrial salesman, a counterpart to your position, made a disparaging remark about the tool trucks on the street. To the effect that we were just mobile bill boards and tax write-offs, that the 'real' money was being made on commercial activity, with government contracts and sales to entities like Home Depot and Lowes.
I bought a snap on half-inch impact. Within two years I sent it out three times for repair. After that they ended up replacing it. Now it’s going out again. Called the corporate office. They won’t do anything for me. They know there’s a problem with the specific Impact gun. I believe the model it was a 650. I’m done with snap-on.
Years ago my girlfriend, now wife bought me a snap on 3/8 impact from the tool truck and it cost her a fortune, it didn't work after 1 week. I said I didn't want it and wanted to return it but the rep just sent it for repair. 3 weeks later I got it back and after about a month it's got no power again... overpriced junk. Also he never seems to have what's broken in the van as a replacement, always got to wait weeks
I got my first mechanic job in 2005 and had to buy wrenches real fast, so I took $200 down to the Ace hardware where my brother worked. He squared me away with most everything I needed from the Ace professional line, they have served me well ever since. I have also changed things out that were mangled and trashed no questions asked in and out in 5 minutes. Never had anyone try and give me a hard time over my tools.
I got a job as a tech at a AAA auto care center in the city near me and had some hodge podge of tools. I had a dinky craftsman box and Mostly Ampro hand tools I did have a Ingersoll-Rand "titanium" 1/2 impact gun and a snap-on 3/8 gun (old one that says power people) both impact guns were bought second hand and rebuilt. Found it hilarious when those guys borrowed my stuff because they had squandered their precious money on such a scarce amount of hand tools from snap-on and matco etc...
now that "craftsman" has become "chinaman" the only real choice for american made hand tools in my personal opinion is SK ...of coarse, im admittedly biased, ive been using SK for 20 plus years & ive never had an issue with em... better quality than (usa) craftsman, top notch american made quality, & better prices than snapon ...just my 2 cents worth
SK is the go to brand for me. Look at Tekton, they are starting to make tools in the US. I looked at their website and so far it's only a few screwdrivers and wrenches, but they are making an effort and it's worth supporting them for it.
Proto’s quality control has went downhill pretty bad lately. I prefer snapon hand tools, but I’m not willing to spend the money on them for the most part. Wrenches is about it. I have wrightgrips too. Great wrenches....not a flank drive plus though, sorry. Sk is pretty good. What I grew up using on a farm. Perfect farmer tools, imo. Honestly, I miss Armstrong. My favorite balance of price, quality, fit and finish, and functionality in American made hand tools. Don’t exist anymore though....so. Try to warranty them through matco or whatever...you’ll get gearwrench replacements. Yay.
Thank god I decided to back out of getting into automotive and get into the HVAC trade instead. In HVAC, the best of the best of the best hand tools that we use are relatively dirt cheap (Klein, Channellock, Knipex, etc) and are readIly available at the local Home Depot. All the really expensive stuff (recovery machine, vacuum pump, torch kit, etc) are usually provided by the company you’re working for. And best of all, flat rate is virtually unheard of.
Dad bought a craftsman tool kit over 10 years ago, still using the same wrenches, sockets, etc. They have a lifetime warranty as well. Snap on makes good tools, but they are over priced with no additional benefits to just about any enthusiast/diyer. Same even applies for mechanics in many circumstances
Everything in this video described is exactly true we've had 4 dealers in the last 2 years come through our shop and none of them a warranty anything from the guy before without spending tons of money with them it's a nightmare for those of us who spent the money to buy good quality tool I've been slowly switching to S and K
I've worked in a shop for a while - never had a dealer push me into buying anything, I just got out from the truck laughing; prices we're about 4 times what the tools are actually worth. The problem is they get people with the "payment plan" where you pay '$20 a week" forever ... People need to take responsibility for their decisions and think about what they are doing. No one cares in the shop what ratchets you have - they care about the job getting done - that's all. If you decide to change trades you will have thousands of dollars collecting dust in the garage! You can't really sell them - no one will give you all that cash, so you will be stuck with them forever...
You're spot on! The majority of my tools are Snap On but they are not the same Company/brand they used to be. Once the tools started being made elsewhere, I knew. Tools that I bought back in the 80's...still with me (the ones that didn't grow legs). The same exact tool, but bought in the last decade or so, broken (some multiples of the same sku #), sitting in a box that I'm going to give back to Snap On. No SO you can have your "no more lifetime warranty". You didn't want to honor it before, why should you want to now? Maybe they meant the lifetime of the tool itself. If a dealer does really well and makes the route profitable, SO takes it away from them and gives them another crappy route so they can do it again. Ive seen this happen to many Snap On Dealers. All good guys too. I still buy Snap On tools but I buy the ones that were made in the U.S.A. from pawn shops and garage sales. If you want SO that's the way to do it. You'd be surprised what you can find. It sucks when you didn't bring enough money. lol. .........snap on...Sad...
Snap-On is such a classic example of Innovation being replaced by pushing profit margins. Snap On is quite simply bloated, they rely on their reputation to sell. I would bet you Snap-On could stamp their name on bricks and sell them for $200 a piece and the "real mechanics" would be happy to buy them. Innovation now is not a company's priority, it's simply profit. There is no spirit, just money.
Capitalism would be so much better without greed... to be fair to greed you may not be able to buy happiness, but you can sure as shit rent it for as long as you’ve got money.
ok so I am guessing you know this because of the "brick" part but there is a company called "Supreme" that literally put their name on bricks and sold them for crazy money. btw you are exactly right it is branding and it can be massively important to selling literally anything even yourself if you are an artist etc... If you are like me and could care less about what the guy next to you thinks about your tools then there are WAY cheaper options that are good enough. and some stuff is WAYY better and still costs significantly less than a snap-off.
A relative is a dealer, and he gets pissed I don't get stuff from him. I'm not even a mechanic; for what stuff I do work on, Lowes, H Depot, even Ace tools are fine. Said he could get stuff for me at cost. Even those prices are outrageous.
I don't wanna sound mean, but does he actually believe in the Snap-on BS? I mean, sure they have good hand tools but they are 4 to 5 times waaaay overpriced!
I used Snap-On tools from the mid 60's through to the 90's and never had any issues, yes they were very expensive but the lifetime guarantee was worth it, I had tools break 20+ yrs after I paid for them and they were replaced no questions asked. I really can't complain about them at all in the years I used them.
I have some Snap-On stuff, some Craftsman stuff, some Harbor Freight, some Proto, you name it. All the years I have used these various tools, I can say with 100% honesty that if the names were taken off, my experience with all of them would be about equal. Some of all of the brands have broken, some have been great. I say remove the names, because I freely admit I have been swayed from time to time by the Snap-On mystique. But I can't honestly say deep down that I think the Snap-On reputation is deserved. When I buy tools now it is usually from McMaster-Carr, and usually Proto brand. As good as anything on the market, much cheaper than Snap-On, and dealing with McMaster-Carr is just a great experience.
John Shaft ya I have a love/hate relationship with them also. Love their hand tools and I love the fact that no matter which garage you go to in America 95% of them have a snap on guy. Same can not be said for Mac, Matco or Cornwell. Any mechanic worth his salt knows that snap ons only worthwhile products are their hand tools. Anytime anyone rags on their other stuff I just roll my eyes, the guys who know what they’re doing don’t buy their multimeters etc because they’re more often then not a rebranded fluke +$50. Their toolboxes can actually make you money if you know what you’re doing. I bought a base box from a liquidation for $3000 cash kept it in immaculate condition and traded it in for $5000 2 years later. Bought a box with a workcenter and locker from a kid who bit off more than he could chew with monthly payments for $8000 I’ll probably get $9-9500 if I ever trade this one in. That’s how I live my life the best shit for the lowest price!
I just bought that same 1/2 impact a couple of months ago, just under £700. I was so tempted to try the top end Milwaukee gun and I looked into Ingersoll Rand too, but went back to snap on because it's what I've known for years. It is a good gun but I do regret not giving another brand a try. On the subject of warranty, if a tool breaks make sure you keep all the parts. I lost out on a replacement 3/8 End on my 1/2 to 3/8 reducer because I didn't keep the sheered off part.
Havent tried the new IR gun but I have the new Milwaukee 2767 1/2 gun. That is the best impact gun on the market. Havent had a bolt that it couldnt take off and that includes the infamous Honda crank bolt(without the lisle weighted socket)
I still have my 15year USA made Craftsman tools. Nice quality and get the job done! When Sears started going down I explored Gear wrench and Tekton and have been very impressed with both brands. I also have some Harbor Freight tools, which are great - especially their tool boxes.
I came into the mechanic trade later in life and have had my first Snap-On dealings in the last couple of years, and what I got from that dealer set my BS detectors on fire every time I went out to that truck. This video explains a lot, especially with the "stock problems". I dealt with it as a necessity while my apprentice discount still applied, but they basically ran out the clock on me with their unobtainable stock. Older guys at the shop are generally Snap-On loyalists (and haven't had to buy anything from them in a while, hmm) but the younger guys know how to use the internet and figure out whether paying 2-4 times everybody else's price is worth it. Even for Snap-On tools, I'd rather just order from their site than bother with the truck.
Very well said. I've been turning wrenches since 88 and snap on used to be half way decent but hear last 5 years have went down the drain. I watched 5 dealers in Wichita KS area go out the only ones hanging on are the independent guys 25 years plus that don't have to answer to corporate. And guess what they sell Milwaukee then they do their own. And spot on warranty they don't cover half of what they used to. Just makes me sick that I wasted my time and money with them well no more.
when I worked as a mechanic I used craftsman, never let me down.. that was 30 years ago ...most of the other guys there called snap on , snap off tools...in my opinion snap on and the other tool trucks around are just way to expensive
I was a MAC dealer years ago; corporate takes broken hand tools back no questions asked. Even some that clearly show abuse. If the dealer balks, don’t buy anything else from him. There’s no reason for the dealer to treat you like that. You make it sound like a common problem.
I have been using my Ryobi 1/2 Impact for over a year now and it just keeps hitting hard. I think I paid $110 for the tool, charger and a 6 amp hour battery.
I have had a Ryobi for about three years, still works great. I've used it to bust nuts loose that other peoples cordless Snap-ons couldn't get to move. I also have a blue recip saw that went through a shop fire that I still use. Hands down the best cordless tools I've ever had when considering price.
I stopped buying snap on in the early nineties. I was at what I call a maintenance point with tools. I was working for one of the largest school bus companies and had pretty much everything I needed tool wise. I had a couple of sockets that had split and our snap on dealer refused warranty saying the tools were worn out. I said they are 5 years old and have a lifetime warranty. Nope it's the lifetime of the tool. The following week my buddy who was still purchasing a lot of tools got them warrantied for me no questions asked.. So the warranty is as long as your purchasing continues.
Not believable. Sorry. I bought a bucket of 40 year old screwdrivers all snapon at a motorcycle swap meet I stopped and got on a snapon truck I saw at a shop near my house. Asked him to have a look. He said “I’ll put new shanks in them and you’ll be good to go” All new shanks no Questions asked
@@deanodebo So you think everyone in the world got treated by Snap-On the same as you? There is a mountain of evidence against you. Try reading most of these posts about the warranty. After that, you might restate your opening line.
I’ve been turning wrenches for 35 years. I’ve never had a snapon dealer deny warranty for any reason at all. Meanwhile, sadly the department stores are a joke. I have to go to ace or Lowe’s for craftsman and they say “sorry we don’t have that model But you can have this piece of crap instead” basically I’m not stupid. I don’t buy unless it’s on sale and I only pay cash, no borrowing. But you can’t tell me that harbor freight compares to snap on. Come on be serious No professional tech will say that.
"Number 10: Pentagon prices” Love that and made me think of Goldblooms dad in the movie Independence Day... “You didn't think they actually spent ten thousand dollars for a hammer and thirty thousand for a toilet seat, did you?” -Julius Levinson
Back in 1981 when we opened a shop inside a steel mill complex to service trucks for one company. Little one bay shop with just enough space for us and a 45 foot trailer. We had a lot of Snap-On stuff bought new off the truck. When we made that move we couldn't get our broken tools replaced to save our lives. Phone calls, letters, most went unanswered with a few empty promises to get a dealer to stop. Haven't bought Snap-On or from any tool truck since.
The amount of truth in this video is profound. I've been saying this for years and people have ignored me. This sums up perfectly the problems with snap on as a corporation.
I know exactly what you're saying, I can't get through to most people, on anything I bring up that matters. like these days people assume I'm just going through some kind of political phase when I warn them about socialism. Even stupid unimportant things in the past were irritating, like I'd try to tell people about a show they should check out and they shrug it off, then a while later someone else tells them to watch it. They do and they ask why they didn't hear about it sooner. Idiots. I seriously just give up on the ones who can't listen, use your crappy fram oil filters, repeat orange man bad BS, what do I know. I'll be out of here before its too late if it things don't turn around.
@Derealized You also gotta realize that even if you're right about a lot of stuff, it doesn't mean you can't be very, VERY wrong about something else. Of course people usually have no idea at what they're very, very wrong at. Many wlll still continue on forever despite all good evidence of the contrary.
I've never had a issue with Snap-On's warranty. The truck doesn't always cover it, but a quick call to Snap-On and it's in the mail (usually no return).
I only have 2 snap on ratchets and everything else, Mac, Husky, Craftsman, Tekton, Gearwrench, Ares, and Dewalt. My Mac dealer is cheap $30 every week. In my book if you're starting out as an apprentice or technician. Gearwrench is the way to go
Thanks for going more on this subject. I talked to my Snap On guy more today. He’s holding his old truck for ransom so he can break some of the rules that Snap On gives him. Therefore he can keep his overhead low and save for a new truck. He’s finally now going to order a new truck from this one place in Milwaukee that Snap On only lets him buy. (LDV) $$$ So after that, he’s gonna have to be on good behavior. So that’s why new tools and promos on his truck are very hard to get. Then he says it’s been slow.. gee I wonder why?? People aren’t going to want to buy tools if there’s nothing on the truck! Back then like 10 years ago, he was more like a salesman hustling, selling tons of tools, toolboxes... Now he doesn’t sell much boxes anymore because a lot of the dealerships have built-ins. Also, now he has cut off a lot of the supplemental vendors due to the lack of warranty and time he has to spend to send the warranties to those vendors. So overall, it’s a pretty tough business, I don’t know how he’s hanging in there, he must have other things he’s holding over Snap On‘s head just to get by!
Hey if you can give him my contact info. I'd like to talk to him about his experiences. I've talked to over a dozen dealers at this point and I can truthfully tell you that if I ran into the CEO on the street I'd be in jail shortly thereafter.
Timestamps: 0:00 Intro and Snap-On History 1:34 Exorbitant prices #10 2:18 Majority of tools made overseas #9 4:03 Not necessarily the best tools money can buy #8 4:55 Li-ion power tools suck #7 5:55 Snap-On screws over their dealers #6 6:53 Warranty Issues - Snap-On only covers original purchaser #5 8:36 Dealers can't get new stock until current stock sold - includes warranty items! #4 9:37 High-pressure sales - almost like a cult #3 11:10 Financing people with bad credit - dealer can repo tools at any time #2 12:58 Incredibly high turnover rate for dealers #1
When I started in this industry some 40+ years ago, I couldn't afford S/O, so I bought other USA branded tools, New Britain, Utica, Bonney, Easco, Stanley, Armstrong, Allen, SK, Proto, and others. Saved a small fortune doing that and while it's true that most of these companies are now gone, and therefore, there's no warranty, the fact is that nearly all th
All those old tools are worth money, and most cases more than what you paid for them. Probably only old guys like you, bear, and myself would consider buying. I check out pawn shops and garage sales for old Snap On/J.C. Penny/Montgomery Ward tools. I'm still looking for old Snap On screwdrivers with the triangle handles. I still miss those.
Say what you want if you can afford Snap on tools you will get em. I buy everything used online or ebay and get amazing deals and they have the best tools period.
I didn't have a snap on dealer for the longest at my shop. I've never had to warranty a hand tool costing over $100 but I would call corporate and they would send me a new tool without asking for the old one in return. They ask how I got the tool to which I answer either purchased from the corporate website or from my previous dealer and they ask for the part number. I've done this about 6 times. No one seems to know about this. Truthfully I'd rather do this than deal with a dealer
You can also read the contract for that new box you just put on credit. Pay attention to the part that when the guy repossesses the box he gets to keep everything inside the box to pay for what's owed on the box..............
I've seen a snap on guy repo a box .. mechanic stopped coming to work.. owed on the box .. snap on man .. came in the shop opened the box .. put all the guys tools in a card board box and rolled his box right on out of there .. he didn't touch a thing inside the box .. when he could have because the mechanic wasn't there .. that's my experience
@@garyrobinson5719 That's a Snap On man with a deep conscious. I wish they were all similar, but unfortunately they aren't. They're humans too and with the good come the bad. Luckily, we've got the internet and if the Snap On man doesn't treat me like I would treat someone I'm making a lot of money off of well, I'll just by my tools off the internet. I don't care about a silly "warranty" - the only time I've used it is when I got a socket in a set that wasn't formed properly and didn't have any markings on it. Otherwise, I've never had a problem with any Snap On tool or guy selling tools on the internet Ebay.
Maybe if tool bear saves their money they can afford snap on. I don't overpay for my snap on. Probably paid craftsman prices. No their hand tools are made in the USA Wrenches, sockets, hammers. . Some screw drivers and pliers are made in Spain. Out of all the sockets and wrenches I tried they still fit the best.
Better off buying what you can afford. Cheap tools fit cheap. Tested a ton of them, the wobble on some is just incredibly bad. I was not a believer in Snap Off tools at first, but they seriously just fit well. Warranty is mad easy too. if you call them. Attend any program or school that offers the SEP discount and I got alot of stuff for craftsman prices back when. I never buy anything from harbor freight its cheap trash. Look at the CEO makes of harbor fright i'm not supporting that guy. Row a stores everywhere, paying their employees trash wages but that's just me
I retired in 2013, about 10 years prior I started turning the Snap-On dealer down... Snap-On was screwing their franchise operators to the point the turnover was amazing considering the better than $75 startup cost. Snappy lost me about 20 years ago.I still have enough that if I sold them I could by a 3 bedroom house and mine are older quality made stock. Snappy will fuck themselves out of business.
They have been around for a long time. I remember the Snap-on trucks. Never purchased a tool from them because of their high prices. Thnx for the info😎👍
I worked in a shop and the SnapOn truck passed by every day. I contacted the dealer and asked if he would put us on his route and stop at our shop. He said, nope, uou can come by my house after work if you want to buy any tools. I told him to forget it that we would continue buying Craftsman. Of course, that's when Craftsman was an accepted brand in shops along side the SnapOff guys.
I bought very few snap on tools. That was back in the late 90s . I bought more Matco than from any other tool truck. But as I got older, I had more Craftsman and SK. Short story long, when you work on trucks and heavy equipment nobodies brand will last forever.
You could get an imapact wrench from Snap-On for $800 or a tool cart, a reasonable selection of tools plus an HF or Kobalt impact wrench for the same. Even if the quality argument was valid (which it's not), it would still make more sense to do the second.
A HF opened next door to a big Ford dealer, the techs live in there. I talked to one of the techs on the line he said his SO impact wore out, he said what the hell, I can get the Earthquake till it gets repaired, can always return it next door, the repair may even cost more and he has to wait. Make a long story short he said he said the new tool is much better than the SO ever was. Using it over a year. He sold the old impact, never even called the SO guy. He said many of the new HF tools may be better quality than SO, he said scary but true. He said SO may be good for some specialty stuff but you have to be crazy to get everything from them new.
@540 MUDSTAIN So don't buy Harbor Freight then. I don't know what you're doing with your impact wrenches. They are designed to use on nuts and bolts, not as jack stands. I could understand your confusion on that.
@540 MUDSTAIN That's great, don't buy them. They aren't junk for a lot of people who use them including professional mechanics, electricians, plumbers, etc. Buy what works for you, but you don't gain any cred by paying more for your tools, only the results you get using them.
I started my first mechanic job last year and I needed to get some wrenches and stuff but was short on cash and horrible credit my local matco distributor Devan worked with me got me a dope 15" 88 tooth flex head and a standard 10" rachet set(8mm-19mm) fresh out the box for 25$/week it ended up being faulty ( I found out when. I went to use it) and Devan drove all the way back to replace it for me that day and stayed to make sure everything was in order. The snap on guy tried to get me to hand over an entire paycheck for just 1 rachet no sockets no nothing extra then got upset and angry at me when I told him no. That set my belief in never buying snap on tools.
I sell Stihl but I must admit I would buy the Japanese Echo items we sell over the Stihl as some of the Stihl machines aren't made in Austria/Germany which everyone assumes. The MS170, 171 chainsaws are made in China.
Every word is the absolute truth. I've seen it all, from guys two weeks on the job unloading a 12 drawer roller cab, to watching the dealer take it back. Good tools, but not worth the money.
Something must have been in the steel here in Australia for (Siddons)-Sidchrome to be the #1 tool company in Australia & New Zealand for many years. They had an absolute moneyback/lifetime guarantee on all tools they made no exceptions made with their products. The car manufacturing industry here had wheel braces and other tools made for them by Sidchrome for the cars they sold to the public. It wasn't uncommon for people to purchase a cars because of the tools that come with it. They were a very trusted brand of tool. All the tools when they were made here, were of such quality that they could be used in heavy industry without any problem, even if you purchase a small socket set etc. The quality was second to none until it was sold in the 1990's, now it's parent company is black and decker have Sidchrome tools made in Taiwan. Sadly, since then, the quality has not been the same, and like all companies, profit before people seems to be the motto now. Sidchrome still sell tools, yet at inflated prices and it's not worth buying them as they are not made in Australia and don't use Australian steel. Ironically, the older Sidchrome tools sell for quite high prices and anything with Siddons-Sidchrome is worth a lot of money. I have never liked the snapon tool company anyway.
I’m a new diesel mechanic. So far I’d say only buy snap on on select items. Things like long breaker bars and pry bars where you could get hurt if it breaks. And if you have a good snap on guy then other than price I have no complaints
Been working with my Snapon guy for 14 years & never once had a problem warranting any tool...he also has 5 trucks and covers a large area...I just cant deal with having to go somewhere to warranty a tool every time it breaks
Except that tools from Sears, Autozone, Harbor Freight, don't break any more often. That's part of the Snap-On group think myth. Forging steel into servicable wrenches, sockets, screwdrivers, isn't rocket science. Snap-On doesn't have access to some secret process or unobtainium steel. They just charge prices like they think they do.
@@CrimFerret really, there ISNT A TOOL THAT WONT BREAK. 30+ YRS in the business and I can still push my big name Snap On, Mac, Match, Cornwell farther than Han most. Started out with Napa/Craftsman(then made by K-D/Easco. And broke tools as much or more than bigger names. So I only replaced critical tools with more expensive. BUT if the truck comes weekly I pay weekly. With local shops not local anymore (ie Craftsman,Napa) I still have truck tool bills. As for "other people make better,cheaper, prettier,sweeter smelling tools" BULL$&!?. OTHER COMPANIES ARE ATTEMPTING TO COPY BIG NAME BRANDS. 21 yr old tool box from S-O, still can order parts for it. And it's 10 times box new other brands are. Picked up Cornwell roller cart all drawers and bigger than my Mac cart that's 14 and have no dealer. Cornwell still good and stuff and still paid good money for it. Harbor Freight has it's place, but it's not even on par with old Sears/Craftsman model(Craftsman name owned by Stanley/Mac/Proto now). And in actuality most tools are not getting better, quality is levelling off.
@@MonzaRacer If the quality is leveling then the price should also. Old Craftsman was on par with old Snap On and old Milwakee. Not any more. Oh and speaking of Mac, rumor has it that the Doyle tools at HF are identical and made in the same factory with the only diffence is grip color and price. There's nothing wrong with buying more expensive brands, but these days it often doesn't get you more serviceable tools. Even if it did, how much more servicable? If a Snap-On tool lasted 30 years and was 5 times as expensive as one that lasted 10, you'd still be better off with the less expensive tool.
Good points. I've been a Snap On customer for 30 years, and all was well with my original dealer. Since he retired, the new dealer service absolutely sucks, to the point the Snap On brand name just angers me to look at it. I have a bunch of broken and worn out tools, and a dealer who doesn't give a F about that. Also, the "quality" of Blue Point stuff - it's garbage. It pisses me off that I even own any of that brand at this point, knowing how much I overpaid for it. If Snap On didn't have that easy payment plan, especially now that there's online competition that they didn't have 20 years ago, they wouldn't sell a F -ing thing.
You're an idiot if you think its truely 20%. If you read its simple intrest. Like a house and by paying every week you cut that intrest rate down to roughly 14% at the highest
It's obvious from any perspective that the Snap On model is not what it once was. I had no idea what the details were but everything you said fits what I am seeing. I don't see a path for them to recover, too many low risk options to get an adequate tool. With so many professionals having HF and other bargain tools in their box the perception that one must have a big name tool to be a professional is dying.
You could pay $900 for a 3.5" wrench or you could buy a plasma cutter and the 6" flat bar to cut the wrench out of. Also at what point would you use a wrench that big instead of power tools.
david bilia I have made wrenches exactly as you described, I needed a 1 1/8 inch wrench for my Porter Cable Router. $18.00 at Woodcraft. This wrench had two bends so it could fit in the recess of a router table. I made my wrench out of 1/4 plate steel. It was salvaged metal..
I bought a Bosch Electric Impact 30+ years ago(from a snap-on dealer who came around weekly) and shortly there after it had a problem. They told me to take a Hike. Guess what, I haven't bought a single Bosch tool in over 30 years and to this day will pay more to keep from buying a Bosch anything.
As a retired GM tech I can tell you that snap on tools made my career. I bought all the others too. Mac matco craftsman harbor freight etc. The tools that stood the test of time were all snap on. My 1/2 inch impact sockets are 30 plus years old. Only warrantied a few. Yeah they are pricey. I bought traded in used snap on tools from the other tools dealers to save a buck. If you're doing flat rate work you can't take chances on cheap tools.
You are not up to what are "cheap tols" anymore. Harbor freight can kill snap-off any day of the week. I have 3-4 Snap-On ratchets over 20 years old. All of theme stopped working a long time ago. Snap-On used to be great. They are now Chinese made overpriced crap. They went downhill in the 1990s.
My brother runs a auto shop for 30 years. He and his mechanic buddies ditched Snap-On many moons ago. All my Snap-On ratchets are stripped. I ditched them as well.
...absolutely, couldnt agree with u more... love my sk stuff... 20 plus years & zero complaints... & the new "DT" (doubles the tooth count) ratchets, & the "DT" drop in kits for ur old ratchets, are fantastic! ...& since they use a double pawl design, as opposed to a split pawl, u dont sacrifice strength, actually u double ur strength & ur tooth count... my old 3/8" drive went from 40 to 80 & my old 1/4" drive went from 60 to 120 (feel free to double check me on those numbers, thats per best of my recollection) ...& no, i dont work for sk ...but in the intrest of full disclosure, a buddy of mine does
@@heavychevy383 This is exactly the sort of thing one should consider paying extra for. If you have to work in tight places a lot, more ratchet points are definitely a plus. You actually get something for that extra money spent. That doesn't mean I wouldn't be using them with HF sockets.
They don't make enough tools for a professional to get by. A lot of times you have to buy a tool from snap on , hazet, stahlwille , etc because they are the only company that makes that particular tool.
Buying tools on a tool truck with a payment plan is a no can do. We told snap on to get lost about 5 years ago at our dealership and if one of my guys needs a tool, we usually work something out like me ordering the tool and letting them pay it off over a month interest free.
@@denoftools when I was a young mechanic I saw many of my peers take on way too much toll truck debt and they'd have to fork over most of their paycheck to keep their tools and some of them just gave up and gave the stuff back because they were basically working for nothing. Tool truck operators are second only to late night tv evangelists and snake oil salesmen.
Years back I needed a wire twister that spun both directions. Snap on had them in their book. I saw a truck stopped at a garage and I went to the truck and asked for these. I knew at the time they were some where near 75.00 for these. The person just looked at me like I was bothering him and he just said NO. He did not look- ok it's his truck he knows what he has, but he did not offer to order them for me. I was about 45 at the time. Due to his attitude I never even tried to purchase from them again. At the night school at the time getting my aircraft A&P certs. They dropped by to try to sell the night school people tools. The night school students were mostly adults that had other jobs but liked working on planes. They offered the day students something like 50% off. Several people were going to buy tools(remember these are mostly adult night students with planes and MONEY). The teacher mentioned that none of the night students were full time, so the man said NO DISCOUNT FOR YOU. He sold nothing that evening!
Snap-On's student program is handled by their industrial division. The problem with that is, it means they can't sell to people that would have access to a rep already. Most of Snap-On's catalog is online for you to order from.
@Agent J same with airbus, and douglas. How many people were injured by faulty cars that manufacturers denied had issues? Every complex mechanical system can fail, more so when maintained and operated in 3rd world conditions.
@Agent J no, faulty products require whoever made the decisions to be held accountable. If the problems were from bad maintenance or bad training then it's not on the manufacturer. If you run a car into the ground and the brakes fail due to bad maintenance, the manufacturer isn't responsible. If a person doesn't know how to properly use a car and dies from it the manufacturer isn't responsible. We don't even have the final report on the lion air crash yet. Eveything is still conjecture from little bits and pieces that have been released. A few days ago it was reported the pilots were checking the manual when they crashed. If the final report shows boeing at fault, find out who authorized the sale of faulty products and hold them responsible. If it shows pilot/maintenance error, sorry manufacturer not responsible.
Know a guy that owns and operates a small shop. He does a lot of work for railroad trucks. Bought Snapon 1/2" torque wrench that broke almost immediately. They won't warranty. He now uses Autocraft torque wrench from advance auto. I know that I sold to him
I’ve had Snap On Tools along with Mac, Craftsman and SK for over 30 years. And never had a problem with a warranty from Snap On. Not that I’ve needed a lot of warranty. There was a time Sears use to give you rebuilding kits for Craftsman ratchets. Harbor Freight has come along way with a lot of their stuff. But some of their stuff is still cheap and I wouldn’t buy it.
edbigtruck yes. Harbor freight has already hurt themselves with the stigma that harbor freight only sells shit. I’ve gotten some decent stuff from there. But snap on is almost the same way, except they’ve built their stigma on quality. And for the people who want quality, they go to snap on. There’s something about brand loyalty that really just gets peoples brains in a knot, myself included.
P0tat07 , I have bought some decent stuff from Harbor Freight. I think their sockets and Ratchets are decent. I don’t like their wrenches especially the extra long. To me the metal feels soft. I do own some Wrench sets I purchased from Northern Tool years ago. And like them very much.
I have two sets of Kobalt Screwdrivers. I liked the first set so much went back for a second set a year later and they changed the grip style. I like them just as if not more. It seems Kobalt is supposedly getting passed out for the line of Craftsman Tools Lowe’s will be selling.
Good video. When my cousin started out as a mechanic in the early 2000s, he bought a bunch of Snap On. I remember a 10 piece screwdriver set that cost him 110 dollars. It blew my mind that he paid 11 bucks a screwdriver when most sets in the store were going for 15 for the whole set.
@@reefym2627 If I were to use a $15 set once in a while, that is good enough. I have Snap-On, Craftsman, Harbor Freight and a ton of other brands for over a period of 40 years. The only tools that I have that are broken is 3 Snap-On ratchets. So, if Snap-On were really that good, all my other non Snap-On tools would be broken, and the Snap-On ones would be working.
Someone on my local Craigslist has been trying to sell snapon tools for months. 11 random combination wrench's and 5 sockets for $125, and he's come down from $200. Doesn't even list sizes. Lol.
Worked as mechanic and engine builder and field rep for a factory remanufacturer for 48 years. Only bought Snap-On hand tools and torque wrenches. Sorry there too expensive for you, but no one can compete with how well the sockets and wrenches work. Period, ive used many others over the years working with dealers and shops I visited.
I have been buying and using Snap on tools for over 30 years. The tools are great, the company sucks balls. The prices are ridiculous for sure. If I was just starting today, I would never have as much Snap on stuff as I do
My area has went threw 3 reps in the last 4 yrs that I know of . The last guy we had had a helper that did the routes and dealt with the customers while he sat around and did nothing . Then the Friday before Christmas decides to tel him there’s no money in selling tools he’s going out of business you no longer have a job. I had a truck account with a balance of 350 that I’ve tried to call corporate numerous times to pay it off and they tell me no it’s the new guy that takes over money. To me ur 💯 % correct I would not wana be a snap on rep they are trying to sell dept to the new guy to collect on if we ever get one again. But as for me I’m done with the tool truck Lowe’s has craftsman n that’s who’s gona get my money if I need anything.
Snap-On doesn't care, they already got the money from the dealer. So what now? You have to wonder if at some point in the future some new dealer will come to you with their hand out for that? I'm not even sure that's legal.
I guess I should update this but corporate just called this week n the wana offer a settlement for 25% off my balance but want it by this Friday so im gona pay it and be done with them.
CrimFerret they didn’t get the money from the dealer I’m pretty sure when our dealer quit corporate bought him out minus the money the dealer owed and got the debt with it.
My pops and I were just talking about this. He tries to buy American when he can find them at not highway robbery prices. He still uses my late Grandfather's American made tools every day at the shop... But he loves a good deal on some overseas tools that just work.
I bought 600$ snap on digital torque wrench , the tail cap to insert the batteries. Was ceased. I even tried pliers to try to remove the cap. It cost me 200 to have snap on remove the cap. It is more than one needs. Keeps track of each foot lbs settings (60 ft lbs x4 ) has clock, yellow led light up as the wrench begins to torque, the green over tighten displays red beeps and vibrates. Add has angle finder, meteric lot more I plan to get just plain clicker soon , is really well built , fancy, easy to use, enjoy using it. For lug nuts want simple adjust to torque value either snap on or matco.
Years ago a professional auto mechanic showed me his tool box.... 1) tools used everyday were Snap on , Mac , etc 2) tools used once or twice a month were Craftsman... 3) tools used once or twice a year were made in China. The object was to keep food and clothes for your kids and not make the tool truck rich , while purchasing the level of quality you need.
@@Stephenberry0 That makes sense but in the case of Snap-On these days, the high price doesn't equate to better quality, or at least not enough better to warrant the prices asked. Now if I had to use tools every day, I'd be a lot more worried about ergonomics than who's name was on them.
CrimFerret that is a good point about price not necessarily equals quality and how they feel in the hand. I’m am just a diy guy. Nothing against Snap-on because I haven’t handled them. I have mostly USA Craftsman tools with SK tools being my “high end” stuff.
This has been my approach. I have been a mechnic for five years now. it is my third careeer. I purchas Snap-on, But I keep my tab small. I use mostly Snap-on and Wright ratchets. I still have almost all of my Craftsman sockets from the 80s. I replace with snap-on when something brakes. I buy alot of USA close outs. I am always on the look out for a deal. I appreciate the quality of Snap-on, but I refuse to go broke buying it.
I bought a snapon scanner in 2013 it was the solas pro and a year later they stopped doing updates on it and told me I had to purchase the newest one which is faster and touch screen, I will never buy anything else from snapon again after this, the dealer did not even mention that the solid pro was being discontinued
Even though I am a mechanic that uses snap on every day... I agree with most of this video. I think that if you stick with the premium products as far as hand tools most are USA. The budget stuff is usually overseas in my experience. I did think I heard that the 18v was made in USA, but it’s garbage anyway. The one thing I don’t agree with is the high pressure. I’ve had three dealers and have been amazed at how they don’t even try to sell me something for weeks on end. Just let me come on. Pay on my account and walk off. Oh well their loss.
When you say "they" bought thousand of dollars of Snap-on tools that could mean one or two drills and a few drill bits.
David Terry I don’t know why you are buying drill bits off of the truck
@@michaelsieber6601 that's not the point sanp on is why overpriced and uses used car sales men tactics 🐧🇺🇸🏒😎
tree rat76 some things are over priced some are worth the money
@@michaelsieber6601 I guess there are lots of tools just as good as sanp on. They are living on thier name and ripping people off
tree rat76 no one makes better wrenches then snap-on
Hey Red Beard I just wanted to say you are 100% right on #2. I in fact was one of these guys. I had no credit and the truck financed me. Well long story short is i was involved in a car accident and missed a $75.00 weekly payment due to being hospitalized and the snap on truck repossessed my tools. It ended up costing me my job and i still had to pay for tools I didn't have anymore. Now understand how I felt after spending some time in a hospital and finally being able to return to work and when i get to work my tools are not there. No warnings no sorry all I basically got was it sucks to be you. I will never buy another snap on or as i call them now strap on tool tool again. Yup the old strap on company gave it to me really hard and couldn't even apply a little lube.
So you're saying you literally don't hold a couple months rent in your bank, and a couple months worth of car and tool payments in your bank? You're paycheck to paycheck and it's your fault.
technically hes only half right. the truck account he is correct. when you finance a snapon box they run your credit and its like having a credit card
They repossessed your tools after 1 missed payment? You had never kissed one before? You contacted your dealer and told him you were in the hospital? As someone who’s bought from them for decades with truck credit and company credit, this story isn’t adding up to me.
@@sasquatchrosefarts I can’t be convinced he got repossessed after 1 missed payment. We had a guy miss nearly a year of work with a medical situation and or dealer held him down and even raised money for him. He’s back and still has an account today. I’m not saying they’re cheap or the tools for everyone to buy. But I’ve never experienced anything but honesty and good business from my truck…
@@Carelocksome tool truck guys are just assholes, there's been multiple shops I've been too where some of the tool truck guys have been told don't come back.
I'm a life long Snap-On tool snob/customer. My dad took me (as a kid) to the local Snap-On dealers house in the early 60's & I still remember seeing that old red/white van (like in your video) with all those chrome tools laid out on red felt which left me with a life long impression. I'm now in my 60's & I've been buying Snap-On tools since the 70's up until just last week. A short time back I had given a bunch of tools to the local dealer with disintegrated black screw driver handles for warranty & he lost them. When I confronted him with it he literally laughed at me and told "those tools aren't worth anything!!!"... to which I answered, "they were worth something when I bought them!!!" I took the situation to Snap-On Corporate and explained to them that I was a life long customer, had worked on Snap-On sponsored race teams & that there were many other tool brand choices in the world today... not to mention your dealer was down right rude! To their credit... Snap-On Corporate asked me to put a value on my loss and they sent me a gift card in that amount. Good on Snap-On Corporate... not so much for the Snap-On dealer. :-(
You laid it out there , we are lifetime snap-on tools owners we don't cry about the price we just get what we need our portfolio of purchase shows the man we don't play, by the way. I didn't have children or wife's starting my career. It damn sure paid off after 40yrs.
They think you need them worse than they need you
That dealer just sounds like a joke
@josephrochefort9989 I see people’s channels on here and it’s wild how they brag about all the snap on tools they have lol. And they get very, very triggered if someone says they went to a place like harbor freight or Home Depot and got a tool that was like $400 cheaper
13 years as an auto mechanic and I can’t dispute anything in your video. The biggest suckers for the strap on truck were the new oil changers who thought they could buy respect with their tool purchase- 90% of them never did anymore than change oil then quit to do something else after buying thousands of dollars of snappy that they could have bought for hundreds at harbor freight.
Absolutely right re the Lub Bay greasers. They tool up with entire SnapOn tool sets to compensate the fact that they just change oils!
I was a tire and lube tech and bought $10k my first week. I quit after a year and work in a factory now 😂 but I’m glad I got them when I did I collect tools as a hobby now
Snap-on tools are great but not great enough that I want to spend the rest of my life paying for them.
If you don't own a shop, the tool truck guys treat you like dirt. Once I tried to replace a ratchet at a buddies shop. The tool truck guy blew me off. Tells me he doesn't have a replacement. My buddy comes out, and asks for the ratchet. He smears some oil on it from his hands, and takes it to the truck. Walks away with a new one, and hands it to me. Never again.
After watching this, I understand why. This company disgusts me.
That's just a terrible TERRIBLE sales /truck guy. I have never had that happen. I even text my snap on guy pictures of tools to see if he has them. Always replies
@@RoboDriller A guy once told me that the older drivers had different contracts. They weren't required to take returns from anyone that they didn't sell an item to. Not sure if that's true though. Random source.
Must have a bad dealer. I walked off the street into trucks an they were nice as anything. I always bought something small from them like $10-15 weird tool I was looking for. Best is to call up snap on when you have a problem Easier.
@@mcdonaldsmaniac its not about a lack of requirement its called being an asshole
I’ve had a similar experience. F Snap On.
I have a customer I make keys for regularly. His dealer died. The new dealer won’t warranty his equipment and told to call corporate. Corporate told him to go to the new dealer. They won’t warranty his equipment and he has the largest amount of snap on tools I’ve Ever seen. He’s a retired mechanic and has spent easily over 100k on tools. Snap won’t help. He no longer has receipts as it was years ago. Such crap
But they're legacy tools that can you can pass down to your kids. Cuz that's what your kids want! They don't want money in the bank collecting interests. They want your old used and sometimes broken snapon tools.
Same exact thing here. New dealer not interested in warranty, corporate not interested at all. I asked for the name of another dealer within 25 miles of me, corporate said can't do that. I'm replacing my broken Snap On junk with SK now.
Yea screw them. I'm just glad I had older mechanics that showed me the light. I'm sooo happy I didn't buy a box from them.
@@johnz8210 go to a garage outside of that dealers area or talk to a mechanic that deals with that dealer if you have a lot of broken stuff offer to get him a case of beer for his time to do it for you
Better that then the alternative to rebuy everything again
I've got Snap On tools that I've been waiting since 1981 to get replaced. When I went from working at a dealership to being a mechanic for a steel company's fleet of trucks I couldn't get a Snap On Jerk off to come and replace any of my tools. Calls to corporate were just a waste of time, they just gave me lip service. After a year or so I just gave up.
After that I had an independent tool truck guy who would stop around who was pretty good. He sold all kinds of brands and even lots of used tools. He was good and way way cheaper. But then he disappeared after a few years. I was visiting a friend who lived in a trailer park and guess who I saw next door, I went over and talked to him and the poor guy was blind. He told me that is why he stopped coming around with his truck. Such a shame
Took my 3/8 ratchet to habor Freight, guy on the store said “leave it there go grab another thank you” got a new one with out any questions
Wow crazy almost like the same thing I do but I don’t have to. Drive 45 mins
Menards will swap out tools as well, I don't own any, I miss craftsman
@@jeffalan6339 Any brand?
@@histguy101 snap on.
I work harbor we sometimes ask how did it break but it's to understand our tools. I'm honest sales and if I can't buy the tool I I do bunch of reviews or have my customers let me know how it was so I can tell others this one broke cuz a Customer used a 4ft cheater bar on my Pittsburgh breaker bar I say grab new one and have great day. We have real warranty our tools I used in shops and broke harbor tools but also broke snap on just as much and snap on refused a warranty cuz they had said it was missed used at harbor we don't say that cuz we stand by the tools.
10 reasons Snap on sucks
1.) Super expensive
2. Through 10, please refer to reason 1
Expensive is fine, if you get what you're paying for. I don't see the overwhelming higher quality or customer service from snapon though.
John Handcock every time I’ve warrantied from snap on they sent me out the tool with no questions asked. Didn’t even have to send back the old one. Snap on tool quality is one of the best. MAC is good too. Makes all the difference between lower quality tools. But you have to get them on sale for a deal
So basically you have 1 reason? Nice...
I doubt that he will ever do it. The HF fan boys will throw fit.
HF fan boys are the glock fan boys. Nothing is better than.
Except that red is not a glock fan so he ha that going for him.
@@ifitsnotbrokenfixit1193 I thought he already did.
Get truck, visit harbor freight, drive around garages, Profit? I’d buy from him all day long...
Stacey Fisher too bad HF is not exploring that business model.
@@valleydotphysicals7286 were not worried about that, What stacey is saying is to do it yourself privately! The one downfall is that the warranty wouldnt work, but still this would be a great money maker if we had a box truck rolling around loaded with hft stuff. Theres no law preventing us from buying them and reselling for profit.
@@Hammerjockeyrepair the replacement warranty absolutely would work
@@SDMFTommySick I dont think harbor freight will warranty 25 ratchets at a time especially when its transferred ownership. Once in awhile youll go in there personallyand they wont question a thing but if its a bulk thing I dont think they would be as kind.
@@Hammerjockeyrepair you don't need a receipt so transfer of ownership would not be an issue and why would you return 25 ratchets at a time?
I'm a fan of proto tools, never heard of them before I joined the army but after using them to fix helicopters they are actually really good
Proto and Mac and one and the same at half the price. I love Proto tools.
See?? Once in a while the US government _can_ make good decisions! -despite the bureaucratic nightmare-
@@jamescaron6465 thankfully SB&D didn't cheapify them like they did some of there other acquisitions. >cough Porter-Cable cough
Harbor Freight should have tool truck routes. haha
Man dont give them any ideas I just spent $289 this labor day dont make them go in runs or else I'm gonna have to spend more
Why, harbor freight is for diy
@@vincentgalli17 Vincent my friend. Ever professional mechanic I know including master mechanics. Have harbor and swear by them.
Alexander Flieger the guy that works in the bay next to mine always jokes and we refer to Harbor Freight as “the Snap On store” 😂 just like with any tool company Harbor Freight has some good stuff that will always hold up and get the job done and then there are some tools that I wouldn’t necessarily recommend but they’re not what some people make them out to be.
I'm proud to be a 19-year-old technician technician who goes on the snap-on truck and gets told by the snap-on guy to get the hell off my truck before I change my mind
Very interesting how companies like Harbor Freight will warranty a tool you found on the side of the road, but companies like Snap On won't.
@TheHiddenArchives system tracking and focus sales. Tells them what areas have more returns, less returns, what tools get returned and so on. They use your number as a way to track trends, not specific sales.
Remember you don't have to give it to them, you can say "sorry" you can also give a fake number, they will never know.
Unfortunately your warranty is only as good as the dealer. I know a guy who warranties his snap on once a year at Carisle. He has more than one of everything because he's been in the trade so long.
Snap on warranty all my stuff. Just gotta catch them though. No problem.
Harbor Freight's Pittsburgh Pro line doesn't suck. They are pretty good tools.
I have a couple of the 25" breaker bars and several ratchets. I'm slowly building up a set of tools in that line. My closest Harbor Freight store is about 100 miles away.
@@MrKidkiller159 Wondered how long it would take for one of the snap-on fanboys to show up.
I work at a cat dealership and I'm amazed how many of the other young fresh out of trade school guys think buying nothing but stuff out of the tool trucks is a good idea just because they can make payments. I'm almost certain one of the guys I graduated with doesn't even have reliable transportation but is still looking at a 6000$ box off the truck when harbor freight would sell him a bigger box for 600$.
There needs to be an intervention group.
I was an Industrial Salesman for Snap-On when they first started in Australia in the early 1990’s. Back then the roll out was happening feverishly quick. Many dealers were signed up, given a new truck full of tools and an area to work with no capital outlay required. They were lured into what seemed like a successful money making business. Most did quite well as I recall until a year or so on when they were pressured to finance everything. We’re talking a lot of money here and many with no cash equity behind them suddenly hit the wall. From memory the Snap-On tool plan allowed customers 6 weeks to pay off their tools and Snap-On wanted their money from the dealer in 4 weeks. So the dealer was essentially extending a line of credit to his customers for 2 weeks. That’s my understanding from then and it may be different now. But I’m not surprised in the least if the turnover is high with dealer franchises when they are trying to sell insanely expensive tools and be a line of credit that may also never be repaid.
Fascinating information Graham, and to the best of my personal experience in the USA until 2007 when I retired your input ws correct and likely still is so. When I was a truck distributor competing with Snap-on one of our industrial salesman, a counterpart to your position, made a disparaging remark about the tool trucks on the street. To the effect that we were just mobile bill boards and tax write-offs, that the 'real' money was being made on commercial activity, with government contracts and sales to entities like Home Depot and Lowes.
I bought a snap on half-inch impact. Within two years I sent it out three times for repair. After that they ended up replacing it. Now it’s going out again. Called the corporate office. They won’t do anything for me. They know there’s a problem with the specific Impact gun. I believe the model it was a 650. I’m done with snap-on.
Years ago my girlfriend, now wife bought me a snap on 3/8 impact from the tool truck and it cost her a fortune, it didn't work after 1 week. I said I didn't want it and wanted to return it but the rep just sent it for repair. 3 weeks later I got it back and after about a month it's got no power again... overpriced junk. Also he never seems to have what's broken in the van as a replacement, always got to wait weeks
I would rather own my tools my "crappy tool's" than finance anything
Yep. I always pay cash and in full for my snappy tools.
@@hilltopmachineworks2131 smart man I subbed you for using your head!🍻
Junk From Work Thanks. I appreciate that.
ha ha there is a rap song that goes "finance, I'm not interested I'm pink slippin'. I only buy it once"
Me too
I got my first mechanic job in 2005 and had to buy wrenches real fast, so I took $200 down to the Ace hardware where my brother worked. He squared me away with most everything I needed from the Ace professional line, they have served me well ever since. I have also changed things out that were mangled and trashed no questions asked in and out in 5 minutes. Never had anyone try and give me a hard time over my tools.
Ace is the place!
I got a job as a tech at a AAA auto care center in the city near me and had some hodge podge of tools. I had a dinky craftsman box and Mostly Ampro hand tools I did have a Ingersoll-Rand "titanium" 1/2 impact gun and a snap-on 3/8 gun (old one that says power people)
both impact guns were bought second hand and rebuilt. Found it hilarious when those guys borrowed my stuff because they had squandered their precious money on such a scarce amount of hand tools from snap-on and matco etc...
now that "craftsman" has become "chinaman" the only real choice for american made hand tools in my personal opinion is SK ...of coarse, im admittedly biased, ive been using SK for 20 plus years & ive never had an issue with em... better quality than (usa) craftsman, top notch american made quality, & better prices than snapon ...just my 2 cents worth
SK is the go to brand for me. Look at Tekton, they are starting to make tools in the US. I looked at their website and so far it's only a few screwdrivers and wrenches, but they are making an effort and it's worth supporting them for it.
I'm a fan of proto tools, never heard of them before I joined the army but after using them to fix helicopters they are actually really good tools
Proto’s quality control has went downhill pretty bad lately. I prefer snapon hand tools, but I’m not willing to spend the money on them for the most part. Wrenches is about it. I have wrightgrips too. Great wrenches....not a flank drive plus though, sorry. Sk is pretty good. What I grew up using on a farm. Perfect farmer tools, imo. Honestly, I miss Armstrong. My favorite balance of price, quality, fit and finish, and functionality in American made hand tools. Don’t exist anymore though....so. Try to warranty them through matco or whatever...you’ll get gearwrench replacements. Yay.
Thank god I decided to back out of getting into automotive and get into the HVAC trade instead. In HVAC, the best of the best of the best hand tools that we use are relatively dirt cheap (Klein, Channellock, Knipex, etc) and are readIly available at the local Home Depot. All the really expensive stuff (recovery machine, vacuum pump, torch kit, etc) are usually provided by the company you’re working for. And best of all, flat rate is virtually unheard of.
Dad bought a craftsman tool kit over 10 years ago, still using the same wrenches, sockets, etc. They have a lifetime warranty as well. Snap on makes good tools, but they are over priced with no additional benefits to just about any enthusiast/diyer. Same even applies for mechanics in many circumstances
Everything in this video described is exactly true we've had 4 dealers in the last 2 years come through our shop and none of them a warranty anything from the guy before without spending tons of money with them it's a nightmare for those of us who spent the money to buy good quality tool I've been slowly switching to S and K
Tekton has one of the best warranty on the market today
YES!
Over 20 years of being a technician I have dozens of horror stories dealing with “snap on guys” your video is right on the money .
I've worked in a shop for a while - never had a dealer push me into buying anything, I just got out from the truck laughing; prices we're about 4 times what the tools are actually worth. The problem is they get people with the "payment plan" where you pay '$20 a week" forever ... People need to take responsibility for their decisions and think about what they are doing. No one cares in the shop what ratchets you have - they care about the job getting done - that's all. If you decide to change trades you will have thousands of dollars collecting dust in the garage! You can't really sell them - no one will give you all that cash, so you will be stuck with them forever...
You're spot on! The majority of my tools are Snap On but they are not the same Company/brand they used to be. Once the tools started being made elsewhere, I knew. Tools that I bought back in the 80's...still with me (the ones that didn't grow legs). The same exact tool, but bought in the last decade or so, broken (some multiples of the same sku #), sitting in a box that I'm going to give back to Snap On. No SO you can have your "no more lifetime warranty". You didn't want to honor it before, why should you want to now? Maybe they meant the lifetime of the tool itself. If a dealer does really well and makes the route profitable, SO takes it away from them and gives them another crappy route so they can do it again. Ive seen this happen to many Snap On Dealers. All good guys too. I still buy Snap On tools but I buy the ones that were made in the U.S.A. from pawn shops and garage sales. If you want SO that's the way to do it. You'd be surprised what you can find. It sucks when you didn't bring enough money. lol. .........snap on...Sad...
Snap-On is such a classic example of Innovation being replaced by pushing profit margins. Snap On is quite simply bloated, they rely on their reputation to sell. I would bet you Snap-On could stamp their name on bricks and sell them for $200 a piece and the "real mechanics" would be happy to buy them. Innovation now is not a company's priority, it's simply profit. There is no spirit, just money.
Capitalism would be so much better without greed... to be fair to greed you may not be able to buy happiness, but you can sure as shit rent it for as long as you’ve got money.
ok so I am guessing you know this because of the "brick" part but there is a company called "Supreme" that literally put their name on bricks and sold them for crazy money.
btw you are exactly right it is branding and it can be massively important to selling literally anything even yourself if you are an artist etc...
If you are like me and could care less about what the guy next to you thinks about your tools then there are WAY cheaper options that are good enough.
and some stuff is WAYY better and still costs significantly less than a snap-off.
A relative is a dealer, and he gets pissed I don't get stuff from him. I'm not even a mechanic; for what stuff I do work on, Lowes, H Depot, even Ace tools are fine. Said he could get stuff for me at cost. Even those prices are outrageous.
no doubt... their stuff ridonkulous
I don't wanna sound mean, but does he actually believe in the Snap-on BS? I mean, sure they have good hand tools but they are 4 to 5 times waaaay overpriced!
I used Snap-On tools from the mid 60's through to the 90's and never had any issues, yes they were very expensive but the lifetime guarantee was worth it, I had tools break 20+ yrs after I paid for them and they were replaced no questions asked. I really can't complain about them at all in the years I used them.
it really depends on the franchisee and what tools you're buying. Some tools don't need to be Snap-on IMO, but some make the job a lot easier.
I can’t warranty my snap on tools cause they truck never shows up. With the harbor freight, I can go into any store.
I have some Snap-On stuff, some Craftsman stuff, some Harbor Freight, some Proto, you name it. All the years I have used these various tools, I can say with 100% honesty that if the names were taken off, my experience with all of them would be about equal. Some of all of the brands have broken, some have been great. I say remove the names, because I freely admit I have been swayed from time to time by the Snap-On mystique. But I can't honestly say deep down that I think the Snap-On reputation is deserved.
When I buy tools now it is usually from McMaster-Carr, and usually Proto brand. As good as anything on the market, much cheaper than Snap-On, and dealing with McMaster-Carr is just a great experience.
John Shaft ya I have a love/hate relationship with them also. Love their hand tools and I love the fact that no matter which garage you go to in America 95% of them have a snap on guy. Same can not be said for Mac, Matco or Cornwell. Any mechanic worth his salt knows that snap ons only worthwhile products are their hand tools. Anytime anyone rags on their other stuff I just roll my eyes, the guys who know what they’re doing don’t buy their multimeters etc because they’re more often then not a rebranded fluke +$50. Their toolboxes can actually make you money if you know what you’re doing. I bought a base box from a liquidation for $3000 cash kept it in immaculate condition and traded it in for $5000 2 years later. Bought a box with a workcenter and locker from a kid who bit off more than he could chew with monthly payments for $8000 I’ll probably get $9-9500 if I ever trade this one in. That’s how I live my life the best shit for the lowest price!
I just bought that same 1/2 impact a couple of months ago, just under £700. I was so tempted to try the top end Milwaukee gun and I looked into Ingersoll Rand too, but went back to snap on because it's what I've known for years. It is a good gun but I do regret not giving another brand a try.
On the subject of warranty, if a tool breaks make sure you keep all the parts. I lost out on a replacement 3/8 End on my 1/2 to 3/8 reducer because I didn't keep the sheered off part.
Havent tried the new IR gun but I have the new Milwaukee 2767 1/2 gun. That is the best impact gun on the market. Havent had a bolt that it couldnt take off and that includes the infamous Honda crank bolt(without the lisle weighted socket)
Milwaukee is better
I still have my 15year USA made Craftsman tools. Nice quality and get the job done! When Sears started going down I explored Gear wrench and Tekton and have been very impressed with both brands. I also have some Harbor Freight tools, which are great - especially their tool boxes.
I came into the mechanic trade later in life and have had my first Snap-On dealings in the last couple of years, and what I got from that dealer set my BS detectors on fire every time I went out to that truck. This video explains a lot, especially with the "stock problems". I dealt with it as a necessity while my apprentice discount still applied, but they basically ran out the clock on me with their unobtainable stock. Older guys at the shop are generally Snap-On loyalists (and haven't had to buy anything from them in a while, hmm) but the younger guys know how to use the internet and figure out whether paying 2-4 times everybody else's price is worth it. Even for Snap-On tools, I'd rather just order from their site than bother with the truck.
Very well said. I've been turning wrenches since 88 and snap on used to be half way decent but hear last 5 years have went down the drain. I watched 5 dealers in Wichita KS area go out the only ones hanging on are the independent guys 25 years plus that don't have to answer to corporate. And guess what they sell Milwaukee then they do their own. And spot on warranty they don't cover half of what they used to. Just makes me sick that I wasted my time and money with them well no more.
when I worked as a mechanic I used craftsman, never let me down.. that was 30 years ago ...most of the other guys there called snap on , snap off tools...in my opinion snap on and the other tool trucks around are just way to expensive
Snap-off. All though my channel name is more a description of how bad a mechanic I am.
@spam lite I like to say that same thing as "Do you want a badge or a chest to pin one on?" {:-)
@spam lite Woosh. Right over your head.
@spam lite No, it was the meaning of the English words I'm typing going right over your head. I don't have any Chinese ratchets.
Still got all my snap on tools 🤗!! I only get them out to look at / show others. Then I put them back in the vault!! 😂😂
I'm just here for the snap on fan boy comments.
😆 same here.
Yep, me too.
Right there with you
I do have lots of snap on tools... They're all from ebay or repos. Great tools at an 8th the cost.
Damn it! Beat me to it!!
I was a MAC dealer years ago; corporate takes broken hand tools back no questions asked. Even some that clearly show abuse. If the dealer balks, don’t buy anything else from him. There’s no reason for the dealer to treat you like that. You make it sound like a common problem.
I have been using my Ryobi 1/2 Impact for over a year now and it just keeps hitting hard. I think I paid $110 for the tool, charger and a 6 amp hour battery.
I have had a Ryobi for about three years, still works great. I've used it to bust nuts loose that other peoples cordless Snap-ons couldn't get to move. I also have a blue recip saw that went through a shop fire that I still use. Hands down the best cordless tools I've ever had when considering price.
Here’s my truth. Yes I’ve broken snap on tools. But not as much as I’ve broken lower end stuff. HOWEVER: it still doesn’t justify the price
Of the two Snap-On dealers I’ve met only one of them was fair, honest, and actually had a lot of grace.
The dislikes are people who eat up Snap On advertisement
I stopped buying snap on in the early nineties. I was at what I call a maintenance point with tools. I was working for one of the largest school bus companies and had pretty much everything I needed tool wise. I had a couple of sockets that had split and our snap on dealer refused warranty saying the tools were worn out. I said they are 5 years old and have a lifetime warranty. Nope it's the lifetime of the tool. The following week my buddy who was still purchasing a lot of tools got them warrantied for me no questions asked.. So the warranty is as long as your purchasing continues.
Not believable. Sorry.
I bought a bucket of 40 year old screwdrivers all snapon at a motorcycle swap meet
I stopped and got on a snapon truck I saw at a shop near my house. Asked him to have a look. He said “I’ll put new shanks in them and you’ll be good to go”
All new shanks no
Questions asked
@@deanodebo So you think everyone in the world got treated by Snap-On the same as you? There is a mountain of evidence against you. Try reading most of these posts about the warranty. After that, you might restate your opening line.
I’ve been turning wrenches for 35 years. I’ve never had a snapon dealer deny warranty for any reason at all.
Meanwhile, sadly the department stores are a joke. I have to go to ace or Lowe’s for craftsman and they say “sorry we don’t have that model
But you can have this piece of crap instead” basically
I’m not stupid. I don’t buy unless it’s on sale and I only pay cash, no borrowing. But you can’t tell me that harbor freight compares to snap on. Come on be serious
No professional tech will say that.
"Number 10: Pentagon prices”
Love that and made me think of Goldblooms dad in the movie Independence Day...
“You didn't think they actually spent ten thousand dollars for a hammer and thirty thousand for a toilet seat, did you?”
-Julius Levinson
Back in 1981 when we opened a shop inside a steel mill complex to service trucks for one company. Little one bay shop with just enough space for us and a 45 foot trailer. We had a lot of Snap-On stuff bought new off the truck. When we made that move we couldn't get our broken tools replaced to save our lives. Phone calls, letters, most went unanswered with a few empty promises to get a dealer to stop. Haven't bought Snap-On or from any tool truck since.
The amount of truth in this video is profound. I've been saying this for years and people have ignored me. This sums up perfectly the problems with snap on as a corporation.
I know exactly what you're saying, I can't get through to most people, on anything I bring up that matters. like these days people assume I'm just going through some kind of political phase when I warn them about socialism. Even stupid unimportant things in the past were irritating, like I'd try to tell people about a show they should check out and they shrug it off, then a while later someone else tells them to watch it. They do and they ask why they didn't hear about it sooner. Idiots. I seriously just give up on the ones who can't listen, use your crappy fram oil filters, repeat orange man bad BS, what do I know. I'll be out of here before its too late if it things don't turn around.
@Derealized You also gotta realize that even if you're right about a lot of stuff, it doesn't mean you can't be very, VERY wrong about something else.
Of course people usually have no idea at what they're very, very wrong at. Many wlll still continue on forever despite all good evidence of the contrary.
I've never had a issue with Snap-On's warranty. The truck doesn't always cover it, but a quick call to Snap-On and it's in the mail (usually no return).
Same. They will send you a bit for free if its one but if you have a few things they want it sent back, Prepaid label. Easy.
I only have 2 snap on ratchets and everything else, Mac, Husky, Craftsman, Tekton, Gearwrench, Ares, and Dewalt. My Mac dealer is cheap $30 every week. In my book if you're starting out as an apprentice or technician. Gearwrench is the way to go
Thanks for going more on this subject. I talked to my Snap On guy more today. He’s holding his old truck for ransom so he can break some of the rules that Snap On gives him. Therefore he can keep his overhead low and save for a new truck. He’s finally now going to order a new truck from this one place in Milwaukee that Snap On only lets him buy. (LDV) $$$ So after that, he’s gonna have to be on good behavior.
So that’s why new tools and promos on his truck are very hard to get. Then he says it’s been slow.. gee I wonder why?? People aren’t going to want to buy tools if there’s nothing on the truck!
Back then like 10 years ago, he was more like a salesman hustling, selling tons of tools, toolboxes... Now he doesn’t sell much boxes anymore because a lot of the dealerships have built-ins. Also, now he has cut off a lot of the supplemental vendors due to the lack of warranty and time he has to spend to send the warranties to those vendors. So overall, it’s a pretty tough business, I don’t know how he’s hanging in there, he must have other things he’s holding over Snap On‘s head just to get by!
Hey if you can give him my contact info. I'd like to talk to him about his experiences. I've talked to over a dozen dealers at this point and I can truthfully tell you that if I ran into the CEO on the street I'd be in jail shortly thereafter.
Timestamps:
0:00 Intro and Snap-On History
1:34 Exorbitant prices #10
2:18 Majority of tools made overseas #9
4:03 Not necessarily the best tools money can buy #8
4:55 Li-ion power tools suck #7
5:55 Snap-On screws over their dealers #6
6:53 Warranty Issues - Snap-On only covers original purchaser #5
8:36 Dealers can't get new stock until current stock sold - includes warranty items! #4
9:37 High-pressure sales - almost like a cult #3
11:10 Financing people with bad credit - dealer can repo tools at any time #2
12:58 Incredibly high turnover rate for dealers #1
Never had an issue with warranty…. I actually mailed in tools if I ever had an issue with the tool truck but it’s never ever happened
2 thumbs up! I would only add that your dealer will become a ghost if nobody in the shop owes him money. Haven't seen my rep in 6 months!
When I started in this industry some 40+ years ago, I couldn't afford S/O, so I bought other USA branded tools, New Britain, Utica, Bonney, Easco, Stanley, Armstrong, Allen, SK, Proto, and others. Saved a small fortune doing that and while it's true that most of these companies are now gone, and therefore, there's no warranty, the fact is that nearly all th
All those old tools are worth money, and most cases more than what you paid for them. Probably only old guys like you, bear, and myself would consider buying. I check out pawn shops and garage sales for old Snap On/J.C. Penny/Montgomery Ward tools. I'm still looking for old Snap On screwdrivers with the triangle handles. I still miss those.
Say what you want if you can afford Snap on tools you will get em. I buy everything used online or ebay and get amazing deals and they have the best tools period.
I didn't have a snap on dealer for the longest at my shop. I've never had to warranty a hand tool costing over $100 but I would call corporate and they would send me a new tool without asking for the old one in return. They ask how I got the tool to which I answer either purchased from the corporate website or from my previous dealer and they ask for the part number. I've done this about 6 times. No one seems to know about this. Truthfully I'd rather do this than deal with a dealer
I stand with ridgid all day every day! As a homeowner with a smaller woodshop in my garage.
You can also read the contract for that new box you just put on credit. Pay attention to the part that when the guy repossesses the box he gets to keep everything inside the box to pay for what's owed on the box..............
I've seen a snap on guy repo a box .. mechanic stopped coming to work.. owed on the box .. snap on man .. came in the shop opened the box .. put all the guys tools in a card board box and rolled his box right on out of there .. he didn't touch a thing inside the box .. when he could have because the mechanic wasn't there .. that's my experience
@@garyrobinson5719 That's a Snap On man with a deep conscious. I wish they were all similar, but unfortunately they aren't. They're humans too and with the good come the bad. Luckily, we've got the internet and if the Snap On man doesn't treat me like I would treat someone I'm making a lot of money off of well, I'll just by my tools off the internet. I don't care about a silly "warranty" - the only time I've used it is when I got a socket in a set that wasn't formed properly and didn't have any markings on it. Otherwise, I've never had a problem with any Snap On tool or guy selling tools on the internet Ebay.
@@garyrobinson5719 They cannot take what is in the box. Period. Unless the tools in the box are from the Snap-On dealer and are not paid off.
Maybe if tool bear saves their money they can afford snap on. I don't overpay for my snap on. Probably paid craftsman prices. No their hand tools are made in the USA Wrenches, sockets, hammers. . Some screw drivers and pliers are made in Spain. Out of all the sockets and wrenches I tried they still fit the best.
A smart bear doesn't buy what he can afford, he buys what he needs to get the job done correctly.
Better off buying what you can afford. Cheap tools fit cheap. Tested a ton of them, the wobble on some is just incredibly bad. I was not a believer in Snap Off tools at first, but they seriously just fit well. Warranty is mad easy too. if you call them. Attend any program or school that offers the SEP discount and I got alot of stuff for craftsman prices back when. I never buy anything from harbor freight its cheap trash. Look at the CEO makes of harbor fright i'm not supporting that guy. Row a stores everywhere, paying their employees trash wages but that's just me
I retired in 2013, about 10 years prior I started turning the Snap-On dealer down...
Snap-On was screwing their franchise operators to the point the turnover was amazing considering the better than $75 startup cost.
Snappy lost me about 20 years ago.I still have enough that if I sold them I could by a 3 bedroom house and mine are older quality made stock.
Snappy will fuck themselves out of business.
They have been around for a long time. I remember the Snap-on trucks. Never purchased a tool from them because of their high prices. Thnx for the info😎👍
I worked in a shop and the SnapOn truck passed by every day. I contacted the dealer and asked if he would put us on his route and stop at our shop. He said, nope, uou can come by my house after work if you want to buy any tools. I told him to forget it that we would continue buying Craftsman. Of course, that's when Craftsman was an accepted brand in shops along side the SnapOff guys.
I bought very few snap on tools. That was back in the late 90s . I bought more Matco than from any other tool truck. But as I got older, I had more Craftsman and SK. Short story long, when you work on trucks and heavy equipment nobodies brand will last forever.
You could get an imapact wrench from Snap-On for $800 or a tool cart, a reasonable selection of tools plus an HF or Kobalt impact wrench for the same. Even if the quality argument was valid (which it's not), it would still make more sense to do the second.
A HF opened next door to a big Ford dealer, the techs live in there. I talked to one of the techs on the line he said his SO impact wore out, he said what the hell, I can get the Earthquake till it gets repaired, can always return it next door, the repair may even cost more and he has to wait. Make a long story short he said he said the new tool is much better than the SO ever was. Using it over a year. He sold the old impact, never even called the SO guy. He said many of the new HF tools may be better quality than SO, he said scary but true. He said SO may be good for some specialty stuff but you have to be crazy to get everything from them new.
@540 MUDSTAIN So don't buy Harbor Freight then. I don't know what you're doing with your impact wrenches. They are designed to use on nuts and bolts, not as jack stands. I could understand your confusion on that.
@540 MUDSTAIN That's great, don't buy them. They aren't junk for a lot of people who use them including professional mechanics, electricians, plumbers, etc. Buy what works for you, but you don't gain any cred by paying more for your tools, only the results you get using them.
I started my first mechanic job last year and I needed to get some wrenches and stuff but was short on cash and horrible credit my local matco distributor Devan worked with me got me a dope 15" 88 tooth flex head and a standard 10" rachet set(8mm-19mm) fresh out the box for 25$/week it ended up being faulty ( I found out when. I went to use it) and Devan drove all the way back to replace it for me that day and stayed to make sure everything was in order. The snap on guy tried to get me to hand over an entire paycheck for just 1 rachet no sockets no nothing extra then got upset and angry at me when I told him no. That set my belief in never buying snap on tools.
Massively inflated prices in Australia, just like Stihl chainsaw prices here.
I sell Stihl but I must admit I would buy the Japanese Echo items we sell over the Stihl as some of the Stihl machines aren't made in Austria/Germany which everyone assumes. The MS170, 171 chainsaws are made in China.
Every word is the absolute truth. I've seen it all, from guys two weeks on the job unloading a 12 drawer roller cab, to watching the dealer take it back. Good tools, but not worth the money.
Something must have been in the steel here in Australia for (Siddons)-Sidchrome to be the #1 tool company in Australia & New Zealand for many years. They had an absolute moneyback/lifetime guarantee on all tools they made no exceptions made with their products. The car manufacturing industry here had wheel braces and other tools made for them by Sidchrome for the cars they sold to the public. It wasn't uncommon for people to purchase a cars because of the tools that come with it. They were a very trusted brand of tool. All the tools when they were made here, were of such quality that they could be used in heavy industry without any problem, even if you purchase a small socket set etc. The quality was second to none until it was sold in the 1990's, now it's parent company is black and decker have Sidchrome tools made in Taiwan. Sadly, since then, the quality has not been the same, and like all companies, profit before people seems to be the motto now. Sidchrome still sell tools, yet at inflated prices and it's not worth buying them as they are not made in Australia and don't use Australian steel. Ironically, the older Sidchrome tools sell for quite high prices and anything with Siddons-Sidchrome is worth a lot of money. I have never liked the snapon tool company anyway.
I’m a new diesel mechanic. So far I’d say only buy snap on on select items. Things like long breaker bars and pry bars where you could get hurt if it breaks. And if you have a good snap on guy then other than price I have no complaints
Been working with my Snapon guy for 14 years & never once had a problem warranting any tool...he also has 5 trucks and covers a large area...I just cant deal with having to go somewhere to warranty a tool every time it breaks
Except that tools from Sears, Autozone, Harbor Freight, don't break any more often. That's part of the Snap-On group think myth. Forging steel into servicable wrenches, sockets, screwdrivers, isn't rocket science. Snap-On doesn't have access to some secret process or unobtainium steel. They just charge prices like they think they do.
@@CrimFerret really, there ISNT A TOOL THAT WONT BREAK. 30+ YRS in the business and I can still push my big name Snap On, Mac, Match, Cornwell farther than Han most. Started out with Napa/Craftsman(then made by K-D/Easco. And broke tools as much or more than bigger names. So I only replaced critical tools with more expensive.
BUT if the truck comes weekly I pay weekly.
With local shops not local anymore (ie Craftsman,Napa) I still have truck tool bills.
As for "other people make better,cheaper, prettier,sweeter smelling tools" BULL$&!?. OTHER COMPANIES ARE ATTEMPTING TO COPY BIG NAME BRANDS.
21 yr old tool box from S-O, still can order parts for it.
And it's 10 times box new other brands are.
Picked up Cornwell roller cart all drawers and bigger than my Mac cart that's 14 and have no dealer.
Cornwell still good and stuff and still paid good money for it.
Harbor Freight has it's place, but it's not even on par with old Sears/Craftsman model(Craftsman name owned by Stanley/Mac/Proto now).
And in actuality most tools are not getting better, quality is levelling off.
@@MonzaRacer If the quality is leveling then the price should also. Old Craftsman was on par with old Snap On and old Milwakee. Not any more. Oh and speaking of Mac, rumor has it that the Doyle tools at HF are identical and made in the same factory with the only diffence is grip color and price. There's nothing wrong with buying more expensive brands, but these days it often doesn't get you more serviceable tools. Even if it did, how much more servicable? If a Snap-On tool lasted 30 years and was 5 times as expensive as one that lasted 10, you'd still be better off with the less expensive tool.
I have HF tools. Their bearing puller set lasted 1 use. HF is shit.
Dont forget these guys can write $5,000 off on their Snapon tools.
Good points. I've been a Snap On customer for 30 years, and all was well with my original dealer. Since he retired, the new dealer service absolutely sucks, to the point the Snap On brand name just angers me to look at it. I have a bunch of broken and worn out tools, and a dealer who doesn't give a F about that.
Also, the "quality" of Blue Point stuff - it's garbage. It pisses me off that I even own any of that brand at this point, knowing how much I overpaid for it.
If Snap On didn't have that easy payment plan, especially now that there's online competition that they didn't have 20 years ago, they wouldn't sell a F -ing thing.
Funny this popped up on my feed, my brother just financed 16000$ for one of those tool boxes with the fancy wheels. At a whopping 20% interest rate!
You're an idiot if you think its truely 20%. If you read its simple intrest. Like a house and by paying every week you cut that intrest rate down to roughly 14% at the highest
he should have bought a Gucci purse....make all the ladies jealous :)
It's obvious from any perspective that the Snap On model is not what it once was. I had no idea what the details were but everything you said fits what I am seeing. I don't see a path for them to recover, too many low risk options to get an adequate tool. With so many professionals having HF and other bargain tools in their box the perception that one must have a big name tool to be a professional is dying.
You could pay $900 for a 3.5" wrench or you could buy a plasma cutter and the 6" flat bar to cut the wrench out of. Also at what point would you use a wrench that big instead of power tools.
david bilia I have made wrenches exactly as you described, I needed a 1 1/8 inch wrench for my Porter Cable Router. $18.00 at Woodcraft.
This wrench had two bends so it could fit in the recess of a router table. I made my wrench out of 1/4 plate steel. It was salvaged metal..
I’ve never been so happy about not getting something I’ve wanted for such a long time. I’ll stick to craftsman. It ain’t pretty but it works.
Now Stanley, the new owner and manufacturer of Craftsman.
I bought a Bosch set drill- impact driver impact 1/2in mix flashlight circular saw Sawzall for 350.00 at lows
I bought a Bosch Electric Impact 30+ years ago(from a snap-on dealer who came around weekly) and shortly there after it had a problem. They told me to take a Hike. Guess what, I haven't bought a single Bosch tool in over 30 years and to this day will pay more to keep from buying a Bosch anything.
As a retired GM tech I can tell you that snap on tools made my career. I bought all the others too. Mac matco craftsman harbor freight etc. The tools that stood the test of time were all snap on. My 1/2 inch impact sockets are 30 plus years old. Only warrantied a few. Yeah they are pricey. I bought traded in used snap on tools from the other tools dealers to save a buck. If you're doing flat rate work you can't take chances on cheap tools.
You are not up to what are "cheap tols" anymore. Harbor freight can kill snap-off any day of the week. I have 3-4 Snap-On ratchets over 20 years old. All of theme stopped working a long time ago. Snap-On used to be great. They are now Chinese made overpriced crap. They went downhill in the 1990s.
@@ColSandersFORPRESIDENT
You’re dishonest.
@@deanodebo Yeah. No. Snap-On sucks. Ask any serious mechanic.
@@ColSandersFORPRESIDENT
Uh huh. Riiiight.
My brother runs a auto shop for 30 years. He and his mechanic buddies ditched Snap-On many moons ago. All my Snap-On ratchets are stripped. I ditched them as well.
My toolbox is Harbor Freight. I have made my money back. Enough said. Still using Harbor Freight. Lifetime guarantee. Enough said.
A bit of an edit. I haven't had to replace a tool yet. The stuff works. The secret to shopping Harbor Freight is to shop cheap but not too cheap.
$1000 goes VERY FAR in Harbor Freight. Plus, if you time it right, and are patient, you can extend that money even further.
S-K tools is the company snap on use to be
I love my SK tools!
...absolutely, couldnt agree with u more... love my sk stuff... 20 plus years & zero complaints... & the new "DT" (doubles the tooth count) ratchets, & the "DT" drop in kits for ur old ratchets, are fantastic! ...& since they use a double pawl design, as opposed to a split pawl, u dont sacrifice strength, actually u double ur strength & ur tooth count... my old 3/8" drive went from 40 to 80 & my old 1/4" drive went from 60 to 120 (feel free to double check me on those numbers, thats per best of my recollection) ...& no, i dont work for sk ...but in the intrest of full disclosure, a buddy of mine does
@@heavychevy383 This is exactly the sort of thing one should consider paying extra for. If you have to work in tight places a lot, more ratchet points are definitely a plus. You actually get something for that extra money spent. That doesn't mean I wouldn't be using them with HF sockets.
They don't make enough tools for a professional to get by. A lot of times you have to buy a tool from snap on , hazet, stahlwille , etc because they are the only company that makes that particular tool.
@@stephenpavlov8942 Such as? I'm not saying they don't exist, but I would like to hear about some actual examples.
Buying tools on a tool truck with a payment plan is a no can do. We told snap on to get lost about 5 years ago at our dealership and if one of my guys needs a tool, we usually work something out like me ordering the tool and letting them pay it off over a month interest free.
That is a class operation!
@@denoftools when I was a young mechanic I saw many of my peers take on way too much toll truck debt and they'd have to fork over most of their paycheck to keep their tools and some of them just gave up and gave the stuff back because they were basically working for nothing. Tool truck operators are second only to late night tv evangelists and snake oil salesmen.
Years back I needed a wire twister that spun both directions. Snap on had them in their book. I saw a truck stopped at a garage and I went to the truck and asked for these. I knew at the time they were some where near 75.00 for these. The person just looked at me like I was bothering him and he just said NO. He did not look- ok it's his truck he knows what he has, but he did not offer to order them for me. I was about 45 at the time. Due to his attitude I never even tried to purchase from them again. At the night school at the time getting my aircraft A&P certs. They dropped by to try to sell the night school people tools. The night school students were mostly adults that had other jobs but liked working on planes. They offered the day students something like 50% off. Several people were going to buy tools(remember these are mostly adult night students with planes and MONEY). The teacher mentioned that none of the night students were full time, so the man said NO DISCOUNT FOR YOU. He sold nothing that evening!
Snap-On's student program is handled by their industrial division. The problem with that is, it means they can't sell to people that would have access to a rep already.
Most of Snap-On's catalog is online for you to order from.
@Agent J same with airbus, and douglas. How many people were injured by faulty cars that manufacturers denied had issues? Every complex mechanical system can fail, more so when maintained and operated in 3rd world conditions.
@Agent J no, faulty products require whoever made the decisions to be held accountable. If the problems were from bad maintenance or bad training then it's not on the manufacturer.
If you run a car into the ground and the brakes fail due to bad maintenance, the manufacturer isn't responsible. If a person doesn't know how to properly use a car and dies from it the manufacturer isn't responsible.
We don't even have the final report on the lion air crash yet. Eveything is still conjecture from little bits and pieces that have been released. A few days ago it was reported the pilots were checking the manual when they crashed.
If the final report shows boeing at fault, find out who authorized the sale of faulty products and hold them responsible. If it shows pilot/maintenance error, sorry manufacturer not responsible.
Know a guy that owns and operates a small shop. He does a lot of work for railroad trucks. Bought Snapon 1/2" torque wrench that broke almost immediately. They won't warranty. He now uses Autocraft torque wrench from advance auto. I know that I sold to him
I’ve had Snap On Tools along with Mac, Craftsman and SK for over 30 years. And never had a problem with a warranty from Snap On. Not that I’ve needed a lot of warranty.
There was a time Sears use to give you rebuilding kits for Craftsman ratchets.
Harbor Freight has come along way with a lot of their stuff.
But some of their stuff is still cheap and I wouldn’t buy it.
edbigtruck yes. Harbor freight has already hurt themselves with the stigma that harbor freight only sells shit. I’ve gotten some decent stuff from there. But snap on is almost the same way, except they’ve built their stigma on quality. And for the people who want quality, they go to snap on. There’s something about brand loyalty that really just gets peoples brains in a knot, myself included.
P0tat07 , I have bought some decent stuff from Harbor Freight. I think their sockets and Ratchets are decent. I don’t like their wrenches especially the extra long.
To me the metal feels soft.
I do own some Wrench sets I purchased from Northern Tool years ago.
And like them very much.
edbigtruck i like Kobalts ratchets. I also have a set of Milwaukee wrenches and they’re wicked.
I have two sets of Kobalt Screwdrivers. I liked the first set so much went back for a second set a year later and they changed the grip style.
I like them just as if not more.
It seems Kobalt is supposedly getting passed out for the line of Craftsman Tools Lowe’s will be selling.
And Red lets us know what those crap items are.
Good video. When my cousin started out as a mechanic in the early 2000s, he bought a bunch of Snap On. I remember a 10 piece screwdriver set that cost him 110 dollars. It blew my mind that he paid 11 bucks a screwdriver when most sets in the store were going for 15 for the whole set.
There’s a difference between a 15 dollar set 50 dollar set and 110 dollar set.
The gap in quality between 50 and 110 is not big . But 15 and 50 is.
@@reefym2627 If I were to use a $15 set once in a while, that is good enough. I have Snap-On, Craftsman, Harbor Freight and a ton of other brands for over a period of 40 years. The only tools that I have that are broken is 3 Snap-On ratchets. So, if Snap-On were really that good, all my other non Snap-On tools would be broken, and the Snap-On ones would be working.
Someone on my local Craigslist has been trying to sell snapon tools for months. 11 random combination wrench's and 5 sockets for $125, and he's come down from $200. Doesn't even list sizes. Lol.
Worked as mechanic and engine builder and field rep for a factory remanufacturer for 48 years. Only bought Snap-On hand tools and torque wrenches. Sorry there too expensive for you, but no one can compete with how well the sockets and wrenches work. Period, ive used many others over the years working with dealers and shops I visited.
I love Harbor Freight.
I have been buying and using Snap on tools for over 30 years. The tools are great, the company sucks balls. The prices are ridiculous for sure. If I was just starting today, I would never have as much Snap on stuff as I do
Yep, that is it in a nutshell.
My area has went threw 3 reps in the last 4 yrs that I know of . The last guy we had had a helper that did the routes and dealt with the customers while he sat around and did nothing . Then the Friday before Christmas decides to tel him there’s no money in selling tools he’s going out of business you no longer have a job. I had a truck account with a balance of 350 that I’ve tried to call corporate numerous times to pay it off and they tell me no it’s the new guy that takes over money. To me ur 💯 % correct I would not wana be a snap on rep they are trying to sell dept to the new guy to collect on if we ever get one again. But as for me I’m done with the tool truck Lowe’s has craftsman n that’s who’s gona get my money if I need anything.
Snap-On doesn't care, they already got the money from the dealer. So what now? You have to wonder if at some point in the future some new dealer will come to you with their hand out for that? I'm not even sure that's legal.
I guess I should update this but corporate just called this week n the wana offer a settlement for 25% off my balance but want it by this Friday so im gona pay it and be done with them.
CrimFerret they didn’t get the money from the dealer I’m pretty sure when our dealer quit corporate bought him out minus the money the dealer owed and got the debt with it.
My pops and I were just talking about this. He tries to buy American when he can find them at not highway robbery prices. He still uses my late Grandfather's American made tools every day at the shop... But he loves a good deal on some overseas tools that just work.
Wow $56 for a Chinese hammer. I can get a USA made Estwing for half that.
I have to admit I'm a bit of an Estwing fanboy.
Yeah, my dad swears by their framing hammers so I've always been partial to them also.
I think my grandpa had Estwings, my dad uses Estwings and now I've got Estwings lol.
@@denoftools I've spent the productive part of my life with a hammer in my hand- and Estwing is the best.
Estwing stop making my weight forward hammer...😱😔
You can’t even order them from corporate.
I bought 600$ snap on digital torque wrench , the tail cap to insert the batteries. Was ceased.
I even tried pliers to try to remove the cap.
It cost me 200 to have snap on remove the cap.
It is more than one needs.
Keeps track of each foot lbs settings (60 ft lbs x4 ) has clock, yellow led light up as the wrench begins to torque, the green over tighten displays red beeps and vibrates.
Add has angle finder, meteric lot more
I plan to get just plain clicker soon , is really well built , fancy, easy to use, enjoy using it.
For lug nuts want simple adjust to torque value either snap on or matco.
Years ago a professional auto mechanic showed me his tool box....
1) tools used everyday were Snap on , Mac , etc
2) tools used once or twice a month were Craftsman...
3) tools used once or twice a year were made in China.
The object was to keep food and clothes for your kids and not make the tool truck rich , while purchasing the level of quality you need.
I agree, having cheaper tools that are use less often and better tools for the most often use just makes sense
@@Stephenberry0 That makes sense but in the case of Snap-On these days, the high price doesn't equate to better quality, or at least not enough better to warrant the prices asked. Now if I had to use tools every day, I'd be a lot more worried about ergonomics than who's name was on them.
CrimFerret that is a good point about price not necessarily equals quality and how they feel in the hand. I’m am just a diy guy. Nothing against Snap-on because I haven’t handled them. I have mostly USA Craftsman tools with SK tools being my “high end” stuff.
This has been my approach. I have been a mechnic for five years now. it is my third careeer. I purchas Snap-on,
But I keep my tab small. I use mostly Snap-on and Wright ratchets. I still have almost all of my Craftsman sockets from the 80s. I replace with snap-on when something brakes. I buy alot of USA close outs. I am always on the look out for a deal. I appreciate the quality of Snap-on, but I refuse to go broke buying it.
I bought a snapon scanner in 2013 it was the solas pro and a year later they stopped doing updates on it and told me I had to purchase the newest one which is faster and touch screen, I will never buy anything else from snapon again after this, the dealer did not even mention that the solid pro was being discontinued
I’ll never buy another SnapOn tool after my warranty issues
fellowshiparoundthefire What happened?
A great video to listen to while working in the garage. Thank you for the great content! It’s greatly appreciated!!!
Wait, hand tools can cost thousands dollars? All my tools altogether (Power, hand and carpentry) cost a little over $1000 at best. Christ.
How? I’ve got individual tools that cost over a grand...like several.
@@dylanbland5993 He does not offer his list of tools. Maybe a power saw, a hammer and a sander?🤣
I got a few broken snap on tools tried getting them warrantied with no luck , switch to duralast never had a problem
FlankDrivePlus...Nothing better .
Even though I am a mechanic that uses snap on every day... I agree with most of this video. I think that if you stick with the premium products as far as hand tools most are USA. The budget stuff is usually overseas in my experience. I did think I heard that the 18v was made in USA, but it’s garbage anyway. The one thing I don’t agree with is the high pressure. I’ve had three dealers and have been amazed at how they don’t even try to sell me something for weeks on end. Just let me come on. Pay on my account and walk off. Oh well their loss.