Does anyone know how to have broken hand tools repaired by Snap-On? I no longer have access to the shop where I worked when I bought them. I'm looking to have 2 ratchets, 1 socket, and a few screw drivers replaced. Please any info would be helpful.

Either leave them with a friend and have him give them to the tool guy or carry them in your car and the next time you see him stop.

One reason I love Craftsman tools, no shortage of Sears stores, or at least now. Probably go belly up after Christmas.

Thanks for the ideas, I'm gonna put them all in the car and just wait till I see a guy. But in the mean time I'm gonna go get a new ratchet from Sears.

Craftsman

1 quarter of the price I paid for the Snap-On equivalent!!!

I have the same problem with a broken snap-on (my fault) ratchett. Do you need to have the receipt to get it fixed free? It's been long gone for 30 years...

No receipt needed, just finding a dealer to do the work. And hopefully he has the pieces on the truck to fix them.

Open the phone book and get the number for your district office. Give them a call and they will usually send a dealer to your home to warranty out the stuff. You can also just carry the stuff with you and when you see a dealer Parked go on in

the cool thing about craftsman is you just bring them instore and they give you a replacement. snap on is a better quality but very inconvienient.

It maybe inconvient to have a tool truck, but it also convient when you get payed flat rate and can't leave to go to the store. These tools and programs are meant for the Guy that uses his tools to pay his bills. My box is ful of snapon, mac and matco tools and haven't broken a tool in several years. the key is to have the right tool for the job. In the past when i have broken a tool, they are usually replaced within an hour. Borrow another and no time or money is lost. You won't get near the quality of tool or comfort level of a craftsman tool to use them day in and day out. Not to mention Sears doesn't have near the specialty tools i need or most techs need.

Are the Snap-On, Matco, and MAC ratchets, sockets, wrenches THAT much better than Craftsman? Honest question. I'm not a mechanic and I've never really used anything but Craftsman. I won't buy or use that cheap [censored]. I know some of you will say Craftsman is cheap [censored], but it works for me and many others. I'm no fan of Sears, but their tools have been good to me (non corded tools).

Just curious. Would I like to have a decent collection of these tools? Yes. Do I want to pay 3 times the cost? No. Would I pay twice the cost of a Craftsman? Maybe.


To me, this tool-truck business going out of business is a lot like the concerts right now. 1/2 full arenas, but the ticket prices are the same or more than previous years. Why not lower the prices and fill the venue???

If you really want to learn about tools at the OCD level that we discuss oil here, go to the tool thread at the garagejournal forum.

There is some really good information there dispersed within threads that nitpick tool specifications. Just like what we have here.

Many there believe Craftsman is still the best "value" for diy level mechanics, but that their quality is going downhill. The Sears warranty is unbeatable.

MANY there complain that Snap On warranty is very hit or miss, and that a tool truck can tell you to send your stuff to the company for warranty. Chances that he will warranty something from a non customer are iffy.

Craftsman is not a bad tool at all for the home user. They are good and the warranty is good. If you make a living with your tools you will notice the difference.

Yes the snapon ratchets are much better then craftsman are. They are much more comfortable to work with and the gears and much stronger. I feel for the most part all of the tools are higher quality and more comfortable to use. Does everyone need these brands....No. Can most people do without snapon, mac and matco at home....yes. As a shop owner and a tech you have to look past just the ratchets and hand tools. Alot of our specialty tools can only be bought on these truck. Case in point a socket for a ICP sensor for a 6.0 powerstroke cannot be bought at a store and the stupid thing cost 250.00. It's also neither of the big 3 brand. We want the most reliable torque wrenches and want to be able to have them calibrated anytime. For alot of guys they may not need the highend tools. We work strictly on diesels and bolts are tight and require mass amounts of torque. Most people can use craftsman and may not ever break anything. If you have the right tool to do the job in most cases you wont have to lean so hard on those ratchets or sockets and they will last much longer. If your a motorcycle tech you don't need the highend tools. if you break something think about upgrading then as im sure it wont be the last one youll break of that brand. There is no shame in have a toolbox full of muts aslong as it gets the job done. I don't remember any application asking what tool brand is in your box

You can send them back to Snap-on and they will warranty them for you. I know of several guys who have bad or no dealers in their area that do this all of the time. Snap-on stands behind their tools and yes, the truck brands are that much better in their main line hand tools and the specialty tools that they make (not re-branded). They help a pro do their job faster but are overkill for most homeowners unless you are into your cars a LOT more than the average person.

A lot is personal preference in your tools. I like having a nice, well made (prefer US made) tool if possible. You will find a lot of Snap-on, Matco, Cornwell and MAC in my boxes but there are a lot of Craftsman, Lisle, KD tool, CDI, Knipex, Channellock, Williams and others there as well.

snap-on tools blow away Craftsman

I have thousands upon thousands of dollars invested in snap-on

their ratches are much better feeling, stronger, and now most of them are a finer tooth mechanism which requires you to move the ratchet less, great for tight spots! you can use them literally when another brand would not work at all.... same with their sockets, stronger and smaller, they also fit in tighter spots

wrenches are lightyears ahead of craftsman/gearwrench open ended wrenches..... pliers are good and screwdrivers are nice, albeit the Craftsman professional line-up has some nice screwdrivers and pliers.

I don't have problems with warranty on snapon because the guy comes weekly, and if I really needed something on the spot, he is only a phone call away.... yeah its expensive, but I like dealing with them.