Hi all,
This post made me run to my Matco tool box and look at my wrenches. Most of my
tools are Snap-On (hey, the truck is convenient) but when I wanted a second set
of 12-point wrenches, I bought Matco because the teeth are slightly offset from
the position of the teeth in the Snap-On wrenches. This was important back when
I worked on Porsches and Audis because they kept sticking turbos on cars that
weren't originally designed for them. There were times when there was so little
clearance that I had to alternate different brands of the same size wrenches to
be able to move a bolt half a tooth at a time.
Anyway, I thought this would disprove Greg's statement that these tools were
made in the same moulds until I reread and discovered that these two brands are
made by two of the three different manufacturers. So why am I still sending
this? Dunno. Maybe I'm just feeling wordy today. :-) But I really liked
Greg's post. That's the kind of inside info that's really handy to have. I'm
amazed at how much knowledge there is on this list.
Keep it coming guys!
Denise Thorpe
BTW, I worked at a Porsche/Audi/Ferrari dealership. The other Porsche/Audi
mechanics drove VW's or Toyota trucks and lusted after Porsches, but all of the
Ferrari mechanics (and me) drove early chrome-bumpered B's and lusted not at
all. :-)
Hutmacher, Greg wrote:
>
> I'm not the final word on tools by any means, but since I work in the
> business, I've learned a little bit about it. Okay, here's more than you
> ever wanted to know. As someone pointed out in a previous post, Lowes now
> (as of earlier this year) is selling a line of Mechanics Tools called Kobalt
> which is made by Snap-On. They are good tools. Home Depot's Husky brand is
> made by Stanley Mechanics Tools, a division of the Stanley Works. Husky are
> also good tools and have a good lifetime warranty (they'll even replace your
> broken Craftsman with an equivalent Husky). Until 1994 or so, Stanley also
> made Sears Craftsman tools. Sears Craftsman is now made by Danaher Tools.
> They beat out Stanley on the contract over price. Danaher also manufactures
> MatCo Tools, the third largest player in the Mobile Automotive industry
> (behind MAC and Snap-On). Odds are, if you own any Craftsman tools that are
> older than about five years ago, they were made by Stanley in plants in
> Dallas, Texas, Witchita Falls, Texas, and Sabina, Ohio. Stanley also owns
> MAC Tools and manufactures MAC tools in the same plants. Now here's the
> kicker: MAC Tools, Proto Tools (a very expensive industrial brand), Husky
> Tools, and, (prior to five or so years ago) Craftsman Tools are all made
> from the same forgings in the same plants. Proto is unique because it goes
> through addtional testing and certification because it is used by NASA, the
> military, and industrial customers (including General Motors). There are
> three MAJOR players in the USA mechanics tool business: Stanley, Danaher,
> and Snap-On. Stanley and Danaher (almost identical in sales revenue at about
> $28 billion each) are the biggest followed by Snap-On. Each of these three
> manufacture and sell tools under a variety of brands (there are many other
> brands that Stanley makes that I haven't even named). The quality between
> these three manufacturers is roughly the same. I know its a bit of a
> let-down to hear that, but its a simple fact. Then there are a hand full of
> other minor players (Vermont American, etc) and an endless list of Taiwanese
> import tool companies (some of which Stanley own as well as Danaher to serve
> the lower end consumer import brands at WalMart, etc). How do I know all of
> this? I work for Stanley Mechanics Tools, specifically with the Proto
> Industrial brand. I personally do not think that MAC, MatCo, or Snap-On
> branded tools are worth the extra markup since they use the same forgings
> and manufacturing processes that make Husky and Kobalt and pre-1994
> Craftsman. Where you need to pay attention are things like ratchets and
> torque wrenches. There are different specifications of ratchets and you do
> pay for the difference. Some mechanics require a finer, more precise
> ratcheting mechanism than guys like me who just bang around in the garage on
> the weekends. By the way, Metwrench is basically considered a "gimick"
> infomercial tool brand that is not considered as a serious competitor to
> Danaher, Snap-On, or Stanley. Then again, IBM once didn't see Microsoft as a
> serious force in the personal computer business. Hmmmm....
> Regards, Greg Hutmacher (now back in lurk mode)
> PS: There is a Proto Brand 1-5/16 1/2" drive socket (mfg. part number 5442)
> that can be found at Grainger Industrial Supply, MSC, and even some hardware
> stores.
|