Hand tools! Crappy tools, pricy tools and best bang for buck tools.

[Nobody]

Ok.. so I'm in the marked for some hand tools
Wrenches, ratchets, pipes, screwdrivers and so on..

Soo I thought it would do good with a thread for peoples experiences, opinions and tips and to be honest, im a little lost on what to buy

For me it's mostly about best bang for buck. I loved my few pieces of Hazet tools when I worked with cars.. but damn, cant defend buying that stuff myself I just want good enough quality to keep me from pulling my hair out over tools that fail on that one stubborn bolt!

Hazet is at the top of the line for me.. Used to like Snap On, but find it hugely overprized compared to quality. Same with Wurth. Loved my Snap On panel hammer tho..

Atm, there are 3 brands i consider the most. Kamasa, Teng tools and Bacho. Altho some say bacho aint what it once was?

Can i get some help?

[Muz]

Most things Ive owned from Kamasa are fairly cheap shit not always though .. some air tools have been surprisingly good .. Some of my finest shift wrenches are Bacho OTOH

[v8druid]

early (like 20+ yr old) Kamasa was good shit ..... still have some very good Kamasa tools ... sockets, spanners ..... but like most stuff, went to the dogs, like most other things.

Britool ..... ditto!!

TBH ... better off trawling boot sales and the like for early, good quality brands .... have had some amazing snap on and the like buys for next to nothing.
Just need to keep looking.

Most 'average' brands these days are lifetime guaranteed, so as long as it don't get abused ..... there's not a lot to choose from. Brand is usually what you're paying for in the top line stuff ..... a bit like Levi jeans

Best advice is examine it for finish quality ...... if it looks well made and finished, there's a reasonable chance it'll do the job.

[Nobody]

Most things Ive owned from Kamasa are fairly cheap shit not always though .. some air tools have been surprisingly good .. Some of my finest shift wrenches are Bacho OTOH

Heard mixed opinions about kamasa the last 5 years..
Is that old or new Bacho Muz?

early (like 20+ yr old) Kamasa was good shit ..... still have some very good Kamasa tools ... sockets, spanners ..... but like most stuff, went to the dogs, like most other things.

Britool ..... ditto!!

TBH ... better off trawling boot sales and the like for early, good quality brands .... have had some amazing snap on and the like buys for next to nothing.
Just need to keep looking.

Most 'average' brands these days are lifetime guaranteed, so as long as it don't get abused ..... there's not a lot to choose from. Brand is usually what you're paying for in the top line stuff ..... a bit like Levi jeans

Best advice is examine it for finish quality ...... if it looks well made and finished, there's a reasonable chance it'll do the job.

Had a old kamasa set myself that i inherited of the old boss. Just a small set with 3/8" sockets and wrenches, but it was a damn good set!

Ye, been on the thougth about boot sales.. But they are few around my area just gotta keep my eyes open and get lucky I suppose!

Lifetime guarantee is a good thing.. hell, even the cheap crap here has 10 years guarantee! So I can atleast get a new piece when it brakes, but it doesnt save my hair


Seems to me that most of the "good old" brands that used to be above or around average, are overprized below avrage tools today Thinking of skipping all that, and buy the cheap crap and then just replace whatever brakes as I go along with something of high quality. Maybe get a few key tools of good quality right away, like ratchets, some 6point sockets and breaker bars.. We'll see

[Mattir]

Startd buying tools some 10years ago. Started with the cheapest chinese shi*te. Now buy only branded tools. And now have enough tools that I have started dumping the poorest. Without this, those crappy tools keep on popping up when in need.

I have sticked to Makita with electric tools and others are a selection of various brands.

Lesson learned: Dont buy crap.

[Nobody]

Startd buying tools some 10years ago. Started with the cheapest chinese shi*te. Now buy only branded tools. And now have enough tools that I have started dumping the poorest. Without this, those crappy tools keep on popping up when in need.

I have sticked to Makita with electric tools and others are a selection of various brands.

Lesson learned: Dont buy crap.

Hehe, thanks for the tip.. what you did is kinda what i plan to do intentionally. But we'll see

Makita electronics are good stuff, got a cordless impact drill from them. Love my Hilti 22v drill too. Their a bit on the heavy side, but great batteries and plenty of power
1. Hilti
2. Makita
3. Milwaukee
99. Bosch

[v8druid]

Hehe, thanks for the tip.. what you did is kinda what i plan to do intentionally. But we'll see

Makita electronics are good stuff, got a cordless impact drill from them. Love my Hilti 22v drill too. Their a bit on the heavy side, but great batteries and plenty of power
1. Hilti
2. Makita
3. Milwaukee
99. Bosch

you missed the 5 from in front of the Bosch figure Boyo 599 . ..... never done any good with Bosch power tools .... just don't hack it .. end of!!

Have also seen some varying reports on Milwaukee of late too .... ranging from good to utter rubbish

Hilti are good but have a policy of non-support at 10 years old .... I've a lovely TE17 that's been awesome ..... until I now need brushes for the motor ..... Nope .. too old ..... Makita take a lot of beating in fairness.

[RedLiner]

I've found over the years that it's not always a good investment to buy "Big Brands". About four years ago when I was visiting the UK I bought an 18V Hitachi cordless drill that came with three batteries and a charger. Almost straight away I noticed that the batteries drained very quickly and that the two spare batteries always need to be standing by. Even after charging they'll be dead the day after even without using them.
I bought this expensive Hitachi bit of kit because I left my Lidl Parkside 18V. cordless drill in a tool bag on a wall next to the car boot and drove away, needless to say it wasn't there when I realised and went back. That 49Euro Parkside drill's battery would stay charged for days and took ages to run down.

Drill bits I also buy from Lidl when they are in stock, they are German made and make short work of even stainless steel.

A few years ago I bought a 50cc. Honda brushcutter/strimmer that constantly goes wrong. The last repair cost 127Euros. I've now bought a 63cc. and a 33cc. Yaros brushcutter, the 63cc. cost 125Euros and the 33cc 116Euros. Both have been really thrashed over the las couple of years and still start and run as new.
I worked out that I could buy four Yaros brushcutters for the price of a Honda or other "top" brand.

We have lots of Chinese emporiums around this area and the rule was never to buy tools. Things like hacksaw blades were only case hardened and would shatter very easily, metal drill bits would bend, spanners and sockets would break or round off because the metal was so poor quality.
However, now they must have realised and upped their game as the range of small tools are now surprisingly good.

I've also bought carburetors, fuel pumps, motorcycle lights and other pattern parts from local dealers or from eBay and most are better than the OEM spares at half the price.

I could waffle on

James.

[Nobody]

Agrees. But it also depends where the brand is big. At home or on the build site?
Gotta say i never have liked Hitachi.. but then again, I havent used it much..

When it comes to cordless it's all in the batteries of course, and so far I have not found any better than Hiltis 22v drills ;) but their too heavy for carpenters to use all day, and too expensive for homeowners

[RedLiner]

Hilti are good but have a policy of non-support at 10 years old .... I've a lovely TE17 that's been awesome ..... until I now need brushes for the motor ..... Nope .. too old ..... Makita take a lot of beating in fairness.

I've never found brushes to be a problem for any make of tool including car starter motor brushes. Our local ironmonger shops all carry brushes of all shapes and sizes, and usually I can get the exact fit. If not I get some that are bigger and just gently sand them down to size.

James.

[Nobody]

Was having dinner with a colleague today, working in tunnels just a few kilometers away from me..
They are drilling holes for mounting cabels on the tunnel walls. He shared something surprising

They've been using Hitachi impact drills untill today. There's been a problem with using up a LOT of drill bits.. so to speed things up they bought a Hilti, thinking at twice the price it should drill a lot faster at least..
Well, drill speed was about the same. But intrestingly enough, the Hilti drilled twice as many holes before the same bits were shot!
When drilling holes 30cm apart for 8km that Hilti pays itself tenfold compared to that Hitachi

[Mattir]

Was having dinner with a colleague today, working in tunnels just a few kilometers away from me..
They are drilling holes for mounting cabels on the tunnel walls. He shared something surprising

They've been using Hitachi impact drills untill today. There's been a problem with using up a LOT of drill bits.. so to speed things up they bought a Hilti, thinking at twice the price it should drill a lot faster at least..
Well, drill speed was about the same. But intrestingly enough, the Hilti drilled twice as many holes before the same bits were shot!
When drilling holes 30cm apart for 8km that Hilti pays itself tenfold compared to that Hitachi

Well, it's easy to destroy a drill bit only by pushing too hard to make it overheat and finally loosen the brazed bit. Drilling calls for skills as well. But still, Maybe Hilti has something special in their drills

[Nobody]

Very true Mattir! Will see if I cant find out what is happening to the bits! If they melt, splint, or get wore out..

[Nobody]

Turn out the tips are melting they are drilling in hard rock most of the time.. still dont get why the bits lasts longer with the hilti tho

[v8druid]

Turn out the tips are melting they are drilling in hard rock most of the time.. still dont get why the bits lasts longer with the hilti tho

Better percussion possibly ..... Hilti make a hell of a hammer drill ...... just make sure you wear it out before their 10 year support period expires