Before Sears started manufacturing Craftsman tools in China, that's where I always bought my hand tools because it was convenient, they "were" American made, and I have never had an issue with them. I'm talking tools like sockets, wrenches, screwdrivers, wire cutters, pliers, etc. Any thing that required AC or DC power have always been Milwaukee. So now the Craftsman is crap, who is the next big tool vendor worth my money?

I really like Knipex Tools for wrenches and plyers. Chapman for screwdrivers.

Williams is American made.

Snap-on was always too expensive.

I have SK, Bonney, Blackhawk and Williams wrenches. Proto makes good stuff (I have one of their torque wrenches that is top quality). I like them all. Believe they are all American manufacturers.

While some don’t care for the brand, Kobalt by Lowe’s has a lifetime warranty. Not a bad deal and they are available should you have some problem.

Given the choice I buy at auctions, yard sales and flea markets. More bang for the buck. Got an older 1/2” socket set for $5 at auction. It looked old, grimy and rusty. Turned out the tools were all factory coated in shellac. A little alcohol and they came out like new.

Some of those brands may not be around anymore. Bet their tools are.

For wrenches and sockets I have had really good luck with Proto tools made by Stanley in the USA. I have gotten some really good deals off of ebay. I know a lot of people put down ebay but if you are persistent you can get some really good deals on lightly used socket sets and wrenches. I just bought a used metric socket set for ninety dollars that I swear never got used.

Knipex for wrenches and pliers. I really like KC tools website for hand tools made in Germany.

www.kctoolco.com
yep

It depends on the tool
I tend to buy American made

Slip Joint Pliers - Wilde
Groove Joint Pliers - ChannelLock
Linesman Pliers - Klein
Small Pliers - Xuron
Hammer - Vaughan
Adjustable Wrench - Irega (Spain)
Pipe Wrench - Ridgid

Most sockets and wrenches are older US made Craftsman, K-D, Kobalt, Allen and Armstrong

quote:

Originally posted by mark60:
Williams is American made.

Williams makes copies of many tools in both the US and Taiwan. They are priced accordingly. I have purchased some of their Tiawan sockets, they are cleanly executed with good tolerances, and hard.

In my trade it’s Klein, Wiha, Channellock, Ideal, Greenlee, Knipex, Fluke (meters), Fieldpiece (meters/gauges).

For sockets and socket wrenches I stick to S&K for American made. If not, the Taiwanese socket sets are usually made much better than Chinese. I have a Dewalt set that is made in Taiwan and its competitive with some of my S&K stuff.

This is gonna be another costly thread, isn't it.....

PB Swiss makes what I think are the best screwdrivers and hex keys available but they are very expensive.

Some, but not all, of the Taiwan manufactured Tekton hand tools are fairly high quality. I like their combination wrenches: not as nice as my Snap-On, but good enough for casual homeowner use.
A lot better than much of the Chinese shit flooding the market.

quote:

Originally posted by Georgeair:
This is gonna be another costly thread, isn't it.....

AGAIN!!

Thumbs up for Knipex, Wiha, Chapman, and Fluke.

Lot of good recommendations in this thread:
https://sigforum.com/eve/forums...870043434#5870043434

I've bought pretty much nothing but CRAFTSMAN tools for decades. They were American made then. I never had but one ratchet cause it to be returned for replacement. They're still a good bargain, made in China or not.

Better hurry with SEAR'S closing many more stores in the near future. K-MART stores closing as well.

But not to worry, you can buy CRAFTSMAN tools from ACE HARDWARE or LOWE'S and coming soon to the nearest CIRCLE K store.

The Craftsman brand of hand tools will be Made in Texas in 2021. Thats every bit as high quality as Made in the USA.. .

For woodworkers, there are some excellent brands of hand tools, such as Lie Nielsen planes, and pretty much anything made by Veritas. I own a number of layout tools made in brass and rosewood by Bridge City Tool Works, but those models are no longer made.

Back in the day... In the trades I was involved in... construction, plumbing and electrical, guys used tools that were
1) Readily available.
2) Worked.
3) Had sufficient quality to last for years if not abused.

This was before the internet and Lowes and such. You bought what the local store suppliers carried... and they carried what was in demand by the guys that made a living with them.

Rarely if ever would you see any of those boutique top of the line expensive tools out on the job site.

These are some I remember off the top of my head, I still have and use many of these.

Hammer... Stanley and Estwing
Slip-joint pliers... Channel Loc
Pipe wrenches... Rigid
Reciprocating saw... Corded Milwaukee
Circular saw... Corded Skill
Cordless drill driver... Mikita
Heavy drills... Corded Milwaukee Hole Shooter and Hole Hoggs
Wood auger bits... Irwin
Electrician pliers... Kline
Hand tools, Levels, squares, hand planes, utility knives, wood chisels, screw drivers and such were very often Stanley.
Every carpenter had a Stanley "Yankee" Spiral/Push screw driver, a Lufkin folding 6' rule, Disston hand saws and a Stanley manual miter saw.

I have been buying Tekton tools that are made in America and Taiwan. I stay away from their tools made in China. I think they are trying to make more of their tools in the USA. They are nice tools and I understand it is easy to use their lifetime warranty. Some companies, like Gearwrench, make you jump through hoops until you give up.

Anyone with experience with Wera?