Question:
I’m looking to replace at least part of my heterogenous collection of wrenches, sockets and other mechanic’s tools with something better. I’m willing to spend the money to do it right, but I’m not sure what ‘right’ is.
Answer:
I went through this about a year ago when I wanted to buy some tools for my dad. The short answer is that most mechanic’s tools are made by Danaher or Stanley (you can check google for the list.) In the old days, Cobalt tools were made by J.C. Williams and were good. Now they are made by Danaher and are not good. Cornwall still makes their own tools, last I heard. Cooper tools makes Crescent, which is what I bought the last time I bought tools. I am a big fan of Crescent even though they are made in Taiwan. Many auto supply shops seem to perpetually have them on sale.
Another easy bang for the buck is Craftsman end wrenches if you can get them on sale. Same with screwdrivers. I won’t be buying anymore Craftsman sockets. Take a look at KD Tools for those, or for the whole works. That’s the Danaher company, which makes a lot of recognizable brands these days.
Matter of fact, KD has been doing special buy-ins to their distributors on various sets, big and small, which has most of us loaded up. You might check with your local parts store, see if they or their supplier stocks KD, and ask them to find you a real deal on one of the bigger sets.
Lastly, if you have a Home Depot nearby, Husky tools are a pretty good value for hobby work. Certainly cheaper than some of the other professional grades mentioned, but gets the job done nonetheless.