Entry / Mid-level Tool Recommendations?

jesseshoots

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I just moved into a new house and got a nice tool chest for the garage. I’ve been working out of an old tool bag for the last four years or so and had to keep a really slim selection. I have an ancient ratchet set and a nice set of Kobalt 3/8” drive sockets.

I’m looking for recommendations on a entry/mid-level (read: not snap-on) socket brand, to fill out my 1/4” and 1/2” selections that are lacking, as well as a nice set of ratchets. The more I research it the more I find available and less I can narrow it down.

I’ve been a longtime fan of the 90T Kobalt stuff but saw today that Husky is offering a 144T set of all three drives for $70 that are getting some pretty good reviews.
 
Gearwrench stuff is pretty damn good and can be wattantied many places. Grey pneumatics has great socket sets, and spring for an Ingersol Rand 2235 1/2 inch impact. Make sure your compressor will make 140 -160 psi pressure. Your air tools will love it!
 
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I hope you find what you need. I bought most of my tools in the last century, so I don't have much to offer, but tool thread always catch my attention. If you want to go down a rabbit hole, look for the "Toolkit" thread on ADVRider.

The most recent tools I bought were for mj LJ, and I buy them either at the local auto parts store or Harbor Freight. They're cheap in both price and quality, but I only need them for a one time use.
 
I'd stick to the Home Depot or Lowes brands so if you have an issue you can easily return/replace.
 
Gearwrench makes great affordable tools. milwaukee is starting to make impressive hand tools. Tekton makes great tools for the price and has one of the easiest warranties to deal with online.
 
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I saw this brand at the 2019 SEMA show and was quite impressed. Yes, it’s made in Taiwan but USA made is harder to find and more expensive.

A friend of mine just bought this set for extended travel in his motor home. Maybe out of your price range but I was impressed by the quality

https://www.tekton.com/1-2-in-dr-sk...10-32-mm?quantity=1&set-range=3-8---1-5-16-in
Read more about the set here.

https://www.exploringoverland.com/o...0/10/10/tekton-12-inch-ratchet-and-socket-set
Some of their tools are actually USA made. They are very clear about Country of Origin on their website.
 
One word, Sunex. Amazon has a good selection & prices.
 
Your in a big metro area so keep an eye for local bargains on FB Marketplace or CL, and older complete set of Craftsman will be out there.
 
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I have been upgrading my hand tools to Proto. Not quite as good as snap-on or Mac but better than Craftsman. Have purchased most of them used on Flea-bay or craigslist.
 
Over 25 years ago I bought a double bank tool box and filled it with all Proto tools. I have replaced the box with a much larger Snap On box, but still have most of the Proto tools. They are a quality tool for sure! I have nearly all Gearwrench in the garage at the house, but at my shop, Snap On, Matco, , Gearwrench in that order.
 
Tekton is the way to go. They have/had a special on socket sets. 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 drives. $350 for all 3 sets. All 3 sets are 6 point and they don’t skip the odd size sockets either.
 
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If you are not set up for air to drive impacts, I would start a collection of Milwaukee fuel line battery power tools. I have a bunch of Ryobi battery tools that I have but not nearly the same level of the Milwaukee's.
 
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Thanks for all the recommendations! I'm going to HD today to check out that 144T set because the ratchets I have suck, it really grabbed my attention, and I have a 15% off card for in-store purchases up to $200. I'm going to look at the Fuel series electric ratchets while I'm there for the sake of seeing what they're all about.

I'm between Tekton, Kobalt, and Craftsman for the 1/4" and 1/2" sockets at the moment. I need to compare the sets to see who offers the most complete sets in one go for a reasonable price. Tekton offers complete sets of 6-point that don't skip sizes which is nice, and they have built a good name for themselves over the past five years or so, but they aren't carried in stores so if I break something it requires waiting on the replacement instead of going to the store to pick it up.
 
Look at the fuel drill, impact gun and grinders - they will be the most used if you really start wrenching.. If you get the grinder look into sait grinding and cut off wheels. This link is mostly 50 packs, if you search they are sold in 5 packs. Recommendation from @mrblaine, they work great, so much better than HF and even deWalt ones sold in the box stores.

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=sait+cutting+wheels&ref=nb_sb_noss_2
 
Having twisted wrenches all my life many ways for you to go . Snap on proto owattona are all very good . Older craftsman are ok also . Look for a older person getting out of the profession as they often have good stuff for a better Than fair price . The newer stuff does not seem to hold up as well . Quality tools ,you get what you pay for. Sk is alright but the ratchets have knurled handles and repetitive use is very hard on your hands . Also thickness of wrenches is something else to consider. A good quality thinner combination wrench is better than a cheaper brand club . Tools are a blast to shop for!
 
Look at the fuel drill, impact gun and grinders - they will be the most used if you really start wrenching.. If you get the grinder look into sait grinding and cut off wheels. This link is mostly 50 packs, if you search they are sold in 5 packs. Recommendation from @mrblaine, they work great, so much better than HF and even deWalt ones sold in the box stores.

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=sait+cutting+wheels&ref=nb_sb_noss_2
X2 on the Sait cut off wheels. I tried the 4 1/2” .045 disks on the recommendation from @mrblaine .
They work better than any 4 1/2” I’ve used so far.

If you don’t want to buy a large package of wheels from Amazon just to try them out, I’ve had good service, reasonable shipping, etc from this company.

https://www.lehighvalleyabrasives.c...7-8-a60s-t1-cut-off-wheel-sait-23101-uas23101
 
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Xwhatever on the Sait wheels. They're very durable. I found myself in a pinch this past weekend mid-project & had to run out to get some more wheels... I had to go to HF anyway to get some air fittings so I grabbed a package of whatever it is they sell (Coyote?). Anyway the first one I used shattered. I'd have taken it back but it wasn't worth the trip for $4.50 or whatever a pack of 5 costs.