Badf1shman Posted June 1, 2016 Report Share Posted June 1, 2016 Turns out belzer is bahco Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon R Posted June 2, 2016 Report Share Posted June 2, 2016 Knipex make wire cutters for Snap On, also water pump pliers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryanb Posted December 3, 2016 Report Share Posted December 3, 2016 Knipex make wire cutters for Snap On, also water pump pliers. Well if that's true they give snap on the ones that don't make the grade for knipex because snap on side cutters are a use once item. I've used both and knipex are totally superior to snap on side cutters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon R Posted December 3, 2016 Report Share Posted December 3, 2016 I didn't say they were all the same grade. I have a couple of pairs of Knipex cutters and they are excellent. Snap On make great spanners, sockets and screwdrivers. I wouldn't give a Snap On ratchet house room. From memory the Snap On Alligator water pump pliers are Knipex items. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Good shot? Posted December 3, 2016 Report Share Posted December 3, 2016 (edited) Just realised this is an old thread. Edited December 3, 2016 by Good shot? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wb123 Posted December 3, 2016 Report Share Posted December 3, 2016 A silver line inverter arc welder I bought after spending half an hour giggling at the idea that someone could make a welder the size of a shoe. I expected it to be complete tat. Turns out it works bloody well if you respect the limitations of its duty cycle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDAV Posted December 3, 2016 Report Share Posted December 3, 2016 (edited) I bought a set of silverline flexi end ratchet spanners years ago for my work box so I didn't ruin or loose my "proper" spanners. Apart from the ratchet on the 13mm breaking after a couple of months (whole set replaced by toolstation under warranty) they have lasted well for occasional use and the flexi end has been a god send at times! Silverline is just a name Sandvik and Lindstrum make some good stuff! Edited December 3, 2016 by HDAV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bornfree Posted December 3, 2016 Report Share Posted December 3, 2016 Elora 205 series spanners are the strongest that I've ever used. They are not cheap or the best looking but if you need to slip a three foot length of pipe over the end they won't break. I have a set 27mm up to 55mm that I bought in the early eighty's that are still going strong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
viking Posted December 3, 2016 Report Share Posted December 3, 2016 Silverline are budget tools. Bergen are from Taiwan. I collect tools made in the USA. They are normally a whole lot stronger than the rest of the World. There are some decent European tools:- Beta and Usag from Italy. Facom from France make the best ratchets. Belzer are the best German spanners. Knipex make the best wire cutters. gordon, you know halfords make the best ratchets Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon R Posted December 3, 2016 Report Share Posted December 3, 2016 Elora and Gedore, with the re-inforced shoulders, are very durable and strong spanners. My own favourites are Sherman-Klove USA. Really nice feel. Best ratchets - Facom. Best hammers - Estwing. Best cutters - Knipex. Best "Mole" grips - Vise-Grip. Best pipe wrench - Ridgid. Best sockets - Snap On, MAC, Blackhawk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bornfree Posted December 3, 2016 Report Share Posted December 3, 2016 The English made britool spanners were very good as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon R Posted December 3, 2016 Report Share Posted December 3, 2016 (edited) The old Britool spanners and sockets from decades ago were fine, until they started making them from chocolate. The open end of a combination would spread the minute even moderate pressure was applied. Old Britool ratchets were useless at best. Years ago British makes such as Britool, Gordon, King ****, Bedford, Garrington were very decent tools. Sadly, nearly all gone. Edited December 3, 2016 by Gordon R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vampire Posted December 3, 2016 Report Share Posted December 3, 2016 Have had various silverline power tools over the years,no more though they dont even make it much past the end of the year let alone the 3 year guarantee, which is a problem when its impossible to register it on line in the first place,never again just chucked em in the skip and moved to titan (screwfix) for the disposable power tools,now they are good and have outlived the equivalent silverline rubbish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AULD YIN Posted December 4, 2016 Report Share Posted December 4, 2016 (edited) Best socket set i owned was KING D.ICK ,never had a socket break in all the years i have owned them even on LR 2/2a/3s ,sadly no metric ones,only gripe is the ally ratchet ,awfy big distance between each segment on the pawl so in a confined space it was a pain in the ers johnnie Edited December 4, 2016 by AULD YIN Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fortune Posted December 4, 2016 Report Share Posted December 4, 2016 Nowadays a lot of things are set at a premium because of the brand name and a kind of fashion statement. Nearly every mechanic nowadays spends a vast amount of money on a big cabinet and the banner to go with it. A mech that I know has two blooming great cabinets of tools something like £35,000s worth. Yet he is not a good mechanic at all and yet at the other end of the scale there is a bloke who works out of the back of a service van and has several battered old cantilever boxes with a selection of all sorts of makes like king D.icks,Bedfords. Britools, gedore and Elora. this bloke will mend anything anywhere anytime and get around any situation that is thrown at him. If a tool does the job it is ok but if it doesn't then matter how cheap It is, it makes no difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bornfree Posted December 4, 2016 Report Share Posted December 4, 2016 Nowadays a lot of things are set at a premium because of the brand name and a kind of fashion statement. Nearly every mechanic nowadays spends a vast amount of money on a big cabinet and the banner to go with it. A mech that I know has two blooming great cabinets of tools something like £35,000s worth. Yet he is not a good mechanic at all and yet at the other end of the scale there is a bloke who works out of the back of a service van and has several battered old cantilever boxes with a selection of all sorts of makes like king D.icks,Bedfords. Britools, gedore and Elora. this bloke will mend anything anywhere anytime and get around any situation that is thrown at him. If a tool does the job it is ok but if it doesn't then matter how cheap It is, it makes no difference. That's called "all the gear and no idea" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fortune Posted December 4, 2016 Report Share Posted December 4, 2016 Yep. When I was starting it was all of the older brands. I never saw snap on at all it was Britool, Elora and Gedore. I've got tools from the 70s and they still do the same job as when they were new. This frightening is the cost of decent tools nowadays. I have a Britool 3/4 drive socket set that I bought in the 70s and when I looked recently to see what a replacement kit would be I was astounded that they don't make a kit like it and the small kits that are available are only a small sub kit and it was telephone numbers. If the kit that I have were available then it would run into several thousand pounds! Another aspect of all tools is that if they do the job intended they have successfully completed the task and it is just as easy to misplace, break or have nicked an expensive tool as a cheap one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
demonwolf444 Posted December 5, 2016 Report Share Posted December 5, 2016 I have an silverline oil pot. It leaks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon R Posted December 5, 2016 Report Share Posted December 5, 2016 (edited) fortune - I agree about the prices. I bought a job lot of spanners - from 30mm to 65mm, plus some AF. They were brand new - I paid £80 and got about 50 spanners - some with an RRP of £800 plus. They were no better than those costing a third or less. My own favourite ratchet - I have many ratchets - is a 1/2" Blackhawk USA model, which is actually older than I am. I can't imagine it ever wearing out. It has a far superior action to any Snap On ratchet I have owned. Edited December 5, 2016 by Gordon R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vampire Posted December 6, 2016 Report Share Posted December 6, 2016 I have an silverline oil pot. It leaks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hendrix's rifle Posted December 9, 2016 Report Share Posted December 9, 2016 Some of the bergen stuff isn't too bad and it's cheap. I've owned a socket set 8-24 half inch and only broken one. Cost me a tenner for the full set and it's used every day bar a Sunday. Not even any problems on the impact gun even though they aren't impact rated facom ratchets, signet ratchet spanners, bluepoint spanners and I'm changing to milwauke for power tools next year because snap off is **** Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon R Posted December 9, 2016 Report Share Posted December 9, 2016 From memory Bluepoint, Draper Expert, Halfords Professional, Gearwrench and Signet are all made in the same Taiwanese factory. Bergen are also made in Taiwan at the same place as US Pro. That said - all are decent stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDAV Posted December 9, 2016 Report Share Posted December 9, 2016 Any idea on the wera joker? Fancied a set of them..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon R Posted December 9, 2016 Report Share Posted December 9, 2016 Wera make proper German tools - excellent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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