Thanks: 0
Likes: 0
Needs Pictures: 0
Picture(s) thanks: 0
Results 31 to 45 of 45
-
8th April 2008, 06:14 PM #31Awaiting Email Confirmation
- Join Date
- Sep 2007
- Location
- Northern Brisbania...
- Posts
- 791
Dear Daz,
With all due respect, Superworks Gold carry a lifetime-warranty, and appear to be coming out of exactly the same Taiwanese factory as the similarly lifetime-warrantied Stanley sockets. Don't get them confused with your domestic garden-variety "Best Buy" and "Superworks" that are sold at Supercheap - the "Gold" are a different animal altogether...
If non-breakage is your suggested measure of quality, I can vouch that in all the time I've spent over at the Ford Forums, I've never heard of a single SWG socket being broken yet. Those guys are not mechanics, and they therefore abuse their socket sets much more than trained folk like you. And don't underestimate how much mechanical work some of them do either (when they get down to 13sec, they've got to go for 12sec, and so on - they're always muckin' around with something on the car, they just don't know when to quit...)
Best Wishes,
Batpig
-
8th April 2008 06:14 PM # ADSGoogle Adsense Advertisement
- Join Date
- Always
- Location
- Advertising world
- Posts
- Many
-
8th April 2008, 07:15 PM #32"Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so."
- Douglas Adams
-
8th April 2008, 07:16 PM #33Senior Member
- Join Date
- Apr 2008
- Location
- Southern Riverina
- Posts
- 139
I don't doubt it at all (and if the choice were between Sidchrome and Kincrome I think I'd probably opt for the Kincrome too). If I were a professional mechanic on the tools every day, then quality aside, I would happily pay a bit extra for an established name - even if I knew for a fact they were exactly the same tool. There is additional value in a known brand with numerous outlets supporting them, it's a bit like insurance. The SWG stuff is only sold through a single retailer, and their lifetime warranty will be worth precisely zip if SCA is bought out by, say, Autobarn in a year or two.
For me, though, an occasional user, the warranty isn't the important part. Assuming the tools are good (and by all accounts they are), breakages will hopefully be few and far between over the next 40ish years. If and when they happen, if I can walk into SCA and get a free replacement than that is something of a bonus - otherwise, I will just toss it in the bin, grumble a bit and buy the Sidchrome/Kincrome/Repco/JBS replacement. The tools aren't 'mission critical' for me like they are for a professional, so I'm happy to take my chances and pocket the change today. To get what I got in Kincrome would probably hit the $1000 mark, so that's an extra $500 in my pocket which should more than cover the odd spare down the track.
Of course, my opinions are now probably the least impartial of us all...
-
8th April 2008, 08:49 PM #34Senior Member
- Join Date
- Apr 2008
- Location
- Southern Riverina
- Posts
- 139
Just for the record, and somewhat reassuringly, all of the Superworks Gold I bought was made in Taiwan. The various other brands in Supercheap may well be Chinese made (I don't know), but like Batpig says the SWG stuff kept under lock and key certainly seems superior.
-
14th May 2011, 12:17 AM #35Intermediate Member
- Join Date
- Jun 2010
- Location
- Darlington Point
- Posts
- 37
Sorry to dig up an old thread but what are peoples experiences with KC Tools? I am looking at 1/2" dirve socket sets. Am I mistaken or are they tied up with Supatool/Kinchrome somehow? Their ratchet seems to be very similar to my Supatool one.
What are your experiences with JBS socket sets? I have a JBS tool chest which seems to be good quality however I have a feeling alot of the tool chests on the market at the moment seem to be out of the same factory.
-
14th May 2011, 11:51 AM #36
I do have an affiliation with JBS, as I work for the parent of the company which sells them.
BUT, before my current career I was an auto electrician. I purchased 3 x JBS socket sets (1/4, 3/8 and 1/2 inch), and metric and imperial spanner sets. I used all of these very heavily on cars, trucks, buses, cranes and earthmoving equipment and never had a failure or issue. The other tradies in the workshop then started buying JBS too.
Whenever I have bought tools since I have bought JBS.
They all come with a lifetime guarantee, and a 90 day satisfaction guarantee. See JBS TOOLS
I believe most (if not all) are made by Sidchrome.
EDIT: "I believe most (if not all) are made by Sidchrome." I am referring to the spanners and sockets - not the whole range of JBS tools.
-
14th May 2011, 10:41 PM #37Intermediate Member
- Join Date
- Jun 2010
- Location
- Darlington Point
- Posts
- 37
Thanks for the reply.
You wouldn't happen to be able to get a discount through your affiliation? Ha ha
-
14th May 2011, 11:08 PM #38
I worked as an industrial electrician for many years and worked on Gensets with cylinders big enough to climb through.
I have used a range of different tools and have never broken a spanner, socket or ratchet.
For the bigger spanners, ie over 30mm I bought Sidchrome many years ago, they were very expensive, mostly because of the size but they will survive a holocaust.
For many jobs I had to fly by chopper so tool weight was limited.
I carried all sorts of tools for electrical jobs as well as Metrinch spanners, a Stanley 3/8" socket set, Snap ON 1/4" socket set and SP Tools ratchet spanners.
All of these items were brilliant and I still use them today.
I even used the Stanley sockets on a Panasonic 15.5V cordless rattle gun without issue, and I have done the same with SP Tools sockets.
Regarding Metrinch, I have found that the range of movement required is more than a conventional spanner and this can be an issue in confined spaces.
I haven't used them for a while but there is one particular size that doesn't work well at all, I think on the one particular size they have had to compromise to get it to fit both metric and imperial and one of them loses out.
That being said, I have a Metrinch 3/8" socket set and a large spanner roll and I wouldn't sell them.
My 4WDing tool kit is pretty much all from Supercheap, ring spanners, ratchet spanners, sockets, screwdrivers etc.
The biggest job I have done 4WDing was a water pump change on my Troopy on the side of the road and less than $100 of tools performed admirably.
I guess it just comes down to how rough you are.
FWIW, the last I recall a colleague having a problem with a Snap On ratchet he was informed their warranty is now repair if they can rather than replace so he had to send his ratchet to them and wait for it to come back.
Repco were the only tool maker offering full replacement warranty for a number of years but according to this thread that may have changed."There is no dark side of the moon really. Matter of fact it's all dark."
-
14th May 2011, 11:44 PM #39.
- Join Date
- Feb 2006
- Location
- Perth
- Posts
- 27,795
Not quite, if you cook them in a fire long enough they will soften to a point where they cannot be used. About 20 years ago some friends of ours had their big Sidchrome socket and spanner set caught up in a farm fire. The sockets and spanners survived the fire but they were softened to a point beyond usable. Sidcrhrome replaced them all at no cost
-
15th May 2011, 12:13 AM #40
-
15th May 2011, 10:30 AM #41.
- Join Date
- Feb 2006
- Location
- Perth
- Posts
- 27,795
-
21st May 2011, 09:44 AM #42
My kit contains a mixture of Sidchrome, Kincrome, Supatool Premium (Kincrome), Great Neck & Stanley. Alot of my imperial stuff was my Pa's, most of it is old Japanese made including a ETC brand 1/2" socket set. This stuff got hammered on old Kingswood's and Falcon's years ago when I first got my licence and is still going strong. The missing stuff has been topped up with SWG/Calibre stuff from SCA, which seems okay.
Great Neck is an American brand I think, probably mid range? A set of 10 metric ROE spanners and 5 double ring spanners cost $70-$80ish from a tool stand at a swapmeet 8 years ago. The ROE's seem okay (Havn't broken one yet), but I love the double ring spanners. You know when you pick up a tool and it feels nice to hold and even better to use, this is what these are like. No doubt they're not the quality of a Sidchrome or Kincrome, but they're fine for my weekend warrior stuff.
A few tool shops are selling a Stanley 24 piece metric/imperial ROE set for $90 (normally $190ish) with a lifetime warranty. Might get one and finally have a full set of matching spanners. The old ones can serve duty in the back of the 4by.
I also got sucked into the '2 in 1' Metrinch spanners! Paid a small fortune for a full set and in 12 years I'd be lucky to have used them twice. If you need a 13mm spanner, grab a 13mm spanner, if you need a 1/2" spanner, grab a 1/2" spanner.
-
21st May 2011, 01:00 PM #43Senior Member
- Join Date
- Dec 2009
- Location
- Mandurah WA
- Age
- 60
- Posts
- 351
I've got a mix of brands in my tool box too. Mainly Sidchrome, filled out with cheaper stuff.
I've also got a set of Metrinch sockets and ROE's, and I really like them. They seem to me to be very strong, hard, and well finished. They feel loose because they grip the sides not the corners, but they don't slip.
They're ideal for slightly rounded heads and nuts, and on odd jobs if you're not sure of the size, a couple of spanners will cover a fair range.
I recently replaced the head on my 6 cyl Falcon and those head bolts were hard to budge. The bolt right at the back was slightly rounded and my Sidchrome socket slipped, so I used the Metrinch and it gripped like a vice and loosened it easily.
They're not as good in tight spaces as they need room to move before they grip, but other than that I think they're great!
Best wishes
Steve
-
22nd May 2011, 10:15 AM #44
Seems to be a love em or hate em attitude with the Metrinch stuff reading through this thread.
I'm not doubting their quality, finish or strength. They better be for what they cost me. Maybe I'm just a bit pedantic about they way they grip. I've hung onto them for when I come accros rounded heads, but if the heads fine I'll grab the correct sized spanner everytime.
-
22nd May 2011, 11:05 AM #45"There is no dark side of the moon really. Matter of fact it's all dark."
Similar Threads
-
power sockets
By spargs in forum HAND TOOLS - POWEREDReplies: 18Last Post: 6th March 2009, 10:23 PM -
metrinch spanners/sockets
By jaspr in forum MOTOR VEHICLESReplies: 4Last Post: 22nd December 2007, 02:01 PM -
Lathe spanners
By Happy Chappy in forum WOODTURNING - GENERALReplies: 26Last Post: 6th December 2007, 12:35 PM -
Australian Sidchrome
By mat in forum METALWORK FORUMReplies: 16Last Post: 21st June 2006, 09:30 PM -
Sidchrome Tools
By mat in forum METALWORK FORUMReplies: 2Last Post: 6th June 2005, 10:05 PM