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Must have hand tools?

I am wondering if the fake Mit's are coolant fluid usable/repellant like the "real ones claim, probably not.

All of the "good things being said about the "real ones" reminded me of the only one I ever owned...I dropped it once on the cement floor...never to work again...and I have several CT/BB models that have served me well for a # of yrs, one of the CT models has been dropped more than a couple of times and shows no loss of accuracy at all. I had one CT specimen that was out .0005 from the rest continually so it is regulated to "outside rough service " work that requires "less than optimal accuracy.
 
as I said in #60 i misremembered Dudley Toolwright's video...

However AVE does a very good analysis of the MitutDyD clone - despite his down home language...
 
So when trying to equip your shop with the "must have" basic tools and equipment, price is always a consideration. Here is an example of how value priced items are occasionally just fine for some of us.

I have 4 Chinese micrometers bought from either Princess Auto or Amazon. My brother offered giving me a 0-1" Mitutoyo Mic that he had doubles of. While I already had my Chinese version, I quickly jumped at the offer as it would be the only real piece of Mitutoyo I had!
They both seem to measure exactly the same and both operate smoothly. I actually prefer the style of graduations on the Chinese Mic over the Mitutoyo, but that may be just cuz I'm more used to it.
IMG_20190103_0742270~2~01.jpg
 
John Conroy said:
" optical center punch"??

Can you post a link to such a device please..
Click to expand...
And speaking of punches, a set of trasfer punches is a "must have" item as well.[/QUOTE]
Do you whack a transfer punch like a regular center punch? Or just hard enough to mark it, then use a center punch to dimple it after?
 
I just tap it enough to mark it then as you say centre punch afterwards. My transfer punches are not particularly hard and I don't want to distort the centre marking point.
 
I bought some transfer punches from Princess Auto and found them not tempered that good that was putting a dro on my mill ( cast iron ) but they seem good for softer material though I still think they are a must have.
 
I've read that the Chinese mics are a copies of the Swiss Etalon. I gave my Chinese set to my son before I ever even used them when I bought a Polish VIS set. And the Swiss Etalon are way beyond my budget. So I can't say one way or another.

That Mituyoyo mic looks like a friction thimble instead of the much more common and less expensive ratchet. NICE ! My VIS ones are friction thimbles , and after I cleaned and adjusted them, I really like them. That's likely why I was able to get them for a good price at a pawn shop.

As much as I've always used Mituyoyo mics at work, there are many other brands as good. We've seen a Brown and Sharp on this thread. I have an old Starrett, and a nice Japanese Kanon, the VIS ones, and a Lufkin set. Lufkins were liked better than Starretts.
 
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Are these considered “decent”? They came with a box of tools I bought

I can’t tell if M42 is HSS or cobalt?

They say made in the USA anyway
 
DPittman said:
The fact that they are made in the USA just about assures that they are of decent quality. Snap On brand is usually always good quality (but terribly overpriced in my opinion). M42 is HSS
Click to expand...
I agree, but (usually!) Snap On is leaps and bounds ahead of their competition. And their warranty is great. I’ve easily had 20 of the same pin punch warrantied over the years. I had an old 1/2” ratchet from the ‘60s, the dealer gave me $25 off when I traded it in on a new one.

I look at it that I’m paying for the warranty up front. As in, that $35 socket probably cost them $10 (if that). But I’ll break it 10 times over the life of me owning it

Anything like a welder or a hoist is just gonna be rebranded stuff, heck even those drill bits are probably identical to another brand, but stamped to say Snap On instead
 
Drill index boxes seem to come in two patterns, the Huot and the one like your Snap-on. I have some like your Snap-On with Union -Butterfield , their competitor Cleveland, and Canadian Tire tabs on them. The Canadian Tire one, it was just the box, I filled it with Butterfield cobalt . Who knows what manufacturer made yours. When they are that colour, they are usually a step up.

Starrett and Proto sell really nice pin punches.
 
For years i used 6” Canadian Tire Calipers - they were very reliable. Then i came across a set of Fowler 6” ones: what a difference. Battery lasts much longer than in the CT one and it is much smoother.

I was looking for an 8” one and found this...

8A6EB7FB-4AFB-4124-9199-A4CB33B6D09F.jpeg
$65 on sale at Princess Auto of all places. They are even smoother than the Fowlers. PA seems to have different lines of calipers. The cheapest ones are pretty crusty. Pro.Point seems way better.

This opinion is based on the fact that i have never owned a set of Mitutoyos. Perhaps if i had, i would give all three away...

Some day.
 
I have found the Pro Point line of tools at PA to be of pretty good quality, certainly much better than the Powerfist stuff. But of course that comes with a higher price. Time will tell if people can stop thinking of every tool from PA as junk.
 
Ive found that the quality of Canadian tire tools went down as princess auto went up (pro point)

I've abused some pro point sockets on larger work and have always walked away amazed they held up

I'll take 40 year old barn-find auction wrenches any day though...... dame they made good stuff back then


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
kevin.decelles said:
I'll take 40 year old barn-find auction wrenches any day though...... dame they made good stuff back then
Click to expand...
Yes I'm often surprised at the excellent quality tools that were available to the average man way back then. Nowadays it seems the "average" man can only afford poor quality tools. My farming brothers have a few hand tools inherited from our father from eons ago and I'm sure I could not afford to buy similar quality today if I could find them! One example is a set of ancient old adjustable reamers, man are they beautiful! My father was just a poor farmer but tools then we're of top quality, not cheap I'm sure but they were affordable for the person that needed them!
 
No, they weren't. I'm old enough to remember when buying a socket set hurt. In the early '80s, a screaming deal at McLeods (sp) $49.99 for a 3/8" drive S-K set. In fact buying good tools was a carefully considered decision.
 
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