Not all bargain tools are bad. One of my favorite YouTube channels to find decent quality/affordable tools is Project Farm. Funnily enough he did recommend a Crescent brand wrench: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyOd05PUix4
RapidSlide Adjustable Wrench
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Re: RapidSlide Adjustable Wrench
#52This title was badly editorialized. Submitted title was "Beware of Bargin Bin Tools". You can see from the earlier comments here how badly that skewed the discussion in a generic direction that was dominated by the rewritten title. This is why HN has a rule excluding this type of title rewrite:
"Please use the original title, unless it is misleading or linkbait; don't editorialize."
If you want to say what you think is important about an article, that's fine, but do it by adding a comment to the thread. Then your view will be on a level playing field with everyone else's: https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&so...
It's actually a good submission, but you need to use the original title so that can people can figure out for themselves how to assess the content and what they want to say about it.
Re: RapidSlide Adjustable Wrench
#53I've long subscribed to the philosophy that you should buy the cheapest tool you can find and use safely, use it until it wears out, breaks, or your skill surpasses the capability of the tool - and only then should you spend money on high quality tools. Too much money is thrown away in the name of "buy once, cry once" only to discover that you don't need the capabilities offered by the top of the line options.
> I've long subscribed to the philosophy that you should buy the cheapest tool you can find and use safely, use it until it wears out, breaks, or your skill surpasses the capability of the tool - and only then should you spend money on high quality tools. Overall, it's not a bad philosophy. But I can think of a couple of complications here: - For battery-operated tools, standardizing on one system means you can buy a…
'I had Craftsman power tools until battery replacements were only available from fly-by-night companies and a couple of the tools started failing (after 20 years). I wound up buying a couple of DeWalt tools on sale and they've been rock-solid. So I added a couple more as needed.'
I think we are in complete agreement! After 20 years of use are are more than qualified to know what you need and go get it regardless of the price point!
Re: RapidSlide Adjustable Wrench
#54I've long subscribed to the philosophy that you should buy the cheapest tool you can find and use safely, use it until it wears out, breaks, or your skill surpasses the capability of the tool - and only then should you spend money on high quality tools. Too much money is thrown away in the name of "buy once, cry once" only to discover that you don't need the capabilities offered by the top of the line options.
I guess... what you're saying is not bad advice. Maybe instead, aim to buy tools as cheaply as you can the first time. I think it's best to just get your tools as gifts, or from garage sales. But there are a lot of tools that are cheap, feel cheap, and will break on you. Avoid using cheaply made tools -- this is also good advice. A neighbor bought a table saw with really flimsy legs... and the whole things just shook…
> Look, you don't want to use a table saw like that. For... all the common sense reasons.
For example, you might have an increased risk of wood kickback, very nearly lose a leg, and spend years in physical therapy trying to replace the muscle mass that died. (I knew a guy.) Or you might bleed out.
Seriously, a few extra safety features on a table saw can make the difference between life and death. Assuming you don't just disable them.
(I have a cheapish table saw, but one that isn't complete garbage. I treat it with about the same caution I'd treat unexploded ordnance from World War II.)
Re: RapidSlide Adjustable Wrench
#55Earlier quoted context omitted.
There is also a safety concern with overly cheap tools. For an example, the adjustable wrench in this article. What happens when you apply a lot of force on a stubborn nut? If the wrench experiences rapid unscheduled disassembly, you now have broken pieces flying in random directions. In the US, the thing that most prevents this from being a problem is the threat of liability lawsuits. That doesn't apply to a tool ma…
What's going to happen is that the nut will round over, because there's little in this design to prevent the jaw back-driving the helix. Having used a lot of adjustable wrenches, and rounded over quite a few bolts, now I keep sets of open-end wrenches in reach on the toolbench and for adjustables I carry exclusively Knipex Pliers Wrenches, which are awesome tools. There's no way you're breaking the casting of the wre…
Knipex are awesome, a good example of quality resulting in a tool that lasts much longer than the cheap tools and causing much less damage to the nuts you are working on.
Re: RapidSlide Adjustable Wrench
#56I've long subscribed to the philosophy that you should buy the cheapest tool you can find and use safely, use it until it wears out, breaks, or your skill surpasses the capability of the tool - and only then should you spend money on high quality tools. Too much money is thrown away in the name of "buy once, cry once" only to discover that you don't need the capabilities offered by the top of the line options.
I agree with your general position.
here's where things get really interesting , who really makes these tools in the first place?
https://www.protoolreviews.com/power-tool-manufacturers-who-...
I find that "tools" develop the same sort of things we see in tech (brand love like this endless apple vs android thing).
but when you look at the chart of who actually makes these things.. it sort of falls apart.
Like "rigid", "Milwaukee" and the terrible Cryobi are all TTI?
Obviously built to different specs/price points but it is interesting to see one "brand" targeting all markets?
Re: RapidSlide Adjustable Wrench
#57I've long subscribed to the philosophy that you should buy the cheapest tool you can find and use safely, use it until it wears out, breaks, or your skill surpasses the capability of the tool - and only then should you spend money on high quality tools. Too much money is thrown away in the name of "buy once, cry once" only to discover that you don't need the capabilities offered by the top of the line options.
I strongly disagree. Cheap tools are a pain to use, and break when you need them most, and perpetuate throw away culture. If a good tool is too expensive to own find a rental or buy used, otherwise buy high quality. High quality is a joy to work with and will serve you a long time.
Depends on kind of tool. A good (and probably expensive) tool will last you long, but sometimes those tools are more complicated to use because they are targeting professions. When it comes to an adjustable wrench - sure, buy an expensive one from a good brand. That makes sense because cheap and expensive only differ in quality and durability.
When it comes to complicated tools, probably start with something reasonable and cheap. That covers not just tools, but also appliances and other things: cheap coffee machines are put coffee/capsule in and press a button, expensive one would be very manual.
Re: RapidSlide Adjustable Wrench
#58I haven't yet run across an adjustable wrench that was worth a shit. Even old (notionally decent?) Crescent ones. The jaws invariably splay when you apply force, even if you're using them correctly. I've come to the conclusion that it's just intrinsic to having a moving jaw that moves easily enough to be useful. At this point, if I expect to need the wrench ever again (or need to reuse the fastener), I'll just buy a…
knipex makes a good one. And they’re the exception that proves the rule.
https://www.knipex.com/products/pipe-wrenches-and-water-pump...
Re: RapidSlide Adjustable Wrench
#59I haven't yet run across an adjustable wrench that was worth a shit. Even old (notionally decent?) Crescent ones. The jaws invariably splay when you apply force, even if you're using them correctly. I've come to the conclusion that it's just intrinsic to having a moving jaw that moves easily enough to be useful. At this point, if I expect to need the wrench ever again (or need to reuse the fastener), I'll just buy a…
Amazon is heavily promoting a tool that (as near as I can figure out) is a combination adjustable wrench and vise-grips, thus offering you two options for destroying fastener heads in one convenient tool.
Re: RapidSlide Adjustable Wrench
#60I haven't yet run across an adjustable wrench that was worth a shit. Even old (notionally decent?) Crescent ones. The jaws invariably splay when you apply force, even if you're using them correctly. I've come to the conclusion that it's just intrinsic to having a moving jaw that moves easily enough to be useful. At this point, if I expect to need the wrench ever again (or need to reuse the fastener), I'll just buy a…
Knipex Pliers Wrench is what you're looking for. They end up squeezing hard, unlike a crescent wrench, and do not round off fasteners as easily.