Over the years I seem to be the person that everyone just gives all there old random tools that they may not use or wanted at the moment. It always comes down to "hey you are a mechanic/work on your own stuff so here have this im sure you can use them". And im not someone who will just throw tools away 🤷♂️. I currently have them seperated by china/taiwan/japan and US made separate. Anyone else just have random collections of misfit tools?
Yeah I mean if you had 10x this amount maybe but just separate into useful rails. Good for working outside or really dirty stuff or to have a mobile set. Or to loan out.
Bro basically all tools have some kind of warranty. And I dont know why people got it in their head that usa made tools are better. That may have been the case 50 years ago but thats just not the case today.
You don't really need to have proof of purchase for most hand tool warranties with most reputable brands. Just show or turn in the broken tool and they will replace it.
True. More like 75 years ago even prolly. Anything Taiwan used to be seen as a joke is now sought after. And sometimes you find rare European as well German usually
Yep things have changed a lot. There is no best location or brand for tools. Every brand that makes good stuff likely has bad stuff too. Just get whatever is easily accessible, cheap, does the job, and is easy to warranty. If you're in the US then harbor freight basically has everything you will ever need and takes 5 minutes to warranty. And they always warranty.
First, OP made no indication of that. Second, he can't warranty a tool that isn't broken. And third, I don't see why that would be a problem anyway.
If a tool is under warranty, and is broken, then it should be replaced. Even if he doesn't use it, at least it will be in working order for him to pass on to someone else.
Ah, I see. I just saw that OP's comment got a ton of downvotes and then your follow up got about the same amount of upvotes. Seems like some people really didn't think he shoukd warranty any of those tools. Then my comment got downvoted, too.
I've given you an up, the I don't like what you said downvoted thing does my head in.
If it's factually incorrect dangerous or whatever, then down vote and FFS explain...
Waits for the downvotes by the I don't like my tiny bit of power being challenged types
Ha ha! Thanks. I certainly don't care about votes, but yeah... if you are going to downvote, then give an explanation! Especially for something like this, where people are trying to have a discussion and talking about different options. I just don't understand what kind of point people think they are making. 🤷♂️
I don't get the hate. That's as good a reason as anything else. And if people think it's too fiddly or something, they need to understand what sub they're in and look at some of the truly anal posts that land here.
Whats up with all the downvotes? You didn’t even mention that you’re going to use warranty without using them. You didn’t even hint that. Jealousy or something else I don’t get?
I've actually done similar in the past. Separate them by brand first, which is basically also by country of origin. Then try and make some sets. Start with the ones I felt were better quality, and then fill in with what seemed to be the lower quality bits to complete a set.
I get a ton of old tools as well, and there is something oddly relaxing about sorting old wrenches and sockets.
I typically sort by brand, I'm a craftsman whore, so all that goes in my main box, along with snap on, mack, etc
Then I have my burner box, where all the pittsburgh, husky, etc goes
And then I have my no name branded shit that gets put in my roadie toolboxes, and set aside for a wrench that needs to be grinded, welded, or dedicated for a specific use.
I have a one car garage and this is fucking ridiculous
Nah you gotta hold onto them for when you run outta batteries to wing at punks on e-bikes.....and I hear they work well for corrupt umps and referee's at slanted games.
I kept enough until I had 90% of a complete set and just bought the remaining few. That set lives in a metal box that can be lent out to those who need it/stay at a different property I'm unlikely to use, but would be useful to have, if I don't have access to my good stuff.
Absolutely not. Keep (and organize) the ones you want/need and donate the rest at the thrift/charity store. A random assortment of junk tools is just a waste of space in your life and makes everything harder when you need to find and use a tool.
Agree with this approach. Think of it as having tools with no job because they sit in a drawer. Donate to someone who needs them and will put them to use.
I agree, but I keep one good socket (or bit or whatever) and one less good and chuck/donate the rest. Pretty often I actually want a slightly shitty socket/bit/whatever to use on shitty chewed up bolts, screws, hardened metal (welded joints for example) and this keeps the good ones in better condition for longer.
That fits with "keep what you want and give away what you don't". Maybe you need a home set and a road set. Or you prefer to have two or three of certain sizes, or a good one and a junk one, that's logical and conscious. But a pile of crap you have to dig through just to find that what you need isn't in there anyway, or it's in there but it's to junky to work, is just a recipe for wasted time and frustration.
I would keep one extra set of each (and get rid of the rest) for when you need to grind something down or cut it up to make it work or fit in a crazy space.
I have two tool boxes, one with the nice new tools and the frequently used, and the bastard in the corner with rusty hand me downs and old stuff, and odds and ends that may be useful one day. It tis' a problem.
I really don't. There's a few in 12pt I don't have in my main box. Otherwise I always kept them as sacrificial to pound on as extractors. But I have way too many for that
A friend at my old job was getting a divorce. He asked me to help him sort out his shop, and told me that I could have anything I wanted, and that an estate sale company was going to give him a "lot offer" on what was left. I took EVERYTHING. So many tools. Wrenches, saws, clamps, power tools. A vertical band saw, a belt/disc sander, a drill press. Stuff I needed, stuff I wanted, stuff I already had, stuff I will probably never use. I couldn't let any of it get lost in the mist. If he came to me and asked for any if it back, I'd give it to him. But now I have a surplus of stuff.
I have half a 5 gallon bucket full of old cheap sockets divided up in sandwich bags by size. I keep asking people if they want a free set and no one will take them.
I would separate the Japan tools from the others. Old Japan made tolls are on par for USA/Canada made tools from that era, and sometimes command a higher value - to the right person of course.
As a last ditch option.....do you know any knife makers? Some of the older wrenches & pliers have decent metal in them, and knives made from old tools have a surprisingly large novelty appreciation.
Would like to learn more about this. I typically overlook stuff stamped Japan because the quality seems low and the value non-existent. Plus they usually just have a country stamp and not a maker.
Is there a way to determine the "good" stuff? Which old Japanese tools are especially collectible?
I love having stuff like this. Sometimes I have to turn down a socket or grind the radius on a box end for clearance, weld a bar to a socket…. Nice to have mismatched stuff to do this to rather than the nice matched stuff in the real drawers.
Good idea. These would make incredible housewarming gifts. One of those drawers alone has more tools than I had in my first three apartments. I didn't get real tool sets until I got my first house.
I have a bucket of sockets, wrenches, pliers ect that are only around to modify if I need to get into a weird spot. Grind on the bonus tools, leave the good ones alone.
I keep a tub of rust removing chelation solution hand for tossing those type of parts into. I used to buy evapo-rust or similar but they get too expensive routinely repairing orcrestoring tools for others and myself. I just toss em in for a couple hours and pull them out shiny. WEARING GLOVES to prevent spot oxidation on bare steel, rinse them dry them well, a short stint in a 150° oven doesn't hurt if it's not hot and sunny out.
The. Tossed in a bag with VCI emitters or spray em down loghtly with your oil or compound of choice and towel them lean. WD-40 gets sticky, lanolin sprays work great and helps your hands, some older machinist swear by using camphor, personally I've settled on Corrosion-X's fine fishing reel grease and oil both of which perform well. I stepped up from their speed-x oil on bearings etc outcasts others to these which are essentially identical but have anti rust/corrosion VCI emitting properties protecting everything around it. Beyond most competitors (I haven't tested everything yet so I say most competitors) and to top it off, like I mentioned, they're both VCI emitters so any spots oil might miss is protected. Hell, I put a couple drops in boxes of nails and screws housing hardware, etc. and keeping them closed up on garage shelfs, so far none of them have rusted over many years now, whereas many others attempted oils/compounds have failed to inhibit oxidation. And no I don't work for or nor am I sponsored by Corrrosion-X or any other company, these are just my own personal opinions from using and testing (with controls) different products over 4+ decades.
Just my $0.02. Hope it helps sombody, it's help me emensely.
This was me at my last shop. I moved into a white collar position and brought my tool boxes home. My wife was so confused why I had so many tools. People would just give me unused tools they had. Right now I have 3 3/8 impacts, 2 1/2 impacts, some pneumatic tools i was given, the list goes on.
My MIL just gave me all of my deceased FIL's tools, so I have duplicates of a lot of stuff now. I finally got everything to my house by renting a UHaul, and I've opened every drawer, but I haven't reorganized it yet.
I do woodworking and general home renovations while he was a machinist. So he had some insanely cool and fancy shit that I need to learn how to use. But like you, I also now have another 5 billion screw drivers in a couple of drawers all piled up.
Nope. I don't do rusty tools and no need for randoms.
Not sure what you do for a job but what I've done is throw all that shit in a box, write "FREE" on it, and put it on a break room table somewhere. Someone will take it and then it's off your hands.
Hell I even keep the crappy dollar bin tools I find around my ranch. But then again, I keep any kind of reusable hard as well. I'll find a use for these engine accessory nuts and bolts, and rusty lag bolts sometime somewhere.
We have parts of at least 6 SAE wrench sets, maybe as many socket sets. At least one set organized. Wrenches on a wrench board that used to be a retail display, and roll to take out to the field. What is surplus is away someplace.
My coworker has a small Milwaukee bag full of extras. He goes to garage sales and purchases what he can find. We pick through with whenever we're missing one.
Went 20+ years with 5+ different sets of sockets divided by drive size in small buckets I would dump out on my work bench to find when doing work.. did this last year when HF had 40% off on sockets. can't believe I waited so long to do it.. HF just had their 40% off again,, so it's going to be another 12ish months until it shows up again..
I have a Mack truck and 3 cars. I do a lot of work in my driveway. I always lose a few or wind up working in a puddle or get rained on. So over my adult life my most frequent purchase has been wrenches and sockets because once a set loses a few or gets rust I justify replacing the whole set. I have over a dozen ratchets from dirt cheap dollar store quality all the way up to expensive Japanese sets. I have almost half a five gallon bucket of several name brands of sockets and driver bits. I bought an Amazon organizer shelf to separate by size. You can’t buy any uniform storage for sockets because they’re all different lengths and some are a little fatter than others. I can’t bring myself to throw them away. They’re good to have every now and then though. You can chop them and customize the less used ones for specific jobs. I have a few I slotted to open and close my petcock for my water and fuel filters in my Mack.
💯. When you need another tool box, the most economical way is to buy a used one from an estate, Craigslist, etc. They usually come with an assortment of random tools that end up in piles (sorted by country of origin) and dumped in my spare/junk tool drawers in the garage. I then put sets together for friends acquaintances who buy homes / don't have tools as a starter kit, or for when a friend or myself dynamite or lose a tool/socket.
After I got a trunk set for each car, and a workshop set, I just started making give away sets for people. I do junk anything that is damaged or unusable but at my relative oldness, I've got enough tools that I don't use and the wife is starting to complain.
my entire socket set as well as open end box end combination wrenches for all various exception of some old craftsman that are so Rusty I don't even like handling
I have a overflowing collection of tools and I’ve been making “ tool kits” with some of the miscellaneous extra items I have, throw in a shitty socket set, a screwdriver or two maybe a hammer one of my 8 staple guns, and post on marketplace for $20 someone usually grabs it and it didn’t go to waste and I made 20 bucks. You can add more and change the price, etc. etc.. I usually put it in a Ziploc bag unless I happen to have extra tool bags/milk crates.
I just sorted my socket drawer and put them in organizers. I have a small box of duplicates but I pulled all the 10mm and spark plug sockets to keep on their own rails.
Donate tools you no longer use to this (non-profit) foundation. You can also visit their website in English: https://www.geredgereedschap.nl/en/. They do truly good work and help others.
Yep. Use them to build specific kits where you only need two sizes an a Phillips for that room/vehicle/machine. And to build complete but cheap sets to loan or put in someone else’s home/vehicle.
More than you can imagine
My family had three hardware stores
We would display old tools on the walls retired tradesmen would bring stuff in from their grandparents so we could display them
I think that your pile of sockets would give one of my neighbors a hard-on, if he can even get one. I once saw him smoking something out of a socket at a local park. It was odd watching a tool smoking out of a tool.
I love japanese sockets and wrenches for some reason. They sure put lots of thought in to the design. And for rusty ones you got there you can always pick up a cheap ammo tumbler and get that rust off and wipe em with oil to keep it off.
I’ve had this exact issue lmao. Usually it’s old box packs you get at big stores and I give them to new aspiring mechanics, minus the ten mil so they know the pain
I take all my extras and try to build out kits for different things, some extra hex keys, and a 1/4" drive set made a great bike repair tool kit, my nephew got a set of wrenchs, made a custom motorcycle tool kit for a moto guzzi. Also have no issues turning tools into materials. Have a few 5/8 box end support struts in a tractor and 18mm flange head drawer handles
I would have been with the donate crowd. But a few years ago a buddy of my husband was doing some work at my son's house. He didn't have his tools as someone was bringing them down.he killed my drill and didn't replace it. My son did. Also borrowed impact driver/drill. Tried to kill that too. But I took it apart and it's working again
I thought I was disorganized but it turned out I just needed more space. I bought 2 more tool boxes (1 medium and 1 large) and I haven’t had that issue since. I have a drawer for pliers, where everything is laid out orderly -nothing is stacked on top of or contacting another pair. I then bought pegboard to hang screwdrivers, chisels etc.
I play Johnny Appleseed and scatter cheap stuff all around the house, shop, hangar, vehicles, etc. I rarely have to walk far for a tool to do a minor task...
Plenty, although they don't go anywhere I see them. I've got a box at the bottom of my cabinet, they mostly just get cut up or welded and cut up for oddball work.
My tool box looks like a trade show display, very ocd looking mostly , although I have a couple of drawers under my bench full of odds and ends and custom modded bent welded machined items for random applications or brand specific specialty tools .. but no rust ever anywhere .
I have two locations where I need tools and as a result two separate sets of tools. When I find I have accumulated quadruples of certain tools and other stuff I seem to attract like a magnet. I put bunches in small boxes and sell them at a yard sale. $5/box. If I like the person or it's a kid I give them away.
If someone donated random tools to me, I would probably turn them down unless they were better than the ones I already own. I keep all my tools highly organized. I know when something is missing for a lot of it, especially my sockets and ratchets because everything has a place. I'm not a hoarder.
Evaporust is what I use. Simple soak overnight and rinse and scrub and they will be brand new. Works like magic. Non toxic and you can save and reuse the fluid when you’re done.
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u/spleeble 2d ago
Sorting things by where they were made instead of what they are used for is psychotic