[-dustin]

i remember back when i worked on my Vanilla, i wished like hell i had a set of sockets. mom and i went to Sears this morning, and i saw these 2 setups:

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&vertical=TOOL&pid=00933462000&tab=spe#tablink

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&vertical=TOOL&pid=00934060000&tab=spe#tablink

she knows i'm a tool nut, and aspire to be a badass mechanic, so she wanted to get one for me. i had to fight her in order to step away from the sets, 'cause i didn't want her to spend the money. but now that i'm thinking about it, i'm kinda considering going back there and getting one of the sets with some X-mas money. it's safe to assume i'll get my money's worth out of them, right? up until now, i've always used an adjustable wrench. it works, but it's kinda cumbersome.

 

[Ciaran]

You can ALWAYS use more tools.

You may not use them on your bike or right away, but good tools never go bad. Get 'em!

 

[amateur]

How much do you want to spend? Remember that Craftsman tools are an investment, and the more you buy at once, the more you save.

 

[binary visions]

Sockets are 10x nicer to use than an adjustable wrench.

And the lifetime warrenty on Craftsman tools is no joke. I brought in a 15 year old socket wrench with a busted mechanism and the guy made sure it said "Craftsman" on the handle, and handed me a kit to replace all the guts of the wrench.

 

[Mike B.]

Not a bad deal on those sets. Craftsman tools are good, not great, but are very capable for the average home mechanic. You can sweeten the deals on all Craftsman tools by signing up for the Craftsman club and you'll get 10% off in addition to any sale prices, etc. BV is right too, I've taken in ratchets and other tools that were pushed way beyond their limits and they were warranteed, no questions asked.

Next Christmas keep an eye on the Sears ad because every weekend in December they have a big sale on Saturday mornings from 7-10 AM and you can stack the CC discount most times.

 

[johnbryanpeters]

For just about anything you would do on a bicycle, a 3/8" drive set would be the 'nads. Craftsman's decent, and only rich folks can afford Snap-On.

J

 

[Spunger]

They have a set, about $100 with a ton of sockets, deep, small, big, everything. I think it's their 110 piece kit?

It was the best $100 I ever spent. I have never regreted it. That was the first thing I bought of my adult working life. That was 5 years ago. Everything comes in a nice case and you get their warrenty. I've broken sockets and rachets and you just bring it into sears and they change it out, no questions asked.

I can't say I've used it as much on my bike because I bought it for the car(s). You can never really have too many tools. Plus you do the math and it's cheaper to buy a set of them in any case. Even when I look for drill bits, whatever in the tool world they rape you for 1 but buy 5 different sizes and you get a massive deal. So you slowly work on it. Screwdriver set, plier set, vice grip set, and before you know it you have a pretty nice collection going. Tools last a lifetime.....

 

[Brian HCM#1]

Dude its a tool kit, you'll use them forever. You can't go wrong with Craftsman either, with the lifetime warranty you're good as gold

 

[UCSBrian]

For the love of god, get some sockets before you destroy everything with that adjustable wrench.

 

[-dustin]

you know how hard it was taking off the 26mm topcap on Fox forks with that wrench, why trying not to scuff it, or scratch the black crown? that wasn't fun.

i picked up the $30 one, and got that Craftsman Club membership. figure i can add ______ sets as i need them. gracias.

 

[Austin Bike]

Craftsman tools rock

 

[ZEDMAN]

i sure didnt expect it but i got the 151pc set for christmas. my dad gets mad whenever i use his stuff.
http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&vertical=TOOL&pid=00934181000&subcat=Mechanics+Tool+Sets

 

[penguinofdoom]

I've probably got more money into my tools than i do into my bike. 2 almost full sets of tools for both my garage and in my truck (when i go off-roading), You name it, I've got it. air tools, grinders, welders, sockets, wrenches, screwdrivers.. Except for those funky bike part specific tools like a bottom bracket socket, and a chain wrench, but thats what roomates are for, they have all those tools. i've got everything else.

pretty much everything i own is a craftsman, good quality for the price. not as good as mac or snap-on, but those aren't worth the price unless your a mechanic who uses them every day as your job or something. and even most mechanics i know still have mostly craftsman tools at home.

 

[DRB]

Long with your sockets, at some point get yourself an in-lb torque wrench. Craftsman makes a good one for around $50. Along with a metric socket driver set, its a very important tool.

 

[KaTooMer]

Personally, I'd get a metric-only set. My SAE tools have been gathering dust for many years. For sockets, I've got THIS. Also very handy is THIS.

 

[Ian F]

I have a ton of tools for working on cars, but I rarely use them on my bikes. My bike tools are completely seperate from my other tools. I have a 1/2" dr ratchet and a couple of sockets for specific bolts on the bikes (and my headset press) in the bike box, but I generally only use box-wrenches on the bikes and Park cone wrenches.

 

[-dustin]

speaking of torque wrenches, which do y'all prefer, the clickety kind, or the lever-bending-to-show-torque kind?

only problem is my tool box is getting too small. actually, it has been too small for a while. i'm desiring a CH Ellis case muy bad.

 

[Mike B.]

speaking of torque wrenches, which do y'all prefer, the clickety kind, or the lever-bending-to-show-torque kind?

only problem is my tool box is getting too small. actually, it has been too small for a while. i'm desiring a CH Ellis case muy bad.

click type without a doubt