What kind of toolbox am I going to need starting out? Any recommendations for an economical, solid box? I am also trying to pick up the rest of the tools I will neee, where should I be looking? I check pawn shops, etc. I have most of my basics, but can anyone recommend somewhere that I can find affordable tools to start out?
Harbor freight boxes are pretty stout for what you pay mine is jammed full of my big stuff that I don't carry in my pickup its held up ok if your using it every day it will get you a couple years down the road As far as tools for myself I am really liking sk you can order them off Amazon and you can mail in a warranty If I am buying tools that the crew uses its was Pittsburgh but now its tekton it's just really good value for the price
A big consideration should be use. If you are going to leave it in the shop on a bench it does not have to be as tough as one the is welded down to a service truck traveling off road.
Craigslist check tools for sale every day you will always find something new popped up. There's always somebody who decided they don't want to be a mechanic anymore after spending a ton of money letting it go for pennies on the dollar
And somebody on this site said tool boxes don't fix machines
Good point. I'm looking at the Harbor Freight tool cart, it seems like its perfect for me.
I’m with Aziron on the Tekton tools,the 3/4” drive stuff I have is pretty good and the wrenches are decent too with a good warranty.
Biggest mistakes I made starting out were: Buying an 18" deep toolbox. In less than 3 years I ended up upgrading to a 24" deep box. Buying cheap air tools. Most of them got tossed after a year. Just did not have the power to do the work.
Nothing wrong with second hand tools and boxes to get u started. It' always great when u can find a retired mechanic selling off his whole setup for a deal.a good way to save money and usually get better tools
Might as well buy used good tools to get started instead of new junk. As soon as you start beating them around in the field they will be used tools anyway so might as well buy them used.
Yep, Make friends with the tool truck dealers and watch Craigslist. You can find a lot of lightly used tools that way.
When you are starting out. Buy only what you can pay cash for and you will truly buy only what you NEED. A used name brand box cpuld be a better deal then a new tin can.
I went to harbor freight and got their biggest bottom box for a little over 1/2 price, it was a floor model and they had lost the keys and went to ebay and got a new set of locks for 20.00 bucks. and top box 1/2 price it was dented in the back .
Those boxes are a good deal, heavy construction and really good drawer slides. They make the same size Snap-on and Mac boxes look like junk. I know, my everyday box is one of their 44"x18' rollaways with the matching top and side box. Fits through the bays easy and holds most of what I need for most projects. I have a huge Matco rollaway that holds my specialty tools and just sits in the corner.
One thing I forgot to mention, when it comes to boxes. Big wheels are best . Nothing worse than getting it moving only to get stalled by a zip-tie or pebbles.
Harbor freight box or used truck brand box. Get a big box and get a cart like the Harbor Freight cart. Hit up flea markets and eBay for used tools Just get 3/8 and 1/2 in impact only. You are gonna be using air and battery tools so much that chrome is kind of a waste Don’t cheap out on hammers and punches and chisels. Buy quality brands of each. Go used for 3/4 and 1” impact sockets and wrenches. So expensive new but fairly available for pretty good prices used Angle wrenches. Get them. Cat and Snap On are same, Cat has better prices If you work at a Cat dealer you can get employee pricing on the hand tools out of the Cat hand tool catalog. It’s all good stuff from snap on/Williams But good quality air tools. I like IR. But taps and dies individually off of EBay and get US made HSS ones. There are tons of industrial brands that you should get to know and buy from. Williams, Wright, Proto, SK. Tool truck quality at half the price or better. Most US made to boot
Chrome sockets are handy on hydraulic valves though. For some reason they like to countersink plugs into them sometimes. Other times they save you from having to pull a bunch of crap out of a valve so you can access the one cartridge buried in the back, which is usually placed tight against another cartridge or a mounting bracket .
Just got to thinking, the 20’ connex boxes are getting pretty cheap nowadays, some shelves inside and boom you have a walk in toolbox! maybe with a break room also. I try to think innovatively of course.
Good quality ball-ended hex keys are another must have. I love my impact swivel sockets too. Great for tight spots like around starters and pumps.
I bought the impact swivels before any others.
When I started out just went with a sears roller cabinet box with a tool chest on top . When I needed a bigger box I bought another sears roller & bolted them together & added a tag axil in the middle . Caught a little flack from the other mechanics with the big Snap On setups . It was all cool ! I got them back when I set up a Knapheide tool box with a Ford 460 engine . Pulled up to the shop and service manager & my buddy's all came out to look it over . Manager asks " what are you going to do with that " ? "I'm going to go make some real folding money " His jaw dropped a little . I was 24 at the time . Still have both tool boxes .
I agree with AzIron
When I started, pre internet like it is today, I bought a used Mac single bank roller and a more used Snap On top box off the Snap-on guy. I seem to remember paying $600 for the setup, which was probably too much. I used that for about 3 years until I scored a Mac Tech 1000 double bank box at an auction of a retiring mechanic. I paid $750 for that and sold the little Mac bottom box to the bosses kid and kept the top box for home. I still use that Mac box 13 years later. I made an oak top for it from wood I salvaged from a van trailer floor. I couldn't afford many truck tools, but I did buy some. We had Mac, Matco, and Snap-on every week. Snap on guy was a dick, so other than that first box and a torque wrench, I never bought any Snap-on tools. Lots of Matco. Also, I could buy USA made Allen brand tools at the farm store, and USA made Craftsman at Sears in the big city. I still have many of those tools even though Allen ceases to be a brand. Things are a lot different now. Taiwan and China tools have come a long way. The quality of all tools is much better. Compare the finish of a 25 year old Snap-on wrench to a new one. It's night and day different. Personally, I buy mostly Proto and SK now. I don't like dealing with the trucks. I just order tools from a local supplier. I don't warranty tools either. Not worth it. I just toss them and buy a new one. I lose more tools than I break.
For some high quality Taiwanese stuff, Check with a local New Holland or Case dealer. Its the same stuff that Snap on sells as Blue Point now, For a lot less.
NAPA is an excellent source of quality tools too. Their Carlyle brand is great, all made in Taiwan but it’s high quality. They have a very thick tool catalog of all the brands they carry too if you ask them for a copy
My most used tool hands down is a Leatherman super tool 300 . Pins & bushings are gettin pretty wore down . I'm due for a new one . What would completely shut us down is if we run out of Skoal ! Pretty bad when ya tell the concrete truck driver to stop in the convenience store & grab a can of tobacco . LOL!
Td... here's a pic of me and my second truck, I was 28 at the time. first truck was a 79 GMC 1 ton with single rear wheels and a homemade welding bed.
Love the truck setup ! A young RZucker in field welding irrigation pipe . Cool photo I have to ask ... What is the rig behind the farm tractor ?
Actually in this pic I was wrenching. The rig was a hydraulic power pack I had built for a farmer to run "push out" trailers that had a huge telescoping cylinder pushing a sliding bulkhead to unload compost or silage. They didn't want to bother with the expense of wet kits on rental trucks. I think the cylinder stroke was around 365"... they took a lot of oil to extend. It doesn't show in the pic angle, but that truck was packing a Lincoln SA200 welder and a 13 HP air compressor. That crane was one of my favorites, no remote but it could lift, pull, push, etc. The 427 was somewhat thirsty.
One thing I will add that might be of interest to a young mechanic starting out . Myself .... Could not stand working in the same building / shop all day long . Really enjoyed the field work the best be it a wrecker or service call in the 460 Ford tool box . The outdoor on site work was far more exiting then back at the shop . Worked for several fertilizer companies dragging & patching trucks back together in the dirt . Really liked it ! Call from the plant manager would go down like this , " We have a spreader truck over in Orange county with a busted king pin on the drivers side " , " Don't care how you fix it just make it move again & send us a bill " . Endless stories like that . It's fast pace Spaghetti Western wrenching . " Make it move again & send us a bill" . I like it
I noticed it had a tank on it and lines . That's cool coming up with a simple solution to the problem with parts & equipment on hand . Damn Hot Rodder's !
You are strange... Just like me. I always said a bad day in the field is better than a good day in the shop. And "make it move"? that was my middle name.
Make it move & blow smoke again . Mobile mechanics job .