Tool Truck Tools

THX PT for posting.

It seems in this age, sometimes we need to be reminded of the limitations of a warranty.

I did auto and truck and aircraft mechanics in the 1970's, still have a bright red 'tamale' wagon in my shop. The tools are fine tools... worth every penny I paid for them.

THX again for posting, I may have to visit a truck sometime, just to see what is new.
 
I don't mind being reminded of limitations but PT forgets one thing, I am the customer, he is the seller. If he came to my shop with that attitude it would be him finding the door not I. I deal with a Tool Truck on a regular basis and the owner is 180 degrees the opposite. This is my opinion.

"Billy G"
 
Guys, if you fav screwdriver has a bad handle, Brownells sells yellow/clear blank handles that you can install yourself. They are for any use you desire. I have many that I have glued onto a homemade tool or special screwdriver that I deemed useful. I save odd hammer heads from the junk bins too. Fixing or repairing an otherwise good tool gives me a great deal of satisfaction and a "new" tool for my collection. No, I have never counted my hammers or screwdrivers, the count wouldn't be right for long anyway as I add "new" ones regularly. http://www.brownells.com/gunsmith-t...ndles/molded-plastic-tool-handles-prod60.aspx
 
"The guys who get on the truck demanding warranty service for a tool that I cannot determine the provenance of and the guy starts telling me how far he can stand from the urinal, he's gonna be getting off the truck more quickly than the others." P T Schram

BTW,off topic, From the stains in front of the urinals I've seen lately, a lot of guys think it's longer than it is. And,I'm not fond of standing in somebody's waste.
 
I don't deal with tool trucks because that opportunity isn't there for me.

But I'm aware of plenty of organizations (read: businesses) whose policy is to accept all returns. <<<<<<<<period I see it with a lot of firearms periphrials (reloading equipment, parts, etc.)

With lots of companies that used to be "The American Way". They accepted returns because they put out a quality product that DID last a lifetime. Then folks started buying with the "I'm only gonna use it once, so why pay that much" attitude, which led manufacturers to lower their quality, which led to more returns, which led to outsourcing manufacturing.

Which led to Harbor Freight.
 
PT I get what you are saying. but you have to admit the screwdriver handle issue mentioned above is a manufacturing defect. As I stated above I have had good luck with the few snap-on tools I have owned. And Ron the now retired snap-on man. Of course also I worked in a shop that took great pride and care of there tools. So this probably made Ron a little better with warranty.
But also consider as there are those that will use a ratchet as a hammer there are probably those dealers that will fight all warranty work. If I only buy one screw driver @ thirty bucks and hav an issue it is just as warrantied as a guy that buys thousands of dollars worth.
Mark
 
Plane flyer,
I would tend to disagree with the reasoning that good tool Companies started selling bad tools. take sears and snap-on. They never real sold many tools to the one time guy. Snap-On sells mostly to the professional user, so not the case there. And craftsman sold most of their tools to the home DIY guy. Corporate greed is the reason, not the tool buyer. I will concede that with the disposable society we live in sears has likely lost a lot of tool business.
Mark
 
As I said in my previous post, I've had very good experiences with the guys in Snap On trucks. I don't own many, but I'm very proud of the ones I do have.

I'm curious, though. I bought my first S.O. combination wrenches at a Pawn Shop. I think there were just 4 wrenches. Years later, I wanted to finish out the set and found a truck to purchase the other wrenches.

But, suppose one of my wrenches fails. How would I establish the provenience of my ownership of that tool if the dealer required it before honoring a warranty?
 
PT- I'm curious... how long have you been a dealer? You mentioned you were at "training", what training? Dallas? Mid-year kickoff?
 
My first post on this forum. This topic. At 57, I have used tools from from crappy to Snappy, Craftsman to Cornwell, Mac to Matco.
And in a pinch - imported, usually inferior items.
Sounds like you had a bad experience with what sounds like a bad dealer. Not the first, nor the last, as unfortunately there are "bad" reps from every tool company.
Now, my best friend is one of the top tool distributors in the U.S., with over 27 years experience. Previously, he was a mechanic for about 12 years, but
it was his life's ambition to be a tool distributor.
When his opportunity came along, he was still pretty young, around 27. To get it, he had to mortgage the house he had just bought. With a wife and three young kids on the line, he had no choice but to succeed. He was determined.
He started with an old used truck he bought from another distributer. It wasn't pretty, but was all he could afford to get started. Years later he'd be able to buy a newer better truck.

His experience as a mechanic taught him that the customer is NOT always right, but his attitude was (and is) to take care of the customer.
Timvercoe makes some great points in his post above. Add in the cost of the truck fuel, insurance and maintenance and we're talking some big money just to fire up that big heavy truck every morning. Here, California's restrictions and regulations get worse each year, costing the small businessman a LOT of money and time.

He's been very successful, and has a lot of very good, loyal customers. Some have become close personal friends.
He's also seen people bring stuff into his truck for warranty which was so obviously mis-used, neglected or just purposely abused that anybody- even with no mechanical background- could see it.
He isn't an idiot, and he will call the customer on their BS when he sees it. But he will always try to figure a way to help them out.

Offering credit to customers, which seems like a great way to help out a young person getting started as a mech, is risky, to say the least. I am not 100% on the specifics, but as I understand it, there are laws in place prohibiting a tool dealer from taking tools back if a customer doesn't pay his tool bills...Talk about a wtf?

In your case, mirage100, I could assure you that: if my best friend, who also happens to be my brother, who also happens to be one of the best Matco dealers on the west coast had been that dealer on that day, you wouldn't have had a problem.
Best wishes always.
 
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