Socket set

[mike]

I presume this isn't their pro version but the style of ratchet in this set is (from experience) prone to jamming:

[Adrian]

No, that's not the pro range - it'd say in the item title if t'were.

That's the cheap-chocolate-and-cheese-mix range.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

It's possible to break any socket if enough say sideways pressure is applied.

Halfords Pro range isn't cheap.

[Adrian]

Viewed absolutely, it's very inexpensive, but not "cheap" - with all the negative connotations of quality that implies.

Viewed comparitively? Compared to Snap-On? It's dirt cheap. Compared to something like this -

It's superb value and quality. Even at the non-50%-off £40. Compared to the chocolate-vanadium s**te you find in supermarket/petrol station unbranded kits? It's Snap-On...

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Everything is cheap compared to the vastly over priced and over hyped Snap-On.

[Tinkerer]

I think I am in shock. I bought my Gedore socket set, with Whitworth and A/F sizes, in about 1961 from a mail order catalogue when I was earning five guineas (£5.25p) per week and at the time they did not seem particularly expensive. I just looked on the Gedore web site and a similar set (only A/F and metric these days) are £452.00. How things have changed. I can vouch for the quality though as thay are still in fully usable condition despite stripping umpteen engines in umpteen cars in that time, sometimes with all the extension rods, T bar etc joined together to give enough leverage for stuck bolts.

[bert]

Take it back and demand a replacement.

[bert]

In message , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes

Even Brit Tool?

[MrWeld]

Your mention of welding sacrificial spanners interests me. So far, I've only MIG welded nice forgiving mild steel, and a bit of stainless.

I would imagine that quality spanners would have relatively high amounts of carbon and other alloying elements, so might be tricky to weld? Would cheaper softer spanners be more weldable?

[SteveW]

I've taken a few back (torx and screwdrivers) and had no problems without a receipt - I can't see why there should be as the Halfords name is marked into them. As it happens, I don't have a receipt 'cos the set was a present - okay fair enough, it was one I specifically asked for.

SteveW

[polygonum]

So a lifetime guarantee lasts as long as the receipt itself? That would be really good if printed using one of those thermal systems that go all black after a short time in heat/light! Maybe an ordinary till receipt really isn't adequate in this sort of situation?

[Stephen H]

I bought a 100 piece Halfords socket set for £50, as it was reduced from £100 in 1991. My GF at the time and her Mum called me stupid for wasting my money (I was a poor hard up student at the time)

It was 1/4 drive, 1.2 drive and 3/4 drive and had all the sockets from

4mm to 25mm and 1/4 inch to 1 inch.

Roll on 2013, and I still have it, with no broken sockets. However the original case is long gone, the tray inserts have now relocated to a proper tool chest cabinet.

Regards,

S.

[Mark]

It shouldn't, I agree - but the T&Cs on their web site explicitly say they won't honour the warranty without the receipt. Did you take the whole set(s) back or did they just exchange individual items?

IIRC mine was a pressie too.

[Bob Minchin]

I suppose the spanners I choose to sacrifice tend to be the no-name ones rather than the quality brands. The welds are not pretty but seem to 'stick' OK and get me out of trouble for a one off job.

[SteveW]

Individual items.

SteveW

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

They're not over-priced if you're using them to earn a living. That lifetime guarantee and the certainty of the S-O bloke being around in his van (also the payment scheme) makes them affordable.

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

Not really a problem. I've cut and welded various spanners and sockets over the years with whatever mig set was to hand.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

You've just given the reasons they have this mystique. They are sold on favourable terms to garage mechanics. Nothing whatsoever to do with quality or value. They simply found a niche market.

I'd suggest you compare Snap on screwdrivers to Wera - then tell me how fabulous their quality is.

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

I've only ever broken one S-O 'driver in my life and that was due to owner abuse. Replaced FOC next time I happened to bump into a S-O rep, in another part of the country, hundreds of miles away, no questions asked.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Not disputing their warranty for broken tools - but would they have replaced a cross head type that had gone blunt simply through use?