Tools that let you down
The screwdriver head sheared off while driving in a screw
It used to be that you could rely on Stanley hand tools to stand up to a lot of use and give good service for years. Not any more. I’ve had Stanley saws that couldn’t cut straight (poorly aligned teeth), Stanley tape measures that pulled apart after a couple of months, Stanley chisels with plastic handles that split when hit with a wooden mallet and now this. The screwdriver is about two years old and I was driving a screw into plywood, using a pilot hole, when the head of the screwdriver fractured into several pieces. It was part of a set of four and it’s the third to fail in exactly the same way. So much for a quality product—especially when they were more expensive than most of the other screwdrivers I considered.
I remember buying Stanley tools for our Dad, they were great quality, not anymore. Shifter’s snap, screwdrivers chip, and hammers break. They are crap.
Stanley tools are total crap no better then Chinese knockoffs
I of the opinion that you don’t buy tools you invest in them. So i buy decent brands and i find teng to be the best value for money
I don’t have a lot of DIY type tools, but in the last few years the few I have bought came from our local hardware merchant. They are generally not brands I’ve ever heard of, but seem pretty solid and I haven’t had any break yet. But then, apart from the garden tools, they only have a moderate workout.
A large proportion of my tools are old to very old as I find them more comfortable to use, more accurate to use, easier to maintain, repair or sharpen, and much longer lasting. I get them from Freecycle, ebay or the local free ads paper, in barter, from skips or as gifts (often from people who don’t want “old tat”).
I have an 80-year-old jack plane, 50-year-old crosscut and rip saws, 50-year-old draw knives, a huge assortment of old spanners, and much more besides.
The old plane is a dream to use and the blade holds a superb edge. I can sharpen and reset the old saws, which have comfortable wooden handles, whereas modern saws are too brittle for the teeth to be reset while the handles are nasty plastic affairs.
There are a few modern tool makers that produce good tools, but their cost is such that I limit myself to just one or two a year—and they have to be absolutely essential to boot. Even so, my wish list is very, very long!
Will you write to Stanley, sending them thiat broken screwdriver? You never know, they may surprise you with a replacement set of a voucher. I’ve had good responses from Pyrex, HITT Productions (kids videos) and Cadburys in that way.
It is not just Stanley, which I think are largely made in China these days, but other brands as well. Getting a quality tool is a bit of a lottery and I always try to find something I think will last. Some of the material out of the USA is very good.
Much of the Australian and British stock is now Asian made and gives up real quickly.