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good on Halfords
jacko - 21/3/13 at 07:01 PM

I have just taken a 1/2 drive ratchet back to Halfords after having it about 18 months [ it broke ] and they replaced it without a quibble
i will buy other tools from them in the future with that service
Jacko

PAUL FISHER - 21/3/13 at 07:34 PM

Pleased ive just bought this set then Jacko, I need never buy another tool ever again

http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=178843

bobthebuilder - 21/3/13 at 07:44 PM

i also use alot of halford proffesonal tools. much cheaper than snap off,normally better quality and i have never had an issue with returning stuff for a replacement regardless of which store i go to.

Strontium Dog - 21/3/13 at 09:05 PM

quote:
Originally posted by bobthebuilder
i also use alot of halford proffesonal tools. much cheaper than snap off,normally better quality and i have never had an issue with returning stuff for a replacement regardless of which store i go to.


Er, how is it better quality? I think it is quite good and I have some but it is no where near the quality of my SnapOn tools, some of which I've had for 30 years!

coyoteboy - 21/3/13 at 09:16 PM

they don't warranty their ratchets, which is annoying to me. It's basically the only part of a tool that'll fail generally.

ashg - 21/3/13 at 09:22 PM

i have got loads of halfords pro ratchets. i wore out the mechanism in the 3/8th ratchet, they said they dont replace broken moving parts, but they did have rebuild kits for £3


p.s you did well to kill the half inch one they are bloody bombproof, had to give the 3/8th one some mega stick over 10 years of weekly weekend abuse before it finally let go

[Edited on 21/3/2013 by ashg]

Staple balls - 21/3/13 at 09:30 PM

I had to go back the other day with a 1/4" screwdriver jobber that'd lost the spring, swapped in 5 minutes, happy days.

They didn't swap the ancient dumb battery charger that released the blue smoke though.

Vindi_andy - 22/3/13 at 09:31 AM

I killed my SnapOn 3/8 ratchet giving it some serious grief on a seriously tight nut and stripped a couple of teeth.

Took it to the man in the van and he rebuilt it no question.

Must admit I tend to buy clarkes pro with the lifetime guarantee but had a couple of opportunities to acquire some snap on at a reasonable price

Valtra - 13/4/13 at 12:22 AM

Halfords Pro are generally Rebranded Draper Expert

SteveMX5 - 13/4/13 at 10:31 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Valtra
Halfords Pro are generally Rebranded Draper Expert


Are they? I'm pretty sure Halfords sets are made by Sykes Pickavant.

Valtra - 13/4/13 at 01:51 PM

quote:
Originally posted by SteveMX5
quote:
Originally posted by Valtra
Halfords Pro are generally Rebranded Draper Expert


Are they? I'm pretty sure Halfords sets are made by Sykes Pickavant.


Yes them as well , I think you'll find that there is quite a bit of interbreeding at that level of tool manufacture most "brands" tend to buy in and re-label stuff to ensure a full range . I sell Draper and they have over 10000 different products in the catalogue so it makes sense . If you go into Wickes you will also find their best tools are Draper , though having said that there is no guarantee that draper actually physically make them anyway. Sadly the vast majority of tools now come from China and surrounding countries but provided the quality is there the end user gets better value . The tricky bit comes when a buyer such as B&Q or Screwfix wield such buying power that they screw the manufacturer down so much that the spec suffers . Rumor has it that this has happened with De walt Power tools from Screwfix which look OEM on the outside but perhaps have plastic cogs and cheaper motors inside .

As with most things in life you get what you pay for BUT if you MUST have a certain brand sometimes you will pay extra for the name . In conclusion Halfords tools are good tools and good value and the warranty like draper is usually no quibble despite caveats over miss use ( We all know that ratchets get abused because we all do it)