I also go to sears and get craftsman tools. They are priced good and are some quality tools. I also get an employee discount from a friend on tools so that doens't hurt either. I just bought a torque wrench the other day, but it was the wrong drive, ooops.

 

the 23 mm wrench you need is gonna run you 15 plus tax at sears.

 

Definetely Sears. Craftsman tools are more than enough for a home mechanic, and since Sears are everywhere, its easy to get a replacement if something breaks. Dont buy tools online unless they are specialty tools.

Contrary to popular belief, Snap-On, while great, is just a waste in a home garage. The only thing I would get from snap-on are the hollowhead ratchets. They make a lot of things easier.

 

Snap-on and Mac's greatest strengths are that they make life easy for you if you are in the business. They send a guy around to garages who will replace your tools, get you specialty tools, and offer financing for those items. It's much easier to just deal with the tool guy if you're working on cars all day than it is to wash up, jump in your car, and trek to Sears every time you need something. For this service, you pay a premium for those tools. I've yet to see a craftsman hand tool break unless I was doing something pretty bizarre with it. Sockets on the other hand, I've broken plenty of those. An impact wrench doesn't care who makes the socket, they can and will break on occasion.

 

Heading down to Sears after work. As far as which set to get, is it the more tools the better? Do I really need 200+ pieces?

 

You would be suprised. Remember, the really big sets (the $149.99+) just come in a sack with no case. You will need to buy a toolbox or whatever to hold them. Also, if you are in a budget, get a slightly smaller set (the ones that do come with a case) and a bunch of open end wrenches. If you can swing it, the ratcheting wrenches come in handy as well. There are a lot of spots where a ratchet doesnt fit, and youll need a wrench.

However, if you are a basic change your own oil and sparkplug home mechanic, the $150 dollar set will be just fine.

 

Thanks for the quick response.

FYI for the OP, according to the Sears website today is the last day for their "sale" so get down there!

 

Thanks for the quick responese everyone! Sears it is. Does it matter what type of torque wrench I get? Is there different types even?

 

i'm not going to recommend any place over the other (cuz i don't know any better), but i got my stuff at autozone.

- 1/2" torque wrench (the good one with twist knob at end, clicks when you reach correct torque) ~$25
- socket and wrench for differential change - $5.99 AND $6.99 IIRC
- 17mm socket...already had this one, shouldn't cost more than the one for the diff.
- 3/8" socket wrench...already had this one

 

There are the "click" type that has a torque that you can set, but these need to be released between use and calibrated every year or so. Then there's the type with the "needle pointer". These are the simplest and would most likely serve your needs. The click type is for more exact work.
Get one that has the torque you will need to measure somewhere in the upper half of its gauge range. You may have to get two ranges if you do a wide variety of work.