The $47 fix that changed my mind about cheap tools

I always bought the cheapest screwdrivers. Figured a screwdriver is a screwdriver. Then I stripped a $4 phillips head trying to tighten a cabinet hinge. Swapped to a $47 Wiha set last month. The grip is better. Tips fit tighter. Haven't stripped a single screw since. Any other former cheap-tool people out there?

3 comments

3 Comments

johnson.paul26d ago

Figured a screwdriver is a screwdriver" - that's exactly where I was for years. I heard somebody say once that cheap tools are just renting the frustration before you buy the good ones. Started with a $15 Harbor Freight socket set. Third time I rounded off a bolt I threw it in the garbage and walked to Home Depot for a Craftsman set. Haven't looked back. The Wiha stuff is solid. I still have a couple cheapies in the truck for when I need to pry something open or abuse them. But for the daily stuff, paying more upfront saves you time and bloody knuckles later.

carr.elliot26d ago

Third time I rounded off a bolt" is proof cheap tools cost you more in time and blood than good ones ever will.

david56226d ago

Man I felt that "renting the frustration" line in my bones. I've got a drawer full of stripped screwdrivers that look more like little metal swizzle sticks than tools now. Pretty sure I've donated more skin to my toolbox than any tool has ever given back to me.