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5 Tools Best Bought Secondhand
Days when you buy a new tool are bright spots in the seemingly endless slog of working on a project car. Placing a shiny new tool onto a bench covered with rusty, crusty parts and pieces can reinvigorate your desire to work. Often that new tool makes or breaks our ability to get the task done. Tools are important, but that doesn’t mean you need to go into debt when buying them.
Finding used tools has never been easier for people with a little grease under their fingernails. At times it’s almost easier to find used tools in good condition than it is to find new ones of high quality. Remember, if you can’t test the function of a tool, assume you’ll need to rebuild or repair it. You can consume a great deal of time and money getting a cheap used tool up to the condition you thought it was in when you bought it.
However, not all used tools are money pits. Here are a few that make sense to purchase used.
Box-End Wrenches
Box-end wrenches really don’t wear out if used properly. Since they are easy to inspect, you can easily know whether the ones you are buying are damaged or abused. For DIY newcomers, there is no better option; even if you do buy a “better” set of wrenches later, this one will be perfect for filling out road-trip tool kits. You might even modify a few for special jobs.
Ratchets
When it comes to ratchets, you can save a lot of money if you are willing to put in a little extra work. Get familiar with the one you want, and what it takes to refurbish it. Rebuild kits can turn a beat-up, high-quality ratchet into a near-new one in an afternoon and the process is easier than you might think.
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That said, success isn’t guaranteed. I love my Snap-on ratchets and didn’t hesitate for a second to buy them right off the truck because I was having a hard time finding the tools I wanted, in rebuildable condition, for a price that made any sense.
Hack Saws
These simple saws come in clutch from time to time. Hack saws pop up at garage sales regularly and are often only a couple bucks. Since the blade is a consumable, something you will be replacing anyway, you only need to inspect the frame to make sure it’s not twisted or broken. That’s easy to check by eye. The consequences for error are relatively low: Should a hacksaw frame fail, there is not much risk of significant injury, so long as you are using it properly. Plus, the design has changed little over time.
Clamps
Since evolution has yet to give mechanics the third hand we so desperately need, it’s basically impossible to have enough clamps in your shop—anything that can help hold pieces of your project, from locking jaw pliers or long pipe clamps. Finding good used examples can save some money, and the only difference between new and used may boil down to appearance.
Punches
To be honest, I can’t tell old hardened steel from new hardened steel if you put both in my hands. Even the best punches eventually get used, as they are tools that are either sitting in storage or being struck with other tools. They lead a rough life, but punches can last a very long time, especially specialty ones or oddly sized versions. Those make for great swap-meet finds.
What else in your toolbox would you rather pick up used than purchase new? Tell us in the comments below.
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A fellows signature line under his name in the Garage Journal Forum went something like “When I die I hope my wife doesn’t sell my tools for what I told her they cost “
I prefer combination wrenches over box end wrenches. Especially Snap-on Flank Drive Plus. I picked up a bunch of used ones here and there for pennies on the dollar. Same with certain specialty tools like a Snap-on valve spring compressor that just needed a good cleaning and a little rust removed. A very nice used Snap-on digital tach/timing light was 1/4 price of new.
There are some tools I will only buy brand new, such as power tools, screwdrivers (Vessel and Snap-on) and anything else that can wear out or get dull.
The metric revolution on Asian cars and most others later on in the 80’s means most of the frequently used sockets and my primary combination wrench set had to be purchased brand new. There’s nothing quite as enjoyable like the right tools for the job!
Most everyone talked about hand tools. Machinist tools are so damn expensive I’ve made it almost a second hobby to seek out second-hand related items like vices for the mill, dial indicators, hold downs, rotary table, etc. It’s about the only way I can afford to!
oh, and I did buy my two post rotary lift second hand from a car dealership upgrading from 7K lifts to 10K lifts. Next to nothing and had been recently refurbished. That was a score.
I found a large yellow plastic handled screwdriver on a Detroit street in (approximately) 1954. Since then, I’ve used it as a chisel, and whenever I’ve needed the extra torque of a Channel-Loc on the handle. (No, I don’t treat any of my other tools this way.) It even spent a few years in the canal under my boat, until I finally was able to find and recover it. I never knew what brand it is, but It’s still in my tool box for whenever it’s needed.