There are many, many places where you can buy new tools and supplies. Here are my favorite places to shop, with a brief discussion about each.
- Online distributors (e.g. Amazon.com, Harry Epstein Co.)
- Big Box Retailers (e.g. Home Depot, Lowes, Sears)
- Industrial Suppliers (e.g. Enco, McMaster Carr, MSC)
- Woodworking Shops (e.g. Lee Valley, Rockler, Woodcraft)
- Specialty Supply Shops (e.g. Little Machine Shop, plastics suppliers)
- Ebay, Forums, and other peer-to-peer marketplaces
Online Distributors
Amazon.com: great selection, low prices, quick shipping, exemplary customer service.
Harry Epstein Co: a friendly mom & pop shop with focus on USA-made tools.
Big-Box Retailers
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I shop at all three major big-box retailers, and typically pick one over the others depending on what I’m looking to buy. In recent years Sears has been getting more of my business than the other two retailers. Before that, Sears has received a lot more of my business, as my hand tool collection contains many Craftsman tools.
Industrial Suppliers
Amazon Supply: Formerly known as Small Parts, navigation is effortless and they offer free 2-day shipping on $50+ orders.
Enco: Good but limited selection, great prices, slow shipping.
McMaster Carr: Vast selection, ambiguous branding, quick shipping.
MSC Supply Co: Great selection, great prices if you shop from the monthly sales flyers, quick shipping.
Zoro Tools: Occasionally frustrating navigation, but good prices and free shipping on $50+.
Woodworking Shops
Lee Valley: Home of Veritas tools, great customer service.
Rockler: Reasonably good selection, but wait for a sale or coupon if you can.
Woodcraft: Favored slightly better than Rockler, and offers great semi-annual coupons.
Woodpeckers: Great layout tools, their “One Time Tools” can be addictive.
Specialty Supply Shops
BladeHQ: One of my favorite places to shop for multi-tools and pocket knives.
Little Machine Shop: A great place for small machining tools and accessories.
Ebay/Craigslist/Forums/Shows/Yard Sales/Swap Meets
I don’t shop for second-hand tools often, but have scored some nice deals via enthusiast forums.
And…
Which vendors would you add to this list? It’s not an exhaustive list of where I purchase new tools from – these are just where I shop at and spend the most.
Conductor562 says
Zoro is a great source for stuff, but as you say, the website is awful! Whoever designed that site should be charged with some sort of criminal offense. Hope they have that awesome Cyber Monday sale again this year.
Alan S. Blue says
This link focuses on -wood- tools, but… extensive.
http://www.scrgeek.com/woodwork/wwLinksTools.html#tools
Mac says
Grainger, Fastenal, McFeelys
These are boarderline for tools, they have plenty, but are probably more for parts/consumables. (Maybe a separate post is needed?) I generally don’t look at these first, but usually do not have to look any further if I need something.
Stuart says
I am fond of McFeelys as well, and although they do sell tools I figure most people also see them as more of a fasteners and accessories suppliers.
I have limited experience with Grainer, but there’s one up the street I’ve been meaning to check out. Fastenal is alright, but for online ordering I’ve had little reason to stray from my favorites.
rob says
I tend to lean towards Amazon. If you shop their regularly you can find some very good deals, often times large savings via their “Amazon Warehouse Deals.” I saved over $150 on my miter saw purchase via Amazon. After that Sears and Home Depot come into play for me.
I also shop a fair amount at Orchard Supply Hardware and had purchased Craftsman tools from them. Now with their likely sale to Lowes I guess Lowes will be seeing some of those $$$ from me. No announcement yet how Craftsman and other tools/brands OSH Carries will come into play.
Javier says
I like ebay when I have the time and want to buy big ticket items new at used prices. Ive got a bunch of really good deals on there for new tools. I like home depot and lowes but home depot more since they have a better selection plus have milwaukee which lowes dont carry. I got a m12 brushed hammer drill kit with the case and 2 batts for $79. What a deal, oh and a milwaukee rep was there so I got a milwaukee t shirt. Also lowes has been a jerk to me lately with their terrible in store warranty policy and banning me from making returns without a reciept. Now I’m forced to use the my lowes card. Fourth I like is amazon and they have never let me down, amazon customer service is the best. PERIOD! They cant be beat.
Stuart, is home depot going to clearance out the current brushed m12 tools to make room for the new brushed m12 tools? Also I cant wait for your article on the new m12 and m18 updated brushed tools.
Stuart says
Did you mean to ask if they would clear the brushed M12 tools to make room for the brushless? I don’t think so. Milwaukee is coming out with redesigned brushed tools which will probably be appealing to in-store shoppers due to their price points. I’m not sure if Home Depot will carry all of the M12 brushed and brushless products, but time will tell.
Javier says
No my question is correct. Since milwaukee has redesigned their brushed tools both m12 & m18 I was wondering if hd would clearance their current brushed m12 tools to make room for the new brushed tools. Not to be mistaken with brushless tools. Just wondering since I got a crazy deal I just couldnt pass up on their brushed hammer drill m12 kit. I can see the current brushed m12 tools side by side at hd with the brushless m12 since the price points are fair. I just cant imagine all three old and new brushed m12 tools and also m12 brushless. Unless the old/current brushed tools were sold much less than they currently are but all 3 would take up too much shelf space I suppose.
Stuart says
There’s no reason for them to keep the old brushed tools alongside the new ones. My guess is that the older ones will be marked down until they disappear.
I don’t really expect to see the older M12 drills and drivers in stock at Home Depot past the end of 2013, at least not the more popular ones.
Max says
USA Suppliers:
PB Swiss: ToolLady (http://www.toollady.com/) & Count-On Tools (http://www.pbtools.us/) -> Both great CS
Facom: Ultimate Garage (http://www.ultimategarage.com/) -> Any others???
Wera, Knipex, NWS: http://www.chadstoolbox.com (Sometimes long delay) and http://www.german-hand-tools.com (Great CS)
I´m currently looking for US good sources (without long delivery delay) for Stahlwille and Gedore…Chadstoolbox and GhT your have to wait….Samstagsales.com has some but any others to recommend?
Thanks!
Max
Stan says
I buy my tools mostly from Grainger, Harry J Epstein, eBay and Amazon. I really like the fact that Grainger and Harry J Epstein break the mold and ACTUALLY list the country of origin of EVERY product they sell.
Home Depot and other distributors should take notes, as I can’t speak for others, but I am not willing to buy an item without knowing the country of origin in regards to tools.
I buy items on eBay as you can find new old stock and otherwise tools/items that used to be made in America, but either are made elsewhere or the company doesn’t exist anymore.
Case in point, American made Vise Grips. As most people know, Irwin eliminated the United States manufacturing plant and outsourced all the work overseas. I’ve tried the present day Vise Grips and the quality is no longer there and aren’t worth the price.
I can only speak for myself, but I rather own a Petersen/American Tools or other brand American made set of locking pliers that I know that will work consistently than one that might as well be a paper weight.
Now with Grainger, the best items are on their online website and it’s easy to navigate through. Assuming you know what you are looking for that this, but that goes without saying for the most part.
Brandon says
woot!
Steven B says
http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/ MLCS is one of the best places to buy router bits and they’re one of the cheapest. I have bought nearly all my bits from them and they’re just as good or better (their Katana bits are the best I’ve used) as Rocker, Porter Cable or Bosch brand bits (which I use as comparison).
JeffD says
I agree with your selections and have purchased tools from most of them over the years.
For Japanese tools I use Level Chrome. http://www.levelchrome.com/
Max says
Great Info! Thanks!
fred says
Having an account with a local supply house can provide an alternative to on-line purchases – particularly when you need something fast – and it is beyond the realm of the HD or Lowes.
One source in NJ comes to mind:
http://www.awmeyer.com/
Dynamite Tool and Sunrise Tool on Long Island have a smaller selection – but can also be worth a visit if you are in the neighborhood
Harry says
I would add http://www.trident-supply.com to the industrial suppliers. They had a huge Gearwrench 120xp ratchet promotion over Father’s Day and offer great customer service too.
http://www.tooltopia.com can be a great source for automotive tools
RKA says
I’ve been using Hartville Tool lately for online purchases (they have B&M stores in OH). They pack items very well and ship same day. But I haven’t had a chance to check their pricing as I’ve been buying a lot of things that are MAP controlled. Also haven’t had a reason to test their return policies yet.
Tooltopia is also a good one for online purchases.
EeeZee says
Hartville has proven excellent in every respect. Highly recommended for selection and bottom-line price including free shipping.
Essie says
I spend most of my time either in my shop in New England (tool lovers heaven) or back home in New York (my block currently being Sex&theCity tourist and ConEd hell).
In NYC–
*Victor Machinery http://www.victornet.com — They have anything a one-person metalworking/moto shop like me requires and I can get stuff delivered same day or just go to Brooklyn for pickup. I skip Fastenal, Grainger, etc, because their prices are outrageous.
AndrewC says
I have to second http://www.mlcswoodworking.com – I great site for inexpensive router bits, clamps, fixtures, and measuring tools. Not the best quality, but servicable.
http://www.boltdepot.com – I end up getting a lot of bolts from here, though I honestly can’t say if its the best. Prices before shipping are much better than Mcmaster, but they have very high shipping prices. At least you do know the shipping however. And the website has a decent layout.
Also don’t forget the local or chain hardware stores (Ace, Truvalue). There fastener selection is much better than either Home Depot or Lowes. Prices are outrageous, but when you need a fastener today and not two days from now . . .
JRE says
Peachtree woodworking is one of my favorites. Had a replacement beam for my Delta Unifence that was better than the original. I repair guitars so I also frequent Stewart MacDonald (stewmac.com) and Allparts (allparts.com).
Kyle says
As long as this thread is becoming a nice list to reference I’ll add in a few.
Techni-tool – website is terrible but catalog is awesome. If you do precision/modeling/electronics/scientific type stuff this is the place! Everything soldering, tweezers etc.
http://www.techni-tool.com/
Stuart says
Definitely. All-Spec is a similar electronics-oriented tools and equipment supplier I have had good experiences with and can recommend.
Jcc says
For me Sears is always my go-to store for tools, though I have a weird love-hate relationship with that place. My grandmother worked there for 20 years, my Dad and Grandfather always swore by Craftsman tools (and they had lots of them), and whenever I went to Sears as a little kid, it was always to see Grandma, buy tools with Dad, and possibly get popcorn and an icee from their store-wide snack stands. So, I have this deep psychological connection with Sears, and if I go to one that doesn’t see too much traffic, there is this musty smell on the inside that takes me back to the early 1980’s.
So, as you might expect, practically my entire tool collection is non-Chinese Craftsman products, except for my jointer which I bought brand-new on Craigslist. I definitely buy a lot of NOS on Ebay if I can find Made-in-USA Sears products from the 1980’s or 1990’s.
That being said, Sears’s customer service (in-store and online) is atrocious, their salespeople have absolutely no business working anywhere around hardware, and their move to send all tool production overseas tends to drive me into profanity-laced rants. However, just when I’m ready to never give them another penny, I encounter a great customer service manager or a phone agent who understands the particular issue I’m having…and corrects it immediately. Or I’m in the store and they’ve brought some NOS treasure out of their “secret vault” under the store and they’re clearancing it out for pennies, or the time recently I was looking to upgrade the fence on my 1990’s Craftsman table saw (bought NOS off Craigslist in 2012!!) and just on a whim, I discovered that Sears was still selling the Align-a-Rip XRC through Parts Direct for a fraction of its original price…and they shipped the entire assembly to my house for $15.00 in shipping fees.
But, I can’t buy everything there. And my 2nd go-to store is probably Lowes. They have everything Home Depot does, but they also carry the full Bosch line. I’m also pleased with them right now because they sold me the Porter-Cable band saw last week for 20% off…apparently it’s being discontinued, which is a shame because it’s actually one of the few big power tools NOT made in China.
And then there’s Home Depot, from which I’ll buy screws and Behr paint, but not much else. I like Ridgid woodworking products, but trying to buy one is like attempting to shop in the old Soviet Union. Everything’s on display (on the website) but nothing’s for sale, it’s all backordered indefinitely, and chances are you’ll never get one. And that so-called lifetime warranty is garbage. Just wait until something breaks on your Ridgid product. It may have a “lifetime warranty” but the parts are no longer available, Comrade!
Javier says
I wish I could have experienced sears in their prime like you remember it. I just went there this weekend and the tool section made me depressed. There were more associates than there were customers. The layout was uninviting. Customer service seemed good as a few associates asked me if I needed help or had questions even though I know they couldnt help me if I had “real” tool related questions for them.
Jason says
Well, even in the early 1980’s, I was just a little kid. For me back then, all I was interested in was the toy department. Remember when Sears used to sell Atari 2600 systems and games under their own name?
bondhu says
For private use I buy my tools from ebay. All professional tools I buy from http://www.eurafco.com … up to now I bought hand tools from Gedore and the Ochsenkopf champion axe. prices are just about acceptable, but the quality is impressive. With their range of threading and drilling tools I have not much experience. I only bought a Voelkel thread repair kit and some Rhodius cutting discs. quality is ok, too.
Jeff says
Check out http://www.cpooutlets.com. Thay have a lot of great deals on name brand tools. They also have a site dedicated to factory reconditioned tools at http://www.reconditionedtools.com.
Asiong says
https://www.harborfreight.com is where i shop my hand tools and other stuff. Cheap and good enough for everyday use.