Heirachy of tool companies

[Boxer]

Hi there

I am still getting my head around which would be the best tools to invest in within my budget and this has started me wondering how the different tool manufacturers stack up against each other in terms of quality of product........ For example Dewalt is probably better quality than Bosch which in turn is better quality than Draper


I have found this tier framework of car manufacturers on the web and wondered how people on this forum would apply this to tool companies:


Tier 1 – Elite:
Aston Martin, Bentley, Bugatti, Daimler, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maybach, Porsche and Rolls Royce.

Tier 2 – Prestige:
Audi, BMW, Cadillac, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lexus, Lotus, Maserati and Mercedes-Benz (most of whom have a ‘Luxury’ saloon in their product portfolio).

Tier 3 – Premium:
Alfa Romeo, Honda, Jeep, Lancia, Mitsubishi, Peugeot, Renault, Saab, Subaru, Volkswagen and Volvo (most of whom do not have a ‘Luxury’ saloon in their product portfolio).

Tier 4 – Value:
Chrysler, Citroen, Fiat, Ford, Mazda, Nissan, SEAT, Skoda, Toyota and Vauxhall (most of whom are commonly referred to as ‘volume’ manufacturers).

Tier 5 – Budget:
Chevrolet, Proton and, probably, the majority of the Chinese OEMs


Is it possible to draw a comparison ?
Maybe its easier to apply to handtools than power tools or workshop machines.
For example .... Is there such a thing as an Elite bandsaw :? and if so what does it do better that a Prestige one ?

What are peoples thoughts ?

Cheers
Chris

 

[bugbear]

Hi there

I am still getting my head around which would be the best tools to invest in within my budget and this has started me wondering how the different tool manufacturers stack up against each other in terms of quality of product........ For example Dewalt is probably better quality than Bosch which in turn is better quality than Draper


I have found this tier framework of car manufacturers on the web and wondered how people on this forum would apply this to tool companies:


Tier 1 – Elite:
Aston Martin, Bentley, Bugatti, Daimler, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maybach, Porsche and Rolls Royce.

Tier 2 – Prestige:
Audi, BMW, Cadillac, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lexus, Lotus, Maserati and Mercedes-Benz (most of whom have a ‘Luxury’ saloon in their product portfolio).

Tier 3 – Premium:
Alfa Romeo, Honda, Jeep, Lancia, Mitsubishi, Peugeot, Renault, Saab, Subaru, Volkswagen and Volvo (most of whom do not have a ‘Luxury’ saloon in their product portfolio).

Tier 4 – Value:
Chrysler, Citroen, Fiat, Ford, Mazda, Nissan, SEAT, Skoda, Toyota and Vauxhall (most of whom are commonly referred to as ‘volume’ manufacturers).

Tier 5 – Budget:
Chevrolet, Proton and, probably, the majority of the Chinese OEMs


Is it possible to draw a comparison ?
Maybe its easier to apply to handtools than power tools or workshop machines.
For example .... Is there such a thing as an Elite bandsaw :? and if so what does it do better that a Prestige one ?

What are peoples thoughts ?

Cheers
Chris

Due to the legal requirements on a legal car (which define a standard below which cars are not allowed to go) , I can point out there are tools well below your Tier 5.

BugBear

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

That would be entirely possible for tool manufacturers but the list would be huge as there are so many.....if you specify the tools you will need...that would help people to pare it down somewhat. For example..here's my take on the classic 18V hand tools which would include drill/driver etc etc

(I wont give them demographic subtitles like elite etc....just in pecking order)

Festool (maybe also Mafell/Milwaukee)
I would then have De Walt/Makita/Bosch pretty much on a par with each other
Next tier down are literally hundreds of brands...Metabo etc etc

I now guarantee this will receive a ton of flack from other users who either have personal preferences (Makita vs Dewalt being a classic) or who genuinely know more about this stuff than me. Like I said IMHO

If you specify the ecosystem needing to be judged, I'm sure people will happily contribute a viewpoint.

 

[jim_hanna]

Due to the legal requirements on a legal car (which define a standard below which cars are not allowed to go) , I can point out there are tools well below your Tier 5.

BugBear

I have a Rolson 3C plane which on the car scale would be a 20 year old Trabant rusting at the bottom of a river.

Jim

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

Lol

 

[Racers]

Where did you get the list from? Audi and VW are the same car with different badges should be in the same group.

Pete

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Where did you get the list from? Audi and VW are the same car with different badges should be in the same group.

Pete

As are afaik some Skodas and Seats.

 

[Jelly]

In terms of hand tools, you've got LV/LN from the states who've cornered the market in terms of high quality new tooling, along with a handful of enthisiastic makers and specialist companies (Two Lawyers Toolworks, Springwood Handsaws, Philly Planes, Ray Iles, Clico (Clifton Planes), Robert Sorby, Flinn Garlick) who are producing top-flight tools.
But to many people the Sheffield Makers (Tyzack Turner and Sons, Marples "Shamrock", I. Sorby "Kangaroo", Spear and Jackson, Jos Tyzack, Footprint Tools, Henry Taylor and so on...) are considered to be on-par with those of new manufacture... sometimes better.

Below that it's much of a muchness in terms of the tools sold to the trade, and you finally have the cheap muck that's sold in places like B&Q and Poundland.



In terms of static machine tools, it's more interesting... Several good british manufacturers have come and gone (Robinson, Sagar and Bursgreen for starters) but their machines live on (indeed there's a company in Lancashire who support old Robinson machines and manufacture spares for them) and In many cases are still in operation commercially, Along with Wadkin (who are a shadow of their former greatness, but still living on and supporting their old products as part of Daltons) these tools are often regarded as being "the best"... However, there are plenty of manufacturers making tools just as good, but because they're aimed mainly at professional or industrial use, and not yet available cheaply second hand they don't get a lot of mention here (Stromab, SCM/Minimax, Sedgewick, Casadei...)

You've also got a side branch in the companies who specialise in high-speed machines for production, Stenner (based in Devon I believe), Michael Weinig AG (and their Waco line), SCM (again), Leadermac (Taiwanese, but good), Omec (specialist NC/CNC joinery machines). Most of these are relatively unheard of, but are maintaining the highest standards of quality and innovation.

You then have people like Hammer/Felder, Scheppach and Jet who bridge the gap between consumer and commercial equipment. (some of the older Dewalt and Elu stuff could be categorized similarly)

And finally you arrive at the consumer level products, even here there's a marked differentiation in quality, but none of the machines can hold a candle to the massive (literally, posessing of great mass) construction and attention to detail of "Old Iron" and new production equipment.


I won't try to get into handheld power tools, but I would contend that what separates Festool from Makita and "Blue" Bosch is actually hype, marketing, and unusually effective extraction ports... Festool Fanboys may beg to differ.
I'd also add that Omer air-tools are top flight!

 

[Phil Pascoe]

For many jobs, the Hyundai's of the tool world would be perfectly adequate!

 

[awkwood]

My experience with power tools would be

Festool, Mafell, Hilti, Fein, panasonic are my top class for build quality and reliability

Metabo, Blue Bosch, Makita, Dewalt, Hitachi and Milwaukee in the good quality mid class

Ryobi, AEG, Erbauer are the next class

Followed by all the cheap brands sold by all the DIY sheds

There must be others but I haven't used them to know.

 

[powertools]

I guess that many of us aspire to cars that we can't afford but the ones we have do the job.
It's the same with the tools really it's better to have a lot of tools that do the job rather than have a few tools of a higher quality than you need and not be able to do the jobs you want to do due to the cost of the high end tools.