Actually most the shops I have been at do get there stuff off the snap on truck. IDK about that tool particularly but I wouldn't put it against snap on to have it, they have some neat junk on that truck.Atleast of what I saw, and I think some stuff is ordered strait from CAT or other dealers. And I know some Canadian companies but I am not sure about the states. You could try ordering the random tools like that on the net, might be your cheapest option too.
Rustyhendrix, do you have an affiliation with SRT manufacturing?
partneryes, i'm a partner at SRT Manufacturing. We are not trying to sell tools on this site. We are trying to determine where heavy equipment users buy their tools so that we can approach those companies as manufacturers and create a distribution channel for our tools. There's no doubt that repair techs run into the same issues other people do with frozen studs...they are a pain to get out. If our tools make it easy to remove studs and also provide a safer method to the tech, seems like a win win.I assumed your concern was that I was attempting to sell tools on this site but maybe it was something else, which I would be happy to address.
rustyhendrix said:yes, i'm a partner at SRT Manufacturing. We are not trying to sell tools on this site. We are trying to determine where heavy equipment users buy their tools so that we can approach those companies as manufacturers and create a distribution channel for our tools. There's no doubt that repair techs run into the same issues other people do with frozen studs...they are a pain to get out. If our tools make it easy to remove studs and also provide a safer method to the tech, seems like a win win.I assumed your concern was that I was attempting to sell tools on this site but maybe it was something else, which I would be happy to address.Click to expand...I can't speak for CM1995, but when I read your opening post, that question did pop into my mind. It's probably a safe bet that it was at least part of what CM was concerned about.If I were a betting man, I'd also bet that CM asked if you're affiliated with SRT because just like me, he respects our membership's intelligence, and recognizes that they'll respond better to somebody being upfront with them about their affiliation with any given product or service, rather than coming off as just some guy on the internet making casual conversation. They might take offense if it were revealed later on that the person they'd been conversing with did in fact have a vested interest which they neglected to mention.Thanks for your candid response to the question.If you've familiarized yourself with the Forum Rules, you'll recognize the one concerning advertising:•Aside from the "for sale" area, for member's personally owned goods, advertising of goods and services is not permitted unless sponsoring heavyequipmentforums.com.A vendor of goods or services may make one introductory post explaining their product or service and may answer questions about such within that thread.No further promotion of your product or service may be made without sponsorship. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor, click “Contact Us” at the bottom of any page.Click to expand...(Bold added.)Please, feel free to respond to any discussion of your stud puller in this thread, if the membership shows an interest in it, and also feel free to join in any of the other topics that may interest you. And welcome to Heavy Equipment Forums.
Thank you for the response. While we have been manufacturing the StudPuller and marketing it for quite some time, we have learned that we can not sell them one at a time and be successful. Thus, my real request has to do withwhereshops buy their tools so that we could approach the actual suppliers as opposed to selling direct to the shops or techs. If I violated the rules of the forum, I apologize as it was not my intent. My only intent is to find out where most folks shop for these types of tools.We are engaged with several distributors but it seems that each distributor has a different market they serve. Our tool is slightly too expensive for the automotive market but the heavy equipment market uses larger studs and better understands the difficulty with removing stubborn studs and that time is money in their repairs. I do not mean for this post to be an advertisement. I simply still wish to know where heavy equipment repair shops purchase such tools so that I might pursue the appropriate distribution channel. Any help is still greatly appreciated.
I'm actually currently looking for tools to fix my bobcat. Do you guys have any suggestions?
Rusty, have you looked at Wright Tool Corporation? They sell a lot of tools through industrial channels. A lot of individual mechanics buy through Snap-on and Mac tools.Good luck
Here is my opinon. I have turned wrenches as an automotive technican, a millwright in an industrial environment, a heavy truck mechanic, and a mining heavy equipment mechanic, in addition to maintaining and restoring personal vehicles. Therefore I have bought many tools over the course of my work life.With that being said, the basic tool manufacturers pretty much stay the same across the board, whether they be Snap-On, Mac Tools, Matco, NAPA, Craftsman, Stanley or what ever. Now, what you must take into consideration is that there are other quality brands that are not readily available for purchase as the previously mentioned such as Wright, Armstrong, Proto, and Blackhawk. Generally these brands are supplied through industrial supply distributors, so the market is actually through companies and businesses rather than individuals.Where does your stud puller fit in? Well, where do you want it to fit in? You need to decide where your best market lies. Honestly, if you are going to price it reasonably, then the first tool market would make more sense, the one that sells to individuals, and you can service mechanics from all areas of expertise. The industrial market brands are more limited due to inavailability to most individuals on a local level.If I were a guessing man, I would venture to say your stud puller comes at a major premium, which means no matter how you market it, only those mechanics that have frequent use for it (and can justify the cost) are going to spring for it.When I buy a specialty tool, or any tool for that matter, the items I consider are as follows:-Warranty-Manufacturer reputation-Potential frequency of use-Cost/ cost justification-Is it a tool that will save time and aggravation when compared to using normal hand tools (your stud puller would probably fit this category)-Is it made in the USA (this is becoming ever so important these days)-And finally, can I get it replaced easily at the local level (One point to make here is that if I were to buy a tool through an industrial supplier at a papermill, then I leave the papermill, where do I get it replaced if needed. I feel it is always better to stick with brands that are readily available to folks on the street. ei Snap-On, Carftsman, NAPA, etc.)
that thing is too complicated and has too much **** to break, weld a nut on the end, and buzz it off with an impact, or go to a truck tire shop and check out theirs, just a hex nut with some flutes in it, they come in all kinds of sizes
Thanks for those responses. Mark, you are correct about a couple of things. Yes the tool is pricey, too pricey for most mechanics who don't know the value of their own time. Jason suggested welding a nut or going to a truck tire shop, both of which take time (and time is money). All the things you mentioned play into the way we have marketed the tools thus far. We have never marketed the tools to automotive shops or consumers because the small tools, 3/8" to 3/4" all cost $159 and the 1" tool jumps up to over $1000. Other than stating that the tools are made in the USA, I won't respond to the other things because I don't want to appear to be trying to sell the tools here. The points you made are very helpful to us in determining how to move forward. You nailed the major obstacle, which is the cost of making a specialty tool compared to the value it creates. If you look at Snap On's stud removal tool, you'll see that it is made from alloys and is much cheaper than 4140 heat treated steel. The folks at General Dynamics tried the S&K version only to break them after two uses. They manufacture the Abrams M1 tank and they understand the value of a tool that works, that will stand up to the constant use of good impact wrenches. Most of our tools are over 1" and if we tried to make the tools in China or with cheap alloys, they'd break quickly. Our largest remover is a 6" version that weighs over 300 lbs. The IR wrench is 3.5" drive and puts out over 80,000 ft. lbs. of torque and weighs over 600 lbs itself. But as Jason so clearly pointed out, most people are not willing to spend the money for a specialty tool unless they use it frequently. Thus I believe that the answer to my original questions are clear now. We need to approach specialty tool distributors to take on our tools instead of the common distributors.Thanks to everyone who responded and I hope to see more responses.
You can also try a distributor Grainger, MPC(?). A lot of times I go to these catalogs to find special items. Or I will just google it. I ama tool junkie so if it is out there, I will find it!