# Recommend me a quality tool set for home



## NickTB (Feb 4, 2007)

Hello all.

Having just moved, and doing some necessary repairs I've come to realise my ancient tool kit no longer cuts the mustard. I'm looking for a quality tool set ( or individual components) to start afresh and build from. Budget of around £150 to also include a bag of some description. 

Any idea would be good,

TIA Nick


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## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

spanner set or house DIY ?


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## NickTB (Feb 4, 2007)

enc said:


> spanner set or house DIY ?


Sorry, house DIY


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## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

Ahh right. If it was s spanner set I wouldn't have any hesitation in recommending the Halfords "advance" range. 
Home DIY kits are harder to come by. Multi tool sets on eBay and the like would be of questionable quality I would imagine. 
With your budget I think id be going for carefully chosen esentials ..
Assuming you already have power tools then I'd be looking at Hammer, screwdrivers, saw, pliers, electricians cable snips, tape measure good selection of fasteners screws rawl plugs etc.


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## Fentum (May 1, 2017)

Places I've bought recently:

Maplins has some good offers on at the moment for reasonable quality screwdriver and 'leccy bits. 

Robert Dyas (if you have them nearby) often has deals on hammers etc. 

If you have a Screwfix card, I'm sure they can see you right, too.

Peter


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## dionbee93 (Aug 11, 2008)

As others have said really..

I was in the same position as you about 6 months back having bought a house and needing to do it up. had all the 'car' tools but not much DIY - I bought mine as I went along.

I'd be looking at buying tools from different places and finding a bag you like to keep em in. I personally would be looking at buying a handful of good/decent quality tools rather than a ruck of cheap, naff rubbish..

Off the top of my head I bought:

Hammer(s) (Obviously)
Bolsters and chisels for tiles etc.
Pry bars. 
Spirit level and square
Socket set and a few spanners or an adjustable
Screwdrivers (If you'd buy leccy screwdrivers they'd do both)
Pliers and snips etc. (knipex do good ones for not a lot of money)
Allen keys 
Set of drill bits or buy a screwdriver and bit set (normally about £20 iirc)
Panel saw (2 for £10 B&Q for spear and Jackson)
And consumables such as screws, plugs, glue etc. 

If you havent got one already a little combi drill and/or an impact driver helps a lot also - makes light work of things that would otherwise take ages.

Dion

EDIT - don't forget tape measures! I've lost about 3 already.. got mine at clahs olson for £1 each - buy a few.. believe me!


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## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

Just looking at fleabay, some of the starter kits from Stanley don't look to bad though I'm not sure Stanley are the brand they once were ! Had this Stanley screw driver 20 years


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## ollienoclue (Jan 30, 2017)

If it's for DIY/house hold rather than something specific, screwfix will be your best bet.

Pliers/snips/wire cutter/stripper- knipex basically- these will be the stuff to aim for quality in.

I would be loathe to buy anything too expensive or quality beyond this if it's being used for DIY. If you are anything like me they will simply be destroyed in time.

If you are looking for mechanics/engineers type stuff then Draper expert stuff is actually quite good and not stupid money. A full and proper half inch drive socket set will set you back £100 mind, another £25 for quality screw drivers (buy a handful of cheaper ones to abuse/hit with hammers), save the posh stuff for the odd time you have a screw that really needs undoing properly). Allen keys aren't crazy money.

Half decent cordless drill is a god send, use as an electric screwdriver or hammer drill as appropriate, buy a second battery if you have a serious workload planned.

You have to strike the balance between tools which are manufactured with a high degree of precision by big names vs something that is cheap and can be lost or abused without a second thought. For DIY I tend to buy bits and pieces as I go along. Whilst I have an extensive tool kit amassed during a previous life, I tend to buy stuff from screwfix for DIY as needed and just amass stuff as I go. Anything which might be used outside might as well be chea**** because once it gets exposed to rain and concrete (which seems to coat everything eventually) you'll be glad you didn't buy the most expensive spirit level or saw you could at the time.


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## MagpieRH (May 27, 2014)

I was gonna suggest halfords advanced as above, lifetime guarantee on them. Socket sets are great

Someone mentioned Clas Ohlson, also have a few bits of theirs, seem very good quality and great value. They have the whole range of home diy type tools as well, again with guarantee (5 or 10 years on their own brand CoCraft stuff)

I'm lucky in that I have both of the new Bunnings stores nearby, eventually all homebase will become Bunnings but for now there are only 2 over here. They have an enormous range at really good prices. Imagine homebase prices will be similar but range may be smaller.

If you go screwfix/toolstation, stick to brand names or you'll be buying again next time you need to use them...

Also, if you're going to halfords, either get yourself a trade card or shop via quidco (or both) to save some dough :thumb:


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## Bigjase (Apr 17, 2017)

Toolstation is a very good place to get good tools at a very good price they will have everything that you need.


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## AndyN01 (Feb 16, 2016)

Hi Nick,

The usual suspects are Screwfix/Wickes/Toolstation but you'll find some perfectly decent stuff at Aldi & Lidl :thumb:.

B&Q often have deals on Predator hand saws 2 for £10 - they're awesome.

You could also look on Freecycle (yep, get stuff for free) - you'll be amazed what people are chucking out and glad to be rid of,

The one thing I would recommend you get quality kit for is a cordless drill. 

It will end up doing loads and something that has easy access to additional batteries and doesn't self destruct will be worth it's weight in car cleaning products :lol:. Go for big names - Makita/Dewalt/Bosch Professional (Blue not Green). 

My son is a builder and all their stuff is Makita because it's reliable and you can get all sorts of "bare" kit like jig saws, circular saws, multi tools, planes etc. etc. which use the same battery pack.

Happy shopping.

Andy.


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