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Post Info TOPIC: 1990's Mastercraft "Proffessional" series (red case) sets


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Posts: 771
Date:
1990's Mastercraft "Proffessional" series (red case) sets


I am guessing I am in good company.

Car guys often tend to also have a penchant for buying tools, and always on the look out for what I call "good spares".

I am wondering if any of you are in the same boat as me.

I got my car in July 1995, and the following summer I inherited all of my grandfather's (he passed five years prior) hand tools... there weren't much;
He was a carpenter, so the "automotive" tools were few and far between, mostly cheap 1960-1980's tools.
I made due with those for the better part of four years (I was a broke kid!), - it helped that I was was gifted a decent set of "Alltrade" (Costco) tools in 1997(?);
The Alltrade set was ten lower quality combination wrenches; five metric, and five imperial; there were two ratchets, of poor quality, 1/4" and 3/8"; then there was an assortment of 1/4" and 3/8" sockets from about 5/16" to 5/8" (and comparable ones in metric; these were probably the best part of the set, as they were so much higher quality than the older stuff I had).

At around this time I started having a tiny bit of money - insurance was brutal for a 20yo, even though my Firebird was "just an old car" at that time - and gas, even though cheaper was expensive to keep the tank full in that car.

The first set I bought myself was a Mastercraft 'Professional' line 3/8" drive imperial set;
This was what Canadian Tire was at the time selling as their best stuff - and to date, I think that those were hands down the best tools they ever sold.
Later I bought the 1/2" drive imperial set...
Then when I went to buy another set, Canadian Tire changed things;
They were only selling these funny pipe wrench socket sets, or socket sets that were unlike any socket sets I had seen prior (meaning they would not interchange with anything I had) so I passed.

These days I have a couple decent sized tool boxes (which I aspire to combine into one nice roller cabinet), and pretty much all of my tools, and all my boxes(!) are second hand;
I bought the Craftsman (read: Sears; before they disappeared) socket holder trays, and have them full of Snap-On, Mac, or Craftsman sockets... with only a few Mastercraft, and even less no-namers (those trays have some really unusual size spots!?)

I have upgraded my ratchets too.

But, I still keep an eye open for those red cased Mastercraft 'Professional' series sets... but I NEVER see them!!?

I like to keep these red cased sets put aside;
I really like to grab them to take to the scrap yard - instead of loading up a sleeve with the socket I think I will need (and invariably I neglected to grab one I really need!).

Do any of you have these sets? (I ask purely out of curiosity)

Do any of you recall these sets?

These are the two sets I own:
IMG_3118ss.jpg

IMG_3119ss.jpg

 

Note the resemblance to tools of typically higher quality?


IMG_3120ss.jpg

(My 3/8" drive good ratchet is a Mac, and it looks quite different.)

Here is another image I found online of a larger set from this series:


large mastercraft professional set.jpg

 

Here is one of the later sets sold once these started disappearing from shelves (note that it still has the good ratchet):


odd mastercraft professional set.jpg

 

Then once even they were NLA, they were briefly replaced by these oddball sets:
(the cases looked the same but EVERYTHING else about them was different)

late mastercraft professional set.jpg

 

Then they were gone - to be replaced with inferior stuff...



-- Edited by unruhjonny on Wednesday 21st of September 2022 11:18:55 AM

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Addicted!

Status: Offline
Posts: 368
Date:
1990's Mastercraft


I have a couple of these sets-believe it or not as I have tool boxes in the garage and tool boxes downstairs in the house i came across a set of 1/2" drive that had never been used until this week-quality was sure great!
Keep on Cruising!!!
Dave

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