Regardless of what you do, whether that is plumbing, mechanical or electrical work, chances are, you are in the market for a solid, high-quality press tool to match your needs. As you might know, finding the perfect press tool isn’t easy. There are many options out there and not all of them will be suited to you.
For some of you that are only getting started with the handy work, remember this – press tool is absolutely essential if you plan on working in any of the fields we’ve mentioned above. Given the fact that those fields are quite different, as you can imagine, these tools are also quite different. Luckily, they’re categorized by the operation and the field they’re used in. In most cases, these are used for bending, piercing and trimming various materials like copper, steel or some other metals.
Now, the demand for these tools is quite high, which means that the supply Is quite high, as well. To weed out the low-quality products and find the right one for your needs, we’ve decided to provide you with a few tips. Let’s hear them, shall we?
1. Read The Online Reviews
img source: regiondo.com
Arguably the best thing to finding any kind of quality product, including a press tool is to look at the online reviews. Now, we don’t mean going on the official website and seeing what the manufacturers have to say about their products, no. Read the online reviews posted by the people who have already purchased and used the tool you’re interested in. Chances are, you’re going to find an honest, detailed review of the product you’re eyeing. You’ll learn about the product’s strengths and weaknesses and that should help you make an informed decision. In general, you should always aim for products that are rated at least 4 out of 5 stars. A product that well-received is highly unlikely to disappoint you.
2. Ask Around
Word to mouth advertising is rarely wrong because almost no one has ever gone out and spoke highly of a mediocre product. Now, if you don’t hear anyone recommending a good tool on their own, you could ask them. If they’re working in the same field as you, they probably use the same tools and they could point you in the right direction. Just don’t take anyone’s advice lightly. Use the information you get this way alongside all the other information you’ve learned and make a decision based on all facts.
3. Compare Prices
img source: taylorwells.com.au
If you haven’t already checked, the prices for a nice, quality kit is well over $1000 – you might want to go out and compare prices. When the asking price is so high, chances are, the differences between prices in two separate stores could be substantial, so make sure you do your best when it comes to comparing and researching process. Naturally, some press tools will be more expensive than the others, but that doesn’t necessarily make them of higher quality.
4. Choose A Well-Known Brand
According to www.citysupplygroup.com, it would be unwise of you to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on a press tool kit made by some unknown company. Always try and shop from reliable sources and shop for a well-known brand. These companies and brands have built their reputation on creating high-quality products and you should never sacrifice quality just for the sake of saving a few bucks.
5. Understand Your Needs
img source: hilti.co.uk
As we’ve said several times already – there are many different press tool types each of them designed for a special kind of job. In general, the plumbing press tools seem to be the ones that are most commonly used, but there are others, as well. Make sure you understand your needs and realize which tool you’ll be using. Aside from the plumbing one, the other ones are: piercing, shaving, forming and combination tool.
6. Choose The Right Material
When it comes to choosing the right press tool, another thing to consider is the material. When we talk about the material, we need to consider two things – the material from which the tools are made and the materials the tools are designed to be working on. As far as the first thing is concerned, almost anyone would recommend that you get the cast iron or stainless steel ones, as they’re the most durable and high-quality ones. In case of the materials being worked on or with, your options are mostly limited to copper, stainless steel, carbon fiber or pex. Naturally, some could deal with a few of these at the same time, yet some are designed with an exact use in mind.
7. Size Does(n’t) Matter
img source: canadianmetalworking.com
When it comes to the size of the press tool – it doesn’t really matter, so don’t dwell on that. In general, the size of an average press tool is around 40 cm, but that doesn’t actually mean a lot, unless you’re doing something awfully precise or delicate, in which case, size might be a factor to you. However, in most cases, choosing the right one for the material you’ll be working with should be more than enough.
8. Weight Does Matter
One does not think a lot about weight when they think about tools. Contrary to popular belief, heavier isn’t necessarily better. Although weight could be a good indicator of quality, in this case, it really isn’t. Quite the contrary, you should always strive to find the least heavy one, somewhere at around 10 pounds max. If you choose too heavy, you might get tired quicker. Furthermore, you’ll sometimes need to carry this tool from one place to another and it would be greatly appreciated if you could find a more portable device.
9. Look For New, Innovative Features
Finally, you should at least look at some of the latest, additional features that might come with a brand new press tool. You never know when auto-stop might come in handy.
Conclusion
In the end, it’s easy to see that it wouldn’t be too hard to find the right press tool now that you know what to look for. Hopefully, we’ve been helpful.
