Harbor Freight has a new Icon 10-piece punch and chisel set. It comes with 3 pin punches, 1 center punches, 3 tapered punches, 3 cold chisels, and a storage pouch.
Here’s a full list of what you get:
- Pin punches: 3/32″, 5/32″, 3/16″
- Starter punches (tapered): 3/32″, 5/32″, 3/16″
- Center punch: 3/16″
- Flat chisels: 3/8″, 1/2″, 5/8″
It’s not clear who the OEM is, or whether the Icon set is made in the USA or imported.
Advertisement
The Icon punch and chisel set is priced at $99.99, and Harbor Freight backs it with a “hassle-free” lifetime warranty.
This looks like a convenient starter kit. The price, however, seems a bit high for what you get.
Here is a Mayhew 19-piece chisel and punch set, with the tools being made in the USA.
At the time of this posting, the Mayhew set is $86.99 at Amazon with free shipping.
There’s also a Tekton 20-piece set with tool roll. It’s priced at $105 at Amazon and Tekton, with free shipping.
The Tekton punches are made in the USA, and the tool roll is imported.
Advertisement
Wilde also has a USA-made 20-piece punch and chisel set, priced at just under $100 via 3rd party sellers at Amazon.
Harbor Freight advertises that you “save $201” on their 10-piece Icon set compared to buying the Snap-on PPC710BK punch and chisel set.
But while that’s accurate, the Icon set is priced higher than other punch and chisel sets you can buy today.
The comparison isn’t exactly even, as Mayhew, Tekton, and Wilde sets include many more tools; I couldn’t find similar punch and chisel assortments from those brands.
Mayhew has a lifetime warranty, and Tekton says they’ll warranty all of their tools no matter how old or when you got it, essentially matching Harbor Freight’s Icon warranty.
Don’t get me wrong – I’m happy to see that Harbor Freight came out with an Icon punch and chisel set. I just feel that it’s overpriced; in my opinion, $100 is not a competitive price for a 10-piece punch and chisel set.
I suppose there’s a convenience factor in being able to pick this up at your local Harbor Freight store.
But, if you don’t care about the tool roll, Home Depot carries a Mayhew 12-piece set for $40, and it looks to be in stock at all (if not most) stores. The assortment is not quite the same as what you get from the Icon set.
On that matter, I think that Harbor Freight had the right idea to copy Snap-on’s 10-piece configuration. However, just because Harbor Freight’s tool set is less expensive than Snap-on’s, that doesn’t make it a good buy.
Maybe I’m wrong? Do you think the Harbor Freight Icon set is a good value at $99.99?
Tim
If I can take it to a store and swap the punches out then yes, it’s a betrer deal than all those linked where I have to send them in or are SOOL.
Stuart
Can you do that with other Icon tools, such as their wrenches or sockets? I’ve only seen those sold in sets.
Gus
Yes. They’ll either exchange just the one or the whole set, It’s up to you. When it’s just one they’ll open a new set and exchange the one(s) you need out of it.
PETE
Thats until the SKUs don’t match or it’s not the same item. Then your SOL. They offer free replacement as long as it’s the “same item”
Scott
Wrong, if the sku is discontinued, you get upgraded at no cost. I’m a HFT store manager.
Eric
Zooming in on the picture they do seem to have USA stamped in them. And if they are indeed made in the USA I would think they would make a pretty big effort to advertise that fact. They need to do something more than the current product page to justify the high price tag. Especially when you can buy similar Pittsburgh pro sets for under $20 that most employee’s will also exchange for you with no questions asked.
T
The Icons are advertising S2 steel, which Mayhew did use on their 150 line which I believe is discontinued. The only other brand I know of that uses it is Proto, and it’s not cheap.
Jr3
And there’s the answer
Jaycob P.
The Wilde 12-piece is $32 at Menards.
https://www.menards.com/main/tools/hand-tools/punches-nail-sets/wilde-tool-reg-punch-chisel-set-12-piece/k12/p-1444447017214-c-1550852385009.htm
Scott K
Just clicked that link – there’s a few dollar rebate and free shipping. Though, it doesn’t include a tool roll (not a deal breaker). Seems like a great deal.
TomD
Menards always has an 11% rebate.
Home Depot will match it if a Menards is close enough (all the Midwest).
https://www.homedepotrebates11percent.com/#/home
ITCD
That silver roll in the top left is the pouch. However this is an outdated picture because they don’t do the pouch anymore, now it’s like this rubbery thing that’s like a bit holder that they all slide into and holds the last inch or so of each tool. Unless they still have some of the pouch ones in stock but Bowers Tool didn’t, it was the rubber thing on my K-12 set.
Big Richard
I was just about to post saying I’ve bought Wilde punches and chisels at Menards for cheap.
Harry
I think the Icon punch & chisel set is a little pricey too at about $10 a tool not counting the pouch but, it’s made in the USA. Figure you can get it at least 20% off with a coupon if you’re patient. I think Mayhew is the OEM. Harbor freight recently released a few Mayhew sourced items like this punch set, the large 58 inch pry bar, and the bolt breaker set. The fact that harbor Freight is selling anything made in the USA surprises me.
ITCD
To be fair they’re keeping the US stuff to their higher product lines and its an easy sell to a lot of people to see MIUSA when they’re considering a higher tier with higher price tag.
But it still does seem weird for the land of cheap tools to do that or even offer stuff that ain’t so cheap but it seems they’re seeing success in this approach.
IronWood
IF it’s really made in the USA and someone like Mayhew is the OEM and they will really honor a lifetime no questions warranty on punches and chisels, THEN it is not that bad a deal. Maybe HF is changing for the better in places, but I’d still have to trust that they’ll actually carry this line of punches long enough for me to use the warranty. If these get discontinued or replaced in a year then it’s not a good deal at all.
They sure look like Mayhew, which are very nice. I have quite a few USA Mayhew and Wilde/Tekton punches all of which are great. I also have a handful of Dasco, just to prove that made in the USA tools can be garbage too…
eddie sky
I got an OTC https://otctools.com/products/punch-chisel-set set…from amazon… its about $47 now.
PW
I feel like I don’t have enough context to know if they’re overpriced or not.
Yes, it’s more than other MiUSA punch/chisel sets. But do those have the same steel/tempering/finishing?
Punches and chisels can vary in quality in ways that are not obvious from a web photo.
For example, Dasco has (had?) a 12pc punch/chisel set that is MiUSA for $40 at Home Depot, and it’s extremely low quality. In ways that don’t show up in promo photos.
My very limited experience with Wilde is that they’re not bad, but seem on the low end for pro grade.
HF has seemed more quality oriented with the Icon brand than I expected. It’s possible these are made to an higher spec for them by Mayhew. That might make it worthwhile for heavy use, with a convenient warranty option.
Or they might have just marked up some Mayhew chisels by double and it’s a bad price, but I can’t tell from my armchair…
Stuart
Is it possible for Harbor Freight Icon punches and chisels to be built to higher quality than Mayhew punches and chisels, which are widely used in professional and industrial settings? Sure. But is it likely?
PW
It sounds like they’re higher spec than the set listed above (Icon is S2 steel). I didn’t mean that the Icons were necessarily better than anything from Mayhew – rather that they might be equivalent to Mayhew’s better line, not their lowest cost sets.
Stuart
Ah – sorry, I let my skepticism get the best of me.
I’m not very familiar with the 150 line. The last time I looked into it, the tools were advertised as a celebration for their 150th anniversary, which seemed to suggest limited edition to me. I couldn’t find the set anywhere.
Industrial suppliers all tend to carry the regular Mayhew main lines.
If the Icon are stronger and tougher, the price might be worth it then.
But, it also depends on the OEM.
HF has played pricing games in recent years, selling certain new products at prices as high as they think they can get away with, before coming down within the first few months.
MKY
Stuart –
“…3 cold chisels, and a storage ***price***.”
“However, just because Harbor Freight’s tool set is less expensive than ***Span-on’s,*** that…”
Stuart
Thanks! *fixed*
Craig Markham
Not at all an expert on this topic , but having recently become very dissatisfied with my older seemingly butter soft Craftsman punch and chisel set. I started the research on what to buy next.
My research has been more word on the street than scientific but I did try to verify what I learned.
Anyway going by that, the Icon set seems like a comparatively good deal as opposed to either Snap on or Mayhew’s pro 150 line (which is by the way still available according to mayhew’s website)
They are all allegedly made from S2 steel and have the same parabolic striking surface design.
The icon is significantly cheaper than either snap-on or Mayhew 150 line. The Mayhew 150 line seems to be available at Zoro. $207.99 for a 14 piece set.
Snap on 10 piece set is listed on snap-on’s website for $473.00
The Mayhew set listed in the Amazon link above is not made from S2 steel and is therefore more comparable to other cheaper US made chisels.
Steve L
Mayhew’s 150 set with S2 steel can be purchased on Amazon for $204.
Search: Mayhew Pro 15070 150-Line Punch and Chisel Set, 14-Piece
JR Ramos
I think they’re overpriced even if they’re great quality, but I suppose that depends on the pricing you can source other pro and/or USA brands for.
S2 steel is not the be-all end-all but it’s good steel AS LONG AS it’s handled properly in heat treating and tempering, which is the real crux. For some items like masonry chisels and bodywork cutting chisels the old high tungsten (can’t remember…S1 or S3 maybe) may have a more durable edge in use. Properly done, S2 is better for pin and tapered punches…good all around but it’s not a panacea of quality necessarily.
The pricing and the HF games and “usual” runaround with warranty and such just keeps Icon and their other recent efforts off my radar. Their pricing on some is just far higher than it should be, all things considered, and quite often you can get a high or higher quality equivalent tool made in US/Germany/Japan for the same or less money. I like the effort HF is making to bring some non-crap tools to the stores and it can be really convenient since there are so many of them across the country, but I’m sticking to other tools and suppliers. HF has some gems both in pricing or in items….do take advantage of those from time to time. But these punches and Icon for me…nope.
T
My only experience with s2 is Proto but I will say their s2 cold chisels, from my personal experience, hold up better than Mayhew’s standard pro line of unspecified steel. There very well could be something even better but imo s2 works well for a chisel. I should state that most users don’t touch cold chisels enough to notice a difference.
Eddie the Hook
I usually go to Harbor Freight for their consumables like sandpaper belts, cut off & grinder wheels (except drill bits) & cheap corded tools. For anything expensive, i’d rather buy the better brands from somewhere else.
Robert
HF used to be a place you didnt have to think about much. It was the land of “good enough”. What you got might not be the best, but it would be functional and cheap. Now they want to move up to higher profit margins… but I dont think they’ve quite figured out how to do that.
Tractor Supply has a 12 piece punch and chisel set in a vinyl case in their bargain bin near the door for $9.95. Northern tool has a 14 piece one for $14.95. Heck, Harbor freight itself has a Pittsburgh 12 piece set for $17. (70% more than TSC, but still < 1/5 the price of these.)
Lifetime warantee? Doubt I'll destroy 5 of these in my life time, much less 10. Think I'll stick to the $9.99 set.
N C
For what it’s worth, I’ve wrecked two of the cheap green Pittsburgh punches. At some point, when you need a punch, you need a punch. I’d rather have a quality set at $100 that I can count on vs a set that is likely to bend/break/wear at $17.
If your use case doesn’t necessitate it then totally cool, but I was a bit surprised by just how soft the Pittsburgh set was, to the point that I’m not sure I’ll try another cheap set. I think there is just not much to striking tools, so you can only get so cheap before they become worthless.