Automatic & Manual Center Punch Brands: Snap On, Starrett, Stahlwille, Proto, Hazet, GearWrench, Williams, Klein Tools, Wilde Tool, Mayhew Tools, Sabrecut, General Tools, Neiko, Spring Tools, Lisle, Mulwark. Punches compared for performance on Aluminum and Mild, Medium, and Hard Steel. Results are very interesting with a huge variance in performance and durability.
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➡ Products Tested In This Video (in no particular order):
Spring Tools:
Stahlwille:
Starrett Manual:
Starrett Automatic:
Williams:
GearWrench:
Klein Tools:
Mayhew Tools:
Wilde Tool:
Hazet:
Proto:
Sabrecut:
General Tools:
Mulwark:
Neiko:
Lisle:
Snap On: Available at the online Snap On store
Digital Dial Indicator:
Videography Equipment:
Sony DSC-RX10 III Cyber-shot Digital Still Camera:
Canon 70D Camera:
Azden Microphone:
Go Pro Bundle:
This video is only for entertainment purposes. If you rely on the information portrayed in this video, you assume the responsibility for the results. Project Farm LLC
A center punch is a must-have tool but The question is is that four dollar Center punch just as good as the one That cost fifty dollars well let's find Out I'll be testing 10 brands of manual Punches and seven different automatics In the first test we'll see how the Manual and automatic punches perform on Mild medium and hard materials we'll see Which punches look as good as do While Others experience a lot of damage if You're trying to drill a hole the drill Bit can move around quite a bit however A center punch is designed to make a Small indentation to serve as a guide For the drill bit at a price of 19 for Four punches or 4.75 cents each the Least expensive brand we'll be testing Is made by Mayhew tools used for Piercing or marking for starting drills And metal or other materials may you Tools is made in USA and the first test Let's see how the center punches perform On half inch aluminum I'll use a clamp To hold a center punch in position I'll Then drop a steel pin from right at Three and a half inches and the steel Pin is pretty heavy at 6.7 pounds or Three kilograms the steel pin made very Good contact with the Mayhew center Punch measuring the crater diameter Would be too imprecise so instead I'll Use a dial indicator the needle sharp Tip to measure the depth of the impact
And it may use tool left a 0.0355 inch Crater no damage to the tip of the Center punch at a price of 17 for three Punches or 5.66 each is this wild tool Brand it claims to be reinforced for Greater strength meter exceeds ANSI Specifications the punt sizes include a Quarter inch 3 8 and a half the wild Tool is made in USA and the steel pin Made good contact with the wild center Punch and the punch experienced a small Bounce and the wild tool went a little Deeper than the Mayhew at 0.0385 inches No damage to the punch at a price of Eight dollars is this Klein Tools brand Klein Tools claims that their ground Points are heat treated to stay sharp And true longer high carbon steel for Durability and corrosion resistant black Finish the Klein Tools is made in USA a Small bounce with the Klein Tools punch But very good impact and the Klein tool Punch perform the same as the wild tool At 0.0385 inches the pun still looks as Good as new also the price of eight Dollars the same price as the Klein Tools is this Williams Brand Williams Claims their punch is made of heavy duty Industrial grade steel the Williams is Made in USA a small jump with the Williams and solid blow 0.0335 inches Isn't quite as good as the Mayu or the Wild tool no damage to the Williams at a Price of ten dollars is this gearwrench
Brand ground surface for easy Identification he claims to have a Precision hardened working in softened And tapered striking in reduces Potential to chip the gearwrench is made In Taiwan a small bounce and the gear is Performed well at 0.355 inches the same As the menu tools no visible damage to The gear wrench at a price of 14 is this Stanley Proto brand provides a broad Dent and marking intersection center Lines modified parabolic striking in for Greater resistance to mushrooming and Chipping the Stanley Proto is made in USA and a pro to experience a little Smaller bounce than most of the other Brands 0.0385 inches is the same as the wild Tool in the Klein Tools and the produce Still looks as good as new at a price of 14 is this star wheel brand the star Wheel standard punch is made in Germany 10 millimeters by 120 and the star wheel Is built like a tank and experienced the Smallest bounce yet it also made the Deepest indentation at 0.0395 inches no Damage to the star wheel at a price of 50 teen dollars is a sterret brand made A specially selected steel hardened and Tempered offering exceptional durability And resistance to wear and tear ground Shank and knurled grip provide stability And greater control when used the Steroid is made in USA just like the
Star wheel the Starrett experience less Bounce than most of the other brands and To steer with a needle sharp Point moves Into the lead at 0.041 inches no damage To the stair at a price of 17 is this Has it brand the punch diameter is one Millimeter 4.72 inches in length the has It is made in Germany a very coarse grit Was used to grind a tip on the hazard And has it made a pretty good dent at 0.035 inches no visible damage to the Tip of the punch at a price of 31 Dollars or about twice as much as the Competition is this Snap-on brand the Anvil and on heads of Snap-on punches Are machined to a modified parabolic Curve design directs the Striking Force To center of tool to allow slow metal Displacement parabolic curve controls Mushrooming to reduce chipping and Splitting the Snap-on is made in USA Just like the gear wrench the Snap-on is A little bit longer than most of the Other brands and the Snap-on perform Better than average at zero point zero Three eight inches no visible damage to The tip of the punch we'll be testing Seven different automatic Center punches And the first one is made by mow work at A price of nine dollars made of hardened Chrome Vanadium steel that holds up the High impact and provides wear resistance Adjustable cap for different striking Force non-slip knurled Handle
Replacement tip included no finger grip To achieve easy handling and better Control the mole work is made in China 14.8 pounds of force to deploy the punch Aluminum is pretty soft and seems like An automatic punch might be a good Choice for softer materials and 14.3 Pounds of spring Force just isn't enough To make a crater as large as the manual Punches 0.016 inches is about half as Deep as the manual punches no visible Damage to the mower at price of 13 is This Lyle brand the hardened tool steel Tip is replaceable automatic firing Action Pressure can be varied by turning The neural knob the low brand is made in USA and the law requires 16.3 pounds of Downward Force to deploy the puncher About 1.5 pounds more than the mole work And the extra Force did help a little 0.017 inches and the center punch looks As good as new at a price of 15 is this Spring tools hammerless single-ended High-speed steel center punch Specifically designed to Mark Ultra hard Materials tip can be sharpened without Losing rc65 hardness it claims to have 3 500 pounds of striking Force the spring Tools brand is made in USA and the Spring tools claims 3 500 pounds of Striking Force but I'm not sure how much Spring tension is required to achieve That amount of force however the spring Tools does hit a lot harder than the
Moark and the law with an indentation of 0.03 inches also the price of 15 is this Nico brand spring tension adjust for Lighter heavy Strokes marking punching And staking automatic center punch has One-handed spring impact operation no Hammer needed extremely strong S2 steel Tip holds up to hard surfaces the Nico Is made in Taiwan I loosened up the Spring tension as much as possible and It takes 22.1 pounds of force to deploy The punch set to the highest tension the Nico takes 41.9 pounds to deploy at the Highest tension setting 0.0245 inches for the Nico and the Nico Held up just fine at a price of 29 is This General tools brand has a Non-chonical shaped Steel tip that Allows you to safely drill holes at the Exact location without slipping or Damaging the work surface it claims to Be manufactured of durable steel neural Finger grip allows sturdy grip there's No information on the packaging or the Tool regarding where the general tools Is manufactured at the lowest setting The general tools takes 30.2 pounds of Force on the highest setting 47 pounds Of force the most yet any extra spring Tension help the general tools 0.0255 inches the tip of the punch looks As good as new at a price of 35 dollars Is this saber-cut extreme the punch tip Is made of S2 impact steel the core is
Made of aluminum alloy steel designed in UK made in Taiwan just under 20 pounds Of force on the lowest tension setting 44.8 pounds of force to deploy the saber Cut on the highest setting and the saber Cuts large handle really help make easy Work of deploying the punch 0.0295 is the best yet for this style of Punch at a price of 48 dollars is a Sterret brand and asteroid is advertised As having a critical point but the one I Received looks very flat and blunted the Force of the bloke can be adjusted when Used for different materials the steroid Brand is made in USA just under 19 Pounds in the lowest setting and the Stair deploys a 27.3 pounds on the Highest setting and the relatively low Spring force in the blunt tip really Hurt the performance of the stair at 0.0165 inches comparing just the manual Punches the sterret came out on top at 0.0415 inches however stalwell finished In a close second at 0.0395 inches Comparing just the automatic Center Punches the spring tools came in on top At 0.03 inches saber cut finish in a Closed second at 0.0295 let's go ahead And move on to mild steel which is quite A bit harder than aluminum but still Pretty soft and the Mayu landed a very Nice blow to the mild steel and left a 0.0285 inch crater there's still no Damage to the menu but we're just
Getting warmed up a blow in a couple of Bounces and the test on the mild steel Ended well for the wild tool at 0.025 Inches and a well tool punt still looks As good as new and decline tool made Very good contact with the test piece And left a 0.0225 crater to move into Third place behind the wild tool no Visible damage to the punch and the tip Of the punch on the Williams is really Sharp and that really helped zero 0.026 Inches is good enough to move into Second place behind the Mayhew no Visible damage to the tip and the tip of The punch on the gear rinse looks even Sharper than the Williams and the gear Rinse left a pretty deep Dent at 0.028 Inches which is very close to the same As the Mayhew no visible damage to the Punch just like the gear wrench the tip On the Proto is ground to a very sharp Point and a Proto made even better Progress in the gearwrench at 0.0295 Inches to move into the lead the tip of The pot still looks as good as new and a Star was built like a tank and also has A very sharp point and the star wheel Moves into the lead with a very Impressive 0.0365 inches and the tip of the pot Still looks as good as new and the stair Looks just as destructive as a stall Wheel and the Starrett moves into second Place behind the star wheel at 0.0305
Inches no visible damage to the punch And it has it has some pretty mean Looking lines and a very sharp tip and Has it matches staring at 0.0305 inches And the putt still looks as good as new And a Snap-On is the most expensive Manual punch and it performed very well At 0.032 inches to move into second Place behind the stall wheel no visible Damage to the punch with only 15 pounds Of spring Force the mole work is at a Huge disadvantage 0.015 inches is about Half the indentation of the manual Punches no damage to the tip of the Punch and the law delivers a little more Punch than the mower but it's still Pretty mild at 16 pounds of force and The Lyle isn't as deep as the mower work At 0.0125 inches no visible damage with Enough stretch on the spring tool spring It delivers a pretty hard blow 0.028 Inches is just as good as some of the Manual punches and the tip of the putt Still looks very sharp and as good as New with about 42 pounds of spring Force The nickel delivers a lot stronger blow Than the mower work in the Lyle Comparing just the automatic punches the Nickel moves into second place behind The spring tools at 0.0155 inches and There's no damage to the punch and the General tools requires quite a bit of Force to deploy and the general tools Punch left a pretty good sized Dent at
0.0185 inches no visible damage to the General tools and a saber cut also takes Quite a bit of force to deploy at around 45 pounds and the saber cut performed Very well for an automatic punch at 0.0235 inches the tip of the punch still Looks as good as new and the tip of the Start is just too blunt and the spring Pressure is too soft to be competitive Against the other punches 0.005 inches to move into last place Behind the Lyle comparing just the Manual punches the star wheel came out On top this time at 0.0365 inches snap On finish in second at 0.032 comparing Just the automatic punches spring tools Came out on top again this time at 0.028 Inches saber cut finished in second at 0.0235 let's go ahead and move on to Medium hardness steel instead of Dropping the metal cylinder 3.5 inches I'll drop it from 5 inches for added Force even with the extra Force the Crater is smaller this time at 0.022 Inches and the tip of the metal Hue does Have a small flat area but it was that Way when it was new and the wild tool Handle the extra Force just as well as The Mayhew tools at 0.02 inches the Crater is almost as deep as the mayhues No visible damage to the punch and Decline tools held up just fine from the Added force and the punch performed very Close to the same as the wild tool at
0.019 inches and the punch is still Still in very good condition Andy Williams made a very solid hit against The medium hardness steel and the size Of the crater is very close to the same As the Klein Tools at 0.0205 inches and The punch tip still looks as good as new And the gear wrench seems very well Masked against the Williams with an Almost identical sized crater 0.02 Inches the pie still looks as good as New and the tip on The Prado looks to be About as sharp as a needle and a Proto Performed very well at 0.021 inches no Visible damage to the Proto and there Seems to be less bounce after impact With the star wheel compared to some of The other brands and the star wheel Moves into the lead at 0.031 inches and The punt still looks as good as new and Esteroid is also a very solid punch with A very sharp tip 0.0265 inches is good enough to move Into second place behind the stall wheel And the tip still looks extremely sharp And as good as new and it has it also Seems to be a very solid punch and seems Unfazed by the impact the crater is 0.026 inches deep which is better than Average no visible damage to the tip and A Snap-On made very good use of the Impact from the cylinder leaving the Second largest Dent yet as 0.027 inches And the pun still looks as good as new
And the mole work really struggled on The medium hardness deal with an extra Small dent 0.0045 inches no damage to the punch tip And the law also left a very small Dimple in the medium hardness steel 0.0045 inches is the same as the mower And the spring tools probably has a lot More potential than I experienced but 0.0195 inches is the best of the Automatic punches no damage to the tip Of the punch and the Nico performed Quite a bit better than the mower and The Lyle but not quite as well as the Spring tools at 0.012 inches no visible Damage and the general tools offers more Spring power than the Nico and the extra Force really helped 0.0135 inches and the tip of the pot Still looks as good as new and the saber Cut has a more pointed tip than the General tools and that really helped it Leave a deep Dent 0.018 inches and There's no visible damage to the tip and Esteroid auto really struggle in this Test and the left a very small mark on The surface of the test piece comparing Just the manual punches the star wheel Once again came in on top at 0.031 Inches snap on once again finished in Second at 0.027 inches and the stare at 0.0265 for third place once again the Spring tools came in on top at 0.0195 Inches however the saber cut was a close
Second at 0.018 and our final test let's See how the punches hold up when they Come into some very hard steel once Again I'll drop the metal cylinder right At five inches before contacting the Punches unfortunately the tip of the Mayhew punch experienced a lot of damage And it looks as blunt as the stare at Automatic nmau barely left the mark on The steel plate just like the Mayhew the Wild two really struggled on the hard Steel plate the size of the dent is a Little larger and it did experience a Little less damage to the tip of the Punch and the client tools punch tried To out compete the Mayu in the wild tool But the hard steel was too much and the Size of the crater is about the same as The wild tools deck and there's quite a Bit of damage to the Klein Tools punch Once again the wheels punch made very Solid impact with the steel plate and Made the biggest Dent yet at 0.014 Inches no visible damage to the tip of The punch and the gearwrench also Delivered a really hard blow to the Steel plate and the gear wrench made a Little more problem progress at 0.0175 Inches and the post tip still looks as Good as new and the Proto has performed Very well up until now but the steel Plate is just way too hard it did leave A very small dent however it experienced Quite a bit of damage and once again the
Star wheel plowed into the steel plate With a very solid blow and the star Wheel made the deepest Dent yet at 0.03 Inches very impressive and the tip of The pot still looks as good as new and Asterisk seems just as motivated to make A dent as a star wheel and a stare at Moves into second place at 0.026 inches The tip of the punch is very sharp and Still looks new and as it has what it Takes to make a dent in the hard steel However the crater isn't as deep as a Star wheel and a stare at 0.026 inches The punch tip held up very well and it Looks as good as new and the Snap-on has Performed very well throughout the Showdown and it performed very well on This hard steel at 0.0285 inches no Visible damage to the tip of the Snap-on And the mole work barely left a mark on The hard steel plate the mower makes a Very soft swing and it probably Prevented damage to the tip just like The mow work the Lyle made a very small Mark on the steel plate no visible Damage to the tip of the punch and the Spring tools claims that this tip is Designed for hard metals and it's done The best of the automatic punches yet There's also a small amount of damage to The tip of the punch and the Nico took a Swing but it came up short of the spring Tools at 0.0075 inches and there's a very small
Amount of damage to the tip and a General tool is made a little harder Punch than the Nico and it made a little Bigger Dent at 0.0105 inches and the Saber cut has outperformed the general Tools up until this point but the hard Steel really held back to saber cut 0.0095 inches and asteroid Auto took a Swing but the hard steel play barely Took notice unfortunately it looks like The hard steel caused the tip to become A little more blunt none of the punches Experience mushrooming from Impact if You're looking for a manual punch that Can handle coming into contact with hard Steel the stall wheel made the biggest Dent however several of the other brands Also performed almost as well comparing Jesse automatic punches the spring tools Once again came out on top assessing Durability is highly subjective but About half the brands receive the best Possible rating of one indicating nov Visible damage that's pretty impressive Considering the hardness of the steel Plate the hardness of the blow delivered By automatic punches varied by quite a Bit so not surprisingly the punches that Took the hardest swing also experienced The most damage so which punch is the Best and a star wheel came out on top With an average finish of 1.2 Snap-on And stare at tied for second place with An average finish of 2.2 for the
Automatic Center punches the spring Tools came in on top finishing in first Place in every category except for Damage I removed that category for this Assessment since it doesn't seem logical To penalize harder hitting tools for Experiencing greater damage saber cut Finished in second and general tools Third a big thank you to everyone that Requested a review of Center punches I'm Always looking forward to new video Ideas so if you have a video idea I hope You'll take time to leave a comment Thanks so much for watching please take Care and I look forward to next time