Where do yo buy your tools and equipment?

tanker300

try drywall zone here drywallzone

nitrotec

I know quite a few contractors buying tools from Leading Edge Drywall Products . Very happy with my dealings so far , will match or beat most other distributors i have shopped with.....

1wallboardsman

Well, here is a good news flash, TapeTech has brought prices down to be competitive with FinishPro in effort to get back on top.

Muddauber

I heard that Tape Tech tools are being made in China now.
Is this true?

1wallboardsman

It wouldn't surprise me at all to find out that Ames/TapeTech has been produced offshore for quite some time.

It seems that nobody in the industry does know where Ames/Tapetech is made.

The first thing the industry did when FinishPro came out was to throw out the fact that they are made in China. Ames might not own the whole industry, but it still pretty much runs it. If there is a company that knows how to produce a set of taping tools cheaper then anyone else, it would be Ames.

The way everything gets manipulated these days, it wouldn't surprise me to find out that the whole FinishPro/Goldblatt emergence is sponsored by Ames so that TapeTech can bring prices down without admitting to you that they have been gigging you on the price for 28 years.

I do notice the Ames/TapeTech doesn't claim to be made in USA, or state where they are made.

jdl

nitrotec

I agree . You get what you pay for ! Finish Pro is by far the low end tool in the market . Stick to CDN and US based manufactures for quality ...

virtaper

Ohh ! Who do you buy from online??

Whitey97

I get my stuff anywhere I can. I've bought a lot of my stuff from other tapers in the area that are going out of business. It's a great way of getting semi-new tools, for less than half the price. Otherwise all the sundries, I get local and internet depends how much time I have. All-wall.com and fantastictools.com

brdn_drywall

correction used to buy online now i shop online and order from you terry.

Darren@Partners

Anybody else wonder why Ames has been allowed to rape us for so long? What happened to Anti-trust legislation? I guess there is now some competition out there but for the longest time, you could not buy anything not somehow connected to Ames. And their policies on lost/stolen tools were....immoral at best. Used to pay the rent on two sets of Ames tools, now tapers own just about everything except bazooka. And now I hear that those Goldblatt tools are just garbage.

brdn_drywall

used to just hang board day in and day out for about 6 years then i got a contract to do 5 4-plexes 500 kilometers up north in an isolated community, everything went smooth and banged em off quickly, the the developer phones me up a few days before completion and says that his tapers backed out and I'll have to do it.
well i told him that i was familiar with the trade but didn't do it professionally, he said he'd rent me a couple of sets from ames and i would learn on the job, the first few days were slow and problematic but once i got the mud thinning down-pact the taper and boxes ran smooth, by the second building my on the job apprenticeship was complete by the third i was a seasoned veteran haha.
all and all it turned out pretty good under the circumstances but when the contract was complete developer kept me going on production/rental housing and only paid for the first 2 weeks of rental so kept the stuff it took me about 3 months to figure out ames was raping me and not even giving me a kiss when they were done heck they weren't even using bazooka oil for loob.
seven years later and i still shake my head when ever i hear about they're rental rates and how i wasted my money for those 3 months or so.

tapersteve

TapeTech and Ames parts are produced in several places which include China, Taiwan, Southern California and many other places. A list is available from them of every single part they make and where it is produced, which is required by law that they furnish it to you if you are an exporter of their tools. (I have heard rumors that they sub-assemble some major assemblies in Mexico) Though I am not sure about that. But, the final assembly takes place in one of 2 places: Ames center in Livermore, CA or mainly in Georgia in a city named Duluth. Hope that answers any questions about where they are made.

Whitey97

Thanks tapersteve! say hello to scubasteve for me!

graylony68

I am replying to the person who said northstar tools arent good tools. I have been useing northstar for 3 years now and havent had any problems with them and love them. the extendable handles that come standard on there sets are enough reason for their higher prices I have used blueline and columbia and after buying the northstar set, I will never go back to them. so I am not sure where you are getting your info, but you need to get your facts right before you put down great taping tools.

JustMe

You're possibly referring to jon and the comments he made on this thread a year ago:

NorthStar is one of 3 main automatic taping tool brands jon shows as him selling on his online site, so I don't know what to say or really think here. Maybe there's certain tools in the Northstar lineup he has (or had) some issues with at the time.

tanker300

Northstar tools are good, to good for the market though. They overbuilts all of the tools and tried to at least break even on sales, the tapers head is made from a solid cube of billet aluminum and cut to head shape. This is really over doing and pretty expensive. The side plates are stainless and all parts inside have to be purchased from other tool manufactures a batch at a time. The corner head is the same way and so is the pump, all from a billet aluminum.
These are very nice tools on display at our showroom BUT the contractors want a tool that is tested and proven worldwide and resale value is the highest. Tapetech tools have come way down on there prices and can squeeze any compeditor to there knees if they choose.
Northstar tools just do not sell very good here and online not only because it is a newer tool on the market but it is to pretty and guys here are afraid it may break easier.
We do not try to push any tools to anyone, we are strickly letting you know from sales only.Toolpro did purchase the Northstar line.

1wallboardsman

Concorde retread. Poorly re-designed due to ignorance of the trade.

Poorly marketed as are all brands, let's hope they don't break frequently, parts prices are to the moon.

BTW - How many miles of tape have been rolled out by cast taper heads?

How many of those cast heads broke? I have never heard from anyone that their cast taper head broke or wore-out.

They are pretty though.

jdl

JustMe

So why sell them then, jon? Are they a 'least worst choice' when compared to most other brands?

1wallboardsman

There is offering, and there is selling. If the question is why offer something that you wouldn't recommend, the answer is because there are still those that have their reasons to buy it.

Not all people buy tools based on functionality, and some buy based on a very narrow range of factors. TapeWorm is the worst, and they are still here after 29 years, Ames is the all time highest price, and they are still here after 75 years.

There isn't really a best, If you ask me what is best, I can only answer honestly through my point of view within my experience as a drywall finisher. Personally, I don't like to overpay for anything, others will not buy anything unless it is the highest price that they can find.

Still, others will pay more for taping tools because they are prettiest, without regard for utility. With 10 brands of the same thing, there is a seat for every ass. I just try to inform people so that they can make their own decisions based on what is important to them.

As a tradesman, I long ago concluded that the only thing that can possibly be unique to me in my trade is a determination to get the best out of whatever tool is in my hands at any given time. With some, that is easier then with others.

jdl

tanker300

When I purchase anything of value for example a car like a corvette, I want to see quality but more important is resale only because people who have purchased and drove ect love them and runs great year after year and if I need to sell to upgrade to a newer year I know I will get the most money back. A compeditor car in this class are nice year after year and have nice engines, interior ect but is not around years later and parts well forget it. Now try to sell it and you will see my point.
I remember when Northstar first came out, I had serial #1 from the vegas show that year and loved the looks and feel but it was so shiny and pretty that I was afraid to drop it, then I took apart to see everything and they are well built for sure but I am sure contractors feel the same as I did when I first laid eyes on the taper and pump. It has been a few years and if see them on ebay for sale you will be lucky to get 400.00 verses the Tapetech after 10 years of heavy use fetch 600.00 and rebuilt 800.00