Harbor Freight Icon 251-Piece Technicians Set: Do You Actually Save $420?

It's no secret that Harbor Freight has a reputation for working directly with tool manufacturers to develop and deliver well-made products at affordable prices, and Harbor Freight's Icon series tools are no exception. The company's line of Icon hand tools, wrenches, ratchets, sockets, pliers, screwdrivers, etc., are included in nearly every rundown of Harbor Freight hand tools every home mechanic should have.

Harbor Freight is also well-known for its price comparisons. Typically, the advertisement for a particular tool will include a comparison to a similar offering from a name brand. In the case of its Icon mechanic's tool lineup, Snap-On tools are often the target of the comparison. While sometimes the tool offered for comparison is difficult to track down, and whether or not you consider Snap-On vs. Icon an apples-to-apples comparison is a subject for another time, sometimes Harbor Freight puts together a set of its tools and proclaims a discount for the bundle over buying them separately.

The 251-piece Technicians' Tool Set by Icon, a tool set brand many might not realize is owned by Harbor Freight, is a prime example. Harbor Freight lists the price of the Technician's Tool Set at $799.99, comparing it to a Snap-On tool set priced at $4,000.00, and going on to say that buying the set from Harbor Freight saves over $420 compared to buying the same tools separately for $1,222.68. While our calculations totaled $1,221.68, the $799.99 set price really saves a little over $420.

As a starter kit for the beginning automotive technician, the 251-piece Icon tool set provides a variety of useful tools without numerous and unnecessary duplicates. For starters, there are four sets of pliers, which include eight-inch slip-joint pliers, eight-inch needle nose pliers, nine-inch adjustable joint channel pliers, and a seven-inch diagonal cutter. 

There are also 42 screwdrivers and hex keys in addition to the 33-piece bit driver set. Among them are an eight-piece mechanic's screwdriver set, four mini screwdrivers, four mini Torx screwdrivers, and 13 each metric and SAE L-shaped ball-end hex keys. The bit driver set includes hex, Torx, slotted, Phillips, and Pozidrive bits, along with a locking flex-head ratchet, an extension, and an adaptor in a fitted storage case. 

Icon 1/4- and 3/8-inch drive ratchets pair with shallow and deep sockets in metric and SAE sizes. You'll also find 1/4 and 3/8 drive extensions, universal joint socket adapters, and Torx bit sockets. Along with the socket wrenches, the set includes 28 combination wrenches split evenly between SAE and metric sizes. Finally, a 10-piece punch and chisel set, 16- and 32-ounce ball peen dead blow hammers, and a pair of safety glasses round out the 251-piece count. At the time of this writing, the tool set is listed as "Currently Unavailable," but Harbor Freight urges to "Check Back Soon."