I've been using Snap-On tools for more than 50 years. They have a life-time guarantee and they don't break. Granted, they are not cheap, but I've always felt that you get what you pay for.

PB or snap on

For USA made, I prefer Moody (Precision tools) and hand tools Armstrong-These are the "Cadillac" of hand tools - 100% of the line is made in USA. I bought my Moody and Armstrong tools piece by piece over several years - they are very pricey but works of art and warrantied for life.For cut off pliers I use Xuron. Snap on, Proto, Matco and Klein are also excellent.

For German made tools I can recommend Knipex,Wiha,Wera,Felo,Gedore and Witte. Wiha and Wera make excellent precision screwdrivers. On trips to Europe I've picked many of these up as they are very well made. The large Felo and Wera screwdrivers are very comfortable to use if you have arthritic hands. 

For Swiss - PB Swiss - extremely fine tools.

If you are really serious, Snap-On.  But bring money - a two dollar screwdriver costs $26.  For aircraft work, the difference is worth it.

For small screwdrivers, try Starrett.  They sell a set of straight blades that goes down to watchmaker's sizes.  WIHA also seems to make some nice tools.  I have a set of their socket wrenches on handles in both metric and fractional dimensions and they come in very handy removing side rod screws.   Plumb made nice small 2oz and 4oz ball been hammers that I have been using for over 30 years.

I have Craftsman wire cutters and long nosed pliers that I have been using for years.

Exacto razor saw blades used to be good...now they are of poor quality and don't last long cutting brass.

Joe

For pliers, I have an assortment made by Xcelite. They are high quality. Some other good brands are Klein and Xceleta.
Some of the miniature pliers that Craftsman has offered over the years were high quality too.
I like Wiha and Xcelite screwdrivers and nutdrivers too.
I also like Quickwedge screw holding screwdrivers (flat blade).
I purchased a lot of my pliers and screwdrivers from a defunct distributor, and I had a lot of extras. I may still have some to spare. Send me an email using my  profile information if you are interested.

Although little known outside of the electronic/electronic service industry, I too like Xcelite. A lot of neat features designed for the service man. For example, straight bladed screwdrivers that are truly straight shanked, without the widening at the bottom that is common on "automotive" type tools. They also have a lot of special sizes, a 1/8 x 8 inch screwdriver for example. Vast assortment of small pliers and cutters.

Here's a link.    http://www.apexhandtools.com/brands/xcelite/index.cfm

Hi Guys,

Here is an offering of a set of pliers that I was considering until I saw "Pakistan" on them.

Click Image to Enlarge

Value: $90.00 Our Price: $59.95 Quantity Discount: buy 2 or more at $48.95 ea     Item #: 86487   <label class="kqtylbl" for="ctl00_cph_prodSku_dlProductSku_ctl00_txtQuantity" id="ctl00_cph_prodSku_dlProductSku_ctl00_lblQuantity">Qty:</label> <input class="quantityboxdg" id="ctl00_cph_prodSku_dlProductSku_ctl00_txtQuantity" maxlength="3" name="ctl00$cph$prodSku$dlProductSku$ctl00$txtQuantity" type="text" value="1" />

This is from a large outfit that caters to hobbyists.  And this set has the assortment of pliers that I am looking for.

Many thanks to all who have contributed to this search.  I will be spending some time looking through all of the various brands.

Steve

A closer look at that set of pliers

Those Micro Mark pliers are fairly inexpensive.
If you look to purchase new Xcelite pliers from a retail establishment, expect to pay $20 or more per pair. I see some fairly good prices on EBay for them.

I have used a US-made Xcelite tool roll for decades and they always perform well. For flush cutting diagonal cutters my Swiss Erem tools are second to none. A very inexpensive but surprisingly good wire stripper that works down to 30 gauge is a Hakko CSP-30-1, made in Italy.

Wishing you all the best.

Wiha for screwdrivers.   Ergonomically comfortable and sized well.

If you plan to work on newer equipment, you may want to get some JIS and/or Pozidriv screwdrivers. These screwdrivers (and the screws) are easily mistaken for Phillips head.
When one uses a standard Phillips head driver on a JIS or Pozidriv screw, the driver often lifts out of the "slot" and strips it.
Here is a Wikipedia article on drive types.

During the modern era, Lionel appears to have used both Pozidriv and JIS screws. If you ever work on imported electronics goods, they might come in handy there too.

My Pozidriv screw drivers are Wiha.

My JIS screwdrivers are made by Vessel and Moody Tools.

Both Pozidriv and JIS screwdrivers are a bit more difficult to find. Wiha makes Pozidriv, but not JIS. Sears Craftsman makes neither.  I just checked Snap-on, they also have Pozidriv but not JIS. Moody Tools makes a precision sized JIS set.

So the JIS ones were the most difficult ones for me to find. I purchased a set of the Moody Tools one from Amazon.com, and decided I wanted a standard sized set.
 In the end, I purchased my full sized ones from McMaster-Carr.