Auto Glass Tool Kits
Buying tools one at a time is how most technicians start, and it is almost always a more expensive route. You can end up with three cold knives and no way to lay a bead, or a cut-out tool on a battery platform that isn’t useful for anything else.
A kit solves the sequencing problem. GT Tools® has been building auto glass tools since 1984, and these packages are assembled so that each one covers a complete job: cut the glass out, clear and prep the opening, handle the new glass, lay the bead, set it. The question is not which kit is best. It is how much of that sequence you need to buy at once.
What Changes as You Move Up the Range
The packages build on each other rather than replacing each other, so it helps to know what each step adds.
Hand tools only. The Base Auto Glass Hand Tool Package is the cutting, prep and trim-removal set: cold knife and blades, an 18-inch long knife, hook and pick tools, rope-in and gasket tools, mirror and wiper removal, locking strip tool, pinchweld razor scraper with three blade widths, and chisel sticks. No power tools, no handling gear.
A first complete kit. The Basic kit takes that hand tool set and adds the three things that make it a working setup: a cordless urethane gun, Super Grip suction cups, and a 500 lb windshield stand. It has no powered cut-out tool, which is deliberate. Plenty of shops cut by hand and would rather put the money into handling.
Add a powered cut-out tool. The Standard kit adds the Diablo™ cordless cut-out tool, so the whole kit runs on one battery platform.
Add reach and a cord system. The Premium kit steps up to the GT.38 Special™, adds your choice of the FinalCut™ or KONG™ cord and wire system for non-molding vehicles, and brings in the Quarter Cutter™, a molding cutter, urethane notch cutter and the door and cowling tool sets.
Work alone. The Elite kit is the one that changes how you staff a job. It adds the Lil Buddy™ single-technician setting tool, a 9-slot glass rack, both the Quarter Cutter™ and Shorter Cutter™, a sausage-pack conversion for the urethane gun, a cowling clip set and molding tape.
Comparing kits? See what is in each auto glass tool kit, from Basic to Elite, and which additions matter for your work.
If You Already Own Half of This
Most technicians buying a kit already have at least a good subset of these tools. If you own the power tools and need the hand tools, start with the Base package and add the Premium Upgrade, which is the specialty layer: urethane notch cutter, molding cutter, panel and door tool sets, and the long and short double-bend hook tools.
If none of the packages line up with what you need, Build Your Own Kit lets you assemble one from the individual ranges.
Battery Platform
The Standard and Elite kits each come in a Milwaukee-based and a DeWalt-based version at the same price, and the Premium kit is DeWalt-based. This is worth two minutes of thought before you order. Matching the kit to the batteries and chargers already in your van means one charger, interchangeable packs and no second set of spares. It is the single easiest way to avoid paying twice for batteries and chargers.
Shop Auto Glass Tool Kits and Individual Tools
Building a kit from scratch, or filling a gap in one? Our guide to professional auto glass replacement tool kits walks through what a complete setup needs and why.
By tool type: cord, wire and knife tools, reciprocating tools and blades, cold knife tools and blades, long knife tools and blades, glass suction cups, caulking guns, pinch weld and gasket tools, windshield installation devices.
Budget considerations? Factory serviced tools are GT tools returned, rebuilt and re-tested, and they are the least expensive route onto the powered lineup. The full range is in auto glass replacement tools.
Our Products are Designed, Engineered, Forged, Machined, Assembled, and Shipped with pride in Durango, Colorado, USA.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between the Basic and Standard kits?
A powered cut-out tool. Both carry the same hand tool set, cordless urethane gun, Super Grip suction cups and 500 lb windshield stand. The Standard adds the Diablo™ cordless cut-out tool. If you cut by hand today and want to keep doing that, the Basic is a complete kit, not a stripped one.
Do I need a powered cut-out tool to start?
No. Cold knives and long knives remove glass perfectly well, cost far less to run, and give more control in tight corners. A powered tool buys speed, and speed pays for itself on volume. If you are doing a few jobs a week, the money is better spent on handling and prep.
Milwaukee or DeWalt?
Whichever is already in your shop. The Standard and Elite kits are offered on both platforms at the same price, so the right answer is the one that shares batteries and a charger with the tools you own. If you are starting from nothing, either is fine.
What is not in a kit?
Consumables and chemistry. Urethane, primer, daubers, moldings and tapes are bought separately and restocked as you use them, which is why they are not bundled. Blades are included but will need replacing. Gloves and safety glasses are not supplied.
Can I put a kit together myself?
Yes. Build Your Own Kit lets you pick from the individual tool ranges rather than taking a pre-set package. It is the right route if you have an unusual mix of work, or if you are replacing part of a kit you already own.
Which kit suits a single-technician operation?
The Elite, because of the Lil Buddy™ setting tool. Setting glass alone is the step that normally needs a second pair of hands, and a setting system is what removes that constraint. The glass rack included with it matters for the same reason: if you are working alone, where the glass sits between the van and the vehicle is a real problem.
