Today I went to our local Ace Hardware to return a torque wrench purchased in 1979 This wrench was a lifetime warranty tool. Ace told me that Torque wrenches are warrantied for 2 years max. I showed them the web site info on warranties. From Craftsman’s web site. Note: Same warranty for all new CRAFTSMAN models (Model # starting with “CMHT”) and older models (Model # starting with “9”) No proof of purchase required. Return damaged product to a stocking Retail Partner or contact Customer Care for details. So I contacted Craftsman’s customer service. Their reply This tool was from SEARS and they are no longer available or discontinued. We will have to look for comparable items or new model of torque wrench, however, the receipt is needed. I sincerely apologize. I told them I don’t have the receipt from 45 years ago and who keeps receipts for 45 years ago. Their response I understand. However, we need to follow our warranty process. Again, I sincerely apologize. If you do not have any questions, I will now close the chat transaction. Again, thank you for contacting Craftsman. Have a great week! What Bullshit, even tho I have owned this wrench for a long time and it really doesn’t owe me anything , always stayed in calibration etc. never had a problem returning a tool before. The reason I purchased Craftsman or other warrantied tools was because of the value if the tool failed it is replaced. Otherwise I would buy cheap junk- maybe. I will never again purchase a Craftsman tool.I do think the last tool I returned was to Sears, however no questions asked. Rant over. Dan
I bought Craftsman tools because of the warranty and the fact I worked in shipping & receiving at Sears when I was in high school. If the customer wanted to keep his old ratchet we had a replacement gear set that was simple to install. I went to Seats before they sold out to get a gear set and the teen age girl, who knows absolutely nothing about tools told me to throw the old tool in the box of broken tools and get another one and she would ok it. I had the wrench for many years and I took a new wrench of the rack and grabbed a pair of snap ring pliers and took the gear set our of the old wrench and replaced it with the innards of the new wrench put both back together and tossed the new wrench in the broken tool box, she was dumbfounded, why not get the new wrench, I told her she wouldn't understand. HRP
“Who would have a 45 year old receipt?” My dad. You should say “What normal person saves a receipt for 45 years “ After he passed I found receipts going back to the 40’s and 50’s. He saved them all.
Your dad and my dad could’ve been brothers from the sounds of it. Dad was similar, we found all kinds of records and receipts from many years ago after he passed. That particular gene must of past over me lol. I guess the reason I’m mad about the Sears warranty is that somehow another Iconic American thing has passed. Like @HOTRODPRIMER said he wanted to keep his old ratchet, way back the tool sales guys fixed the tool if he could, then they just went to toss it and get a new one, now you have to have a receipt. Going to Sears to replace a tool used to be a journey for me, I usually bought another item before I left. Where does I guy buy decent 1/2 drive torque wrench without breaking the bank. Dan
Yeah, @Sharpone, my 1/2'' drive ratchet broke due to my abuse, actually. So now, they cleverly changed part numbers on the tools so there's no exact match to exchange for a broken one. I've started buying good used Snap On stuff. Dammit, I don't know how long I have on the planet, and I hate crappy tools.
I can relate. My Snap On dealer used to rebuild my ratchets back in the day. The last few times I had a broken tooth or whatever, he just took the old one and gave me a new one. The new ones never feel like the quality made pieces I bought in the 80’s. I was just looking today for a torque wrench for at my shop at work. Need something to go to at least 500 ft. lbs. I am considering ICON from Harbor Freight, as I’ve heard many good things about that line of tools. The used Proto one my son in law would sell me lists for $1100 new I believe, where as the ICON is $400.
I bought a Williams torque wrench about 2 yrs ago to replace a Craftsman for about $200. I didn't think it was too bad. Gary
I suspect all of our Craftsmen lifetime tool warranties went away during one of the Sears bankrupcies.
I inherited some of that mindset. I keep the instruction manuals, and staple the receipt into them. Oldest I have would be about 35 years. Don't like my chances of claiming warranty on much anymore, though most of my old stuff tends not to break. Cheers, Harv
i buy teng tools from my local motor factors.the only part that broke was replaced,no questions asked no reciept needed.teng tools are the way to go.LIFETIME WARRANTY
Never heard of either one. But Harbor Freight tools are looking better and better all the time! Lifetime guarantee and all. But the screwdrivers suck.
Torque wrenches were never guarantied. I understand Snap-on does not either. They both used to repair the ratchet part. My local Lowes replaces most hand tools they have in stock. They say you can go online to replace other things. I have not done that.
I still have the cheap beam torque wrench that my dad bought for me to use in the 70s. It still works. I used it yesterday. The craftsman clicker I bought in the 80s died after a while, and I gave up on them. sometimes we have to just accept that the world has moved on, and the plans we laid decades ago won't work out exactly as we envisioned.
Yep I have a Blackhawk beam torque wrench which I use. I also use it to check the clicker wrenches. Off to Harbor Freight, they do stand behind their stuff, Squirrel times are a changing 20 - 30 years ago you couldn’t pay me to take a Pittsburg tool, now I have quite a few HF items. Dan
They probably require a receipt now due to all the people buying beat up tools at yard sales and turning them in for new ones. Thank those people.
I have a cousin who used to do that. He looked to buy all kinds of busted Craftsman tools for cheap and then go to Sears and get new ones.
It's not the guys that buy old stuff to warranty, it's the companies that have decided it was a money loss. The receipt was the name stamped on the tool! Unfortunately, you can't see which brands will change the terms later, so the consumer is always the one getting the short end. It's a big reason a lot of places are trying to go with rentals and licenses instead of purchases. You are paying for access, not ownership.
Actually I’ve bought a few forever brand tools at garage sales etc., never turned one in for a warranty. After I wrote my original post I got to thinking about how many tools have I turned in for warranty The list: Craftsman 1/2 drive ratchet, 3/8 drive ratchet, 1/4 drive ratchet 1/4 drive 6” extension with a stuck detention ball 2 Proto 3/8 drive ratchet guts replaced Stanley 25 ft tape measure tape replaced. There may be more but I don’t remember any. Not bad for almost 50 years of wrench spinning. Craftsman stuff used to be a value leader, maybe the best bang for the buck! I had a 10 gallon shop vac that my mother bought me for Christmas in the early 1990s it gave up the ghost last year and I abused the hell out of it. Dan
Hello, Well, since Sears, the original company in your area may no longer be the old storefront, one will have to go to the nearest location across the USA. There are 11 actual store locations left and the closest one to you is 1100 miles away, good luck in returning it to a storefront location. Yes, when you bought the original tool, the return policy was guaranteed in any Sears Storefront location. I returned several screwdrivers to our Long Beach location, then years later a worn socket to another location when we moved to the big OC, near the large Costa Mesa store. Then years later, in one of the last to close Sears Storefront in Laguna Hills many years beyond, another wrench and another screwdriver, larger one and none were purchased in the store where the return was made. With the scarcity of actual Sears Locations the return policy may or may not be available. Luckily, there is still one located in Whittier, CA almost in the middle of Los Angeles Metropolitan area. Jnaki Each return nowadays is a separate entity. We can or cannot return items, so the customer service number is available. But, it is usually not worth the effort and we are not tool specific as far as a workable product. 45 years is a long time and you have used it to no end. Our original torque wrench and the rest of our original Craftsman tool set from 1959-60 + is now resting in an active hot rod person’s garage, whether he uses them or not, they are still in great condition. But, if one breaks, a new one will probably be purchased… forget that those tools are 65 years old. YRMV Warranty Information CRAFTSMAN® tools are backed by some of the strongest warranties in the market today. If you have a product that requires repair or replacement under warranty, simply return the product to the original place of purchase for repair or replacement, depending on the warranty coverage outlined below. Or create an account to register your product and view its warranty coverage. Product Warranty Lookup Search by model number to locate your Product Warranty. Top of Form Search View Warranty Bottom of Form To register and obtain additional warranty information for your CRAFTSMAN® products, create or log in to your CRAFTSMAN® Club account. This guide can help you locate your CRAFTSMAN® product model number. Scroll down to view more warranty details by category. To reach CRAFTSMAN® Customer Service, please chat with us, submit a form here , or give us a call at 888-331-4569.
It's almost as if someone, somewhere, was planning for things to become obsolete......... My daughter says that I'm the only Dad in her circle that fixes things. All her friends have ever known is, "Buy it, use it, throw it away, repeat".
This topic gets repeated often over at the Garage Journal. My old Digitork gave up and I bought a slight used SnapOn off eBay that I'm very happy with. I also have 2 smaller Tekton torque wrenches that are very good. I will continue to use my Craftsman tools but won't replace them with Craftsman as they fail, get lost, etc.
In my business, when companies disappear, the warranties do, too.. The name may live on, but the company's gone, as is any responsibility for backing it up. Life goes on. I buy vintage used stuff, too. Seems like it always just feels better in my hand when I use it.
I grew out of being a tool snob when I realized I was breaking Harbor Freight tools at about the same rate as I was breaking expensive USA made SK, Proto, Snap-On and less expensive USA made Craftsman. Which was about never. I had to have a conversation with myself about why I was spending as much money as I was on tools when another brand could perform as well or better, last just as long, and cost a fraction of the alternative. I couldn't come up with a good reason, especially since in the rare occasion that something does break, I can just pop down to the local HF and get a warranty replacement, no questions asked. It's a no-brainer. I'll be honest, I don't think there has been a company that has more positively affected my ability to work on cars than HF. By offering products at a fair price, it has allowed me to continue to purchase the right tool for the job, even if that tool isn't of such quality that it would stand up to commercial use for decades, a level of usage my equipment will never see. Almost never have I been unable to perform a task because the tool I have is not of sufficient quality. It's overwhelmingly more likely that I'm unable to perform a task because I simply don't have the appropriate tool for the job.
Harbor Freight is the new Craftsman, that’s why I have a lot of Craftsman tools, they were a good buy in the day. Were they the best - no - but they performed well, used some professionally also. Dan
I understand that when a company fails, it's measured by assets and debts. The debts are tossed aside as much as possible (pensions, outstanding loans, unsecured credit, warranties) while the assets are sold off. It's just 'business'. I also understand why the C suite people are retained at high cost to sort through the mess, they have the best knowledge of the company (supposedly). It still strikes me and many others that this favors the affluent and powerful at the cost of the average person who had no responsibility in the downfall. Yes, life ain't fair.
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