Beware when buying Craftsman tools

Wrenchs aren't the only thing Sears is making junk. I got into the carpertry trade in '53' an we all bought Carftsman tools. Don't buy any of them there any more either.

 

Good question. I would thank that you could send them back of try to find a tool truck.

 

True. I hit the pawn shops first, when buying tools. Sometimes the difference is pennies on the dollar.

 

Sending is probably easier than finding a truck but it's gonna cost ya.

 

Damn didnt want to hear this I just got my youngest son a set for his birthday earlyer this week. Thay do say made in USA. Hope he does not read this he was proud of the set I got him.

 

They gotta makem thicker in that area to keep the junk from breakin...

 

No comment, wait i just did ha!
I buy crapsman all the time most are made in the usa can't say how many are china? as i buy allot off egay scratch and dent sales never had a problem hell i even buy cheapo tools and non have failed me yet...wait let me find some wood.

 

Capitalism means you dont have do buy the stuff.
Educated customers is good, you can make your own choice.

I guess most of the computers (and the Components inside), you are using is made in china.

I buy Swedish Bacho Tools myself ;-)

 

Sears is killing the goose that lays the golden eggs!

Once again, it's all about profit margin for the Co. CEO's and major stock holders. Sears thinks the consumers won't notice. What they've missed bigtime is the fact that guys in general are very very savvy, picky and smart when it comes to buying tools!

I, like many others built up a good collection of Craftsman tools over the last 30+ years because they were of high quality, of good value and Sears would take a return with "no questions asked". (How many screwdrivers used as chisels and ratchet handles used as breaker bars did they warranty, LOL?) There's probably more Craftsman tools than any other brand in the average guys garage.

Sears/ Crafsman has been accused of several past dirty dealings in the tool world all in the name of making a buck;

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/09/business/popular-wrench-fights-a-chinese-rival.html?pagewanted=all

Sears marketers will probably backpedal and come up with a new "Pro line of tools proudly made in the USA" for double the price of their current Chinese made line and figure we'll all fall for it.

Here's a good sight for USA made tool Co.'s, etc;

http://www.stillmadeinusa.com/tools.html

















I'll sure miss seeing the Made in USA sticker

 

I bought a set of dies there a few months back and I noticed they were made in China, I asked the clerk about the replacement guarantee-they said the die holder is guaranteed but the dies are not....lame! I was tempted to use it for what i needed to do then return them-probably should have. I have craftsman tools and my dad and grandad used craftsman and blackhawk. The whole reason for buying craftsman is the replacement guarantee and the fact they are made in usa and you can find Sears stores in most larger towns-i can go to Harbor freight which is closer to my house to buy cheap chinese tools and they are cheaper than Sears. I was willing to pay a little more for USA made ones with a replacement guarantee. Now I think the best bet might be mail order USA made tools- I had wondered if Sears would go cheap when K-mart bought them. Whoever is in charge clearly doesn't understand the Craftsman brand or their position in the marketplace. Too bad.

 

Craftsman mechanics tools used to be made by Easco in the USA and sold exclusively at Sears. Not sure who owns the rights to the name anymore as I have seen Craftsman tools for sale at several different stores including Summit Racing.

Snap-On tools are made by J.H. Williams and I believe that all of their wrenches, sockets, screwdrivers etc are still made in the USA and are the gold standard of hand tools.

Blue Point is Snap-On's tool line that are not made by Snap-On that are made by outside vendors some USA and some overseas.

If you are looking for the quality of Snap-On at a lower price then look for tools made by J.H Williams. Go on Ebay and compare the Snap-On screwdrivers to the J.H Williams and you will see they are basically the same tools.

On another note, Dewalt, Milwaukee, Delta, Rockwell, Porter Cable, etc. electric power tools are pretty much all made in China. Dont be fooled, look for the label on the motors of the tools and read the fine print on the bottom and you will most likely see "made in China". I personally hunt for used power tools in excellent condition that were made in USA as they will last a life time. Any electric motor made in China is junk and wont last.

U.S. law states that in order for a product to wear the "Made in USA" label, only 30% of the product has to be made in the U.S. ---So 70% of the product or tool is still made overseas. "What a crock"

 

Interesting article,this was covered on the ABC Nightly News part of the "Made in America" feature.I notice here that Bain Capital has it's hands in this mess also.Not real happy seeing Craftsman at Ace Hardware lately.

 

they sell the Chinese ones in True Value, at least they were, they look almost identical to the USA made ones, but they dont tell you. I could go to sears,which is a joke here, and buy the same wrench made here, or go to true value and buy the same one made in China,very hard to tell apart. They are very deceitful. I had bought one of the crapsman tool bags at true value once, it was some sort of special for ten bucks, bottom fell out in a month, took it back, bottom of the new one fell out too, threw it in the garbage

 

if you go to Home Depot and look for the set of I believe 12 Husky screwdrivers, They are still made in the USA and are identical to the craftsman screwdrivers from way back, they clearly say made in USA on the handles. the only non USA ones in the set are some tiny useless screwdrivers and a multifunction stamped thing, I was so shocked to find USA made tool that I bought six sets

 

Craftsman might be an alright company but Sears on the other hand is a company that won't be around much longer. The customer service is horrible and won't do much for the consumer. I just got a new job and needed a tool chest looked at craftsman but went with different brand. The employees hound you like at a car dealership.

 

the store here only has one employee working at a time, and he's usually too busy doing nothing at the counter to even see if you need any help,ask a question and get a stupid smart ass answer

 

I found a great quote on the "whats wrong with sears" site, this about sums up the store here, and lots of their other stores.

I'll just stick with my old tools thank you, and not deal with their stores anymore

 

hell yeah..i got all my grandpas tools when he passed..they don't make em like that anymore.

 

But it doesn't help your economy or the last few manufactures of made in the us tools

To support your country/economy you have to buy new tools ,made in the usa

We are lucky in germany ,we have Hazet,gedore,stahlwille , all made in germany
And they don't need a lifetime warranty as they don't break

Mike

 

I'm a professional so i depend on my tools to make a living. snap-on for me. period.

case in point. i had a broken craftsman 1/2" breaker bar sitting in my box. it had been there so long, i cant even remember why it was broken. i needed it for an unusual job so i went down and had it warrantied at sears. came back, and busted it in 3 pieces within 5 minutes, using it as it was intended.

now mind you, i got my first set of craftsman stuff 25 years ago and it was and still is quality. can't seem to wear the stuff out. i mean honestly, i cant figure out how guys manage to break wrenches under 'NORMAL' use, no matter what they are, but i digress.

i bought my first FULL set of snap on 22 years ago and traded for my dads full box (the original snap on taco cart) bout 10 years ago. the majority of that box is full of snap-on. i grew up using the same tools i use today. i'm a snap on guy till i die, because they feel the best in my hands and i KNOW i can count on them. i've only busted 5 snap on sockets ever (because i use the correct tool for the job), and the tools i use every day are at least as old as i am.

i needed a 5.5mm wrench, again for a weirdo job, and craftsman had it in an 'ignition wrench' set for the same price as buying the snap on wrench on its own. in a case like that, i don't care where the tool was made because it paid for itself in one job, but looking at the rest of the inventory, i realized that i wouldn't be buying anything else from craftsman that i would need to rely on.

for my home garage (which i almost never work in) i bought a bunch of tools (harbor freight type stuff) out of a van vendor who stops by here and there, and i liked the stuff better than the craftsman stuff, and at half the price.

i'll go down to grainger and buy proto any day before buying craftsman. i have a set of long and short 3/8" impact sockets that i've used daily for 10 years without a problem.

i keep my eye out for vintage Craftsman Proto and S/K sockets just to have them in the 'extras' box for when you know you're gonna wreck a socket because you have to grind it or weld it for a one time use, but i don't trust new craftsman stuff for any reason, no matter how good their commercials are.

 

I personally work in a pawn shop & am surprised at the quantity of chinese crap tools being brought in. What is wrong with people? I will snatch all the good old USA tools I can. The quality is visually obvious. The machining on Chinese is way off & the metal quality is bad. I used to buy new craftsman in the 90's. Not now, only used tools. Guess I'll have to save for Snapon. Only new tools I bought recently (within 5-10 yrs) are Goodwrench ratchet extensions from O'reilly's & Husky impact sockets from Walmart ( on clearance) & KD from parts houses. Decent quality. What else can the average man do?

 

All this bad news is a great advertisement for used tools. They're becoming a better value all the time.


mcg

 

Sears has several levels of warranty as I assume other sellers do also. Some hand tools are warrantied for a year and others are lifetime. You just need to pay attention to what you purchase. All companies have different levels of quality in order to meet the needs of their customers. Not everyone wants or needs a a high quality product much less wants to pay the price for them.
As for made in China - what isn't. I hate that too!

 

Thanks for the heads up.

 

Also make certain when it says "Made in USA" that it is not just the packaging or the box it comes in while the actual product contained inside is made overseas.
Another little trick some companies are using to try to fool us!

 

Thanks for the heads up on this.
-Pat

 

Of course that's what it's about. Isn't that why people invest their money in "for profit" companies? Sears will fail, but not because Craftsman tools are now made in China like everyone else's tools. They'll fail because a changing America no longer supports the business model on which Sears & Roebuck was founded and Sears didn't adapt. Bought a plow lately from Sears and had it delivered to your towns Railway Express Agency? How about seeds for next Springs crop, or live chickens? Customers who did are likely dead, and the young people who make up Sear's demographic now don't care if the tools are made in China, because they believe everything is made there. And don't ever think Sears believes "consumers won't notice". They will, but far fewer than we want to believe care where things are made because we quit manufacture here before they were born.

Bob

 

A lot of tools traditionally considered to be good quality are now being made in China. And for better or worse, that is increasing all the time. Even some of Snap-On's tools are now coming from China!

 

China continues to buy up American companies....Read my signature.

 

Thanks for the post. Much appreciated.

Buying American is important to me.