Several Craftsman tool sets NLA? What gives?

[ipcress]

Hi,

Very frustrated. Spent way too much time agonizing over everything, decided on the 176 piece socket accessory kit with added items over the course of a week, only to find it off the website. Changed gears, printed out more lists, annotated, decided on the 325 piece mechanics tool set & more/other added items. Went to order tonight, and…you guessed it, wouldn't load on the cart. Called and was told they were "out", no way of knowing for how long. The 207 piece set is missing too. I wanted a bigger, laser etched set and most are now gone from the website. Is this typical? Should I hope to see these again, or make other plans?

Thanks

 

[sk farmer]

us made cman has been being replaced by chinese made **** for a long time now. it has been talked about for months if not years. if you see a us made item and you want it you better jump on it because all of a sudden .......**** and they are gone never to be seen again. you may get lucky and they become available again but don't bet on it. they are slowly but surely being replaced with slightly different sets

 

[retDAC]

Have you checked the classifieds here?

 

[CNGsaves]

Snooze, you lose.

Have you not been OBSERVING what has been going with Craftsman, over the past year(s) ??

Did you just get internet for the very first time last week??

With effort, you can find Cman sets on Ebay, CL, or even SearsOutlet.com for reasonable amounts. Many of these are NOS sets with some Made in USA tools.

Not sure your post is genuine. Why looking at those obscure count sets?? GJ has told everyone of great deals on Cman sets . . . . . simple Advanced Search on "Craftsman set" within the HotDeals section should give you plenty of opportunities to find something.

Have you driven to a Sears store?? Researched where nearby Sears Outlet stores are??

 

[ipcress]

To helpful commenters- thanks. I'll follow your suggestions. I didn't connect the Craftsman shift to China with the problem.

To CNG saves: That was my first post. Thanks for noticing. I am new to the site- about a month since I bought a car to restore, rented a garage and I'm tooling up. I've found a great deal of good information, and most people here seem friendly and helpful.

Most people.

 

[Tsquare]

I recently purchased a 255 piece mechanics set and paid $179.99 - it was all USA tools. If you go to a Sears store you still might be able to find USA sets if that's important to you. The set has a nice selection of 6 pt and 12 pt sockets along with 3 ratchets and SAE and metric combo wrenches. Only issue might be, the sockets are not the laser etched. I really like the set - should give you most of what you need with minimum fill in's - Good luck on your search.

 

[sk farmer]

if you can find one, the 255 piece set was a superb deal. all us made and a good slection of raised panel wrenches, allen wrenches and ignition wrenches. it also had a full compliment of most standard and deep 1/4 and 3/8 drive sockets as well as 1/2 drive. like most sets it didn't have any screwdrivers, pliers or specialty tools but the case actually had a compartment on top to add them unlike most other sets.

oops, tsquare beat me to it. that set has been as cheap as 149.99 several times but is still a pretty good deal at 179.99 like he said. normal retail supposedly was close to 300 but who ever paid full price for them?

 

[Conductor562]

Don't sweat it OP, 75% of us we're accused of being a troll at some point in our first 5 post. If Craftsman doesn't work out for you check out Blackhawk. eBay and Zoro Tools are the best sources for them.

With Blackhawk most items will be USA made unless it has a ratcheting mechanism. They'll cost you a little more than Craftsman, but if you want quality USA made items the Craftsman "affordable American quality" train left the station last October.

You made no mention of COO, so I guess this post is somewhat presumptuous, but Thought I'd throw it out there.

SK is also one of the more affordable pro brands and Tooltopia has a great selection.

 

[sselander]

Craftsman Industrial has sets listed in their catalog, but you have to find a vendor that carries them, and the prices are not as good.

2013 Craftsman Industrial catalog
http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/t/53969/

 

[BobsurUncle]

It's a global community now. No matter how much you, I, we dislike it. If your starting out, the only advice I have is to shop smart. There are many quality brands of tools that are out there that can be had by sales, swap meets, or just by plain research at a reasonable price.

My advice. Stay away from just plain ****** tools, you will know them when you see them. Avoid the China. But then again not all imports are bad. Do your research.

Get your car running and enjoy it. Don't get sucked into the "If it ain't USA made, it's ****" mentality. Because if you do, you will never finish your project.

Now that I said that, I'll go back to polishing my beautiful USA made tools that I'm to scared to use! lol

 

[Conductor562]

Aside from Craftsman, there really aren't too many options for mid size master sets of less than 500 pieces unless you go up to a professional brand and pricing one will quickly remind you of the void Craftsman created for those who insist on USA made tools.

That being said, several of the Western Forge Craftsman items are still around and still a great value. Where else can you find a 5 or 7 ton jaw puller of equal quality for under $50?

Punches and Chisels are a great value as well. Awesome quality set for like $45 and that's if it's not on sale. Similar sized Blackhawk set is twice that much and pretty equal quality.

I agree with BobsurUncle in that a little research and dedication can yield a nice set for a good price. Are you opposed to used tools? I've scored lots of Proto or similar professional items for a fraction of retail in excellent shape on eBay and the classifieds here. Of you have a question about an item you can rest assured someone here has the model number and specs memorized.

If USA made isn't an issue, Kobalt currently has the best quality among the store brands in terms of sockets and drive tools IMO.

For pliers Channellock and Wilde both offer nice quality at a price that makes it hard to settle for cheap ones.

 

[nicksnothereman]

Hi,

Very frustrated. Spent way too much time agonizing over everything, decided on the 176 piece socket accessory kit with added items over the course of a week, only to find it off the website. Changed gears, printed out more lists, annotated, decided on the 325 piece mechanics tool set & more/other added items. Went to order tonight, and…you guessed it, wouldn't load on the cart. Called and was told they were "out", no way of knowing for how long. The 207 piece set is missing too. I wanted a bigger, laser etched set and most are now gone from the website. Is this typical? Should I hope to see these again, or make other plans?

Thanks

They're just tools dude. They're probably clearing out the old stock us sets to make way for the chinese sets (which no one really wants to buy). Go to a store and take a look at what you're buying before you buy it.

Since you're buying a "set" from a retail location you should probably check out the kobalt stuff if it's taiwanese; quite a bit better than chinese craftsman in my opinion and probably a little cheaper as well. Buying a set of tools is always dicey because they throw in a lot of bits and the quality can vary in the same set. Might be better to go with a small set and build up when you need different stuff because it probably has quite a bit of redundancy in the set itself plus you'll almost always want a different ratchet (always a bar ratchet which **** to use).

 

[CNGsaves]

Just a few minutes on internet yielded this bargain . . . . best price pops up in Florida for this particular deal.

Craftsman 283 piece Mechanics tool set with toolbox . . . . $120 on SearsOutlet.com

Item # 35283

If you have nothing, $120 set (pic below) would more than get your started.

Here's another - - - - - 309 piece Mechanics tool set - - $199 to $259
http://www.searsoutlet.com/309-pc-Mechanic-s-Tool-Set/d/product_details.jsp?stxt=craftsman socket set&md=srh_md&flt_shipping_length=[0 TO 100]&flt_sp=[0 TO 100000]&flt_shipping_width=[0 TO 100]&flt_shipping_height=[0 TO 100]&pn=1&ps=24&pid=86479&cid=116&mode=buyUsedOnly&itemSelectionType=all

Sets like these are popping up all the time on Ebay & CL as guys in these cities are just buying from Sears and turning right around and selling for profit. Cut out "middle man" and just go buy yourself some tools by finding Sears Outlet locations in your area !!

 

[Flivver250]

Take a look at Wright Tool from Ohio. They might cost more than Craftsman, but they are a great tool and have some good deals on sets on the net. Stay away from Oriental tools. Sears has been very creative when it comes to losing customers, this is a new ploy to drive more people away. I am not sure it is even worth finding and buying their US made tools if when you break one it gets warranty replaced with chop suey made junk.

 

[nicksnothereman]

Take a look at Wright Tool from Ohio. They might cost more than Craftsman, but they are a great tool and have some good deals on sets on the net. Stay away from Oriental tools. Sears has been very creative when it comes to losing customers, this is a new ploy to drive more people away. I am not sure it is even worth finding and buying their US made tools if when you break one it gets warranty replaced with chop suey made junk.

Maybe...but he probably doesn't want a mail in warranty. If that weren't an issue everyone (including myself) would probably own sk stuff.

Chinese craftsman isn't that bad. It ain't "professional quality" but it's definitely homeowner/weekender grade like just about everything you'll find at retail.

 

[Conductor562]

Maybe...but he probably doesn't want a mail in warranty. If that weren't an issue everyone (including myself) would probably own sk stuff.

Chinese craftsman isn't that bad. It ain't "professional quality" but it's definitely homeowner/weekender grade like just about everything you'll find at retail.

You want SK stuff but bulk because you'd have to mail in for warranty? Seems pretty trivial to me. It didn't stop me from filling my box with Proto goodness and I've managed to not have any issues.

 

[Brownsfan]

I have said it before. I have NEVER purchased or not purchased a single tool because of ease of warranty. It seems being able to walk in and get another is the only way a warranty is acceptable? My take is I buy better quality tools to NOT have to warranty anything. Since 1996 when I started buying tools I can count on one hand the amount of hand tools I had to warranty. 13 of those years were in a shop environment. Seems tools fail at an astounding rate on this forum and over the counter exchange is the only warranty that is acceptable.

 

[John316]

I consider most of my craftsman tools to basically no longer have a warranty. Sure, I can exchange a broken tool for a crummy Chinese knock-off of the tool I once purchased, but if I really like the tool I will just Ebay a used replacement and sell the china replacement to partially fund the transaction.

I am not completely adverse to import tools. For example I love my Gearwrench sockets and ratchets. They are high quality believe they are a tremendous value. It's just hard for me to stomach Craftsman China and the quality is lacking when compared with some other Asian tool lines.

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

I was in Sears yesterday and I couldn't believe how crappy Craftsman tools have become since the last time I looked at them 3-4 years ago! I would say about 75% of the hand tools are China made. There wasn't a single complete tool set that was made in USA, only random screwdriver and plier sets. It really was disapointing. I then made my way over to Lowes and determined I would rather have the Kobalt line of Taiwan tools over Craftsman.

Go on ebay and look for deals on USA made tools. It might take some time, but I recently pieced together a whole USA tool set for $350 to use in a portable tool box. I wouldn't say I stole any of it, but I ended up with all USA tools that I can be proud to own.

-48 piece Napa (Danaher) 3/8" socket set
-Bondhus SAE/MM hex, torx
-18 piece full polish KD (Danaher) SAE/MM wrench set
-7 piece Proto screwdriver set
-6 piece Williams (all USA) plier set
-8" Williams adjustable wrench

 

[CWP1616L]

Seems like a lot of emphasis on the ease of warranty as if it's normal for tools to break all the time. Reminds me of the plastic forks I'm always breaking whenever I try to slice through a stack of pancakes with them.

 

[Brownsfan]

Seems like a lot of emphasis on the ease of warranty as if it's normal for tools to break all the time. Reminds me of the plastic forks I'm always breaking whenever I try to slice through a stack of pancakes with them.

I just don't get it. All anyone cares about it seems is easy warranty. I will just continue to buy tools that warranty is rarely needed. Tools on this site seem to be made of the same material as the plastic fork they break so often.

 

[Conductor562]

I never got the ease of warranty thing either. I buy Proto, if it's defective they'll make it right. If I wear it out then I'll get another, but in most cases the tools will outlive me. I can think of 4 or 5 times that I've had to warranty tools and 3 of those were ratchets that a repair kit fixed in 5 minutes.

If you bust a professional quality wrench more than once or twice in a lifetime without a cheater bar or some other obvious abuse because you were too cheap or lazy to use the right tool for the job you need to sit back and do some serious evaluating.

I've seen maybe 4 or 5 pics of busted wrenches since I've been here. Not exactly what I would consider an epidemic by any standard. I think in many cases ease of warranty is an excuse for people to justify to themselves or the community for not buying better tools, but that's just my opinion.

 

[CWP1616L]

Craftsman tools remind me of the time when I tried a 0.7mm mechanical pencil to mark the cut lines on some framing lumber. The lead kept breaking whenever I tried to draw a line across the rough surface. Finally I gave up and went back to regular wood pencils.

 

[CNGsaves]

Craftsman tools remind me of the time when I tried a 0.7mm mechanical pencil to mark the cut lines on some framing lumber. The lead kept breaking whenever I tried to draw a line across the rough surface. Finally I gave up and went back to regular wood pencils.

Right . . . . . . . . . . and we already know from ALL your prior posts that the Raised Panels on Craftsman tools HURT your hands !!

OP is just getting basic setup of tools. No need to burn a bunch of money on top brands, when he specifically is looking for Craftsman which will work out fine.

Good luck OP finding a suitable mechanics set from Craftsman. It IS possible to snag a set that has mostly Made in USA tools. Couple weeks ago, I snagged on CL a Proto/Challenger full 1/2" drive socket & ratchet set for $40 so deals are out there. Keep digging & searching !