Well it seems as if people totally missed the point...
The original theory of my post, is if you want to "buy American", then there needs to be more American to buy, availability and affordability wise.
Sears-Craftsman was one of the very last (besides Menards- Masterforce) tool line to be accessible by millions.
Yes, a few specialty stores, such as Fastenall sell Armstrong, and some mom and pop hardware stores might carry Wright.
I've been to a lot of garage sales, and what do I note in most people's garages? Craftsman tools. I've seen Cman in about 90% of garages, from young to old.
Now don't get me wrong, Snap On, Mac, Matco etc all make very nice tools.
But the issue is the price, you might spend $8,000, to get a basic setup going, how much money does that save you over going to the dealer?
Yes, these brands have their place in the garages of people who make money with their tools, and want the highest quality, spare no expense, to minimize downtime.
My post was not a bash of any brand, nor an argument of COO, it was more or a less a sad thought, of just how many places still sell USA made tools to the average Joe- very little.
As mentioned earlier, cman was one of the last affordable tool lines that millions of people could buy, and that agreement was echoed by stepping into the garages of hundreds of homes from going to yardsales for the past 10 or so years.
I myself would have a entire garage full of Snap In, Mac, or any truck brand if I made a decent salary, but I don't.
I just simply wish another American tool line would emerge, that would be priced where anyone could buy, and be sold in stores across the US.
I mean look at this little sk socket set, my dad said you could get these in just about any department store.
So in summary, and to dispel any earlier confusion, today you pretty much have the affordable non-us tools, then it jumps to the tool truck brand prices for American.
There should be a middle ground again.
