Armstrong Industrial and Craftsman Industrial

Would you consider "new" Armstrong tools better or same as regular Craftsman tools or Industrial style(new or old)? Would you consider the old, black Craftsman Industrial better than normal Craftsman and/or comparable to any USA made tools?
I know older Armstrong, and Craftsman for that matter, are superior to any Craftsman now. I haven't used any newer Armstrong tools. How do they compare these days? They are still USA made correct? Thanks

Sure

Craftsman industrial is Armstrong and Craftsman in many cases (when US made).
Their wrenches are one huge exception from the latter.

gdocktor3 said:

Would you consider "new" Armstrong tools better or same as regular Craftsman tools or Industrial style(new or old)? I'd say they're equal since many of them come from the same factoryWould you consider the old, black Craftsman Industrial better than normal Craftsman and/or comparable to any USA made tools? Not better, they're the same tool without final polishing or chroming
I know older Armstrong, and Craftsman for that matter, are superior to any Craftsman now.That's an assumption that may not be true. Just because a tool is US made does not make it heaven sent and perfect in every way. there have been some posts here saying some of the current Taiwanese tools are improved over their recent US made versions. I do feel that the demand for pennies on the piece pricing ruined the Cratfsman line and the Armstrong is over priced for what you get but, that's just me. I haven't used any newer Armstrong tools. How do they compare these days? I'm not really impressed with Armstrong tools overall. Their Maxx ratchets are nice but, they use that stupid double detent system just like craftsman did on their socket female square drives. Also some tools that used to wear the KD name like 36 tooth pear head ratchets with knurled handles are now showing up branded Armstrong They are still USA made correct?I believe the only thing in the current Armstrong catalog that's not US made is the stud remover. However, that can always change Thanks

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Craftsman Industrial is nothing more than the US made Craftsman stuff stamped with a different name. The full polished wrenches are slightly changed over the last US versions.

Are there any brand ratchet wrenches comparable to the big 3? I've heard GearWrench ratchet wrenches have very smooth ratcheting systems, but are they durable? I don't use my tools enough to justify spending a ton of money on the big 3 brands, unless I can find a deal on Ebay, but when I do use them, I want to know they feel good, and work even better.

gdocktor3 said:

Would you consider "new" Armstrong tools better or same as regular Craftsman tools or Industrial style(new or old)? Would you consider the old, black Craftsman Industrial better than normal Craftsman and/or comparable to any USA made tools?
I know older Armstrong, and Craftsman for that matter, are superior to any Craftsman now. I haven't used any newer Armstrong tools. How do they compare these days? They are still USA made correct? Thanks

Click to expand...

IMNSHO, Armstrong IS superior to regular Craftsman when there is a difference. I "think" Armstrong, Craftsman Industrial, and the old Craftsman Professional are the exact same tools in most cases (I have a lot of the old KD wrenches, and they look just like the Armstrong Full Polish wrenches, Craftsman Industrial Full Polish wrenches, Craftsman Professional Full Polish wrenches, NAPA Professional, Allen.........................basically anything coming out of the same Danaher plant with different markings (minus the Black RP Craftsman Industrial wrenches I've seen). I'm happy with what I have.

As for newer Armstrong, I have a few of the old 36T ratchets, some of their sockets (same as Craftsman), and thanks to a recent thread on GJ, a few of the Maxx ratchets too! Again, I'm happy with the purchases (mind you, I don't wrench for a living, have an extensive tool collection, not necessarily brand loyal, will purchase pro level tools). All of the Armstrong tools I've seen were made in the USA, but there could be exceptions.

My $.02, hope this helps.

gdocktor3 said:

Are there any brand ratchet wrenches comparable to the big 3? I've heard GearWrench ratchet wrenches have very smooth ratcheting systems, but are they durable? I don't use my tools enough to justify spending a ton of money on the big 3 brands, unless I can find a deal on Ebay, but when I do use them, I want to know they feel good, and work even better.

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Gearwrench are very durable, even the double pual 120XP series.
Armstrong MAXX are excellent as well, so are the Craftsman Premium.
Napa's Carlisle are pricey but very nice as well.

I actually bought a metric set of Gearwrench reversible ratchet wrenches. They were $35 on sale at Sears. They have the "cap stop ring" to prevent the wrench from sliding off the nut or bolt. I kept the receipt because I wanted to hear some feedback on them. Anyone use them? They were $75 normally. Same price as all the other gearwrench ratchet wrenches. I also saw USA Craftsman box ratchet wrenches for $30 I think.