Can Craftsman tools get anymore gimmicky?

[evintho]

Just went through the new Craftsman catalog that came in the mail. What a joke! 200 pages filled with a bunch of gimmicky ****! WTH is this!

Back in the day a pair of vice-grips got the job done. Now, one of these is a must have................

Completely useless....................

And, you're not a real mechanic unless you have this.................

Maybe I'm just getting old. I've got 3 rollaways filled with tools. Real tools! More than enough tools to tear a car down to a bare frame and then put it back together again. Done it many times. I'm sure Sears is probably owned now by some huge conglomerate based in the eastern portion of this world. Just another ploy to latch onto our hard earned cash by pawning off some cheesy, low quality tools that 'every real mechanic must have'. I'm totally disgusted!

 

[pipsters]

Sears has always sold some gimmicky ****. Remember robogrips? You couldn't hold a bolt in thin air let alone put torque on it with those. My dad has all 3 sizes in a set downstairs in his basement, looks like they've never been used.

I think that pink tool bag is a vendor, I see one in a display case in Charlotte airport every time I go thru there.

 

[Skin]

other than the evolv those arent craftsman...

 

[Thumper]

WTF is that rachet thingy...? **** ..you might as well go ahead and run

your knuckles across a ****** cheese grater and whack 'em with a hammer

as use that thing........geeze......

" Bob Vila here for the amazing knuckle buster....Only at Sears".....

 

[TireTracks]

I dont get why sears is trying to be a "tool vendor" now.

Oh, and those tools arnt craftsman, they are all stuff that sears has stuck in there catolog in place of craftsman.

 

[spongerich]

You forgot the Robo-Grip self adjusting pliers.

I want to cry every time I see those hanging on my pegboard. I just want them to work so badly since they'd be absolutely brilliant and I could stop wrestling with channelock's forever.

Unfortunately, the only thing they're good for is slightly rounding off nuts and bolts, and since they grip so poorly, they're not even very good for that.

 

[84bimmer]

Yeah I got the new catalog in the mail the other day. I immediately looked through the whole thing, and then threw that **** in the trash. What a joke! I always wondered who bought these stupid gimmicks. I think I have it figured out. People that don't know ****, buy this ****.

However if you want new innovative tools look at these. The first four shown look very cool. KD/Gearwrench has been coming up with some great ideas.
http://www.kd-tools.com/products.html

 

[TireTracks]

You forgot the Robo-Grip self adjusting pliers.

I want to cry every time I see those hanging on my pegboard. I just want them to work so badly since they'd be absolutely brilliant and I could stop wrestling with channelock's forever.

Unfortunately, the only thing they're good for is slightly rounding off nuts and bolts, and since they grip so poorly, they're not even very good for that.

I use my robo grips all the time. I dont see why everyone says they dont work.

 

[canuckian]

You forgot the Robo-Grip self adjusting pliers.

I want to cry every time I see those hanging on my pegboard. I just want them to work so badly since they'd be absolutely brilliant and I could stop wrestling with channelock's forever.

Unfortunately, the only thing they're good for is slightly rounding off nuts and bolts, and since they grip so poorly, they're not even very good for that.

I have had those robogrips for years and to be honest, they do have some good uses...unfortunately, turning nuts and bolts aren't among them!!!

 

[84bimmer]

WTF is that rachet thingy...? **** ..you might as well go ahead and run

your knuckles across a ****** cheese grater and whack 'em with a hammer

as use that thing........geeze......

" Bob Vila here for the amazing knucle buster....Only at Sears".....

Watch this clip man. I swear I saw this POS in that new sears catalog.

WARNING: It is very graphic, and not for the feint of heart...........

From HBOs, Funny or Die.

 

[MoToys]

I liked the wiha screwdrivers with the measure increments on the blades.
What is the deal with the evolve line? It's craftsman but your can't warranty it at the store.

 

[pipsters]

I liked the wiha screwdrivers with the measure increments on the blades.
What is the deal with the evolve line? It's craftsman but your can't warranty it at the store.

Evolve has the same warranty as Harbor Freight stuff, show your receipt you get the tool warrantied in the store.

That being said, at my Harbor Freight you warranty anything without a receipt and I think that is being done at most others as well.

 

[Damian]

Well some of that stuff posted isn't "Craftsman", but a lot of tool makers are putting out completely useless **** nowadays. Like some of those double-triple swivel head gear wrenches. I cannot think of ONE situation where those wrenches would be of any use at all.

But 50,000 idiots out there will keep buying these ideas so they'll keep making them.

 

[84bimmer]

Sears pimps the **** out of that BIONIC wrench, or whatever.
Before I really looked at it, I had the idea that it opened up at the bottom to get around things. I thought maybe that would work well for gripping old rusty tie rod adjusting sleeves. Went and looked at it and no way. Oh well might have been a decent idea. Maybe better and easier than a pipe wrench.

 

[MoToys]

Evolve has the same warranty as Harbor Freight stuff, show your receipt you get the tool warrantied in the store.

That being said, at my Harbor Freight you warranty anything without a receipt and I think that is being done at most others as well.

I was told that I would have to send it in to be warrantied.

 

[MaximRecoil]

Sears pimps the **** out of that BIONIC wrench, or whatever.
Before I really looked at it, I had the idea that it opened up at the bottom to get around things. I thought maybe that would work well for gripping old rusty tie rod adjusting sleeves. Went and looked at it and no way. Oh well might have been a decent idea. Maybe better and easier than a pipe wrench.

I don't have one and have never tried one, but just watched the commercial for it on YouTube. Given the size of its head, it could only work with nuts/bolts that have a lot of flat real estate surrounding them. For example, there is no way you're getting that thing onto a typical car battery terminal clamp bolt/nut, nor could you get it onto most nuts/bolts on a car I would guess.

Also, its level of grip on the fastener depends on how tightly you grip the handle, making it tedious to use, and pretty much useless for someone who doesn't have a strong grip.

 

[84bimmer]

Absolutely Maxim. I think it is pretty much useless as it is to superman.

 

[A_Pmech]

Watch this clip man. I swear I saw this POS in that new sears catalog.

WARNING: It is very graphic, and not for the feint of heart...........

From HBOs, Funny or Die.

Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahahahhahahahahahahahahahahhahah

Thanks for the laugh!

 

[porphyre]

None of those tools are Craftsman. Quit slandering a good brand.

That's an Evolv speeder ratchet, a Loggerhead Bionic Wrench, Alders?? wrench, and a Pink Box tool kit.

Why don't you go on the SO truck and ***** at the dealer that they're making so much **** in China. When he protests, point at the Blue-Point stuff. That makes about as much sense as this worthless thread you've started.

A RETAILER IS NOT A MANUFACTURER.

 

[Serj]

gee, I would have thought that there would have been a little more support for the loggerhead stuff. there's an open-end version of the Bionic Wrench called the Bionic Grip. Yeah, it's gimmicky, but at least it's American. I'd think it would be worth the cost just to have one to try.

http://loggerheadtools.com/?main_page=index

 

[84bimmer]

None of those tools are Craftsman. Quit slandering a good brand.

That's an Evolv speeder ratchet, a Loggerhead Bionic Wrench, Alders?? wrench, and a Pink Box tool kit.

Why don't you go on the SO truck and ***** at the dealer that they're making so much **** in China. When he protests, point at the Blue-Point stuff. That makes about as much sense as this worthless thread you've started.

A RETAILER IS NOT A MANUFACTURER.

Do you have craftsman tattooed on you ***? Get over it man. Sears is Craftsman to most people, and they love to plug worthless ****. And yeah, I think CMAN has made plenty of worthless gimmicky horseshit. Maybe more than any other tool maker. For instance: "The you can't chop your **** off with this SAFETY SAW". Man, I swear I saw that thing in that catalog..........

 

[pipsters]

Do you have craftsman tattooed on you ***? Get over it man. Sears is Craftsman to most people, and they love to plug worthless ****. And yeah, I think CMAN has made plenty of worthless gimmicky horseshit. Maybe more than any other tool maker. For instance: "The you can't chop your **** off with this SAFETY SAW". Man, I swear I saw that thing in that catalog..........

Those saws are actually pretty advanced, they use electrical current to determine if it is hitting flesh or not. Stops the blade cold, you might have a nick. But you'd still have your dic...I mean finger. That twisty sorry excuse of ratchet? Yeah that's gimmicky.

 

[84bimmer]

Those saws are actually pretty advanced, they use electrical current to determine if it is hitting flesh or not. Stops the blade cold, you might have a nick. But you'd still have your dic...I mean finger. That twisty sorry excuse of ratchet? Yeah that's gimmicky.

Which one that evolve or this sorry excuse for a tool?

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00944807000P?prdNo=2

Out of all the tools I own, I think I hate that pile of mickey mouse turd the most. I'm no CMAN hater, most of their tools are good. I know that's not really a gimmicky tool, I just don't own any myself. However I have used a lot of CMAN mickey mouse junk.

 

[american lockpicker]

Watch this clip man. I swear I saw this POS in that new sears catalog.

WARNING: It is very graphic, and not for the feint of heart...........

From HBOs, Funny or Die.

That was funny.

gee, I would have thought that there would have been a little more support for the loggerhead stuff. there's an open-end version of the Bionic Wrench called the Bionic Grip. Yeah, it's gimmicky, but at least it's American. I'd think it would be worth the cost just to have one to try.

http://loggerheadtools.com/?main_page=index

My brother in law has one but I've never got a chance to try it. The design looks interesting but limited in use.

 

[matty d]

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00925771000P?prdNo=1&blockNo=1&blockType=G1

 

[american lockpicker]

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00925771000P?prdNo=1&blockNo=1&blockType=G1

Yeah i remember seeing that on here when it first came out. I can't figure out who would want it. Also the review looks like its for MechanicnamedJohn's box.

Being in the industry and a mechanic I can fit all my shop tools in this box, and its strong and can take a beating. One of my friends was even able to stand on the lower drawe its so strong. With the blue crew behind you, you know when a customer comes in they can feel the confidence of your tools.

This thing can hold tons of weight in each drawer, and is an incredible buy.



It can fit all my HF tools

 

[84bimmer]

WTF is that rachet thingy...? **** ..you might as well go ahead and run

your knuckles across a ****** cheese grater and whack 'em with a hammer

as use that thing........geeze......

" Bob Vila here for the amazing knuckle buster....Only at Sears".....

Ah...... I think I may have figured out why they call it "EVOLV". I was thinking, how can something be evolved in this world if the people who created it cannot spell a simple word, and then take a simple tool and **** it up.
It looks like they should have called this tool the "devolv"

 

[catfish]

Ah...... I think I may have figured out why they call it "EVOLV". I was thinking, how can something be evolved in this world if the people who created it cannot spell a simple word, and then take a simple tool and **** it up.
It looks like they should have called this tool the "devolv"

Surely the more joints the more points of weakness , it does seem like a poorly thought out idea to me personally.

 

[stopdroplol]

Because adding more teeth to the ratchet is just too easy...

 

[Lhorn]

How do you sell another ratchet to a guy whose got a perfectly fine set of ratchets? Make it different. Smaller head, more teeth, bend the handle to get in confined spaces. There's really no more to it than that. They are trying to make you think you might need this ratchet even though you already have one. Most companies do this. Why does my wife have 8 different pair of althetic shoes?

 

[justin85]

Those saws are real, and they do work. My father-in-law has one, never tried the "stopping" feature personally though, since its a one time deal. Once it does it, if I remember correctly, its locked out, and some parts need replaced for safety reasons.

http://www.sawstop.com/

 

[Joe B.]

gee, I would have thought that there would have been a little more support for the loggerhead stuff. there's an open-end version of the Bionic Wrench called the Bionic Grip. Yeah, it's gimmicky, but at least it's American. I'd think it would be worth the cost just to have one to try.

http://loggerheadtools.com/?main_page=index

Their pent wrench for hydrants actually looks like a good tool for a specific application.

As long as people buy this stuff, people will sell it. All of that stuff keeps the doors open at Sears. Even if you never buy anything at Sears, they do put downward pricing pressure on higher end tool sellers... resulting in things being cheaper for you, even on a Snap On truck.

 

[Fedwrench]

I'm not defending the items you listed but, Sears is just trying to make a buck. More women are buying tools so some Genius came out with a pink tool set. Sears probably saw how much snap on pink tools were fetching on ebay and wanted a piece of the pink tool pie.
Do people that buy evolve tools actually use them more than a time or two for a household project? Who cares?
There are a couple of bright spots in the catalog though like the premium ratchets and tool box storage but, that's it to me in a 200 page catalog
.
Why did no one ***** about the Dogbone? I can't be the only one that thinks it *****.

 

[diesel research]

Sears is not the only one guilty of this....

http://garagejournal.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=94607&d=1294868032

 

[zer0cell]

Those gimmick kind of things are not really meant to be taken seriously... sears is just trying to bring in a little extra money. Those things are kind of like the enquirer magazines, candy, or little toys you see near the checkout lane of just about every retailer from supermarket to auto parts stores. They are like impulse buys. "wow that looks unusual, let me give that a try!" The thing that kinda ***** though is that while those celebrity bashing magazines are good for a laugh or two and the candy is good for a sugar high, those gimmicks just leave you frustrated and confused, or wondering why you spend that money. You can't really blame sears for that though when you consider their competition pretty much does the same thing. Obviously some suckers enjoy buying that ****. At least they did not put the craftsman name on them.

 

[porphyre]

Do you have craftsman tattooed on you ***? Get over it man. Sears is Craftsman to most people, and they love to plug worthless ****. And yeah, I think CMAN has made plenty of worthless gimmicky horseshit. Maybe more than any other tool maker. For instance: "The you can't chop your **** off with this SAFETY SAW". Man, I swear I saw that thing in that catalog..........

You failed to comprehend what I wrote. Go back and read it.

Guys on Garage Journal aren't "most people"

My point was - apart from the Evolv tool, Sears didn't even manufacture any of that ****. And the Evolv tool isn't a Craftsman. The thread title calls out Craftsman. You'll get the same lip if you take a Blue-Point socket to your Snap-On man and complain it's not Made in USA.

If you want to slam Craftsman for making gimmicky ****, at least show examples of Craftsman's gimmicky ****.

 

[Sancho]

Those saws are real, and they do work. My father-in-law has one, never tried the "stopping" feature personally though, since its a one time deal. Once it does it, if I remember correctly, its locked out, and some parts need replaced for safety reasons.

http://www.sawstop.com/

This is a amazing innovation, I've looked at these devices at Performance Tool, they are pretty freaking sweet. The DVD they hand out is impressive to say the least. If I was looking for a new table saw I would consider this as a differentiator...I like having my fingers. I can understand worknig safe all the time, but I suppose the point is you never want to need it kinda like owning a racing helmet.

The gimmicky eVolve stuff is pretty much ****, I've passed on so much at garage sales Im wondering if I should be buying it to scrap out...maybe then it could be made into a worthwhile tool.

 

[AZ_Catskinner]

Okay, I agree Craftsman/Sears has turned out MORE than their fair share of epic failure type **** over the years. But, I don't get all the RoboGrip hate - I've got both Craftsman and Mac Robogrips from back in the day and I use the hell out of them. Granted, they aren't the best thing for turning a bolt, but who in the hell uses pliers as their go to weapon for loosening/tightening a bolt to begin with?

My main use for them is removing line fittings that some ***** tore up with Channelocks or Visegrips that will no longer take a proper wrench - they work great for it.

 

[jjjrmx5]

Okay, I agree Craftsman/Sears has turned out MORE than their fair share of epic failure type **** over the years. But, I don't get all the RoboGrip hate - I've got both Craftsman and Mac Robogrips from back in the day and I use the hell out of them. Granted, they aren't the best thing for turning a bolt, but who in the hell uses pliers as their go to weapon for loosening/tightening a bolt to begin with?

Robogrips are bad when using for anything that requires an extreme grip I have found. They just can't get tight enough to pinch safely, and I have both small and large sets.

That said, the new pro series ratchets and then the "do-all" splined sockets and wrentches seem like a neat idea, but again, are non-specific tools aimed at the weekend hobby guy as a "do-all" tool so it seems.

Sears and c'man are fine tools and adequate for teh non-professionals, but the more they water the brand, the more it fades into oblivion.

I have no issue with them reselling other tool mfgrs as any and all of the major trucks and stores do that. I just wish I could order it thru the store rather than do a blind drop-ship. That would clear up a warranty source as well.

Oh well....

 

[lowbucktruck]

None of those tools are Craftsman. Quit slandering a good brand.

That's an Evolv speeder ratchet, a Loggerhead Bionic Wrench, Alders?? wrench, and a Pink Box tool kit.

Why don't you go on the SO truck and ***** at the dealer that they're making so much **** in China. When he protests, point at the Blue-Point stuff. That makes about as much sense as this worthless thread you've started.

A RETAILER IS NOT A MANUFACTURER.

Ditto! Porphyre is right. Comparing the Evolv stuff to the Craftsman line is not a fair comparison. And Sears does not manufacture their Craftsman tools anyway; Danaher does the actual manufacturing.

What Sears is selling (Evolv and other trendy but useless tools) is no different than what Home Depot does with those cheapie BenchTop tool sets they put out every holiday shopping season. People like us don't buy that ****, but the average consumer that does not do any serious wrenching (urbanites, perhaps) would probably buy that stuff, not knowing any better.
And I blame Sears Marketing for coming up with some of the LAMEST tool concepts ever. Hopefully Sears will pull their collective corporate head out and realize that they are loosing retail sales to their best customers, the repeat sales. I still shop at Sears for Craftsman tools, but these days I am regularly shopping online for tools available from other retailers like ToolTopia. With rising gas prices at the pump, I would rather check for tool stock online first, instead of driving around wasting gas and not finding the tools in stock.