Craftsman-branded 20V Cordless Tools - What a disaster!

[DPDISXR4Ti]

Well, I may as well jump into this one. I now own three Craftsman 20 volt power tools.

I don't doubt that they are okay tools. BTW, I would suggest that you refer to them as "Craftsman V20". Were it not for the fact that you posted pics, I would not have known WHICH of the THREE DIFFERENT, ENTIRELY INCOMPATIBLE "Craftsman 20 volt power tools" you were referring to. That was the reason I started this thread in the first place - to point out that there are 3 different Craftsman-branded, 20-volt tools in the marketplace. As I said 3 years ago, and I'll say again now, that's just dumb and insulting to anyone with a brain. I will vote with my dollars and not invest another dollar in Craftsman-branded cordless tools.

 

[Kenskip1]

I don't doubt that they are okay tools. BTW, I would suggest that you refer to them as "Craftsman V20". Were it not for the fact that you posted pics, I would not have known WHICH of the THREE DIFFERENT, ENTIRELY INCOMPATIBLE "Craftsman 20 volt power tools" you were referring to. That was the reason I started this thread in the first place - to point out that there are 3 different Craftsman-branded tools in the marketplace. As I said 3 years ago, and I'll say again now, that's just dumb and insulting to anyone with a brain. I will vote with my dollars and not invest another dollar in Craftsman-branded cordless tools.

Brad, Thanks for the vital information. Yes I thought about purchasing other brands. One in particular are made in Wisconsin for one. However the $$$ for these brands is out of my league. And yes I own three M12 tools. They have been flawless but are now outdated. I purchased the Craftsman tool for a few reasons. Cost is one, my local Lowes is just down the street for another, and shipping has damaged more than one tool that I have ordered on line for the third. One more detail is if I do not like the tool I am able to return it, no questions asked. Thanks for the information, Ken

 

[DPDISXR4Ti]

Has anyone made an adapter to use the 20V Max batteries in the V20 tools?

 

[Bacon!]

Im probably a bit biased but Ive got a few Craftsman V20 tools and I think theyre pretty awesome. Im coming off of being a Ryobi tool user for a number of years now and IMO, Craftsman is an upgrade over Ryobi in every way.
Ive got the brushless 1/4" impact driver, the V20 flashlight, V20 trimmer/edger and V20 leaf blower and couldnt be happier.
At this point, I dont miss Ryobi at all. The only Ryobi tool I have left is my One+ random orbit sander and Im just waiting for that thing to die so that I can replace it too.

Meh, you're comparing older generations of tools to newer ones. Craftsman got better, Ryobi got better, etc.

Craftsman's 20V line doesn't impress me much, though I have their 60V blower and what impressed me the most was how friggin' expensive a replacement battery is. Ryobi is hard to beat for # of tools and having a 2 pack of 4Ah batteries for $80, every other week.

Others will outperform them, but I just need my tools to keep working and be cost effective since I no longer work a trade where productivity = income, though I never much bought into the argument that even in a trade, that some % difference makes or breaks the work, rather you just want your tool to keep working so I laugh at performance measurements and would rather have failure testing but not at some ridiculous extremes, rather repetition of intended use, which of course is extremely time intensive and not practical as another model comes along soon enough to make the data historical more than useful.

 

[Badgerstate]

Meh, you're comparing older generations of tools to newer ones. Craftsman got better, Ryobi got better, etc.

Craftsman's 20V line doesn't impress me much, though I have their 60V blower and what impressed me the most was how friggin' expensive a replacement battery is. Ryobi is hard to beat for # of tools and having a 2 pack of 4Ah batteries for $80, every other week.

Others will outperform them, but I just need my tools to keep working and be cost effective since I no longer work a trade where productivity = income, though I never much bought into the argument that even in a trade, that some % difference makes or breaks the work, rather you just want your tool to keep working so I laugh at performance measurements and would rather have failure testing but not at some ridiculous extremes, rather repetition of intended use, which of course is extremely time intensive and not practical as another model comes along soon enough to make the data historical more than useful.

Ryobi used to be cost effective but ever since the HP line came out, they got almost expensive as a DeWalt or Milwaukee.
Craftsman is what Ryobi used to be, before they lost their way and started trying to go upmarket.
Another big downfall to Ryobi is the battery system. Its fine on a drill or impact driver but on a lot of other tools, its too big and bulky. Take a cordless ratchet for example. Look at the Ryobi, its so big and bulky where the battery is that its a pain. I'll keep my Craftsman.

 

[finn]

Brad, Thanks for the vital information. Yes I thought about purchasing other brands. One in particular are made in Wisconsin for one. However the $$$ for these brands is out of my league. And yes I own three M12 tools. They have been flawless but are now outdated. I purchased the Craftsman tool for a few reasons. Cost is one, my local Lowes is just down the street for another, and shipping has damaged more than one tool that I have ordered on line for the third. One more detail is if I do not like the tool I am able to return it, no questions asked. Thanks for the information, Ken

If, by made in Wisconsin, you’re referring to Milwaukee tools, be informed that they are a Chinese owned company (TTI), and all of their battery tools come from China.

 

[Bacon!]

Ryobi used to be cost effective but ever since the HP line came out, they got almost expensive as a DeWalt or Milwaukee.
Craftsman is what Ryobi used to be, before they lost their way and started trying to go upmarket.
Another big downfall to Ryobi is the battery system. Its fine on a drill or impact driver but on a lot of other tools, its too big and bulky. Take a cordless ratchet for example. Look at the Ryobi, its so big and bulky where the battery is that its a pain. I'll keep my Craftsman.

Absolutely, Ryobi's ratchet form factor is a joke, but I don't find their battery format an issue on any of my other tools, on the contrary keeping it the same for so many years was one of the draws.

I wouldn't say Ryobi tried to go too far upmarket, rather they're just hitting the mid-grade market in addition to the mid-lower end, still selling at least 3 tiers of (more popular types of) tools concurrently. IMO it's more of a trickle down effect, develop the tech for Milwaukee and eventually some finds its way into Ryobi, but then SB&D has been doing that with Dewalt vs Craftsman too.

 

[tarbellb]

Craftsman is certainly not the new Ryobi, not even close.
Ryobi has supported the same battery for 10+ years, has dozens of tools, and sold almost everywhere.
Craftsman has abandoned multiple lines, a handful of tools, and barely in the market.


The original topic was about how Craftsman has abandoned it's customers by switching formats several times.
Can't be mad if it happens again.


Rather have slightly weaker performance then a obsolete line of tools.

 

[Badgerstate]

Craftsman is certainly not the new Ryobi, not even close.
Ryobi has supported the same battery for 10+ years, has dozens of tools, and sold almost everywhere.

Sold almost everywhere? What? Apprently Home Depot and Amazon are, "everywhere".

 

[Badgerstate]

Absolutely, Ryobi's ratchet form factor is a joke, but I don't find their battery format an issue on any of my other tools, on the contrary keeping it the same for so many years was one of the draws.

I wouldn't say Ryobi tried to go too far upmarket, rather they're just hitting the mid-grade market in addition to the mid-lower end, still selling at least 3 tiers of (more popular types of) tools concurrently. IMO it's more of a trickle down effect, develop the tech for Milwaukee and eventually some finds its way into Ryobi, but then SB&D has been doing that with Dewalt vs Craftsman too.

I'll just rest my case on Ryobi's HP line with this one:

 

[Bacon!]

Sold almost everywhere? What? Apprently Home Depot and Amazon are, "everywhere".

Obviously not everywhere, but yeah, HD, Amazon, ebay, VIPOutlet, CPO, Direct Tools Outlet, RyobiDealfinders, etc, are quite a lot of options to buy them, at discount prices.

I guarantee that I've gotten more performance per dollar than any other brand could provide, buying Ryobi bare tools from these sources... though VIPOutlet used to have (by far) the best deals, but ever since Covid, VIPOutlet deals (even Ryobi tools at all) are few and far inbetween.

 

[Bacon!]

I'll just rest my case on Ryobi's HP line with this one:

This is just a guy who pretends that contractors push their tools to failure, which is the exact opposite of what someone (like myself) who has worked a trade, does.

When you work a trade, you buy what is cost effective, you recognize the limits of the tool and the last thing you do is try to burn out your tool so you can't finish the work for the day. I could burn out any tool you hand me if I tried to, which is the same foolish nonsense.

When some supposed pro tries to work as fast as some high end tool can go, they make human errors and screw up what they're trying to do, because the tools are already faster than the human, if only the human chooses the right tool for the job. Been there, seen it too many times to count. Blame the tool for user error, but it doesn't get the job done, so still user error.

If you need some "high end" tool to do what people have been doing with tools far less robust and powerful, decades ago (only counting cordless tools), the problem is far more likely the technique.

 

[tarbellb]

Obviously not everywhere, but yeah, HD, Amazon, ebay, VIPOutlet, CPO, Direct Tools Outlet, RyobiDealfinders, etc, are quite a lot of options to buy them, at discount prices.

I guarantee that I've gotten more performance per dollar than any other brand could provide, buying Ryobi bare tools from these sources... though VIPOutlet used to have (by far) the best deals, but ever since Covid, VIPOutlet deals (even Ryobi tools at all) are few and far inbetween.

Exactly ^^^

And Bacons points about the video linked are also valid. I will say the failure rate he shows is concerning, I havent smoked a M12/M18 yet. But I have triggered the overheat sensor many times, switched batteries and continued on.

Ryobi is still a good option, I will admit I dont follow the brand or lines the offer and dont know pricing. But the lower priced stuff they have offered for years has been a excellent option for buyers looking for decent performance, a huge lineup, and convenience.

 

[tarbellb]

I'll just rest my case on Ryobi's HP line with this one:

These test videos dont exist for Craftsman cuz either laughed out the door or cant find a battery sold anymore...

 

[DPDISXR4Ti]

These test videos dont exist for Craftsman cuz either laughed out the door or cant find a battery sold anymore...

Or they sent an intern out to get them a "Craftsman 20-volt battery" and they came back with the wrong one! At that point they decided to just exclude Craftsman tools from the testing.

Funny (but not funny) thing is that I gave my dad a Craftsman 20V Max drill and battery/charger a couple years ago. I had an extra from when I bought a batch of Craftsman 20V Max tools as one lot. Recently, without my knowledge, he bought a Craftsman V20 tool, assuming it would work with his 20V Max battery. By the time he was telling me this story he was complaining about how he had to go back out and buy a battery and charger for it since it didn't work with the 20V Max stuff that he already had. I tried to convince him to just return it all, but he can't be bothered.

Uugh!!!! I can't believe my own Dad got burned by exactly what I've been ranting about in this thread from the start!