Craftsman, come on. WTH

[joel63]

I appreciate everyone’s comments. many of you make some solid points. For clarification, I have a few tools and what I would consider to be of outstanding quality. An example of this is my Indestro Super Duty Tools.

I do not expect Craftsman to be anywhere near this level of tools but the stuff that I purchased in 2012 was good quality and at a reasonable price. I suppose that I should not expect anything like that quality today without a hefty price tag. I just expected more from a known brand like Craftsman; however, Wakefield, made a great point. Craftsman was never a tool company just a brand and all the tools were made by someone else.

Ste6168, I was considering the Tekton sets and I like what they are selling. This purchase was just an additional set and would not be my primary tool set. I am planning on outfitting the Tacoma with a field set and will probably get the Tekton stuff to do that with.

In the end, I grew up on the Craftsman of the 70s and I know its nothing like the Craftsman of the 50s (just look at all my drill press rebuilds) but I did expect a level of quality that was above Harbor Freight and Northern Tool. You guys are correct, that Craftsman is gone now if it ever really existed.

Nice looking stuff you have there.

 

[qqzj]

i ignored this topic the other day when it first appeared as i am not a "new"/"import" craftsman guy and didn't want to wad into the swamp but here goes.

a year ago we moved our camper onto a permanent spot at a lake about an hour from home. normally when camping i had a few tools in the camper and more in my truck. since it stays there the truck doesn't always go so none of those tools get there. i picked up that same set for 99 bucks to keep there. nearly every weekend last summer i used something from that set of tools. what follow is why i think it is a great set of tools.

1. is the box. reasonably good in a smallish form factor with drawers that can be removed with enough room to add a few extra bits and pieces. each drawer can be take to a job and there are no clamshell hinges to fail, no need to open a huge folding box that takes up a pile of real estate and nothing to fall out of place when folding open or worse yet opening upside down. the ability for it attach or stack on my to my tstak boxes is also a huge plus.

2. the extra bobbles that everyone ******* about are actually pretty good in this set. the allen wrenches are in their own holder and the 1/4 hex drivers are held securely in several little holders as well. no plastic pouches to dump out an become disorganized.

3. each set, 1/4, 3/8 and 1/2 is in its own area so it can be pulled for the type of job at hand. each drive size has a good range of sizes. especially the 1/2 drive. it goes to 1 1/8 in sae and a similar size in metric. each drive also has a decent assortment of accessories such as swivels and extensions.

reasons it's not a great set of tools. surpisingly few .

1. the wrench sizes are lacking like most sets. they should go to at least 3/4 and 19 but instead stop at 5/8 and 15 if i recall

2.the case could be heavier, but it is in the same build quality as most other sets.

3. the ratchets seem bulky but work sufficiently.


after a season of use i am quite happy with it. it has a good assortment of things you need without being filled with complete fluff. the tools are pretty good. make no mistake, they are not top shelf but pretty good and dare i say very good considering the price.

i would not hesitate to make the purchase again as i have seen nothing better suited or priced since then.

Here is the link of the set you bought

https://www.lowes.com/pd/CRAFTSMAN-268-Piece-Standard-SAE-and-Metric-Combination-Polished-Chrome-Mechanics-Tool-Set-1-4-in-3-8-in/1003163992

Here is another set for $129

https://www.lowes.com/pd/CRAFTSMAN-239PC-Mech-Tool-Set/5005376637

The more expensive set MIGHT be a better buy. I hate that Lowes won't give a detailed breakdown of the detailed items.

 

[sk farmer]

Craftsman VersaStack 1/4, 3/8 and 1/2 in. drive Metric and SAE 6 Point Mechanic's Tool Set 216 pc Mfr# CMMT99206 - Ace Hardware

The 216 pc. Versastack 3-drawer mechanics tool set features three-drawers and can be stacked on or under other Versastack components. The Craftsman Versastack system is a flexible platform that allows for many different combinations of storage solutions based on the user needs. It is filled with...

www.acehardware.com

nope, this is the set i have, the same one the op mentions.

note that this set is sometimes priced at 99.99 and that is what i paid. it is a no brainer at that price. full price is not a good deal but it can be found frequently at the 150 dollar range and is a good buy there.

my call?? for the 100 buck sale price there is no better set that has a good assortment of all 3 drive sizes and wrenches yet is not overly fluffed with extra bits and allen wrenches. and has usable storage and room for extra pieces.

 

[reader2580]

what the hek is keeping craftsman afloat? i dont think ive bought $150 worth of their stuff in the last 15yrs as almost none of it intrests me. perhaps im the black sheep

Plenty of people who aren't members of GJ and just need basic tools to tighten a bolt on the kid's bike will buy Craftsman from Lowes. They remember that their father or their grandfather had Craftsman so they must be good.

I would expect Craftsman must be selling good for Lowes or they would dump the brand.

 

[genog]

I often wonder about the expectations people have when they buy tools at fifty cents apiece. What kind of quality are they expecting?

I have to agree with this

I would rather buy older USA (better) made stuff at the flea market if 50 cents each is the budget?

 

[reader2580]

A local pawn shop has bins full of sockets sorted by USA and imports. They charge significantly more for Craftsman USA than the other USA sockets.

 

[Bubba Fett]

Craftsman has always been a label. It was the Sears store brand.

Up until the mid noughties most of their tools were made in USA by Western Forge, Pratt-Read, Armstrong, Danaher, Easco, and other companies. Then Sears switched to Chinese manufacturers for much of their product line, and the quality diminished. All those companies I just listed are dead, because they couldn't survive the loss of such a major retail customer. Now Sears is a zombie waiting to be put out of its misery, driven to the ground by a total idiot and his yes-men.

There were alternatives, such as Kobalt, Husky, Master Mechanic, Masterforce, and other store brands that offered similar products (often made in the same factories) for a while, but you will be hard-pressed to find domestically produced tools for the price that we got accustomed, to. Taiwan is where the good stuff is made for that price range. Even Harbor Freight has realized this. The brands don't really matter since most of them use the same suppliers. IMO, Tekton is what Craftsman should be, but I'm not sure Stanley-Black & Decker really knows what to do, other than sell the same tools under a dozen different brand names in different stores. They are basically the GM of the tool industry.

Fortunately, they still have Proto, which generally has outstanding mechanics tools, and are more or less the same as Mac tools, but at a lower price. You are not going to get a comparable set for $99, though. Eventually, the USA-made Craftsman/Stanley sockets will hit stores, but they won't be cheap. You can bet on that.

 

[tyyost]

I'm with the others here. How can you expect to get anything but what you got for $99?

At that price they are going to be high volume, low quality, bottom of the barrel tools.

When I read the op’s post that was my thought exactly. 200+ pieces for $100. That’s 50 cents a socket/wrench, what would you expect at that level, it’s nearly yard sale pricing.

I understand the idea of value tool kits but on a forum where members routinely buy ratchets that cost more than this socket set I think the value is there, it is a Craftsman tool set, with whatever warranty that implies, and is a basic set of tools. In this arena you are competing with many other china and Taiwan products, so it’s on you to do your homework on the coo, warranty, and fit and finish. Gearwrench, Tekton, and others may have better sets at a comparable price, but are they bundled and only $100? For the average user the $100 craftsman set will likely do the jobs it’s intended for, as we are in the best value for dollar in hand tools as I’ve ever seen.

 

[finn]

Craftsman has always been label. It was the Sears store brand.

Up until the mid noughties most of their tools were made in USA by Western Forge, Pratt-Read, Armstrong, Danaher, Easco, and other companies. Then Sears switched to Chinese manufacturers for much of their product line, and the quality diminished. All those companies I just listed are dead, because they couldn't survive the loss of such a major retail customer. Now Sears is a zombie waiting to be put out of its misery, driven to the ground by a total idiot and his yes-men.

There were alternatives, such as Kobalt, Husky, Master Mechanic, Masterforce, and other store brands that offered similar products (often made in the same factories) for a while, but you will be hard-pressed to find domestically produced tools for the price that we got accustomed, to. Taiwan is where the good stuff is made for that price range. Even Harbor Freight has realized this. The brands don't really matter since most of them use the same suppliers. IMO, Tekton is what Craftsman should be, but I'm not sure Stanley-Black & Decker really knows what to do, other than sell the same tools under a dozen different brand names in different stores. They are basically the GM of the tool industry.

Fortunately, they still have Proto, which generally has outstanding mechanics tools, and are more or less the same as Mac tools, but at a lower price. You are not going to get a comparable set for $99, though. Eventually, the USA-made Craftsman/Stanley sockets will hit stores, but they won't be cheap. You can bet on that.

And if they aren’t cheap, very few consumers will buy them.

The only way SBD can meet a competitive price point while making tools here is to out automate the Chinese and Taiwan, or wait until wages in China and Taiwan inflate to match Japan.

 

[gatewaysysop]

Craftsman has always been label. It was the Sears store brand.

Up until the mid noughties most of their tools were made in USA by Western Forge, Pratt-Read, Armstrong, Danaher, Easco, and other companies. Then Sears switched to Chinese manufacturers for much of their product line, and the quality diminished. All those companies I just listed are dead, because they couldn't survive the loss of such a major retail customer. Now Sears is a zombie waiting to be put out of its misery, driven to the ground by a total idiot and his yes-men.

This, 100%.

I didn't really pick up tools of my own until the mid 90s, and for a while only what would fit in a three drawer carry box that went in and out of my truck and/or the closet of our apartment. Moving to my own place and a few hours from my folks in mid-2005, I at least had the space for a bit more diverse collection of tools so I began to acquire as the opportunity and finances presented themselves. Wasn't always Craftsman, but most of the time it was. As pointed out above, quite a bit still US-made in those days, with fairly decent quality for home users. Still, US-made was on its way out and that became apparent more and more as time went on. It did spur me to complete or at least flesh out my full polish and raised panel wrench sets, socket sets and of course the infamous professional screwdriver sets before it all got off-shored.

I don't regret those purchases, and they've served me very well, but for anything new, Craftsman isn't even on the radar anymore. Having watched what the brand and tools became since (lobster claw, anyone?), I've no regrets about moving on to other brands that still focus on quality (or at least value) instead of purely engaging in a race to the bottom on price. My only real regret is the loss of the brick and mortar buying experience for US-made Craftsman.

 

[Ton ton]

I don't really think much of craftsman offerings except for the gunmetal ratchet and western forge screwdrivers. My Napa lady is trying to sell me some craftsman stuff. But I have read so many negative things about Craftsman on garage journal. Even if someone gave me some craftsman stuff made in China , I doubt I would like that much. Craftsman does have name recognition going on. But at this point, I will take a pass on Craftsman. The warranty is becoming useless. I know some people have gotten lucky and have had warranty success- all I can say is God bless them.

 

[Sneezer]

I would also add that the gunmetal stuff is pretty nice, especially if you can snag it on sale. I have the 150 piece set which is pretty good for a travel kit. I also got the 282 piece set that got cleared out a year or so ago and I really like it as well.

Some of their cheaper stuff is pretty crappy though - mostly Chinese sourced but I am seeing less of that and more Taiwan. They do still have some automotive specialty tools as well which is nice, but I haven’t tried any of that. I am at the point that I really don’t need much of the basic stuff anymore - more specialty tools to make my driveway repairs a little easier. I do miss being able to walk into Sears and at least being able to trust the quality. Those days really ended in the late 90s/early 2000s I think. Still, at the time even the last gasp of the USA sourced tools were still better than anything I could afford at the time.

 

[zendriver]

We garnered from the OP, that the tools were not beautiful, but did not see any real indication that the tools were not useable.

Maybe people without money, pining for a "brand name" and just needing/wanting some tools, is the target customer base.

 

[General Geoff]

We garnered from the OP, that the tools were not beautiful, but did not see any real indication that the tools were not useable.

Maybe people without money, pining for a "brand name" and just needing/wanting some tools, is the target customer base.

Bingo.

Expect to pay $200 for the same quality that $100 could buy 20 years ago. Inflation has been especially rampant these past two years.