Craftsman is getting around

[NUTTSGT]

Locally, we have Family, Farm and Home stores. They are similar to TSC or Rural King. Apparently, the guy that started FFH used to work for Quality Farm and Fleet.


Point being, I was in the other day and noticed some Craftsman tools showing up on the shelves. While it wasn't much, it's a start.


I still have hope that SBD will bring Craftsman back to its glory days.

 

[cablebandit]

They just broke ground on a new manufacturing facility in Texas.

 

[lardy1]

I'm always happy to see USA tools, USA jobs and I think I speak for a lot of graybeards when I say I miss the availability.

A developing story.

 

[BrandoJames]

They just broke ground on a new manufacturing facility in Texas.

That's good news. From a pure business standpoint, building the Craftsman plant in Texas makes sense: little union activity and Texas doesn't have a state tax.

They should bring back the "Craftsman Professional" line exclusively for the U.S.A. built tools. They'd be more expensive, but if they can deliver some quality that separates their tool line from the swamp of budget tools, there's a lucrative market out there.

 

[Citation]

Absent the old school Sears store I don't think they will ever return to the good old days. In my experience what made Sears, Cman good was they had just about everything. It wasn't "the best" nor the cheapest but they had so much in one place and it was rare that a Cman tool wasn't sufficient. It was a reliable one stop shop. However, if I'm going to walk into some other store then Cman needs to complete based on being a better value than the other tools on the shelf. When I look around Lowe's I'm not sure why I would pick a set of Cman screwdrivers or hammer vs the other options. With so many places seeking Cman I have less certainty that I can take that broken pair of snap ring pliers in for an in store replacement. So I discount the lifetime warranty and yet another reason to buy goes away.

BTW, I do have a fondness for Cman. I want them to do well and I'm happy to buy new tools from the brand. If they are great in the future it will be for different reasons vs why they were great in the past

 

[Minnesota Steve]

I agree that what made Craftsman special was the Sears experience. I could walk in with a problem and come out with a solution. And they sold single tools... I could buy a single screwdriver, or socket, etc. I haven't seen that anywhere else I've seen Cman pop up(Ace, Menards, etc)

I have a lot of Craftsman tools I've collected over the years, and a lot of them were just one piece when I needed it. It was actually somewhat economical compared to how other stores price out pieces. Going to miss that.

 

[coleman10]

The Ace near me still has quite a lot of single sockets for sale - USA, too.

 

[PugetDude]

I still have hope that SBD will bring Craftsman back to its glory days.

Eric, I do to, but I learned a long time ago that
"hope is not a course of action"

I believe the garage sale-warranty-eBay crowd is one of the reasons Sears divested themselves of Craftsman- they eliminated billions in Craftsman warranty exposure by doing so. They've closed all the stores in the PHX metro area except one and it's circling the drain. No bricks and mortar stores for walk-in/walk out warranty makes the warranty meaningless, IMO.

I don't need a lot of new tools anymore, but I still wish I could walk into a local Sears store and walk out with what I need- and a few I probably didn't know I needed.

 

[NORTON'S SHOP]

My local Menards has a small selection of Craftsman. Bought a set of metric combination wrenches for $17.00 on sale. Not bad for 9 wrenches.

 

[Empty Pockets]

My local Ace Hardware has a small assortment of CM tools. Lowes has a large assortment.

I'm happy to see production returning to the States and I am hopeful the brand comes back to it's former glory.

 

[theoldwizard1]

I still have hope that SBD will bring Craftsman back to its glory days.

I am waiting for the double box end wrenches to come back, especially the long pattern ones.

 

[mikebaker1129]

I would like to see the TX plant crank out some Craftsman marked, Proto clones.
Then again why not just buy Proto, I have started replacing any Craftsman broken or lost items with either Proto,SK or Williams and a little Tekton.

I will buy some Stanley made Craftsman if the quality to price ratio is there,like the 4 above brands.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Eric, I do to, but I learned a long time ago that
"hope is not a course of action"

I believe the garage sale-warranty-eBay crowd is one of the reasons Sears divested themselves of Craftsman- they eliminated billions in Craftsman warranty exposure by doing so. They've closed all the stores in the PHX metro area except one and it's circling the drain. No bricks and mortar stores for walk-in/walk out warranty makes the warranty meaningless, IMO.

I don't need a lot of new tools anymore, but I still wish I could walk into a local Sears store and walk out with what I need- and a few I probably didn't know I needed.

You and me both. They finally closed our "local" store. It was circling the drain and I waited for awhile for it to show up on the newest "closing store" list.

 

[DFB]

That's good news. From a pure business standpoint, building the Craftsman plant in Texas makes sense: little union activity and Texas doesn't have a state tax.

They should bring back the "Craftsman Professional" line exclusively for the U.S.A. built tools. They'd be more expensive, but if they can deliver some quality that separates their tool line from the swamp of budget tools, there's a lucrative market out there.

"The Swamp of Budget Tools"

I do like the idea of a Craftsman Professional line that's meets the top quality grade mark, and just not a marketing angle. I have been virtually all USA Craftsman tools most of my life they're not perfect but have mostly met my needs just fine.

 

[fourjeepin]

They are coming to NAPA as well.

 

[Empty Pockets]

I have started replacing any Craftsman broken or lost items with either Proto,SK or Williams and a little Tekton.

I will buy some Stanley made Craftsman if the quality to price ratio is there,like the 4 above brands.

Most of my CM are being replaced by SK, Wright & occasional Tekton. If SBD can bring back quality, I will consider their CM tools

 

[340wedge]

I saw a Craftsman tool display, full tool set, work lights and hand tools etc. in "Ollie's" which is a discount store similar to Job Lot and that type. I couldn't believe it as my first thought was Lowe's paid all that money to have Craftsman in their stores and here is a "Just a Buck" type retailer carrying them with a whole Craftsman display in the isle!

 

[Farmall450]

They just broke ground on a new manufacturing facility in Texas.

I was thrilled to see that. Farm & Fleet has been heavily carrying them since Ace also started and it's a great improvement to hopefully have a USA distinction, as it stands you're better off turning around and getting DeWalt (Taiwan) or GW.

 

[Farmall450]

They are coming to NAPA as well.

Wow. Surprised they're giving up store space. Unless it's online/order only.

 

[Fedwrench]

I find the Craftsman Mechanics tools at Lowes to be fugly and expensive

The flex head ratchets seem exceptionally expensive and exceptionally fugly.

Gone are the days of the $20 3/8 drive flex head ratchet.

Today's Craftsman has a long way to go just to catch up to the crappy craftsman just before moving overseas.

 

[soloz2]

Just picked up a set of 3/8" deep metric impact sockets from Lowes yesterday. I had ordered a Kobalt set on clearance for $12 and they couldn't find any so they gave me the Craftsman one. Regular price on the Kobalt was $40 for impact sockets with COO of Tiawan, Craftsman is $62 with COO China. For the regular price I would opt for Sunnex or similar IMHO.
There was a day I would have been thrilled with this substitution. Almost all my sockets are old US made Craftsman. I have lots of Craftsman tools, but these just don't seem as nice as they used to be.


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[Stuart in MN]

They are coming to NAPA as well.

Wow. Surprised they're giving up store space. Unless it's online/order only.

My local NAPA has had them for some time now, maybe six months. They have a pretty large selection on display in the store.

 

[Nineeightyone]

I find the Craftsman Mechanics tools at Lowes to be fugly and expensive

The flex head ratchets seem exceptionally expensive and exceptionally fugly.

Gone are the days of the $20 3/8 drive flex head ratchet.

Today's Craftsman has a long way to go just to catch up to the crappy craftsman just before moving overseas.

I was pretty appalled by the offerings at Lowe's as well, and despite the possible disappearance of Kobalt left the store with several Kobalt ratchets.

Is the squared/raised panel design a "signature" of Craftsman? It doesn't feel comfortable the way that a rounded design does, at least to me.

As always I'll welcome more competition into the pool, but it's going to be hard to beat Tekton's price to quality ratio if it's going to be manufactured in the US and offer a living wage to workers.

With that all said, it's interesting that Lowe's was touted as the "new home of Craftsman", but other retailers are also getting Craftsman stocked on shelves. I was expecting a Husky/Kobalt situation, where it would be exclusive to a single retailer.

 

[lardy1]

I don't buy either brand, but after a visit to Lowe's, I had to wonder why they were edging out their store brand for what they were replacing it with. Name recognition is the only answer I could come up with.

 

[Joe From NY]

That's good news. From a pure business standpoint, building the Craftsman plant in Texas makes sense: little union activity and Texas doesn't have a state tax.



They should bring back the "Craftsman Professional" line exclusively for the U.S.A. built tools. They'd be more expensive, but if they can deliver some quality that separates their tool line from the swamp of budget tools, there's a lucrative market out there.

“Little union activity” = More race to the bottom with wages.

Why can China pay middle class wages to factory workers, raising the population’s standard of living, but we keep sending them further south until they are in Mexico?


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[BrandoJames]

“Little union activity” = More race to the bottom with wages. Why can China pay middle class wages to factory workers, raising the population’s standard of living, but we keep sending them further south until they are in Mexico?

I agree with everything you said above, but I try to avoid politics in this forum. I hope we can all agree that a manufacturing plant opening anywhere in the U.S. is good news.

 

[rijndael]

Why can China pay middle class wages to factory workers, raising the population’s standard of living

Have you actually spent time in China, around the factories?

 

[DSLTRK]

“Little union activity” = More race to the bottom with wages.

Why can China pay middle class wages to factory workers, raising the population’s standard of living, but we keep sending them further south until they are in Mexico?


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Bwahahahhahahhaha. are you kidding me?!?

 

[Farmall450]

My local NAPA has had them for some time now, maybe six months. They have a pretty large selection on display in the store.

I'm surprised. Maybe a franchise thing? None at mine...they're pretty full and already have Carlyle/Evercraft (largely sets with some singles) as well as GW.

 

[WittHay]

“Little union activity” = More race to the bottom with wages.

Why can China pay middle class wages to factory workers, raising the population’s standard of living, but we keep sending them further south until they are in Mexico.

One of the funniest things ever said on Garage Journal.

I like the new Craftsman because it is a real brand not a house brand. Available at different retailers in both the US and Canada . I hear a competitor of SBD has had a fiasco with their latest house brand. Something about soft sockets and recalled ratchets

Also SBD Craftsman has tools from USA, Mexico, Denmark, Thailand, Taiwan and yes China. Regarding Mexico, I use a John Deere loader for a farm tractor made there everyday. As a rule never buy equipment made in China. Unless you have access to a made in Mexico Lincoln welder to fix it

 

[PugetDude]

Why can China pay middle class wages to factory workers, raising the population’s standard of living, but we keep sending them further south until they are in Mexico?


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Are you smoking crack?

 

[Ton ton]

To the top.

 

[David99]

Went in Northern tool yesterday and they had some craftsman there as well.

 

[1Garageman]

They just broke ground on a new manufacturing facility in Texas.

I am so glad to hear this! I will always pay a little extra for tools made in The U.S.A.!

 

[yrly]

I find the Craftsman Mechanics tools at Lowes to be fugly and expensive

The flex head ratchets seem exceptionally expensive and exceptionally fugly.

Gone are the days of the $20 3/8 drive flex head ratchet.

Today's Craftsman has a long way to go just to catch up to the crappy craftsman just before moving overseas.

All the stuff is insanely expensive compared to what Sears was selling it for even when it was still USA made.

 

[klammer76]

I am waiting for the double box end wrenches to come back, especially the long pattern ones.

I still have my original set from early 1980's. Great tools to have.

 

[klammer76]

All the stuff is insanely expensive compared to what Sears was selling it for even when it was still USA made.

I agree. Lowes is ridiculous with their Craftsman prices.

 

[coleman10]

Was in Lowe’s yesterday and they are getting ready for Black Friday. They are pushing Craftsman hard. Multiple dedicated areas, all over the end caps, the isles, everywhere. It’s still weird for me to see Craftsman outside of Sears.

 

[davethorik]

Insanely expensive now...what happens when it's USA made with global materials?

 

[klammer76]

This used to be the best time of year to buy Craftsman tools at Sears, I loved it. Especially black friday. You would get coupons with the purchase for X amount off next purchase. Used to buy a lot of them this time of year. Not now.