Interesting....
Sears/Kmart are definitely on their way out in my area; glad to see a new location to find Craftsman.
That said, however, most Craftsman stuff I won't buy anymore since a lot of it has gone overseas in manufacturing. The allure of Craftsman tools, to me at least, was that it was always proudly stated to be made in USA, guaranteed forever (even without a receipt), and it was affordable. The latter two reasons still apply, but if its just another Chinese product, other brands are more affordable.
The warranty, while still a plus, ***** when you break a nice decades-old USA tool, and take it in only to be handed a crudely finished/plated foreign replacement.
Even before the imported stuff began, you could tell the brand was starting to struggle. Probably 20 years ago, dad took a few old ratchets to Sears to exchange them for new ones, and they handed him 'remanufactured' ones. Dad, a very calm and pleasant guy, will always stand his ground, and said "I didnt buy a remanufactured ratchet, I dont want a remanufactured replacement". After some discussion, they gave him new ones.
Craftsman ratchets, in my opinion, were always the weak link in their lineup of tools.
Most of my tool collection is Craftsman, but most of them I have collected over the past 20 years and are old USA pieces. Over the past few years, I have filled out my set with ebay purchases
