neophyte
Well-known member
Stanley Tools will not abandon the Stanley brand name.
Craftsman tools disappearing?
- Thread starter Tizzy
- Start date
neophyte
Well-known member
As much as I hate that Crescent ditched USA production, most of the tool tests I’ve seen of the imported Crescent tools show the imported Crescent tools doing decently enough compared to other brands.
PelicanPines
ALLIANCE MEMBER
My estate sale is going to have a shitload of the stuff.
There is also the angle that SBD owns the Craftsman name so no one else can have it to compete against them. Buying your competition, or even just their name, can be a smart move just to maintain your market share.
That's a good point, and I couldn't say in that case.
'Craftsman' as a brand just has to be aging out at this point, my guess is it has declining value. I doubt that 20 year old males give a rip about it.
Hey, Stanley B&D should introduce a series of 'Plomb' hand tools with all the old logos. That would actually be pretty cool.
slowtwitch73
Well-known member
Meh.. I'd consider ACE 'semi local' at best. Not like they are a mom and pop HW store. They are convenient, but I find their pricing outrageous.
Point being... Craftsman is effing everywhere new/used you name it and ACE has to be one, if not THE most expensive place to buy it.
Just back from my local ACE and they have **** tons of Craftsman (and Crescent).
Maybe not at 20 years old but fast forward 5 years and that guy needs some wrenches and screwdrivers to assemble some IKEA furniture. He sees Craftsman and remembers his dad or grandpa had them.
RPH
Well-known member
It’s a dead linage. They will suffer the long rocky road to demise. Craftsman’s was dead when sears went down 30-40 years ago.
four.cycle
Well-known member
Acquiring their competition has been part of Stanley's business model since the very beginning. Their "Bailey" plane was originally manufactured by.... (you guessed it).... Bailey!. If you go back and start digging into "boxwood rules", you'll find that Stanley gobbled up virtually every New England boxwood rule maker before the turn of the century. NO competition = 100% market share.
ACE is 1.7 miles from my driveway. Four minutes if the lights are red, two if they're green.
Home Depot: FORTY FIVE MINUTES round trip just to the parking lot and back - that's not even going in the store and taking a two-mile hike to find the odd widgets I'm looking for.
Exactomundo.
Good enough to fix the kids' bicycles, keep the lawnmower running, and assemble some Ikea furniture. That's all most people need, and that's all most people want.
micromind
Well-known member
And in my mind, it's well worth it.
Andres26tnt
Well-known member
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- May 11, 2018
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Absolutely wrong, it's clearly a great name and money maker for stanley. Maybe the old craftsman is dead, but it definitely not on the road to demise. Stanley needs to slim down for sure, they practically did by making porter cable irrelevant. Would be cool if they payed more attention to their vast brands.
driftpin
Well-known member
Recently I misplaced a 3/8" drive Craftsman deep 6 pt socket, 1/2" from a 1/4", 3/8", 1/2" socket set, in a blow-molded case. I went to my local Ace Hardware & bought a replacement 3/8" drive Craftsman Taiwan socket. Very convenient. Now of course I'll probably find the missing socket somewhere.
I did something similar having to buy a Carlyle NAPA impact 1/2" drive socket for a 6 pt. 24mm size. We were working on an LS GM engine. Again, convenient to buy the exact piece I needed, instead of an entire set. The local NAPA had the one I needed in-stock.
I did something similar having to buy a Carlyle NAPA impact 1/2" drive socket for a 6 pt. 24mm size. We were working on an LS GM engine. Again, convenient to buy the exact piece I needed, instead of an entire set. The local NAPA had the one I needed in-stock.
Depends on how heavily backed it is I think. With plenty of semi-exclusive deals at chain stores (ACE or Lowes) it'll carry on, but then, that's how it was before at Sears. Catalogs are dead as a concept, and there's no reason to buy Craftsman over a bunch of other brands on the internet, but maybe retail is enough.
Nothing like that dies in the short term of course. It takes years and was always obvious in retrospect. As a person who owns a Polaroid lithium battery pack and a Westinghouse generator, evidently there's still some tiny power (so to speak) in a name.
Maybe in the future everyone here will have moved from Duralast to Toptul to Tekton and end up singing praise about Amazon Basic combination wrench sets. Change is inevitable.
Bubba Fett
Well-known member
Craftsman ain't going anywhere. The V-series and Overdrive lines are quite good.
Crescent makes decent tools, but I believe Apex Tool Group is still for sale, so things could change.
Crescent makes decent tools, but I believe Apex Tool Group is still for sale, so things could change.
Rockable
Well-known member
I own and have used Craftsman tools for years. However, I have been disappointed in several "new" Craftsman tools I've bought. The wrenches are heavier and thicker. They just don't feel right. I don't care for the new sockets. I've managed to buy the V and VV tools I needed to fill gaps either from loss or whatever off eBay. There are lots of Craftsman tools for sale on eBay.
With that said, I've been very impressed with the Tekton tools I've purchased. IMO, they are better than the old Craftsman. YMMV.
With that said, I've been very impressed with the Tekton tools I've purchased. IMO, they are better than the old Craftsman. YMMV.
Andres26tnt
Well-known member
- Joined
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Those are Taiwanesium, aren't they?
Honestly, I think it would be cooler if you could just buy a 'Kabo' branded wrench or whatever. Maybe these huge resellers actually do some sort of value-added in terms of design and aren't simply a distribution channel.
BTL-A4
Well-known member
All these brands had a niche and was known for something at one time. For example Porter Cable had that router, Craftsman was tools for the masses with a satisfaction guaranteed warranty, Crescent was wrenches, etc. Then some marketing bean counters decided to "leverage" that into "increased market share" and just ruined everything. That, and manufacturing was off-shored to save money. I used to be a Craftsman fanboy (good enough for me, made in USA), but when they went offshore, Sears died and increased the prices I went elsewhere. I think they are losing their luster and will be a thing of the past.
Here's an article on it.Didn't know apex was on sale interesting.
"Buyout Firm Bain Weighs Sale of Apex Tool’s China Assets"
I see two of my favorite phrases in that article. "private equity firm" and "non-core assets".
protip: If you hear those words... Save yer money. Get out of there.
woody 73
Well-known member
Oh, magic genie of the lamp tell me will we find any old craftsman tools 50 years from today on October 16th, 2074?
Yes, oh wise woody of the land up north, because every home in America, has a **** load of them sitting in their garage and basements.
Does that help you op?
Yes, oh wise woody of the land up north, because every home in America, has a **** load of them sitting in their garage and basements.
Does that help you op?
four.cycle
Well-known member
Good luck with that, Mr. Bain.
Aaron_W
Well-known member
Alternates for hand tools?
I have a Craftsman socket & wrench set along with some misc pliers and such that I bought new in the 90s.
Tools I've bought in the past 5-10 years that are at a similar price point and I'd consider equal or better to those 90s Craftsman tools:
Channel Lock which has a mix of USA, Taiwan and Spanish made tools.
Husky wrenches and sockets
HF Quinn sockets, Pittsburg Pro wrenches, Doyle pliers.
I bought a Tekton 1/4" socket set last month, so only a little use but I'm including it based on my initial reaction.
Yep Craftsman has name recognition, nostalgia is only a small part of it.
I think the kinds of people on GJ have a very different view of Craftsman than the average casual DIYr.
I have a nostalgic view of Sears, but to me modern Craftsman tools hold little attraction, I consider them no better than the better quality HF tools.
I have a Craftsman socket & wrench set along with some misc pliers and such that I bought new in the 90s.
Tools I've bought in the past 5-10 years that are at a similar price point and I'd consider equal or better to those 90s Craftsman tools:
Channel Lock which has a mix of USA, Taiwan and Spanish made tools.
Husky wrenches and sockets
HF Quinn sockets, Pittsburg Pro wrenches, Doyle pliers.
I bought a Tekton 1/4" socket set last month, so only a little use but I'm including it based on my initial reaction.
Yep Craftsman has name recognition, nostalgia is only a small part of it.
I think the kinds of people on GJ have a very different view of Craftsman than the average casual DIYr.
I have a nostalgic view of Sears, but to me modern Craftsman tools hold little attraction, I consider them no better than the better quality HF tools.
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I personally feel that whoever created the concept of "Private Equity Firms", should burn in hell for time eternal.
They don't buy, unless someone is selling.I personally feel that whoever created the concept of "Private Equity Firms", should burn in hell for time eternal.
It's like the Chinese buying S-K. Where were the American Investors?
Beerhippie
Well-known member
My father claimed that his Craftsman tools were disappearing back when I got my first car. I swear I had nothing to do with it--I just found a lot of '50s-'60s Craftsman over the years.
four.cycle
Well-known member
mreisner
Well-known member
Fixed it for you.
dnschmidt
Well-known member
If Craftsman dies that would only mean that it's death was 10 years too late.
finn
Well-known member
When my kids were in their pre teens and teens in the the nineties, I would do an inspection of the lawn along side of the driveway and collect the tools, including a lot of sixties and seventies that the kids left their after fixing their bikes, and later, their cars.
finn
Well-known member
You Know It ! , No more Sears or K-Mart. Thanks Fast Eddie.
TailGunner3000
Well-known member
I disagree with this line of thinking. "Increased market share" is the reason companies exist in the first place. Stagnant companies go the way of the dinosaurs. It would be foolish not to try to leverage your brands, particularly those with large brand recognition. Shapleigh Hardware slapped "Keen Kutter" on everything for years because people equated that with quality products. Americans are still willing to pay extra for brands they are familiar with, even when there are equal alternatives at cheaper prices.
Things aren't ruined by competition, they are made better. And the public will decide which brands remain and which fail based on a variety of factors. It's the nature of capitalism.
No need to ask because that was my point.
“Craftsman” IMO it’s not as valuable as a standalone brand, as of the hype played up to be. SBD just wanted to get her away from somebody else, maybe make some quick money and whatever they paid for it probably made their money back just in the stock price jump
Lest We forget the brand was merely part of the gigantic sears retail enterprise. Which Slowly turned to **** over the decades.
They were cheap Priced tools, always on sale seemingly. Seem like was almost always a struggle to get them manufactured cheap domestically so they jump ship and went overseas like everybody else
The brand is about where it is expected to be. IMO
To be fair, Americans want to invest in things that make moneyAmericans investing in American assets?
Surely you jest, sir!
slowtwitch73
Well-known member
They are going to rebrand as Craftsperson and take over the world.
rust in the eye
Well-known member
Agreed. I don't mind IF they provide a better service level which can justify the price. Sadly the "Helpful Hardware Man" has mostly retired and some stores are staffed by the same nitwits with no product knowledge that might as well be asking you if you'd like fries with that.
Big box stores are equally convenient for me and of the three Ace stores nearby only one seems to have knowledgeable staff.
neophyte
Well-known member
Ideal was the American Investor.
They bought SK Tools from bankruptcy, and Pratt-Read from bankruptcy, and Western Forge, and tried to combine the entities into a single tool manufacturer, in a single location.
Then Ideal tried putting the entity up for sale, about a decade later.
If a major manufacturer, with distribution thru major tool and supply retailers like Home Depot, and Grainger, suddenly decided to offload an entity like the combined SK tool plant, would you think it’s a major business opportunity?
Either, Ideal tried to use their capital to combine under appreciated assets into a single entity, before spinning that new entity off at a profit to Ideal,
Or Ideal combined the entities together, and then realized they didn’t have a market, or at least enough of a market, for the products, and decided to cut their losses.
neophyte
Well-known member
It takes a decent amount of effort to figure out what tools may be made well, and which tools are “****”, and the average person who may need to just use a tool occasionally, doesn’t have the time, or possibly the money, or the interest, to purchase an example from each brand, test it, to find the best tool in each category, the person may need.
It a brand tends to have a reputation as “the standard” or at least of being good and reliable, the average consumer, with the extra money, will just purchase that brand to get a well made product, without the extra hassle.
Hence, “Brand Loyalty”.
If that item from that brand proves to be unreliable, ir sh!t, then the consumer will try other brands.
The brand’s items doesn’t need to be “perfect”, the items just need to be decent, and somewhat comparable to other quality brands.