Craftsman vs. Kobalt Tool Chests @ Lowe’s

[Jtels85]

Does anyone know if SBD Craftsman is going through a supplier change, or is Lowe’s aggressively pushing Kobalt tool storage?

I’ve stopped by 4 different Lowe’s stores in my city and they all have the same 1 or 2 flimsy Craftsman tool chests. There are significantly more Kobalt chests out on the floor, all of which are priced more reasonable compared to Craftsman, both in-store and online.

I need another box and was hoping to find the midnight blue 51” Craftsman workbench/chest that I saw in stores this time last year. Looking online, the price jumped to $779 and you have to order it online. I swear that thing was $498 last year, and they had quite a few in-stock. I really wanted this one, but it appears as though I’ll have to find something else, somewhere else.

 

[Andres26tnt]

Kobalt is the house brand so they will push it more. Not sure what's going on with Craftsman. They did updated the S2000 to be more robust. they got rid of the S3000 in favor for a nicer V-series. The S1000 is complete garbage basement levels of quality. Just remember the boxes ar made in the usa with global material. so its going to price up the product. The majority of the box is made in Sedalia Missouri, the global parts are slides, wheels, plastics and the power strips.

The V-series is a really nice box, some think its overpriced. Not sure how as no one is making USA or mostly made boxes at that price. they also go on sale often. the 63" goes for 1800$, on sale 1400$ sometimes.

 

[Junkdrawer Dog]

My local Lowes pushes the Kobalt brand heavily. During the last holiday shopping season there were hardly any C'man boxes in sight. Only Kobalt and Viper.

 

[Andres26tnt]

My local Lowes pushes the Kobalt brand heavily. During the last holiday shopping season there were hardly any C'man boxes in sight. Only Kobalt and Viper.

I guess it depends heavily in the area too. Some Lowe's have more craftsman, some barely.

 

[peejay75]

Add to that, the black version Craftsman are usually priced $100-$150 higher than the red/black, and they no longer offer the 3-drawer middle chest in black!

 

[Andres26tnt]

Add to that, the black version Craftsman are usually priced $100-$150 higher than the red/black, and they no longer offer the 3-drawer middle chest in black!

Yeah i noticed that when i was looking at the top chest in black.

 

[Jtels85]

Add to that, the black version Craftsman are usually priced $100-$150 higher than the red/black, and they no longer offer the 3-drawer middle chest in black!

I’d settle for black, but like you said… it’s not an option anymore, and I don’t like the bright red. What a shame.