craftsman wrenches, USA for long?

[mrb]

So I went down to sears tonight and picked up a couple of the blackfriday $10 sets of combination wrenches which come loose in a cardboard box. One was the old style box with prominent made in usa logo on it. The other set was their new style packaging (which I hate by the way), no made in usa logo on the box, but on the back it says wrenches made in usa.

Are they importing their boxes now, and cannot put the made in usa logo on it? (seems like a dumb move, save $0.05 on a box and lose the made in usa logo)

OR

Are they conditioning us to get used to no more made in usa logo in preperation for a transition to offshore manufacturing?

 

[TireTracks]

I dunno, hope not, I buy craftsman because it's mostly USA. But what sizes are the wrenches, i need some larger sizes and the sets are cheaper than buying each one i need.

 

[Old Donn]

Hard to say, mrb. Went to Sears the other day, saw the big end-of-aisle display with three of their latest and greatest,(?). Spline drive, elbow ratcheting and double-ratcheting combo wrenches,,,, all Craftsman, all made in China.

 

[Basskiller]

Who knows. But if they do go the China route thats suicide for the brand. Being US made was about all that Craftsman had going for it.

 

[Here2Learn]

What is the new style packaging?

Basskiller, I think the warranty and availability are good points for them, also.

 

[forceyoda]

Sounds like the same thing that Snap On did with the dual 80 ratchets. Made in the US ,for now, but not marked on the item. I personaly believe it is so that when they bring out the China ones nobody will notice.

 

[Basskiller]

What is the new style packaging?

Basskiller, I think the warranty and availability are good points for them, also.

I can agree with that. However, HF has Sears beat. Just as available and the warranty is easier. You can grab your own replacement and it's not an issue.
Then price on China made goods. Is Sears going to lower price.

 

[Danglerb]

Does anybody on this forum have kids that want to work in a wrench factory?

Anybody here themselves want to work in a wrench factory for minimum wage?

I can't figure out who exactly it might be that we are trying to save these low paying unskilled jobs for in a fundamentally dirty industry.

 

[babzog]

Does anybody on this forum have kids that want to work in a wrench factory?

Anybody here themselves want to work in a wrench factory for minimum wage?

I can't figure out who exactly it might be that we are trying to save these low paying unskilled jobs for in a fundamentally dirty industry.

With the economy in the tank, any job is better than no job. To be frank, it's better us than them, right?

 

[volpster31]

Does anybody on this forum have kids that want to work in a wrench factory?

Anybody here themselves want to work in a wrench factory for minimum wage?

I can't figure out who exactly it might be that we are trying to save these low paying unskilled jobs for in a fundamentally dirty industry.

i partially agree with your comment,but the problem is ,if they go all "made in china",will the prices reflect that????? i highly doubt it. most people know that harbor freight has a lot of junk,but its cheap so people can accept it

 

[krusty the clown]

Does anybody on this forum have kids that want to work in a wrench factory?

Anybody here themselves want to work in a wrench factory for minimum wage?

I can't figure out who exactly it might be that we are trying to save these low paying unskilled jobs for in a fundamentally dirty industry.

would you rather they be unemployed? sell shoes at the mall like al bundy? you might want to pose that question to someone who works in that job.....i'm sure thay want to keep it.

 

[GBNZ]

When i dont see made in USA on the tool its givin me the heads up allready 9 times out of 10 made in china.

 

[JohnFreeman]

Does anybody on this forum have kids that want to work in a wrench factory?

Lots of people. Especially hungry people.

Nothing wrong with a little dirt.

John

 

[MadMark]

Does anybody on this forum have kids that want to work in a wrench factory?

Anybody here themselves want to work in a wrench factory for minimum wage?

I can't figure out who exactly it might be that we are trying to save these low paying unskilled jobs for in a fundamentally dirty industry.

apparently there are plenty of people in Germany who will still do factory work. and their standard of living is as good or better than ours.

 

[street131]

man, i sure do hope they keep their products made in the usa. Thats the only reason why im such a big fan of craftsman hand tools. If they do, in the end, it might just hurt them. Just less people that have a job here in the US and less people that will have the money to buy their wrenches.

 

[forceyoda]

At the prices Snap On and others are charging to for their wrenches there is no reason to believe that their factory workers aren't making more than minimum wage.

 

[street131]

im sure snapon hand tool workers make very good money

 

[autoace]

All the Craftsman tools I have brought back for warranty in the past 3 years, were new defects, their QC is really pathetic. It is getting to the point, where even the USA thing does not save them, especially with GearWrench on the rack next to them. What good is made int he USA is it is a steaming turd of a tool quality wise?

 

[zvezdah1]

This is what killed america, skilled and semi-skilled labor became four letter words, "smoke stack" economy was old news, America needed to be on the cutting edge of technology or so the bean counters told us.

Oh and the mantra that every kid needs a college degree has also failed us. I know many a barrista with a liberal arts degree!

Now here we sit dependent on third world countries for nearly everything we use in daily life, no ways or means of us to ever be independent to any degree, 10% unemployment.

We need a little smoke stack economy back here. People at all levels of society need jobs whether low paid or high paid.
Chris

Does anybody on this forum have kids that want to work in a wrench factory?

Anybody here themselves want to work in a wrench factory for minimum wage?

I can't figure out who exactly it might be that we are trying to save these low paying unskilled jobs for in a fundamentally dirty industry.

 

[Merkava_4]

What good is made in the USA if it's a steaming turd of a tool quality wise?

That's exactly correct and so eloquently stated.

 

[mrb]

This is what killed america, skilled and semi-skilled labor became four letter words, "smoke stack" economy was old news, America needed to be on the cutting edge of technology or so the bean counters told us.

Oh and the mantra that every kid needs a college degree has also failed us. I know many a barrista with a liberal arts degree!

Now here we sit dependent on third world countries for nearly everything we use in daily life, no ways or means of us to ever be independent to any degree, 10% unemployment.

We need a little smoke stack economy back here. People at all levels of society need jobs whether low paid or high paid.
Chris

couldnt have been said better. This country will never get back on track until we start making things again. And its only going to get worse. We have an entire generation coming out of the school system where shop classes were removed and replaced with computer labs and tools are considered weapons. Many people I know cant even do the simplest mechanical things, which should be second nature to any man (and most women for that matter). The only time theyve ever picked up a tool was the hex key that came with their Ikea furniture.

 

[BSMM]

Sears Canada no longer offers Made in USA wrenches and sockets.

 

[forceyoda]

I feel that warranty abuse has a large part in this as well. If craftsman only had to warranty legit claims their operating cost would be alot lower, maybe low enough to keep it in the USA.

 

[mrb]

Sears Canada no longer offers Made in USA wrenches and sockets.

where are they made?

 

[RedBox]

My concern isn't jobs for Americans (as if massive immigration isn't pushing out that already) but the ability of the USA to manufacture what it needs. The more we rely on anywhere else to make what we need, the less independent we are as a country. Dependence on imports is, to my mind, a very bad thing.

RB

 

[Tool Pants]

When I started on this board last year I was suprised to learn Sears in Canada did not sell USA tools like they do here, so Craftsman in not as popular as it is here. Also suprised to find out Sears here tried for a while long ago to sell non USA Craftsman wrenches, but people did not want to buy them.

Sears is going to continue to have more Craftman Chinese stuff. Just makes my old USA stuff worth more. And I will continue to buy older USA stuff at the flea market.

 

[BSMM]

where are they made?

Taiwan and China.

The wrenches aren't the greatest, the sockets, however are decent. I do kind of regret buying them.

On the plus side, the screwdrivers are made in Canada!

 

[Danglerb]

Before I get too gung ho saving something, I'd like to know what its like. Everything I know about making tools says much of the work *****. Loading machines, pick up thing in bin A, polish for 34 seconds, put in tray B.

OTOH once the machines that make the tools are gone, the industry usually doesn't come back.

OTOOH Socioeconomic issues are pointless to fight. Could be town doesn't want the plant, workers like having a job, but the company can't find anybody new. How much do you have to pay someone to polish a thousand wrenches a day, 5 days a week?