Just broke my first Craftsman tool

[SKaReCRoW]

Wan using it as a mini pry bar to bend a tab of thin metal on a storage rack and it just snapped in half. Of Course it does this just a few days after my local Sears shuts down. I've used the hell out of this screwdriver almost every single day for the past 6 or so years. I always keep it in my pocket.

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[Richard Cranium]

They are not pry bars and to request a replacement after you abused it would of been a chump move in my mind.
If the tip failed or some thing like that then you should get a new one.

 

[SweetD]

Yeah, not for nothing, and we've all been there...but using a tool for an unintended design purpose is asking for a fail...simple as that!

 

[tdott]

Sad day, time for an upgrade!

 

[JohnDeere1]

I've never broken a craftsman tool but got rid of all mine in favor of snap on.

 

[ssdave]

Buy another one like it for less than $5 at a pawn shop, yard sale, etc. You'll be paying 5 to 10 times the going rate, but if you love it enough to carry it everyday, the amount is trivial. Or, pay $20 to $30 to Snap-on to get a similar one, or a few dollars for another brand. Screwdrivers are fairly easy to come by.

 

[kctyphoon]

This should be interesting....

 

[blackwire]

Husky sells WF made screwdrivers which are almost identical to your old Craftsman. The handle is a slightly different shape.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-Variety-Screwdriver-Set-6-Piece-20210003/204465110

 

[kctyphoon]

^^ he's pointing out the husky's are USA made now, I believe from the same place that made the craftsman if memory serves.

 

[Codejack]

Lol, you use them the way I do, so buy the ones I do

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Project-Source-1-4-in-Flat-Tip-x-4-in-Flat-Screwdriver/50158859

$0.98

They're in the top drawer of my red box in my sig

 

[SKaReCRoW]

I actually have several of the same Craftsman screwdriver that I paid a buck or less for over the years. I just have to find them. I used that screwdriver more than all my other tools combined. You can't see in the picture, but the tip DID fail. The end looks like gumby! I'd been meaning to get it replaced for a couple years now.

I don't understand why some people get upset about replacing a tool if it wasn't used exactly as it was intended to be used. You can warrantee tools that you ran over with a lawnmower with no questions asked. That's definitely not the intended use.

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[mbshop]

Thats why they make all sizes of pry bars. Granted I have used screwdriver to lightly pry something but they were mostly junk or so or mac. But anything close to tough was pryed by a prybar.

 

[jd_1138]

I had CM USA tools for 10 years. Never broke one either in my DIY stuff.

 

[Empty Pockets]

I have always considered screwdrivers as disposable. Break one, go to the box for another

 

[Olafur]

Flat screwdriver is fantastic multi-tool. It's a great small pry bar, scraper, scratcher. Good for stirring paint, stubborn coffee and whatever happens to lend in your mug. They can act like fuses, cotter pins, coat hangers, chisels, picks, hooks with minor or no modifications.

I always celebrate when when I finally mange to mangle up the tip on one. Then the actual life cycle of the tool can really begin since I will have no regrets to mangle it up even further.

Just because someone somewhere says otherwise - don't be fooled to dismiss all these (and countless more) possible uses.

And no, don't warrant them unless you want your favorite screwdriver brand to move offshore or go bankrupt.

 

[nbpt100]

I have broken a few Cman screwdriver. Not using them as pry bars.

In fact the only Cman tools I have broken have been ratchets and screwdrivers. They have broken at the tip. I had a brand new No. 2 philips strip out on me. Was probably never heat treated.

 

[Miss the Pontiacs]

Say it ain't so. I love my old CM screw drivers they have a good feel after wearing down the sharp edges on the handles mine are likely purchased 40 years ago. The slotted one has been ground down after extensive wear. I have other manufacturers drivers but grab the CM first when handy.

 

[rusty_ratchet]

I once had a screw that was really stuck and tried using a Craftsman flathead screwdriver to get it out. The edge of the tip pealed right off. Other than that they've been great.

 

[R_einan]

I keep the good drivers in the tool chest, those are for screws. The ones on the pegboard are for 'other' uses... they are all blunted or damaged tips and are really only good for small prying and alignment pin duty.

 

[Codejack]

I have Cman, Stanley, Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Pro, Kobalt, and a variety of $1 screwdrivers.

The Cmans aren't bad, and that's coming from someone who doesn't have a good opinion of the brand.

The Stanleys are uninspiring, but functional.

The HF ones are OK; not great, but the acetate-handle ones (pro) are solid.

The Kobalt pair I had were junk, from ~2005.

The $1 ones from parts and hardware stores vary radically; I got a great pair 20 years ago, and just broke the flathead last summer using it as a chisel

I got a pair of the ones above from Lowe's; nice, thick, hard handles, weighty in the hand, good hard steel.

I want a nice set, with bolsters and hammer caps, so I'm looking at some Weras.

 

[kb1982]

Wan using it as a mini pry bar to bend a tab of thin metal on a storage rack and it just snapped in half. Of Course it does this just a few days after my local Sears shuts down. I've used the hell out of this screwdriver almost every single day for the past 6 or so years. I always keep it in my pocket.

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Shoulda used this instead. Maybe a tad smaller than that one.

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[JohnDeere1]

To me a big flat head screwdriver was always a pry bar I have a few big ones snap on,napa Witte etc never broke any in my life even other brands but I've never pushed one too far even used some as chisel not good brand ones though I use cheapo ones for abuse situations.

 

[Miss the Pontiacs]

Shoulda used this instead. Maybe a tad smaller than that one.

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Those are pretty nice pry bars. I would like to see your old ones the ones with character.

 

[Rileysan]

Yes, it was used incorrectly but I honestly think that's ok. Sometimes you gotta use what you got when nothing else is available.

As for taking it in for warranty, my recommendation is "don't bother".

These are available at nearly every garage/yard/estate sale for $1 or less. You won't get better (or the same) quality screwdriver from Sears by trading in your old one. My old broken Craftsman screwdrivers are turned into specialty tools and are usually worth more to me than a brand new screwdriver.

Brian

 

[kctyphoon]

Everybody should buy a set of demolition screwdrivers to beat on. For $10 or whatever they cost, it's worth it. The Milwaukee's are very nice.

 

[SKaReCRoW]

Shoulda used this instead. Maybe a tad smaller than that one.

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Somehow I doubt those pry bars would fit in the little pocket in my shorts lol. That was the little 5ish inch screwdriver. I DO have a set of HF pry bars, but even the smallest one would have been far too big for the little piece of metal I needed to bend out less than 1/16th of an inch.

As I said before, I already have a bunch of them somewhere. I bought several of them from the used tool bin on my local Snap-On truck for $1 each, and a couple others from flea markets mixed in with other tools. I just can't remember where I put any of them.

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