Lowes Craftsman Ad, Available April 2nd

[tym]

Hmm...might have to check this out at my local Lowe's. I buy almost no tools there as they carry only lousy brands (pretty much Kobalt everything), and the HD two miles away had a better selection and better prices.

 

[Tallpilot]

So, according to Stuey of Toolguyd, the new ratchets are polished, 120 teeth, and COO is not displayed. I think they look better in the pictures he has than the first one we saw.

It looks like a couple of sets will have a 120 "tooth" (or position; this needs to be answered) full polish ratchet with the Craftsman trademark toothbrush handle that would be 100x more useful if the wider edge were the one that digs into your hand instead of the narrow uncomfortable one. They have a 'gun-metal' chrome finish. What I make of that is they might actually be made in the USA or somewhere with decent environmental laws so they use a trivalent chrome process but without the extra additives and dip time needed to get uniform mirror chrome but some extra process to avoid the bluish tint. Different markings than the Chinese sockets but it is hard to tell if they are stamped or etched.

Hopefully somebody will take a picture of the back of the box tomorrow so we can find out where it is made.

 

[Sanny81]

Well I have nothing better to do today so I’m gonna stop in Lowe’s and see what they have.

 

[Sco Deac]

It looks like a couple of sets will have a 120 "tooth" (or position; this needs to be answered).

Some say this is a clone of the mechanism used in the Stanley Fatmax 120 "tooth" ratchet. If it is, it is a 60 tooth, dual pawl mechanism. Also, it is not serviceable. The pluses of the set though is that it seems like all 6 point sockets. I wish the Lowes website had a list of what was included in the sets.

Well I have nothing better to do today so I’m gonna stop in Lowe’s and see what they have.

Good luck and I hope you see something and can report back. I don't think you will see anything though. The roll-out appears to be on-line only with no merchandise in the stores until mid-May or later. I can't even tell if the on-line roll-out is actually just a pre-order or if you can buy stuff for delivery in the next couple days.

 

[Makoto]

those ratchets look NICE!

 

[Bigmeat]

I just got off the phone with Craftsman made they say these are made in Taiwan. I talk to Lowe’ And they say they are made in the USA. Only available online available at the store on the 27th.

 

[Moparman390]

Before you run out to Lowes and are disappointed, Lowes states it's an online only presale. Orders "arrive by" 4/27 and the sets aren't promised to be in store by then.

 

[sk farmer]

looks like the first big blunder. if they are truly going to revamp the line, it is stupid to put out some sort of transitional stuff. do it once and do it right. while the new ratchets and sockets look nice, they would look so much nicer with made in usa.

 

[kythri]

I wouldn't call it a blunder, I'd call it keeping in line with what they announced their strategy was.

They were pretty clear that when they started offering stuff, it was going to be pulled from their existing lines until they fully ramped-up US production with the new factories that they're building.

 

[Sco Deac]

Interesting to compare the "new" sets to the "old" sets they are offering. The newer ones are priced higher than the old stuff without being really expensive.

 

[Sanny81]

Guess I can skip the Lowe’s trip!

 

[Crazyjake8493]

I wanted one and was disappointed that they were only temporary.

I’m pretty sure they come back yearly at christmas time. Not sure why it isn’t a permanent item.

 

[61scout80]

Is the lowes website working for you guys? I search craftsman, click the "pre-sell" image and the next page tells me the "presell" doesn't exist.

Well I have nothing better to do today so I’m gonna stop in Lowe’s and see what they have.

Guess I can skip the Lowe’s trip!

I was there yesterday. the tool guy said they won't have their display ready until May. He also said Lowe's will be the "exclusive" craftsman retailer, so he doesn't seem like a reliable source.

Walking through the tool department I did notice a few strategically empty shelf spaces including a section of the power tools that was about big enough to display 5-6 tools. No tags, no markers, nothing but empty space where items used to be.

 

[Nineeightyone]

I was in on Saturday to ask a bit, and what one of the employees told me was that they're keeping the Kobalt line, at least as far as the hand tools/mechanics tools. As a big fan of the Kobalt stuff, I hope that he's correct, and that the Craftsman stuff is offered as a higher end/upgrade.

Toolboxes were on sale/clearance, though personally I prefer the Husky boxes for their layout and price point.

 

[Gvos]

I just checked out Lowes web site. Did a search for Craftsman. Two sets came up, one 51 piece 6 point socket set and a second 81 piece set. The pictures match the ones noted prior in this post. Picture of the set looks nice. Won't know the actual quality until they are in stock at the stores to check out.

 

[frankjh]

WTF? Are you superman? Did you buy some Xray glasses from the comic book?

It looks like a ratchet. You can no more say it has 2 teeth or 200 from its looks.

when you click on it it says 120

 

[jdoe213]

There's a very, very smart person somewhere in that marketing office that was wise enough to use April 2nd. . . . other wise Lowes might have been the laughing stock of the internet.[/QUOTE]

And even smarter if they have stock on the shelf (or available on the internets) before fathers day.

 

[Moparman390]

I always had a feeling SBD would get some Craftsman out for Father's Day.

 

[Specs]

At least Kobalt and Craftsman camps can eyeball each other funny from across the aisles....

So whose is gonna be the bottom of the barrell then? *popcorntime*

 

[Moparman390]

I highly doubt the new Craftsman sets are USA though, I'm just guessing, but willing to bet that whatever USA Craftsman stuff they bring out that USA logo from the investor briefing is plastered prominently on the front much like Dewalt USA.

 

[xin]

Good looking ratchet, hoping for fine tooth and US made.

SAME here - great move so glad they goin to have them!

 

[xin]

The sooner they bring production back to the States, the better. I'll check the tools out next week

I agree 100% move it back home!

 

[Mr_P]

My question is primarily if Lowe's will continue to honor the Craftsman hand-tool lifetime warranty/exchange. Also BTW, My local sears has new hours which I learned about this morning.....

Mon - Closed
Tues - 11:00am-8:00pm
Wed - 11:00am-8:00pm
Thurs - 11:00am-8:00pm
Fri - 11:00am-8:00pm
Sat - 11:00am-8:00pm
Sun - 11:00am-8:00pm

 

[Specs]

Wait... 120 tooth count ratchets? Like Gearwrench/Armstrong/Danaher/Matco design?

Looks like I’m gonna be hiring some Meddling Kids and their dog to investigate...

Also; Craftsman tools been absent for the Tool Scene waay tooo long and will have to have to be one Super Stellar product line to bring people back. I got Rebuild kits for all my Premium ratchets cause fear of getting less quality on a warranty claim. Snap on FNF100 for example. I do hope they come through strong, id look into them black friday.

Two tooth ratchets. That click

 

[Skin]

I cannot read.

 

[Moparman390]

A lowes not opening until 11? Belongs in the wtf thread. There goes all of their contractor business.

He said Sears.

 

[rick carpenter]

Looks like they have metal selector switches. That's a step in the right direction.

Sco says they're non-serviceable. Is that from actually fondling them or from company lit or from what? Seems like not too smart of a move for the new Craftsman line, as the old Craftsman was known for their serviceability too. OTOH, if they're non-serviceable that might mean they'll probably keep the lifetime warranty.

 

[jeepinerdeep]

I just have one question.

After all the crying, hurt, panic and disdain for what has happened to the craftsman brand....

....why is everyone lined up to look at these things. Is it not time to move on to something else, or are we jumping in just to have our feelings hurt again? I genuinely don't think I would give them a second look. Is it nostalgia or optimism or ??

I guess what I'm saying is, has SBD actually ever really improved anything in any of their brands? What has happened to MAC has me doubting that.

 

[Sco Deac]

Looks like they have metal selector switches. That's a step in the right direction.

Sco says they're non-serviceable. Is that from actually fondling them or from company lit or from what? Seems like not too smart of a move for the new Craftsman line, as the old Craftsman was known for their serviceability too. OTOH, if they're non-serviceable that might mean they'll probably keep the lifetime warranty.

What I was trying to say, is that the Stanley Fatmax 120 (60 tooth dual pawl) ratchet is not serviceable. I've seen several posts here and on the toolguyd article pointing to that Stanley Fatmax as the design basis for the new Craftsman. The new Craftsman obviously isn't an exact clone of the Stanley Fatmax, but there are similarities.

 

[Specs]

There is no point for Craftsman to just be tossaways or trade ins, cause one bad year in sales and we’ll be getting the china made tools again, and this time no ebay sellers for rebuild kits... I always hated that sears stood by the raised panel ratchets, even though there were better had, and overcharged for the premiums and low profile. Meh. Lost interest.

 

[Schurkey]

My question is primarily if Lowe's will continue to honor the Craftsman hand-tool lifetime warranty/exchange.

https://www.lowes.com/b/craftsman.html?searchTerm=craftsman

Generation to Generation:
A Craftsman Warranty*

The Craftsman warranty is a dedication to a lifetime of quality and service for every Craftsman customer, generation to generation.


For more information, call 1-888-331-4569.

*Warranty varies by Craftsman product.

Good luck. I suspect that Crapsman "products" that have Sears-era part numbers will be denied warranty. And if they sell only "sets", how are you going to warranty individual items? All they'd have to do is demand you return the "entire set"--which is not the same as demanding a sales receipt, but will essentially prevent Sears-era merchandise warranty claims from infecting the Lowe's profit margins.

Be interesting to see how this plays out.

Lowe's already turned Kobalt to ****. Started off with Williams, downgraded to Danaher, then offshored to Asia.

Think things are going to be handled differently with Crapsman? I'm not betting against proven Lowe's company history and philosophy.

 

[L.Cheapo]

I just have one question.

After all the crying, hurt, panic and disdain for what has happened to the craftsman brand....

....why is everyone lined up to look at these things. Is it not time to move on to something else, or are we jumping in just to have our feelings hurt again? I genuinely don't think I would give them a second look. Is it nostalgia or optimism or ??

I guess what I'm saying is, has SBD actually ever really improved anything in any of their brands? What has happened to MAC has me doubting that.

I think folks are hoping to once again have easy local access to decent quality USA made tools at prices affordable to the average working person, backed by a mostly-hassle-free warranty in a store with long hours open 7 days a week that they probably go to or past on a regular basis anyway.

At this point, it won't make any difference to me, other than possibly being able to obtain a USA made tool to warranty out one of the few Craftsman tools I still use, should the need arise. But I'd still like to see Craftsman return to what they once were.

 

[jeepinerdeep]

I think folks are hoping to once again have easy local access to decent quality USA made tools at prices affordable to the average working person, backed by a mostly-hassle-free warranty in a store with long hours open 7 days a week that they probably go to or past on a regular basis anyway.

At this point, it won't make any difference to me, other than possibly being able to obtain a USA made tool to warranty out one of the few Craftsman tools I still use, should the need arise. But I'd still like to see Craftsman return to what they once were.

I could see the hope in that. Lowes does have quite the advantage there. I just am super doubtful about COO. I think best case we will see some nicer Taiwan when this all settles out, which in my mind is already well covered by Gearwrench, sans the brick and mortar service convenience.

 

[cheechi]

I own several Kobalt, Blue Point/Williams, & GW sockets made in Taiwan. They are the best compromise of quality & price for gifts, spare sets, etc etc. I was really disappointed when GW & Kobalt moved from Taiwan to china although in the store their china sockets dont look bad, and look nicer than the china cman I have seen. I own none of them to discuss real world use.

I'll be honest, if they had followed other brands and moved cman to Taiwan instead of china then the whole situation of offshoring wouldn't bother me nearly as much. I will put my Taiwan Kobalt sockets against any china cman or the last gen USA cman and my Kobalts will come out on top.

Likely they are gaging how much shelf space to dedicate to these on the sales of the online only. I doubt they're looking to take much away from their own Kobalt line. Again just going on looks, I don't blame them china made or not.

 

[Farmall450]

I agree that they should have just done it right with the promised USA lineup vs the interim.

 

[Mikeske]

https://www.lowes.com/b/craftsman.html?searchTerm=craftsman

Lowe's already turned Kobalt to ****. Started off with Williams, downgraded to Danaher, then offshored to Asia.

Think things are going to be handled differently with Crapsman? I'm not betting against proven Lowe's company history and philosophy.

Lowe's does not have anything to do with Craftsman otherwise then selling the merchandise. Stanley Black and Decker boughtCraftsman brand from Sears. If anything just watch what SBD did to the other brands that they bought.

 

[WWheeler]

I'm really curious as to just what is the source that these imported Craftsman hand tools are just an 'interim' and USA-made to come later? I seriously doubt that will happen.

All I recall seeing was the statement from Stanley's CEO right after their purchase of the Craftsman brand where he only said that they "intend to invest in the brand and rapidly increase sales through these new channels, including retail, industrial, mobile and online. To accommodate the future growth of Craftsman, we intend to expand our manufacturing footprint in the U.S. This will add jobs in the U.S., where we have increased our manufacturing headcount by 40% in the past three years."

To my knowledge Stanley said nothing about hand tools, but instead the CEO referred to expanding in the US "where we have increased our manufacturing headcount by 40% in the past three years" in which it's a pretty safe bet he was talking about the Dewalt power tools line where for the past three years after having moved most production overseas Stanley started bringing many of those assembly jobs back to the states so they could market them as "Made in the USA With Global Materials". I took it to mean they are going to start rebadging Dewalt as "Craftsman Professional" power tools, not making ratchets and such.

Pretty much the same thing I said in Jan 2017 when the deal was announced...

[...] So I'd add to that the possibility that Stanley's plans with this Craftsman purchase to "expand our manufacturing footprint in the U.S. This will add jobs in the U.S., where we have increased our manufacturing headcount by 40% in the past three years" may be more focused on their cordless and corded power tool lines, and less so if at all on the hand tools. I'm just sayin'

 

[IndyGarage]

You could see that coming when they put Stanley tools in Lowes a year or so ago.

Smart move on Lowe's part. I bet it will be a hit for them.

 

[Ole Slewfoot]

I hope its one of those 2 tooth ratchets, that would be a real sweetie!

Most of mine slip badly for about 320*, then the 2 teeth grip.

 

[Musicinabottle]

That's the idea. They've been retooling and building new manufacturing just for Craftsman. They even bought Waterloo to give Craftsman a dedicated box manufacturer. They appear to have every intention to make it "Americas tool brand" again.

Right on! I hope it happens. It's about time.