Yeh I not seen them either . be good cheap full set option for people if do .
larger sizes be good too, at least 24mm if not more ideally .
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New Craftsman Gunmetal wrenches
- Thread starter Sco Deac
- Start date
Yeh I not seen them either . be good cheap full set option for people if do .
larger sizes be good too, at least 24mm if not more ideally .
Finance Guy
Well-known member
So Gearwrench, Carlyle, Tekton, Milwaukee ... and Dewalt offer premium wrench sets (combo, ratcheting, flex-head, etc.) with no skipped sizes. SBD unveiled its Craftsman brand with a line of premium wrenches, but decided to continue skipping sizes. Moreover, they don't even offer them as open stock. Who is the target customer?
We're told we need to be patient while SBD rolls out its Craftsman brand, and I'm fine with that. But these wrenches are basically Dewalt crossovers ... they already exist. So what is SBD telling us about the new Craftsman? If you're a more sophisticated consumer, look elsewhere?
I've been rather disappointed with the rollout so far.
RoundedNut
Well-known member
"to change the way that an organization, company, or product is seen by the public"
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/rebrand
SBD bought Craftsman simply to have SBD tools perceived in a different way by the public.
And brand matters. A pair of NWS pliers will be warrantied with a new NWS plier. A rebrand of NWS pliers under Irwin will be warrantied with an Irwin plier, which may not continue to be made by NWS.
DeWalt is one of SBD's top tier brands, while SBD treats less brands, including Stanley, with less concern. I saw these yesterday... Stanley's 175th anniversary branded wrenches, made in China with a distinct lobster flavor:
http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/stanley-special-edition-wrench-set-metric-11-pc-3994404p.html#srp
BTW, Stanley makes some models exclusively for Canadian Tire so these might not be widely available (I had a ratchet warrantied and they knew I bought it from CT just from the model number).
Andres26tnt
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- May 11, 2018
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my mistake confused them with the standard wrenches. Maybe in the future they will offer them.
Andres26tnt
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skipped sizes is not really an issue, i have every wrench possible for automotive use from Proto, half of those don't get used. Craftsman is not going to please everyone and honestly most of us complaining aren't looking to buy anyway.
xin
Well-known member
That true, I think that is the biggest difference in the OLD Craftsman we grew up with they had the complete sets. The skipping sizes is always a pain point as I am all metric (grudgingly) use American sizes try not to at all cost.
With complete metric sets one don't need the other.
WWheeler
Well-known member
GearWrench 81902 15 Piece Combination Set Metric
Full polish, long pattern, 'surface drive plus' (gearwrench's anti-slip)
Currently $53.66 & FREE Shipping (prices change on Amazon frequently)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NICGBU/?tag=atomicindus08-20
GearWrench 81900 24 Piece Combination Wrench Set SAE and Metric
Full polish, long pattern, 'surface drive plus' (gearwrench's anti-slip)
Currently $89.95 Prime
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NICG9M/?tag=atomicindus08-20
And if you shop around you can probably find them cheaper than at Amazon. I'm just sayin'
FWIW I have the 44 pc set of these 6mm-32mm and 1/4"-1-1/2" with few skips. Paid $175 shipped a year and a half ago (actually paid a lot less because I was cashing in my quarterly ebay bucks). I like them. Not sure SBD craftsman is going to offer a comparable size set.
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Yeah, one of the things I recall being good about Cman perhaps 20 years ago (and older) was they had a very complete line of tools even if a particular set skipped many sizes. It was easy to go to a store and purchase that missing socket or wrench size. They also were all the same type. I feel like some of the other brands are constantly changing their OEMs so there isn't much consistency over time and between tool types. For better and worse the raised panel tools seem to have been very consistent over time and across products.
I'm mixed on my own RP combination wrenches. They are on the short side. That's nice sometimes but ***** other times. If I'm only going to have one set of wrenches I would rather they be more like the standard length Snapon stuff I grew up using. I also like how the Snapon wrenches had lower profile heads. It wasn't too often I had to deal with jam nuts but my Cman wrenches were just too tall for that. On the other hand, they have held up really well. I picked up a set of Kobalt combination wrenches after a pricing mistake resulted in 11 wrenches for $8! How could I miss that? Well those wrenches feel nicer than the RP Cmans but the jaws don't seem as hard and the heavy use of electropolish means the edges of the jaws are more rounded and I was disappointed with how easily the jaws could be marred. But the Kobalt wrenches are a nicer length. Prior to using them I would have also assumed they were better made. Not true, at least compared to my stuff which was near the end of US manufacture.
I'm mixed on my own RP combination wrenches. They are on the short side. That's nice sometimes but ***** other times. If I'm only going to have one set of wrenches I would rather they be more like the standard length Snapon stuff I grew up using. I also like how the Snapon wrenches had lower profile heads. It wasn't too often I had to deal with jam nuts but my Cman wrenches were just too tall for that. On the other hand, they have held up really well. I picked up a set of Kobalt combination wrenches after a pricing mistake resulted in 11 wrenches for $8! How could I miss that? Well those wrenches feel nicer than the RP Cmans but the jaws don't seem as hard and the heavy use of electropolish means the edges of the jaws are more rounded and I was disappointed with how easily the jaws could be marred. But the Kobalt wrenches are a nicer length. Prior to using them I would have also assumed they were better made. Not true, at least compared to my stuff which was near the end of US manufacture.
GearWrench 81902 15 Piece Combination Set Metric
Full polish, long pattern, 'surface drive plus' (gearwrench's anti-slip)
Currently $53.66 & FREE Shipping (prices change on Amazon frequently)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NICGBU/?tag=atomicindus08-20
GearWrench 81900 24 Piece Combination Wrench Set SAE and Metric
Full polish, long pattern, 'surface drive plus' (gearwrench's anti-slip)
Currently $89.95 Prime
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NICG9M/?tag=atomicindus08-20
And if you shop around you can probably find them cheaper than at Amazon. I'm just sayin'
FWIW I have the 44 pc set of these 6mm-32mm and 1/4"-1-1/2" with few skips. Paid $175 shipped a year and a half ago (actually paid a lot less because I was cashing in my quarterly ebay bucks). I like them. Not sure SBD craftsman is going to offer a comparable size set.
This is a good alternative to the first set. Crescent vs GW branded but almost certainly the same wrenches (both are Apex)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFL0DKW/?tag=atomicindus08-20
15 pc set 8mm-15mm, $40. The Crescent branded wrenches are a great backdoor for those who need the more common sizes and want to save some money vs Gearwrench. I bought the 10pc set for $16. They are nicer to use than my Cman stuff.
WWheeler
Well-known member
They're not long-pattern but a 15 pc set for $40 is going to be hard to beat and definitely a lot better deal than the $53 Stanley currently wants for their 11 pc Craftsman set.
Something similar to that, and FWIW I also have this set which I bought just a couple months ago:
GearWrench 81923 28-Piece Full Polish Combination Non-Ratcheting Wrench Set SAE/Metric
These are 6pt box ends w/ the 'Surface Drive Plus (anti-slip) open ends, but they, like the Crescent, are not long-pattern
Currently $79.99 & FREE Shipping
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004IQSETQ/?tag=atomicindus08-20