SBD Craftsman 20v tools

[coleman10]

Anyone have any real world experience with these yet? Was looking to possibly get into this line and looking for comments from folks who actually own and use them, not "I own Brand X, buy Brand X."

Was looking to start off with the brushless drill/driver combo, but wasn't thrilled that it came with 1ah batteries.

I'm a homeowner and family/extended family/friend handyman and beginning woodworker. I'm not in the trades, but the tools do get used.

Thanks, guys.

 

[X1 Mike]

I don't think there are any really bad major cordless tools. My primary concern is expandability. If the Craftsman 20V offers everything you anticipate needing and you are confident that they won't change platforms soon then pull the trigger. If not then look to a more established line such as the Makita LXT 18V.

 

[jd_1138]

They seem to have the major categories covered and SBD is an American co..

https://www.lowes.com/pd/CRAFTSMAN-V20-2-Tool-20-Volt-Max-Brushless-Power-Tool-Combo-Kit-with-Soft-Case-Charger-Included-and-2-Batteries-Included/1000578387

Right now you can get the set with the 1/4 impact driver, 2 batteries, charger, bag as well as the drill/driver for $169. So only $30 more than the kit without the impact driver.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/CRAFTSMAN-V20-4-Tool-20-Volt-Max-Power-Tool-Combo-Kit-with-Soft-Case-Charger-Included-and-2-Batteries-Included/1000552963

Or there's this kit for $199 -- not brushless though, but you also get a reciprocating saw, light, and higher capacity batteries (2 amp).

 

[ekimneirbo]

Heres the deal.........Look at battery warranties and replacement costs.

Thats where they get most people. Most drills come with a 2ah battery but the Craftsman has a 1ah if you are correct. MOST people will want a 4ah battery.

Craftsman 4ah replacement $99 each ONLY 2 year warranty

Kobalt (Lowes) comes with a 2ah, charger ,drill for $99 (on sale Labor Day)
Their 4ah replacement is just $49 and has a 3 year warranty

Dewalt sells a 2pack of replacement batteries for $180 or $90 each 2 year warranty

All three brands make nice Drills........its the replacement batteries that get you. My Dewalts always expired just after the warranty expired. Got tired of that and bought a Kobalt. It doesn't have as much name recognition, but its really well made.

Oh, the Kobalt has a 5 year warranty on the drill. Anyway, go buy one and try it. If it doesn't impress you, you can return it for a full refund and go buy a Craftsman or ?
The thing is, once yu buy a brand, you commit to buying only tools that use the same type of battery on future buys. So Battery Life and Battery Cost are important considerations. Try a Kobalt and I bet you will like it.........

Once you try a brushless lithium drill you will never be happy with an older drill. Buy only brushless.

Sorry I didn't heed your "brand X" request, but the only way to make my point was to mention the different brands and their batteries. I have lots of old Craftsman tools and 6 Craftsman toolboxes. My first cordless drills were Craftsman for many years, but the replacement battery costs drove me away from them. I'm not anti-Craftsman, but I am someone who appreciates a quality tool and a fair price.

 

[coleman10]

Heres the deal.........Look at battery warranties and replacement costs.

Thats where they get most people. Most drills come with a 2ah battery but the Craftsman has a 1ah if you are correct. MOST people will want a 4ah battery.

Craftsman 4ah replacement $99 each ONLY 2 year warranty

Kobalt (Lowes) comes with a 2ah, charger ,drill for $99 (on sale Labor Day)
Their 4ah replacement is just $49 and has a 3 year warranty

Dewalt sells a 2pack of replacement batteries for $180 or $90 each 2 year warranty

All three brands make nice Drills........its the replacement batteries that get you. My Dewalts always expired just after the warranty expired. Got tired of that and bought a Kobalt. It doesn't have as much name recognition, but its really well made.

Oh, the Kobalt has a 5 year warranty on the drill. Anyway, go buy one and try it. If it doesn't impress you, you can return it for a full refund and go buy a Craftsman or ?
The thing is, once yu buy a brand, you commit to buying only tools that use the same type of battery on future buys. So Battery Life and Battery Cost are important considerations. Try a Kobalt and I bet you will like it.........

Once you try a brushless lithium drill you will never be happy with an older drill. Buy only brushless.

Sorry I didn't heed your "brand X" request, but the only way to make my point was to mention the different brands and their batteries. I have lots of old Craftsman tools and 6 Craftsman toolboxes. My first cordless drills were Craftsman for many years, but the replacement battery costs drove me away from them. I'm not anti-Craftsman, but I am someone who appreciates a quality tool and a fair price.

All good info. I suppose I could be swayed to go with Kobalt (the lineup looks good and the reviews are great), but I have the dad/Craftsman thing going on in my head, especially since he passed. I realize it's just a name stuck on a plastic case, but it's quite a hurdle to overcome.

 

[dr_clyde]

Heres the deal.........Look at battery warranties and replacement costs.

Thats where they get most people. Most drills come with a 2ah battery but the Craftsman has a 1ah if you are correct. MOST people will want a 4ah battery.

Craftsman 4ah replacement $99 each ONLY 2 year warranty

Kobalt (Lowes) comes with a 2ah, charger ,drill for $99 (on sale Labor Day)
Their 4ah replacement is just $49 and has a 3 year warranty

Dewalt sells a 2pack of replacement batteries for $180 or $90 each 2 year warranty

All three brands make nice Drills........its the replacement batteries that get you. My Dewalts always expired just after the warranty expired. Got tired of that and bought a Kobalt. It doesn't have as much name recognition, but its really well made.

Oh, the Kobalt has a 5 year warranty on the drill. Anyway, go buy one and try it. If it doesn't impress you, you can return it for a full refund and go buy a Craftsman or ?
The thing is, once yu buy a brand, you commit to buying only tools that use the same type of battery on future buys. So Battery Life and Battery Cost are important considerations. Try a Kobalt and I bet you will like it.........

Once you try a brushless lithium drill you will never be happy with an older drill. Buy only brushless.

Sorry I didn't heed your "brand X" request, but the only way to make my point was to mention the different brands and their batteries. I have lots of old Craftsman tools and 6 Craftsman toolboxes. My first cordless drills were Craftsman for many years, but the replacement battery costs drove me away from them. I'm not anti-Craftsman, but I am someone who appreciates a quality tool and a fair price.

You seem awfully hung up on battery costs. You do realize that they last at least a decade with regular use? And we’re talking minimal money here? 100 bucks over ten years?


OP,

I personally wouldn’t buy house brand ANYTHING. Makes it a hassle to buy compatible tools from other stores. The craftsman stuff is just a red dewalt. Buy the dewalt then you can buy tools anywhere that sells dewalt. There’s also a much bigger tool lineup.

As far as quality? Just about anything sold anywhere will work for a hobby use. You don’t notice the differences until you start using stuff every day on a job site. I’m sure the Craftsman will work great for you, but know there are better options for similar money.

I personally buy the best quality goods I can afford. Tools, clothes, cars, food, whatever. That very rarely leaves me wanting.

 

[techieman33]

You seem awfully hung up on battery costs. You do realize that they last at least a decade with regular use? And we’re talking minimal money here? 100 bucks over ten years?


OP,

I personally wouldn’t buy house brand ANYTHING. Makes it a hassle to buy compatible tools from other stores. The craftsman stuff is just a red dewalt. Buy the dewalt then you can buy tools anywhere that sells dewalt. There’s also a much bigger tool lineup.

As far as quality? Just about anything sold anywhere will work for a hobby use. You don’t notice the differences until you start using stuff every day on a job site. I’m sure the Craftsman will work great for you, but know there are better options for similar money.

I personally buy the best quality goods I can afford. Tools, clothes, cars, food, whatever. That very rarely leaves me wanting.

The Kobalt hand tools going away makes me nervous about buying Kobalt cordless tools. How long will they really be around?

The Craftsman tools are mostly from the Porter Cable line, not the Dewalt line.

 

[dr_clyde]

The Kobalt hand tools going away makes me nervous about buying Kobalt cordless tools. How long will they really be around?

The Craftsman tools are mostly from the Porter Cable line, not the Dewalt line.

Even worse then.

 

[Parrothead]

I’d be nervous about both Kobalt and Porter Cable and their longevity. Not the longevity of the tools themselves, but the longevity of the lines. Since Craftsman and Porter Cable both occupy both the same basic price point, I wonder how long PC will be expanded upon going forward vs Craftsman.

Back in the day, Black & Decker, Porter Cable and Craftsman used the same basic battery with some minor differences in attachment that were easy to overcome. I use a Craftsman Bolt On fast charger to charge my 20v B&D batteries for my string trimmer with no modification. If you wanted to charge the PC batteries all you had to do was notch the battery with a utility knife/Dremel.

I think the new Craftsman batteries have reversed the charging connectors making that impossible/harder.

All told, Stanley looks like they plan on putting their money behind Craftsman, so I suspect the tools are going to be well supported going forward.

 

[coleman10]

I think I'll price out from a few different lines what I need. I do think the Craftman line will be expanded and supported. SBD put too much money into that deal to let it flounder. DeWalt is nice, but I don't need 200+ tools. I really need just the basics.

Thanks, everyone, for your points of view and suggestions. All good things to think about.

 

[d.mcfarland]

I have a Craftsman V20 drill because I truly just wanted to see what it would be like.

Initial quality is pretty good, but I would never invest in the line for more than just the drill I have.

I would go with known quality like Dewalt or Milwaukee.

 

[kythri]

Since you asked, I'm not going to say "I own Brand X, buy Brand X!"

I have zero real-world experience with them, but I would recommend avoiding the new SBD Craftsman line, simply because I don't think it's going to last.

There's other brands out there that would fit your needs that either have proven long-term support, or are a premium brand that isn't going to dry up any time soon. At least a couple of those brands would require shopping somewhere other than Lowe's.

 

[coleman10]

I have a Craftsman V20 drill because I truly just wanted to see what it would be like.

Initial quality is pretty good, but I would never invest in the line for more than just the drill I have.

I would go with known quality like Dewalt or Milwaukee.

And that's only because you feel more comfortable with an established brand, correct?

 

[coleman10]

Since you asked, I'm not going to say "I own Brand X, buy Brand X!"

I have zero real-world experience with them, but I would recommend avoiding the new SBD Craftsman line, simply because I don't think it's going to last.

There's other brands out there that would fit your needs that either have proven long-term support, or are a premium brand that isn't going to dry up any time soon. At least a couple of those brands would require shopping somewhere other than Lowe's.

I wonder if waiting until the holidays to see if they bring out more options would make sense. According to reviews, they seem to be having issues with the batteries. I would be interested to see if that gets resolved. I'm the meantime, I'll price out some other brands. I'm also trying not to break the bank. Some other brands are a bit more expensive. It's only a few more months until we could see some specials out there.

 

[d.mcfarland]

And that's only because you feel more comfortable with an established brand, correct?

Yes, in a sense.

Meaning, the top tier names have proven top tier quality. The increase in price truly does mean an increase in quality in this case.

 

[powertrip]

Heres the deal.........Look at battery warranties and replacement costs.

Thats where they get most people. Most drills come with a 2ah battery but the Craftsman has a 1ah if you are correct. MOST people will want a 4ah battery.

Craftsman 4ah replacement $99 each ONLY 2 year warranty

Kobalt (Lowes) comes with a 2ah, charger ,drill for $99 (on sale Labor Day)
Their 4ah replacement is just $49 and has a 3 year warranty

Dewalt sells a 2pack of replacement batteries for $180 or $90 each 2 year warranty

All three brands make nice Drills........its the replacement batteries that get you. My Dewalts always expired just after the warranty expired. Got tired of that and bought a Kobalt. It doesn't have as much name recognition, but its really well made.

Oh, the Kobalt has a 5 year warranty on the drill. Anyway, go buy one and try it. If it doesn't impress you, you can return it for a full refund and go buy a Craftsman or ?
The thing is, once yu buy a brand, you commit to buying only tools that use the same type of battery on future buys. So Battery Life and Battery Cost are important considerations. Try a Kobalt and I bet you will like it.........

Once you try a brushless lithium drill you will never be happy with an older drill. Buy only brushless.

Sorry I didn't heed your "brand X" request, but the only way to make my point was to mention the different brands and their batteries. I have lots of old Craftsman tools and 6 Craftsman toolboxes. My first cordless drills were Craftsman for many years, but the replacement battery costs drove me away from them. I'm not anti-Craftsman, but I am someone who appreciates a quality tool and a fair price.

I have no experience with the new Craftsman line up but according to countless posts by other members and several articles on the tool review sites what your getting is basically Porter Cable in red. Nothing wrong with that tough. The info on the batteries is true. The Kobalt 2.0ah battery is $20 everyday. Nobody has a 2.0 battery that cheap with a 3 year warranty and a 5 year warranty on the tools which are all brushless. The 24v is not a gimmick. There is an extra battery in the pack. The Kobalt drill is heads above what the 20v Craftsman is. They are made by Chervon for Kobalt who makes other cordless tool brands, mainly over seas, google it. Here is a couple of reviews. Also Kobalt is not dead, they are scaling back Kobalt tools to make room for Craftsman and have expanded the 24v lineup this year with new tools due before the end of the year. The 24v line is not dead. But like others have said, just about any major cordless tool platform will be fine for you. I would also seriously look at Ryobi as well. I've been using that brand for 16 years and have had no problems. If I was using these tools professionally I would either go with Kobalt (due to warranty and battery price) Dewalt or Milwaukee depending on who offered what I needed. I post this while having probably 90% of my hand tools USA Craftsman.

Gets a decent review as well, 4.1 out of 5 here.
https://www.protoolreviews.com/tools...s-drill/25184/

And best in its category here.
https://www.protoolreviews.com/buyin...-review/44984/

 

[X1 Mike]

I know you don't want people suggesting brand x but have you considered going the factory reconditioned route? Below is a Makita set but CPO has many more choices this has two 3.0 ah batteries included. One benefit of going this way is I bought my main platforms now all I do is buy bare tools when I need something and it's way cheaper. I have bought at least 10 reconditioned tools from CPO and they all look like brand new.

https://www.cpooutlets.com/factory-...-driver-combo-kit/mktrxt260-r,default,pd.html

If you really want brushless here is a brushless kit with 4.0 ah batteries.

https://www.cpooutlets.com/factory-...ombo-kit--4-0-ah-/mktrxt269mr,default,pd.html

 

[zendriver]

I don't know about "brand X" But I have had the Chinese made Cman 19.2 V set for well over 10 years and they work just fine.

Original batteries work just fine too so I'm not with that sure what the obsession on replacement is.

Why don't you buy the 20 V set , and come back in 10 years and tell us how they held up? [emoji4]


Sent from my iPhone using The Garage Journal mobile app

 

[Farmall450]

You seem awfully hung up on battery costs. You do realize that they last at least a decade with regular use? And we’re talking minimal money here? 100 bucks over ten years?


OP,

I personally wouldn’t buy house brand ANYTHING. Makes it a hassle to buy compatible tools from other stores. The craftsman stuff is just a red dewalt. Buy the dewalt then you can buy tools anywhere that sells dewalt. There’s also a much bigger tool lineup.

As far as quality? Just about anything sold anywhere will work for a hobby use. You don’t notice the differences until you start using stuff every day on a job site. I’m sure the Craftsman will work great for you, but know there are better options for similar money.

I personally buy the best quality goods I can afford. Tools, clothes, cars, food, whatever. That very rarely leaves me wanting.

This. You can get higher quality DeWalt for not much more money. In store, a lot of the craftsman is Porter Cable, and a few things (shop blower, for instance) are identical to the DeWalt, but for less money IN STORE. Online, and new second hand, etc - you can find a far vaster array of DeWalt 20v that they will ever offer in Craftsman, although I will admit I'd take Craftsman over PC or Ridgid/Ryobi as a "tier two" tool. They're also impressed me by how fast they've taken over the stores -- farm & fleet essentially stopped carrying 20v PC bare tools to accommodate them. Powerful name, at least the buyers thing, and pretty damn good prices if you're buying in store.

 

[Farmall450]

I know you don't want people suggesting brand x but have you considered going the factory reconditioned route? Below is a Makita set but CPO has many more choices this has two 3.0 ah batteries included. One benefit of going this way is I bought my main platforms now all I do is buy bare tools when I need something and it's way cheaper. I have bought at least 10 reconditioned tools from CPO and they all look like brand new.

https://www.cpooutlets.com/factory-...-driver-combo-kit/mktrxt260-r,default,pd.html

If you really want brushless here is a brushless kit with 4.0 ah batteries.

https://www.cpooutlets.com/factory-...ombo-kit--4-0-ah-/mktrxt269mr,default,pd.html

There is a quite large array of cman 20v bare tools, for pretty good prices. The blower and light, for example, are identical to DeWalt/Mac and a good bit less $
https://www.farmandfleet.com/s/?keyword=craftsman+20

 

[coleman10]

I don't know about "brand X" But I have had the Chinese made Cman 19.2 V set for well over 10 years and they work just fine.

Original batteries work just fine too so I'm not with that sure what the obsession on replacement is.

Why don't you buy the 20 V set , and come back in 10 years and tell us how they held up? [emoji4]


Sent from my iPhone using The Garage Journal mobile app

I have the 19.2 tools, too, and they've held up well. My issue is the variable speed burned up in my drill. So I bought another drill. Now the clutch is messed up in that one. The line isn't supported, no replacement parts, obviously there will be no expansion - it's a dead line. I suppose I could perform surgery and see about swapping the board or switch from one drill into the other, but I don't want to drop more money into a dead line and throw good money after bad.

 

[X1 Mike]

There is a quite large array of cman 20v bare tools, for pretty good prices. The blower and light, for example, are identical to DeWalt/Mac and a good bit less $
https://www.farmandfleet.com/s/?keyword=craftsman+20

I just don't trust Craftsman not to get a better idea and abandon this platform in 3 years.

My first 18v LXT tool was purchased in probably 07 and I just added a new impact a month ago. Makita is expanding that line all the time. As far as the blower you mentioned I can get a new Makita for 10 bucks more and a reconditioned one for 10 bucks less. I bought the Makita recon blower and with a 4.0 ah battery in it it's a freaking hot rod!

https://www.farmandfleet.com/products/1271349-craftsman-cmcbl0100b-20v-compact-blower-bare.html

https://www.cpooutlets.com/makita-d...lower--tool-only-/mktndub182z,default,pd.html

https://www.cpooutlets.com/factory-...wer--tool-only-/mktrdub182z-r,default,pd.html

 

[kctyphoon]

Buy Milwaukee.

 

[coleman10]

Buy Milwaukee.

I was wondering when I'd see this.

 

[kctyphoon]

I was wondering when I'd see this.

The warranty alone could end up paying for whatever difference there is in price. Not to mention a lot more choices in tools, Free battery/tool promos, and nobody says people need to spend the money on the top tier stuff. Their regular brushed tools are still great, and their customer service is probably the best you could ask for.

Buy whatever you want. Its your money, but theres a reason WHY its the most popular brand on the forum.

To be perfectly clear - a tool being “brushless” doesnt not automatically mean its more powerful than brushed tools by default. Brushless motors are just a newer technology.

 

[Citation]

I wouldn't worry about the Cman-SBD 20V stuff going out of production the way previous C3 or Nextec stuff did. . Remember it's based on the same architecture as the DeWalt 20V (and likely shares an architecture with the lower cost B&D 20V stuff, kind of a Audi-VW thing).

I took a brief look at the Cman stuff. I ended up with Ridgid instead but that was a combination of sales at the time and not seeing the Cman until after the purchase was completed. Even still I'm not sure I would have gone with Cman.

So it looks to me like the Cman is kind of a lower end (and lower cost) "pro-sumer" line. In looking at the kits at Lowes it looks like there are both 1.5Ahr and 2.0Ahr batteries. I wouldn't be surprised if they are the same as the B&D 20V max batteries I have (in both 1.5 and 2.0 sizes).

For home use I can't think of any reason to avoid or suggest them. If you are going to expand into a platform I agree with others to look at the tools. I would also suggest thinking about the cost of the other tools.

I "accidentally" got into the B&D 20V stuff. I just bought a clearance 20V string trimmer for $20. Well later I decided the blower and circular saw would both be nice to have. Neither are powerful but since it was under $80 for the pair I'm OK with that. The same items for my Rigid battery system would be $80 and $130 respectively. My trimming needs are light, my sidewalk takes little to blow clear and the saw is just because my Nextec tiny circular saw showed me that it was nice to have a battery saw that could cut a 2x4 from time to time. At the price of the Ridgid tools I would never have purchased them. So keep not just the range of tools but the price of tools in mind.

 

[Rabid Badger]

Buy whatever you want. Its your money, but theres a reason WHY its the most popular brand on the forum.

Yeah. A marketing budget of over $1 billion/year.

 

[X1 Mike]

Yeah. A marketing budget of over $1 billion/year.

Estimated sales last year of 3.7 billion and spent 1 billion of it on marketing? Someone in marketing is doing a piss poor job. Unless of course you pulled that number out of your …… errrrrr out of thin air.

 

[X1 Mike]

I wouldn't worry about the Cman-SBD 20V stuff going out of production the way previous C3 or Nextec stuff did...…...

Is it just me or is that pure comedy gold right there. "Never mind what happened to the last two lines, this time will be different we promise."

Those that do not remember history...……………

 

[Fluelikesymptoms]

I have a Craftsman V20 drill because I truly just wanted to see what it would be like.

Initial quality is pretty good, but I would never invest in the line for more than just the drill I have.

I would go with known quality like Dewalt or Milwaukee.

Correct me if I am wrong but isnt the 20v craftsman a very similar but "updated" version of the dewalt 20v line?
By update I'm assuming the battery platform was "updated" so they cant be interchangeable.

I could be way off here, I just thought I remember hearing theres not a huge difference between the two.

 

[Citation]

Is it just me or is that pure comedy gold right there. "Never mind what happened to the last two lines, this time will be different we promise."

Those that do not remember history...……………

It's just you. You missed a key fact. Last time Sears was in charge. Sears is in charge of the other new 20V line. However, this discussion is about the SBD line. That one isn't likely to get overhauled until SBD is ready to overhaul the related DeWalt, B&D etc lines. So how often has DeWalt completely replaced their battery platforms?

 

[Farmall450]

It's just you. You missed a key fact. Last time Sears was in charge. Sears is in charge of the other new 20V line. However, this discussion is about the SBD line. That one isn't likely to get overhauled until SBD is ready to overhaul the related DeWalt, B&D etc lines. So how often has DeWalt completely replaced their battery platforms?

Once since 1994, but they're still supporting the '94 line.

 

[kythri]

It's just you. You missed a key fact. Last time Sears was in charge. Sears is in charge of the other new 20V line. However, this discussion is about the SBD line. That one isn't likely to get overhauled until SBD is ready to overhaul the related DeWalt, B&D etc lines. So how often has DeWalt completely replaced their battery platforms?

It's not just him at all.

Dewalt has a reasonably untarnished reputation, and is sold in a variety of channels. They're not going to upend that brand without solid reason.

The Craftsman brand, however, is significantly tarnished, and while I'm sure they want to polish that brand identity, it's a whole lot easier to walk away from a particular line development if the numbers warrant it.

Seriously, what's the incentive to purchasing Craftsman cordless power tools? Why buy them over other brands?

 

[WittHay]

Why does Ryobi exist? Can't stand the color and I dont know anybody that owns them or seen them on job sites

Rigid is common enough around here. See them used by trades people and on farms.

Rigid, Ryobi, Milwaukee and the older Craftsman 19.2 are (were) made in the same huge factory in China. The same way Mac, DeWalt, Porter Cable and now Craftsman are all made in the same SBD factory's in USA, Mexico as well as China

I have seen a ton of the new Craftsman in Rona but dont own any. To me they seemed like red DeWalt tools which is not a bad thing. DeWalt is the top brand or most used around here.

 

[techieman33]

Why does Ryobi exist? Can't stand the color and I dont know anybody that owns them or seen them on job sites

Rigid is common enough around here. See them used by trades people and on farms.

Rigid, Ryobi, Milwaukee and the older Craftsman 19.2 are (were) made in the same huge factory in China. The same way Mac, DeWalt, Porter Cable and now Craftsman are all made in the same SBD factory's in USA, Mexico as well as China

I have seen a ton of the new Craftsman in Rona but dont own any. To me they seemed like red DeWalt tools which is not a bad thing. DeWalt is the top brand or most used around here.

Because Ryobi isn't made for the trades. Ryobi is made for homeowners. They're not the most powerful, and they're not going to stand up to hard use everyday like Milwaukee, Dewalt, Makita, Hilti, etc. What they are is powerful enough to get most jobs done, and built well enough to last for at least a few years while getting light use on the weekends. While being cheap enough that the average homeowner can justify the price to themselves for that light use. Most of my tools are Milwaukee, a few M18, mostly M12 fuel. But I've been looking more and more at Ryobi for the occasional use tool. With the battery adapters available for Milwaukee, Dewalt, and Makita it's a pretty low entry barrier. I bought a caulking gun recently. Sure I would rather have the M12, but the Ryobi was 1/3 of the cost, and it's doing the job just fine for the couple dozen tubes of adhesive and silicone I'll go through in a year. A homeowner can accept $40-$50 for the caulking gun, or sander, or grinder, or whatever to make their weekend project a little easier. It's a lot harder to spend $150 on those tools from one of the higher end brands when you know it might sit for months or years before you need it again.

 

[WittHay]

Exactly my point if a Asian company like TTi can have a home owner brand like Ryobi to complement their Milwaukee and Rigid lines, Why cant a North American company like SBD have a home owner to middle tier brand like Craftsman to complement their DeWalt line.

Eliminate Black and Decker along with Porter Cable and just have DeWalt and Craftsman

 

[techieman33]

Exactly my point if a Asian company like TTi can have a home owner brand like Ryobi to complement their Milwaukee and Rigid lines, Why cant a North American company like SBD have a home owner to middle tier brand like Craftsman to complement their DeWalt line.

Eliminate Black and Decker along with Porter Cable and just have DeWalt and Craftsman

They do have a homeowner line. It's the Black and Decker stuff. They have the standard drills, impacts, saws, sanders, etc. They also have some OPE like string trimmers, hedge trimmers, even a chain saw. They just don't have much in the way of retail shelf space for it, except for places like Walmart and K-mart. And how often is someone from GJ going to go looking for tools at either one of those places?

As far as Porter Cable goes, they are pretty much dead as far as I can tell. I haven't seen anything new come out for that line in years. I imagine now that Craftsman has gotten far enough in their rollout that we'll start seeing less and less of it as remaining inventory dwindles. A lot of those tools are already wearing Craftsman red instead or Porter Cable grey anyway.

 

[Citation]

It's not just him at all.

Dewalt has a reasonably untarnished reputation, and is sold in a variety of channels. They're not going to upend that brand without solid reason.

The Craftsman brand, however, is significantly tarnished, and while I'm sure they want to polish that brand identity, it's a whole lot easier to walk away from a particular line development if the numbers warrant it.

Seriously, what's the incentive to purchasing Craftsman cordless power tools? Why buy them over other brands?

You maybe missing the same point. SBD isn't Sears and the old behaviors don't apply. Sears was always going to be somewhat at the mercy of the oems etc. However, it's no longer their choice. We need to look at what SBD had historically done to predict the future. SBD has shown that they will keep a platform around for a long time. Moreso, it's clear that the Craftsman and DeWalt lines share common architecture. Thus a change to one is likely only if there is a change to another.

 

[kythri]

You maybe missing the same point. SBD isn't Sears and the old behaviors don't apply. Sears was always going to be somewhat at the mercy of the oems etc. However, it's no longer their choice. We need to look at what SBD had historically done to predict the future. SBD has shown that they will keep a platform around for a long time. Moreso, it's clear that the Craftsman and DeWalt lines share common architecture. Thus a change to one is likely only if there is a change to another.

I'm not missing anything.

I'm saying that I flat don't trust SBD to keep the platform long-term, and I'm asking what real incentive there is to buy into the Craftsman platform over, well, any other platform?

 

[zendriver]

I'm not missing anything.



I'm saying that I flat don't trust SBD to keep the platform long-term, and I'm asking what real incentive there is to buy into the Craftsman platform over, well, any other platform?

I don't remember the exact voltages, but in the past there were lots of cordless tools sets (versa pack etc) 9v 12v ect, That were deemed useless with higher power tools were developed.

Are company just supposed to support all these platforms for life?

It doesn't take much to realize that to continue to support a 19.2 V platform in a 20 V just makes zero business sense especially since they want people to buy new products that's how they stay in business.

They're 20 V products are probably fine and should last many years

Forever? Not likely.


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