What gives???

[cj7365]

So I have read all the threads about c man being made in china, so why doesnt bluepoint get bashed as well.

I am shopping for some ratcheting wrenches, but cannot aford snap on, I usual go wirh c man, because they are now made in china I said let me check out bluepoint, well forget bluepoint, why would I pay double the price than c man, if they are both china ****

Educate me

Is bluepoint the "snap on" for chinese ****?

 

[mmack66]

They are made in Taiwan.

 

[fordbroncodave]

the only reason craftsman is getting bashed is become it became in the spotlight recently for moving operations to china. alot of people still bash blue point for what ever reason.

craftsman killed themselves by selling volume for low $$$. they forced themselves into that position to move operations to china or where ever

 

[zer01]

Craftsman can be bought at a brick and mortar store as opposed to Blue Point or other brands. It was the one brand that was USA made within reach of every man, or woman by simply going to the store. The fact it is all being outsourced to China/Taiwan disappoints the average person who can no longer walk into a store and walk out with USA made tools. They now have to choose to buy the overseas tools at the USA made price, or seek tools elsewhere for more money and less convenience. Not everyone can afford or have a tool truck come to their home for purchases and warranty service.

 

[oldtools]

I don't think SO ratcheting wrenches are made in the US either. They have no COO.

 

[RKA]

It's been discussed ad nauseum. Taiwan is not analogous to China. There have been very good tools coming out of Taiwan for quite a long time, where that tends to be the exception for China. When I'm not looking to spend for the Made in USA label but still want something that will hold up, I'll happily look at the good Taiwan COO tools. Whether that's worth twice the price of Sears/China is only a question you could answer. For me, definitely and twice on Sunday.

 

[franzdom]

For the record, Blue Point is private label product made by various suppliers in many countries, yes even the USA and China but Taiwan is likely the majority.

 

[nmk_61802]

Craftsman can be bought at a brick and mortar store as opposed to Blue Point or other brands. It was the one brand that was USA made within reach of every man, or woman by simply going to the store. The fact it is all being outsourced to China/Taiwan disappoints the average person who can no longer walk into a store and walk out with USA made tools. They now have to choose to buy the overseas tools at the USA made price, or seek tools elsewhere for more money and less convenience. Not everyone can afford or have a tool truck come to their home for purchases and warranty service.

Also I could be mistaken, but Bluepoint was never marketed as a USA brand. It was always second fiddle to the Snap-on brand.

Think Evolve to Craftsman

 

[BajaBound]

I have a 155 blue point socket set and I also the identical Williams and New Holland tractor brand tools and they are of excellent quality from the same Taiwan factory. They are completely interchangeable. I believe blue point at one point was USA made.

Craftsman how ever makes up a large chunk of my tools and it is a no go for me now that it's a China brand. Some things where already china made but once the chrome tools started becoming chinese I was done.

 

[cj7365]

Craftsman can be bought at a brick and mortar store as opposed to Blue Point or other brands. It was the one brand that was USA made within reach of every man, or woman by simply going to the store. The fact it is all being outsourced to China/Taiwan disappoints the average person who can no longer walk into a store and walk out with USA made tools. They now have to choose to buy the overseas tools at the USA made price, or seek tools elsewhere for more money and less convenience. Not everyone can afford or have a tool truck come to their home for purchases and warranty service.

This sounds exactly like me, I hate that c man went to china.
I really need a set of metric ratcheting wrenches. I was looking at the Pittsburg brand, I can get a set w/coupon for $17.00

 

[ssblood]

The SO are made in the USA. Went round and round with my dealer before I bought them.

Disappointing is a 780 dollar 3/4 SO impact being made in Taiwan. It's worth every penny though.

 

[fordbroncodave]

Also I could be mistaken, but Bluepoint was never marketed as a USA brand. It was always second fiddle to the Snap-on brand.

Think Evolve to Craftsman

well, in the last 15 years it was questionable where blue point items were made, however most if not all blue point was USA made. look at the old stuff; wrenches,screwdrivers,pliers

 

[jjjrmx5]

Also I could be mistaken, but Bluepoint was never marketed as a USA brand. It was always second fiddle to the Snap-on brand.

Think Evolve to Craftsman

Not exactly.

In its current form, it was meant to act as a supplimental and often lower cost tool solution for tool users just starting out or on a budget. The COO of the tools were never an issue and varied from the USA,Taiwan, Germany, Spain and others depending upon specific supplier and tool.

A lot of Blue Point tools were/are not available as Snap-On products thus filling the need market for short run or temporary items or those Snap-On felt did not warrant a full time commitment for the long run of prodution.

In current years I;ve seen a slow slide toward toward more Chinese made BP tools as most anything BP I;ve seen in the early 2000's and before was US,Taiwan or Euro based for the most part.

As for quality, BP fits its slot, and is nothing to riducule. It comes off the truck and in most cases is a quality tool, especially if there is no Snap-On brand upgrade or eq.

Are there better options than BP? sometimes yes and sometimes no, but I'll bet you'll find a smattering of BP tools in most Snap-On users toolboxes as a result of buying a speicalty tool or a "need it now" solution.

As mentioned above Blue Point was highly regarded many years ago as its own brand that was very highly respected and sought after.