What to do?

[DRhodes]

New member here from Ohio. I'm an accountant by day, but love working in my garage at night. Here is my problem.

I love tools made in the USA.

I have a concern that Craftsman will eventually move ratchets, wrenches, and sockets overseas to China. The majority of my tools are Craftsman, and if that happens I think it will make them worth very little because if they break Sears would replace it with a China made tool.

Should I start selling all my craftsman stuff while its worth something and start buying Snap-On and Mac? I would say SK but I'm not sure what there future holds eaither?

I dont want to be stuck with cheap China made tools in 15 years.

What do you guys think will happen?

Remember I'm not a Full time mechanic so price is important to me.

Thanks for your input.

Derek

 

[csp]

How often do you break your hand tools?

 

[littlekillertoad]

Do you often break tools? If you're breaking a lot of tools now, I'm not sure what I'd do.
I hardly ever break tools, except screwdrivers. I can't help but use those little ones as prybars sometimes.
That being said, I wouldn't worry about selling your craftsman stuff now. It's not like it's going to turn into Chinese stuff in your garage overnight. I'd recommend looking at what you currently use/abuse the most and slowly converting that over to better quality stuff.
Right now, I'm going through that process. I've been spending a lot of time at flea markets and pawn shops buying quality used tools. I try to replace the tools that I think I'll use the most. For the prices I get, it's cheaper to do this than to sell my current tools and buy tool truck brands.

 

[Ed_EOD]

Do what I am doing, slowly replace your Craftsman with Wright, Snap-on, etc. while putting the Craftsman in storage and use in other areas. You really won't be able to sell used Craftsman for enough to make it worth your time anyway.

 

[DRhodes]

Toad that sounds reasonable. It seems like I break tools more often than I should. I would think that I break a tool a week. Like you said screwdrivers seems to take the most punishment as well as sockets. I buy the majority of my tools at the flea markets as well.
E DOD -Your right, Craftsman tools dont go for much, but I would sell it in set's on ebay to save on shipping.

 

[Danglerb]

Used Craftsman already has little value. Don't worry about what you can't control, and since its not a profession, ENJOY it. Buy some Snapon etc. if you find some good prices, but beware, premium quality tools are an addiction all to themselves.

Truth be told we don't know what Sears will do, or what will happen to it, but if it substantially lowers quality on the Craftsman brand, either by keeping it made in USA or going offshore, they will be toast.

OTOH there is no reason to assume that 10 years from now the best tools won't be Chinese.

 

[X1 Mike]

You are an accountant by trade so you already know that what you paid for your C-man tools are sunk costs and have no bearing on new tool purchases. If you are regularly breaking tools consider upgrading as they break, for example if you break a raised panel ratchet ask them how much extra to swap out with the new high tooth count ratchet. You could also take the new replacent tool and sell it as new to offset the cost of new higher quality tools.

 

[DRhodes]

Keep in mind I have purchased all my tools from flea markets - 3/8 ratchets cost me $5.00 a piece
1/4 inch cost me $3 and 1/2 inch was $7
all sockets were $1.00 or less (even for 1/2 deep well) .25 cents for 1/4" sockets

I dont have alot of money in them so when I sell I hope to recover what I have invested.

You guys have answered my question though, buy snap-on and mac when I find them cheap, and keep the craftsman untill I have replaced with a higher quality tool.

 

[big g]

craftsman made in china .they tried that.i have a socket .i am told it is 30 years old and japan they tried that.did not go over too well .look at flee markets for the good stuff.i try to buy from the same people i see there a lot.

 

[Boiler]

I pretty much agree with the rest. I don't have much craftsman. Some sockets and screwdrivers. But I don't buy more unless I absolutely need one or will waste too much time off of a project unless I go buy it on a sunday at sears, or something. Any planned tool buys are made elsewhere.

I wouldn't start selling though. You never know that in 10 years they all might be made in china, or maybe just the brand you bought.

I didn't notice you mention mac until your last thread. So far all the MAC I bought new (this past year) was not up to my standards and I sold it. I won't buy any more new unless I get my hands on it first and really give it a once over. I'll buy snap on online without questioning its quality though. Snap on may not be the best in each particular line, but they often are, or at a bare minimum can be expected to be a quality tool across 98% of their catalog.

 

[DRhodes]

Good point Boiler

 

[Davefr]

This reminds me of a thread a whilke back where someone wanted to replace all their SK tools because SK declared bankruptcy and was worried about the warranty. This is foolish IMHO.

Buy the highest quality tools you can get at the time you need them and if you use them properly you won't have to fret about the warranty. (old Craftsmans hold up just fine if used properly)

Continue using your Craftsman tools. The ROI on resale is already terrible. If one of them breaks and they hand you a Chinese tool then decide whether to use it, save it as a spare or replace it with something better.

In 15 years we'll probably have all Chinese tools. The SO branded Chinese tools will be expensive and the HF branded Chinese tools will be cheap.

 

[DRhodes]

Davefr - If thats the case, our old williams, plumb and proto tools may be worth alot more in 10 years. I would hate to see it come to that.

 

[Zebu Fellenz]

I think what you should be looking at first is why you're breaking so many tools.

Good quality screwdrivers rarely break if they're used correctly. Even cheap ones generally hold up pretty well unless they're used as prybars or otherwise misused.

Sockets are another tool that generally shouldn't break, they do wear out but that takes years of use. Are you using chrome sockets on an impact wrench? Or using 3/8" drive tools where 1/2" is really needed?

I own a fair bit of SO and the other premium brands but I bought them because they feel better in my hands or are otherwise nicer to use, not because they should hold up better to use and abuse.

Now to answer your original question. I would not buy SO, Mac or other brands of tools because they're "US made and always will be..." I feel that these companies are just as likely as Craftsman is to offshore their tool production. Go and buy the tools if you prefer them or feel they do a better job.

None of us can see the future so it's impossible to predict what tools with still be made in the US in the future.

Erik

 

[DRhodes]

Zebu - I do misuse my screwdrivers as prybars and that is why they break. The sockets I just have bad luck with. It seems most of the old stuff I work on are rusted and hard to break free and tend to crack the sockets. I dont use the sockets on an impact.

 

[PaulR]

woooooohooooooo !!!!!!!!! Another wrenching accountant!!!!
What does that make? Two of us out of 65,000 members??

My advice: Use breaker bars, that's what they're for. I invested in a nice craftsman lo-pro polished ratchet many years ago before I knew how good they were or what I was buying, anyways, keep those nice, don't beat on them. Some of those Craftsman hand tools are STILL made in the USA, gobble those up.

I keep junk tools in mobil boxes, vehicles, etc. I keep the nice USA Craftsmans in the Garage box drawers at all time. I'm thinking of even hanging the cheapo polished Chinese wrenches out on the pegboard just in case a thief breaks in they'll grab those first and run

 

[Davefr]

Davefr - If thats the case, our old williams, plumb and proto tools may be worth alot more in 10 years. I would hate to see it come to that.

Me too. So far the only tool manufacturers that appear to be committed to "Made in USA" are Wright and the new SK. I'm still not sure I totally believe Ideal/SK but we'll see.

 

[crewchief888]

if i was breaking sockets that often,
i'd be wondering about my methods of disassembly.

maybe look into better penetrating oil, or a heat source.

if you are beraking thr same sizes all the time, maybe upgrade those sizes to better quality