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Whatever Happened to Skil's Power Tools?

winlinmac

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Aug 17, 2015
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USA
Skil's has gone through multiple acquisitions over the years and now has been recently acquired by Chevron. http://toolguyd.com/bosch-sells-skil-brand-to-chervon/ When I look at their power tools lineup, I only see their Wormdrive Skilsaws as being appraised by others.

Does Skil have a chance to rebound and make a larger presence in the market? Or are they overall considered entry--DIY?

Was thinking about trying out their cordless (USB-chargeable) screwdriver with saw attachment, but perhaps its a waste? :dunno:
 
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ChaseDE

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Aug 25, 2016
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Delaware
Haven't head that name in a while, been using a old "skil" saw (circular saw) for years handed down from my dad. it was always his preferred saw to the point that i now call all circular saws skil saws now.
 

jakemac

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New England
Just like other brands, outsourcing to Asia to the lowest bidder and the quest to keep prices down have lowered the brand to the starter/DIY level. Don't expect the brand to rebound, it's competing in the race to the bottom. Even their wormdrives (their lifeline product) are suffering in quality now.
 

gdocktor3

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Connecticut
^ yup. Overseas with everything else. I have a lot of older Skil saw's, drills, worm drives, etc that have been handed down from my great uncles, grandfathers, father, and even family friends that all work as good as they did since day one. They're a bit bulky and heavy, but run strong like bull.
 

AA/FC

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Maybe you could ask Paul Jr.....

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speed bump

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Butte Montana
Both Porter Cable and Skil suffered from being acquired and rebranded into DIY tools by the parent company. Skil was supposed to be a mid tier product in the Bosch line but really all they did was cheapen the worm drive saws (without lowering the price)and leave everything else at mediocre. Hopefully the new company can pull them up a ways because that worm drive table saw looks sweet.
 

zendriver

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Dec 10, 2014
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Indiana
LOL At first, I thought it was Chevron, wonder why an oil company wanted a power tool manufacturer. :rolleyes:

If Chervon make the quality Sears tools, they should be fine with Skil.
 

hillbilly slim

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Sep 21, 2016
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Campo
I use a skil circular for cutting plywood and a skil mag77 for framing and cutting crete. Both work great. The circular a little whinny but 8yrs old and done a lot of cutting. Happy skil owner...
 

jd_1138

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NE Ohio
That thing is ugly as sin.

That's actually a lot nicer looking than the bikes that come out of his dad's shop -- OCC. :)

As for Skil, the Skilsaw branded ones are their professional quality saws. The Skil ones are homeowner grade.
 

creativecars

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Nov 15, 2010
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4,300
Location
Indiana- where horse and buggies still roam
I have been using a skil 18 volt set for years (12 to 15). It did what I needed it to do at the time and just as the batteries were about to make the set obsolete they came out with the Li-ion battery set that brought new life back to an old set. I cant complain, I have and still use them hard. Would not trade for a yellow set...
A few new additions with 18V has been to the Milwaukee M18 line, but I saved a lot of money by not playing the 20v/24v game that some companies did.

These...https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004W66YT4/?tag=atomicindus08-20
 

Zeke

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Aug 13, 2009
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Location
Long Beach CA, the sewer by the sea.
Both Porter Cable and Skil suffered from being acquired and rebranded into DIY tools by the parent company. Skil was supposed to be a mid tier product in the Bosch line but really all they did was cheapen the worm drive saws (without lowering the price)and leave everything else at mediocre. Hopefully the new company can pull them up a ways because that worm drive table saw looks sweet.

I use a skil circular for cutting plywood and a skil mag77 for framing and cutting crete. Both work great. The circular a little whinny but 8yrs old and done a lot of cutting. Happy skil owner...

I'm on my 3rd Model 77. Actually I'm using #'s 2 and 3, 2 being the Mag Saw. I can't tell any difference in the quality from my first all metal 77 which would still be going if the roofer didn't drop it 2 stories.

AFA PC is concerned, they still make a damn fine router.

But, yes, the Skill brand sold at hardware stores, et al, was and is junk AFIC.
 

lazer50

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Aug 12, 2016
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606
Location
east central indiana
I didnt realize they were still in business.i just checked out the website looks like they have a full line of tools.and it seems they're owned by bosch
 

Kev442

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Jan 15, 2009
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Wi
My last Skil purchases were just as US production ended around 2004/5. Very happy with the circular saw and 3/8" drill, but will not buy their chineseum products. I never used saws often enough to buy a Skilsaw.
 

lbhsbz

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Jan 13, 2010
Messages
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Location
Long Beach CA
Both Porter Cable and Skil suffered from being acquired and rebranded into DIY tools by the parent company. Skil was supposed to be a mid tier product in the Bosch line but really all they did was cheapen the worm drive saws (without lowering the price)and leave everything else at mediocre. Hopefully the new company can pull them up a ways because that worm drive table saw looks sweet.



I'm proud to own a real saw, made by porter cable...I bought it at a swap meet 20 years ago and looked old as dirt at that point. Not a piece of plastic on it, except for the skil switch I used to replace the original that failed. The top handle is made from rebar, it weighs a ton, but will power through anything if you can hang onto it.
 

drink

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Confused State
Skil's has gone through multiple acquisitions over the years and now has been recently acquired by Chevron. http://toolguyd.com/bosch-sells-skil-brand-to-chervon/ When I look at their power tools lineup, I only see their Wormdrive Skilsaws as being appraised by others.

Does Skil have a chance to rebound and make a larger presence in the market? Or are they overall considered entry--DIY?

Was thinking about trying out their cordless (USB-chargeable) screwdriver with saw attachment, but perhaps its a waste? :dunno:

I own some older corded Skil circular saws and they are good saws in my opinion. After reading this post I pulled up Skil's website and found they have a Pro line of power tools but so far I haven't found any cordless tools in the Pro line. They still have a good selection of worm saws and other tools. I don't know where they make them now but you should call them and ask them to tell you where they are made and which of their tools are built to last.

http://www.skilsaw.com/saws#/17744
 

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thor80

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Nov 13, 2014
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93
Bought one of the last US made worm drive saws, it's a a great machine. They have visually cheapened since being sent to Asia better off these days with a made in Asia makita worm drive
 
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W

winlinmac

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Aug 17, 2015
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USA
The only circular saw I own is the DEWALT 15-Amp 7-1/4-in Magnesium Corded Circular Saw with Brake, Model #DWE575SB
 

rreexx88

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Sep 6, 2022
Messages
2
I own some older corded Skil circular saws and they are good saws in my opinion. After reading this post I pulled up Skil's website and found they have a Pro line of power tools but so far I haven't found any cordless tools in the Pro line. They still have a good selection of worm saws and other tools. I don't know where they make them now but you should call them and ask them to tell you where they are made and which of their tools are built to last.

http://www.skilsaw.com/saws#/17744
Hello!, can you please upload a picture of the SKILSAW 5660 label?. Or e-mail me at [email protected] as I need to compare it with mine from the S-B Power Tools era...Thank you!
 

neophyte

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Apr 23, 2012
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Pennsylvannia
Skil got purchased by Bosch decades ago.
Bosch folded Skil into its US S&B Power Tool division ( technically another owner was involved, but Bosch bought them out).
S&B Tools stood for Skil and Bosch.
Bosch at that point manufactured a lot of tools in the USA.
The Bosch tools were the fancy tools, sometimes made in the USA, and sometimes Europe( usually Germany or Switzerland), with innovative features similar to the kind of thing Festool is now known for.
The Skil brand was mostly used for the simpler lower featured “industrial” tools, like worm drive saws, and basic biscuit joiners etc.
Eventually bosch started taking there European homeowner or hobby tools, and started selling those under the Skil brand in the US, with a few sold under the Bosch brand.
Then Bosch started making and importing cheap homeowners grade tools from Asia and sold these tools under the Skil brand, with the quality Skil holdouts being the worm drive saws.
Eventually, around the time Amazon started selling tools, Bosch started importing tools made all over the world, and sold the tools under the Bosch brand as well as the Skil brand.
Bosch’s reputation took a nose dive in the US around this time, and Festool wound up as the “high wuality” tool brand for woodworkers, even though the Bosch tools were sometimes better though out, and were previously occupying the same market segment, but with Bosch considerably cheaper than typical Festool prices.
I presume Chervon must have been manufacturing a bunch of the Bosch designs, particularly the worm drive saws under the Skil brand, after production got switched to Asia, and so Bosch sold Chervon the Skil trademarks etc, even though some of the Bosch and Skil tools currently have similar basic designs, and may still be made in the same facilities.
Bosch currently seems to be trying to regain there higher market reputation.
Skil and Skilsaw are producing more innovative designs than what was released when they were the middle range Bosch brand.
 

rustyzman

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May 7, 2015
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Chicagoland
My Grandfather was a Tool and Die maker at SKIL for over 30 years starting in the early 50's. Right up on Elston Ave.
Back in his heyday, they made a great line of quality tools. Innovative stuff for their day too. A SKIL drill and a SKIL worm drive saw were Standards. They had some great heavier duty stuff too, including the early big electro-pneumatic demolition hammer (that looks almost exactly the same as the newer Bosch version... after the buyout) and quite a few air powered tools. Some of the large caliber circular saws were insanely big. I have seen a couple, but never owned one of the big boys. I have an ancient smaller ROTO HAMMER that still works great. Dad still has a couple of the old metal drills that will probably never die.

He was proud of the work he did and the products they made. As time went by moving up into the mid 80's, when they moved to Texas as I recall (and he retired), the quality had slipped a lot. Materials and design had changed dramatically and they were working toward a price point type of tool for a lot of their stuff. Cheaper cords, light plastic tools, less professional and more "Handy Andy" stuff. The last great little tool I recall was the SKIL Super Twist electric screwdriver. Before a lot of folks had cordless drills, that was a handy tool to have. Not a professional tool at all or super powerful/durable, but a forearm saver for sure. It gave them a nice DIY boost for a while.

Grandpa was involved in development of some of the tools and said that Sears at one time wanted SKIL to make them a house branded Super Twist driver. He said that at the time, the price Sears was willing to pay was so low that they could not do it and still make a reasonable quality tool. No idea if they ever did eventually make them one.

When they moved to Texas, they closed down the entire shop in Chicago. He was one of the last to leave. He said they took all the tools in the shop: cutting tools, drills, hand tools, everything; and threw it all into dumpsters that they locked up. They did not want to move it and nobody could take anything at all, it was all scrapped. I think production went to Mexico not long after Texas.

I think Bosch bought them for some technology, like the demolition hammer and just pushed the SKIL name further into the cheaper tool market. I can't blame them, SKIL kind of lowered themselves into it before Bosch got there.

They played some crappy games trying to push him out right before his pension was ready and eventually played some games with his pension payout too. Very unfortunate really. Shop foreman made sure he had busy work till the end and could stay on. Good man.

I have his Desmond Stephan SIMPLEX vise from his bench that he used for over 30 years there. He said that vise was leaving with him on his last day and made sure nobody touched it or scrapped it.

I can't imagine SKIL will be a great name again. Just my thought.

Just some memories and a touch of history.
 

dnschmidt

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Oct 3, 2014
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Phoenix, AZ
I've been a tool freak all of my life. From my earliest childhood memories I always loved tools and have no idea as to why. Where I lived in Bloomfield (a section of Pittsburgh, PA) I could walk to the Black and Decker store on Baum Boulevard in one direction and to the Skil store on Liberty Avenue right after the Iron City Brewery in the other direction. As a 10 year old I couldn't buy anything in either store but I would go in and fondle all of the spectacular tools on display. The clerks at each store got to know me so they would always show me their new stuff which was always the best they could make. One day my dad needed a drill and we went to the Skil store and picked one out. I still remember that day. This was when America made the best of many things. Now we make the best of very few things. I'm really glad I'm old. I'll likely be dead before this whole house of cards finally collapses or at least I hope so.
 

Under_Pressure

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May 13, 2014
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115
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NE Wisconsin
As noted, an old thread, but kind of an interesting brand to follow as time has gone on. I'm still a big fan of the "Skilsaw" branded pro-level tools. While I would much, much rather see them USA made, I honestly don't see the "cheapening" of the worm drive line since they moved production to China; they may very well be producing their best products ever (again, I just wish they would be producing them in the US). Their cordless worm drive is in a class by itself (including, admittedly, in weight and bulk, but a true worm drive man shouldn't concern himself with such things). However, it seems to me that they are also trying to step their game up with the Skil branded cordless line, which has long existed solely to fill the low end power tool slot at big box stores. They appear to be trying to position it as a "prosumer" line at minimum, if not professional. I'm not sure how successful they will be because a lot of damage has been done to the Skil name in the past 30 years, but it is interesting to see.
 

finn

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Mar 27, 2005
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The UP, God's country
My Grandfather was a Tool and Die maker at SKIL for over 30 years starting in the early 50's. Right up on Elston Ave.
Back in his heyday, they made a great line of quality tools. Innovative stuff for their day too. A SKIL drill and a SKIL worm drive saw were Standards. They had some great heavier duty stuff too, including the early big electro-pneumatic demolition hammer (that looks almost exactly the same as the newer Bosch version... after the buyout) and quite a few air powered tools. Some of the large caliber circular saws were insanely big. I have seen a couple, but never owned one of the big boys. I have an ancient smaller ROTO HAMMER that still works great. Dad still has a couple of the old metal drills that will probably never die.

He was proud of the work he did and the products they made. As time went by moving up into the mid 80's, when they moved to Texas as I recall (and he retired), the quality had slipped a lot. Materials and design had changed dramatically and they were working toward a price point type of tool for a lot of their stuff. Cheaper cords, light plastic tools, less professional and more "Handy Andy" stuff. The last great little tool I recall was the SKIL Super Twist electric screwdriver. Before a lot of folks had cordless drills, that was a handy tool to have. Not a professional tool at all or super powerful/durable, but a forearm saver for sure. It gave them a nice DIY boost for a while.

Grandpa was involved in development of some of the tools and said that Sears at one time wanted SKIL to make them a house branded Super Twist driver. He said that at the time, the price Sears was willing to pay was so low that they could not do it and still make a reasonable quality tool. No idea if they ever did eventually make them one.

When they moved to Texas, they closed down the entire shop in Chicago. He was one of the last to leave. He said they took all the tools in the shop: cutting tools, drills, hand tools, everything; and threw it all into dumpsters that they locked up. They did not want to move it and nobody could take anything at all, it was all scrapped. I think production went to Mexico not long after Texas.

I think Bosch bought them for some technology, like the demolition hammer and just pushed the SKIL name further into the cheaper tool market. I can't blame them, SKIL kind of lowered themselves into it before Bosch got there.

They played some crappy games trying to push him out right before his pension was ready and eventually played some games with his pension payout too. Very unfortunate really. Shop foreman made sure he had busy work till the end and could stay on. Good man.

I have his Desmond Stephan SIMPLEX vise from his bench that he used for over 30 years there. He said that vise was leaving with him on his last day and made sure nobody touched it or scrapped it.

I can't imagine SKIL will be a great name again. Just my thought.

Just some memories and a touch of history.
I interviewed for a Product Engineering job at the Easton Ave facility, probably in the mid to late seventies. Didn’t get an offer, though, as the pay was much less than I was already making.

The facilities were pretty cramped, dismal, and outmoded, from what I remember, and all of what they considered R&D was really cost reduction.

I think they were losing money big time, even then.

Bottom line is, something had to change. Those old products we all seem to like just weren’t competitive, and that’s what forced the changes.

Changes that didn’t work out as planned so the company doesn’t exist as a stand alone anymore. It’s just a marketing name for another import.
 

southalabama

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Jan 10, 2011
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Location
Brewton AL
Yep but it’s a catch 22 for a newbie. Start a new thread and a few people will tell him to use the search function or bring something back from the dead.

At least is wasn’t pvc air lines.
 
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