Were you at the US Street Rod Nationals in Tulsa in '76? That's the only time I had my craftsman tools in the States - or did you come up here and snitch a few???? However you got them, pack them up in a box and ship them home. I'll pay the shipping!!!
It's been Acklands Grainger for over twenty years up here. Acklands started out as an automotive and industrial supplier - similar to NAPA
Yes, Westward were/are good tools.
It sounds like Derby isn't offering their return, just that you may visit and greet them.
. Christ> >
...
...
I've Craftsman wrenches from the 40s-60s on the farm that are still good as new--the older socket sets are from my initial purchase-era of mid- to late-60s. They cover the normal range up to 1-1/4"; it's rare to find larger stuff from Craftsman so the heavy stuff is other. I bought a cheap 1/2" drive ratchet set a few years ago simply as was value-priced on sale solely for the metric sockets that were in short supply when returned to the farm -- the handle is adequate in service but lousy for feel so it doesn't get used. The prime ratchet that's been here "since forever" from the time I first remember in the 50s isn't identifiable by brand. It, unfortunately, is finally beginning to wear enough on the innards that it occasionally slips a cog...
There are other Craftsman hand tools like the pipe threader/dies and a large pipe cutter that were grandfather's that date from an unknown time
-- I venture the 30s or perhaps even earlier. They still are the "go to" ones. Of course, on a farm they don't get daily use but over that period of time they've done a lot of work...
There's a collection of a little of about everything here plus a lot of old no-name stuff. That that gets/stays to the front of the chest or on the hanging board is generally the S-K, Proto and one other which I can't recall now that were sets from the 40s, 50s, and 60s. Dad gave me a nice S-K 3/8" drive ratchet set for HS graduation in 63 that I've added some to that still have/use as well...he had two full sets similar vintage that are also still here and (mostly) still complete.
All in all, the Craftsman has held up as well as the other but I've not much direct experience with anything very new when I really stop and think about it --
Yes, but there are 3 Craftsman lines:
Craftsman
Craftsman Industrial/Craftsman Professional
Craftsman Evolv
The first two are made in USA by Danaher, the same company that makes Easco, Matco, and NAPA hand tools (and Fluke multimeters and Tektronix oscilloscopes???), but Craftsman Evolv is made in China, and warranty claims require a copy of the receipt.
The last formal review of wrenches I could find was in the Aug. 1993 issue of Consumer Reports:
Bench Top was Kmart's brand; Popular Mechanics was Walmart's. TrueCraft is or was made in Japan. Master Mechanic is True Value Hardware's brand, and I was surprised that its ratchet wore out in just
10,000 strokes (just like Great Neck), compared to over 30,000 for the higher rated ratchets. Olympia wore out in 20,000 strokes.
Yes, unless the store manager is a weasel, but I haven't encountered that, yet. I've used the warranty only twice, for 1/4" drive sockets, probably
8mm or 9mm, that I broke by turning them with a 3/8" ratchet.The merger that really got my attention. When Yoplait Yogurt merged with Moore Foods. The new company, known for short, as Yo Mo Fo.
. Christ> In Canada, there is a company called "Acklands" which has recently had
I checked the pawn shop. Nada. Car/Quest and True Value had Taiwan and PRC wrenches, respectively. Napa's MasterCraft wrenches are made in India, but claim on the spot replacement. I may jes go for the Craftsman USA made set, which goes on sale next week. The trailer I jes bought is prolly metric, anyway. I've got several Bonney SAE wrenches, but not a whole set. I was buying them piecemeal when the store discontinued the line.
To the guy that was sniveling about "snap-off", sorry to hear they've gone down the tubes. Snap-On usta epitmize US quality, their 60s-70s combo wrenches the finest money could buy. I'm almost positive they were made by Bonney, now defunct. That's the company that invented the brilliant "flank drive" box wrench. I first noticed Snap-On going cheap with a Chinese oil can. Broke first time I used it.
nb
This WAS in the sixties!!! They had a few quality problems when they tried to reduce their prices. He bought a "set" of tools - not from "open stock" and it appears they were not the same stuff.
I'll relate a story I've told on usenet before.
I wuz a neophyte bike wrench doing a top end job on a Puch "twingle". They had square head bolts. I had no square sockets to fit down in between the cylinder head fins, so used a 10mm Snap-On combo wrench, the open end, end-wise down into the fins on the square bolt head. I put a Crescent adjustable wrench on the shank/handle of the SO open-end wrench to provide twist leverage. Three bolts broke loose easily. The fourth did not. I continued applying torque on the SO wrech until the bolt finally gave. The wrench never broke, but the open-end head twisted 45 degrees to the shank/handle. This was a borrowed set, not my own. When I finally reassembled the head, I put excess torque on the wrench equally over the four bolts and managed to twist the open end wrench head back into line with the shank handle. I later told the person I borrowed the set from what had happened and told him if he could identify which wrench I twisted, I would buy him a new one. He could not. That IS quality and Snap-On once had it.
I've snapped the fingers off 2 Craftsman open end wrenches. When I worked as a Yamaha shop mechanic, but lived 100 miles from the closest Sears, failure was not an option and is the reason I've never considered Craftsman tools to be pro grade. I used S-K tools for many years and never had a failure, but this is when you couuld buy an S-K wrench or socket set for $15-25. They now cost as much as Snap-On sets did back in the 60s, i.e. in the $100-150 range. I don't need that kinda quality, anymore, but still will not buy junk.
nb
A wrench that will cold bend is NOT a quality wrench.
Sez you.
If the spanner fingers cold bend outward, bad mojo, as the size changes and the wrench will start rounding corners. This is common with Asian wrenches and why I will not buy them. In this case, only the handle bent (twisted). The open end spanner maintained its integrity and never spread. This, unlike Craftsman combo wrenches, of which I've snapped off a finger on two different wrenches. Besides, when the nearest Sears is 90 miles away, a bent wrench is better than a broken wrench.
nb
That's why I have spares of the most used tools. I even have cheap "loaner" sets for Billy Bob who want's to borrow a tool. ^_^
TDD
A great idea.
I'll probably get the USA made Craftsman set, since I'm jes a back yard DIY'er, anymore, and they go on sale, tomorrow. If one breaks I've already go my eye on a set of Proto's (at 3X price!), which now include flank drive technology in all their 12 pt boxes. Turns out the metric set I have is not German made, after all, but a set of Proto's. Duh. A damn fine wrench. ;)
nb
I hate loaning tools out to anyone I don't trust implicitly. I've loaned tools out before and when the tool was returned, I asked, "Where's the carrying case?", Billy Bob always answers, "Carrying case?" o_O
TDD
That sounds like a good question to ask at the point of the loan.
Billy Bob always answers, "Carrying
When I was a eng tech in Silly Valley, test techs would come around to anyone's tool chest and jest grab what they needed, they thinking themselves above the common courtesy of asking because of their "at all costs" mandate to get the product out the door. I would track the swine down and physically yank my tools outta their hand --along with other admonitions-- and got a rep for not tolerating such nonsense. Got so they left my stuff alone. I was prolly the only guy on the floor with all the tools/equip originally issued me. ;)
nb
LOL, I recall telling my manager that as engineers that were expected to do a lot of lab work we each needed our own personal set of tools that we were responsible for, and that it didn't work to keep borrowing tools from the technicians. To his credit, he agreed and we spent a couple of thousand dollars on tools, meters, and locking tool boxes.
I loaned my big pinch bar to my next door neighbor Jerry......
he was trying to clear some sort of blockage in his chimney, the rope broke and he couldnt get it out.....
I cant ask him again about it, since he just died from lung cancer........
a truly sad event, made worse by his son watching his dad die a horrible death..
if you smoke QUIT, jerry was 58 and looking forward to retiring....
this is a letter I sent to Sears regarding the quality of their Craftsman tools. I my or may not get a reply.
Re: Craftsman Tools & Products
To Whom Ever
In the many years that I have been repairing cars of mine, of friends & family and professionally, I have always purchased Craftsman tools because of their quality. The warranty was always a distance second in my purchase decision, quality was always the prime objective, quality. Craftsman was always a quality product, whether the product was a mechanics wrench, socket, ratchet or if it was a lawnmower, table saw, radial arm saw .... whatever, the product was a quality product, not anymore.
I purchased a Craftsman lawnmower. I had so many problems with it I took it back, within the 30 day re-turn period. I got so much grief from the store management on its return that Ill never ever purchase a Craftsman power product ever again. I have always recommended Craftsman products to friends, family and fellow professionals, but not anymore. There was once a time that the only place one could purchase Craftsman products was at Sears. There was once a time that Sears carried ONLY Craftsman tools, now Sears carries:
Rikon Wen Apex Pro DeWalt Port Mate Guhdo i-drill Black & Decker XCP
Of those mentioned above, Im only familiar with DeWalt and Black & Decker. These companies once were in competition with Craftsman, but Craftsman was almost always the choice, why, because the Craftsman brand was always a quality product and was always built, manufactured or made in the United State of America (USA), but the Craftsman product is now made in either Taiwan or China and the cost remained at the Made in USA price. Oh yeah, wasnt there a lawsuit in 2004 to wit:
A class action lawsuit has been filed against Sears, Roebuck and Co. on behalf of consumers. The suit alleges consumer fraud and claims that that Sears has been misleading consumers through false advertising that its Craftsman tool line is "Made in the USA." The suit states that promotions in ads, the website, on signs and labels that Craftsman is "Made in the USA" led consumers to purchase the tools out of a sense of patriotism. Consumers were also led to believe that Craftsman is of high quality because it is "Made in the USA." Pictures attached to the complaint clearly show metal parts from Austria, Denmark, China, India and Mexico on Craftsman tools boldly labeled as "Made in the USA."
The quality of the product is declining, but the cost continues to escalate. Well, if I can, Ill see to it the as many people I know never buy a Craftsman product ever again. If I can, i will see that this letter gets out to some Craftsman Blog out on the internet.
Thank You for ruining a great product just to increase your profits,
So there you go, this is my opinion take or leave it.
Welcome to the 21st century. Chinese owned companies can mfr goods on US protectorates islands like Guam and American Samoa and then sell the goods in the US labeled "made in USA". Parts can also be made anywhere, then assembled in the US and carry the same "made in US..." label. This all due to the US govt being the best govt money can buy.
nb
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.