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Say Good Bye to the Hitachi Name

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Interesting! I've always been intrigued by the Metabo brand. Funny that Hitachi buys the company for name recognition, but folks in the US (for the most part) have never heard of Metabo but everyone knows Hitachi. Apparently, they want more of the Euro market.

Reply to
-MIKE-

Yes very interesting. But my thoughts, I have known about Metabo, probably longer than Festool. I knew it was an upper end brand, German IIRC. IMHO Hitachi has always been a good value tool but again IMHO did not ever have unique features, other then their tools looking a lot like a fancy design tennis shoe. Perhaps, like you said, they want to profit more from Euro sales of Metabo products. Hopefully the Hitachi built tools with the Metabo name plate will retain the same quality and features that the Metabo brand has offered in the past. One might imagine that Hitachi hopes to boost sales with the Metabo name plate here in the US.

Reply to
Leon

...and less of the US market.

Reply to
krw

Unless they market more of their tools here, I don't see that happening. I wouldn't buy a Metabo nailer unless there was a wide variety of other tools for sale right next to it.

My Hitachi framing nailer does resemble a tennierunner. ;-)

Reply to
krw

It seems most major cities, at least in Texas, has a Metabo service center. There are multiple on-line sources, including Amazon, that sell their products. Looking at their web page they offer, a variety of drills, grinders, track saws, vacs, etc.

Reply to
Leon

I've seen nowhere that I can actually touch one. Festools are "everywhere".

Reply to
krw

No, That will be the rub, they may not be available to touch until the Hitachi tools have the new name plate. ;~) I remember when Festool was pretty much the same, about 11~12 years ago.

Reply to
Leon

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I've known about Hitachi for awhile. Air nailers and miter saws were the t wo most common Hitachi tools. Always considered them construction crew too ls. Not fine woodworking tools used inside a shop. Always use them outsid e in the rain and dirt making houses, never furniture. Never heard of Meta bo until pretty recently. Had heard of Hilti before Metabo. Got lucky (Ha Ha) being introduced to Festool about 10 years ago when a big tool store i n town brought them in and had a big sale on them. I guess back then the n o sale prices on Festool rule, everyone must sell the tools at the exact sa me price rule, was not as rigidly enforced by Festool.

Metabo HPT (Hitachi Power Tools).

Reply to
russellseaton1

I recall Lowe's selling Hitachi Table Saws, Miter Saws, Drills, and probably 15-20+ years ago the Canadian father and son show, The Router Workshop, almost exclusively used Hitachi routers. It seems back in the late 90's many on this news group had Hitachi routers hanging in a router table.

I probably heard about Metabo about 25 years ago. IIRC Steve Night Tool Works used Metabo drills.

I think Festool went with fixed pricing when they quit selling direct to the customer. But you can still get discount pricing on Festool Tools if you buy combinations of tools. I got a significant discount when buying the Dust Extractor and buying another power tool, in my case the Domino, to go with it. When I bought the Kapex, it's mobile cart plus the left and right wing extensions I got a discount on the cart and wing extensions. If you bought the cart and both wing extensions as a combination you paid the same price as the cart and 1 wing extension.

Reply to
Leon

So what name will the Magic Wand be, it is a tool you know?

Reply to
Markem

We'll see. When Metabo has their tractor-trailer at Highland and gives away batteries, I may show up and try out their tools. ;-)

Reply to
krw

Festool does run sales occasionally. I've bought a few of their tools on sale.

Reply to
krw

Lowes still sells Hitachi tools.

I've certainly heard of them but have never seen one in the wild.

They've run sales every once in a while, too. I've bought a few tools on sale. Remember the Pro-5 sale? ;-)

Reply to
krw

By sale price on Festool I mean every vendor is free to sell the tool at a different price. Today every online seller, and every store in person sell s every Festool for the exact same price. No one varies that price by $1 o r $10 or $25. All exactly the same. I know Festool has reduced prices sor t of when you combine a vacuum and big tool. Or a track saw and a track. Price is less than if you bought each item separately. But that is not wha t I am talking about when I say sale price. And all of these combination p rices are the exact same with every single retailer. No one varies the bun dled price by even $1. All are required, instructed by Festool to sell eve ry single Festool tool at the prescribed MSRP that Festool states. In cont rast, do a Google search for a Makita or DeWalt SCMS. You will have 20 Ama zon vendors selling the saws for 20 different prices. And clicking on vari ous Google links will turn up 25 other vendors all with different prices fo r the same SCMS. With Festool, every Kapex is sold for the exact same pric e no matter who or where you buy it. No freedom for the vendor to distingu ish based on price.

Just imagine if GM or Ford or Fiat told every car dealer selling their bran d that they will only sell the cars/trucks for the price on the sticker. N o dickering, no bargaining with customers. If you do then your car dealer lot will be closed before the sun sets and every car will be taken back and you will be sued in court. I'm guessing this is illegal in the USA for ca rs. But somehow its allowed for tools.

Reply to
russellseaton1

If they were the only tool supplier, I believe things would be different. Festool does not have a monopoly (except on Festool tools), as there are plenty of suitably-equivalent tools.

Reply to
Bill

brand that they will only sell the cars/trucks for the price on the sticker . No dickering, no bargaining with customers. If you do then your car dea ler lot will be closed before the sun sets and every car will be taken back and you will be sued in court. I'm guessing this is illegal in the USA fo r cars. But somehow its allowed for tools.

Not sure what you mean. Ford, GM, Fiat all make cars/trucks that compete w ith each other. Add in Honda, Nissan, Toyota, Subaru, Hundai, Kia from Asi a. And add in BMW, Volkswagen, Mercedes, Audi, Volvo from Europe. No car dealer has a monopoly. But you can and do negotiate an individual price fr om every car dealer for every brand. DeWalt, Makita, Milwaukee, Porter Cab le all have different prices for every tool from all the different vendors selling these brands. Only Festool has one price no matter who sells it. It is the oddball out here.

After rereading your post I think I might grasp what you are saying. Maybe . But how can Festool control its retailers and no other company or produc t in the USA can exercise the same control? If Festool owned, controlled e veryone who sells its products, then yes they can dictate prices. But all of the vendors for Festool are privately owned businesses. They are not Fe stool owned sellers, distributors. All of these companies sell Festool and a thousand other items. And I'm sure they compete on price with everyone else on all these other items. I guess SawStop is similar to Festool. I t hink, not positive, that SawStop also dictates a price for every saw they s ell and that is the price. No competition for SawStop on price. Odd that Festool now owns SawStop.

Reply to
russellseaton1

Yes, but evidently, if you wish to be a Festool dealer you have to follow Festool's rules. I am not a lawyer, so I don't know anything about the legality of fixing a uniform price. Below you say that Festool now owns SawStop. I didn't realize that. It makes perfect sense though to me, based upon the price-point of the products. Marketing will be easier--"economies of scale", and all that...

Bill

They are not Festool owned sellers, distributors. All of these companies sell Festool and a thousand other items. And I'm sure they compete on price with everyone else on all these other items. I guess SawStop is similar to Festool. I think, not positive, that SawStop also dictates a price for every saw they sell and that is the price. No competition for SawStop on price. Odd that Festool now owns SawStop.

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Reply to
Bill

r brand that they will only sell the cars/trucks for the price on the stick er. No dickering, no bargaining with customers. If you do then your car d ealer lot will be closed before the sun sets and every car will be taken ba ck and you will be sued in court. I'm guessing this is illegal in the USA for cars. But somehow its allowed for tools.

with each other. Add in Honda, Nissan, Toyota, Subaru, Hundai, Kia from A sia. And add in BMW, Volkswagen, Mercedes, Audi, Volvo from Europe. No ca r dealer has a monopoly. But you can and do negotiate an individual price from every car dealer for every brand. DeWalt, Makita, Milwaukee, Porter C able all have different prices for every tool from all the different vendor s selling these brands. Only Festool has one price no matter who sells it. It is the oddball out here.

be. But how can Festool control its retailers and no other company or prod uct in the USA can exercise the same control?

If I'm not mistaken, Ariens, of snow blower fame, does the same thing.

They set the regular price and they tell the vendors when to run a sale and set those prices too.

I'd bet there are other companies that do the same thing,

If Festool owned, controlled everyone who sells its products, then yes they can dictate prices. But all of the vendors for Festool are privately owne d businesses. They are not Festool owned sellers, distributors. All of th ese companies sell Festool and a thousand other items. And I'm sure they c ompete on price with everyone else on all these other items. I guess SawSt op is similar to Festool. I think, not positive, that SawStop also dictate s a price for every saw they sell and that is the price. No competition fo r SawStop on price. Odd that Festool now owns SawStop.

Reply to
DerbyDad03

You mean like Saturn and Tesla were "closed before the sun sets and every car taken back and sued in court"?

I'm guessing this is illegal in the USA for cars. But somehow its allowed for tools.

It is not illegal for a manufacturer to require resellers to charge a specific price for a product. What is illegal is for manufacturers to get together and decide that they are _all_ going to charge the same price for a kind of product.

Reply to
J. Clarke

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