Sears to Sell off Craftsman Brand

Preferred Tool Brand

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BigblueC

BigblueC

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I was reading on another forum yesterday about Sears potentially selling off major brand names like Kenmore and Craftsman. That thread had more details about other companies placing bids until the end of the month when Sears was slated to make a decision to sell or not sell the Craftsman name brand. Then I found this in my news feed this a.m. (it is by the NY Times, which I have been skeptical of lately so no guarantees of its content) http://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/05/business/dealbook/sears-craftsman-retailing.html?_r=0

I own many drawers worth of Craftsman hand tools (sockets,ratchets,wrenches) spanning a few decades of manufacturing. Probably 3/4 of my Craftsman stuff was made 85'- early 2000's and I can tell a difference in quality of the old vs the more recent stuff made circa 05. I have been disappointed with the brand recently since I have broken newer sockets with typical use like a 18" breaker bar, and it's not the old sockets breaking. Aside from the finish the old sockets and wrenches are pretty much like new.

If the Craftsman brand does continue on under new management, I wonder how it will effect the "life time warranty" which has already been under distress with Sears. Any thoughts on this?

And while were at it whats everyone's preferred brand now days? Personally I think the Snap On prices are crazy, but a tool is something that I've learned to "buy right the first time, or buy it twice".
 
Sears seems to be a sinking ship. All the mice are pushing things over board to keep her afloat. Times have surely changed.
 
Sears has been going downhill since the early 70's. I am surprised they have lasted this long with all the mismanagement. When a company breaks it's word to the public, they will get what they deserve in the end.
 
Breaks it's word to the public? I don't recall what happened.
 
I walked into a Sears within the last three years and could scarcely tell the difference between it and a dollar store. A far cry from the business I'd visit with my grandfather as a kid to return a ratchet from 1965.

Shame, really. I still have my Grandfathers tools but can't imagine ever wanting a modern Craftsman replacement.
 
All of the big box stores have been losing huge market share to to internet sales.
 
I always bought Craftsman tools. The quality was good and you couldn't beat the guaranty. Snap On etc. was better and more expensive, but for my use in my home shop, the Craftsman stuff was fine.

IMHO, the Harbor Freight hand tools have kicked Craftsman's butts. The price is less, the quality is about as good as the current Craftsman, same warranty, and there's more Harbor Freight stores than there are Sears stores.

I still like the Craftsman stuff... Hard to buy except online. The Ace hardware stores carried Craftsman, but the only one that stocked tools went out of business last year. One K-Mart and one Sears store that really don't stock a lot of tools. There was a Sears hardware store near me that was like a toy store. They had every Craftsman tool, but they went out a few years ago.

I've bought some online though. You can really get some deals on Ebay for new Craftsman tools of you look around. But if you need a set of metric impact deep sockets, like I did recently, and you need them today, HF is just about the only option. They have two stores here.
 
Our closest Sears is 30 minutes away, but still the quality that I expect is shot. I did see that Craftsman released a "Professional Series" recently with a price point just below Snap-On. I haven't seen any in person so I have no opinion about these. Personally I hope that new management will capitalize on the old brand recognition and return to producing quality tools under the Craftsman name and at a decent price. Right now thought I'm getting to a point where I need to replace a few tools and would like to add, but I just will not pay Snap-On prices new or used. Kobalt left me with a bad taste 15 years ago so I haven't tried them lately but I have been hearing good things.

**300rag posted while I was typing. That's potentially good news for the brand.
 
If Craftsman is offering a "pro series", you can bet that the consumer stuff will now be made off shore. Kind of like their line of Sears tools that didn't have the Craftsman name.

Stanley and Black and Decker aren't the quality they used to be... I'm not optimistic about this at all. I expect that the lifetime warranty from our old tools won't mean squat anymore.
 
When Craftsman was made in the US, I bought Craftsman socket sets, etc. because the value was there. Now that most of it is made overseas, the value has disappeared. An important lesson that, sadly many of the Walmart generation don't understand is that cost and value are NOT the same. I'm glad to see Stanley B&D are trying to bring Craftsman tools back to the states but we'll see.

I still buy Channellock tools because they are still made in the US and of high quality. I'm a little bias on this because they are made in Meadville, PA which is where I grew up. Many family and friends have worked for and still work for Channellock.

Since Craftsman went to ****, I've switched to SK tools. Also American made and of high quality. I've never been disappointed by an SK tool, I can't say the same of the Craftsman line, even when they were made in the US although there is a price difference that would probably explain that.

Hopefully Ideal doesn't move production of SK tools off shore, so far they haven't.

Other tools are more trade specific. Kline and Ideal tools make excellent electrical tools and there are other trade specific that I gravitate to.

Here are a couple of good sites to check out, at the bottom of the Channellock page, they recommend some other US tool manufactures. Also, I recommend Bully tools for yard tools, buy one and you'll understand why, there are NONE better.

CHANNELLOCK Store : Member Login
Home Page
SK Tools
5 Brands of High Quality USA-Made Wrenches, Ratchets, & Sockets
 
My local mall has a Sears anchoring one end and a Kmart at the other. They are both morgues and depressing. The three employees in each store are drepressing. The mall is depressing. The people in the mall are depressing.

Hmmmm.... Wholesaletool.com has a Crescent 170-Piece Mechanic's Tool Set for 135 bucks...
 
Recently I purchased a 1/2" ratchet at Home Depot and have been very happy with it. I like it better than my Craftsman 3/8" and I'm thinking of getting a 3/8" from Home Depot now. The last craftsman tools I got were a timing light and a torque wrench, I didn't feel I wanted to trust Harbor Freight with those.


Alan


HFT.jpg
 
shooter65 said:
When Craftsman was made in the US, I bought Craftsman socket sets, etc. because the value was there. Now that most of it is made overseas, the value has disappeared. An important lesson that, sadly many of the Walmart generation don't understand is that cost and value are NOT the same. I'm glad to see Stanley B&D are trying to bring Craftsman tools back to the states but we'll see.

I still buy Channellock tools because they are still made in the US and of high quality. I'm a little bias on this because they are made in Meadville, PA which is where I grew up. Many family and friends have worked for and still work for Channellock.

Since Craftsman went to ****, I've switched to SK tools. Also American made and of high quality. I've never been disappointed by an SK tool, I can't say the same of the Craftsman line, even when they were made in the US although there is a price difference that would probably explain that.

Hopefully Ideal doesn't move production of SK tools off shore, so far they haven't.

Other tools are more trade specific. Kline and Ideal tools make excellent electrical tools and there are other trade specific that I gravitate to.

Here are a couple of good sites to check out, at the bottom of the Channellock page, they recommend some other US tool manufactures. Also, I recommend Bully tools for yard tools, buy one and you'll understand why, there are NONE better.

CHANNELLOCK Store : Member Login
Home Page
SK Tools
5 Brands of High Quality USA-Made Wrenches, Ratchets, & Sockets
Click to expand...
I gotta say, I picked up a Channellock set for my trunk about 10 years ago and aside from the case which is GAAAAHHHHHBBBAAAAGGGEE, those tools have treated me very well.
 
MrMoparCHP said:
The last craftsman tools I got were a timing light and a torque wrench, I didn't feel I wanted to trust Harbor Freight with those.
Click to expand...

Well... We used to get a lot of HF torque wrenches into our shop to calibrate. They checked just as good as everything else. Yea... It surprised me too.

I'm very selective in what I buy, but I bought a multi tool from HF a few years ago just to do a quick job. I figured I'd use it once or twice but I use that tool all the time now. They were selling German made versions for $200+ more and no one else offered them at the time. I'm sure the German one was a lot nicer and probably quieter, but this one does the same job. If I were to buy one now, I might look at a Dremel version, but at $18 for the HF, it's like a sore dick...
image_25860.jpg

Hard to beat...
 
commando1 said:
My local mall has a Sears anchoring one end and a Kmart at the other. They are both morgues and depressing. The three employees in each store are drepressing. The mall is depressing. The people in the mall are depressing
Click to expand...
Note to self.
Do not go to Mall in Sebring Florida.
 
IMO Harbor Freight has more in common with the Dollar Store and Salvation Army stores than just usually in the same strip mall. I gotta shop very carefully to find something worth my money. Depressing stores and poor service. The Craftsman stuff was the only reason to walk in a Sears store.
 
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