Craftsmen tools

[cassisrot]

Are they made in Taiwan or China or ?.

[Noah930]

I bought a Craftsman tool set maybe 2 years ago. Most of the tools were from China IIRC, but some (like the smaller screwdrivers and allen wrenches) were stamped "Made in America".

[ed317]

can I still exchange out bad ones for new ones?

[URY914]

Originally Posted by ed317

can I still exchange out bad ones for new ones?

No.

[Scott Douglas]

I ran into one of the best sales on them last Christmas. Set had something like over 200 sockets with it and ratchets for less than $200 if I remember correctly.
Sure hated to see Sears go down as they were my go to store for them.

[dad911]

I have a craftsman set and a HF set on shelf in a vacation home, a few hundred feet from the ocean. The craftsman set started to rust, HF set still looks fine.

My old craftsman ratchets from the 70's still fine, newer ones failed.

I'll never buy Craftsman tools or Optima batteries again.

[monoflo]

I was able to exchange a broken 3/8 driver about a month ago . No charge--wrench was like 30 years old - pretty sure the replacement was not USA. Lowes

[RWebb]

if they are "Made in America" then where is the steel made??

BTW, I see a lot of props for Tecton as the low cost quality wrench

[asphaltgambler]

There was a time when they were a great hobby level tool name. Unfortunately, that was long ago. Craftsman brand was about the only thing Sears had left- but the poor quality in the last 20 years erased all the gaines prior. Harbour Freight on the other hand has stepped up some. I wouldn't consider buying anything Sears related.

[rusnak]

I bought one of their rolling tool chests for the warehouse. It seems fine to me.

[David]

Originally Posted by ed317

can I still exchange out bad ones for new ones?

Yes, maybe, depends on whether or not the person you talk to at Lowes understands that they do have a Full Lifetime Warranty. There's been much discussion about this and issues with it at our shop.

[varmint]

Craigslist is full of well made 50 year old craftsman tools.

[JackDidley]

Stanley B&D bought Craftsman in 2017. I read recently that Stanley is spending huge money to shut down the China production and bring it back to the U.S.A. Maybe things will get better.

[GH85Carrera]

Originally Posted by JackDidley

Stanley B&D bought Craftsman in 2017. I read recently that Stanley is spending huge money to shut down the China production and bring it back to the U.S.A. Maybe things will get better.

That would be great. I will not buy a China made Craftsman tool. I have lots of the good old made in USA tools I bought when I was still a puppy. I have broken and received free replacements more than a few Craftsman tools. Most breakage due to abuse on my part. Jumping up and down on a 3 foot pipe extension will break many tools.

[pmax]

The good Craftsman tools are better than the HF throwaway junk.

Just gotta know which are the ones.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by pmax

The good Craftsman tools are better than the HF throwaway junk.

Just gotta know which are the ones.

The old ones.

[JackDidley]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

That would be great. I will not buy a China made Craftsman tool. I have lots of the good old made in USA tools I bought when I was still a puppy. I have broken and received free replacements more than a few Craftsman tools. Most breakage due to abuse on my part. Jumping up and down on a 3 foot pipe extension will break many tools.

I have those old ones too. Some 50 years or more. Damn I am old.

[vash]

mine are maybe 40 years old now!!! i started buying them when i was 18!!

expect the 10mm socket, that one is very new. wait, crap..well, the next one will be really new.

[Scott Douglas]

I got my first set as a graduation present when I got out of high school. Yeah, mine are old.

[masraum]

Most of my core tools were a gift from my parents when I turned 16. I also have my dad's core ratchets and sockets and some other odds and ends that I remember using as far back as I can remember. The toolbox that they are in were a gift from my grandmother to my father