After 85 years of USA Made, Craftsman hand tools now Chinese
#61
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I was bound to happen. All the companies are soon it and the only way to compete is to do the same. Sadly, in some cases Made in China doesn't always mean horrible quality. The iPhone I'm using right now works great and it was assembled in China...
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I hate to see this happen, but to be honest the quality of craftsmen tools have been going down hill for some years now.
I bought a few of the their floor jacks a couple years back and they have not lasted at all. I'm very disappointed with there performance.
I bought a few of the their floor jacks a couple years back and they have not lasted at all. I'm very disappointed with there performance.
#65
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Ive seen it on several other automotive sites... people say what a great deal and how awesome HF is...but yet they complain about craftsman going overseas...its like driving by a Blockbuster and bitching because its closing as a stack of netflix DVD's slide around on the passenger seat of your car...
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Can't complain too hard, we as a whole are just straight handing it to them, whether you like it or not.
back to the Craftsman tool thing, I also just noticed the other day that ACE hardware sells craftsman tools too, but at quick glance they seemed to be more like those "evolve" line tools too... don't really know though.
Also, it sounds like most of you who are pissed off about it seem to be professional mechanics by trade... where to me it seemed most professionals didn't use Craftsman anyway, whether USA made or not!!!
Kind of ironic.
I'm just a weekend mechanic, and throughout all my experiences I have been mostly satisfied with Craftsman cost/quality/warranty in general. Have had complaints here and there, but to be expected IMO. Cannot justifty paying Snap on prices.
#68
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Good call, they have really impressed me lately. I have a few hand-me-down Wright tools, so I checked them out and found this on their site:
"Made Entirely in the U.S.A.
From the design and engineering to the forging and finishing, all work on Wright tools is performed in the United States by skilled American workers. We do not use foreign blanks or forgings. Even the steel we use is American-made."
This is an excellent point they are making. I'm sick of hearing about the tool quality from different countries of origin, who cares. I expect quality, but I'm purchasing USA made for a reason, and if you are telling me the whole process is USA made from the design to materials to assembly, I commend that.
"Made Entirely in the U.S.A.
From the design and engineering to the forging and finishing, all work on Wright tools is performed in the United States by skilled American workers. We do not use foreign blanks or forgings. Even the steel we use is American-made."
This is an excellent point they are making. I'm sick of hearing about the tool quality from different countries of origin, who cares. I expect quality, but I'm purchasing USA made for a reason, and if you are telling me the whole process is USA made from the design to materials to assembly, I commend that.
#69
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I have some old Craftsman ratchets that my dad handed down to me. He bought them back in 1977 before I was born,1979. He was required to buy his own tools for his new job, building a power plant for LG&E, Louisville Gas and Electric. The way I look at it these tools have built a power plant and are now in my tool box. They are some of my favorite ratchets. They are not made like any other Craftsman ratchet I have seen as long as I can remember.
Some good news from my employer though...
http://www.whas11.com/news/business/...139077389.html
http://www.wlky.com/money/30425398/d...rofile_oneline
Some good news from my employer though...
http://www.whas11.com/news/business/...139077389.html
http://www.wlky.com/money/30425398/d...rofile_oneline
#70
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Also, it sounds like most of you who are pissed off about it seem to be professional mechanics by trade... where to me it seemed most professionals didn't use Craftsman anyway, whether USA made or not!!!
Kind of ironic.
I'm just a weekend mechanic, and throughout all my experiences I have been mostly satisfied with Craftsman cost/quality/warranty in general. Have had complaints here and there, but to be expected IMO. Cannot justifty paying Snap on prices.
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craftsman sucks, and has for a while. I gave up years ago. I dont even like matco or snap on anymore. Now I go to lowes for some kobalt stuff and I've yet to break a kobalt anything in 3 years. I also go get ratchets and stuff from harbor freight, have yall been lately? they have lifetime warranty on tools, and several things that are actually nice. I have a gearwrench swivel head ratchet that was my fav, till it broke and now I have a harbor freight one that works better and cost like 14.99, and i've tried to break it, AND it has the button that holds the socket on. I find myself using the cheap stuff day to day, and saving good tools for certain things.
I used to be anti cheap tools, but dam, they are all cheap junk now. Only thing ive broken at harbor freight is their multi colored sockets...but at 10.99 for a set, i'll go get more...if I didnt use an impact and 3/8-1/2 reducer, I prob wouldnt have broken it. Of course, HF electric anything is still junk
I used to be anti cheap tools, but dam, they are all cheap junk now. Only thing ive broken at harbor freight is their multi colored sockets...but at 10.99 for a set, i'll go get more...if I didnt use an impact and 3/8-1/2 reducer, I prob wouldnt have broken it. Of course, HF electric anything is still junk
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I will be sticking with Wright and S-K, as they are American made and fall in between the cheap stuff and the Snap-on/Matco/Mac tools as far as price goes. Hopefully S-K is under stable ownership now. All I do is play in the garage, but I sure don't want to be rounding off nuts and breaking tools when I'm playing...makes me grumpy.
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Ive seen it on several other automotive sites... people say what a great deal and how awesome HF is...but yet they complain about craftsman going overseas...its like driving by a Blockbuster and bitching because its closing as a stack of netflix DVD's slide around on the passenger seat of your car...
#76
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go to Menards... you will find they are selling Craftsmen stuff.
also.. look at the Masterforce Wrenches... they say made in the USA and the fit and finish on them is better that Craftsman IMO..
also.. look at the Masterforce Wrenches... they say made in the USA and the fit and finish on them is better that Craftsman IMO..
#78
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I Have alot of dollars tied up in my Snap-On tools I bought early in my career a long time ago. I gladly paid the premium for Snap-On but I'll be damned if I'll pay it for Chineese Snap-On tools. I have a few Wright tools, Ill look to them for new stuff but in reality I don't need alot any more.
IVe always used Craftsman at home started with the remains of my dads set from the '60s. They were convienent to buy when you needed something in the middle of a job. I won't buy any that are'nt made here.
A while back when I heard Vise Grip was closing their plant in the USA after 85 years to move production to China (thats right check the label) I imediately went out and bought some of the last made in USA Vise Grips I had been wanting and I e-mailed Vise Grip and told them what I thought of them closing their USA plant. Never got a response.
KD Tools is also moving to China.
IVe always used Craftsman at home started with the remains of my dads set from the '60s. They were convienent to buy when you needed something in the middle of a job. I won't buy any that are'nt made here.
A while back when I heard Vise Grip was closing their plant in the USA after 85 years to move production to China (thats right check the label) I imediately went out and bought some of the last made in USA Vise Grips I had been wanting and I e-mailed Vise Grip and told them what I thought of them closing their USA plant. Never got a response.
KD Tools is also moving to China.
Last edited by guppymech; 02-16-2012 at 10:04 PM.
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they will just give you that typical stupid look when you say you wont accept the replacement since its not US made, and tell you to go either take that one or leave with your broken one.
needless to say, my broken one got thrown in the parking lot.
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I was lucky as hell to have a gear head grandfather who passed this year and left me all his tools so i got a ton of replacement stuff so i have like 20 more ratchets to break before i gotta swallow my pride and get china replacements.
I will say this, comparing all the old stuff i got to anything made in the last 10 years is night and day, face it, even the Made in USA craftsman stuff wasnt great.
still, too bad to see them go.