Sears sells Craftsman for $900 million. Old news, but for those who haven't heard

Trouble is there is little to no generation Z or millenial tool twirlers and those who do think a good tool is one which heavy decorative plating , shiny & smooth like a dildo sitting in a cut out space in a black velvet lined foam tray in an overpriced display drawer.
Usually made from a low grade forging steel so that it is easy to polish & plate to a high shine with way too much copper under the nickel so when used properly the plating flakes off leaving you with oversized spanners .

The trouble with owning competing brands of tools is you can not serve two masters so one has to end up being downgraded.
Look at what happened to chainsaws when Husqvarna took over Poulan, McCulloch & heaven knows who else.
All the other brands were downgraded or off shored ( same thing ) so a "good" was was branded Husky and the rest ended up at varying levels of infearority according to the stores that they were sold in.
Thus wise only an idiot would run Stanley & Craftsman head to head which is about where they are right now.
One would hope that they would elevate the quality of the most well known brand, moving into a new market level and hold the other where it is.
However that is very rare.
having forked out that much money the owners usually want a very quick return so they usually downgrade one brand which catches the buying public unawares so suddenly when Craftsman is available at 1/2 to 1/3 the regular price, they pig out on them.
This gives a quick return on the $ 600,000 but it also trashes the brand which slowly vanishes.

Adding to my other post ........ The chopper techs at PHI were mostly veterans from the service and back then the Army and Marines used Thorsen Tools......

I started wiping my Dad's hand tools off back in about 1960, this led to my 1st mini-bike, & when I learned it had a governor, I removed it & that same afternoon I promptly blew the engine.

Anyhow, the tools my Dad had were Craftsman mainly, with some other brands mixed in. So I like reading they are coming back to the US. My tools are old & I have many doubles of everything. Made in the USA.

Padroo said:

Maybe the trade restrictions have something to do with them moving back into the country, just a guess.

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That is exactly what I read. Thanks to the President.

7394 said:

I started wiping my Dad's hand tools off back in about 1960, this led to my 1st mini-bike, & when I learned it had a governor, I removed it & that same afternoon I promptly blew the engine.

Anyhow, the tools my Dad had were Craftsman mainly, with some other brands mixed in. So I like reading they are coming back to the US. My tools are old & I have many doubles of everything. Made in the USA.

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Stanley Black & Decker is nothing but crap. Craftsman is dead too me.

Most of my tools are Craftsman. I started with them when my father gave me a basic set when I was 15. Dad was a do-everything guy and the local Sears store was his go-to place for power or hand tools. If anything broke, he’d take it back and they would promptly hand him a new one. Over the years, I have had to do the same thing on a rare occasion. One ratchet wrench that I had for nearly 50 years had failed and over to Sears I went and came home with a new one. The local hardware store ( my go-to place for the last 38 years) just switched over to the Ace franchise and I was happy to see they now carry the Craftsman brand. I am well aware that the quality is not the same, but that go-to hardware store is very close to me so it should be no problem to get a replacement should I need it. I like the Made In USA thing too. But I also like Harbor Freight for that cheap, odd ball tool that you might need once or twice. And if it breaks?—no big deal especially if it’s something I may never need again.

BTW-here is one of those odd-ball tools I bought from Harbor Freight about twelve years ago. It’s a sort of t-handle, multi-articulating, 3/8 inch, fine ratchet. It’s been used (and abused) a few times, but sometimes it’s the only thing that will get something loose in tight spaces. And if I break it, I’m only out $18.00

Since Craftsman is sold a lot of places now does the too replacement still hold up at all these new locations?

Random thoughts on tools:

As a kid, I used my Dad's tools, which were mostly Snap-On, Plumb and Blue Point. When I was about 14 and at that time working Saturdays and summers at a farm equipment dealership, someone gave me a cheap 3/8 ratchet and socket set. That was the start of my own tool set. What were 'cheap' tools at that time (c1966) would be considered top of the line now.

Good screwdrivers are not easy to find today. Good screwdrivers cost a lot of money and you truly do get what you pay for. I like S-K and Facom. Facom is made in France. That's how low we've sunk--even France makes better tools than the USA.

The best 'tool' I bought wasn't a tool--it was a Kennedy tool chest and cabinet. You'll never hang on to a good collection of tools until you keep them in one place and organized.

Flea markets are a good source of older, high-quality tools. Some may be 'hot'. Some are being sold by people who don't realize what they're selling. Let your conscience be your guide.

Properly used, ratchets will last nearly forever. But they have torque limits--you can't use a 3-foot cheater bar on a 3/8 ratchet very many times before it breaks. Use a flex-head (aka, break-over bar) for this.

Buy the best tools you can afford. You'll only regret the money you spent and before long you won't regret it at all.

Padroo said:

Since Craftsman is sold a lot of places now does the too replacement still hold up at all these new locations?

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I asked the question at my nearby Ace Hardware and they said the replacement policy has not changed. I felt good about that.

2smoked said:

I asked the question at my nearby Ace Hardware and they said the replacement policy has not changed. I felt good about that.

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Thank you, I always wondered.
I have never bothered returning broken tools, they like customers like me.:laughing: