what happened to craftsman tools?

[Nilsey]

interesting article....

http://www.cartalk.com/blogs/craig-fitzgerald/sears-craftsman-tools-what-happened-0

[Mitch in Oswego]

As the Craftsman brand continues to circle the drain, there are still some gems to be had. Some stuff is still made in the U.S. of A. (for now at least) and can be gotten at a good price.

They have a 3 piece pry bar set on sale for $19.99. Normally it's $41.99, so it's over half off. Made in USA by Wilde for Craftsman. Lifetime warranty, but if they stop making these here, you may get an outsourced piece if you warrant it in the future. I personally don't own these, but I did buy one used at an estate sale last year for a friend, I can say it's a stout tool.

Here's the linkie:
http://www.sears.com/craftsman-3-pc-pry-bar-set-in-tray/p-00943278000P?prdNo=1&blockNo=1&blockType=G1

I figure there's 2 types of people reading this:

Type 1 says, "Why the hell would I ever need that many pry bars?"
You're right, you probably won't.
Move along, nothing to see here.

Type 2 says, "Holy Hodakas, that's a smokin' deal! I need these because I've been using a stick, or worse, a long Chinese screwdriver that just doesn't work so good."
You're welcome.

Word on the street is the only thing less time efficient than a shopping trip to Sears is a trip to their website. It can be hard to navigate and frustrating.

M in O

[Brendan Sullivan]

Their shipping isn't so efficient either... Oh the speed of shipping is fine, but they need to figure out basic packaging.

I added some socket organizers at $5/pack to an order from Sears right before Christmas to make it over the 'free shipping' cut off. This is how they were delivered... (see pics attached).

-B

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[TEAM...@aol.com]

For value I'm certain Craftsman tools still fill the bill...Especially when on sale. Compared to other "house brands" like Kobalt and Master Mechanic they are STILL superior. I recently ordered one of the T-Handle sets in 3/8 drive and one of the MACH series ratchets in 3/8 that were being advertised on TV with the guy working on the old bike and on sale for the holidays. I also ordered the SURE GRIP screwdriver set but, it hasn't arrived yet. The T handle and ratchet exceed my expectations AND they DO have the lifetime guarantee (which is honored at all places where Craftsman is being sold today like ACE Hardware). The T handle comes with an assortment of screw bits and will accept any 3/8 sprocket. The ratchet gives you options and versatility that no other ratchet does. Last I looked they were also still on sale.

I've had the 3 piece prybar set Mitch speaks of for years...if you need prybars in your tool box you can't go wrong!

I guess when you live in "East Debuke Nowhere Oswego" with Aboriginees still living in huts as neighbors and have to drive an hour to find a gas station with indoor plumbing a trip to a Sears store gets inefficient but, if you live near the REAL 6 Corners or Lawrence & Western or Woodfield Mall a trip to Sears is pretty easy and the Sears online ordering offers a next day store pick up option that will save you shipping costs.

If you work on bikes you can't go wrong with Craftsman tools. Just remember to buy ALL your sockets in 6 point...the first time you round off one of the "pot metal" bolts or nuts they used on older motorcycles from the Far East you'll understand why! 

 

"D" J V   

[Bryan O'Shaughnessy]

Woo!  Burn!  --B in C

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From: TEAMGH218 via ChiVinMoto - Chicago Vintage Motorcyclists <chivi...@googlegroups.com>
To: metho...@sbcglobal.net; chivi...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Sunday, January 3, 2016 11:25 AM
Subject: Re: [ChiVinMoto]: what happened to craftsman tools?

[TEAM...@aol.com]

Bryan

I wouldn't "burn" Mitch! I've actually been to his "inconveniently located" humble domicile! How could I desire to "burn" one that brings the comfort of civilization in the form of Chicago pizza and Italian food to lost people of the outback and wasteland of Kendall county east of Yorkville?

 It's not the distance that makes his home inconveniently located...It's the necessity of having to abandon your vehicles and proceed on pack mules for the final leg of the trip to get their!

Thankfully, he has ChiVinMoto to maintain contact with civilization AND a good collection of Craftsman tools to continue working towards bringing civilization to his chosen homeland!

 

Besides...he rides Kawasaki's and likes '60's muscle cars!

 

"D" J V

 

PS...Sorry Rick...just a shade of levity to pass the time on a Winter's day...especially since the list is quiet!  

[Bob Burns]

ChiVinFunFact: There's a guy who's a Big Whup over at Sears who's reading all of these posts. Their online shopping site is better than it used to be, partially due to his influence.

Living around the corner from the Six Corners Sears is kinda nice when you need something that isn't too unusual. The last time I was in there they didn;t have any 8 inch long 1/2" drill bits.

-Bob Burns

[Bob Angone/Klobbr/ChiVinMoto]

Hi group, and Happy New Year. As you can imagine bringing a brand like Craftsman to its former self is a rather difficult job these days. It's a brand that has suffered like many that you find in your households now, that have been designed and assembled in the US from foreign sourced components with less than optimal quality controls in order to be priced competitively in today's consumer and pro tool economy. I want you all to know that you can reach out to me off list at ran...@searshc.com or better yet join the craftsman club and start a discussion there. It's feed back like this that my ecommerce user experience team uses to improve the brand image, the quality control of our suppliers, and the end to end online and mobile buy flows.

Thanks,
Klobbr Bob

[Eric]

Thanks for posting that article Nilsey.   As a kid that grew up in the 50's Sears was the place to shop.  They had everything you needed.   My first credit card was a sears and I still have it.   Hard plastic and about 1.5 by 3 inches.   I grew up using Craftsman.   Dad was a mechanic at Z Frank and he put food on the table using Craftsman tools.  I quite going to sears in the late mid 70s unless it was for tools.   I go to Berlands for many tools know.   Still stop at Sears but Berlands had everything and more that I needed when I had my contracting buisness going.    Know I just stop where convenient unless it is a specialty tool.   

Cheers everyone.    Packing the trailer and getting ready for a migration to do some riding this winter.   See you at some garage nights when I get back.   

On Friday, December 18, 2015 at 4:26:38 PM UTC-6, Nilsey wrote:

interesting article....

http://www.cartalk.com/blogs/craig-fitzgerald/sears-craftsman-tools-what-happened-0

[Eric]

Actually the Sears on Lawrence by Damen was the first store that Sears built.   Christmas at sears was a special time growing up.  Thats were we saw Santa.   Their Christmas Catalog was memorizing.    

[Allan Laskey]

gonna pick up a set of those pry bars, but I'm also looking for a breaker bar, I don't see one on sears.com anyone have a suggestion? 

[Bob Burns]

Craftsman doesn't call it a breaker bar:

http://www.sears.com/craftsman-3-8-in-dr-10-in-flex-handle/p-00944363000P

For reasons dating back to 1921:

http://alloy-artifacts.org/craftsman-early-tools-p3.html

I am open to the possibility that I read too much.

-Bob

On Mon, Jan 4, 2016 at 10:52 PM, Allan Laskey <bumm...@gmail.com> wrote:

gonna pick up a set of those pry bars, but I'm also looking for a breaker bar, I don't see one on sears.com anyone have a suggestion? 

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-Bob Burns

[Mitch in Oswego]

If you need a breaker bar (or flex handle) Craftsman makes an 18 incher for under $30
http://www.searsoutlet.com/1-2-in-dr-18-in-Flex-Handle/d/product_details.jsp?pid=12392&mode=seeAll

I don't know for sure if they make a 24 inch long one or not, but in my experience (albeit limited) if you need just one breaker bar, you might as well get a 24 incher. You'll get more leverage with the longer one.

Harbor Freight has recently improved theirs:
http://t.harborfreight.com/12-in-drive-25-in-professional-breaker-bar-62729.html
It's $19.99, add to that the readily-available 20% off coupon and its about 16 bucks. I'm not a fan of HF, some people are and some aren't, potato potahto.

AutoZone has a Duralast for $19.99 too
http://www.autozone.com/ratchets-sockets-and-wrenches/breaker-bar-tool/duralast-1-2-in-drive-24-in-breaker-bar/560039_0_0/

Matco makes one for over $120, but if you patiently lurk around eBay you can find them slightly used for under $40. That's exactly what I did, and it's come out the winner every time.
http://www.matcotools.com/catalog/product/C24FH/1-2-drive-breaker-bar/

[Allan Laskey]

Thanks for all the tips Mitch, I went with the Crafstman since I'm walking distance from Sears at Six Corners.  

[Mitch in Oswego]

If you're in desperate need of pry bars, but the Craftsman set at $19.99 is just a tad too spendy for you, I have fantastic news for you.

Menards has the Wilde 3 piece pry bar set on clearance for $12.99 ($11.56 after Menards 11% rebate).

Looks like it's NOT available for shipping.
Store pick-up only.

[url]https://www.menards.com/main/tools-hardware/hand-tools/wrecking-pry-bars/3-piece-pry-bar-set/p-1444447022028-c-9170.htm[/url]

Menards' website shows which stores have them:
https://www.menards.com/main/storeAvailability.html?city=&zip=60614&iid=1444447022028&yard=3215&latitude=41.9203468&longitude=+-87.64331390000001

Model Number: HPB2JB1 | Menards® SKU: 2371996