Craftsman wrench quality

[clare]

Umm.. You are wrong on both counts. You didn't lose them and they are still
perfectly useable.

Next time you're south of the border, stop by. I'll let you look at them.

Were you at the US Street Rod Nationals in Tulsa in '76? That's the
only time I had my craftsman tools in the States - or did you come up
here and snitch a few????
However you got them, pack them up in a box and ship them home. I'll
pay the shipping!!!

 

[clare]

In Canada, there is a company called "Acklands" which has recently had
some kind of merger with Grainger in the USA, and is now called Acklands
Grainger.

It's been Acklands Grainger for over twenty years up here. Acklands
started out as an automotive and industrial supplier - similar to NAPA

Originally Acklands and now Acklands Grainger sells their own housebrand
tools under the name "Westward". I don't know where they're made, but
they're good quality too.

'WestWard Tools : Home' (http://www.westwardtools.ca/)

Yes, Westward were/are good tools.

 

[dpb]

....

The only Craftsman tools from my 1968/69 set that are not perfectly
useable today are those I have lost or misplaced. I think I had one
box end wrench and a couple pliers replaced and 2 or 3 ratchet head
repairs over the last 45? years. I think I had a couple philips
screwdrivers replaced and broke at least one hammer handle.

....

I've Craftsman wrenches from the 40s-60s on the farm that are still good
as new--the older socket sets are from my initial purchase-era of
mid- to late-60s. They cover the normal range up to 1-1/4"; it's rare
to find larger stuff from Craftsman so the heavy stuff is other. I
bought a cheap 1/2" drive ratchet set a few years ago simply as was
value-priced on sale solely for the metric sockets that were in short
supply when returned to the farm -- the handle is adequate in service
but lousy for feel so it doesn't get used. The prime ratchet that's
been here "since forever" from the time I first remember in the 50s
isn't identifiable by brand. It, unfortunately, is finally beginning to
wear enough on the innards that it occasionally slips a cog...

There are other Craftsman hand tools like the pipe threader/dies and a
large pipe cutter that were grandfather's that date from an unknown time
-- I venture the 30s or perhaps even earlier. They still are the "go
to" ones. Of course, on a farm they don't get daily use but over that
period of time they've done a lot of work...

There's a collection of a little of about everything here plus a lot of
old no-name stuff. That that gets/stays to the front of the chest or on
the hanging board is generally the S-K, Proto and one other which I
can't recall now that were sets from the 40s, 50s, and 60s. Dad gave me
a nice S-K 3/8" drive ratchet set for HS graduation in 63 that I've
added some to that still have/use as well...he had two full sets similar
vintage that are also still here and (mostly) still complete.

All in all, the Craftsman has held up as well as the other but I've not
much direct experience with anything very new when I really stop and
think about it --

--

 

[larrymoencurly]

Is Craftsman worth a damn, anymore?

Yes, but there are 3 Craftsman lines:

Craftsman

Craftsman Industrial/Craftsman Professional

Craftsman Evolv

The first two are made in USA by Danaher, the same company that
makes Easco, Matco, and NAPA hand tools (and Fluke multimeters
and Tektronix oscilloscopes???), but Craftsman Evolv is made in
China, and warranty claims require a copy of the receipt.

The last formal review of wrenches I could find was in the Aug. 1993
issue of Consumer Reports:

http://i.imgur.com/Mfh3QLj.jpg

Bench Top was Kmart's brand; Popular Mechanics was Walmart's.
TrueCraft is or was made in Japan. Master Mechanic is True Value
Hardware's brand, and I was surprised that its ratchet wore out in just
10,000 strokes (just like Great Neck), compared to over 30,000 for
the higher rated ratchets. Olympia wore out in 20,000 strokes.

Do they still have the instant replacement guarantee on their hand wrenches?

Yes, unless the store manager is a weasel, but I haven't encountered that,
yet. I've used the warranty only twice, for 1/4" drive sockets, probably
8mm or 9mm, that I broke by turning them with a 3/8" ratchet.

 

[notbob]

You might check pawn shops (if there are any in your area), thrift
stores, etc...

I checked the pawn shop. Nada. Car/Quest and True Value had Taiwan
and PRC wrenches, respectively. Napa's MasterCraft wrenches are made
in India, but claim on the spot replacement. I may jes go for the
Craftsman USA made set, which goes on sale next week. The trailer I
jes bought is prolly metric, anyway. I've got several Bonney SAE
wrenches, but not a whole set. I was buying them piecemeal when the
store discontinued the line.

To the guy that was sniveling about "snap-off", sorry to hear they've
gone down the tubes. Snap-On usta epitmize US quality, their 60s-70s
combo wrenches the finest money could buy. I'm almost positive they
were made by Bonney, now defunct. That's the company that invented
the brilliant "flank drive" box wrench. I first noticed Snap-On going
cheap with a Chinese oil can. Broke first time I used it.

nb

 

[clare]

I checked the pawn shop. Nada. Car/Quest and True Value had Taiwan
and PRC wrenches, respectively. Napa's MasterCraft wrenches are made
in India, but claim on the spot replacement. I may jes go for the
Craftsman USA made set, which goes on sale next week. The trailer I
jes bought is prolly metric, anyway. I've got several Bonney SAE
wrenches, but not a whole set. I was buying them piecemeal when the
store discontinued the line.

To the guy that was sniveling about "snap-off", sorry to hear they've
gone down the tubes. Snap-On usta epitmize US quality, their 60s-70s
combo wrenches the finest money could buy. I'm almost positive they
were made by Bonney, now defunct. That's the company that invented
the brilliant "flank drive" box wrench. I first noticed Snap-On going
cheap with a Chinese oil can. Broke first time I used it.

nb

This WAS in the sixties!!! They had a few quality problems when
they tried to reduce their prices. He bought a "set" of tools - not
from "open stock" and it appears they were not the same stuff.

 

[notbob]

This WAS in the sixties!!! They had a few quality problems when
they tried to reduce their prices. He bought a "set" of tools - not
from "open stock" and it appears they were not the same stuff.

I'll relate a story I've told on usenet before.

I wuz a neophyte bike wrench doing a top end job on a Puch "twingle".
They had square head bolts. I had no square sockets to fit down in
between the cylinder head fins, so used a 10mm Snap-On combo wrench,
the open end, end-wise down into the fins on the square bolt head. I
put a Crescent adjustable wrench on the shank/handle of the SO
open-end wrench to provide twist leverage. Three bolts broke loose
easily. The fourth did not. I continued applying torque on the SO wrech
until the bolt finally gave. The wrench never broke, but the open-end
head twisted 45 degrees to the shank/handle. This was a borrowed set,
not my own. When I finally reassembled the head, I put excess torque
on the wrench equally over the four bolts and managed to twist the
open end wrench head back into line with the shank handle. I later
told the person I borrowed the set from what had happened and told him
if he could identify which wrench I twisted, I would buy him a new
one. He could not. That IS quality and Snap-On once had it.

I've snapped the fingers off 2 Craftsman open end wrenches. When I
worked as a Yamaha shop mechanic, but lived 100 miles from the closest
Sears, failure was not an option and is the reason I've never
considered Craftsman tools to be pro grade. I used S-K tools for many
years and never had a failure, but this is when you couuld buy an S-K
wrench or socket set for $15-25. They now cost as much as Snap-On
sets did back in the 60s, i.e. in the $100-150 range. I don't need
that kinda quality, anymore, but still will not buy junk.

nb

 

[clare]

I'll relate a story I've told on usenet before.

I wuz a neophyte bike wrench doing a top end job on a Puch "twingle".
They had square head bolts. I had no square sockets to fit down in
between the cylinder head fins, so used a 10mm Snap-On combo wrench,
the open end, end-wise down into the fins on the square bolt head. I
put a Crescent adjustable wrench on the shank/handle of the SO
open-end wrench to provide twist leverage. Three bolts broke loose
easily. The fourth did not. I continued applying torque on the SO wrech
until the bolt finally gave. The wrench never broke, but the open-end
head twisted 45 degrees to the shank/handle. This was a borrowed set,
not my own. When I finally reassembled the head, I put excess torque
on the wrench equally over the four bolts and managed to twist the
open end wrench head back into line with the shank handle. I later
told the person I borrowed the set from what had happened and told him
if he could identify which wrench I twisted, I would buy him a new
one. He could not. That IS quality and Snap-On once had it.

I've snapped the fingers off 2 Craftsman open end wrenches. When I
worked as a Yamaha shop mechanic, but lived 100 miles from the closest
Sears, failure was not an option and is the reason I've never
considered Craftsman tools to be pro grade. I used S-K tools for many
years and never had a failure, but this is when you couuld buy an S-K
wrench or socket set for $15-25. They now cost as much as Snap-On
sets did back in the 60s, i.e. in the $100-150 range. I don't need
that kinda quality, anymore, but still will not buy junk.

nb

A wrench that will cold bend is NOT a quality wrench.

 

[notbob]

A wrench that will cold bend is NOT a quality wrench.

Sez you.

If the spanner fingers cold bend outward, bad mojo, as the size
changes and the wrench will start rounding corners. This is common
with Asian wrenches and why I will not buy them. In this case, only
the handle bent (twisted). The open end spanner maintained its
integrity and never spread. This, unlike Craftsman combo wrenches, of
which I've snapped off a finger on two different wrenches.
Besides, when the nearest Sears is 90 miles away, a bent wrench is
better than a broken wrench.

nb

 

[Oren]

A wrench that will cold bend is NOT a quality wrench.

How big was the hammer?

 

[The Daring Dufas]

Sez you.

If the spanner fingers cold bend outward, bad mojo, as the size
changes and the wrench will start rounding corners. This is common
with Asian wrenches and why I will not buy them. In this case, only
the handle bent (twisted). The open end spanner maintained its
integrity and never spread. This, unlike Craftsman combo wrenches, of
which I've snapped off a finger on two different wrenches.
Besides, when the nearest Sears is 90 miles away, a bent wrench is
better than a broken wrench.

nb

That's why I have spares of the most used tools. I even have cheap
"loaner" sets for Billy Bob who want's to borrow a tool. ^_^

TDD

 

[notbob]

"loaner" sets for Billy Bob who want's to borrow a tool. ^_^

A great idea.

I'll probably get the USA made Craftsman set, since I'm jes a back
yard DIY'er, anymore, and they go on sale, tomorrow. If one breaks
I've already go my eye on a set of Proto's (at 3X price!), which now
include flank drive technology in all their 12 pt boxes. Turns out
the metric set I have is not German made, after all, but a set of
Proto's. Duh. A damn fine wrench.

nb

 

[The Daring Dufas]

A great idea.

I'll probably get the USA made Craftsman set, since I'm jes a back
yard DIY'er, anymore, and they go on sale, tomorrow. If one breaks
I've already go my eye on a set of Proto's (at 3X price!), which now
include flank drive technology in all their 12 pt boxes. Turns out
the metric set I have is not German made, after all, but a set of
Proto's. Duh. A damn fine wrench.

nb

I hate loaning tools out to anyone I don't trust implicitly. I've loaned
tools out before and when the tool was returned, I asked, "Where's the
carrying case?", Billy Bob always answers, "Carrying
case?"

TDD

 

[Bill]

I hate loaning tools out to anyone I don't trust implicitly. I've loaned
tools out before and when the tool was returned, I asked, "Where's the
carrying case?",

That sounds like a good question to ask at the point of the loan.


Billy Bob always answers, "Carrying

 

[notbob]

I hate loaning tools out to anyone I don't trust implicitly. I've loaned
tools out before and when the tool was returned, I asked, "Where's the
carrying case?", Billy Bob always answers, "Carrying
case?"

When I was a eng tech in Silly Valley, test techs would come around to
anyone's tool chest and jest grab what they needed, they thinking
themselves above the common courtesy of asking because of their "at
all costs" mandate to get the product out the door. I would track the
swine down and physically yank my tools outta their hand --along with
other admonitions-- and got a rep for not tolerating such nonsense.
Got so they left my stuff alone. I was prolly the only guy on the
floor with all the tools/equip originally issued me.

nb

 

[Oren]

I hate loaning tools out to anyone I don't trust implicitly. I've loaned
tools out before and when the tool was returned, I asked, "Where's the
carrying case?", Billy Bob always answers, "Carrying
case?"

I'll loan tools to my neighbor and my best friend (Bubba). They return
the favor if necessary.

I looked for days, trying to find my orbital sander. Bugged the heck
out of me as to where it was.

At Bubba's one day I saw the sander. "Hey there's my sander." I
forgot I loaned it and he forget he borrowed it. He gave me several
packs of 5" sanding disks he never used.

His pneumatic framing nailer has been in my garage for a few years.
Now and again I'll remind him about it. He forgot he left it here. He
doesn't worry about it being here, though.

 

[sms]

When I was a eng tech in Silly Valley, test techs would come around to
anyone's tool chest and jest grab what they needed, they thinking
themselves above the common courtesy of asking because of their "at
all costs" mandate to get the product out the door. I would track the
swine down and physically yank my tools outta their hand --along with
other admonitions-- and got a rep for not tolerating such nonsense.
Got so they left my stuff alone. I was prolly the only guy on the
floor with all the tools/equip originally issued me.

LOL, I recall telling my manager that as engineers that were expected to
do a lot of lab work we each needed our own personal set of tools that
we were responsible for, and that it didn't work to keep borrowing tools
from the technicians. To his credit, he agreed and we spent a couple of
thousand dollars on tools, meters, and locking tool boxes.

 

[The Daring Dufas]

I'll loan tools to my neighbor and my best friend (Bubba). They return
the favor if necessary.

I looked for days, trying to find my orbital sander. Bugged the heck
out of me as to where it was.

At Bubba's one day I saw the sander. "Hey there's my sander." I
forgot I loaned it and he forget he borrowed it. He gave me several
packs of 5" sanding disks he never used.

His pneumatic framing nailer has been in my garage for a few years.
Now and again I'll remind him about it. He forgot he left it here. He
doesn't worry about it being here, though.

I loaned some tools to a friend who passed away last year and those
tools vanished. Perhaps they went to tool heaven?

TDD

 

[Oren]

I loaned some tools to a friend who passed away last year and those
tools vanished. Perhaps they went to tool heaven?

They grew legs and just walked away

 

[bob haller]

I loaned my big pinch bar to my next door neighbor Jerry......

he was trying to clear some sort of blockage in his chimney, the rope broke and he couldnt get it out.....

I cant ask him again about it, since he just died from lung cancer........

a truly sad event, made worse by his son watching his dad die a horrible death..

if you smoke QUIT, jerry was 58 and looking forward to retiring....