American made hand tools?

If you can find NOS Craftsmen great, but their new stuff is awful. Reminds me of the quote "I can take a dump in a box and mark it guaranteed, but all you got is a guaranteed piece of crap". Stick with Williams, Wright, Proto, S-K, and many of the others mentioned here. I think part of the reason that some many cheap tools are out there now is that a lot of people don't use their tools enough anymore to justify (in their mind anyway) spending $50-100 for a 1/2" ratchet when you can buy a ratchet and set of sockets at the local sears for the same price.
 
jstrykr74 said:
If you can find NOS Craftsmen great, but their new stuff is awful. Reminds me of the quote "I can take a dump in a box and mark it guaranteed, but all you got is a guaranteed piece of crap". Stick with Williams, Wright, Proto, S-K, and many of the others mentioned here. I think part of the reason that some many cheap tools are out there now is that a lot of people don't use their tools enough anymore to justify (in their mind anyway) spending $50-100 for a 1/2" ratchet when you can buy a ratchet and set of sockets at the local sears for the same price.
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They have this new line, Craftsman Evolv, and I bought set of wrenchs from it. It didn't take me long to find out that it wasn't as good as the others. When one of them broke, I tried to exchange it and found that the Evolv line needs to have the original recipt with it to be exchanged.

I wasn't happy. I nearly boycotted Craftsman all together.
 
Adventure Wolf said:
I found some rusted up and busted Craftsman tools in a dumpster once. I went to Sears and exchanged them.
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Adventure Wolf said:
They have this new line, Craftsman Evolv, and I bought set of wrenchs from it. It didn't take me long to find out that it wasn't as good as the others. When one of them broke, I tried to exchange it and found that the Evolv line needs to have the original recipt with it to be exchanged.

I wasn't happy. I nearly boycotted Craftsman all together.
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I'm gonna make a wild guess that the irony here totally escapes you.
 
OwenM said:
I'm gonna make a wild guess that the irony here totally escapes you.
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There's a little bit of Irony.

For those that don't understand the progression of the Craftsman warranty. This is from what I understand, but I could be wrong.

There is the "old" line Craftsman Warranty. The tools were covered no matter what. It doesn't matter how old they are, you just bring them to Sears and exchange them. You needed no proof of purchase, no recipt, no nothing and its age doesn't matter. As I said I found some damaged tools in a dumpster and exchanged them. One of my buddies found a rusty bent Craftsman screw driver under a porch some years back and exchanged that for a new one.

This warranty really is a life time warranty.

To save money Sears put an end to that warranty a few years ago, and replaced it with the ones you can find in the following link: http://www.craftsman.com/cswarranty/nb-100000000227082#point5

From what I understand (and am not sure of) is that most of the hand tools still have coverage of the original warranty. The Evolv line actually needs proof of purchase but other then that has a lifetime warranty. You have to save the recipt.

I find the change in the warranty a bastardization and I nearly boycotted Craftsman tool for it.
 
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Luckily, most of my stuff is Craftsman, Snap-on, Mac and Matco from back in the60's, 70's, 80's, and 90's.

I have all of my Dad's Proto, Snap-On, Mac, and Matco stuff from the 60's and 70's. He retired in 1992 after wrenching on diesels for 35 years.

I bought a couple of Snap-On ratchets not too long ago, because when I went to exchange a couple of my old Craftsman ratchets, they tried to give me rebuilt newer style junk. I asked if I could get rebuild kits, and the sales guy sneered at me and said no. I kept one of the broken ones, and exchanged the other. It is a pile of crap.

My favorite ratchet is a 3/8, swivel head, bent handle fine tooth S-K. I have the same one from Snap-On, and the S-K is better. :D

Stick with the pro brands if you are serious about having tools that will hold up, and avoid Craftsman.
 
top end tools
SnapOn is the best, mac has gone down the drain, matco is hit or miss, cornwall is the same as matco.

middle range
sk was the best but they switched owners and I have heard nothing but bad thing about the new line but I have no experience. Wright, Armstrong, Williams are all very good american tool companys. channel lock makes nice pliers.

low end
Husky and Stanley make the best budget tools craftsman is disposable, there only good for a couple uses.
 
seionage said:
lately the craftsman tools I've looked at are sloppy. Brand new ones. It just seems the tight tolerances aren't there anymore.
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Craftsman quality has gone down lately, especially their ratchets---the ones with the raised panel on them. They are now garbage. The Professional series is still good.
 
Your best bet is to search in the flea markets, second hand shops, and the on line auctions for used, American made tools. Even though they are used, they are a lot better and will last a lot longer than any of the imports made today.
 
You guys are aware that most full line craftsman tools are made in either China or Taiwan now have been for a few years, and the evolve line has always been imported. Most brands now adays have imported tools mixed in with USA tools, this is the case with Stanley, channel lock, lots of others. Just check the packages before you buy if this sort of thing matters to you.

Personally I just keep my current older craftsman tools in decent shape, shame to see the company killed by their warranty and own sub brands removing their market, but Sears days are number currently sad as it is.
 
Sucks to read this about Craftsman. I have a set from mid-nineties that is still going strong. I broke the pawls in my 3/8" ratchet two times and the honored the warranty no problem but it's been some years. All of mine say USA made on them. I opted for a Kobalt 3/8" torque wrench over the Craftsman (with stupid digital LCD readout) because the Craftsman was more expensive and didn't have the lifetime warranty. The Kobalt torque wrench is actually really well made, prob in China though can't recall.
 
this thread is alittle long in the tooth but i have been replacing all my craftsman and crap tools with Armstrong, alittle pricey but i got my best price and thru it at my Fastenal guy and he beat it by a couple bucks great tools, American made, US Mil contractor
 
i use snap on myself because i like to keep all one brand but my buddy uses mac and gearwrench and he has no complaints and he does more in dept mechanical work then i do.
 
if we're gonna revive this I have to put in a vote for wright tools if you want great US tools at a fair price
 
I was just about to start this very same thread, and lo and behold, it was resurrected just yesterday.

Anyways, I'm hoping to get my tool set really fleshed out with some quality tools. I'm trying to replace my current imported stuff and complete my shop with all U.S.A. or German (or Japanese I guess) tools. I'm looking into two classes of tools. One for working on small items, such as knives, computers, small craft projects around the house, and one to handle larger jobs, up to car repair, electrical work, and furniture making. I may not do all of these things that often, but I would like tools that could take everything I've got and then be worthy heirlooms.

I'm also on a budget, and looking at Snap-on made me double-take at the price of a single ratchet! So I had to look in other directions for some great, more affordable options. I have done a little digging and I was hoping for some opinions.

For my small tools, I was looking at Whia as basically the name to beat in small drivers. For larger drivers and wrenches, I was thinking Armstrong and Chapman, what do you guys think? For pliers, Klien seems to have some good reviews on here, and Estwing hammers I know are good enough for me. I have no idea on planes and chisels. Files would be the old Nicholsons I have, and maybe some Pferd (sp?), though I'd really like to find some quality, affordable files made in the U.S.A. I have a few sizes of Channel-Lock and Vise Grips from decades ago, so I'm good there for now.

Power tools are a different beast, I may start that thread soon...
 
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