26 Jan
2002
26 Jan
'02
3:04 a.m.
It's still a Sear's product line. Companion is used for the Chinese
import lines. A of Crfatsman tools are made by a factory in Oklahoma,
I think up around either Lawton or Ada. My father was buying seconds
from the factory and selling them at flea markets.
Mostly cosmetic
defects. The factory was supposed to grind off the Craftsman name
but
most didn't get ground. Some of his customers actually took back broken
seconds and got replacements at Sears.
Fred Cisin (XenoSoft) wrote:
>>Are you
sure that you did not lose your way and go into a Sears store in
>>error? Craftsman is after all a trademark by Sears!
>>
> :o) Yes, I'm sure. The H.D here sells some Craftsman power tools.
>
Long, long ago, ...
Craftsman was an independent tool company, and "Companion" was one of it's
product lines.
Sears bought them out, and made "Craftsman" and "Companion" into
Sears
product lines ("Companion" became the "economy" crap).
Quality was very good.
Over the years, the quality slid, and Sears had to rely on a lifetime
guarantee to sell the tools. By the late 70s, the broaching wasn't even
centered on their sockets and box-ends. If you hold a 50s Craftsman tool
next to a 70s Craftsman tool, there is a VISIBLE difference in
quality. Amateurs were impressed with the lifetime guarantee, and still
liked them, but professional mechanics switched to Snap-On and Mac.
("I'd rather have good tools than a lifetime supply of scrap metal")
BTW, MOST tool companies (including Snap-On, Mac, Thorsen, etc.) also have
lifetime guarantees.
Craftsman tools were available at any Sears store; Snap-On had a few
outlets, but sold mostly through trucks that went to garages. (One time,
on a cross-country drive, I started having some serious problems with a VW
bus, and pulled over a Snap-On truck on the freeway in Ohio in order to
buy a 30mm (1 3/16) socket)
A few years back, Sears closed a lot of their stores, and even closed down
their mail-order and catalog operations!
It was quite a shock a few years ago, when I started seeing Craftsman
tools for sale at OSH (Orchard Supply Hardware), Home Depot, and even on
infomercials on TV!
I think that Craftsman is still owned by Sears, but not sure. Anybody
know for sure?
.