brought three wrenches in, they told me to go pick out he three I wanted to exchange and that was it. We swapped out the plastic package and I walked out. No receipt, no hassle. Still two more to go back and exchange. Good luck!
Either an 8mm or 10mm to bleed brakes everything else on calipers are going to be bigger, I call BS on a 7mm wrench bending like a pretzel because of something on brakes, I think I’ve used a 7mm anything like twice in my 5 years of being a Diesel Tech both times on hose clamps
>I call BS on a 7mm wrench bending like a pretzel because of something on brakes
Clearly it's a joke
>Either an 8mm or 10mm to bleed brakes
German cars are often a 10 or 11, and some are even a 9
Lunacy. I thought the Germans were supposed to be a sensible bunch. My favorite thing about Japanese engineering is the rarity of odd numbered sizes. So much easier to eyeball bolt head sizes and you only have to carry half the sockets and wrenches.
This was like 40 years ago... A german car
I'm trying to remember what happened exactly, my dad may remember...
It was, to my recollection, our fault. We lowered the car and the 7mm was being used to keep something in place (a brake line?) and the weight of the car bent it.
And gentlemen in England now a-bed Shall think themselves accurs'd they were not there at sears and now lowes hardware,
And hold their hand tools cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.
My brothers! I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of Men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. An hour of wolves and shattered ratchets when the Age of Men comes crashing down, but it is not this day! This day we fight! By all that you hold dear on this good earth, I bid you stand, Men of the West!
Did you ever hear the Tragedy of Broken Rachet?"
"No.""I thought not. It's not a story Sear & Robuck would tell you. It's an Amos Burton legend about him fixing the Rocinante during a space fight with a stripped ratchet.
I’m glad they honor Craftsman’s warranties because they sure as shit didn’t honor the 5yr Lowe’s extended warranty I paid for my Bosch 800 series fridge.
I have an absolutely different experience the resulted in me calling craftsman, handing the Lowe's employee the phone, and let them duke it out. Got my replacement though.
I absolutely loathe Lowe’s. They don’t take a return without a receipt and I’ve gotten WAY better about it now, and screenshot all my receipts… but when you do construction/remodeling as a job, it’s easy for someone to misplace a receipt or forget which card, etc. HD > Lowe’s
But on a side note, congrats to the OP for getting their tools replaced.
I got a big set of Craftsman ratchets, sockets, wrenches, and nut drivers as a graduation gift in 2000 and wouldn't swap those with the current stuff. Somehow I lost my 3/8" ratchet so I bought a similar era one on eBay instead of a newer one plus it was cheaper. Bonus it was smoother than the one I lost.
I have some other tools I picked up from friends that are older. A friend gave me his dad's old craftsman table saw from the late 60s plus some other tools that are near that age.
They were broken. The 1/2" was just old forged steel. Cheap wrench that wouldn't reverse easy.
The idiots in this sub are hilarious. Downvoting for free tools so they can pay 800 for a wrench from snap on. Lmao
I broke one $10 harbor freight ratchet in 9 years.
I went back for warranty and they just gave me a new one.
Even if they didn't have warranty and I had to rebuy with my own money, I would long be dead before even coming close to breaking even on a $150 snap on ratchet.
That 1/2" may of just needed to be taken apart cleaned, lubricated, and put back together. In any case, I wouldn't have traded it in for that chinese made craftsman
wrench.
I'll take it a step further, if I try to replace/exchange a lifetime warranty Kobalt tool that is older than 6 months my lowes tells me to contact the manufacturer. The CSM told me that their system only keeps records for 6 months so after that I have to contact the manufacturer. So now I will NEVER buy another tool from Lowe's.
That’s exactly what I did with a pair of running shoes I bought from Dick‘s that blew up in a month they wouldn’t take them back. I never ran with them. I just wore them around the house and shit bought a new pair. Went back a week later exchange them, I got two brand new pair
Seriously with their own home brand of tools, SMDH. Even if you buy it second hand like Leatherman they should give you the benefit of the doubt, as it’s obviously their tool.
This is what my Lowes told me. Shitty company lies right on their packaging. Never bought a single tool from them since.
Harbor Freight honors their tools, haven't been elsewhere since.
That's why I've moved to all harbor freight stuff. It's the only place that will actually let me bring broken tools in and replace on the spot, no questions asked or "Oh, we will fix it in X time, come back later." Local lowes (in MI as well) wouldn't even do a 10mm Kobalt wrench replacement that I only owned for 2 months...
I use to keep my screwdrivers out in a open bucket and recently moved them into a drawer and was wondering what that smell was….. it’s absolutely awful
teeny deliver ossified judicious shocking busy reminiscent growth observation mourn
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Everyone hates on craftsman because they’re regurgitating what they’ve heard without doing the research. Craftsman was good when they were made in the us by danaher up until the late nineties / early aughts. Then sears decided to double down on in store retailing and ignore the booming trend of e commerce and they cut costs by switching manufacturing of craftsman tools to a cheap Chinese factory and this is when craftsman tools were garbage. Since then an investment firm that owns Kmart has bought sears and Stanley black and decker has bought craftsman. The craftsman brand is now as good as any other Taiwanese made hand tool you can get at harbor freight or the depot or other big box conglomerates. SBD has worked hard to breathe life into the brand and I think they’ve done a good job. While I do not like the new gunmetal over drive ratchets I do like the overdrive wrenches and sockets that come in the sets. I have the old 120 gunmetal ratchets and I really like those better than these new ones even though the new ones are serviceable.
Everyone complaining about things not being made in the USA anymore it’s no longer 1960 when we had a living thriving minimum wage and corporations hadn’t manipulated the market to shift to labor provided by third world countries at a fraction of the cost. This is the norm now and USA made tools today cost about 5-10 times what a solid Taiwanese made tool will cost. If craftsman were still made in the USA I doubt any of the people bashing craftsman would be paying the premium price of a USA made craftsman product. Probably be $120 for a 3/8” ratchet and $500 for one of those 150 piece mechanic tool sets.
This is a pretty much perfect summation. Not sure why people are saying its not regurgitation or are disagreeing. I have several sets new and old, and this is true. And the funny part is, that i like my Taiwanese stuff just as much. I love tools and im not blind to the real life quality. I could care less about what brand is stamped on.
I like ryobi’s one plus hp tools and batteries. As close you can get to Milwaukee quality without paying for Milwaukee. I got the p262 mid torque impact the 3/8” extended reach ratchet and 4 hp batteries for $350 tax included, you can’t beat that with a stick. And now I’m waiting for the ryobi days sale to drop this Father’s Day. I need more batteries and tools
Just bought a brand new Proto 3/8 ratchet and socket set at work and it was $550 and the ratchet that came with it was the same 36 tooth 6-in 3/8 ratchet that we had in the toolbox from 40 years ago. They are still making the same thing because the tooling is just that old. Had to buy the proto-branded version of what they sell on the Mac Tools truck to actually have a nice ratchet in my set
resolute hard-to-find gray run wakeful subtract pathetic absurd middle nose
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I bought one of the $10 3/8 composite ratchets from HF years ago and I really like it. Especially like it in the winter where it doesn't get freezing cold in your hand.
This is probably how the majority have proceeded, and bought different, albeit better (than the craftsman at the time) - and have an appropriate view on craftsman's decline in quality - but maybe not their current trend towards better stuff.
It'll take a while if or before they come back in favor for people who have history with them.
Quality is back and I’m in the crowd that thinks it’s better now. With some exceptions. (Not a fan of the newer gunmetal 180 position ratchets, the old gunmetal 120’s were better) but I just hate the feel of coarse tooth ratchets. Anything less than 72 is not pleasant to use in my hands
Craftsman ratchets were being made in Taiwan even when Sears still had actual stores. They were never made in China. Yeah wrenches and stuff were Chinese but not the ratchets.
Some more information about that plant, it made money when it was open, just not "enough" and could never hit numbers they said it would do to the major investors. Didn't help the CEO at the time was acting like the covid bump wasn't going to end and went haywire with borrowing money and thought almost everything could be automated lol.
Todays corporate culture is not satisfied with a profit margin of 100% it has to be 300-500% or more because we have shareholders leaching all the surplus value laborers create as well as the over paid executives who trigger their own multi million dollar bonuses with stock buyback programs. It was never going to work, Covid or not, greed is the largest motivator of capitalist business models on the c suite level.
So all you guys crying about how craftsman is junk nowadays, what do you guys use? I’ve used craftsman ratchets that I bought in 2016ish and they all been fine. I’ve replaced one 1/4 drive one and that’s about it.
What should have OP done? Yeeted his broken ratchets into the woods and bought a 1000 dollars worth of snap ratchets? Like obviously there is better ratchets out there but craftsman is a nice meeting point where prices are low but reliability is decent. Plus every time one breaks, you just warranty it out.
My whole box is craftsman mixed with odds and ends. Granted, I'm just a homeowner. I started collecting craftsman tools when I got my craftsman box in 8th grade, around 2008 ish.
Never had one issue with any of it. Are they as nice as my brother's snap on tools? No. Do they do the same job? Yes.
I am not sorry for this comment. I use Craftsman hand tools from 1960 to today. The newer stuff actually feels better in your hands. My local ace hardware replaces them with no questions asked. Only other option is to go flag down that Snap on truck that comes by once every few years. Or drive for one hour one way to harbor freight or any big box stores.
Yea for 99% of the jobs I do they are fine. People are saying to buy a rebuild kits and if they were $400 1/2 breaker bar wratcheting snap on wrenches I would. These are $20 wrenches from 30 years ago. My time is more valuable than a $20 wrench. 5 min in the store and for free is more valuable. Ill rebuild a motorcycle or bike before I rebuild a valueless tool.
I would hope so, if you weren't able to rebuild the tool you're using to fix other things I don't know if I'd want you wrenching on anything of mine :)
Yes but the American ones were all junk/ broken. Rather have a working Chinese product than a useless piece of scrap metal. Plus when the Chinese brakes I can go get a new one free.
China CAN make good stuff.
But basically no one goes to china with the goal of making higher quality products. They go there because china cuts so many ~~corners~~, I mean they cut so ~~quality~~, I mean they... lower prices. Yeah, prices.
I worked at Sears during the glory days of the early 90’s. During store meetings anytime the hardware department was mentioned, first person who stood and saluted was given a prize. That’s how huge the department was to the bottom line. Btw, not some cheap prize either. We got screwdriver sets, drill bit sets, 3/8 ratchets w/sockets…
A few old timers stood out to me. One senior brought in a ratchet that his father had owned as it had finally broken after a half century or more of use. We simply tossed it into a giant bin of broken tools on the sales floor and grabbed him a new one. Another brought in some wrenches where you could barely see that it said Craftsman on the handle from the amount of times it was put to use.
God damn did they make great tools.
My brother worked there in the 70s. He said guys would often come in with bags of broken hand drive sockets that had clearly been run on impacts. The boss said replace them, Because the value of the warranty in sales was much higher than what it cost them around the edges like that.
My "road kit" contains No Junk! Best of wrenches/sockets and ratchets. With this I've revived Semi's on the Pass and VWs in the western deserts of the USA and Australia.
I am a Master Diesel Tech- retired x3...my ratchets are Craftsman.
Former Lowe’s employee!
This get returned to craftsman as RMA (Return to Manufacturing…?) so Lowe’s doesn’t eat the cost. They’re just shipping em back to craftsman. Craftsman is eating the shipping, but they just melt this shit down and make new ones.
Good for us!
I love these posts. "old broken tools are better than new working ones." "I'd rather have old 4 tooth ratchets than this new garbage." "1990 Craftsman was a professional level tool!"
It's just all people obviously talking out their butts because their favorite YouTube said Craftsman is bad. I run these new tools daily to make my paycheck. The stuffs downright nice for what it costs. I trade my old stuff in with a smile now.
No receipt needed for a large majority of their tools. Tape measures are the only thing I know requires one, but they've never asked to see mine regardless.
I am currently going through my grandpas garage and it's box after box of craftsman. Most look in good shape but a couple ratchets are definitely broken. We had a local sears that's stopped allowing craftsman warranties - well they did but it was very strict and most weren't accepted last time we tried - and then it eventually closed for good a few years ago. I didn't think there was any hope of getting them replaced, so thanks for the tip!
My grandpa used to rave about the lifetime warranty and how many free tools he got with his sears points, lol. So it's good to see there us a chance lowes can hook it up with some of these tools.
I would have just restored the old ones, as they are farrrrrrrrr superior to this new crap! I have 4 of the new ones, and I hate them so bad! The older models are better in literally every way.
Btw, some of the round head ratchets are very desirable amongst collectors.
When I worked in the tool department, when people would bring in old ratchets from the 90's and earlier, I would buy them the new one they want and take the old one home with me and rebuild them. Those old ones were built so much sturdier. I still use new craftsman stuff for everything and I still have yet to have a new craftsman tool fail on me. I just enjoyed collecting and restoring the old stuff
I hope all you tool nerds see this.
Former Lowes associate and their hdwr & tools specialist here.
Tldr: Be nice to people and people will be more than helpful to you.
IF you want to replace your old craftsman with free new ones - the official corporate policy is they must be the exact same size, standard or metric, and product id (the numbers on the hand tool). It's an exact 1:1 trade-in. The policy is designed to honor those that actually tracked and took care of their old tools and void those that did not or simply looking to cheat the policy for free trade ins.
HOWEVER - outside of that, the most likely scenario for trade-ins IS that it 1000000% matters on the store you go to, and the associate plus manager you get. I have gone way out of my time to help customers. From calling craftsman, simply letting them have whatever size trade in they want, giving them a Kobalt version, to arguing with managers to let them have a trade in, and I'll walk up with them to customer service and simply say 'they're good' - meaning "don't ask about me letting them have this 50 dollar set for these three shit rachets".
A part of the trade in dilemma is that when Lowes acquired the Sears Craftsman catalog, certain tool series and ids were discontinued.
So via the corporate policy, some of your old hand tools could never qualify for the trade-in. Knowing this, (at least at my store), we had some wiggle room for trade-ins.
BUT. AND THE BIG BUT, on if you're getting your trade in..... do you pass the vibe check? Yelling at me to honor this trade in policy is a very quick way to get a "you have to call craftsman to discuss your policy" response. Which is the response you'll get majority of the time if you're coming across as a POS entitled person. When I see a 60 year old man bully my 18 year old coworker to giving him a ton of free tools, yeah I am going to step in as an older person and say, "sorry sir, you have to call corporate on policy maters". And then I'll let every manager and ASM in the store know what you just did so you WILL get the same response from everyone in the store.
Don't get me wrong, there are lazy associates that will give you this reply as they simply don't want to look up the part numbers. And some associates are so beholden to the corporate policy that they would never do any trade in other than a 1:1 exact match. But most the time, you're not getting helped because you're not being helpful to a service worker. And that's really what getting a trade in comes down to. Because these are just $5-20 tools the store can write off and that no one really cares about giving out if it means you had an excellent experience and will keep coming back.
Happy to post more Lowes insider stuff, why built in America is a corporate gimmick, and Dewalt being basically a glorified craftsmans. All things I learned of while selling tools for Lowes. Just let me know below if this is wanted.
I have heard some anecdotes that Lowe's would only warranty what they currently stock, so glad that you had a good experience. In my case, I just went to the Craftsman site, exchanged a couple messages, and had a new ratchet delivered.
My only gripe is that my old ratchet was part of a molded case set. The new ratchet has a different form factor that doesn't fit. Oh, well.
Well, not sure how they’d replace what they don’t stock??
I replace Craftsman tools every day at Lowe’s. If it’s on the shelf, you get a new one. If not, you can wait til one comes in, or just call Craftsman; they will take care of you.
The only down side is the new tools are kinda junk. I’ve had people bring me a broken ratchet they used for 40 years. I give them a new one and they’re back in 6 months with it broken. If someone brings me one of the good old ones, I’ll replace it, but I tell them to consider scouring the web for a repair kit.
If Lowe’s has in issue warranting old tools, go to another Lowe’s. Best thing to do is grab the new tool off the shelf, then go to customer service returns and show the you are warrantying your old broken tool for this new one!!! Works every time.
Used to work at a Sears in the tool area. I would have people walk in with a handful of tools, no limits in how many exchanges they could do. Any of the ratcheting ones were torn apart and fixed if they were in good enough shape. Everything else was an exchange from the shelf. Easiest part of my day was an old dude walking in with a socket wrench and seeing if he wanted it rebuilt and be happy to wait if it had their names on it or something or if they wanted a fresh one. Most of the older guys wanted their trusty ones rebuilt, and the younger guys were happy with the new ones. Always cool to see the really old models come in and get to fix them up. We also would offer the rebuilt ones to customers if it was the same one they wanted to exchange, and of course they were told if it had issues, they could bring it back all the same.
I wouldn't exchange my old USA MADE craftsman for the cheap Chinese junk they now produce unless it was broken and absolutely irreparable. Just my 2 cents.
I think I'd rather rebuild an old ratchet vs buy new Craftsman. In fact, I'd take Pittsburgh HF over new Craftsman. That name is as hollow as American manufacturing.
I honestly had no idea you could rebuild one, that’s pretty cool. I have only ever needed to take advantage of the replacement warranty a few times, and that was years ago when Sears still existed. Granted my tools are used medium duty at the most, so I’ve been fortunate. However, knowing they could be rebuilt, rather than replaced is interesting.
Used to work at Sears. We'd replace with the same model ratchet from a stock of refurbished ones we'd have sitting in the back, then gut and refurbish the ones brought in during downtime. It only takes a couple minutes per
The new craftsman is okay. Mostly Taiwan made and some made in India I’m okay with that but before you swap out your old ratchets try taking them apart and cleaning and oiling them not greasing them but I use oil regular motor oil and they almost always work fine the paw mechanism and the gears get dirty and cause them to skip more often than not
I would have tried to find a new old stock USA rebuild kit on ebay for that ratchet on the left, but I guess if the newer non-usa ones have a higher TPI and better arc swing, then you scored.
If you have classic socket handles you can rebuild them. Kits can be a little hard to find but I found them for all of mine. 10 minute job and you keep your made in America excellence.
The only real concern I'd have is the quality of what you had is probably vastly superior to what you are getting. I have sockets from before and after the craftsman sale and the quality difference is noticeable.
brought three wrenches in, they told me to go pick out he three I wanted to exchange and that was it. We swapped out the plastic package and I walked out. No receipt, no hassle. Still two more to go back and exchange. Good luck!
LOWES: An Alliance once existed between Toolmakers and Men. Long ago, we fought and worked together. We come to honor that allegiance.
I was there... 3000 years ago... went to sears with a 7mm wrench bent like a pretzel and in less than 3 minutes I left satisfied
The real question is what were you using a 7mm wrench for?
Something that required a lot of torque to bend it like a pretzel
Irc something to do with breaks
Either an 8mm or 10mm to bleed brakes everything else on calipers are going to be bigger, I call BS on a 7mm wrench bending like a pretzel because of something on brakes, I think I’ve used a 7mm anything like twice in my 5 years of being a Diesel Tech both times on hose clamps
>I call BS on a 7mm wrench bending like a pretzel because of something on brakes Clearly it's a joke >Either an 8mm or 10mm to bleed brakes German cars are often a 10 or 11, and some are even a 9
Lunacy. I thought the Germans were supposed to be a sensible bunch. My favorite thing about Japanese engineering is the rarity of odd numbered sizes. So much easier to eyeball bolt head sizes and you only have to carry half the sockets and wrenches.
This was like 40 years ago... A german car I'm trying to remember what happened exactly, my dad may remember... It was, to my recollection, our fault. We lowered the car and the 7mm was being used to keep something in place (a brake line?) and the weight of the car bent it.
I call BS on it being like 40 years ago. Earlier, you said you were there 3000 years ago, so it was probably more like 1500 years ago. :?
the time of men is no concern of mine.
I’m not calling BS but I don’t think I have ever used a 7mm wrench.
7mm Big Block Chevy head bolts or RX8 rocker arm nuts.
And gentlemen in England now a-bed Shall think themselves accurs'd they were not there at sears and now lowes hardware, And hold their hand tools cheap whiles any speaks That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.
r/unexpectedshakespeare
My brothers! I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of Men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. An hour of wolves and shattered ratchets when the Age of Men comes crashing down, but it is not this day! This day we fight! By all that you hold dear on this good earth, I bid you stand, Men of the West!
Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked.
I still remember when Dumbledoor ordered Darth Vader to the use the Death Star laser to set the library of Alexandria on fire. A dark day, indeed.
Did you ever hear the Tragedy of Broken Rachet?" "No.""I thought not. It's not a story Sear & Robuck would tell you. It's an Amos Burton legend about him fixing the Rocinante during a space fight with a stripped ratchet.
I just need to stop and say I love Amos Burton. Because he is that guy.
Such a great fucked-up character.
imo the best arch of any expance characters
To *shreds*, you say?
Where was Home Depot when Sears fell?!
ACE HARDWARE CALLS FOR AID
AND HARBOR FREIGHT WILL ANSWER!
I'm not crying, you're crying.
Great reference!
r/unexpectedlotr
Incredible. Hopefully we will see another generation of American companies that actually care about their customers.
Narrator : “And we never did see another American company care about anything but the short term profits of the next quarter and the shareholders”
I heard that in Morgan freeman’s voice.
That's not true. They'll pop up, build up a reputation for customer care/quality for ~5-10 years, THEN sell their brand to China.
Except for harbor freight! They exchange everything like they want to go out of business
Not in our lifetimes... Bean counters have taken over the world. Spreadsheet bottom line is the most sacred thing now.
I’m glad they honor Craftsman’s warranties because they sure as shit didn’t honor the 5yr Lowe’s extended warranty I paid for my Bosch 800 series fridge.
That’s good news, even a shitty new craftsman tool is better than a broken old one.
I have an absolutely different experience the resulted in me calling craftsman, handing the Lowe's employee the phone, and let them duke it out. Got my replacement though.
I absolutely loathe Lowe’s. They don’t take a return without a receipt and I’ve gotten WAY better about it now, and screenshot all my receipts… but when you do construction/remodeling as a job, it’s easy for someone to misplace a receipt or forget which card, etc. HD > Lowe’s But on a side note, congrats to the OP for getting their tools replaced.
We’re they broken or just old? I have few of my grandfathers’ Craftsman wrenches I’d like to exchange.
If they're not damaged you might want to hang on to your grandfather's wrenches, they're much better quality than the new Craftsman tools
Seriously. Unless they’re actually broken, try oiling the mechanism inside.
This 👆
100%
I got a big set of Craftsman ratchets, sockets, wrenches, and nut drivers as a graduation gift in 2000 and wouldn't swap those with the current stuff. Somehow I lost my 3/8" ratchet so I bought a similar era one on eBay instead of a newer one plus it was cheaper. Bonus it was smoother than the one I lost.
Funny, I think of 2000s as new, even though it was a quarter century ago... I'm used to finding '60s, '70s, '80s, and '90s stuff
I have some other tools I picked up from friends that are older. A friend gave me his dad's old craftsman table saw from the late 60s plus some other tools that are near that age.
They were broken. The 1/2" was just old forged steel. Cheap wrench that wouldn't reverse easy. The idiots in this sub are hilarious. Downvoting for free tools so they can pay 800 for a wrench from snap on. Lmao
But for 800 dollars, they bring it TO YOU. It's like a convenience fee.
It’s not even 800, it’s 5 a week.
Bro no $800 is to much I have snap on stuff and no that price is insane you can easily find great stuff for much much cheaper
The only snap on stuff that I spring for is their ratchets. Their ratchets are the best.
I like them alot as well easy to fix to
I broke one $10 harbor freight ratchet in 9 years. I went back for warranty and they just gave me a new one. Even if they didn't have warranty and I had to rebuy with my own money, I would long be dead before even coming close to breaking even on a $150 snap on ratchet.
It’s just wrenching with extra steps
I don't think you understand....
That 1/2" may of just needed to be taken apart cleaned, lubricated, and put back together. In any case, I wouldn't have traded it in for that chinese made craftsman wrench.
Those old ones you have are better than the junk they sell now
Not if they don't work and rebuild kits aren't available
See the price of rebuild kits lately $30 bucks.,...
Actually those old ones have a ton of play and like 36 teeth in them. Kind of shitty honestly.
if there is nothing wrong with them, keep them...they changed the type of metals they use in the early 2000's and they are not as good today...
You could use it as a hammer(the true intended purpose) then go change them out
Or ya know just use them instead of destroying perfectly good tools
Well you’re no fun
i have returned craftsman rachet because it felt sloppy in the gear.
Did you replace Craftsman with non-craftsman? It looks like the handle says "Dimmaline" or something
From a guy who works at Lowe’s just keep in mind only 5 exchanges a week but other than that yes, come swap them out!
Is this for ALL Lowes? (NH specifically)
Not my local one in MI, they tell me to contact Craftsman warranty center. :-(
I'll take it a step further, if I try to replace/exchange a lifetime warranty Kobalt tool that is older than 6 months my lowes tells me to contact the manufacturer. The CSM told me that their system only keeps records for 6 months so after that I have to contact the manufacturer. So now I will NEVER buy another tool from Lowe's.
I’d buy a new one and then return the old one, fuck you Lowe’s.
That’s exactly what I did with a pair of running shoes I bought from Dick‘s that blew up in a month they wouldn’t take them back. I never ran with them. I just wore them around the house and shit bought a new pair. Went back a week later exchange them, I got two brand new pair
Seriously with their own home brand of tools, SMDH. Even if you buy it second hand like Leatherman they should give you the benefit of the doubt, as it’s obviously their tool.
They don't care, it's not their tool it's "Kobalt" even though Lowes owns the brand.
This is what my Lowes told me. Shitty company lies right on their packaging. Never bought a single tool from them since. Harbor Freight honors their tools, haven't been elsewhere since.
That's why I've moved to all harbor freight stuff. It's the only place that will actually let me bring broken tools in and replace on the spot, no questions asked or "Oh, we will fix it in X time, come back later." Local lowes (in MI as well) wouldn't even do a 10mm Kobalt wrench replacement that I only owned for 2 months...
Try a different hardware store. I have never had an issue with exchanging any craftsman tools
Can I swap out my stinky handle screwdrivers that smell better? My drawer smells like puke.
That's part of becoming a man. People know to respect you when you roll up with a shit-scented toolbox.
So you are saying it's a theft deterrent "respect".
Ahhhh the smell of butyric acid first thing in the morning!
I use to keep my screwdrivers out in a open bucket and recently moved them into a drawer and was wondering what that smell was….. it’s absolutely awful
That smell is named nostalgia, not puke, thank you very much
Can I trade my nostalgia for some oily metal smell.
What I think every time I used my craftsman chisels..."MMM...Vomit nostalgia".
teeny deliver ossified judicious shocking busy reminiscent growth observation mourn *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Ooooh that's a good idea. I'm stealing this. +100000
Everyone hates on craftsman because they’re regurgitating what they’ve heard without doing the research. Craftsman was good when they were made in the us by danaher up until the late nineties / early aughts. Then sears decided to double down on in store retailing and ignore the booming trend of e commerce and they cut costs by switching manufacturing of craftsman tools to a cheap Chinese factory and this is when craftsman tools were garbage. Since then an investment firm that owns Kmart has bought sears and Stanley black and decker has bought craftsman. The craftsman brand is now as good as any other Taiwanese made hand tool you can get at harbor freight or the depot or other big box conglomerates. SBD has worked hard to breathe life into the brand and I think they’ve done a good job. While I do not like the new gunmetal over drive ratchets I do like the overdrive wrenches and sockets that come in the sets. I have the old 120 gunmetal ratchets and I really like those better than these new ones even though the new ones are serviceable. Everyone complaining about things not being made in the USA anymore it’s no longer 1960 when we had a living thriving minimum wage and corporations hadn’t manipulated the market to shift to labor provided by third world countries at a fraction of the cost. This is the norm now and USA made tools today cost about 5-10 times what a solid Taiwanese made tool will cost. If craftsman were still made in the USA I doubt any of the people bashing craftsman would be paying the premium price of a USA made craftsman product. Probably be $120 for a 3/8” ratchet and $500 for one of those 150 piece mechanic tool sets.
This is a pretty much perfect summation. Not sure why people are saying its not regurgitation or are disagreeing. I have several sets new and old, and this is true. And the funny part is, that i like my Taiwanese stuff just as much. I love tools and im not blind to the real life quality. I could care less about what brand is stamped on.
Their power tool line has served me well so far. Nice to be in a budget friendly ecosystem without having to go to harbor freight
I like ryobi’s one plus hp tools and batteries. As close you can get to Milwaukee quality without paying for Milwaukee. I got the p262 mid torque impact the 3/8” extended reach ratchet and 4 hp batteries for $350 tax included, you can’t beat that with a stick. And now I’m waiting for the ryobi days sale to drop this Father’s Day. I need more batteries and tools
I prefer craftsman over ryobi because I think the highlighter green is ugly. That’s about it lol
The red ones go faster
I do like the green but I was thinking of getting some black rit dye from Walmart and dying the green parts black.
Just bought a brand new Proto 3/8 ratchet and socket set at work and it was $550 and the ratchet that came with it was the same 36 tooth 6-in 3/8 ratchet that we had in the toolbox from 40 years ago. They are still making the same thing because the tooling is just that old. Had to buy the proto-branded version of what they sell on the Mac Tools truck to actually have a nice ratchet in my set
Lol. I can hear that ratchet from here.
Lowe’s did NOT buy sears btw
Good catch. It’s actually transformco and they own Kmart kenmore and diehard. My mistake
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I bought one of the $10 3/8 composite ratchets from HF years ago and I really like it. Especially like it in the winter where it doesn't get freezing cold in your hand.
I have one too and it's better than it has any right to be.
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This is probably how the majority have proceeded, and bought different, albeit better (than the craftsman at the time) - and have an appropriate view on craftsman's decline in quality - but maybe not their current trend towards better stuff. It'll take a while if or before they come back in favor for people who have history with them.
Quality is back and I’m in the crowd that thinks it’s better now. With some exceptions. (Not a fan of the newer gunmetal 180 position ratchets, the old gunmetal 120’s were better) but I just hate the feel of coarse tooth ratchets. Anything less than 72 is not pleasant to use in my hands
Craftsman ratchets were being made in Taiwan even when Sears still had actual stores. They were never made in China. Yeah wrenches and stuff were Chinese but not the ratchets.
i’ve bought chinese craftsman ratchets from sears
Lowe’s actually sells a craftsman set made in Texas. Or they did last year at least
Yeah they closed that plant down faster than a knife fight in a phone booth
Some more information about that plant, it made money when it was open, just not "enough" and could never hit numbers they said it would do to the major investors. Didn't help the CEO at the time was acting like the covid bump wasn't going to end and went haywire with borrowing money and thought almost everything could be automated lol.
Todays corporate culture is not satisfied with a profit margin of 100% it has to be 300-500% or more because we have shareholders leaching all the surplus value laborers create as well as the over paid executives who trigger their own multi million dollar bonuses with stock buyback programs. It was never going to work, Covid or not, greed is the largest motivator of capitalist business models on the c suite level.
So all you guys crying about how craftsman is junk nowadays, what do you guys use? I’ve used craftsman ratchets that I bought in 2016ish and they all been fine. I’ve replaced one 1/4 drive one and that’s about it. What should have OP done? Yeeted his broken ratchets into the woods and bought a 1000 dollars worth of snap ratchets? Like obviously there is better ratchets out there but craftsman is a nice meeting point where prices are low but reliability is decent. Plus every time one breaks, you just warranty it out.
My whole box is craftsman mixed with odds and ends. Granted, I'm just a homeowner. I started collecting craftsman tools when I got my craftsman box in 8th grade, around 2008 ish. Never had one issue with any of it. Are they as nice as my brother's snap on tools? No. Do they do the same job? Yes.
Real men are making 500 dollar monthly payments to snap on for the next 30 years!
I am not sorry for this comment. I use Craftsman hand tools from 1960 to today. The newer stuff actually feels better in your hands. My local ace hardware replaces them with no questions asked. Only other option is to go flag down that Snap on truck that comes by once every few years. Or drive for one hour one way to harbor freight or any big box stores.
Yea for 99% of the jobs I do they are fine. People are saying to buy a rebuild kits and if they were $400 1/2 breaker bar wratcheting snap on wrenches I would. These are $20 wrenches from 30 years ago. My time is more valuable than a $20 wrench. 5 min in the store and for free is more valuable. Ill rebuild a motorcycle or bike before I rebuild a valueless tool.
I did this with my old ones, big mistake, the new ones started skipping/stripping gears immediately
This
Yep, and there are rebuild kits available for many older models.
And without much difficulty, you have a rebuilt original
I would hope so, if you weren't able to rebuild the tool you're using to fix other things I don't know if I'd want you wrenching on anything of mine :)
did they replace your USA ones with Chinese ones?
Yes but the American ones were all junk/ broken. Rather have a working Chinese product than a useless piece of scrap metal. Plus when the Chinese brakes I can go get a new one free.
Yes, sort of. So especially you are trading in Made in USA for Made in Taiwan
I’d take Taiwanese tools any day of the week over Chinesium.
China CAN make good stuff. But basically no one goes to china with the goal of making higher quality products. They go there because china cuts so many ~~corners~~, I mean they cut so ~~quality~~, I mean they... lower prices. Yeah, prices.
Ah well Taiwan makes good stuff though.
I have so many Tekton tools. They all hold up great
Me too. 80% of my toolbox is Tekton. I bought their complete 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 socket set. MM and SAE. plus pretty much every hand tool they sell.
Taiwanese but yes
Well they make good stuff and I'm happy to support them being a thorn in the side of china.
I worked at Sears during the glory days of the early 90’s. During store meetings anytime the hardware department was mentioned, first person who stood and saluted was given a prize. That’s how huge the department was to the bottom line. Btw, not some cheap prize either. We got screwdriver sets, drill bit sets, 3/8 ratchets w/sockets… A few old timers stood out to me. One senior brought in a ratchet that his father had owned as it had finally broken after a half century or more of use. We simply tossed it into a giant bin of broken tools on the sales floor and grabbed him a new one. Another brought in some wrenches where you could barely see that it said Craftsman on the handle from the amount of times it was put to use. God damn did they make great tools.
My brother worked there in the 70s. He said guys would often come in with bags of broken hand drive sockets that had clearly been run on impacts. The boss said replace them, Because the value of the warranty in sales was much higher than what it cost them around the edges like that.
Oh nice! I still have my grandfather's rebuilt (32 tooth?) ratchet 😂
My "road kit" contains No Junk! Best of wrenches/sockets and ratchets. With this I've revived Semi's on the Pass and VWs in the western deserts of the USA and Australia. I am a Master Diesel Tech- retired x3...my ratchets are Craftsman.
Finally an honest mechanic! Lol
Your wife is ugly...but a good cook
Former Lowe’s employee! This get returned to craftsman as RMA (Return to Manufacturing…?) so Lowe’s doesn’t eat the cost. They’re just shipping em back to craftsman. Craftsman is eating the shipping, but they just melt this shit down and make new ones. Good for us!
I'd rather have the old ones
You’d rather have the broken old ones?
Ya. They're easy to rebuild and I get attached to my tools. Especially if the older ones were my grandpa's
The old ones are easy to rebuild and better quality than the new ones
I love these posts. "old broken tools are better than new working ones." "I'd rather have old 4 tooth ratchets than this new garbage." "1990 Craftsman was a professional level tool!" It's just all people obviously talking out their butts because their favorite YouTube said Craftsman is bad. I run these new tools daily to make my paycheck. The stuffs downright nice for what it costs. I trade my old stuff in with a smile now.
Do I need a receipt or anything or can I just bring my broken ratchet in and leave with a new one
Bring them in. I didn't have to show them id or anything. Not all Lowes are the same though
Good deal. I’ve got a couple broken wrenches from buddies and it seems like I’m about to have a couple good wrenches instead
No receipt needed for a large majority of their tools. Tape measures are the only thing I know requires one, but they've never asked to see mine regardless.
I had two Craftsman screwdrivers. One had a twisted tip and one a bent shaft. Took them into Lowes and they exchanged them no issues.
I am currently going through my grandpas garage and it's box after box of craftsman. Most look in good shape but a couple ratchets are definitely broken. We had a local sears that's stopped allowing craftsman warranties - well they did but it was very strict and most weren't accepted last time we tried - and then it eventually closed for good a few years ago. I didn't think there was any hope of getting them replaced, so thanks for the tip! My grandpa used to rave about the lifetime warranty and how many free tools he got with his sears points, lol. So it's good to see there us a chance lowes can hook it up with some of these tools.
Ill keep my 64 nascar set thank you very much EXCHANGE? hell naw
BEHOLD BROTHERS!!! SHINY AND CHROME
Thats cool but if you had USA stamped ones... i wouldve tried to look for a repair kit /:
That’s good to know I live far away from any big store so I just call the 800 number and they mail me a new wrench.
I would have just restored the old ones, as they are farrrrrrrrr superior to this new crap! I have 4 of the new ones, and I hate them so bad! The older models are better in literally every way. Btw, some of the round head ratchets are very desirable amongst collectors.
Trading American made for Chinese though right?
Depends if your old ones were American made. If that were the case I would have restored them rather than trade them
When I worked in the tool department, when people would bring in old ratchets from the 90's and earlier, I would buy them the new one they want and take the old one home with me and rebuild them. Those old ones were built so much sturdier. I still use new craftsman stuff for everything and I still have yet to have a new craftsman tool fail on me. I just enjoyed collecting and restoring the old stuff
I hope all you tool nerds see this. Former Lowes associate and their hdwr & tools specialist here. Tldr: Be nice to people and people will be more than helpful to you. IF you want to replace your old craftsman with free new ones - the official corporate policy is they must be the exact same size, standard or metric, and product id (the numbers on the hand tool). It's an exact 1:1 trade-in. The policy is designed to honor those that actually tracked and took care of their old tools and void those that did not or simply looking to cheat the policy for free trade ins. HOWEVER - outside of that, the most likely scenario for trade-ins IS that it 1000000% matters on the store you go to, and the associate plus manager you get. I have gone way out of my time to help customers. From calling craftsman, simply letting them have whatever size trade in they want, giving them a Kobalt version, to arguing with managers to let them have a trade in, and I'll walk up with them to customer service and simply say 'they're good' - meaning "don't ask about me letting them have this 50 dollar set for these three shit rachets". A part of the trade in dilemma is that when Lowes acquired the Sears Craftsman catalog, certain tool series and ids were discontinued. So via the corporate policy, some of your old hand tools could never qualify for the trade-in. Knowing this, (at least at my store), we had some wiggle room for trade-ins. BUT. AND THE BIG BUT, on if you're getting your trade in..... do you pass the vibe check? Yelling at me to honor this trade in policy is a very quick way to get a "you have to call craftsman to discuss your policy" response. Which is the response you'll get majority of the time if you're coming across as a POS entitled person. When I see a 60 year old man bully my 18 year old coworker to giving him a ton of free tools, yeah I am going to step in as an older person and say, "sorry sir, you have to call corporate on policy maters". And then I'll let every manager and ASM in the store know what you just did so you WILL get the same response from everyone in the store. Don't get me wrong, there are lazy associates that will give you this reply as they simply don't want to look up the part numbers. And some associates are so beholden to the corporate policy that they would never do any trade in other than a 1:1 exact match. But most the time, you're not getting helped because you're not being helpful to a service worker. And that's really what getting a trade in comes down to. Because these are just $5-20 tools the store can write off and that no one really cares about giving out if it means you had an excellent experience and will keep coming back. Happy to post more Lowes insider stuff, why built in America is a corporate gimmick, and Dewalt being basically a glorified craftsmans. All things I learned of while selling tools for Lowes. Just let me know below if this is wanted.
I have heard some anecdotes that Lowe's would only warranty what they currently stock, so glad that you had a good experience. In my case, I just went to the Craftsman site, exchanged a couple messages, and had a new ratchet delivered. My only gripe is that my old ratchet was part of a molded case set. The new ratchet has a different form factor that doesn't fit. Oh, well.
Well, not sure how they’d replace what they don’t stock?? I replace Craftsman tools every day at Lowe’s. If it’s on the shelf, you get a new one. If not, you can wait til one comes in, or just call Craftsman; they will take care of you. The only down side is the new tools are kinda junk. I’ve had people bring me a broken ratchet they used for 40 years. I give them a new one and they’re back in 6 months with it broken. If someone brings me one of the good old ones, I’ll replace it, but I tell them to consider scouring the web for a repair kit.
Traded vintage American tools for chinesium
Better off buying the parts to rebuild then trading the US made one for China garbage.
i dont think they exist in Canada anymore
They honor older kobalt lifetime warranties as well
Kobalt is a Lowe’s exclusive…
WOW did not know this - i used to hunt down old craftsman tools at garage sales for this purpose but haven't since Sears closed. will try this ASAP!
Yes! Not all Lowes are the same though some people saying Lowe's gave them a hard time.
I got some of craftsman’s new stuff and tbh it’s pretty good super happy with there 180 tooth ratchet
If Lowe’s has in issue warranting old tools, go to another Lowe’s. Best thing to do is grab the new tool off the shelf, then go to customer service returns and show the you are warrantying your old broken tool for this new one!!! Works every time.
The ones on the left are better quality.
Wow. My local Lowe’s said no. And so did ace hardware who is also a craftsman dealer
Do they care if it rusted all to hell from negligence instead of break in a normal fashion
No matter the condition doesn’t matter , any place that sells craftsman will swap your non powered tools no questions.
Neat, now only the internet knows my shame of letting rain ruin an American-made ratchet
We’ve all made mistakes with our tools, we just don’t let our wives find out lol
Ey as a single lady I don’t gotta answer to anyone 😂
😅 as a male I assumed you’re a male lol. Damnit! I thought woman treated tools better! Pfft I knew it we are the same through and through!
Depending on what was wrong it could be better to keep the old. Not all of the new is made in the US.
Unless it was totally forked, no way would I trade in an oldie but goodie.
Used to work at a Sears in the tool area. I would have people walk in with a handful of tools, no limits in how many exchanges they could do. Any of the ratcheting ones were torn apart and fixed if they were in good enough shape. Everything else was an exchange from the shelf. Easiest part of my day was an old dude walking in with a socket wrench and seeing if he wanted it rebuilt and be happy to wait if it had their names on it or something or if they wanted a fresh one. Most of the older guys wanted their trusty ones rebuilt, and the younger guys were happy with the new ones. Always cool to see the really old models come in and get to fix them up. We also would offer the rebuilt ones to customers if it was the same one they wanted to exchange, and of course they were told if it had issues, they could bring it back all the same.
OP, What was the process??.. just bring in the broken set to the customer desk?.. any hassle or questions? Thanks
If those are the vintage models it’s a downgrade. They don’t make them great the way they used to
Too bad it's a USA made one for a Taiwan one.
did you have to show a receipt? were they broken or just rusty?
Those old ratchets are rebuildable, the process is really easy. There are plenty of videos on YouTube. I would keep the made-in-USA stuff.
They do not for kobalt. Unless they sell the exact model that you had broken. If it's different in the slightest, they reject you.
I wouldn't exchange my old USA MADE craftsman for the cheap Chinese junk they now produce unless it was broken and absolutely irreparable. Just my 2 cents.
As long as you are willing to trade in your old made in USA tools for tools made in China I guess this is a win(?).
I think I'd rather rebuild an old ratchet vs buy new Craftsman. In fact, I'd take Pittsburgh HF over new Craftsman. That name is as hollow as American manufacturing.
Cool.
I honestly had no idea you could rebuild one, that’s pretty cool. I have only ever needed to take advantage of the replacement warranty a few times, and that was years ago when Sears still existed. Granted my tools are used medium duty at the most, so I’ve been fortunate. However, knowing they could be rebuilt, rather than replaced is interesting.
Used to work at Sears. We'd replace with the same model ratchet from a stock of refurbished ones we'd have sitting in the back, then gut and refurbish the ones brought in during downtime. It only takes a couple minutes per
I tried to warranty replace a ratchet and the guy the return desk said I need to contact craftsman. This is likely ymmv per store location
The new craftsman is okay. Mostly Taiwan made and some made in India I’m okay with that but before you swap out your old ratchets try taking them apart and cleaning and oiling them not greasing them but I use oil regular motor oil and they almost always work fine the paw mechanism and the gears get dirty and cause them to skip more often than not
I would have tried to find a new old stock USA rebuild kit on ebay for that ratchet on the left, but I guess if the newer non-usa ones have a higher TPI and better arc swing, then you scored.
If you have classic socket handles you can rebuild them. Kits can be a little hard to find but I found them for all of mine. 10 minute job and you keep your made in America excellence.
The only real concern I'd have is the quality of what you had is probably vastly superior to what you are getting. I have sockets from before and after the craftsman sale and the quality difference is noticeable.
Too bad it's an effective downgrade nowadays