They were one of the most significant holdouts over the past decade or so, but they won't learn from their mistake. They could have learned from vise-grip, who could have learned from dremel, who could have learned from Stanley. Sears (Craftsman) could have learned from any or all of them, as could Husky and Kobalt.
They'll all just go the same way, only to lose the race to the bottom to Harbor Freight.
One could easily see this lesson by taking a Craftsman wrench from the 1990s and comparing it with one made today.
Now, one can just go to Harbor Freight, pick up hand tools which are just as good as the Craftsmans (because they likely come off the same forges and on the same boats), but a lot cheaper. For stuff that is infrequently used, this is fine. Same with HF's power tools. I've seen their stuff with a different color and a name brand... same cheap, Chinese construction... but 2-5 times the price.
It's problematic to do comparisons with older objects. The ones that lasted were the good ones. The ones with manufacturing defects have been replaced long ago.
Not tools. Good quality tools can be identified by heft and feel. The moving parts run smoothly and have no slop in them. Mating surfaces connect cleanly. The castings are high quality. The metal used is an alloy and working surfaces are heat treated or better.
And then there's the guarantee. There were some old-line tool makers that carried unconditional, lifetime guarantees, which you don't do if you don't have confidence in your product. I'm talking guarantees that said 'if this tool fails for any
The thing is that many Chinese tools from a stable brand also have trade in. Husky/Kobalt have a no questions asked trade in at their respective big box stores. I use it frequently as do professionals. I've tried trading in expensive tools from supposedly "good" brands and pay more in shipping than a new cheap tool will cost.
These days the quality from China is the same as the quality from the US in a lot of cases. There are outliers but they are no longer the norm. And stuff is so cheap these days it makes
I still have my Kobalt metric wrench set, bought in the late 90's, stamped "Made in USA." The chrome hasn't even chipped or worn on any of it in close to 20 years. Their newer stuff looks totally different, although I haven't tried anything because my 90's USA-made Craftsman and Kobalt hand tools are still working (if not looking) like new.
Crescent won't learn (Score:5, Insightful)
They'll all just go the same way, only to lose the race to the bottom to Harbor Freight.
Re: (Score:5, Insightful)
One could easily see this lesson by taking a Craftsman wrench from the 1990s and comparing it with one made today.
Now, one can just go to Harbor Freight, pick up hand tools which are just as good as the Craftsmans (because they likely come off the same forges and on the same boats), but a lot cheaper. For stuff that is infrequently used, this is fine. Same with HF's power tools. I've seen their stuff with a different color and a name brand... same cheap, Chinese construction... but 2-5 times the price.
Re: (Score:5, Insightful)
It's problematic to do comparisons with older objects. The ones that lasted were the good ones. The ones with manufacturing defects have been replaced long ago.
Re: (Score:4, Interesting)
Not tools. Good quality tools can be identified by heft and feel. The moving parts run smoothly and have no slop in them. Mating surfaces connect cleanly. The castings are high quality. The metal used is an alloy and working surfaces are heat treated or better.
And then there's the guarantee. There were some old-line tool makers that carried unconditional, lifetime guarantees, which you don't do if you don't have confidence in your product. I'm talking guarantees that said 'if this tool fails for any
Re: Crescent won't learn (Score:5, Insightful)
The thing is that many Chinese tools from a stable brand also have trade in. Husky/Kobalt have a no questions asked trade in at their respective big box stores. I use it frequently as do professionals. I've tried trading in expensive tools from supposedly "good" brands and pay more in shipping than a new cheap tool will cost.
These days the quality from China is the same as the quality from the US in a lot of cases. There are outliers but they are no longer the norm. And stuff is so cheap these days it makes
Re: Crescent won't learn (Score:2)
I still have my Kobalt metric wrench set, bought in the late 90's, stamped "Made in USA." The chrome hasn't even chipped or worn on any of it in close to 20 years. Their newer stuff looks totally different, although I haven't tried anything because my 90's USA-made Craftsman and Kobalt hand tools are still working (if not looking) like new.
Sam