I worked for APEX tool group. They shut AMERICAN manufacturing plant in Garland,TX and moved it to China. I blame the AMERICAN owned company for not holding China to higher quality standards for producing our products. Shame on them for moving manufacturing overseas for bigger pockets and not keeping the Made in USA brand!!! I don’t blame China for their quality; the big companies here should do better in their engineered in USA but made in China crap.
Agreed and I blame the greedy politicians for opening up that door, over regulating companies that force them to move jobs away if they're going to turn a big profit. Competition creates jobs and quality .
The main difference between USA made Tools and China made USA tools, is that China will make any tool to the quality of what companies are willing to pay. For example a company can approach USA factory and ask them to make 50,000 tools for USD50,000 but then goes to China and ask them to make 100,000 for same USD50,000. Of course the quality will be inferior.
The problem is that while China will happily make tools that match the quality of US-made tools, they typically want as much (or more) money for that level of quality.
I’m thinking you got Chinese knock offs claiming to be Craftsman? The set I just purchased from Amazon were made in Taiwan and are true USA quality. You should check them out (135) piece set for $99.00 I highly recommend them!
The difference between Made in China and Taiwan is night and day. I hope nothing but success when it comes to Tekton tools. Absolutely love their tools.
buy craftsman now and warranty later, they are building a factory in texas to manufacture mechanics tools. so check it out on there website , glad there coming home.
My father had a set of wrenches he bought in the 50s marked "Made in Western Germany". At the time stuff coming out of Germany was considered to be cheap junk. The German's upped their game, and their stuff became expensive. When I was a kid, "Made in Japan" was considered cheap junk. The Japanese upped their game and their stuff became too expense. When I got a bit older "Made in Taiwan" meant bottom of the barrel. Now Taiwanese stuff is considered pretty good. Today people talk trash about anything made of 'Chineseium". Well, just until a few years ago Chinese stuff was junk but today a lot of fairly good quality stuff comes out of China. Last year I purchased a Samsung S10 'premium' phone, "Made in Vietnam". See a pattern here? Capital will always end up with the low cost producer. After a while the low cost producer has some success and prices themselves out of the market. Wash, rinse repeat.
Taiwan is a better option than China and Taiwan is catching up with tool trucks to a certain degree. Technology has changed and its catching up. The heat treating process is by far one of the most important parts of the quality. Tekton, Capri Tools are prime examples for that.
So Chinese made Vs, Taiwan made are two completely different animals? The quality of Taiwan’s Craftsman tools are up to USA specs, but I would still rather have Made in the USA proven quality. Taiwan’s products are very good and made to USA specifications! Ammo from there has been spot on
Honestly I've never saw a 12 point socket that was worth a damn. Not only do they seem to want to round off the threads, the walls seem thinner and easier to break than a beefy 6 point socket
man, thats a damn shame. I grew up on craftsman, and now I'm trying to find a good "Made in USA" alternative. I did hear Crasftsman is making a huge plant in Dallas Tx. maybe that'll help but from now on I'm passing on Craftsman.
I like to see them build a Craftsman factory in Eastern Kentucky (Pikeville area) since Snap On already has their main factory in that region in Elizabethton Tennessee. . . . . Anything is possible
I won’t buy craftsman hand tools anymore. The Taiwan made and Chinese made are nowhere near the quality of my vintage USA-made craftsman tools. I recently have been buying Ko-ken tools lately (made in Japan) the quality is amazing and most socket sets are about $50-$80 with a lifetime warranty. The last Chinese made tools I bought were a long flex head 3/8” drive ratchet and I HATE IT.
I just bought a Milwaukee metric socket set, in 3/8, 6 point. Going to try them out, want to see how the square sockets measure up to hype! I still buy Craftsman, & they haven’t let me down, since the 60s!
Stangman12 don’t believe this shit ! We say the same about the German . This was obviously a defect .... from a patriotic union worker 😂😂😂😂😂 like I never broke a snap I’m on a bolt .
Another way is to see how a hex bolt fits inside the socket. Chinesium sockets have a larger tolerance than American made and causes slippage when cranking down on bolts and nuts.
China is capable now of building tools in any level of quality. Hate to say this but the premium line of Harbor Freight will now rival anything else on the market. Watch for big things from Texton. The big tool guys should realize that things are changing quickly. I too would prefer to see all of this product made right here in the US!
great video! you definitely showed what I been talking about for years now with tools made in China, I love Craftsman, been buying them my whole life, I purchased the 20 piece made in China ratchet wrench set for $60 on eBay and I was so disappointed, the 8mm skips, the 10mm looked like they forgot to grind the extra metal off one side of the box end and sent it straight to chrome, the 5/8 was locking up, the 17mm feels like it doesn't have a spring on the pawl and beam is bent on the 1/2, well I guess for $60 I got 15 halfway decent ratchet wrenches lol! but I put them in the bottom of the tool box and purchased a SK made in the USA set, never again I will buy another Craftsman tool unless they are made in the USA.
Greg Corkern mine over half my wrench set was bent as well, I took mine back and had to dig to find straightness one a lot of the craftsman wrenches. Seems as if there is no quality control. All they care about is making a subpar product at minimal cost
Recently my car was broken into. $450 worth of Craftsman "Made in USA" was stolen. +10years of tools gone. Im pissed🤬🤬 cause I cant find affordable USA tools. I just bought Gearwrench 239pc tool set. Hope I wont be disappointed with them.
My Husky sockets have the same issue with the large lead in where the 3/8 drive anvil goes in, which actually prevents the ratchets from completely snapping into place on the larger sockets. My HFT sockets are actually all from Taiwan and don't have any of those problems.
Guess what bubba? Even immigrants (like myself) also love Made in the USA! On top of that, even abroad...they want Made in the USA (Or German, Swiss or at least some other european country) instead of buying cheap China stuff.
USA all the way, I just don't like the Chinese Craftsman tools. The acetate handle screwdrivers still made by Western Forge, and most of the hammers still made by Vaughan but about everything else is made in China. The last of the US made Craftsman sockets can sometimes be a bit rough finish wise, but the steel is good and they hold up. Long story short they've all got it where it counts.
I will look closely tomorrow at some of my sockets to see if they are china built or if they are USA made because now I know what to look for. Thank you.
Nice video...keep in mind Craftsman writes the spec which will determine the quality right? I absolutely prefer made in USA! Notice the end of the ratchet goes deeper into the USA mad socket. The backside of the China socket is also hollowed out to save material. Let’s bring back Made in the USA!
Great video! I'm in the market to expand my toolset. Mostly vintage 80's-90's USA craftsman but now it's confusing with the made in China tools while also noting that some are made in Taiwan. As a request, (if you have the tools), please do a USA craftsman vs china comparison with the Craftsman wrenches and what to look for. Notably, the current CMMT87017 made in China set against the vintage USA set.
Two family members had Chinese Craftsman , and both had problems with rust, flaking and pitting of the finish. I had some Chinese craftsman 1/4”drive and it started to pit and rust in a year. I have a controlled temperature workshop and it does not have a moisture problem. I went on auction sites etc., to pick up USA Craftsman to replaced the Chinese stuff. Gosh I still have some of my dad’s 1950’s Craftsman he gave me and none of those ever rusted. I hope they can make tools like they used to in the new plant in Texas whenever it gets rolling. I’m not buying any Chinese Craftsman in the meantime.
Pure junk. My lowes pretty much cleared out all kobalt tools. The Chinese sockets feel like you could throw them against a wall and the socket would shatter. You not only can see it but you can feel the terrible quality. My USA craftsman is still going strong...I'm in eastern ky and you're exactly right. Itd be a awesome spot for a factory
Craftsman has became garbage ,,, I’m changing all mine out to S K, I can’t even say these U.S.A. Ones are even good unless your getting antique craftsman.. I’m tired of them slipping off & busting my knuckles ! S.K. Is now what I believe in ! I agree with you about being made in the U.S.A. Though.
There is no point to there warranty. If I break my USA made craftsman I get China tools as a replacement. I have a set of Craftman Professional wrenches they don't have anything close in quality to replace them if they break. I will be buying SK, Blackhawk, and Wright from now on.
Correct they are good tools. There parent company Apex discontinued the Armstrong and Allen brands as far as I know. There are some other good options out there that I didn’t mention.
Honestly man......I just bought the Craftsman 299 complete socket from amazon. I tried looking for it in stores but Craftsman doesn't make them anymore since Stanley bought the Craftsman name and Lowes started selling them. On the parts list sheet they provide it specifically says "made for Sears" so they are the last run of Sears Craftsman sockets before Stanley took over. The quality of these sockets are nowhere near as bad as the chinese craftsman sockets you showed in the video. Actually when I compared my 1" socket to your USA socket in the video it was bang on. It had the "stacked washer" look and no stress cracks. I have a only a few USA Craftsman sockets(hence why I decided to buy the complete set) and I have compared the tolerances of the chinese sockets to my few USA and they are BANG on. Fit and finish, the chinese Craftsman sockets that I have are just as good as the USA. Im curious to know if your chinese Craftsman sockets are the newer Stanley made sockets. Maybe they have REALLY cheaper out since taking the name over from SEARS. Not saying I agree that with making tools in China know( I prefer USA made tools) but I have inspected every Sears made Craftsman socket from the 299 complete socket set and they are all spot on and look great.
I have EZ read deep 1/2 drive 6-point made in China set that I bought in 2018. They are great. They look as good if not better than the many USA 12-point deep well sets that I have. I don't know if what you have are the Black and Decker versions but my Chinese Sears Craftsman are excellent. They look nothing like what you have. Maybe B&D ordered lower quality sockets but when Sears owned them, they sold good quality Chinese sockets. As usual, the Chinese will produce whatever the customer ordered. If B&D lowered the quality, then it's on them. But Sears ownership was not bad at all. I have a ton of Sears owned Made in US and some of the Made in China Craftsman, but I have none of the B&D Craftsman. It would be good to do a comparison of all three types of Craftsman sets to be fair to the Craftsman name.
I Just bought the Craftsman (135) piece set from Amazon that’s made in Taiwan and they don’t look anything like your China tools show? There are no welds or stress fractures anywhere, in fact they look like the USA TOOLS that Craftsman usually makes. Looks like they are probably getting too many complaints?
They was getting complaints plus when Trump put tariffs of China it forced companies to move to Taiwan, India or return to the states. The new Craftsman factory is being built in Fort Worth Texas right now
I don’t think N American made equals extreme craftsmanship (have you seen how floppy a FG Corvette is?) it’s just that Chinese made often means poor materials and made to a price. It’s your own fault if your buying incredibly cheap tools. But the cheap tools can be useful for some, such as apprentices and hobbyists, so they do have their place in the market. FYI the best quality tools are German and Swedish made.
Still got my original craftsmen mechanic tool set I got when I turned 21 over 15 years ago. It came with mectric and standard in all sizes from 1/4 thru 1/2 drive regular well and deep. I’ve only broken maybe three sockets in that timeframe and I quickly replaced it. I think this will last me a lifetime I probably pass it on my son. It’s a shame that a once family tradition is now made in China. That’s why I started buying Sk tools
Just about any tool today has lifetime warranty , But wait until that CHINA made socket breaks & you end up smashing your hand on side of engine block & ripping your hand open !
You had one defective socket,,take it back to lowes, and get you a good one that way you'll have a good complete set,,,work with your tools to see how long yhey will last, and after 20 yrs. Or so of working with them,,then say that they're garbage,,but you havent used them man.
Most harbor freight tools are made in Taiwan now days. Whats that tell ya? The new Crapsmen at Lowes is Taiwan made, and the prices are close to what Ive paid for some of my US tools. I mean dang! If i want 🇹🇼 ill go to the hf. Otherwise, Wright, Snap-on, Proto, Sk, Armstrong (rip 😭 thanks Apex) Channellock and Martin are gonna get my money.
Snap On is not all usa made. alot of there stuff is now taiwanese also. alot of companies are rebranding stuff from taiwan and passing it off as their own.
Kobalt is a good quality brand but they have also stopped Taiwan production, moved to China on some stuff buy Craftaman just now released a whole new Taiwan line. Video on the channel
I went to warranty my old vice grips ,yes I abused them.But no e the less the new ones are junk for sure.they will not last the 20 years I had the others.
I don't see craftsman brining back production to the US. Stanley Black and Decker markets craftsman tools to DIY home owners who maybe will turn a wrench a couple times a month. They are made in the same factory as Wally World Stanley. If you turn a wrench for a living not so much. I'd go Proto, SK, Wright if you want affordable US and high quality hand tools for a DIY or Someone who works in manufacturing. Craftsman line had several tool companies make their products over the years including SK, Danaher and Apex tools. Craftsman's death nail was when Sears started outsourcing them. When you buy craftsman you pay for the Name! Otherwise you are buying the same product as wally world Stanley.
As soon as I found out that Craftsman sold out to China I turned my back on them. My first socket set was a Craftsman set 25 years ago and Craftsman was all I used to buy, like my father and grandfather before me. Sadly there are plenty of yahoos who will still buy the 'made in China' tools because "they're cheap" until it is their job that gets outsourced.
Amen brother. I'm all for reducing coal energy, but they got to keep those people working somewhere. These American companies need to stop hiding beind their shareholders and profit margins and bring those manufacturing jobs back to the heartland! I don't know anyone my age working the factory jobs my dad and grandfathers supported their families on for generations.
I've got 30 others sets that speak to the experiance . But when I find USA. I buy them and the if the China made is cheap enough ill buy them too. When they return to the USA next year I can warranty them all
All my made in China tools are just as good as my made in USA tools. Weird huh? I take care of my tools, maybe that’s why. Who knows! But all my snap-on I use on the flight line break all the damn time! But then again, we have multiple people on 3 shifts using them and most use tools wrong anyways.
this is not fully true I got a brand new craftsman mechanics set of sockets today that are made in China and every single one of them is Flawless and it fits in and looks like an American one
From Sears or the Stanley Black and Decker chain? There is a difference and the quality is different over prolonged use & abuse. The socket in question here was Sears old stock China brand when Apex was handling the brand for Sears
Thanks for sharing, I guess you made the point people always want quality items but the question will we willing to spend extra money for the quality. Go USA made products!!!!