This company makes a nice kit I picked up recently.

https://chapmanmfg.com
[/quote]

Not only do we manufacture our tools in CT, we source all our materials in the USA as well.

Thanks so much for recommending our tools! We're a small shop (15 of us) and we don't have the marketing budget that big companies like Stanley do, so most of our new sales come from happy customers sharing our tools online and in person.

Customers have used our tools on cars probably back to 1936. Do 914's have specific fasteners types/locations that our tools suit particularly well? Is there anything we don't make that you need? Feedback is appreciated!

If there's a few people interested in sets I'm happy to post a discount code.

Thanks again for posting about us!
Joel
Marketing at Chapman MFG
www.chapmanmfg.com

Man, you are soooo right about certain HF stuff. I wait for their sale and buy the max of 5 paint sprayers, use them once, and chuck them. I used to try and clean them but they are so cheap they never work well twice, but at $7 on sale you can't go wrong, and no cleanup, it's like eating out!

Have owned Craftsman from the late 60's, SK, snap-on.
What is important to me is that they are forged steel. Most Asian branded stuff is not.
Kobalt, Husky are forged and reasonably priced. Work well for me.

This is what happens if you collect too many tools and don't have enough garage space. I have to use a step ladder to get to the top box:

Click to view attachment

My Dad was a Snap on dealer from the 70's until he retired in the early 2000's. He once showed me a 3/8 box wrench that was new, next to one from the 80's. The box end was much slimer on the old one. Snap on was cheeping out on the steel, doing raw forging in China, and finishing in USA.

Or at least that is what he thought.

I now have a better idea what you get when you order Craftsman now, a hair above junk. I ordered a small briefcase style set for my house. I went to change a battery in my truck and couldn't come up with an extension, so figured it would be good to have a set like the one I used to have back in the day. Luckily, I will not be using this one on the regular for doing actual car work, it will probably be used more for lawnmower and garden furniture. But it was cheap, $47 shipped.

I have been managing public transit systems since the early 1990s. Our shop guys rely on and must supply their own good quality hand tools (we supply specialized and REALLY big tools). We always advise the new Technicians to spend their hard-earned dollars on Snap-On tools but to wait for a few years to buy a big Snap-On box; a Technician-C or -B should not saddle himself with $12k debt on a big fancy box that won’t make him money. The Craftsman Pro and even Harbor Freight boxes are good enough until they reach The Technician-A (journey) level. The Snap-On truck stops by weekly to sell hand tools or try to entice the guys to upgrade their boxes; my shop foreman shoos him away after 30 minutes so that productivity isn’t hampered too much.

I’m a tool whore, as evidenced by my overcrowded suburban 2-car garage. Most of my stuff is old Craftsman, some Craftsman Pro, a few selected Snap-On pieces and a smattering of Chinese shit. I still love my remaining Craftsman Pro screwdrivers originally supplied by Armstrong; the new Craftsman Pro shit sucks. Some day, I’m gonna fork out $300 for a new Snap-On screwdriver set...

just yesterday I was helping my neighbor with a stripped oil drain bolt so I had to hammer a six point socket on. which brand would you choose to destroy? my pick was the hb freight model no big loss. so there are some advantages to the cheep stuff.

It’s funny how all our guys have snap on boxes except Bob Russo. He has a couple craftsman boxes. He was the crew chief for Al Holbert’s 962 race team and currently maintains a 962, a Mirage, 2005 LeMans RSR and the Brian Redman Chevron. We say when God needs to borrow a tool to fix his Porsche, he calls Bob.

Last year, I implemented a new Apprentice class in the shop, and we supply all tools and the box. We purchased a big Craftsman set and a Harbor Freight box. This allows the newbie to begin purchasing his own tools and save up while he works toward the Technician-C position and beyond. I also wonder if it helps the newbie work harder to both "graduate" to better tools and higher pay...

I took a class at LAUSD and the Snap On rep set up student discounts, never ordered anything too expensive also I don't need much, been a shade tree mechanic since 1969, I bought most of my tools one at a time, except for a set of sockets. Mostly Craftsman as Sears was always close by. Some Snap-On, cause I needed it and some Proto impact sockets cause Napa carried them. Haven't broken much, last was a 1/2 inch ratchet, about 3 years ago, the replacement was an even older version ratchet, seemed even more sturdy than the one I turned in.

I retired from the electrical channel two years ago, and work at Lowes in the tool dept. to stay busy. I have been told that the Craftsman conversion will start this Fathers' Day, and take almost a year to complete. The first conversion will be for the Kobalt tool chests to be converted to Craftsman. Power tools will be the last piece to be converted.

Try,... ACE hardware

Interesting. Will Kobalt be going away, then? Or, is Craftsman going to be just another brand at Lowes? And, is it going to be made in the US?

Stanley/Black and Decker indicate that manufacturing for the Craftsman line will be brought back to the US.

http://money.cnn.com/2017/10/24/news/compa...ears/index.html

Here are some comments on tool quality and price that match the discussion in this thread.

https://www.ericthecarguy.com/kunena/11-Too...balt-hand-tools

We haven't been told yet if anything currently sold will be going away. I can't see them dumping Kobalt, but from a space perspective, something will have to go.

Bringing the manufacturing back to the US was part of the negotiations for Lowes to carry the line.

Does the Lowe's Kobalt/Craftsman issue have something to do with Lowe's ending sponsorship of the Jimmie Johnson car in NASCAR, which frequently emphasized Kobalt Tools?

http://www.racer.com/nascar/monster-energy...ohnson-hendrick

No idea. I'll see what I can find out.