Craftsman/China

Hate to say it but a lot of those tools on the truck are made overseas now.

 

I have a lot of John Deere brand stuff for my cheaper stuff. Its all older made in USA. They really favor the MAC stuff of the era. They are now made in China as well

 

You can tell the difference also, the American made set(still have about 700 pieces) are forged, the new Chinese ones are cast. You can see the difference easily if you set them side by side. I still use them for replacement, as they honor the lifetime warranty. But buying new I'll normally buy Kobalt, the US made ones are from the same company that used to manufacture craftsman. Best tools are still Mac/Snap On- they are true American Forged but are expensive as h@ll...

 

I tend to buy Kobalt. It comes out of Europe somewhere.

With that said, I don't give a #### anymore about made in China. As long the tools are forged and possibly from Mac as ExOTR (Love your exceptions signage LOL... rotf)

One of these days Im a gonna get me that 700 peice set. Im tired of hunting tools.

 

I enjoy how brittle the new craftsman impact sockets are, nothing like the same salesman giving you the same 32mm socket 3 times in one day.(trying to remove axle nuts on a rusted up old Honda to replace the cv shafts)

 

As for buying the big sets, I keep track of tool outlet centers. Sears for example will sell the full kits for 40-70% off if they don't have original packaging, even if every tool is still brand new and accounted for. They won't ship though, you have to drive to the stores to get them.

 

The ultimate " Made in Japan " depression = Bought a Browning A-Bolt II sniper rifle about 14 years ago. 300winmag. Get it home, looking at it, rubbing it, " Made in Japan " stamped right in the barrel. I still have nightmares.

 

Kobalt is owned by Lowes.