Craftsman Lifetime Warranty Pliers?

[stchman]

Hello all. I have an old pair of Craftsman diagonal cutter that I found in a box of old tools. The cutters are shot and look like someone either cut something steel or something hot. They are pretty old made in USA diagonal cutters. My question is, can they be warranted out at Lowe's?

Thanks.

 

[RooflessVW]

They may try to give you some grief but when the hangar was built I found a rusty metal-case Craftsman tape meaure in the dirt and got the local Lowes to swap it.

 

[Chris142]

You can try. The Lowes here will only swap if the part # is the same. Seems like numbers changed by supplier. You can also try Ace hardware if you have one.

 

[stchman]

Here is a pic of the pliers.

 

[Lubener]

Hello all. I have an old pair of Craftsman diagonal cutter that I found in a box of old tools. The cutters are shot and look like someone either cut something steel or something hot. They are pretty old made in USA diagonal cutters. My question is, can they be warranted out at Lowe's?

Thanks.

Try it. Worse that can happen is they say no.

 

[dlundblad]

Looks like somebody cut a hot wire and blew them up. Worth a try, but I’m guessing no since it isn’t a defect.

 

[NYEngineer]

Not really helpful but kinda funny. Years back I needed a big box wrench to adjust the fan belt on a big Cummins V12. Inch and 3/8 or inch and a half... Guy I worked with had a Craftsman 3/4 drive set. I asked him if I could have a socket so I could cut a slice off to weld up a wrench. I needed it RIGHT NOW. He agreed and said just get him a new socket.
So... I cut the socket in a chop saw and welded a handle to the ring and did what I needed to do. That evening, I went to Sears with the half a socket and said I need one of these. The guy comes back and hands me a new socket and says have a nice evening. I said wait, how much? He says you don't owe anything. I said this didn't break, I cut this in a saw. He said don't worry about it.
I doubt it will ever be that easy again.

 

[hrv]

Nope.... Not at the Lowes around here...Louisville KY

 

[AutoMechanic]

I have had better luck just emailing them or giving them a call. Usually no hassle then. My Lowes won’t warranty anything I have tried multiple times. Recently Craftsman did start wanting some tools back though but they will cover shipping if they do.

 

[D60]

Yeah you can contact Cman directly via email. They'll try their best to substitute something. You'll get something from the Wuhan Institute of Toolology....

 

[hrv]

Yeah you can contact Cman directly via email. They'll try their best to substitute something. You'll get something from the Wuhan Institute of Toolology....

Ya the new Craftsman 19.............

 

[stchman]

I went to another Lowe's and they exchanged the pliers. All they had were these:

https://www.lowes.com/pd/CRAFTSMAN-...VI-bjBx0cNQAnEAQYASABEgLRu_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

The return person at the front desk didn't even bat an eye.

 

[y_p_w]

I found this, which says that the official policy is that Lowe's will do so if they have the exact part number available, but then again there are exceptions.

https://www.thedenverchannel.com/mo...s-stores-honor-craftsman-lifetime-warranties1

I'm not sure about it with Ace or other retailers. Years ago I found some butyl handle Craftsman branded screwdrivers at a really cheap price - 99 cents in a bargain bin at Sears, but that wasn't a sale price. But they had opaque red or orange handles rather than the typical translucent ones. Other than that, they seemed identical to the regular ones. My dad borrowed one and beat the heck out of it where the tip was stripped, and I brought it into what was then Sears owned Orchard Supply Hardware. The manager took one look at it and said I should just pick out the closest thing to it (a #1 Phillips head) and I walked out of there without even signing anything.

I'm still wondering why I didn't buy more screwdrivers. They had a $5 special on a screwdriver set with a case at Orchard Supply. Maybe 12 piece including the most common slotted and Phillips, plus the keychain thingy plus the dual phillips/slotted bent thingy. When my dad found out that I bought three and just gave one to the office, he asked me why I didn't get maybe 10 of them. I went the next day and they were already gone.

 

[Dave9]

Years ago I found some butyl handle Craftsman branded screwdrivers at a really cheap price - 99 cents in a bargain bin at Sears, but that wasn't a sale price. But they had opaque red or orange handles rather than the typical translucent ones. Other than that, they seemed identical to the regular ones. My dad borrowed one and beat the heck out of it where the tip was stripped...

I have several of those opaque red handled craftsman screwdrivers, as well as several older, translucent w/red and blue. The red ones were (best guess) probably purchased around the '90s.

They are not the same. The translucent have more hardened steel, are not nearly as subject to the tip deforming. Another notable thing about them is they (red handled from '90s) seem to be much higher in zinc because they get a whitish zinc bloom on them. I can only assume this was done to counter people returning/exchanging tools due to brown rust forming, but they are definitely not identical to my other, translucent handled CMAN screwdrivers which would (if it had ever happened) likely chip off the tip before it abrading away, as well as no zinc bloom even after ~50 years or so.

Today, I still use some of them if it's just the closest screwdriver within reach, even after having to use a file to true up the tips to a larger size, but they are craptacular in comparison to the tips on Wera, Wiha, and other higher tier brands. IMO, a good set of screwdrivers are a lifetime investment so I don't at all regret not buying more of the buck a piece, red handled craftsman.

I also, am mean to my screwdrivers, but not using them for unintended purposes like a pry bar (unless it's just to get the lid off a paint can, etc). If it was lighter duty use, they weren't a bad value at $1 but today they have to be seen in context of cheap chinese (and more so the Taiwanese) offerings where you can get equal quality for a buck a piece in a set, without even having to adjust for inflation.

Possibly you are correct that they were the same but for the color handle, if bought in the same era. If so then everything CMAN was already crap by the '90s.

 

[y_p_w]

I have several of those opaque red handled craftsman screwdrivers, as well as several older, translucent w/red and blue. The red ones were (best guess) probably purchased around the '90s.

They are not the same. The translucent have more hardened steel, are not nearly as subject to the tip deforming. Another notable thing about them is they (red handled from '90s) seem to be much higher in zinc because they get a whitish zinc bloom on them. I can only assume this was done to counter people returning/exchanging tools due to brown rust forming, but they are definitely not identical to my other, translucent handled CMAN screwdrivers which would (if it had ever happened) likely chip off the tip before it abrading away, as well as no zinc bloom even after ~50 years or so.

Today, I still use some of them if it's just the closest screwdriver within reach, even after having to use a file to true up the tips to a larger size, but they are craptacular in comparison to the tips on Wera, Wiha, and other higher tier brands. IMO, a good set of screwdrivers are a lifetime investment so I don't at all regret not buying more of the buck a piece, red handled craftsman.

I also, am mean to my screwdrivers, but not using them for unintended purposes like a pry bar (unless it's just to get the lid off a paint can, etc). If it was lighter duty use, they weren't a bad value at $1 but today they have to be seen in context of cheap chinese (and more so the Taiwanese) offerings where you can get equal quality for a buck a piece in a set, without even having to adjust for inflation.

Possibly you are correct that they were the same but for the color handle, if bought in the same era. If so then everything CMAN was already crap by the '90s.

Sears Craftsman did seem to color code their screwdrivers. Phillips were usually clear with blue trim, while slotted were clear with blue and red trim. Some of the smaller (like #0 Phillips and small slotted) were clear only with white lettering. I remember getting some slotted screwdrivers that had a round shank (similar to Phillips) back in the 90s. But the slotted screwdrivers I got later had a squared shank. Still - I think the deal with Craftsman was that there have been so many different suppliers over the years, including Stanley and Danaher. There might be differences depending on the supplier. And Home Depot seemed to often get nearly identical tools for their Husky brand - possibly from the same suppliers. My Husky beam torque wrench was almost identical to a Craftsman equivalent other than the brand name.

I've lost so many of them though, but sometimes they just pop up where I lost them. I still have two Phillips #1, although I think the radioactive orange one was from the 90s, while the clear was from around maybe 2004. It might have come from the set or could have been the one I had replaced. I found them lying around fairly recently. I think the orange one spent more time in a damp garage, so there's a bit of rust. The labelling is different too. The orange one looks a little bigger in the photo since it's closer to the camera, but they're exactly the same size.

I mentioned multiple suppliers. One of their paint suppliers used to manufacture in Berkeley, California. I know because my mom worked for them once. She brought home so much Sears branded laundry and dishwashing detergent that they got really cheap. Also paint.

And of course those screwdriver handles all have that smell, even after more than 20 years.

I guess the most interesting item I've got is their bottle opener. It was actually on sale for $5 when I got it. It's about as heavy as their breaker bar, although by the time I bought it the manufacturing was offshored.

 

[Dave9]

Yeah those are both (the) lower quality than they used to sell.

 

[y_p_w]

Yeah those are both (the) lower quality than they used to sell.

The clear one was the standard style that they sold often in sets. I guess they had higher standard ones (I think a "professional" series), but I found their regular ones to be fine.

The lifetime warranty was crazy though. I recall a commercial in the 80s of a couple of old buddies who go to Sears to try to return a hammer that broke, and the employee asks him when it was purchased, which was maybe 40 years earlier. And then his buddy smells something on him, and apparently he bought some cologne. Strangely enough I found it on YouTube.



Addendum: They sound like brothers (unless Sears was ahead of their time with two men with the same last name) and apparently it was aftershave.

I remember talking about tools with a coworker. He liked Craftsman because he could abuse them and they pretty much replaced them without batting an eye. About all they might have asked is when it was purchased. He said he found some broken Craftsman tool on the side of the road and returned it. They made a big deal of this over the years in commercials. I think there was one where someone dropped on in a lake and the voiceover made a joke about it being warrantied for anything except that. And one in the early 80s showing an aircraft mechanic in mainland China who needed tools that would last, even though he couldn't take advantage of the warranty there in China.

 

[64bawagon]

And s

Not really helpful but kinda funny. Years back I needed a big box wrench to adjust the fan belt on a big Cummins V12. Inch and 3/8 or inch and a half... Guy I worked with had a Craftsman 3/4 drive set. I asked him if I could have a socket so I could cut a slice off to weld up a wrench. I needed it RIGHT NOW. He agreed and said just get him a new socket.
So... I cut the socket in a chop saw and welded a handle to the ring and did what I needed to do. That evening, I went to Sears with the half a socket and said I need one of these. The guy comes back and hands me a new socket and says have a nice evening. I said wait, how much? He says you don't owe anything. I said this didn't break, I cut this in a saw. He said don't worry about it.
I doubt it will ever be that easy again.

Clearly that wasnt sustainable since Sears is now gone.

 

[Foreman04]

Hello all. I have an old pair of Craftsman diagonal cutter that I found in a box of old tools. The cutters are shot and look like someone either cut something steel or something hot. They are pretty old made in USA diagonal cutters. My question is, can they be warranted out at Lowe's?

Thanks.

I’m in New Jersey and I walked into my local Lowe’s yesterday with a 25-year-old + 3/8 ratchet socket wrench and they backed the warranty no questions asked. They didn’t even ask me what was wrong with it. Told me to go get the replacement off the shelf and it was a smooth transaction! I’m still totally amazed based on what others have said about the warranty.

 

[Carmudgeon]

I went to another Lowe's and they exchanged the pliers. All they had were these:

https://www.lowes.com/pd/CRAFTSMAN-...VI-bjBx0cNQAnEAQYASABEgLRu_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

The return person at the front desk didn't even bat an eye.

How did the pliers work out?

I recently discovered that the joint on my old pair of Western Forge-made Crafstman cutters has loosened, allowing the blades to slightly overlap and "stick" together when pushed fully closed, but otherwise still functional. Not sure if I like what they offer now, so it might not be worth it to surrender them, when I can get another replacement pair I do like, and keep the old one around for beater duty.