On Sat, 6 Nov 2004 09:10:51 -0600, "RonB" wrote:

Let me start by saying I am not trolling - I am curious. I am looking for
opinions

We see lots of opinions regarding tool brands here and Craftsman sticks out.
It appears as though our opinions on Craftsman power tools run from very
supportive to downright venomous.

I am beginning to think some of the more disrespectful comments are coming
from the older crowd who remember the power equipment Craftsman offered up
until the early 80's. A lot of the maintenance on these old machines
amounted to replacing power cords and brushes.

My theory - Much of the venom is coming from older folks who feel betrayed
by Sears and are just ****ed. Any truth to this?


When I was growing up, and in fact, well into my marriage, Sears was
always the first place to look for *anything*.

So, powertools, hand held and floor standing were acquired from them
when I took an interest in woodworking (around 1980). The tools I
bought were acquired on a project by project basis. As my projects
grew more and more ambitious, the limitations of the tools became
apparent, and not only that, but *all* the hand held units either went
up in smoke or were had a flaw so grievous as to set it aside since it
was likely to spoil the work. Like the self adjusting router bit
depth.

To elaborate a bit on the "up in smoke" remark, I had a 1/3 sheet
sander that did an excellent job of holding the paper (better than
most new ones IMO) but the motor itself gave up when the insulation on
the windings burned and began smoking. The same happened when a
Craftsman circular saw I was using to rip 12/4 maple smoked so bad it
simply stopped being able to cut anything. And my jigsaw's switch
failed after only a couple of years of light use. I tended to avoid
using it 'cause it was a case of lots of the proper noises, but not
much on actual severing of wood fibers.

What did I learn? The hand power tools are too lightly built and
performance is marginal at best when used in a serious woodworking
hobby. By serious, I don't mean making pukey ducks, I mean armoires,
beds, tables & desks. Real furniture, not cub scout projects.

However, the two floorstanding Craftsman machines I had were/are good.
I replace the 6" jointer with a DJ-20, not because I became elitist,
but because my projects are simply too large for the relatively short
beds of that jointer. I still have and use the 10" cast iron top TS,
albeit with lots of modifications like a Biesemeyer fence and link
belt/steel pulleys. Perhaps without those modifications it'd be gone.
The stock fence was so bad it had just about made me give up on the
saw. I bought that saw around 1985.

In the end, Sears' policy of selling to a low price point taught me to
look elsewhere first for what I want. Some things I might still buy
on price first, but when it comes to other things, like tools, I check
the quality and performance first, price second.

Price always plays a role in my decisions, but is tempered by the
utility of the item. A cheap tool is no bargain if it can't reliably
do the task at hand without failing in the process. This applies
equally to brands like B&D and Skil. Craftsman is not alone in the
"also ran" category in my shop.

Serious projects need serious tools.