Made In The USA: Act Fast Edition
Made In The USA: Act Fast Edition
Free for all subscribers
The story so far: Four years ago, Stanley Black&Decker announced the opening of an ultra-automated $90 million facility in Texas.
In March of 2023, however, the facility was closed. Stanley claimed there were problems with the machines and also, uh, COVID pandemic and stuff. Given the choice between fixing the machines and just going back to being a drop-shipper for a Taiwanese tool factory, Stanley’s highly trained MBAs chose the latter, of course.
Some of the tools from that misadventure are now showing up at Lowe’s, dirt cheap. But they won’t last, at least partially because they are being sold for LESS than the equivalent Harbor Freight Icon tools.
The 88-piece 1/4” and 3/8” set is here for $69.88.
A smaller 3/8” set is here for $49.88.
Supposedly there are also USA-made individual tools for sale — I haven’t found them yet. Drop them in the comments if you find them. Shipping is expensive but local pickup is free.
The eBay vultures are already out trying to resell these for 3x the discounted Lowe’s final price, so you’ll want to act fast before they get snapped up. Nobody knows exactly how good these “Texas Craftsman” tools are — but it’s hard to imagine they’re not as good as the average $50 Chinese ratchet set.
I’ve ordered a couple of each and will provide my impressions when I get them — but I can’t imagine that you’ll still have the chance to buy them at that point. Good hunting!
Looking forward to your impressions, but I'm well stocked on the "classic" Craftsman tools. I still have a good collection of my dad's stuff he bought when he left the Navy in the mid-Seventies. Beyond that, I started working at Sears in 1997, collecting SO many duplicate tools when they'd have clearance sales. Also collected a wife who worked there for 19 years, until they closed our local store.
My current hand tool needs are simple - good flat-head screwdrivers to replace the Craftsman ones I've banana'd into prybars over the past three decades.
The thing I hate about so many manufacturers going to china is that there is only ONE VERSION of the product, even if twenty different companies are selling it (look at push mowers for example).
It's the Communist vision of 'there will only be ONE APPROVED VERSION' taken to the extreme.
I learned this when I wanted to buy a small band saw. EVERY bandsaw coming out of China, regardless of who is stamping their name on it, is the same exact saw. Oh, they paint different colors, stamp different names, add fancier covers on the adjusters or bolts - but the one sold at Harbor Freight for less money is the EXACT SAME as the one sold for twice as much at Lowes.
Commies don't get free enterprise and they don't get variety. Everything is always the damn same.
And the idiots from Harvard and Yale with their MBA's who have never worked a real job in not only their entire life, but in the last three generations of their families don't understand that people do not all want to buy the same exact thing made it the same fucking plant by the same fucking people.