Craftsman hand tools - Lifetime guarantee or not?

[MikeA]

Hello all,

Need some input/advice - sent my wife to get a replacement for an 8mm X 1.0 tap that broke off in mid hole, a Craftsman Kromedge from a set I've had for years. Used Craftsman hand tools for over 45 years for two reasons - good quality and the guarantee, if it breaks or you are dissatisfied for any reason, they will replace it.

Well guess what? The store 'associate' said taps and drills are not hand tools, so not covered by the guarantee. Not sure about the rest of you, but I sure as heck thought a tap (or die) was a hand tool.

Anyone else run into this?

Best,
Mike

 

[Mosey]

Times are changing. I used to do like you, buy Craftsmen for good price and guarantee. No more. But I did catch one a few years ago. My first lathe, an Atlas/Craftsmen 6" came with a British 3 jaw chuck, nice one. Well. it broke the scroll after I used it, so I went to my local Sears and said I want a new one. They went nuts, but after several trips and my pleadings, they coughed up a brand new chuck. Worth more than what I paid for the lathe.
Beat on them and see what they'll do.

 

[Metal Butcher]

Hello all,

Need some input/advice - sent my wife to get a replacement for an 8mm X 1.0 tap that broke off in mid hole, a Craftsman Kromedge from a set I've had for years. Used Craftsman hand tools for over 45 years for two reasons - good quality and the guarantee, if it breaks or you are dissatisfied for any reason, they will replace it.

Well guess what? The store 'associate' said taps and drills are not hand tools, so not covered by the guarantee. Not sure about the rest of you, but I sure as heck thought a tap (or die) was a hand tool.

Anyone else run into this?

Best,
Mike

Yep! been down the road with their taps and dies that chip or (crumble) break. And yes, the warranty only covers hand tools. I tried to explain the "hand tapping" thingy only to get the "cutting tool" thingy (not covered) thrown back at me.

Bottom line, "Hand tools" good! "Cutting tools" like the taps and dies, not so good.

-MB

 

[Cedge]

It boils down to keyword "consumables". I'd have never expected them to cover items that naturally wear away. They don't owe you free chalk to fill your chalk line, once you've emptied it, either. I've never had Sears turn down a warranty claim and Ive done some pretty nasty things to some of their tools over the years. They've always been golden, as long as it says Craftsman on the tool. They do not offer the same protection on their cheaper line of tools but then you aren't buying the same Craftsman quality.

Steve

 

[Tin Falcon]

I like and use craftsman as much as I can afford ,to usually only buy on good sales. There are certain tools that are going to wear out and are considered "consumable " taps ,dies, saw blades,drill bits etc no one, even craftsman is going to guarantee those.
I bought a small craftsman soft face hammer at a flea market a while back . I would not expect that soft faces would be guaranteed. well no replacement faces in stock. I just wanted to buy the screw on business end of the hammer no can do . they did offer to replace the whole hammer for free though. well that was a no brainier. I do not abuse there guarantee but I do use it when needed.
Tin

 

[Lew_Merrick_PE]

Well guess what? The store 'associate' said taps and drills are not hand tools, so not covered by the guarantee. Not sure about the rest of you, but I sure as heck thought a tap (or die) was a hand tool.

Drills, taps, and cutters of any kind are usually classified as "consumable" products. Guarantees on them exist only in terms of the manufacturing specifications. If you purchase an H1 classification tap and use the appropriate set-up, it should generate a Class III tapped hole -- and the guarantee will (usually) cover that. However, they do dull in use and people tend to "bend" taps (the most common cause of tap breakage). No manufacturer will provide coverage for such predictable failures. There is no expectation that a cutting tool will last a lifetime.

I carry a "Champion" Swiss Army Knife. I am on my fourth such knife. Blades have a habit of disappearing when one sharpens them regularly. That is "wear and tear," not breakage...

 

[black85vette]

My friend in Calif used to go to all the swap meets, garage sales, estate sales, etc. He would look for broken Craftsman tools and paid 5 or 10 cents for a broken or damaged Craftsman socket or end wrench. Then on Monday head for Sears and get them replaced. Built a pretty nice collection over the years. They have always treated me well on my tools. Just wished they would also replace the ones I lost. ;D

I am with the group that puts these in consumables or supplies. Kind of like sand paper aren't they?

 

[MikeA]

Hello all,

Thanks for the input - in some ways it's similar to that I got by calling four Sears stores; two said 'sure, bring it in and we'll give you a replacement', the other two, well, you know what they say. The two that agreed are far enough away to make it not worthwhile for an $8 tap.

My understanding is if it says Craftsman it's covered. Reading their warranty at the corporate site it specifically excludes micrometers and things of that sort, nothing about taps and dies.

Really ticks me off after 40+ years and never making a claim, to get stiffed for something this incidental - must have spent many thousands on tools but not any more. Ordered a set of metric taps and matching drills from McMaster Carr - more money but they stand behind their products.

All the best,
Mike

 

[dsquire]

Hello all,

Thanks for the input - in some ways it's similar to that I got by calling four Sears stores; two said 'sure, bring it in and we'll give you a replacement', the other two, well, you know what they say. The two that agreed are far enough away to make it not worthwhile for an $8 tap.

My understanding is if it says Craftsman it's covered. Reading their warranty at the corporate site it specifically excludes micrometers and things of that sort, nothing about taps and dies.

Really ticks me off after 40+ years and never making a claim, to get stiffed for something this incidental - must have spent many thousands on tools but not any more. Ordered a set of metric taps and matching drills from McMaster Carr - more money but they stand behind their products.

All the best,
Mike

Mike

Does this mean that we can all send our broken taps and drills back to McMaster Carr and they will send us replacements?

Cheers

Don

 

[Tin Falcon]

Mike:
This is your first post . A complaint that in the light of common sense is invalid. then you get argumentative when folks give you a response if you are going to post here for the sake of stirring things up please post elsewhere.
I am locking this thread to prevent further contention.
Tin