craftsman tool

Jumper Cables for Automobiles, Motorcycles, and Electronic Devices

2011-06-01T01:09:00.000-07:00

These Pico Jumper Cables are typical of those offered for sale -- a very handy 16' in length, 400 amp capacity (so they'll handle larger battery sizes), and extended jaws for use on side mounted battery posts. The cables won't tangle on you and the ends are color coded to minimize placement errors in low-light conditions. Again; that has never happened to me.

You don't need jumper cables that are 16' long if you are carrying them in your motorcycle tool kit; these will do nicely. The Motorcycle Battery Jumper Cables are a convenient 6 feet in length, 8 gauge heavy duty wire, and have sturdy, substantial alligator clips for secure clamping.

Here's a clever device -- the California Solar Access Folding Solar Panel Kit. Perfect for folks who spend lots of time far from civilization; boaters, hunters, campers, surveyors, and the like. You expose the 5 pound folding panel to the sun and charge the included 8 ah lithium-ion battery (very convenient for night-time power needs). The panel pulls in 40 watts of power to charge vehicle batteries, cell phones, computers, lights; anything with a plug. You get the panel, dc inverter, power point adapter, battery, and jumper cables. Good stuff.

2010-01-29T19:37:00.000-08:00

Under the Roof Hang and Level Picture Hanging Tool

Raise your hand if you're completely lacking in any and all ability to hang a picture on a wall. Good. Now, if your arm is in the air, you're one of the people who has helped put the Hang and Level Picture Hanging Tool in the Amazon top 100 sellers in home improvement (#59 as of this writing).

The Hang and Level is a tool that facilitates the "so where do I put the hanger?" question of the picture hanging process. What you do is hook the picture to the tool, position it where you want it, remove the picture, and then press a litle button into the wall which leaves a mark right where you want to place the nail/hanger. It also has two built-in level vials for fine tuning.

The Under the Roof website tells us that their picture hanging tool has been mentioned in the New York Times and that it was awarded Outstanding Product at the '09 Hardware Show. We're sure the that tool is functional and in a way it's clever, but do people really need it? We just moved into a new place and over the past few weeks we've hung more pictures than the curator at the Louvre, and all we use is a tape measure, a pencil, and a little simple math. Works pretty well for us.

So we don't know. Maybe we're wrong, maybe this is the best idea since the cordless drill. Maybe everybody needs one. Or maybe we're all relying so much on gizmos, gadgets and technology that we can no longer do even the simplest tasks without assistance.

At Amazon

Tool Snob at Permalink | Comments (0) | Email This |

Screwpop 4-in-1 Keychain Tool

Helloooooo stocking stuffer! Meet theScrewpop, or as we like to say, "SCREWPOP!" The SCREWPOP! is a little keychain gizmo that quadruples as a screwdriver (Philips and slotted), a 1/4" hex, and the obligatory bottle opener.

We've had things like this in the past and they seem to sit somewhere in between, "pretty cool," and, "have only used it once in four years." But still, you could do a lot worse for $5. And like we said, it would probably make a good stocking stuffer.

At Screwpop

Tool Snob at Permalink | Comments (1) | Email This |

SEPTEMBER 24, 2009

Black & Decker MSW100 Ready Wrench

Our socket set is a mess. It's fine when it's sitting in our shop and we're the only ones using it, but the instant it enters the construction site, pieces start disappearing. It's like there are ratchet-eating elves living under the excavator or something. And oddly enough, it's always the most common sizes that vanish, so it doesn't take long for the kit to be rendered practically useless.

Black & Decker has come up with a new tool that might help the situation. The Ready Wrench is an interesting looking item that's sort of one-stop shopping for the 16 most popular socket sizes. Each end of the tool has a rotating piece with 4 different socket sizes. It looks like they get to the 16 number by including both SAE and the similar metric size, which actually aren't identical, so there's likely a little slop in 1/2 of the sizes.

This looks like a potentially handy tool. Probably more of a space-saver than anything else, or something for the DIYer who has no need for a complete wrench set. It reminds us of the space-age HK1 Adjustable Wrench that we reviewed way back in February. While the HK1 has a wider range of sizes (it's fully adjustable), the B&D looks easier to use on the fly.

The Ready Wrench costs about $30, which could be worth it if the tool has some durability to it.

At Amazon

A frontyard is crafted to match a Greene & Greene Craftsman home in Pasadena

2010-01-25T09:44:00.000-08:00

A couple sought a landscape that looked as turn of the century as their 1906 chalet-style Craftsman known as the John Bakewell Phillips house.

October 03, 2009|Emily Young

Susan and Derek Pippert live in a classic Greene & Greene home in Pasadena that has always attracted plenty of admirers. But the old frontyard? Not so much. Only after the couple replaced that ho-hum rectangle of grass with a painstakingly detailed, Craftsman-style landscape did the garden do justice to the house.

The Pipperts once deemed Arts and Crafts homes too dark and dreary for their taste. But with three stories and more than 60 windows, the bright and cheerful 1906 chalet-style Craftsman known as the John Bakewell Phillips house changed their minds.

The couple, a foley editor for films and a stay-at-home mom, bought in 2006 and settled in with their two toddler daughters, content to leave the old frontyard as it had been: a lawn dotted with a few trees and hedges.

"It wasn't bad," Susan Pippert recalls. "It just wasn't great."

The following summer, a mature pittosporum tree died and fell, forcing the Pipperts to rethink the garden. That's when they remembered a magazine article about a charming Craftsman landscape in South Pasadena. The designer was Venice-based Gabriela Yariv, who coincidentally had been a childhood friend of Susan's sister.

Yariv cringed when she saw the Pipperts' ratty lawn and awkward brick path laid out in a right angle between the driveway and the front porch. "There was no pedestrian entrance from the sidewalk and a lot of flat, empty space, which made this tall structure look very imposing," she says.

To give the house a more inviting presence and to blend it into the surroundings, she told her clients: "You have a Greene & Greene house. Why not do it right?"

Yariv reenvisioned every aspect of the yard. Most important was the wide, serpentine brick path, built by Cliff Douglas of Douglas Masonry in South Pasadena, that is flanked by rugged granite boulders and two short stone pillars to welcome visitors arriving from the street. The pillars, also by Douglas, consist of rocks like those supporting the front porch and are topped with reproduction Craftsman lanterns to match the fixture hanging from the eaves.

With Greene & Greene's more famous Gamble and Blacker houses in mind, Yariv focused next on the large expanse of lawn, rounding off this one at the corners for a more natural-looking oval. Stones form rustic edging between the turf and less-thirsty beds, which are filled with the seasonal color the owners wanted and nods to the Asian influence on Craftsman architecture.

How to Replace Craftsman Tools

2010-01-16T17:41:00.000-08:00

By eHow Contributing Writer

Many Craftsman tools come with a replacement warranty. Although there are exclusions, most hand tools are covered. According to Craftsman, the Craftsman Tool Warranty means, "They are guaranteed forever, unconditionally, no questions asked." Luckily for buyers, Craftsman actually stands by their warranty.

Instructions

Step1
Be aware that not all Craftsman tools come with their famous warranty. Notable exclusions are bench tools, battery operated and electric tools, as well as precision measuring tools. Call your local Sears store to determine Craftsman tool warranty coverage for your particular case.
Step2
You can have Craftsman tools, covered under the warranty, replaced by returning them to any Sears store or outlet. It's not necessary to have proof of purchase, or to return them to the same location they were originally purchased. You can buy a covered Craftsman tool in California, accidentally damage it, and return it for replacement in Maine without issue. See our Resources section to find a Sears store near you.
Step3
Replace your Craftsman tool by bringing or mailing the covered tool to Sears and making a request for replacement. You will need to provide some minor information, such as name, address and phone. Depending on the type of damage, size of store and inventory level, they can either exchange it on the spot, or forward it to another location to fulfill the warranty. If you want forwarding, you must wait for your replacement tool.
Step4
Make a note of the date you dropped off the tool on your calendar. You can get replacements within days, but if you hear nothing for two weeks, call the store to inquire about the status. When the new tool is available, return to the store to pick it up, or request that the store mail the tool to your home. Depending on the individual store policy, you may incur a small shipping charge for this service.

Fremont man crafts woodwork pieces

2010-01-05T17:52:00.000-08:00

By Betsy Hansen/Tribune correspondent

Thursday, Dec 10, 2009 - 10:22:30 am CST

When somebody does something really well, is that person an artist or a craftsman?

The work Alfred Petersen does qualifies him for either definition.

His medium is wood, which he works into his own gifts. You see, Petersen doesn’t sell what he makes; he gives it away to those lucky enough to be a family member or friend.

Petersen and his son have been in the business of building homes in the Fremont area for a long time. It’s a family business that incorporates the talents of his son, who designs the houses and takes care of the office work, and his wife, who does the bookkeeping.

Petersen’s fascination with all things wood began at Fremont Junior High School when he had a teacher named Mr. Kildee for two days a week.

“I was fortunate that I had a great FFA teacher,” Petersen said. “We had shop two days a week. When I graduated from Fremont High School, I went to work at the crib and silo company. I have been a woodworker for 57 years -- everything from corn cribs to churches, schools, whatever needed to be built. Along the way I have had some really great teachers.”

His biggest give-away was picture frames to all of his customers. He estimates he has given away from 800 to 900 frames made out of anything from barn wood to walnut.

“About seven or eight years ago,” Petersen reminisced, “women started wanting step stools for the tall kitchen cabinets. I usually personalize them by asking a local artist to paint on them.”

Sometimes he lets them use their own ideas; sometimes he requests a special motif like birds for a bird-lover. Each thing he makes always contains a mouse’s’ tail. He tells the recipients to follow the mouse’s tail and find a smile.

The stools are finely made. Every piece is dovetailed into place. The stools he makes are safe, following the golden ratio — proportion of height to width to depth -- so that anyone using them won’t be likely to take a dangerous spill.

“I cut the dovetails by hand,” he said. “The details aren’t anything I invented. Dovetails have been a major way of holding things together for centuries. Some of the coffins found in the pyramids are held together with dovetails. They have discovered objects in Alaska that are over 5,000 years old held together with whale bones that have been dovetailed together.”

One of his current projects is making “Legacy Boxes” for his brother and three living sisters. He took the lids off the boxes and sent them to family members scattered across the country, asking them to sign or write a message. One lid has traveled to nieces and nephews from Houston to Berkeley, to Minneapolis and has signatures in English and in Chinese with one child’s name sprawled across the top with red marker.

“There are spaces to put all the memorabilia from the grandkids. One sister told him that whenever she feels a little blue, she opens the box and looks at the contents,” he said.

His great-grand nieces often help him in his workshop. Both Allysa and Faythe have learned how to work the tools.

“I told Faythe, who is 11, to design something,” he said.

She drew up the plans for a jewelry box and they made it together. There are drawers for bracelets and such. Two doors on the front of the small cabinet open to reveal spoked wheels mounted into the top to hold necklaces without tangling. The top of the chest lifts up and inside is a compartmented tray that also is removable.

“She made it with me,” Petersen said.

One of his newest projects is making rocking chairs. The chairs are more than the traditional assembly of wood parts. The chairs seats are carefully carved with a special electric tool to give the sitter a comfortable place to relax.

But it is the back that is truly unusual. No spokes here. Petersen glues two thin layers of ash slats and faces those slats with the exposed wood used to construct of the remainder of the chair. Then he bends the glued wood to a form until the wood has accepted the shape.

“Ash is the only wood that has a memory,” Petersen explained.

When one sits on the chair, the back gives slightly against the bones, making for a comfortable sitting.

When Petersen first came across the rocker, he wrote to the maker and asked for directions. The woodworker would not send them until Petersen had submitted a photograph of his work. Petersen passed the standards test and was able to buy the pattern.

Other projects include urns for ashes. He plans to ask a wood carver to incise praying hands on the side of the boxes. A cross has been affixed to the top of the urn.

All the cabinetry in the newly remodeled kitchen of their home is his work. Other examples of his craftsmanship are displayed in furniture pieces and other cabinetry -- most of it in a style called Stickley, a craftsman style popular in the 1920s.

Petersen is leaving a legacy, not only of chests, but of love in the objects he has crafted and given to those people who are important to him. He has no plans to retire, but if he would, “I might sell my rocking chairs on the Internet.”

With an artist like Petersen making them, they would be worth the price.

Craftsman puts scenes of Christmas on display

2009-12-22T17:30:00.000-08:00

Willie Hutcherson started small, and village has grown over time
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO Staff Writer
CHRIS KELLY staff AChristmas gift from Willie "Hutch" Hutcherson's son turned Hutch into a Christmas village set designer.

Willie Hutcherson puts a lot of thought and tender loving care into the Christmas village display that he sets up in his Freehold Township home every year during the holiday season.
CHRIS KELLY staff

Eric Hutcherson, his wife, Linda, and his sister, Danielle Cherry, gave Hutch, a retired school principal who lives in Freehold Township, a ceramic Christmas building from the Department 56 collection for a Christmas gift 16 years ago.

"My dad always decorated inside the house for Christmas," Eric Hutcherson said, "and we thought it was a nice piece to complement the rest of his decorations."

Little did they know at the time that the gift would end up creating in Hutch a passion for designing his own Christmas village every year.

Hutch said he liked the first ceramic building he received, which was a coffeehouse, so he decided to add to his collection each year, creating different themes and scenes.

Willie Hutcherson, of Freehold Township, shows off his Christmas Village, a labor of love that has a different theme every year.
CHRIS KELLY staff

According to Hutch, 16 years later the Christmas village has become so large that in order to accommodate even half of the collection he has amassed, he must move the furniture out of his living room.

"I have enough pieces and accessories for two rooms, but my wife has designated only one room for me to take over — the living room," he said with good-natured humor.

Setting up the village begins in earnest right after Thanksgiving and has become a tradition of the Christmas season for the Hutcherson family. It has also become a location for friends and family to gather during the holiday season to enjoy conviviality and a heap of Christmas eye candy laden with brilliant illumination and creative designs.

"Each year people come through to look at my dad's village," Hutcherson said. "My parents have a party for their friends and our family. Kids and adults love the village, but little kids are really mesmerized by the village. They love it."

Hutch's design is different from one year to the next. Although he uses some of the same buildings every year, he chooses a different theme, places the buildings in different places on the board and crafts a totally new image.

Anyone who looks at the village will notice the detail and hard work that goes into setting up the scene.

"It's a labor of love, though," Hutch said, and one that he looks forward to every November.

Hutch said he does not have a plan from year to year. When the time comes, he sits in front of his plywood base and thinks for a while about what he would like to see appear on what he calls his "blank slate."

All of his pieces are from Department 56's "Christmas in the City" collection. Hutch said he likes this collection the best because he said he relates to it and the city scenes are familiar to him and are something he enjoys working with.

Hutch's design this year includes replicas of the Empire State Building, the Ed Sullivan Theater, Radio City Music Hall (with the Rockettes) and Rockefeller Center, complete with skaters around a lit tree. Standing between 6 inches and 24 inches tall, the replica buildings create a "Town Square" with scenes of skaters and skiers in the background.

Hutch said children are especially fascinated by the small buildings and tiny figurines that make up the display.

He recalled only having enough pieces to fill a small table in the first few years he worked on his village.

"I decorated the scene with snow and at that time I really had more snow than pieces," he said. "Today I have to move the furniture out of the living room to make room for only half of what I own."

Hutch said he likes when people get joy out of seeing what he has created.

"I really love creating the scenes, but the most enjoyment I get is when it is all completed and I can share it with others and see their reactions," he said. CHRIS KELLY staff

Craft for Kids

2009-11-21T19:22:00.000-08:00

Kids crafts’ offer small children the chance to explore the world using mainly touch and sight. Another set of physical skills that kids’ crafts help to develop are fine motor skills. This is the child’s ability to use small and specific muscle groups such as those found in the fingers. Using and controlling brushes and crayons help fine tune and promote this new gift.

The fun can start as young as 12 to 15 months when a baby becomes physically able to grasp objects more easily and make marks with them. They can create simple art using chunky crayons in bright colours on piles of scrap paper. It is a fascinating way to watch your child develop as they progress through the different stages of drawing. At first, the art will be a series of scribbles but by the time babies reach 19 months to 2 years, they will start shaping their work and trying to interpret the results. A simple ball of colour becomes a much-loved teddy bear.

Already kids’ crafts have introduced baby to the arts of imagination and imitation. At this point, it is a great idea to introduce paint. It’s not for the faint -hearted but with some carefully planned preparations it can be a great source of joy. The simplest and most satisfying craft to try out is finger painting. The ideal paint to use is thick and offers tiny artists endless amounts of pleasure from squelching their hands and fingers into bright pots full of gunk.

If this craft idea doesn’t appeal to you, remember, kids’ crafts for babies isn’t about the result, it’s about the process. With this in mind, one of the best kids’ crafts is the old trick of make-believe painting. This works really well outdoors. The only equipment required is a thick paint brush and a small container of water. Using these items, they can ‘paint’ the patio or a patch of fence. This activity is so much fun, it’s ‘messy’, it imitates something they have seen adults do and it produces an end result.

Play dough is another simple but effective way of introducing kids’ crafts to a baby. The play dough feels unusual and exciting and makes countless different shapes. It’s important to supervise their activities at this age as they are prone to loading their mouths with inedible objects and play dough is very inviting. Babies explore their world by ‘mouthing’, so paint, crayons, play dough and assorted objects are all liable to end up between small jaws.

U.S. wrestling icon Douglas gives clinic in Stamford

2009-11-20T18:08:00.000-08:00

By Rich DePreta
Staff Writer
Posted: 11/19/2009 10:06:04 PM EST
Updated: 11/19/2009 10:06:04 PM EST

STAMFORD -- It was like watching a master craftsman at work.

The mats will always be home for U.S. wrestling icon Melvin Douglas. And nearly 200 future wrestlers of all shapes, sizes and ages from across Fairfield County received a large dose of his wisdom at a clinic held at Westhill High School Thursday night.

The clinic, put together by the Stamford Youth Wrestling Club, the Stamford Junior Wrestling Warriors and Charles Branch's All-American Wrestling Club, featured Douglas, a two-time Olympian, a two-time NCAA champion and a nine-time U.S. Open freestyle wrestling titlist. Proceeds from the clinic will aid the U.S. Olympic medal fund as well as allow a number of area wrestlers to have free membership into USA Wrestling.

Douglas' words -- like his wrestling style -- were direct and to the point.

"I can still whip anybody's rear end," the 46-year-old Douglas declared. "I'm not cocky. I'm just sure of myself. The difference between the first place guy and the guy who finishes second in wrestling is simple. The first place guy believes he's good. If you don't believe you're a good wrestler, why should I?"

Even with the Internet, it might be months or years for some of the youngest wrestlers to realize the depth of Douglas' accomplishments in a stellar wrestling career.

How many wrestlers would work to earn a U.S. Olympic wrestling berth at age 37?

After placing seventh in the men's light-heavyweight freestyle division

Advertisement

(198 pounds) at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, Douglas earned his way on to the 2000 U.S. Olympic wrestling team that went to Sydney, Australia. Douglas placed 18th overall in men's heavyweight freestyle division (213 pounds).
"It's easy to win one championship," Douglas told the kids. "It's hard to keep winning titles and staying at that plateau. It's all about improving and changing every day. Every day at practice is a new day to learn."

Also taking part in the clinic was Charles Branch of Greenwich. Branch, a college wrestler at Virginia Military Institute, coached wrestling at the Naval Academy, the University of Virginia and Eastern Michigan University for more than 12 years. These days, Branch works on Wall Street.

But his love of wrestling never wavered. Branch runs All-American Wrestling Club on Wednesday nights and Saturday mornings at the Yerwood Center in Stamford.

The All-American club is an advanced placement course of sorts for the best young wrestlers in Greenwich as well as those affiliated with John Kijek's Stamford Junior Wrestling program.

In these times, wrestling resonates on a number of different levels for youth.

Wrestling is a solitary sport. Success or failure is directly in an individuals' hands. It is not a team sport. You don't need someone to pass you the ball like in basketball.

Wrestling builds courage and character while providing tools of self-defense in today's violent world.

Wrestling isn't simply about leverage. It is about subterfuge in setting up your opponent before you employ better technique. Douglas freely gave of his vast experience which includes a wealth of international matches.

There were two wrestlers Thursday night who will never forget Douglas -- who currently runs the Sunkist Kids Wrestling Club in Tempe, Arizona with special emphasis on future Olympic caliber wrestlers.

Walker Dempsey, a 14-year-old eighth-grader at Greenwich Country Day School with All-American wrestling credentials, and Ben Pierre-Saint -- a sophomore on the Stamford High wrestling team -- arrived early and received an impromptu private 40-minute clinic with Douglas in the Westhill wrestling room so they could help him demonstrate during the more than two-hour public clinic.

It was an education of a lifetime.

After 35 years, Vancouver's Kmart store will close

2009-11-16T17:04:00.000-08:00

Saturday, November 14 | 12:11 a.m.
BY CAMI JONER
COLUMBIAN STAFF WRITER

Vancouver's Big Kmart store will close in February, as recessionary pressures continue to hammer area retailers.

Corporate officials Friday confirmed the store, which employs 68 people, will close Feb. 14. Kim Freely, a spokeswoman for Sears Holdings Corp. in Illinois, which owns Kmart, said the tough economy played a role in the decision.

The Kmart at 2711 N.E. Andresen Road was among the first national discount retailers to bring a store to Clark county when it opened in 1975. Hordes of shoppers crowded its aisles looking for "Blue Light Specials." Since then, new retail developments have siphoned away business.

"There are many factors that go into these decisions as a normal course of business," Freely said.

After 35 years of operation, "it's always a loss to the community when you lose a national retailer like Kmart," said Pam Lindloff, a retail real estate specialist and associate vice president of NAI Norris Beggs & Simpson's Vancouver office.

A recent list of local store closures includes Joe's outdoor store, Steve & Barry's apparel, the Fisher's Land Albertsons store, Best Buy and Koplan's Home Furnishings in Vancouver, along with Linens 'N Things and Circuit City at Jantzen Beach SuperCenter.

Lindloff linked Kmart's closure to competition from Walmart Stores Inc., which now operates three stores in Vancouver and plans others in Salmon Creek, Woodland and elsewhere.

"I'm sure Walmart stores have been fortunate enough to draw some Kmart customers," she said.

However, Lindloff said certain shoppers continue to rely on Kmart as a retail destination.

"It's sad. I think there is a place in the market for them," Lindloff said.

A liquidation sale is set to start Dec. 17 at Vancouver's 84,184-square-foot Big Kmart, Freely said.

Bluff City residential burglary under investigation

2009-11-10T18:33:00.000-08:00

By Staff Report

Published November 9th, 2009

The Sullivan County Sheriff's Office is investigating a burglary and theft of a $4,000 door and several tools from a Bluff City residence.

Ray Buchanan reported Sunday that a $4,000 double-pane metal door and several hundred dollars worth of tools were taken from 413 Turner Road, where he'd been renovating a home to sell.

The stolen tools included a Craftsman miter saw and stand, upright air compressor, and a cordless drill, a Skill table saw and stand, and a DeWalt skillsaw. A $400 Snapper self-propelled pushmower was among other tools and items also reported stolen.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the SCSO at (423) 279-7500.

Hand Tool

2008-12-17T18:46:00.000-08:00

They might be planes that belonged to a father or chisels that were once used by a grandfather. Or they might be hand tools picked up at a used-tool shop or neighborhood yard sale. One way or the other, every woodworker/ boatbuilder will find himself owning at least a few such tools; most own a lot of them. Older tools are good tools and, when compared to the hand tools that are being made today, are most often the better ones.

In this unique class taught by professional woodworker Janet Collins, students will learn how to locate, recondition, tune, and use many of the secondhand tools one might commonly find. Students will be encouraged to bring all their dull tools, new and old, to explore the various ways of restoring and sharpening. A simple reconditioning process can bring an older hand plane, spokeshave, drawknife, or carving tool back to life and use in the shop.

Janet will also dedicate a good part of the week to sharpening techniques. Many woodworkers/boatbuilders understand intuitively how any particular tool functions, but cannot make it work properly because they do not know how to sharpen it. A set of sharp hand tools and the ability to keep them so are at the very root of good woodworking. They are more enjoyable to use and make the work at hand so much easier.

The course will cover the various ways to sharpen chisels, plane irons, carving and turning tools, spokeshave blades, card scrapers, cabinet scrapers, drawknives, and other edge tools. Creating a hollow-ground bevel with a slow-speed grinder will be the basis for establishing the cutting angles on the flat edge tools. Water-wheel grinders will also be used. Students will also compare the various stones on the market, including oil, water, diamond, and ceramic stones.

Craftsman hand tools

2008-07-15T05:30:00.000-07:00

Craftsman hand tools have an unlimited lifetime warranty. This lifetime warranty program was instituted by Sears when they began selling the Craftsman line in 1927 and was one of the fundamental reasons for the early financial success of the company. This warranty program requires no receipt or dated proof of purchase. The owner has merely to bring the item into a local retail store and it is replaced free of charge. The unlimited lifetime warranty is voided if the tool is used in an industrial or commercial environment. For these situations, there is a special unlimited warranty program.

A common misconception among consumers still exists that the lifetime warranty includes Craftsman power tools and precision hand tools. Craftsman portable power tools, bench power tools, air compressors, powered lawn & garden products and other powered items carry various warranties while many specialty hand tools such as torque wrenches, except beam-type torque wrenches which carry a Lifetime Warranty, and work lights carry a one year warranty. Sears offers Merchandise Replacement Agreements and Master Protection Agreements on most of their tools that extends the basic warranty and includes yearly maintenance checks. Repair Protection Agreements are available exclusively on powered Lawn & Garden products and are nearly identical to the Master Protection Agreements except lack the yearly maintenance checks.

The hand tool lifetime warranty is also in effect on many Craftsman Lawn & Garden products including rakes, shovels, clippers, brooms, trowels, pruners, hoses, sprinklers, hose nozzles and other small gardening hand tools.

In 2003 Sears removed the lifetime warranty from Craftsman flashlights. Another limitation to the warranty introduced in 2003 Craftsman tape measures carry a lifetime warranty on all parts except the blade itself. Replacement blades, however, were made available for purchase from the stores to offset this policy.

After the merger, Kmart began selling Craftsman products; Kmart stores will also honor the lifetime warranties on any hand tools. (Wikipedia)