April 02, 2019, 09:33 AM
k5blazerI miss Sears
The Sears store down in the big city with the nice collection of tools closed up. The local store doesn’t have as nice of a collection and they are expensive. They had a Swanson Speed Square for $27.99 when I picked one up a week earlier for $9.99 at Lowes. Screwdriver sets were outrageous. Other tools were similarly jacked up in price. The Craftsman brand is not what it used to be. Certainly not enough to warrant those prices.
April 02, 2019, 02:57 PM
egregoreIf Sears is to survive at all, they will probably need to get back to their roots as a mail-order (supplanted by the internet) company. It is probably too late even for that.
April 02, 2019, 03:19 PM
NK402Guys my age remember, when Sears sold two lines of tools, Craftsman made in the USA and a cheaper brand made in Taiwan, whose name escapes me but also started with a "C". It has been years since Craftsman tools were made in the USA. The worst thing was when SEARS quit sending out the catalogs. In the pre-Playboy days, we depended on the bra and panty section.
April 03, 2019, 05:02 AM
FredwardSeveral years ago my grandfather died. Due to weight loss, I needed a new suit and all accoutrement. I went to Sears. Yeah, I dress like a bum, that's why I was there. No one, not one goddam sales clerk, would help me, so I drove across town to Joseph Banks. What turds. Then there was them trying to screw me on a piece of exercise equipment.....gotta stop now. The Dollar Store treated me better.
April 03, 2019, 05:58 AM
trapper189quote:
Originally posted by RichardC:
quote:
Originally posted by Paten:
I've heard that Ace is the place with the helpful hardware man .
Ace is the place with the helpful hardware
folks.
Have you heard their recent commercials? Even
Ace is now woke.
Recent? They changed it 30 years ago.
April 03, 2019, 03:06 PM
joel9507quote:
Originally posted by 2000Z-71:
So had to do some work on the truck today and aside from a set of very basic tools, all of my tools are in a storage container in Phoenix. I needed to get some deep well sockets and a set of box end wrenches.
Normally this is the kind of thing I'd run out to Sears, hit the Craftsman section, get what I need and be out the door. Well, the last Sears in Anchorage has closed. So go to Lowe's since they now carry Craftsman. Nope, very basic starter sets and not much else. Their own Cobalt section was even lacking. Ok, over to Home Depot, a little better selection, at least they had some deep well socket sets.
Any chance this is an an 'Anchorage' thing rather than a 'Sears' thing? I'd bet Phoenix is ~10x the size of Anchorage. Stuff that makes sense to stock in some markets may not move as fast in others.
April 03, 2019, 04:04 PM
.38supersigRead somewhere that at one time Sears is where you could go to buy a car and a house.
April 03, 2019, 04:49 PM
V-Tailquote:
Originally posted by .38supersig:
Read somewhere that at one time Sears is where you could go to buy a car and a house.
I don't know about the house, but I remember the Allstate car. It was a cheaper version of the Henry J, which was the cheapest car in the Kaiser-Frazer line. They were sold in the early 1950s. If my memory is correct, the Henry J had a trunk lid, the Allstate did not; the trunk area was accessed behind the rear seats.
April 03, 2019, 10:57 PM
OKCGenequote:
Originally posted by NK402:
Guys my age remember, when Sears sold two lines of tools, Craftsman made in the USA and a cheaper brand made in Taiwan, whose name escapes me but also started with a "C". It has been years since Craftsman tools were made in the USA. The worst thing was when SEARS quit sending out the catalogs. In the pre-Playboy days, we depended on the bra and panty section.
“Companion” is, or was, it. I have a few of them. Not too bad.
April 03, 2019, 11:38 PM
rburgThey made and sold kit houses. Cheap, too. The problem is they had asbesdos shingles and insulation. If you recognize them, you'll see them in a lot of 1950 ish subdivisions.
April 04, 2019, 06:09 AM
2Adefenderquote:
Originally posted by Fredward:
I miss the Sears of 30 years ago, not the shitty mess that was Sears in the meantime.
I completely agree. Any tool or power equipment you needed, just go in and cruise through the Craftsman department. It was a great experience back then.
All you had to decide was, did you want Sears good, better or best?