For some time now Sears has marketed their top-of-the-line hand tools under the name Craftsman Professional, attempting to set them apart from and above the standard Craftsman line.  Now, that distinct black and marigold color scheme has found its way to their lawn and garden department as well, on an assortment of commercial-grade powered lawn equipment.

(more…)

Next week Craftsman is set to release its newest addition to the existing 12V Nextec line:  the Multi-Tool.  If the shape seems a little familiar, it should — except for a few slight differences in the casing, it looks very similar to the Bosch PS50-2B multi-saw.

Craftsman designed the Multi-Tool for cutting, sanding, scraping, and grinding, all by means of the 15,000 OPM drive.  The unit comes with six attachments, a sampling of cutters and scrapers that Craftsman says will tackle anything from drywall to masonry.

Like the rest of the Nextec line, the Multi-Tool features an LED work light and a 30-minute quick-charger. The Multi-Tool will also run about $100 with the charger and bag included, which is less than half the price of the PS50-2B.

Nextec 12V Multi-Tool [Craftsman]

Here’s another one of those “why didn’t I think of that” tools:  a garage door opener that works even when the power goes out. Normally in that situation you’d have to pull the emergency release and open the door manually, and I can’t see my wife working too well with that option — with her luck she’d have the door on her foot in seconds.

(more…)

My cold drinks always get hot in the shop.  Sometimes I carry a small lunchbox with a freezer pack out there, but I usually forget about it and end up leaving it out in the garage for a few days.  For Toolmongers who don’t keep a mini fridge, or the “old” fridge, out in the shop, Craftsman makes this Retro Design Cooler — it looks cool and it keeps your drinks cool, too!

(more…)

My quest for a dado blade began on eBay where, after numerous searches, I picked up an older 7″ adjustable dado with carbide blades. The first time I used it I discovered that my contractor saws won’t hold most blades — the shaft diameter was right, but there weren’t enough threads to hold the blade on.  So I did some additional research, found out that I’d need to use a smaller blade, and ended up with the Craftsman 6″ Stacked Dado Blade.

(more…)

Routers are versatile — they can mill, do moulding, create dados, dovetails, mortises, and much more — but full-size routers, especially models over 1-1/2 or 2 HP, can be intimidating and hard to keep level when cutting narrow material like the side of a board. The smaller “palm” routers started coming out a few years ago, and now Craftsman has gotten into that game with their Professional Fixed-Base Palm Router.

(more…)

Craftsman’s LocBoard Tool Cart consists of two LocBoards, pegboard-like units that connect at the top, and a bottom “shelf” — the whole unit can hold 850 pounds.  While it would look really cool to fill up both sides of this cart with hand tools or specialty tools, I’m not sure if it’s practical for my shop.

(more…)

I caught this 3-pc. Locking Flex Pry Bar Set in the new Craftsman catalog — it looks like the classic pry-bar design, but Craftsman put a spin on it:  a pivoting head.

(more…)

Usually when I work under the hood, I keep the tools that I’ll need in the next hour or two on the body seams or on the coolant and windshield washer tank — and these tools often fall off or just end up missing.  This new portable automotive service tray from Craftsman reminds me of a TV tray for mechanics, but it’ll keep tools and small parts at your fingertips, not down in the engine.

(more…)

While browsing through the local Sears, I caught a glimpse of the new 2009-2010 Craftsman tool catalog.  Well, I did more than glimpse — I snagged a couple of copies for myself. I’ve been getting these since the mid 1980’s, and I still have most of ‘em stored away.  If I could have back all the time I’ve spent looking at those books, it’d probably add another year or two onto my life.

(more…)

I noticed this 94″ tool chest in Craftsman’s “hot off the presses” 2009-2010 tool catalog. Craftsman seems to be trying to keep up with the tool trucks with this monster, which is part of the Craftsman Pro Line of tools.  I know the Craftsman boxes don’t always shine so bright in performance tests, but they sure look sweet to me.

(more…)

These crowfoot wrenches caught my eye as I was walking through the local Sears — at first I thought they were the same old tool in a new package, but a second look showed ‘em to be a new-to-me flare-nut version.  Attached to an extension, crowfoot wrenches have often helped me get to out-of-reach fasteners, and these flare-nut versions should do the same trick for those hard-to-reach hydraulic fittings.

The wrenches come in both metric and standard ten-piece sets — the standard sets are in sizes 3/8″ to 1″, and the metric are in sizes 10 to 19mm.  The fully polished wrenches have the look of Sears’ professional line of tools.

Craftsman’s Crowfoot Flare Nut Wrenches sell for about $80 per set.

Fractional Wrenches [Sears]
Metric Wrenches [Sears]
Street Pricing [Google]

When it comes to tool storage, there are basically two types of Toolmonger:  the organized people and the “just throw them in one of those drawers” people.  Though you might not always be able to tell from looking at my shop, I come from the organized folk — I hate spending time hunting down a tool when it should be in a certain place.  Craftsman makes their Wrench Holder for people like me.

(more…)

Did you ever have a problem with your cooling system that just left you stumped?  Craftsman makes this Cooling System Pressure Tester to help you along.  You replace the radiator cap with the tool, and it brings the cooling system up to operating pressure so you can safely check for leaks with the engine off.  You can also monitor the pressure over time and monitor for pressure drops.

(more…)

Craftsman’s ratcheting bit wrench’ll help you get into a tight squeeze without losing your knuckles — it’s one of those tools that you’ll regret not having when you need it.  The last time I used  mine was for a job that required me to remove screws under the dash, a real knuckle-breaker for sure.

(more…)

Not long ago I was watching Norm knock out some dados for a garden fence project, and I felt inspired to go to Sears and check out their selection of radial arm saws.  Back in the day — the ’80s and ’90s at least — you could always find two or three versions of the radial arm saw in any Sears store.  Well, folks, it looks like we’re down to one sole survivor.  The good old days, when Toolmongers young and old could browse through all the different models and features, are gone.

(more…)

If you’re looking for some extra length in your hex-head sockets, Craftsman makes their mid-length hex-head sockets about six inches long so they can go where regular hex heads won’t reach, or where a socket extension is just too wide.

(more…)