To: <gil.white AT xplornet.com>, <homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org>
Subject: Re: [Homestead] Tool question
Date: Thu, 5 Nov 2009 12:00:25 -0600
Craftsman tools have been on a slide downwards for the last 20 years or so.
They have joined the rush to the bottom. Mechanics hand tools are still
good but power tools are not.
I restored a 30 year old Craftsman table saw last winter and it was a good
saw until I made a supper deal on a barely used Delta Contractors saw. I
gave the Craftsman to my son.
At the time I bought the Delta I also picked up a Craftsman 4 in jointer
from the early 50s for $20. It is a good solid unit and everything is still
square. Later I stumbled across a 12 in bandsaw from the same era, a little
paint and new guides and it is good as new. Power tools from that time were
made by King Seely, a subsidiary of General Motors that utilized excess GM
plants and labor left over from war production. High quality stuff. I have
a Craftsman bench drill press from the late 30s or early 40s. Heavy
castings and good quill bearings make it a top quality drill press, only it
is too heavy for me to lift up on the bench.
I also have a Craftsman 6 in. joiner from the early 70s, still good quality,
as good as the Delta I bought new in the early 90s with a better infeed
table adjustment mechanism.