I discovered this by accident when shopping for a new tool kit. I found this kit on sale locally. I was planning on some warranty replacements anyway, so took some chewed up old Craftsman wrenches and screwdrivers into the store for the free lifetime replacement deal. The nice sales gal pointed out that I could apply the FULL RETAIL PRICE of each of the old tools toward the new kit in the link. I walked out with the kit at a net cost of $29, and it had new laser-etched versions of the old wrenches I was replacing. It must be one of those unwritten things you won't find on a sign in the store, but keep it in mind if you want to trade-in for something different. I'm trying it again later this week to get a set of the ratcheting wrenches described in the other thread.

 

thanks for the info. I may try it this weekend.

 

plus, if you check at garage sales you can buy cheap craftsman tools and take them back. that is a good hint, full retail!

 

Wow - sounds like you lucked out with a really generous cashier (or perhaps an inexperienced cashier)

From Personal experience- If you choose to return a handtool for whatever reason- You can easily exchange for identical item.
However- if you want to return for credit- they normally give you the lowest sale price for that item-
Good example is wrenches- Last time I asked to switch out for different size instead of exact replacement- THey treated it as a return without a receipt and would only give me 50% credit (Several months ago Sears had a 50% sale on all wrenches)

Another reason I doubt this is standard policy is because-
You could buy a 12 pc wrench set- dirty them up - and return without the set packaging or apply credit for each of the single twelve wrenches individually- We all know that the sum of the cost of the individual tools is far greater than the sets.

I don't doubt that this happened to you- I just really think you got lucky.
I have also lucked out buy buying an item for clearance at store A and when I exchanged it at store B got Full price credit for the item-
Regardless - its always worth a shot-

 

am i the only one that hates the new laser etched sockets? i liked their old style ones since the metric sockets had a knurled ring around the bottom to keep them seperate from the fractional sockets.

most of my new tools are proto, blackhawk or kobalt(snap-on sold by lowes for a much lower price). the newer craftsman ratchets suck, but i didn't see the light until i used my dad's older(mid 80s) set. their screwdrivers also seem to not hold up as well as they used to, so i find myself taking them back to the store more often

 

I hate them also I'm old school I have been squiting my eyes for years under my cars, why should I change now

 

I used to work at Sears...what that chick did for you is COMPLETELY against corporate policy for exactly the reasons that were listed here.

 

and not too sure on the warranty policy... i went in with a broken 1/2" ratchet, said it was my dads..... well they took my name, and entered into the computer and found we made several purchases at the store and then said ok and exchanged it....... i have a feeling if there was no warranty record they might not have exchanged it to deter people form buying junk at garage sales and taking them back in for replacements.....

 

nope I too worked for sears several years back. on non-powered hand tools bearing the craftsman name its a lifetime guarentee regardless of who's lifetime. I had people return their grandfathers damaged tools and tools that had been purposley damaged (cutting wrenchs in half to make stubbies) no proof of purchase needed for a direct exchange "unlimited lifetime guarentee". and if an associate ever questioned the customer, all they had to do was ask for a manager. in their eyes the customer is always right. Now unless Kmart has changed the rules since they bought sears, I don't know.

There was even a grand jury case where a guy found sears "dumping place" where they disposed of the damaged tools. he collected a truck-full and took them back to sears to exchange for new tools. the court ruled in his favor for several reasons. #1 the unlimitied lifetime guarentee
#2 they couldn't prove the damaged tools were "stolen" #3 see number one.
sears has since been much more carefull with tool disposal

 

Blue Bear on American Hot Rod heated a wrench w/ a torch so he could bend it to get it into a tight spot, and went and got a new one. It was a craftsman.

 

If a tool breaks under Craftsman warrenty, then I would have it warrentied. Otherwise I think it is stealing.

When talking about warrenties and lifetime warrenties sepperate the words defective, broken, and return. A return can be anything. Some stores allow you to return an item you don't want or didn't need. Think wrong size or ugly sweater after x-mas. A defective item has a manufactured flaw that does not allow normal function. Something that breaks means in its current state it is not useable. Something can be broken because it is defective so therefore is returned. That is a good use of a lifetime warrenty. However if you break something, don't always expect to have it replaced. There are certain things you do not expect warrenties to come with like toothbrushes and socks. Sure, if you make a stink about it the company will try to compensate you so their name isn't soiled. Everything will wear out through age or accident. Sometimes you just have to buy an item again to replace something that no longer functions.

I work in a small store (compared to Sears or Walmart) and there is no way we can match the return policy of corporations. Our policy is simple, 'If you promise to be reasonable, we promise to be honest." That and a 30 day window to return non-defective items in like-new condition with all original packaging. I don't believe buyer's remorse should be covered by a retailer.

As a business student, I studied the rise of box stores and mega corporations. Return policies like these are causing the sprawling of America. Small store cannot compete against these giants and their ability to write off millions (Walmart is in the billions) of dollars in returns a year so they close. Try to support your local market.

I will step off my soapbox in a second. If you have a problem and you go into a good small store, they will try to right the problem by making you happy and fixing what's wrong. The key point is they are trying to cover their customer. In a big store, if a replacement or instore credit doesn't make you happy, then they can't help you. They're covering their products and brand name. Service with a snear I like to say.


That being said, I have a ratchet I should take back because it is definitely defective. I bought a set of the new engraved sockets and am appreciating how easy they are to read the size. For my occasionaly use I expect them to hold up fine but I imagine eventually they will wear through the engraving and become unmarked sockets. Question is, should I have them warrentied or are they still functional?