OT.What happened to the companies we grew up trusting?

[ruready4somefootball]

OK, I got a Craftsman snow blower back in June 2006, and have gotten good use out of it, except the tires would always go flat. My buddy said put the frame on a brick so the tires are off the ground all year it's sitting.This year, the only way to inflate the tires is at the gas station, by the hose the mechanic's use to put new tires on a rim. I go to Sears, they tell me a new tire is $80 on a rim,the only way they sell them.No tubes are available from Sears. I go to Cerliones in Hazlet, a local lawn and garden supplier,they said a new tube put in is $20 or do it yourself for $10. Not sure of the size I bring it in to them,and they won't sell or install the tube saying there' a safety recall on the rims "EXPLODING" when inflated over 20psi, or less maybe. They give me the recall notice, which was 2 months before I even bought the snow blower in June 2006. Never once did Sears tell me about the recall or the guy working at Sears tell me anything, except that tire cost $80. Called the recall center, and they are sending me 2 brand new, totally new designed rims with a tube and tire on them.This safety recall center was for 3 different brands other than Sears, that had the same design,Troy Blit, and Yard Machine and one other. My point is, Sears tried everything not to give me the tires that had been on recall for years, and even sold me the blower 2 months after the safety recall. POS is what they are.

 

[FanuSanu52]

BS but good on you for cutting through.

I feel like I never fully trusted Craftsman or any of the other retailer-specific brands, though. Their lawnmower has treated me alright, so can't complain. wanted a Honda but bought Craftsman in a pinch because didn't feel like shopping all over.

 

[Kbee3]

OK, I got a Craftsman snow blower back in June 2006, and have gotten good use out of it, except the tires would always go flat. My buddy said put the frame on a brick so the tires are off the ground all year it's sitting.This year, the only way to inflate the tires is at the gas station, by the hose the mechanic's use to put new tires on a rim. I go to Sears, they tell me a new tire is $80 on a rim,the only way they sell them.No tubes are available from Sears. I go to Cerliones in Hazlet, a local lawn and garden supplier,they said a new tube put in is $20 or do it yourself for $10. Not sure of the size I bring it in to them,and they won't sell or install the tube saying there' a safety recall on the rims "EXPLODING" when inflated over 20psi, or less maybe. They give me the recall notice, which was 2 months before I even bought the snow blower in June 2006. Never once did Sears tell me about the recall or the guy working at Sears tell me anything, except that tire cost $80. Called the recall center, and they are sending me 2 brand new, totally new designed rims with a tube and tire on them.This safety recall center was for 3 different brands other than Sears, that had the same design,Troy Blit, and Yard Machine and one other. My point is, Sears tried everything not to give me the tires that had been on recall for years, and even sold me the blower 2 months after the safety recall. POS is what they are.

I use a snow shovel. No problem.

 

[SirScarlet]

OK, I got a Craftsman snow blower back in June 2006, and have gotten good use out of it, except the tires would always go flat. My buddy said put the frame on a brick so the tires are off the ground all year it's sitting.This year, the only way to inflate the tires is at the gas station, by the hose the mechanic's use to put new tires on a rim. I go to Sears, they tell me a new tire is $80 on a rim,the only way they sell them.No tubes are available from Sears. I go to Cerliones in Hazlet, a local lawn and garden supplier,they said a new tube put in is $20 or do it yourself for $10. Not sure of the size I bring it in to them,and they won't sell or install the tube saying there' a safety recall on the rims "EXPLODING" when inflated over 20psi, or less maybe. They give me the recall notice, which was 2 months before I even bought the snow blower in June 2006. Never once did Sears tell me about the recall or the guy working at Sears tell me anything, except that tire cost $80. Called the recall center, and they are sending me 2 brand new, totally new designed rims with a tube and tire on them.This safety recall center was for 3 different brands other than Sears, that had the same design,Troy Blit, and Yard Machine and one other. My point is, Sears tried everything not to give me the tires that had been on recall for years, and even sold me the blower 2 months after the safety recall. POS is what they are.

yep...had a similar experience with a complete lemon snowblower a few years ago.

puts your story to shame

I eventually just gave up (not my style at all)

they are a garbage company. garbage.

 

[JQRU91]

Sears is a garbage company these days. They were bought by Kmart a while back, and both brands are basically doing a slow circle going down the drain.

 

[knightfan7]

2 top Sears execs including the CEO left within a week. Company is on life support.

 

[rutgersdave]

OK, I got a Craftsman snow blower back in June 2006, and have gotten good use out of it, except the tires would always go flat. My buddy said put the frame on a brick so the tires are off the ground all year it's sitting.This year, the only way to inflate the tires is at the gas station, by the hose the mechanic's use to put new tires on a rim. I go to Sears, they tell me a new tire is $80 on a rim,the only way they sell them.No tubes are available from Sears. I go to Cerliones in Hazlet, a local lawn and garden supplier,they said a new tube put in is $20 or do it yourself for $10. Not sure of the size I bring it in to them,and they won't sell or install the tube saying there' a safety recall on the rims "EXPLODING" when inflated over 20psi, or less maybe. They give me the recall notice, which was 2 months before I even bought the snow blower in June 2006. Never once did Sears tell me about the recall or the guy working at Sears tell me anything, except that tire cost $80. Called the recall center, and they are sending me 2 brand new, totally new designed rims with a tube and tire on them.This safety recall center was for 3 different brands other than Sears, that had the same design,Troy Blit, and Yard Machine and one other. My point is, Sears tried everything not to give me the tires that had been on recall for years, and even sold me the blower 2 months after the safety recall. POS is what they are.

I noticed my snowblower also had flat tires and it was always difficult to push. Still use it with flat tires but I was going to find out the cost to fix.

 

[FanuSanu52]

I use a snow shovel. No problem.

Snow shovels suck too. Too many plastic ones out there. Thought I was smart getting one with the metal strip at the edge for durability ... then the whole damn plastic blade cracked off the handle.

 

[cicero grimes]

Sears demise is sad. But so much focus on stock price rather than quality has hurt a lot of US companies.

 

[RocktheRac]

jmenterprises.comThis is the best snow shovel on Earth. Use it for my commercial accounts. Made of polyethylene blade. I ordered one online but had to put together with drill but found they sell at ACE hardware.

 

[Scarlet_Scourge]

Most of

wanted a Honda but bought Craftsman in a pinch because didn't feel like shopping all over.

You should have gotten a Honda... I hear they make a great car.. I believe it is called the Accord.

 

[RUMBA-JK]

Sears was in downward spiral - same for Kmart (maybe even worse) together things have not gotten better

Years ago it was Sears followed by Penneys then all the rest of the "Department stores"... then Kmart with the discount mentality came on -
Then Walmart rolled in and ate all the small towns

Now - will Amazon eventually overwhelm Walmart? - maybe not because Walmart has reinvested & modified their thinking - they don't just have thousands of 'stores' - they have thousands of 'distribution centers'

 

[Caliknight]

There was a time Thinkpads were the greatest machine made.

Now I have been through 2 in a year.

 

[RUfinal4]

Sears may not make it. Interesting enough Craftsman tools were private label tools made by the Stanley Corporation until the mid 1980s.

As a kid I remember hearing Sears had the reputation for top tools. Now they may be lower quality.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanley_Black_&_Decker

 

[RUJohnny99]

I'm pretty sure my snowblower is a craftsman & it has tubeless tires. When they go flat I just raise it, put a bungee around it like a tourniquet & inflate.

 

[MADHAT1]

Need a reliable snow remover , have some kids and make them shovel it.
But get yourself good noise reduction ear headphones because teenagers make a lot of noise when you put them to work and tell them it's part of their chores around the house. [laughing]

 

[RUSK97]

Most of


You should have gotten a Honda... I hear they make a great car.. I believe it is called the Accord.

The Accord is so great, it can double as a snowblower-replacement. In fact, the glow of greatness that it exudes causes snow and ice to melt.

 

[FELONIOUSMONK]

Anywhere else this would have been rhetorical..

 

[FanuSanu52]

No flat tires and no pushing:

 

[Extra Point]

Sears has been closing stores all over the country. The top got greedy in my opinion.

 

[jason21psu]

Need a reliable snow remover , have some kids and make them shovel it.
But get yourself good noise reduction ear headphones because teenagers make a lot of noise when you put them to work and tell them it's part of their chores around the house. [laughing]

I feel like snow blowers are still more reliable and their life cycle costs are hard to compete with.

 

[ruready4somefootball]

I'm pretty sure my snowblower is a craftsman & it has tubeless tires. When they go flat I just raise it, put a bungee around it like a tourniquet & inflate.

The tires are not the problem,it's the plastic or Bakelite material they are mounted on,hence the recall.Those rims explode sending fragments all over causing injury. I'd check it out if I was you.

 

[Ready to Rumble]

OK, I got a Craftsman snow blower back in June 2006, and have gotten good use out of it, except the tires would always go flat. My buddy said put the frame on a brick so the tires are off the ground all year it's sitting.This year, the only way to inflate the tires is at the gas station, by the hose the mechanic's use to put new tires on a rim. I go to Sears, they tell me a new tire is $80 on a rim,the only way they sell them.No tubes are available from Sears. I go to Cerliones in Hazlet, a local lawn and garden supplier,they said a new tube put in is $20 or do it yourself for $10. Not sure of the size I bring it in to them,and they won't sell or install the tube saying there' a safety recall on the rims "EXPLODING" when inflated over 20psi, or less maybe. They give me the recall notice, which was 2 months before I even bought the snow blower in June 2006. Never once did Sears tell me about the recall or the guy working at Sears tell me anything, except that tire cost $80. Called the recall center, and they are sending me 2 brand new, totally new designed rims with a tube and tire on them.This safety recall center was for 3 different brands other than Sears, that had the same design,Troy Blit, and Yard Machine and one other. My point is, Sears tried everything not to give me the tires that had been on recall for years, and even sold me the blower 2 months after the safety recall. POS is what they are.

OK, I got a Craftsman snow blower back in June 2006, and have gotten good use out of it, except the tires would always go flat. My buddy said put the frame on a brick so the tires are off the ground all year it's sitting.This year, the only way to inflate the tires is at the gas station, by the hose the mechanic's use to put new tires on a rim. I go to Sears, they tell me a new tire is $80 on a rim,the only way they sell them.No tubes are available from Sears. I go to Cerliones in Hazlet, a local lawn and garden supplier,they said a new tube put in is $20 or do it yourself for $10. Not sure of the size I bring it in to them,and they won't sell or install the tube saying there' a safety recall on the rims "EXPLODING" when inflated over 20psi, or less maybe. They give me the recall notice, which was 2 months before I even bought the snow blower in June 2006. Never once did Sears tell me about the recall or the guy working at Sears tell me anything, except that tire cost $80. Called the recall center, and they are sending me 2 brand new, totally new designed rims with a tube and tire on them.This safety recall center was for 3 different brands other than Sears, that had the same design,Troy Blit, and Yard Machine and one other. My point is, Sears tried everything not to give me the tires that had been on recall for years, and even sold me the blower 2 months after the safety recall. POS is what they are.

What's the number for the recall center? I have the same issue.

 

[zwicker]

Unions destroyed them.

 

[Beancounter88]

Sears doesn't even make a lot of the parts for the blowers any more anyway. Mine has a Briggs & Stratton engine and a bunch of parts with different names. If I was buying a new blower, I would spend a little more and get a Toro at the local small engine sales/service place in town. Everything about Sears sucks, including the employees who don't know or don't care about anything - couple of years ago I bought a shop-vac there, opened it at home, and it was clear it was purchased and returned previously (attachments missing, box in disarray, etc.).

 

[RUMBA-JK]

Sears doesn't even make a lot of the parts for the blowers any more anyway. Mine has a Briggs & Stratton engine and a bunch of parts with different names. If I was buying a new blower, I would spend a little more and get a Toro at the local small engine sales/service place in town. Everything about Sears sucks, including the employees who don't know or don't care about anything - couple of years ago I bought a shop-vac there, opened it at home, and it was clear it was purchased and returned previously (attachments missing, box in disarray, etc.).

Sears was not a manufacturer - "Craftsman" stuff was made for them - to their specs -

Walmart kind of does the same thing for many items - but they have the vendor keep their name on it - just make to the "Walmart" spec

Home Depot used to do a weird thing (may still do it ) - the will not put their name on an individual product
They would get a conventional manufacturer make a product to their spec & then they would get an unrelated name (not the Home Depot name) and use that - a few years ago they got John Deere to make a less expensive Lawn Tractor - painted it orange - and put the "Scotts" (yeah - seed and fertilizer) name on it

 

[ruready4somefootball]

What's the number for the recall center? I have the same issue.

1-888-848-6038 for Craftsman there are 2 models on the recall.Model 247.88255 {31A-3BDE799}. Sold between July 2004 and March 2006. Model 247.88700 {31AS3AAD799} Sold between July 2005 and March 2006. Yard Machine Models 31a-3aad700,31a-3bad700,31a-3bad729,31a-3bad752,31a-3bad762 and 31as3dde729. Troy-Bilt Model 31AS3BB2766. Do Not Inflate Tires.

 

[mal359]

There was a time Thinkpads were the greatest machine made.

Now I have been through 2 in a year.

Get a MacBook Pro or an HP Elitebook dude.

 

[Extra Point]

1-888-848-6038 for Craftsman there are 2 models on the recall.Model 247.88255 {31A-3BDE799}. Sold between July 2004 and March 2006. Model 247.88700 {31AS3AAD799} Sold between July 2005 and March 2006. Yard Machine Models 31a-3aad700,31a-3bad700,31a-3bad729,31a-3bad752,31a-3bad762 and 31as3dde729. Troy-Bilt Model 31AS3BB2766. Do Not Inflate Tires.

Are the rims metal on your machine or plastic? If they made plastic rims for a snow thrower shame on them.

 

[ATIOH]

2 top Sears execs including the CEO left within a week. Company is on life support.

Their CEO is their largest shareholder (and possibly lender). He's not going anywhere.

Sears might go bankrupt next month, but I've been hearing the same thing for a decade. They'll limp along until either Lampert turns it around or he decides to stop sinking more money into the company.

 

[knightfan7]

Their CEO is their largest shareholder (and possibly lender). He's not going anywhere.

Sears might go bankrupt next month, but I've been hearing the same thing for a decade. They'll limp along until either Lampert turns it around or he decides to stop sinking more money into the company.

My mistake. It was Sears President and Chief Member Officer, Joelle Maher.

 

[rutgersguy1]

Their CEO is their largest shareholder (and possibly lender). He's not going anywhere.

Sears might go bankrupt next month, but I've been hearing the same thing for a decade. They'll limp along until either Lampert turns it around or he decides to stop sinking more money into the company.

It's very unlikely that it will turn around it's just a matter of when. I'm like you though. I've been surprised at how long they've been able to stay afloat. They've been getting rid of real estate. I think they got rid of Lands End and been slowly closing more and more stores. You can only cut away so much before you're hitting bone. It's just a long slow death but longer and slower than I'd have expected.

When I was young in the 80s, it was still a big name but my family hasn't shopped there in decades and I haven't as an adult. My dad stopped using craftsman back then though, specifically the lawnmower, it always gave trouble. It pretty much soured us on the name. Switched to Toro and Honda.

 

[ruready4somefootball]

Are the rims metal on your machine or plastic? If they made plastic rims for a snow thrower shame on them.

They are a plastic type of rim,made of Bakelite.

 

[RU1993]

Craftsman used to stand for quality. I remember my dad broke an opened wrench, we brought it back and they handed him another no questions asked.

Now it seems everything is built on the cheap

 

[RUich]

Virtually everything that ever carried a Sears name was made by somebody else. But, back in the day, it was a respected American company.
Now, who knows where it came from. I had a Sears riding mower some years ago and had to do a significant amount of research to figure out who the manufacturer was as the model I had was actually made by three different companies!
The days of feeling confident about Sears products is a real crap shoot and getting help/service is just as problematic.

Friends on mine tried to get a matching washing machine and dryer from the local Sears home store. They were told that they DIDN'T deliver!! Guess they figure you can just throw them in the trunk of your car. They bought their appliances elsewhere.

 

[NorthNJRUFan]

What happened to the companies and the products? The attack on unionized labor meant we pay less for workers and in turn products are cheaper. But just like everything else you get what you pay for in life.

 

[RUforester72]

#makesearsgreatagain

 

[e5fdny]

Toro.

 

[FanuSanu52]

I'm waiting for this puppy to hit the market, autonomous snow blower, lawn mower and leaf blower.

What could possibly be better than waving to your robot blower from the living room window as you sip coffee? Knowing that your d#ck neighbor who's out shoveling his face off is watching you wave at your robot blower from the living room window as you sip coffee.

 

[knightfan7]

While on Sears, does anyone know the story between them and Lands End? I had relatives who worked in Dodgeville but left well before they got together.

I used to buy all my work and much of my casual clothes from Lands End but after Sears I saw prices rise and variety decrease.

I understand they parted ways which can only be good for Lands End.