Why Choose Craftsman?
Craftsman has been a byword for durability for almost a century. Craftsman was the name Sears chose in 1927 for a new line of tools, and it quickly became one of the most trusted brand names in America. When the polling firm Harris Interactive asked American consumers about their brand choices, Craftsman earned the highest scores for both trust and brand expectations. Craftsman is no longer owned by Sears, but it is still a name that Americans trust and respect. Craftsman generators are made in America by an industry leader, and they are engineered and built to deliver years of reliable backup power.
History
Craftsman is a brand name rather than a manufacturing company, so its history is a little unusual. The primary figure in the story is a department manager rather than a visionary entrepreneur, and early products bearing the brand’s logo were only available in Sears stores. Let’s take a look at how the name for a new line of hand tools became one of the most respected brands in America.
Founding and Milestones
The Craftsman story began in 1927 when Sears was preparing to launch a new line of hand tools. The head of the retailer’s hardware department was a man named Arthur S. Barrows, and he thought Craftsman would be the perfect name. He then convinced his bosses to invest $500 to acquire the right to use the name from the Marion-Craftsman Tool Company. Barrows would later go on to serve as president of Sears between 1942 and 1946, and he was the first person to be appointed Under Secretary of the Air Force.
The hand tool market was extremely competitive in the late 1920s, so Sears needed a way to make its new products stand out. The retailer accomplished this by backing its Craftsman hand tools with a lifetime warranty. If a tool failed to provide complete satisfaction, it was repaired or replaced free of charge. Tool owners who made warranty claims were not even asked to provide a receipt. Other tool brands followed suit, and lifetime warranties became quite common, but not before Sears had earned an enviable reputation for durability.
Sears was a retailer, not a manufacturer, so it did not actually make the tools that bore the Craftsman brand name. Instead, the retailer turned to manufacturers renowned for efficiency and high quality to produce the goods it sold. Hand and power tools bearing the brand name have been made by companies including Apex, Danaher, Easco, and Stanley, and the latest Craftsman generators are built in factories operated by Generac.
Sears attracted a lot of media attention in 1935 when the silent movie star Colleen Moore unveiled a fantasy castle that had been built using Craftsman hand and power tools. It took a team of 100 talented professionals seven years to build the castle, but the fantasy structure became a national sensation in a matter of days. The castle was taken on a national tour that raised more than $650,000 for children’s charities during the depths of the Great Depression, and a sign for Craftsman tools was displayed proudly at every stop. Moore’s fairy castle is now on permanent display at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.
Craftsman tools were originally marketed to the DIY market, but trade professionals began to take an interest in them in the early 1930s when Sears introduced wrenches and other tools made out of vanadium steel. This alloy is twice as strong and half the weight of traditional steel, and it is naturally resistant to corrosion. In 1950, the popularity of Sears tools among mechanics gave a salesman named Ed Faulk an idea. He loaded a truck with Craftsman tools and set off on a 10,000-mile drive across America. The success of the trip convinced Sears executives to build additional mobile stores.
Brand loyalty programs and incentives are commonplace today, but they were virtually unheard of in 1991 when Sears introduced the Craftsman Club. The club was an instant hit with consumers, and it saved its members more than $250,000 in just its first four months. Sears began to struggle in the 1990s as online retailers poached sales from traditional brick-and-mortar establishments, and the company outsourced some of its production to factories in Asia to lower costs.
The Craftsman story took a major turn in 2017 when Stanley Black & Decker purchased the brand for $900 million. Stanley said that it wanted to take the brand’s reputation to new heights, and the company soon announced plans to build a new factory in Texas to bring Craftsman manufacturing back to the United States.
Production and Manufacturing
The Craftsman generator line includes models that can allow the comforts of home to be enjoyed on camping trips, and it also features units that can provide reliable backup power for an entire house. Let’s take a close look at these generators and the state-of-the-art factories that make them.
Products
The Craftsman product range includes hand and power tools, automotive tools, tool storage solutions, and outdoor equipment, in addition to generators. The power lineup includes two inverter generators and nine portable generators, and they are all packed with useful and convenient features. Let’s take a look at what these generators offer:
- Inverter generators: Modern electronic devices can be damaged by power surges, which means they require very stable electricity supplies. Digital inverter technology keeps total harmonic distortion to a minimum, so you can plug a laptop or smartphone into a Craftsman inverter generator without worrying about spikes and surges.
- Portable generators: Natural disasters, winter storms, and prolonged heat waves can damage or overwhelm power grids. When power supplies are interrupted, a Craftsman portable generator can keep an entire house running for up to 11 hours on just a few gallons of gas. These models feature 120-volt household outlets, 240-volt appliance outlets, and 30-amp locking outlets.
The Craftsman generator line includes 2500- and 3300-watt inverter generators and portable generators with power outputs ranging from 3500 to 8000 watts. Every Craftsman generator is engineered to provide years of reliable service, and using them is easy because they all run on gas power. The useful features you can expect to find on a Craftsman generator include:
- Automatic RPM control: Generators make camping trips and tailgating more fun, but they can be loud. Craftsman generators address this problem with automatic RPM control that optimizes fuel efficiency and keeps noise to a minimum.
- CO detection: Generators emit carbon monoxide, which is a colorless and odorless gas that can be deadly. Craftsman generators have detection technology that monitors CO, and they shut down automatically when levels of the gas become dangerous.
- CARB compliance: Several Craftsman generators meet strict standards laid down by the California Air Resources Board. CARB was established three years before the Environmental Protection Agency, and its guidelines are now followed in states like New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania as well as California. To become CARB-compliant, a generator must be extremely efficient and emit almost no pollution.
- Parallel power: If you need more electricity than a single Craftsman inverter generator can provide, you can link it to another inverter generator for parallel power.
- Easy controls: Push-button electric starts and convenient choke dials make Craftsman generators extremely easy to use.
- Reliable motors: The motors that power Craftsman generators are very reliable and durable because they were designed and built by industry giants like Briggs & Stratton.
- Portability features: Craftsman inverter generators can be lifted and carried with one hand, and the brand’s portable models feature folding handles and puncture-resistant wheels.
Manufacturing
When Craftsman was owned by Sears, many products bearing the brand name were manufactured overseas. When Stanley acquired the Craftsman name, the company announced that production would be returning to America. One of the first things Stanley did after finalizing the deal was set aside $90 million to build a new manufacturing facility in Fort Worth, Texas. The 425,000-square-foot facility opened in 2019, and it created more than 500 local jobs. Stanley has since opened a second Craftsman manufacturing facility in Cheraw, South Carolina.
Craftsman generators are not made in Fort Worth or Cheraw. Instead, they are built and tested at dedicated facilities operated by Generac. This is the company that introduced the first portable generator and the first automatic home backup generator, which could explain why Craftsman generators are made so well and receive such enthusiastic reviews. Most Generac generators are made in Wisconsin, but the company announced in February 2021 that it planned to build a research facility and generator factory in South Carolina. That plant is now open, and it is filled with some of the most sophisticated manufacturing machinery in the world.
Key Facts
The Craftsman brand name is now part of a company that is dedicated to protecting the planet and nurturing equality in the workplace. Stanley has vowed to appoint women to at least half of its leadership positions by 2030, and the company also supports organizations promoting gender equality and providing STEM education for girls. These organizations include Paradigm for Equality, Equal Everywhere, Path Forward, and Catalyst. Thanks in part to these efforts, Stanley is considered one of the best employers for women in the United States.
Stanley is also committed to becoming a net-zero manufacturer, which means it plans to eliminate carbon emissions entirely. To help it reach this goal, the company has vowed to reduce its Scope 3 emissions by 35% before 2025. Stanley is also taking steps to make its supply chain more sustainable and end relationships with suppliers that flout environmental and worker safety regulations.
In March 2022, Stanley announced that it had awarded $3 million in cash grants and more than $1 million in tools to nonprofit organizations that support workforce development. The grants are part of a $25 million program the company set up to provide skill training across the country.
Warranty Information
Craftsman generators are all backed by a 3-year limited warranty. If a problem develops during the Craftsman generator warranty period that was caused by defects in materials or manufacturing, the generator will be repaired at no cost to the owner or replaced. A receipt or other proof of ownership must be provided to authorize a warranty repair, and claims will be rejected if the damage was caused by improper use or an accident.
Craftsman generator owners who wish to make warranty claims should return to the place where they purchased their units for a repair or replacement. They can also call (888) 331-4569 or use an online form to start the warranty process. Craftsman generator owners are not required to register their purchases to receive warranty protection, but they are expected to follow the company’s guidelines and recommendations.
Craftsman Generator Parts
If you need parts to repair a Craftsman generator and the work that needs to be done will not be covered by the warranty, you will probably be able to order whatever you need from an authorized retailer or a repair center. If you would prefer to take care of the repair yourself or do not live close to an authorized retailer, you can order parts from the company that made your Craftsman generator. Engine components are the most commonly ordered generator parts, and they can be ordered from the Briggs & Stratton website. Just bear in mind that you will need to enter the model number of the engine and not the generator in the search box.
Check Out More Craftsman Content From GeneratorTools
There are hundreds of inverter, portable, and backup generators available, and the companies that make them all claim to be the best. Sorting through all of the marketing hype can be quite a challenge for the unprepared, but GeneratorTools has content that makes shopping for a new generator much easier. We let you know which models are great and which models to avoid, and we also tell you about the latest industry news and announcements.
Craftsman Generator Reviews
If you want to know how much noise a generator will make after hours of use or how much fuel it will consume, our reviews will tell you. We also give you important specifications, explain how the generator being reviewed was made, and compare it with other models in the same price range. GeneratorTools lets you know what consumers have said about generators in online reviews, and we finish up our product evaluations with a comprehensive list of benefits and disadvantages.
Craftsman Generator Roundups
GeneratorTools product roundups are perfect for people who know what brand of generator they want but have not narrowed down their search to a specific model. We sometimes make confusing product lines easy to get to grips with by selecting a few representative models and giving each of them a mini-review. Our product roundups are designed to give you the information you need to whittle down your choices, and they present this information in a format that is both fun and easy to read.
Craftsman Generator Releases
Our press release pages could help you avoid an expensive mistake. If you don’t want to spend your hard-earned money on a generator that has been replaced by a new or an improved model, you should check our press releases before you buy. This is where you will learn about important industry news like new product launches, product improvements, and incentive programs like rebates and loyalty rewards.
Craftsman Recalls
Generators are usually recalled when a defect is discovered that places consumers in danger, so learning about recalls in a timely manner is very important. We follow developments in the power generation sector very closely, and we learn about generator recalls almost as soon as they are announced. We then gather all of the important information and put it on our recall pages. These pages tell you why a recall was ordered, whether or not any injuries have been reported, and what the manufacturer has agreed to do to protect consumers.
Where To Buy
Choosing where to purchase a generator can be almost as difficult as deciding which model to buy. Hundreds of websites and brick-and-mortar retailers sell generators, but not all of them offer great prices. GeneratorTools monitors retailers closely, so we can help take the hassle out of price shopping. We also limit our recommendations to outlets that back up their attractive prices with top-notch customer service and lenient return policies. Why buy a generator anywhere else? Here are some retailers that meet our high standards:
Deals
Craftsman generators are very attractively priced, but sometimes the deals get even better. If you don’t want to miss out on discounts, rebates, or incentives that could make a generator even more affordable, you should check out our deals sections before you spend any money. This is also the place where you can learn about affiliate deals we have entered into with retailers that give our visitors access to special deals and save them money.
Similar Brands
Craftsman generators are a great choice for people who want reliable power at a reasonable price, but they are not the only choice. There are many generator companies out there, and some of them are industry icons. If you would like to learn more about these manufacturers and their products, GeneratorTools has got you covered. The brands we review include:
Online Presence
If visiting GeneratorTools has left you wanting to learn more about Craftsman generators, you will have no problems finding what you want as the brand has an excellent website and is active on the major social media platforms. Here are some links that you might find useful:
Contact Information
The Craftsman generator website provides a few contact options for visitors who have questions. There is a frequently asked questions page that contains a lot of useful information, and there is an online form that can be used to send a message or ask a question. There is also a red chat icon at the bottom of each page that can be used to start a conversation with a company representative.
- Customer Service Number: (888) 331-4569
- FAQ Page
- Online Forum