Bruce Urie
The Ventures,CCR forever!
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2006
A little trouble with Kobalt tools from Lowes. A few years ago, I bought this set of tools, Kobalt, from Lowes....this set had all the types of ends that I could use, with a swivel socket wrench. See here:
The other day, I broke the T-50 socket trying to get a rusted bolt from my rear seat belt rewinder on my '88 Jeep. This is what busted:
Ok, no problem....went to Lowes for a replacement. (note lifetime HASSLE FREE guarantee. ) Front desk sent me to tool section.....I could find no socket like this, with the splines on the barrel. Only a regular 3/8 drive T-50. Went back to desk....clerk and told her this. She got on phone, called tool department and told us that a tool guy is waiting back at the tool department and will FIND the RIGHT PART himself. I told her that I already looked. Was ignored. Met tool guy....tool guy looked and looked like my wife and I just did. No dice. No tool. He told us we'll have to call Kobalt tools, looked up a number, gave it to us.
Went home, called them. They said they couldn't help us....no such tool. Gave us another person to talk to...that person couldn't help. Gave us a number in Maryland. Called Maryland. Maryland girl told us Kobalt is not a brand name, it's a name owned by GearWrench.......but could not help us. She gave us the number of GearWrench....called GearWrench.....the girl there asked for the number of the set and the broken T-50......said all Kobalt are really GearWrench and Lowes does not stock all parts for replacement. But told us that they'll send us a new socket OR a new set, whatever.
Just wanted to let you guys know this.....we live about 35 miles from the nearest Lowes....plus all those phone calls just to finally get a connection....all the calls took my wife about two hours of calling and trying.......so, next time you guys go for Kobalt, I suggest Craftsman, Snap-On, Mac, or Husky...at least you can get any broken tool replaced right away..
By the way, Sears just sold the Craftsman brand to Stanley Tool Corporation the other day. So, it may or may not be up to par as far as quality...I don't know, don't quote me on that...but Stanley Tools now owns the Craftsman name in tools......I've noticed that a lot of Craftsman tools are made in China, which I really don't like. Harbor Freight socket sets, and impact sets are of top quality, in my honest opinion....I have five sets of impacts from them for the last 15 years, and not one of them has broken. And Harbor Freight will replace any tool that breaks also, free of charge. Believe me, I've used those Harbor Freight sockets long and very hard!
I'll let you know if GearWrench comes through.....I have a few sets of ratcheting GearWrench tools and they've performed just great.....never have broken one yet over the last 10 years.....I'm just getting pretty wary of tools made in China....would LOVE to buy Snap-On, but the truck never stops at my house for any reason..I'm not a very important or famous person, just a dweeb with a guitar in one hand and a Grand National key in the other......I only see them at an automotive shop.....I used to work at a dealership and had this luxury of Snap-On visits from the Snap-On man.....was like Christmas for me!
That is, until the service manager of that dealership STOLE my complete tool set while I was in the hospital for one week. And the president of the dealership told me he since "knew" it was an "In house theft", their insurance will NOT cover it...(wonder how he KNEW? I never told him)........so my only option, he told me, was to go out and get another $15,000 set or quit. Nice guy. I later found out my friend, the service manager named BILL BAKER had stolen my set to use for his boat. He already had three big Mac tool chest in the shop area, plus owned an airplane, two Oldsmobiles, his own home, and that big boat. (I've even been on his boat, too) (Found out this one year later by another friend who worked there who told me Bill was bragging about it!) I asked him would he testify in court Bill did this, and my good buddy, my guitar buddy of 18 years said "I'm not going to lose my job, no way will I testify!" Yes, it's good to know who your friends are in this world.
And the nerve of him.....he wanted to get together with me two years ago again, play guitar, go crabbing, get together for visits, cookouts, cars, etc. Guess what I told him? NOTHING.
Man, I sure can get off the subject so quickly, can't I? Guess I'll go to bed now.
Bruce '87 Grand National
Ok, no problem....went to Lowes for a replacement. (note lifetime HASSLE FREE guarantee. ) Front desk sent me to tool section.....I could find no socket like this, with the splines on the barrel. Only a regular 3/8 drive T-50. Went back to desk....clerk and told her this. She got on phone, called tool department and told us that a tool guy is waiting back at the tool department and will FIND the RIGHT PART himself. I told her that I already looked. Was ignored. Met tool guy....tool guy looked and looked like my wife and I just did. No dice. No tool. He told us we'll have to call Kobalt tools, looked up a number, gave it to us.
Went home, called them. They said they couldn't help us....no such tool. Gave us another person to talk to...that person couldn't help. Gave us a number in Maryland. Called Maryland. Maryland girl told us Kobalt is not a brand name, it's a name owned by GearWrench.......but could not help us. She gave us the number of GearWrench....called GearWrench.....the girl there asked for the number of the set and the broken T-50......said all Kobalt are really GearWrench and Lowes does not stock all parts for replacement. But told us that they'll send us a new socket OR a new set, whatever.
Just wanted to let you guys know this.....we live about 35 miles from the nearest Lowes....plus all those phone calls just to finally get a connection....all the calls took my wife about two hours of calling and trying.......so, next time you guys go for Kobalt, I suggest Craftsman, Snap-On, Mac, or Husky...at least you can get any broken tool replaced right away..
By the way, Sears just sold the Craftsman brand to Stanley Tool Corporation the other day. So, it may or may not be up to par as far as quality...I don't know, don't quote me on that...but Stanley Tools now owns the Craftsman name in tools......I've noticed that a lot of Craftsman tools are made in China, which I really don't like. Harbor Freight socket sets, and impact sets are of top quality, in my honest opinion....I have five sets of impacts from them for the last 15 years, and not one of them has broken. And Harbor Freight will replace any tool that breaks also, free of charge. Believe me, I've used those Harbor Freight sockets long and very hard!
I'll let you know if GearWrench comes through.....I have a few sets of ratcheting GearWrench tools and they've performed just great.....never have broken one yet over the last 10 years.....I'm just getting pretty wary of tools made in China....would LOVE to buy Snap-On, but the truck never stops at my house for any reason..I'm not a very important or famous person, just a dweeb with a guitar in one hand and a Grand National key in the other......I only see them at an automotive shop.....I used to work at a dealership and had this luxury of Snap-On visits from the Snap-On man.....was like Christmas for me!
That is, until the service manager of that dealership STOLE my complete tool set while I was in the hospital for one week. And the president of the dealership told me he since "knew" it was an "In house theft", their insurance will NOT cover it...(wonder how he KNEW? I never told him)........so my only option, he told me, was to go out and get another $15,000 set or quit. Nice guy. I later found out my friend, the service manager named BILL BAKER had stolen my set to use for his boat. He already had three big Mac tool chest in the shop area, plus owned an airplane, two Oldsmobiles, his own home, and that big boat. (I've even been on his boat, too) (Found out this one year later by another friend who worked there who told me Bill was bragging about it!) I asked him would he testify in court Bill did this, and my good buddy, my guitar buddy of 18 years said "I'm not going to lose my job, no way will I testify!" Yes, it's good to know who your friends are in this world.
And the nerve of him.....he wanted to get together with me two years ago again, play guitar, go crabbing, get together for visits, cookouts, cars, etc. Guess what I told him? NOTHING.
Man, I sure can get off the subject so quickly, can't I? Guess I'll go to bed now.
Bruce '87 Grand National
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