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<DIV>I had thought about that, but decided the tool was probably made out of
material I wouldn’t be able to drill through.</DIV>
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<DIV>I recently acquired another one of these handles. It was in a tool
box I bought at an auction. It has the hole, so my round bar became usable
again. Interesting thing about the newly acquired one, it is evidently
even older than the one I turned in. The catalog number is not permanently
marked on the tool, as has been Craftsman practice for a long time. The
hole in the handle goes the opposite way from what it did in the handle I turned
in. I have two other 1/2 inch breaker bars, other brands. They both
are cross drilled. One of them has a hole in the end so it can be used as
an extension.</DIV>
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<DIV>Jim Becker</DIV>
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<DIV style="font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A
title=william.neff.powell@comcast.net>William Powell</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Monday, October 28, 2019 10:46 AM</DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=at@lists.antique-tractor.com>Antique tractor email</A>
</DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> Re: [AT] Craftsman Tool Warranty</DIV></DIV></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV></DIV>
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<DIV>Could you drill a hole though it? Would that void the warrent? I doubt it
will snap at the hole.</DIV>
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<DIV class=gmail_quote>
<DIV class=gmail_attr dir=ltr>On Mon, Oct 28, 2019, 10:10 AM Jim Becker
<<A>mr.jebecker@gmail.com</A>> wrote:<BR></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=gmail_quote
style="PADDING-LEFT: 1ex; BORDER-LEFT: #ccc 1px solid; MARGIN: 0px 0px 0px 0.8ex">Several
years ago, I had the identical failure of a 15" breaker bar. The
<BR>length is the only difference between this and the 18" bar. I
managed to <BR>trade for a new one before the local Sears store went
away. My replacement <BR>had all the differences noted on the 18"
tool. But there was one more <BR>(which may apply to the 18" as
well). My original had a hole drilled <BR>crosswise through the end of
the handle. It came with a plain round bar <BR>that fit through the
handle so it could be used as a T-handle. The <BR>replacement breaker
bar is not drilled for the round bar. So now I have <BR>this nice round
bar with no place to put it. At least they didn't give me <BR>any
suggestions.<BR><BR>More recently (I was cutting it close on the store
closing), I took back a <BR>couple garden tools, a rake and a potato
fork. They didn't have equivalent <BR>tools on hand. They gave me
tools that I would describe as upgrades for <BR>both of them.<BR><BR>Jim
Becker<BR><BR>-----Original Message----- <BR>From: <A rel=noreferrer
target=_blank>szabelski@wildblue.net</A><BR>Sent: Sunday, October 27, 2019
11:15 AM<BR>To: Antique Tractor Email Discussion Group<BR>Subject: Re: [AT]
Craftsman Tool Warranty<BR><BR>Previous discussion regarding warranty
replacement of Craftsman tools raised <BR>some uncertainty about replacing
Craftsman tools under warranty. I had the <BR>opportunity this week to get
some fresh knowledge.<BR><BR>I was working outside in the grass, using my
Craftsman 18” 1/2 drive breaker <BR>bar. After removing and putting a few
bolts with the breaker bar, I grabbed <BR>the bar and realized that the square
drive was missing. Looked down and <BR>found it lying by my feet. What
apparently happened is that the pin that <BR>holds the drive in the handle
fell out. I looked for it but being in the <BR>grass, no luck. There is also a
small spring and ball bearing that lock the <BR>drive at 45 degrees in both
directions, and of course they were gone to.<BR><BR>I went on line to Lowe’s
to see if the local Lowe’s had one in stock. Turns <BR>out they didn’t, so I
checked all Lowe’s within 50 miles. The closest one <BR>that indicated that
they had one was 32 miles away, so I drove over and went <BR>to the tool area.
All they had was the 15” breaker bar, not the 18”. I asked <BR>at the service
counter about not seeing the 18” bar and was told that their <BR>inventory
isn’t always correct. They gave me the number to call Craftsman <BR>and said I
would have to talk to them.<BR><BR>When I got home I went online to Sears to
see if they had one in stock. We <BR>don’t have any Sears within probably 150
miles of here since they started <BR>closing their stores, that’s why I didn’t
search them first. Well I found a <BR>Sears that had one in stock, it’s in
Missouri. A little too far to drive <BR>from Michigan. So I called the
Craftsman number and explained my problem.<BR><BR>I talked to someone with an
accent who kept telling my I should try to use <BR>Sears.com to find a
replacement. We went back and forth a couple of times. <BR>He used my phone
number to determine that my wife had a Shop Your Way <BR>account with Sears
and said he could give my a credit on my wife’s account, <BR>and that I could
then use to order the breaker bar using the credit in her <BR>account. My wife
closed that account when they closed the last nearest <BR>Sears. We also don’t
remember the log in or the password for the account. <BR>Went back and forth
on this issue a couple of times. All the time I kept <BR>telling him that
nothing he was trying to do would work for me. Having a <BR>credit that I
can’t get to wasn’t doing me any good.<BR><BR>He then gave me a phone number
for a “Warranty Specialist” and said to call <BR>them. I called the number and
explained everything all over again. They made <BR>the same offer again of
putting credit into my wife’s account. When I told <BR>her that the account
was closed, she said she could reopen the account so <BR>that we could get
into it. We got this all set up on the phone. She asked me <BR>how much the
bar cost and I told her it was listed at $36. She said she <BR>would give me a
credit of 38000 points, which is worth $38. I told her as <BR>long as I could
access the account I would go that route.<BR><BR>I went on line again and went
to Sears.com and looked up the breaker bar. I <BR>put it in my shopping cart
and went to check out. During the checkout <BR>process it indicated that the
part qualified for free shipping since it was <BR>over $35. I was OK with that
since I felt I shouldn’t pay for anything. I <BR>figured I’d still have a few
credits left over in my wife’s account that <BR>would probably sit there
forever. Completed the checkout process and noticed <BR>that I was billed for
tax and shipping, which I thought wasn’t right. Then I <BR>noticed in the bill
that the breaker bar qualified for a $5 discount, which <BR>brought the price
down below $35, so no free shipping. I figure the tax is <BR>not covered by
the credit in the account. Anyway it cost me a little over $4 <BR>to get a
replacement bar.<BR><BR>The bar arrived yesterday and I noticed a couple of
differences right away. <BR>First, the little spring and ball bearing were not
there, the drive is free <BR>moving. Next the pin that holds the drive into
the handle has been replaced <BR>with an Allen screw that is counter sunk on
on side and threaded into the <BR>other side. Then I noticed that there is no
place on the handle that says <BR>“MADE IN THE USA” like my original
bar.<BR><BR>I’m OK with paying the $4 since I don’t have to drive anyplace to
swap the <BR>bar, and I got to keep the original bar. I think I have a spring
and a ball <BR>bearing that will fit into the handle, if not I can drill the
hole a little <BR>bigger to fit what I have. I’m thinking of drilling and
tapping the old <BR>handle the same way the new is, instead of driving in a
new pin. I may keep <BR>both, or I’ll give the new one to either my son in law
or nephew.<BR><BR>If you have to replace a Craftsman tool don’t call the
Craftsman number that <BR>the store gives you (888-331-4569). Instead call the
“Warranty Specialist <BR>(1-800-479-6351). When calling, enter 6 when
prompted, then enter 3 at the <BR>next prompt. I found it was easier to get
results from them. You’ll probably <BR>have to open an account with them if
you don’t already have one. But keep in <BR>mind that you’re probably going to
have to pay something to get a <BR>replacement, tax and shipping, unless you
can qualify for free shipping then <BR>only the tax.<BR><BR>As a side note, I
found out that even if a store like Lowe’s has the tool <BR>you want to
return, there is no guaranty that they will do a warranty swap. <BR>It turns
out that it’s actually up to the store if they will. They may <BR>simply tell
you that you have to call Sears. Also there may be a part number
<BR>difference between the Sears part and the part number in the store,
<BR>especially if you tool is old. This can keep you from getting a warranty
<BR>swap. Another issue is that stores like Lowe’s don’t carry a large
selection <BR>of individual tools like Sears used to. They carry a lot of tool
sets.<BR><BR>Last time I took some tools into a Sears for warranty, they had
one tool in <BR>stock, but not the other. On the one that they didn’t have, I
was allowed to <BR>swap it for an equivalent Stanley tool. Craftsman is owned
by Stanley, and <BR>the tool came with a life time
warranty.<BR><BR>_______________________________________________<BR>AT mailing
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rel="noreferrer noreferrer"
target=_blank>http://lists.antique-tractor.com/listinfo.cgi/at-antique-tractor.com</A><BR></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV>
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