Line trimmer issue...

[jplinville]

We have two Craftsman line trimmers, both with the same problem. The stem where the spool connects broke.

I checked on line for the parts, and they can be had...for $39.99!! Hell, I can buy a NEW trimmer of the same size and amperage for the same price!

Have we gotten to be such a throw away society that replacement parts are more expensive than a whole new machine?

I remember helping my dad repair the lawnmower, Weed Wacker, and other items because it cost too much for new ones.

[cixelsyD]

I've been moderately disappointed with that brand the last few years.

Everything is made in China, and it's disposable.

[Volker]

Instead of saying, well, throw-away society, consider how efficient the manufacturing process is to sell you that trimmer for $40!

How long you have to work for $40? Two hours, one hour? You have earned a whole brand new trimmer! Try to make trimmer with your hands... not even the coil of copper on the motor you will have finished after two hours.

Don't forget, for them to ship that little piece from factory to store to sell to you, costs about same as whole trimmer, and that cost might be something like $5. And even then, for five bucks, it has travelled exactly on the opposite side of the Earth, shipped thousands of miles on the America and then it has gone to store and in your hands... and if you asked neighbor kid only to trim your hedge for $5, he'd tell you to go **** yourself!

[jplinville]

Originally Posted by cixelsyD

I've been moderately disappointed with that brand the last few years.

Everything is made in China, and it's disposable.

I haven't bought a Craftsman anything for a number of years, because of it being made in China. Both of these string trimmers have some age on them. Both were garage sale finds that worked great when we bought them. One was bought by my wife about 8 years ago, and the other I picked up in Spring of 2008. I think they were near $60 when new, or somewhere around that price.

I don't even know if there are any electric ones made in the US now.

I have a Ryobi cordless model that came with a hedge trimmer, but the battery is a POS. It won't charge up completely, and dies about 1/4 way through the yard...Made in China also.

[David Wilson]

I went through several different brands through the years. Most worked well for a couple of years then gave me problems. I finally broke down and spent the extra to buy a Stihl. Good decision on my part. Awesome machine, dependable, made in the USA, but they are pricey.
Liked the trimmer so much, I bought one of their blowers.

[kmaysob]

buy a stihl or echo and be done with it.

[spdrun]

Originally Posted by Volker

Instead of saying, well, throw-away society, consider how efficient the manufacturing process is to sell you that trimmer for $40!

It helps that they can pay Chinese or Vietnamese kid workers $0.50/hr to make that trimmer. Think of the environmental cost of throwing away a whole f**kin' trimmer for want of a tiny replacement part. Idiotic.

[benhogan]

Originally Posted by kmaysob

buy a stihl or echo and be done with it.

+1

[Air&Road]

Yes, Craftsman parts have gotten COMPLETELY ridiculous in price. I don't have much of anything left around that was sold by them for that reason.

I still have an old Craftsman 5HP, 30 gallon air compressor from the seventies. I have it connected to my shop air plumbing and only use it when painting, for adding extra capacity. The rest of the time, I simply close the valve to it and turn off the power. I had to get a belt for it a few years ago, and the belt was so expensive, I considered just scrapping it.

For chainsaws, line trimmers and the like, I have become quite a Stihl fan. I have a local, small shop that does nothing but Stihl. The guy is great in taking care of his customers and the Stihl stuff, even the lesser expensive, homeowner level items are quite good and quite repairable.

[rscurtis]

In my past life on LI, I used to be a Stihl dealer. In 2006, they instituted an advertising program on LI to point out that big box stores weren't the only place to buy OPE. They took out 50 full page color ad's in Newsday, at $15,000 per issue. The total cost of this just for my dealership was $75,000. I put up $15,000, and Stihl paid the balance of $60K.

That's what I call putting your $ where your mouth is.

My Stihl sales increased 36% that year, despite it's being a down year due to high fuel prices and the Israel/Lebanon war.

I do agree with others, don't waste your money on cheap OPE.

[TwitchKitty]

I bought a Honda trimmer and it seems like a real nice machine. I like it a lot but I don't use it very much so I can't really give an evaluation.

[jplinville]

Originally Posted by Volker

Instead of saying, well, throw-away society, consider how efficient the manufacturing process is to sell you that trimmer for $40!

How long you have to work for $40? Two hours, one hour? You have earned a whole brand new trimmer! Try to make trimmer with your hands... not even the coil of copper on the motor you will have finished after two hours.

Don't forget, for them to ship that little piece from factory to store to sell to you, costs about same as whole trimmer, and that cost might be something like $5. And even then, for five bucks, it has travelled exactly on the opposite side of the Earth, shipped thousands of miles on the America and then it has gone to store and in your hands... and if you asked neighbor kid only to trim your hedge for $5, he'd tell you to go **** yourself!

You've got to love the effect of the free trade market...we sell them our resources and give them our manufacturing so that we aren't polluting OUR land, in return for cheap labor on cheap crap that used to last a whole lot longer when we built it here. The parts for them were cheaper then, too...compared to the cost of the entire thing.

I try my damnedest to NOT buy Chinese crap. I'm not ALWAYS successful in that endeavor, but my intake of it is much less than the average person.

[Air&Road]

I too try to buy American and if not American, Chinese made is last on my list.

[aklim]

I have a Craftsman gas weedwhacker that is still running after 16 years. I was not using it simply because it was an oil mix and they don't have that ratio in convenient bottles and my friend gave me his. I gave it to my neighbor and less than 2 hrs later, his wife ran it over.

I don't believe that every product made here will be better simply because I have no idea where the components came from. As an example, my 91 Firebird was made here but many components came from Canada and who knows where else. Also, just because it was made here doesn't mean squat.

When buying something, I look at the recent history of that item. GM might have been good once but it is in the toilet as far as I am concerned. MAYBE, they will get better but today I have no trust in them. Lets see if they can go another decade or so without running into another bailout. Till then, I'll look elsewhere for a company that didn't go begging for money.

FOR NOW, Craftsman tools seem to be good value for the money. If I were a professional, I'd be buying something else but as a tinkerer they are fine.

China can make what you want. Problem is if you ask them to make junk, that is all you. If we purchase low price at the checkout stuff, it is probably junk. Nobody sells you good stuff for rock bottom prices. When you do that, you tell the business that is what you want. It is not their fault for catering to you. It is your fault for telling them what you want that is NOT within reason. What we want is cheap and good. No such thing.

Bottom line is we have asked for a disposable society and we want the benefits of it but we don't want the low quality.

[Air&Road]

I don't prefer to buy American because I think that it is the best just because its made in the USA. I prefer to buy American when I can, in an effort to slow down the New World Order.

BTW Aklim, craftsman hand tools are a much different product line than today's craftsman power tools. Their hand tools are just as you describe, very good value for the home DIYer.