“Where can I buy bare Dewalt 20V tools?” This is one of the most frequent questions I’ve seen and been asked about the new cordless tool platform. Until now, the first-wave drills, drivers, and saws, could only be purchased as part of in a 1-, 2-, or 4-piece kit.

Well, here’s a bit of good news – we spotted new Amazon.com listings for bare-tool versions of many of Dewalt’s first-wave of 20V Max tools.

New Dewal 20V bare-tool options:

• Premium circular saw - DCS391B
• Premium reciprocating saw - DCS380B
• Compact drill/driver - DCD780B
• Premium hammer drill/driver - DCD985B
• Impact driver - DCF885B
• Brushless impact driver - DCF895B
• Right angle drill - DCD740B

There are a couple of missing models, but we have reason to believe they’re on the way as well. And most of the second-wave tools that were announced in February, such as the jig saw, are already available as bare-tools or in kits.

It will be interesting to see if big-box retailers will continue to carry 18V bare-tools once the 20V equivalents are more readily available. Our guess is that they will seek to clearance the  18V tools to make room for the 20V ones. We’ve already seen discounts on the 18V combo kits, so it may only be a matter of time before the 18V tools are completely pushed out.

One question still remains – why wait so long to release the bare-tools? We’ve got some wild theories about that one.

Well, it seems like all Black & Decker Factory Outlet stores are closing, with many stores already closed.

My father is quite the fan of Black & Decker outlet stores, and you know what, I can see why. I visited one of the outlets in Reading PA a couple of months ago on my way home from somewhere, and it was a nice outing. There was a nice selection of Stanley hand tools and tool boxes, and the prices seemed reasonable. Actually, it seems like there were many more Stanley tools than Black & Decker-branded ones.

I remember going with my father to buy a Black & Decker Workmate at an outlet store years ago. It’s still in great condition and I like to borrow it every now and then. The stand is maybe 12-18 years old, and I believe there’s a made in Canada label somewhere on it.

Be warned – now that the stores are closing, there’s some funky pricing going on. My father, who gave me the heads-up that 3 regional locations are closed or closing, reported that the price on an outdoor extension cord he picked up a couple of weeks ago has increased. Great, so the liquidators are offering a discount on remaining stock but first raised the prices.

Will anyone really miss the B&D outlet stores? Yes. Will B&D lose any business? Probably not. I imagine that sales at these locations just weren’t enough to keep the outlets open in today’s world.

Small Parts has been one of my all-time favorite distributors. They were acquired by Amazon a couple of years ago, and served as the foundation for the industrial department of Amazon.com.

Amazon has now converted Small Parts into what they’re calling Amazon Supply. Amazon Supply is described as a beta service, but it looks like Amazon is serious about becoming a major player in the industrial, scientific, and office supply market.

All the products sold via Amazon Supply are also available via Amazon.com, but there are added benefits for industrial customers, such as a business line of credit, and 365-day returns. You can also sign in with your existing Amazon.com account.

It will be interesting to see how Amazon Supply evolves. A while back we wrote about Amazon’s Contractor Supply, which is also still in beta. We don’t know of anyone that uses Amazon to deliver building supplies direct to the jobsite, but it’s still a neat idea. Hopefully the industrial supply shop won’t fall victim to the same 2-year beta limbo as the contractor supply program.

Shop Amazon Supply

What do you guys think of the navigation structure? Personally, I’m not impressed, but it’s usable.

Irwin is recalling over 55,000 circular saw multi-blade packs that were sold at Lowes during Oct-Nov 2011. These 3-blade packs, model ICSLD3PK, are being recalled due to poorly designed packaging. There have been 3 reports of blades falling out of the bottom of the plastic packaging.

If you bought one of these Irwin saw blade multi-packs, you are advised to not disturb any blades remaining in the packaging. Contact Irwin at 800-464-7946 between 8am and 5pm ET to request a free saw blade storage container.

More Info via CPSC

Do you know how much money it costs to support ToolGuyd.com? A LOT. Aside from web-hosting fees and things like that, it takes quite a bit of coin to produce quality tool previews and reviews. Unfortunately, our pockets are starting to run dry.

ToolGuyd is not hugely popular, but almost 75,000 people stop in each month to read our articles over 250,000 times. The articles we write, the emails we receive, the review opportunities – we LOVE IT! But that doesn’t change the fact that we’re running out of money.

(If you’re a tool brand we love, it’s not too late to show your support. If you’d like to become an advertiser, send us an email or give us a call, just make sure you contact us soon before it’s too late!)

So we did a little investigative work. According to Alexa, ToolGuyd is popular with higher-income women aged 35-45 and 55-65. Wait, what? Mom, is that you? In light of this new information, we have decided to make a strategic decision.

Announcing iGuyd!

We did a little more research and discovered that if we tweaked our focus a bit, we could better appeal to our primary audience. And so we are proud to announce the launch of a new website, iGuyd. Unlike OhMyGuyd and EDC Guyd, iGuyd won’t be operated alongside ToolGuyd, it will eventually replace it.

Please, we encourage you to take a look at the new site before you judge us. We have resisted turning down this path, but it’s much better now that we’ve given in, right?

We will continue to write for and maintain ToolGuyd as long as we can. Thank you, dear readers, for your continued readership. And we really mean it. The fact that you find our articles interesting, informative, or at least entertaining, motivates us to keep going.

Check out the new iGuyd! Some people have reported problems with the site. So if you can, please click on any article and let us know if it displays properly for you.

Wera Joker Ratcheting Wrench Preview - there are some great comments in the post, and on the GG and GJ forums as well. Don’t be shy, we’re eager for your two cents!

One Project Closer Workshop Tour - wow, just WOW! Make sure you have a small bucket to collect the drool.

Turn an Unfinished Basement into a Playroom for Under $750 – a nice step-by-step project from our friends at Tools in Action.

Use Sketchup to Calculate Concrete Volume – nice tip by Chris over at ToolRank.

Is there a post or article you read this week that especially caught your eye? Feel free to leave a comment with a link.

Greenlee has voluntarily recalled about 1800 folding utility knives due a laceration hazard. The blade locking mechanism can fail, allowing the blade to accidentally fold inward unexpectedly. Greenlee has received a singly report of the blade lock failing, and no injuries have been reported.

The recall includes Greenlee Hawk Bill pocket knives, models 0652-27 and UT652-27. These knives were sold between September and November 2011 and retailed for ~$20.

If you have one of these knives, stop using it and return it to a distributor for a full refund. You can contact Greenlee for more information at 800-435-0786.

More Info via CPSC

So let’s see how Lowes and Home Depot fared…

As mentioned, Home Depot reported $16 billion in revenue and $774 million in profit. Lowes announced their Q4 results early this morning – $11.6 billion in revenue and $322 in earnings.

Some analysts are saying that the warmer winter weather helped drive along home improvement and new construction projects. And as we’ve seen and been told repeatedly, many homeowners are looking towards the DIY route to same money on small-medium sized home improvement projects.

While Home Depot and Lowes did not report a breakdown of revenue by department, it is safe to assume that the holiday season contributed to a boost in tool sales.

According to market research stats from a couple of months back, Sears and their Craftsman brand were still leading the market with about a third of hand tool sales. Home Depot and Lowes both lag behind, with less than 30% market share combined. The reverse is true with power tools, with Sears lagging behind both.

Consumer confidence does not depend on quarterly reports or business metrics, but with some analysts questioning Sears’ survivability, we might see a shift in market share as consumers look for tools with greater warranty and guarantee stability.

Losses of this magnitude will require major debt-shedding and value-releasing maneuvers:

Sears will sell 11 high-performing stores to mall developers for $270 million. They report that the stores will continue to operate as Sears locations into 2013 with final closing dates to be determined and announced later this year.

Sears also plans to cut inventory by $580 million. And in addition to recent store closings, Sears will close another 24 stores.

Sears will also spin-off Sears Hometown and Outlet businesses and certain hardware stores for $400-500 million. Some news agencies (e.g. Wall Street Journal) have estimated that this will affect more than 1200 such stores.

Sears execs urge for all to look past their short-term losses at their total balance sheet, which shows ample cash and assets. The CEO adds that looking at [short term performance] belies Sears’ investment in the customer experience, and that they are going to win their game.

Several analysts don’t believe bankruptcy is pending, but others stand by their predictions that Sears will continue down its downward spiral.

Sold and spun-0ff stores will obviously affect many, but we anticipate that there will be many more widespread changes as well. It is difficult to predict what will happen with the Craftsman brand, but we would not be shocked if Sears announced distribution deals with additional non-competing retailers. Nearly two years ago, we predicted that Sears may be spinning-off Craftsman as a separate brand – maybe 2012 is the year this comes true.

Higher-risk product development will likely be halted as well. Just look at what happened to Craftsman’s V4 cordless tools. The V4 lineup was introduced and discontinued in less than two months. Just ahead of Christmas, the prices dropped by 75% in order to clear the failed tools from stores and warehouses. While a drop in the bucket compared to total losses, this certainly didn’t help.

Although Home Depot is not a direct competitor, consider their fourth-quarter results: $16 billion in revenue and $774 million in profit. So that’s 28% more revenue than Sears, and a lot more profit.

Speculation aside, huge losses, especially during the winter holiday shopping season, can not be ignored. Expect major changes.

A couple of weeks ago, Target recalled LED flashlight gift sets due to fire and burn hazards. BJ’s Wholesale Club is now doing the same with LED flashlight sets sold at their stores from July 2011 through December 2011.

BJs is recalling about 41,000 “Safe to Go” LED flashlight family packs. The flashlights can heat up, smoke or melt when turned on, thus posing fire and burn hazards. There were 2 reports of incidents, with one consumer suffering a minor hand injury.

If you purchased or received one of these sets, dispose of the batteries and then return the flashlights to the store for a full refund. The retail price was about $15.

More Info via CPSC

By now you’ve probably already read about how Dante Autullo shot a 3.5″ framing nail into his brain and went more than a day before realizing it. The story of how this happened is a bit unclear. Some reports say that the nailer recoiled after firing a nail. Dante has his finger on the trigger, presumably with the nail gun set to bump-firing mode, and the gun fired when it turned and pressed against his head.

If Dante had been wearing safety goggles, this probably still would have happened. But that doesn’t mean that this was not preventable. What I’m wondering is why his head was so close to the nail gun? Nails can ricochet, and nailers can recoil.

There’s no word as to whether SawStop inventor Steve Gass will now heavily lobby for lawmakers to force nailer manufacturers to license his flesh-detecting technology in their products.

Lista has assured us that they are not closing down their US factories and sending production overseas. What happened is that the FTC updated their regulations regarding the percentage of foreign materials that can be used in a product when saying it is made in the USA. Since a large proportion of Lista’s cabinets and storage products are fabricated from imported steel, they can no longer advertise that the products are made in the USA.

We asked if they will now mention the products being Made in USA global materials instead, and were told that they’re going to stay away from a COO marketing angle in case the FTC guidelines change again.

Long story short, Lista products are still as kick-ass as they’ve been, with the only changes being done to advertising and marketing language.

Stanley Black and Decker and Lista North America, major players in the industrial storage and workspace market, have announced that they will be merging. More specifically, Stanley has acquired Lista NA and will be creating a new partnership that also includes its Vidmar storage division.

Stanley Vidmar and Lista will be establish a newly formed Storage Workspace Solutions group within Stanley Black & Decker. Both companies have announced that business will continue as usual in the short term.

Moving forward, it is said that the merger will allow for joint product development, expanded product offerings, and increased sales support.

Stanley Vidmar Press Release
Lista Press Release

I have to say, this is surprising, but not shocking news. Although Lista and Stanley Vidmar occasionally vie for the same customers, both offer unique products that make them stronger together.

After Stanley and Black and Decker merged, there was a bit of internal reorganization, but both company’s brands maintained their respective identities. Without a doubt, we will continue to see both Vidmar and Lista independently branded products in the future.

It will be interesting to see how this all develops and if it will affect other Stanley brands. For example, perhaps Lista’s technician mobile tool boxes will grow in popularity if promoted alongside Mac tool storage products. Time will tell.

BatteriesPlus is recalling about 111,800 replacement power tool batteries due to the risk of an unexpected explosion. There were five incidents reported, with no injuries.

These batteries were sold at BatteriesPlus locations and online and ranged from 2.4V to 18V in sizes and styles to fit many brands’ power tools: Black and Decker, Bosch, DeWalt, Makita, Milwaukee, Panasonic, Ryobi and Skil.

The Rayovac-branded batteries included in the recall were sold between June 2008 and October 2011, and were priced at about $60. If you have one of these batteries, discontinue use immediately, remove the batteries from their tools and contact Batteries Plus for information about how to return the product for store credit.

More Info via CPSC

Target has voluntarily recalled 55,000 6-piece LED flashlight sets due to a fire and burn hazard. It has been reported that, when turned on, these flashlights can heat up to the point of smoking or melting. Thus far there have been four incidents, including two minor burn hand injuries.

These sets were priced at $10 and were sold from Oct 2010 through Dec 2011. The remedy is to return the flashlight sets to any Target store for a full refund.

Sounds to me like a major design flaw where flashlight bodies and LED modules were slapped together without regard to proper heatsink design. This is why everyone should be cautious of all those “special buys” that pop up during the winter holiday shopping season.

More Info via CPSC