Tipped off by a Garage Journal post, I was surprised to learn that Malco has reopened the former Vise-Grips factory in DeWitt, Nebraska.
Looking into things, it turns out that Malco purchased the plant nearly 2 years ago. Now ready, Malco has officially announced that tool manufacturing will return to the plant, with the grand opening taking place last Friday.
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Malco specializes in HVAC tools, tools for working on sheet metal, fencing, decks, roofs, rails, and autobody repair and refinishing, and they make other pro-grade tools of similar nature.
According to another source, Malco will soon begin producing new Eagle Grip locking pliers, which are expected to enter the market in 2019. Another source (KTIC Radio) has some photos, showing a sampling of the new Malco Eagle Grip locking pliers line, including curved jaw pliers, c-clamps, and sheet metal seamers.
Here’s a KRVN Rural Radio interview with an Eagle Grip product specialist.
First Thoughts
YES!
David Zeller
Boy, I wish them well! It’s great to see.
Rick Knight
Another great Tool company is Roseborough Tools in Orange California.
Rick Knight
They make a lot of masonry tools
Rick Knight
I discovered Malco tools at the 2018 SEMA show in Las Vegas this past November.
The rep I met, told me about how he had gone back home to DeWitt Nebraska to visit his family., and saw a high school friend of his who was the security guard at the Vise grip Plant, locking the gates for the last time. He asked him what was going on, and was told that Stanley Tools had bought the Vise grip plant, fired everyone and moved all the manufacturing to China.
He took him in to take a look around, and everything was gone, including the lighting fixtures hanging from the ceiling. He told me that he had worked at the plant when he was in high school, his father before him, and his grandfather before that.
He said the town was devastated, and was going to the local Baptist Church every night praying for a miracle.
He returned home to Malco in Florida, and talked to the company Executives who had been looking for a location to expand production in Florida, and asked them to come and talk to the town in Nebraska to see if they’d be willing to build the tools for them there. When they received a resounding yes! From the townspeople, they set to work to move production to DeWitt.
They obtained a $500,000 Grant from the state of Nebraska and were able to negotiate the price of the old plant from $900,000 down to $500,000 and buy the old plant.
Malco then purchased new manufacturing equipment for the plant and began production, thus saving the town, and answering the prayers of the townsfolk.
God answers prayers.
Neighbor Joe
I believe it was Rubbermaid that shuttered the Dewitt plant. Last year Stanley bought Irwin tools. Bottom line, always good to have new tools to look forward tool. Wish Malco well in entering the DIYER tool market.
DC
It was Newell-Rubbermaid that bought Vise-Grip then closed the plant and move manufacturing to china in 2008. Stanley Black & Decker bought Irwin including Vise Grips but Malco bought the DeWitt plant. Looking forward to some Malco Eagle Grip locking pliers.
J
This quote from the article is wrong: “He returned home to Malco in Florida”
Malco tools is headquartered in Annandale, Minnesota….. not Florida. That is all, carry on….
fred
We had quite a number of Malco tools in both our Plumbing/HVAC and Remodeling businesses. They held up fairly well ( but then again its hard to kill a siding removal hook ).
They always seemed to me to be innovative – introducing new tools on a fairly regular basis. They also seem to have partnered with Edma in France to produce some of their tools.
Noah
SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY
Petersen once made such an interesting and diverse array of clamps. I hope they do well and can introduce new designs.
satch
Excellent. The loss of Vise-Grip to the chicoms for manufacturing was a real blow. I wil, be looking into their locking pliers as soon as they are available.
And Malco. A name I had not heard in a long while. Best of luck.
fred
You might see a few Malco tools at Home Depot – but over by the insulation or roofing materials not in the Tool Corral
Jared
“It’s the economy stupid”
Jim Felt
Wow. This must be great news for that tiny town too. I’d never heard of it so I Googled the place. Can we all say one horse town?
This will be both great for them as a community and great for tool freaks who actually care where stuff is “made”.
Good for Malco.
Dave
It’s a one horse town on maps, but it’s just outside of Beatrice, which is kind of an extension of Lincoln, and Lincoln is a one University of Nebraska town ?
Kyle
Post on facebook showed all the normal types of vise grips as well as a few unique sheet metal tools drawing from malco’s background. Hope they hold up to the hype.
Framer joe
Nothing better then ” made in America”.. gotta love the economy finally..more companies making tools here is awesome.
Stuart
Yep – as mentioned, the reopening is 2 YEARS in the making.
Jim Felt
You mean “the economy” in China. Their wages are fast rising and it’s finally becoming smart to build some lower tech things here.
I’m not holding my breath for OLED panels or iPhones made in the US of A until the AIs can do it for us.
Redcastle
Headquartered in the USA with its production in the USA and making goods of sufficient quality and specialisation as to command prices high enough to stay in business this is very good to see. Their products over here are distributed via specialist trade suppliers which is also what you would expect to see.
Germany, Japan and Scandinavia are full of businesses like this and they are a huge benefit to their economies.
The UK is pretty much screwdriver plant only these days, a long way from when in addition to manufacturing in its own right it was also the place with such expertise in some fields that firms such as Stanley would source products to take into their home markets.
fred
I’m not sure what tools are made in the UK any more but I have some of different vintages with names on them like these:
Clifton – planes & scrapers
Cox – epoxy guns
Crown – woodworking tools
Diamic-Henry Taylor – chisels
Garlick Saw – Thomas Flinn – saws
L.G Harris – scrapers
Ashley Isles – chisels
Ray Isles – chisels and planes
Lynx (Garlick Saw) – saws and scrapers
Marples – bench holdfasts and chisels
M-Power – marking tools
Record – planes
Robert Sorby (Thomas Flinn) – chisels
Stanley – hammers
Thor Hammer – hammers
Trend – router accessories
I used to own a BSA Rocket 3 (aka Triumph Trident) – until the center cylinder seized and the bike threw me. That was 1970 – but I should have held onto it and restored it. Old BSAs, Nortons, Triumphs, Vincents and other classic British motorbikes command some pretty good prices these days.
Dave
And the winner of today’s “tool manufacturing companies knowledge award” goes to…. FRED!!! ???
William Adams
Yeah, there was a sad post on /r/handtools on reddit.com about one of the last sets of Sheffield made chisels.
https://www.reddit.com/r/handtools/comments/9qkkko/one_of_the_last_sets_of_actual_sheffield_made/
Redcastle
Fred
Marples chisels were purchased by Irwin now part of SBD and their product is made in Italy, Stanley was a UK production plant for the S in SBD (tangential topic Starret’s factory in Scotland celebrated sixty years of production this year and is treated by some people as an honorary “British” tool firm), Crown and Henry Taylor are cottage industry specialist producers of chisels and carving tools while the brand name Record at one point were under common ownership with Marples but did not survive the purchase by Irwin and these days the name appears on industrial woodworking machines. Thor are an example of a cobbler sticking to his last still family owned and still producing products many of which have been unchanged for the best part of a hundred years. it is a very specialist area and too small to be of interest to the bigger firms at least that was the case, recently my Thor hammer went missing and when I went to purchase a replacement I expected I would purchase another Thor but lo and behold WIHA are now making a soft faced hammer with interchangable faces in a square shape which works better for my purposes. Trend still exists but their big innovation in recent years has been a set of masonry bits with colour coded rings to denote the size which can be moved up and down to act as a depth marker, their products are the wrong side of the VFM calculation. LG Harris producers of decorating cutlery and paint brushes are stuck in a declining market in that paint company representatives tell me that they can pretty much calculate the age of a painter by whether they use Purdy or Harris and Harris are the older and therefore reducing end (I use Corona or Picasso so I keep them guessing). Competing in the DIY end of the decorating goods business is a form of suicide unless you have a very low cost of production.
With regards to your BSA motorcycle a product of what was at one time the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer whose corporate history is a classic “how not to” tale, the debates in my family when I was a relatively young child between Triumph v Norton would make the red v yellow arguments on here look very mild even after 1973 when they were all one company. The name is currently owned by an Indian company and there certainly has been some production using the name in India in recent years, which I became aware of seeing a BSA badged motorcycle in a petrol station with new registration plates. I assumed that as there has been with Triumph periodic revivals with short production runs and engines sourced from elsewhere that this was the source but the rider advised me that he had imported it from India and he was very pleased with it. I asked him if he was sad that such a well known name was now gone from the UK and he said he had mixed feelings, he owned several UK manufactured BSA motorcycles however the only one he could ride in winter was the Indian made one. There was a running joke on television that the correct name for riders of the latter end products of the British motorcycle industry was organ donors.
Ken Stagg
Just wished everyone would buy American made tools first.
DannyK
I got that. I feel the same way, always checking for country of origin when buying tools. At the same time, I want Asian, African, European countries to buy American tools, too, because we make great stuff. But just to cover myself, I’m allowed to buy German, Swiss, Japanese, Chinese, Taiwanese tools as an exception.
Skip
There are very few American made tools anymore. If you heard of the Florida Real Estate company owned by two brothers. They bought Snap-on, Craftsman, and any number of American Companies and immediately started having everything made in China. Craftsman tools are made there, and come with a “typical for those two brothers type warranty.” We will replace your tool, IF you have the sales receipt. The tool you receive may be a repaired one. The warranty is only good one time. So if your crappy repaired tool breaks, you’re out of luck. Start looking on the tools you think are American made. I can’t think of these two jerks names, but their intent is like so many others of their kind- Buy a good brand, run it into the ground, and walk off and leave it. Just as Eddie Lanter has done to Sears, and K-mark. That type of person has a long history of doing it to American Beer brands. Make it cheaper and taste different , run it into the ground, then walk away wealthy, to hell with your customers and employees.
Stuart
Respectfully, you are mistaken.
Snap-on is its own publicly-traded company, and Stanley Black & Decker bought the Craftsman brand from Sears.
Redcastle
While some retailers selling to the sole trader type business user provide emailed PDF receipts and some of the specialist tool retailers effectively maintain an account for each client which stores copies of all invoices all retailers in my experience in the UK require “proof of purchase” however evidenced before providing refunds or repairs regardless of the length of the guarantee.
Given that many retailers particularly of white and brown goods make a significant part of their profits from the sale of extended warranties free guarantees over twelve months are rare.
Nathan
Happened to notice MALCO makes ball end hex keys too. Don’t know if they make them or have then made but I thought it was an interesting thing to see.
Only MALCO tool I’ve had hand on was an automotive device for clamping auto body panels for alignement and weld. And a nifty sanding block that looking back I meant to buy one my self. SO good find.
Wayne R.
I haven’t seen Trump squawking about this yet & taking credit for it…
Stuart
No politics, please.
Jim Felt
Thank you.
(Though I really wanted to say exactly what Wayne R. said).
And inspite of millions in State subsidies what about that A/C plant in Indiana that can’t count on enough shift workers showing up to even stay open? That’s a heck of a conundrum…
Chris Gutierrez
First, I’m a buy local, buy American whenever possible guy.
B, just today I was at one of my companys plants. This would be our Midwestern one, where I found that today’s attendance was 78%
Now, not getting into the union contract, the employees at this ” made in the USA” plant have figured out that 4 x10 (8 hrs of OT) beats showing up for all 5 days a week.
At the same time our Mexican plant is running the supply chain dry because of their throughput.
And in the same day I’m dealing with quality issues and response concerns from a German supplier while a Chinese supplier is beating down my door with a lower cost, trouble free product.
The problem is that for every good intentioned, buy local – made in the USA effort there could be a valid business reason that the production is going elsewhere.
Now, by all means this isn’t always the case, and I wish the new plant all the luck, and will continue to support high quality local manufacturing, but its just good practice to always look at both sides of an issue.
Redcastle
Your post sends a chill up my spine, I responded to a post from Fred in which he referenced a BSA motorcycle, I pointed out that BSA was at one time the largest manufacturer of motorcycles in the world and while the management were not the best what absolutely destroyed them was a combination of trade unions and interventionist Labour (what your Democrats can only dreams of being) governments.
Some of what you say would sounding DEFCON 3 to people who knew how BSA and many other UK companies went prior to the arrival of Margret Thatcher.
Redcastle
Sadly my response to your comment seems to have been censored
Stuart
Nope. You spelled your email address incorrectly twice today, automatically sending your comments to the moderation folder for being a “new” commentor. All new commentor comments must be manually approved to cut down on spam. I assumed your email address typos was unintentional.
As for the other one, no politics means no politics, including when you put a political spin to a comment arguing that I should allow political comments.
Redcastle
Stuart
I do not do spin, the problem with web forums that purport to deal with politics is that they always have an agenda and do not want to hear from views which do not want to match their own (look at Facebook’s policies on what is allowed and you will see exactly what I am talking about). Framer Joe’s comments represent exactly what I am talking about in terms of people becoming disengaged. As I said anyone who believes in democracy should not seek to stifle debate.
Redcastle
Apologies I should have referenced JoeM not FramerJoe
Matt
This puts a smile on my face… I will absolutely buy to support USA manufacturing!
mpg
Awesome. I will buy some of these tools to Support our AMERICAN jobs!….Even if I don’t need the tool right now. MAGA!!
Stuart
No politics!
Bradley
How is supporting American manufacturing jobs political? If wanting to support American manufacturing is now “offensive” to some, I say tough luck. I’ve seen FAR worse said on television shows and how some of these Hollywood celebrities use their platforms. They can have freedom of expression, yet heaven forbid anyone outside their echo chamber think differently.
This should be obvious to anyone, yet Americans aren’t just one gender or one ethnic group. Supporting American jobs means to supporting men, women and anyone that is a American.
Stuart
I was talking about the political slogan at the end of the comment. No politics also means no political slogans.
I won’t allow ToolGuyd’s comments section to turn into a political battlefield. There are plenty of other places for political discussions.
Redcastle
Stuart
Politics is an integral part of life.
Stuart
This isn’t PoliticsGuyd.com. There are plenty of other places to take political discourse.
JoeM
This is a Tool site. The only people who use Politics as a Tool are those without the dignity, or honesty, required to pick up an ACTUAL tool.
Politics of ANY nation do not belong on a website whose readership is global, which ToolGuyd is.
I could get into the specific foolishness of this conversation, but I’m Native American, and I know how little the White Man cares about the politics of this land they never belonged on in the first place. So, I suggest you heed Stuart’s call for it to stop. Here, as the owner of ToolGuyd, he’s not a Politician, He’s God. He Can and WILL end your participation in the conversation with the stroke of a key. It’s not an argument, it’s a fact of reality.
Redcastle
Joe M
When you direct comments such as “The only people who use Politics as a Tool are those without the dignity or honesty to pick up an actual TOOL” you display a terrifying naivete and the expression sleepwalking into oblivion springs to mind. No matter how you earn your living you need to be cognizant of decisions being taken by others particularly if it could remove the fruits of your hard work.
My people as you would probably call them spent eight hundred years seeking to establish their own state and eventually pretty much succeeded. If the politicians among them had not been prepared to pick up tools (in this case firearms) it would not have happened.
During this time they suffered an event described by some as genocide (The Famine) on a scale proportionate to the population greater than any other in history. I do not subscribe to the theory it was planned and one of the benefits is it accelerated our diaspora across the world leading some people to claim we are the global nation.
You do have the option to sit in the corner and whinge but experience indicates that will not get you what you want, engaging and participating are more likely too.
While Stuart is the founder of this website and can delete comments at the press of a button, one ( I suspect the major reason) that Wal Mart came to talk to him is because this website has what none of the other tool type sites have, which is an active engaged community.
Fred and I have exchanged comments on here on vintage British motorcycles not tool related but nonetheless interesting where does that fit?
Jim Felt
I like that! Make America Green Again! Very appropriate.
ToolOfTheTrade
This is awesome news. Even better to know that the small guy is making the big guy look bad. Sbd could have done this when they acquired Irwin. I think it shows who’s heart is in the right place and who’s isn’t. I wonder if there’s ever going to be another Irwin plant here in the US? I had never heard of Malco until I found a pair of their pliers in a crawlspace one day. They are more for hvac than anything else, but now they have my attention that’s for sure. I’ll be keeping an eye out for them. That’s really cool that they are reopening the old Irwin DeWitt plant. Good for the town of DeWitt and good for Malco. Great for America.
Stuart
SBD could NOT have done this when they acquired Irwin – Malco purchased the plant a few months prior to that.
Toolfreak
SBD is big enough they could have made a deal with Malco to buy the plant and tooling with the understanding they would be making Vise-Grips again.
Hell, SBD is big enough they could just build a whole new facility in DeWill or nearby to make USA-made Vise-Grips in.
They are building facilities to make the new USA-made Craftsman tools, after all. Wouldn’t be much of a stretch for them to have a plant making USA-made Vise-Grips, maybe even with a line dedicated to making some branded as Craftsman.
Jim Felt
Good question. But I believe I saw Craftsman Tools latest address as the very same as Dewalt in Maryland. Hmmm.
OhioHead
^ SC is the location of the SBD plant assembling cordless tools.
The DeWitt, NE plant was closed under the ownership Newell Rubbermaid during the time (most likely) Joe Galli (who now runs TTI) was CEO of Newell and trying to re-create the magic he started @ DeWalt w/ a lot of big box rep’s pushing & educating consumers of the Newell products.
Logan
Amazing innovators. Found a way to house not one, but TWO factories in a P.O. box!
ToolOfTheTrade
They’re also known for their gutter and light gage metal tools.
fred
Quite a few siding tools as well.
Toolfreak
If Stanley Black & Decker had ANY business sense whatsoever, they would have bought the DeWitt factory, tooling, and everything to do with the USA-made Vise Grips as soon as they bought the Irwin brand and brought Vise-Grip production back to the USA.
Surely they could have produced the Vise-Grips in DeWitt and made “Irwin Locking Pliers” or something similarly named to keep selling the China-made cheaper variety at a lower price and higher volume.
In any case I’m glad to hear the factory will re-open making USA-made locking pliers once again, I just hope they truly are a premium locking plier, and the steel they use will be strong enough and hard enough. Part of the reason the USA-made Vise-Grips are so good is they are hard enough to bite into most metal fasteners, the Irwin-branded ones made elsewhere are lower quality and wear down or strip out when used the same as the USA-made variety.
Kevin Maas
I agree with you. I hope they make the same high quality tools. If so. I’ll buy a complete set of “Vice-Grip” locking pliers. EVERY ONE i know, has ALWAYS used the phrase, hey, hand me a pair of “Vice-Grips” when referring to locking pliers. Anyone else relate to this?
.
skfarmer
awesome news and i will be picking some up when available.
i used to do have a winter job as a helper for an hvac installer. many of the tools we used were malco and i always thought highly of them. loved those orange handled scribes and i couldn’t fathom how many round holes in sheet metal i cut with a malco circle cutter!
i know you are not a fan of politics and wayne is on the edge but i don’t know how anyone can argue with rpms support of american jobs and making it great again. because the return of locking pliers to dewitt neb. i about as great of news as i have heard in a long time.
sbd has been hyping the return of us made tools to the craftsman lineup with slow and questionable at best results. malco just went ahead and did it and that is making a better america no matter what side of the aisle you stand on.
Jim Felt
Yes. Absolutely!
But Stuart said that Malco bought the plant TWO YEARS AGO which precludes SBD or “Irwin” being so desposed by at least a year. Let alone “Craftsman”.
John
I’ve got 30+ locking pliers and all but 2 are Chinese junk. One ‘old as the hills’ Vice-Grip and one Leverage Tools Inc #10…which is relogated to the pick-up truck emergency tool kit. I never really liked the #10 but it was a gift from my son so I had to keep it!
Even though I am almost retired I think I will mail order good tools in the future rather than buy the junk that is so common here.
Jim Felt
I’ve a bunch of US made Vise Grips purchased new and between eBay and yard/estate/tag sales I’ve added many more. Good as New. And all US made.
Jim P.
Look forward to seeing them in stores. I recently had to buy Milwaukee brand locking pliers when the spring in my Peterson’s broke. Two days of heavy use and already shot. Luckily they have a warranty.
DRT
Don’t toss the Peterson’s – replacement springs are available and not terribly expensive. I recently got some from Tooltopia for my 40 year old Peterson’s. Just make sure you specify the correct size plier, because the 7’s and 10’s use different springs.
Logan
Yup, springs are less than a buck a piece.
Jim P.
Trust me, I’m not. I meant for when I need to buy another pair in a pinch. I’d much prefer American made where possible
ToolOfTheTrade
Although Irwin is the king of locking pliers, they haven’t brought anything new to the table for a while. And being that sbd hasn’t made any attempts to make progress in the development of new designs for locking pliers (or any of their pliers), I think the sky is the limit for malco and their eagle grip pliers and other developments which could possibly make Irwin a third or fourth choice among those who are in the market for not only locking pliers, but other types as well. Especially for American businesses that are for domestic economic growth which Irwin is no longer in support of obviously. The vise grip name doesn’t ring as many bells as it used to due to poor marketing and lack of new design development. Especially now that very little is being currently offered by the company. I don’t think that an awl or chisel is really anything to get exited about when there’s so much more that can be done. If a company like malco is showing this kind of initiative to open up the production of US made tools, imagine what their R&D is capable of accomplishing. I think it’s safe to say that they are here to kick ass and take names. And I’ll bet that vise grip is at the top of the list.
JoeM
To a degree, yeah. But, I also think for a moment, and realize a slight flaw in this. They’re Locking Pliers, and Pliers in general. How far is too far for developing them? There’s going to be a line where we’ve crossed from “Innovative” into “Gimmicky” and we don’t want those kinds of tools. Sizes, curves, angles, and tooth size are really the only platform that these pliers have to work with. Beyond that… Ergonomic handles? Going from Rubberized Plastics to some sort of Memory Gel for comfort?
Much like a Shark or a Horseshoe Crab… at some point your design is at the very top of the food chain, and you never have to evolve. Not because you’ve run out of ideas, but because you’ve hit THE PERFECT design, and there’s no reason to change it, aside from how many you can make on demand.
But up until that point, yeah, ToTT, I share your concerns.
Todd
I have a few Malco tools, and they are great quality. I have their ducting crimpers (for creating male slip fitting on sheet metal ducting which work well. I also have their metal stud punch crimpers https://www.amazon.com/Malco-PL1R-MALCO-Punch/dp/B0038N86U2 . They are awesome for metal framing when you are using light gauge studs and track. If you’ve ever had the pleasure of screwing them together it is an exercise in patience. You just position the stud in the track, put the crimper over them and squeeze (1 handed operation is easy enough). They punch out a rectangular hole, split in the center and folds them around inside the stud. Much more secure than screwing, and they don’t leave high spots at every stud due to the pan head screws.
Forrest
As a born and raised Nebraskan and longtime Toolguyd reader, this is incredible news. I’ve been to the town, it’s wild how engrained the history is.
Every person that lives there could probably fill a 5-gallon bucket with “defect” pliers that didn’t meet the standards of manufacturing but are still leaps and bounds better than any Vice-Grips made since.
Brian M
Great news. Hopefully they’ll be as good as Knipex and Grip-On locking pliers and will have the same release method…just because they’re reopening an old factory doesn’t mean they need to make the old pliers the exact same way. Malco makes great snips, that’s really the only thing I know Malco makes well. I’ve heard their flip nut driving sockets are pretty nice but no long-term reviews.
Also, thank you for stopping the politics talk right at the start. No sense getting into it here, not the point.
satch
Brian, as a fan of Knipex, may I ask you to elabourate on their locking pliers a bit?
I have needed to buy a pair or two for a while. My large pairs are old and worn. I refused to buy the Irwin pretenders and started looking at Germany. I never really got around to it and now that we are to have domestically produced models again, I wanted to compare the functions before making a decision.
Brian M
Teeth are sharp, smooth action, high quality(No side-to-side play in the jaws, great finish). Grip-On(Made in Spain, OEM for Snap-On, Proto and some Urrea and some Channellock) is very similar but I’ve received them with misaligned jaws. Grip-on has a locking tightness nut but Knipex does not.
I like the release to be a squeeze release instead of the Irwin-style where you pull the lever away from the back grip, both Knipex and Grip-On use this style.
satch
Thank uou , sir. I will look into those two and try to find out about the new Malco produced models.
Flotsam
I have had limited hands on experience with Malco but what i have has been very good. Nice to hear about this development
Jerry
I am personally acquainted with a few ex Peterson employees. They had said at the time of the purchase by Irwin they were afraid for their jobs. I know ex employees were among the first offered some of the jobs in the new plant. If the quality is there. I was given a couple pairs of the Peterson multi-tools that were developed with i believe Schrade and they are the best ones I own in terms of pliers strength and also incorporate a very strong 1/4 bed but holder with double bit for its screwdriver. I hope they ‘re introduce something similar as I could really use another.
ToolOfTheTrade
Thak you Jim Felt for that epiphany. Hmmm? is exactly right because all of sbd’s brands are addressed in Maryland at the same corporate headquarters building. There are no production facilities for any of sbd’s brands that are located in the US. Like Toolfreak said, sbd could have made a move to show initiative that they wanted Irwin or anyone else to remain in the US, but they chose to take it to China. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, sbd has had the means to buy & renovate an old facility or build a new facility for the US production of their brands for a long time and have yet to produce one or show any initiative that they are interested in doing so.
Stuart
That is incorrect; SBD absolutely DOES have production facilities in the USA.
Redcastle
Stuart
Do they have proper production facilities or screwdriver plants?
I would hope at least some of their tools are made soup to nuts in the USA.
I still think if SBD were as smart as they should be they could pitch your government for selective tariff protection (along the lines Harley Davidson were granted a few years ago) while they build production facilities to produce Craftsman tools. It is not a forever deal and it might have to be introduced on a product group by product group basis but the argument in favour would be strong they could even point to the outpouring of emotion on this site as an example of how people feel.
Stuart
To my understanding, yes,
There are a lot of times when “global materials” could be a subcomponent, such as in the case of the USA-built brushless drills, but other times the steel that a supplier provides could come from multiple sources.
In addition to things like utility knife blades and tape measures, remember that SBD has industrial-focused brands, such as Lista and Proto.
SBD also acquired Waterloo, which is making Craftsman tool storage boxes in the USA.
When I was at the cordless tools assembly facility, I watched the brushless motors being wound. I asked about where some of the other components came from, and most were sourced domestically from other SBD facilities and suppliers.
https://toolguyd.com/dewalt-brushless-drill-building-and-factory-tour/
TonyT
It also goes the other way. A lot of “Made In China” items have substantial non-Chinese components. To give a few examples:
I have some Chinese-made ballpoint pens that advertised “Swiss balls” and “Japanese ink”
Made in China hard drives typically have made in Malaysia disks and made in Thailand head stacks (with the actual heads made in USA)
Semiconductors are often packaged in a different location than the wafers (e.g. AMD processor packaged in Malaysia, but the chip itself was made in Germany, but the wafers themselves came from somewhere else).
Kipper
To preface, I am not an American, nor am I affiliated anyone, group or otherwise. Personally, I prefer independence of all kinds, including thought. In addition, most, if not the majority of posts on this thread have been fairly civil juxtaposed to other venues.
Been a long time, 2008-2009, when Irwin shut down the USA factory of Vice Grips and this cost hundreds of Americans their jobs. Very sad to hear and see this anywhere, especially when these people are the backbone of America. Without manufacturing domestically, when you offshore, the countries countries will steal your R&D without hesitation. Tools and anything else.
So to see some comments here, yet mostly elsewhere make this seem as if creating more manufacturing jobs, which in turn will create other jobs is mind boggling. Goodness gracious folks, I don’t see how this can be remotely bad, as I wish my country produced our version of locking pliers still.
We don’t and haven’t in a very long time. So much has been squandered for cheap goods, labor and so called “high tech jobs”, thousands of jobs have been sent to other countries and that is a real shame .
As someone on the outside, I don’t find the concept of being proud of your country offensive, disgusting or even political. Wish more felt proud in my neck of the woods, way too much indifference or yammering of “diversity”, yet not diversity of thought.
My advise to all Americans is to cherish the freedom of speech/expression you have. Trust me, you don’t know how much you’ll miss that should that ever be removed, hate speech is free speech assuming this isn’t inciting violence or actual defamation. Way too many are overly sensitive and that creates weakness.
Stuart
While nothing you say is disagreeable, I refuse to allow political divisiveness to distract from the discussion of tools and tool-related topics. Should political discourse be permitted here, it will nearly always devolve into heated arguments, personal attacks, and general nastiness. This site is simply not the place for political discussions.
“No politics” applies to subtle interjections as much as it does more obvious statements.
New jobs in DeWitt, NE, and more USA tools coming to stores? Yay! But here’s the thing – that’s about all we know. We also know that the facility was purchased two years ago. What we don’t know is what led to these events. Political discussion is unnecessary to the topic, and there’s no scenario where a discussion won’t erupt into fighting. So, political discussion won’t be missed here. If someone wants to talk politics anyway, there are other blogs, forums, and social media channels to do so.
ToolGuyd is a privately owned site, and I reserve the right to set some ground rules. I’m proud of my country, which is why we have posts like this, and a USA-Made link at the top menu of every page (https://toolguyd.com/category/made-in-usa/).
Political discussions tend to bring out the worst from a lot of people. One of the reasons that I created ToolGuyd was because, 10 years ago, some of my tool reviews and topics on a public forum were being deleted because heated political discussions ensued and the administrator took the action of deleting entire topics. I avoid talking politics, and I ask that commentors do the same.
Redcastle
Stuart
The biter bit as they say.
I agree that comments along the lines of “vote for Fred” or “do not buy DeWalt tools because they support Fred” have no place on a website focusing on tools however ignoring the economic and therefore political environment in which tool producers and others operate is a Pollyana approach.
This website having a made in America section and discussing where tools are produced and understanding why this is an issue is a political position of sorts.
Given your comment that you were upset because of censorship on a previous site means your approach is confusing. There is a difference between discussion and blindness and I think Kipper’s post is an excellent example of how a point can be made without just scoring points.
I make it a point to read at least two newspapers a day whose editorial viewpoint is different from mine and in addition to getting my adrenalin going (not a bad thing) it also reminds me that no one has a monopoly on wisdom. Given that I am an Irish Catholic and one of those newspapers is the Belfast Telegraph I am not talking about differences over font sizes.
Some of the columnists from time to time challenge my convictions and at least make me question whether they are still valid, I consider that I am capable of spotting and ignoring the straightforward propoganda. For instance this year there has been a significant change in the position regarding the future as seen by that newspaper and those who comment on it which I would have not been aware of if I stayed in my silo.
I predicted President Trump’s election and BREXIT being exit at the time each was announced not because I am super clever but because I avoid the received wisdom trap and seek to understand what people are really thinking rather than the torrent of bias from the so called news and political comment sites.
Stuart
I’m sorry, but I won’t be swayed. No politics in comments.
Redcastle
Stuart
But abusing people on the grounds that they are perceived to be somehow inferior is fine, interesting position to take.
Stuart
No, abuse is not allowed either. Although extremely rare, in most cases, readers police each other without requiring my intervention. The 100% offensive comments, usually from mew commenters are deleted right away. Comments of mixed messages from long-time commenters are harder to know how to act on.
Politics always requires intervention, and lots of it. Sometimes immediately, other times eventually. An isolated offensive comment will usually get shut down fast. There are times when I need to step in with a deletion button, but it’s better if you can work things out yourselves if it can be done without further name-calling or insults.
I know what you’re referring to. I didn’t have much time when I first saw the comment, but I thought I handled it reasonably. Some of the other responding comments handled it better, and I watched to ensure that things didn’t escalate.
Redcastle
Stuart
Your response actually supported a comment which was needlessly offensive and had political overtones in that the kind of individual who uses the word redneck in that way also uses it as shorthand for supporter of President Trump.
I am called a Paddy (fine), a Mick (less fine but OK) and never to my face a pikey which is an insult originally aimed at travelling people and means thieving scum which some English people have extended to all Irish people.
Redneck as I understand it was a term of abuse, became kind of a badge of honour a number of my older son’s friends from Canada in particular seem to refer to themselves as such (does it actually apply to Canadians?) As do most of the Texans I know and under most circumstances is a friendly jest but it can like many words be used nastily.
If you trust the commenteriat to police the abuse maybe you should trust them full stop.
Stuart
I’m sorry you feel that way, but it doesn’t change my mind about not allowing political discussions in comments.
I didn’t support the comment, and knowing his background, I’d say he didn’t mean it politically. Should I have been stronger in my response? Maybe. Should I have left it alone as I did, so as to not derail the discussion? Maybe not, but that’s what I did. Sometimes comments and arguments require my intervention, other times they don’t. There’s no rule book, there’s only my discretion, which says no politics, no personal attacks, and nothing else that I might deem inappropriate, such as vulgarity.
In 10 years and more than 102,000 comments, there are 7 instances of the word “redneck,” only one of which was somewhat inappropriate, and it was contained with one comment response. If you want, it can be added to the list of “no-no” words that require my explicit approval before being published.
But, that won’t change my stance on disallowing politics.
Redcastle
Stuart
As I said it is not the word but the context and the tone the word in itself can be affectionate or pejorative in this case the latter. Contrast the poster’s unpleasant and insulting “comeback” unremarked by you with that of the poster on the spring tools post who recognised that his LOL comment was out of order and provided a well thought and reasoned response.
As you said in your post “not to my taste either” implies to anyone reading it you agree with the comment and that you and the other poster are more refined and superior to others. There are a lot of well reasoned responses as to why the finish is impractical, tools work or they do not taste is not really a valid criticism given that one man’s pleasure is another man’s poison.
There are a lot of Festool products I consider unpleasant to the eye but I would never use that as a reason to advise someone not to purchase as they inarguably perform to a high standard.
Redcastle
Stuart
I just saw the Glib G comment on the camouflage knife post where he says the discussion was like talking politics it got the juices flowing.
Bill Clay
Stuart,
I agree with you on the strict no politics policy, it’s just not interesting at all to see on this type of forum.
We should stick to arguing if Red, Yellow, Green, or Blue tools are the best. 🙂
Wes
Where will the eagle grips be sold and at what price point.
Stuart
It hasn’t been announced yet.
Dean
I worked for a guy once who bought cheap tools to carry in our trucks. I was using an open end wrench (made in India) and it broke and almost cut my finger off. I said to my boss: “why do you buy this junk”? and he said ” because you guys are going to steal them anyway.” I guess that he didn’t mind paying high workers comp. insurance rates.
Vise Grips were and still are the best. I refused to buy the new lower quality ones. There is a huge demand for the DeWitt, Nebraska pliers on Ebay. That is where I buy them.
Thanks to Malco for re-opening the DeWitt, Nebraska plant. I can’t wait to but their new locking pliers. I never mind paying more for American made items…..in the long run, you come out ahead.
If anything has the word: “CHINA” on it, I won’t buy it.
ChrisP
Have not seen these for sale anywhere yet. Are they in production? Where can I buy them?
ChrisP
Stuart nearly a year since I posted above. Still nothing available? No locking pliers on Malco website. Did this venture fail? Would appreciate an update if you can get one. Thanks
Scott ALKB
https://toolguyd.com/usa-tools-teaser/
Wes
Did you see that the new eagle grips are coming out on the 19th of this month. Can’t wait to check them out.
DRT
Eagle grips launched today. Available at Amazon. Kinda expensive, but they do look pretty good.