Dewalt USA "Assembled" Tools

[Averageman]

Dewalt would seem to be the Gold Standard.
We have several sets at work, one that I would guess is 5+ years old. For something to last that long with us says a lot about it's quality.
How did the hand tool thing work out for you Moose-Knuckle?

[Abraham]

Made in the U.S.A. is often bogus.

Why do I say this?

Because much of the time the entire product is foreign made, and simply assembled in the U.S.A. which then qualifies it as: Made in the U.S.A.

That definition in my opinion is way off the mark.

To qualify, in my opinion, the entire product should originate from the U.S.A., not just assembled here.

No doubt, some lobbyists/lawyers for foreign products got this lying piece of law enacted.

[thei3ug]

Dewalt came to a job site I was working a while ago to pitch their products. They said they were the only US owned power tool company left and that they were slowly bringing back all production (maybe just assembly) to the US.

We have around 100-150 journeymen at any given time and are standardized on dewalt for much of our power tools.
Everyone has their big name loyalty, but they work. As for where they're produced, I wonder how a stronger dollar is going to affect some of their long term manufacturing and assembly plans. As for "assembled" here, that's the way of the world because we flat out do not manufacture certain types of products, and it's not possible to make them in house for a reasonable price.

My favorite of all time is Apple, with their almost laughable "Designed by Apple in California" right next to the "Made in China." Or that announcement with Cook at the State of the Union where they mentioned new assembly plants coming back as if it were some patriotic partnership between the administration and Apple. Please. Someone at the company said they could save 32 cents a unit moving final assembly of a monitor here and they did it.

[SilverBullet432]

My dad still has a craftsman jigsaw he bought new back in the 80's. It is the only jigsaw we have and runs like a champ says made in USA on it and I believe it! Gets used and abused on a daily basis! ( full production cabinet shop, 4 employees )

[nova3930]

I've got some DeWalt that has served me well. Their Porter Cable line has done well for me too. As matter of preference, I kinda like my Milwaukee stuff better though. Ergonomics seem to fit me better.

I think DeWalt is owned by Stanley. Many stanley tools are US assembled. For hand tools, I go for Stanley PROTO, as those are all US made. Power Tools, we use DeWalt everyday at out shop.

Correct. DeWalt is the contractor grade of their lines. Porter Cable is the mid grade (hobby?) and Black and Decker is the bottom (homeowner) grade....

[Alex V]

When I was designing banks, Cap One used union labor and Chase did not. The Cap One job sites were almost exclusively Hilti, the non union guys used mostly Makita and Milwaukee, every once in a while you would see Dewalt. Most of the jobs I do now are non union, on the commercial projects is still almost exclusively Makita/Milwaukee. The residential projects you see everything from good tools to cheap Harbor Freight crap.

Personally, I use Milwaukee, Makita, Klein... nothing against Dewalt, just never had any of their stuff...

[thei3ug]

I'd say that's more a preference of the tradesmen or company rep than it is a union/not union thing. Or a "this is what we have batteries for" turning into "this is the best, that's why we use it" over time. In our contract we supply and service all power tools, and we standardize because the tools have a cost benefit.
I noticed sometimes architects will specify let's say a hilti fastener. Then our guy or the subcontractor will have to get certified. But other than that I bet it's as much about the strength of the sales rep and tradition as it is about the quality of the tools. Our electrical sub will have makita, we'll have dewalt, the mechanical sub will have Milwaukee... someone will have Bosch somewhere. Everyone says they're the best and how they hate the others. But the company is buying and supplying them anyway, and if they switched employers they'd find a new favorite in 6 months.

As for residential contractors, I couldn't tell you what they're thinking at any given time, at least around here. I've seen some wacky stuff.

[SilverBullet432]

We have always counted on DeWalt tools. Yes, we do have Makita and Milwaukee drills, very good kit. The #1 thing for us as far as life/breakage would be bits. The new impact series bits are very good and last a long time, our primary drill is the 1/4 impact driver. I personally own a porter cable 20v set. Very good kit also. As far as pneumatics go, Paslode is our go to nailer. We have 3 2" 16 gauge. And several Porter cable 18 gauge nailers. We have grizzly shop equipment which has proven good. (Made in taiwan ISO 9001 ) and shop-fox table saws.

[nova3930]

The #1 thing for us as far as life/breakage would be bits.

It's not easy to find good drill bits for even home use, I can't imagine if I had to do it for real work. I've broken and untwisted so many supposedly good drill bits its not even funny. That's not to mention the ones where the point is cut incorrectly such that it won't cut. I recently broke down and dropped a C-note on a small set of cobalt steel Precision Twist bits that have a good reputation among the machinists I know......

[TacticalSledgehammer]

I've came to know myself in the past 10 years. I'm not a contractor nor do I use my tools every day. But when I do, I usually beat the shit out of them. I'm 31 now, and the whole buy once cry once has become my way of life anymore. This is after going through power tools like black and decker, skill, harbor freight specials, etc.. every year. Same with lawn equipment. I buy stihl. The main reason I started the thread was to give you all a heads up on the new assembled in the USA line (even though the phrase is always sketchy anymore) DeWalt, since I know most of you appreciate well made items.