How to Identify a Craftsman Tool by Number

All Craftsman tools come with a lifetime guarantee.

Self-proclaimed to be America's Most Trusted Tools, all Craftsman hand tools feature a lifetime guarantee. The guarantee does not indicate that the tool will never break or fail, but rather that if it does break or fail, you can replace it free of charge wherever they sell Craftsman tools. In order to keep track of tools that are replaced in this manner, Craftsman stamps each of its hand tools with a manufacturer's number that indicates what type of tool it is. Identifying a Craftsman tool by its manufacturer's number is necessary if you want to locate and replace the tool in a store.

Things You'll Need

• computer

Instructions

1. Locate the manufacturer's number on your tool. The manufacturer's number is a four-, five- or six-digit number and it is typically stamped on a non-working surface of the tool. For example, the number is stamped on the bottom of the handle for hammers, and along the handle on pliers. If you are looking to replace an entire tool, you will be searching for the five-digit number. If you are looking to replace a part of a tool, such as a hammer's handle, you will search for a four-digit number. And if the device is an accessory but not an actual hand tool (as with levels), it will be a six-digit number.

2. Look at the first two digits of the Craftsman tool's manufacturer's number. This two digits will indicate to you the tool's "family." For example, all non-mechanical, non-specialty hammers start with "38," all non-mechanical, non-specialty screwdrivers start with "41," and all non-specialty pliers start with "45." Generally, the more "complicated" the mechanics of the tool are, the higher its starting numbers. For example, hammers simply require you to hit something with them, while screwdrivers require you to position and twist them, while pliers require you that you adjust and grab or cut with them.

3. Search for the tool, either at a store at which Craftsman tools are sold or at Craftsman's website. The website allows you to search by the tool's title or its manufacturer's number. For example, you can locate a Craftsman 9-inch Magnetic Torpedo Level by searching for "9 inch level" or "39829." At a store, tools are ordered in ascending order according to manufacturer's number (hammers before screwdrivers before pliers and so on), and all similar tools are grouped together.

References

• Craftsman Tools: Trust. In Your Hands