Craftsman USA Ratchet Tear Down & Repair: Tear Drop (4th Gen.) Ratchets

Welcome to the ancillary component of the Craftsman USA Ratchet History Project!

Here we focus on repairing ratchets!

These ratchets were designed and patented by Easco as they were being acquired by the Danaher Corporation.

This video features the USA made Craftsman Tear Drop Ratchets, which were offered through Sears stores, physical Sears flyers, digital Sears Catalogs, and the sears.com website from 1992 through 2011.

All derivatives of this specific ratchet series sport a 36 tooth gear with a 3 tooth engagement per side pawl. At current time, the drive system within these ratchets represents mastery of concept for this particular aging design scheme.

Within this particular family of ratchets, for the time they were made in the USA, they had a transitional change in the quick release button and selector switch. Initially, these were made of metal. Typically, the earliest metal QR and selector switch Tear Drop Ratchets were indicated by the traditional Easco double bar flags that encompassed the Craftsman name as shown: =Craftsman=. Also, on the back face of the raised panel handle you would see "Forged in the USA" as customers had traditionally seen on previous Easco & Moore Drop Forge RP Craftsman ratchets. As time went on, the double bar around Craftsman name was dropped, "Forged in the USA" became just "USA", and the QR and selector were replaced with plastic counterparts.

The Tear Drop Ratchet's design offered the user ease of access to the internals for maintenance or replacement. This came with a trade off. Unlike its forefathers, the Tear Drop Ratchet's profile footprint increased, which depending on the situation would slightly hinder access to work spaces. In conjunction, some people criticized this ratchet later in its life cycle for having poorer general QC, plastic parts failing, lower quality internals, and poor chroming/finishing.

Despite this, the Tear Drop Ratchets represent a quality meets value intersection. Later USA made versions under the Craftsman Industrial name seemed to have remedied some of the issues of their standard Craftsman brothers; however, they did cost more.
Product numbers for each ratchet:
1/2” = 44809
3/8” = 44811
1/4” = 44807

3/8" Longer Length = 44808

1/2" Flex Head = 44816
3/8" Flex Head = 44815
1/4" Flex Head = 44951
Repair kit numbers for each ratchet:
1/2” = 43444
3/8” = 43434
1/4” = 43424

1/4" Flex used a unique non-Quick Release gear w/ kit # 29669
[NOTICE: The 1/2" & 3/"8 Flex Head as well as the 3/8" Longer Length ratchets use the same repair kits as the standard ratchets of the corresponding size.]

[NOTICE: There are USA and Chinese versions of these ratchets. Repair kits between these two variants are NOT cross compatible!]
If you are interested in exploring the US Patents affiliated with this specific ratchet series please explore the following:

6134991
5178047
Appearance of USA Craftsman ratchets from end to beginning:

Premium Grade Ratchets [Final USA made Craftsman Ratchets]
Thumb Wheel Ratchets
Wrench Socket Series
The Next Generation Thin Profile Ratchets
Tear Drop Professional Full Polish Ratchets
Round Head Ratchets
Tear Drop Ratchets (4th Gen. Raised Panel)
Stainless Steel / Lifetime Ratchets
Wrist Ratchet
Round Head Fine Tooth (RHFT) Ratchets
Quick Release Ratchets (3rd Gen. Raised Panel)
Intermediate Ratchets (2nd & 3rd Gen. Raised Panel Hybrid)
Long Lever & Butterfly Ratchets (2nd Gen. Raised Panel)
1/2” Breaker Bar Ratchet Adapter
Boxhead Ratchet Wrenches (1st Gen. Raised Panel)
Circle U Ratchets
BM / Circle K Ratchets
BE & Circle H Ratchets (Multiple varieties)
BT Ratchet
Craftsman Vanadium Ratchets
C-XX Ratchets [1st USA made Craftsman Ratchets]

Видео Craftsman USA Ratchet Tear Down & Repair: Tear Drop (4th Gen.) Ratchets канала Gear Wolf