I'll tell you what my beef is, but first look at this picture...
That's a pretty common scratch awl probably found in just about every metal and woodshop across America. You'll even find carpenters with them in their toolbelts on job sites. I'd say it's almost as commonly found as a hammer, pliers, screwdriver is that everybody seems to have multiples of in their homes. I think I must have about a good half-dozen or more of these Stanley scratch awls floating around the shop and that number doesn't include the ones that live in the kitchen tool drawer or other tool boxes I have for dedicated tasks.
I've heard people call them "ice picks" (are true 'ice-picks' even make these days?) a totally different tool for a different task... now here's a quick comparison that shows that's not an ice pick - this is an ice pick...
Ice picks on left hand side, scratch awls on right (in case you didn't know)... although, I can easily see how people can confuse the two... but I would never personally use an ice pick to start a screw hole, nor would I use a scratch awl to break a block of ice into pieces... well maybe in an emergency, but right tool, right job has always been my philosophy...looks like I'm quickly getting off on a tangent here.
Anyway...
I don't know why, but I like the handle design of the Stanley scratch awls, at first glance it doesn't look too ergonomic, actually it looks pretty darn awkward for a handle, especially if you think of the kind of handle you find on a screwdriver - but this style just feels right in my hand, maybe it's from years of using this style, I don't know. The first one I bought (way back in about 1978!) was painted blue (or maybe it was stained with some kind of blue dye) and the metal rod extended all the way through the handle to the top so you could strike it without damaging the wood handle. These new ones don't have that feature, the rod stops short, maybe it's a different model, but the stores around here don't seem to carry any other styles. In the picture above they both are same model number, same style, and aside from the color change, see a difference? Maybe the back of packaging will reveal some clues...
Hey wait a minute! One is "Made in China" and the other says "Made in USA (with Global Materials)." Same exact packaging, same model number, same design/style, but now made completely in a foreign country! Stanley did this without fanfare or announcement, just quietly removed the "U.S.A." from the graphic printed on the handle and then hid on the back of the package it's now China origins. No where on the actual tool does it say where it's made anymore. Too bad... as I won't be buying anymore of these and returning the "China" one to the store. Normally I would tell the girl behind the returns counter exactly why I'm returning it, but in this case it would do little good - the word would never get back to anyone that matters.
The good news is that as it turns out, I really didn't need it, it was completely an impulse purchase, I saw it hanging on a hook there in the store and thought I should get one to have an extra on hand. But, when I went to put it in my 'new tool drawer' - that's a drawer where I keep new items; mainly various saw blades, drill bits, router bits and that kind of stuff, but I do also have a few sizes of chisels, a dovetail saw (that's probably been in there 30-years, seems they don't wear out nearly as fast as I thought), a 24" back saw (do they even make them that large anymore?), and a few different hammers too -- I already had a brand new, in the package, genuine made in the USA scratch awl in there ready to go should I ever need it. I probably should find a way to keep better track/inventory of this stuff, as this is far from the first time I have purchased something only to find out when I get home that I already have an extra one I purchased sometime previously.
Being a tool guy and a hobbyist I really care about quality and want nice stuff. When I see a tool I like I buy it, even if I may not have a use for it at that particular moment. But... I also care equally as much about country of origin. I've passed over many things because they were poorly made overseas or simply "Made in China" when "Made in USA" alternatives were readily available. I'll go out of my way to buy products that are made in the USA. And I know others that do exactly the same.
The thing that really bugs me is that I don't feel these manufactures are actually listening to what customers want. I'm not poor, I don't live in a Third World Country, I will and can afford to pay more for a USA made product. Above all I would just like to buy tools that support the economy that I live in and supporting small American manufactures and inventors. Is that asking for too much?
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Originally Posted by Thomas Hotchkin
Originally Posted by Thomas Hotchkin 
