Who Makes What For Who?!?!?! - Woodworking Talk

Bigred15 · 01-13-2009, 01:54 PM

I know that steel city make some the high end table saws for craftsman, and there is a craftsman jointer that look like its made by grizzly but at a close to a $300 discount. What else is there, or is the list too big? I'm close to purchasing my last two major machines (jointer and planer), but I don't see the point in paying $200 more just because its a name brand. This is espicailly true if the manufacture is Grizzly because I can just got pick it up at the warehouse and save frieght since my inlaws live up there. A little help please.

dbhost · 01-13-2009, 02:08 PM

The list is too big to write down...

Generally speaking, Grizzly equipment is very well regarded for their high quality, and good feature set for the price...

Bigred15 · 01-13-2009, 02:48 PM

Ok, then riddle me this Batman. Does anyone make all of thier own stuff?

dbhost · 01-13-2009, 05:23 PM

Hmmm...

Darned good question...

I know Sears buys all their stuff elsewhere, they make nothing. Ryobi stuff is ALL made by their parent company TTI, I think Steel City stuff is made by Steel City, or Steel City owned subsidiary Orion. Now to complicate things further, if you want to get to the nuts and bolts of it as it were, I am fairly certain they ALL buy their bits and pieces from a few manufacturers, castings from forge A, fasteners from forge B, rubber and neoprene goods from plants A,B, and C and so on...

Kind of like how interconnected the auto industry is. Even though Chrysler owns Dana Spicer (last time I looked anyway) Dana differentials can be found in GM, Ford, Nissan, Toyota, even Suzuki... And on it goes...

You really need to compare completed machine A, to completed machine B for a fair comparison. And all of the brands have their own in house quality control. The QC at Grizzly is usually pretty darned good, the QC for Harbor Freight's house brands is usually pretty lacking...

For the most part, I don't think Grizzly makes any of their own tools, they, like Sears, relabel others products, unlike Sears, Girzzly has a very good QC department.

I'll give you an example...

Ryobi BT3100 table saw vs. Craftsman Professional 21829
Essentially the same saw with some minor changes in color, stand type, rail length etc..

Now the BT3100 is discontinued, but it retailed when it was last on the market for $299.00, at the same time, the 21829 retailed for $399.00, for effectively the same saw...
Now if the folding stand is worth the extra $100.00 to you, and to some people it is WELL worth it... then the 21829 is the better bet... Personally I can kick up my mobile base and wheel to where I need to be...

Bigred15 · 01-13-2009, 07:00 PM

This pretty says it all for Grizzly:

Despite our phenomenal growth, we have never lost sight of the basics that have made us successful. Our business model has been to buy in large quantities and sell directly to the end user, bypassing the traditional dealer network and passing the savings to our customers. Our business has been built around the premise that the customer should receive the best selection, best quality, best customer service and a price that is hard to beat. This philosophy has created continuous growth year after year and a loyal following of over 1.5 million customers nationwide.

I'll still might end up buying grizzly machines, its between them and some RIDGID stuff.

sweensdv · 01-13-2009, 08:23 PM

Someone correct me if I'm wrong because I'm not 100% sure but isn't Grizzly just like Sears? I've always thought that they also don't really manufacture anything but have other companies make tools to their specs and then sell them under the Grizzly brand. So technically, Grizzly isn't a manufacturer.

Terry Beeson · 01-13-2009, 08:46 PM

You are technically correct sir... Grizzly does have staff on site at the manufacturing facilities to assure the adherance to their specifications at the factories.

The power tool business is much like the automotive business has become. There are ties to each other, to manufacturers, and sub-contractors/suppliers that look like a big bowl of spaghetti when you tie them all together. It's really tough to know who manufactures what and assembles what from whom... Just like it's tough to tell what autos are "made in the USA" anymore...

knotscott · 01-13-2009, 10:01 PM

It's not accurate to say that Grizzly just relabels their machines, because I believe there's a lot more to it than that. But some of their lower end items are likely relabeled products.

AFAIK, it's true that Griz doesn't manufacturer anything in their own plants that I'm aware of, but their machines have improved dramatically in the past 20 years through design input, better specifications, better specification enforcement, rigorous on site QC, being more selective about where their equipment is made, and offering excellent customer service. One huge difference between Grizzly and Sears is that Griz is owned by a woodworker and luthier who is very hands on....Sears is owned by KMART and shareholders. Grizzly is much more in sync from top to bottom. Also, Griz is a direct importer...Sears is a retailer. I've had some really nice tools from both, and a few not-so-good tools from both....if I had to pick one brand, I'd definitely go with Griz from these two names.

Steel City's Orion subsidiary makes the larger Craftsman table saws, DP's, and jointer AFAIK, but I could be wrong about the jointer. Ryobi makes the smaller Craftsman table saws and miter saws.

johnv51 · 01-15-2009, 03:38 PM

I own a Grizzly 3 hp table saw and a Grizzly 14" bandsaw. I'm sold on the quality, price and most important, customer service. The bandsaw arrived with a damaged case. Once unpacked I found the motor housing had been bent and the motor cooling fins were scraping the case when it ran. Grizzly sent me an entire new motor assembly within a couple of weeks. I won't buy large stationary tools from anyone else now.

BobbyfromHouston · 01-18-2009, 05:22 AM

I like to shop for tools and not brands. I compare many brands when looking for tools, however, I have several machines sold by Grizzly and am very happy with them. 3hp motor/ 19x2 bandsaw/ 3hp cyclone dust collector