With all the spotlight on American-made tools, we wanted to take stock of what is actually made and assembled right here in the US, and celebrate the companies that put American workers to work. Of course, you quickly run into two problems. One, we can't possibly include everyone, and two, the rules about when a product or tool can truly be said to be American-made are constantly changing.
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On the first question, we're just asking you to follow up — we'll be going through our list alphabetically. If we've missed a company that makes tools or equipment in the US, please let us know in the comments below.
Now, about which tools are truly American made. Before we dive in, we definitely need to take a look back. In June 2020, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding Made in the USA labeling rules.
The proposed rule would apply to product labels that make substandard or broad representations of U.S.-made claims. It would essentially prohibit marketers from making ineligible MUSA claims on labels unless:
- Final assembly or processing of the product occurred in the United States;
- All significant processing into the product takes place in the United States; and
- All or substantially all ingredients or components of the product are manufactured and sourced in the United States.
Now, frankly, we can't verify all the components of the product. So, based on what we know or can discern…and celebrate the following companies that employ Americans to make products in the United States.
Aries
AriensCo began in 1933 when Henry Ariens and his three sons developed the first American-made rotary tiller. They did so at a time when other manufacturers were experimenting with imported tillage machines. Since then, the company has passed down four generations. For nearly 90 years, the company's zip code and its CEO's last name have remained the same.
AriensCo is headquartered in Brillion, Wisconsin, a small town of 3,200 residents. What started as a simple idea in a garage has grown into a multi-brand company with over 1,700 employees. The best part? The company is still owned and operated by the same family that started it all.
Briggs & Stratton
Briggs & Stratton Corporation, headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is the world's largest producer of gasoline engines for outdoor power equipment. They also design, manufacture and sell generators, pressure washers, lawn and garden, lawn care and jobsite product brands through Briggs & Stratton, Simplicity, Snapper, Ferris, Vanguard, Allmand, Billy Goat, Murray, Branco and Victa. Briggs & Stratton designs, manufactures, markets and services its products in more than 100 countries on six continents.
But – 85% of Briggs & Stratton's products are made in the US, with components sourced in the US and around the world. The company has manufacturing plants in Statesboro, Georgia and Auburn, Alabama, where it produces V-Twin Vanguard engines. They also manufacture products such as engines at Poplar Bluff, Missouri; and at the Milwaukee, Wisconsin plant. (Briggs & Straton closed its Murray, Kentucky, plant in 2020—the same year they went through Chapter 11 bankruptcy). The company consolidated production of its small vertical-shaft engines at its Poplar Bluff, Missouri, plant.
Finally, in 2021, Briggs & Stratton opened a new 78,000-square-foot advanced battery manufacturing facility in Tucker, Georgia.
channel lock
Channellock has been making quality hand tools since 1886 when George B. DeArment, a blacksmith from Evansburg, Pennsylvania, started forging horseshoes tools by hand in a small factory.
More than 130 years later, the fifth generation of the DeArment family still runs Channellock. Located in Midville, Pennsylvania, the company employs more than 350 full-time employees in two facilities totaling 260,000 square feet. The company manufactures over 75 different sizes and types of pliers.
As far as we know, Channellock still manufactures all of their pliers in Meadville, where they ship to over 4,000 US wholesale and retail customers in 45 countries.
Crescent Tool covers brands like Wiss, HK Porter, Jobox and of course Crescent Tools.
Made in the USA tools include the Crescent Wiss Next Generation Aviation Snips; the Crescent HK Porter 14″ PowerPivot Center Cut Dual Compound Action Bolt Cutter; and the Crescent JOBOX Crossover Truck Box and JOBOX Case.
The Wiss and HK Porter products, among others, are manufactured in Lexington, South Carolina, while they manufacture the JOBOX products in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
cub cadet
Since 1961, Cub Cadet has been building lawn and garden equipment at manufacturing facilities in Ohio, Mississippi, and Tennessee. Cub Cadet also designs and designs products in Valley City, Ohio, where MTD Products is now headquartered for worldwide operations.
DeWalt, Craftsman, Stanley Black & Decker
Stanley Black and Decker (or SBD) includes almost too many brands to count. Most people are familiar with the DeWalt, Craftsman, Stanley, Black + Decker, Bostitch, Irwin, Porter-Cable, Mac Tools, Proto, and Lenox brands—just to name a few.
By taking a virtual tour of the country, SBD claims to have 48 U.S. manufacturing plants. The company maintains these facilities in some two dozen states, where they collectively employ more than 18,000 American workers and manufacture products in the United States using global materials.
We actually visited one of DeWalt's North Carolina factories back in 2016, but the company has significantly expanded its U.S. manufacturing operations since then.
Estwin
Since 1923, family-owned Estwing has been designing and manufacturing claw hammers, axes, specialty tools and pry bars for craftsmen and craftsmen.
Estwing makes most of its hammers and axes in Rockford, IL.
forrest manufacturing co.
Forrest Manufacturing was founded in 1946 by Albert Walter Forrest and is headquartered in Clifton, New Jersey. The company remains family owned and operated. To this day, their skilled workers continue to make every single blade and dado in the USA
forward looking infrared system
FLIR Systems is located in Wilsonville, Oregon and Arlington, Virginia. The company has been developing high-performance, low-cost thermal imaging systems for airborne applications since 1978. FLIR designs and manufactures many of its products in the United States. It is also one of the largest manufacturers of advanced thermal imaging products in the United States.
The company has manufacturing and research and development facilities in Goleta, California; North Billerica, Massachusetts; Bozeman, Montana; Stillwater, Oklahoma; Freeport, Pennsylvania; Oak Ridge, Tennessee; and Indiana West Lafayette, State. FLIR has more than 1,600 employees in the US alone. Oh, and if you're curious, FLIR stands for Forward-Looking InfraRed .
General Electric
Founded in 1959, Generac was the first company to design affordable home backup generators. They also claim to be the first engines developed specifically for severe generator use. Currently, Generac claims to be the largest manufacturer of portable generators in North America.
In 1996, the company added a third manufacturing facility in Eagle, Wisconsin, which was later expanded. Three years later, they opened a 135,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Whitewater, Wisconsin. It manufactures Generac automatic home backup generators, RV and telecom generators, and air-cooled engines.
Most recently, in 2012, Generac repurchased the production of its portable generators and moved production back to its manufacturing facility in Jefferson, Wisconsin.
greenlee
Greenlee, a brand of Emerson Electric, employs American workers at seven manufacturing plants — at least two of which are in the United States. Their Genoa, IL factory opened in 1948 to manufacture commercial bending and drawing tools for electricians. It currently has 73 employees and its Louisville, KY facility has 80 employees and provides metalworking products, assemblies, subassemblies and weldments for all Greenlee products. In total, they manufacture more than 300 products at the facility.
hardcore hammer
Hardcore Hammers was started by two brothers who were dissatisfied with the way standard hammers wore out quickly. The company now manufactures hammers, axes and hatchets in Shawnee, Kansas. Even the source material comes from US facilities. The steel for the hammers, axes, and hatchets comes from foundries and companies in Wisconsin and Illinois. American Hickory handles turned in Alabama and Arkansas.
Hobart Welding Products
Hobart Welding Products manufactures many welding machines at its manufacturing facility in Appleton, Wisconsin. It is a sister company of Miller Electric and both are wholly owned by either parent company ITW or Illinois Tool Works.
ideal industry
J. Walter Becker founded Ideal Industries in 1916. Based in Sycamore, IL, Ideal now includes brands such as Casella, Anderson Power Products, Wavetek, SK Tools, and Cree Lighting.
Ideal brand products include more than 6,000 SKUs. Their American-made products include Wire-Nut Wire Connectors, Yellow 77 Wire Pulling Lubricant, and T-Stripper Wire Strippers. Ideal manufactures all of these products at their Sycamore facility. They also forge Ideal pliers and wrenches in their Colorado facility, as well as a fairly solid line of American-made screwdrivers at their facilities in Illinois, Colorado, and Pennsylvania.
john deere
Founded in 1837, Deere & Company continues to provide agricultural and construction professionals with advanced products, technologies and services. Their products seem to be everywhere, with people producing things like food, fuel, shelter and infrastructure.
John Deere manufactures Gator utility vehicles and X-Series lawn tractors at its plant in Horicon, Wisconsin. In Greenville, Tennessee, they manufacture the 100 Series lawn tractors, the S240 lawn tractors, and the Z300 and Z500 zero-steer mowers
They build their updated Z900 ZT mowers in Fuquay-Varina, NC. John Deer manufactures Series 1, 2, 3 and 4 compact utility tractors in Augusta, Georgia.
In addition, John Deer owns multiple plants in the Midwest that manufacture large farm tractors, sprayers and combines.
Finally, John Deere also manufactures a wide variety of specialty turf industry equipment throughout the country.
Johnson class
Based in Mequon, Wisconsin, Johnson Level has been manufacturing leveling, marking and layout tools for over 70 years.
The company, now part of the Swedish Hultafors Group, still manufactures more than 70 SKUs in the US, including levels, squares, woodworking pencils, and laser products.
Klein Tools has been in business since 1857 and still manufactures the vast majority of its products in the United States today. The company has also invested in 4 new manufacturing plants in the US over the past 10 years and has invested heavily in new equipment and tooling to expand the capacity and quality of these plants and its existing plants.
While the company is headquartered in Lincolnshire, Illinois, Klein also has factories in Mansfield, Texas; Elk Grove Village, Illinois; Bolivar, New York; and Fort Smith, Arkansas.
Klein also plans to invest more than $100 million to expand manufacturing in the United States.
American made knife maker
We're definitely not going to hit every knife maker in the US, but let's take a look at at least a few of them.
clamp tool
Based in Oregon, Benchmade Knife Company was founded in 1987 by Les de Asis. The company may be the first to incorporate high-tech tools such as high-powered laser cutters and low-tolerance CNC machinery into the toolmaking process. Benchmade manufactures all knives at its 144,000 square foot Oregon City, Oregon manufacturing facility.
Buck Knife
Buck Knives manufactures its products in Post Falls, Idaho. The company was started by a young Kansas apprentice blacksmith named Hoyt Buck, who was looking for a better way to temper steel to keep the edge longer. In 1902, his technique produced the first Buck Knife. CJ Buck is now in the fourth generation of the family as CEO, President and Chairman of Buck Knives.
Kershaw and Zero Tolerance Knives
KAI USA Ltd., the parent company behind Kershaw and Zero Tolerance Knives, manufactures dozens of knife models at its factory in Tualatin, Oregon. Pete Kershaw started the company in 1974 when he was making hunting knives in a cement plant in Lake Oswego, Oregon. Kershaw's US-made models include the Leek, Blur, Link, Scallion, Chive, and Launch models.
The Zero Tolerance or ZT brand debuted in 2006 as a line of American-made durable knives designed for professionals in the military, law enforcement, and first responders. Both Kershaw and ZT use high quality American made steel such as 420HC, 20CV, S30V and S35VN.
Kraft Tool Co. was founded in 1981 by Ron Meyer and Si Kraft. Thirty years later, Kraft Tool continues to make American-made tools for professional cement finishers, bricklayers, asphalt pavers, tile installers, plasterers, and drywall craftsmen. Over the past 39 years, Kraft Tool Co has acquired companies and brands including W. Rose, Sands Level and Tool, Superior Tile Cutter, Inc, and Hi-Craft.
Kubota
Kubota introduced its first tractor to the United States in 1969, the 21 HP L200 subcompact tractor. It was an almost instant success.
Kubota Manufacturing of America (KMA), established in 1988, is the company's North American manufacturing base. KMA manufactures and assembles Kubota lawn tractors, zero-turn mowers, subcompact tractors, utility vehicles, loaders, excavators, and other implements. The company employs more than 1,200 American workers.
Kubota Industrial Equipment (or KIE) manufactures compact tractors and tractor implements, including loaders and excavators.
All told, more than half of all Kubota-branded equipment sold in the U.S. is manufactured or assembled at its Gainesville and Jefferson, Georgia plants.
Leatherman
You can't discuss American-made tools without mentioning Leatherman. When Leatherman introduced the first Leatherman tools in 1983, they ordered 500 tools from Cabela. Originally called the "PST," or Pocket Survival Tool, it crammed 13 different tools into a fold-down 5-ounce, 4-inch tool case. Over the next decade, Leatherman sold over a million of these multi-tools.
Currently, the company continues to build and manufacture all of its tools in Portland, Oregon.
We mentioned earlier that this company is part of SBD, but Lenox Tools has an interesting history. It was founded in 1915 as the "American Sawmill Manufacturing Company" with 10 employees. Back then, they made hacksaw blades. More than 100 years later, Lenox manufactures industrial saw blades, hand tools, power tool accessories, and other products. However, the company still designs, tests and manufactures products in East Long Meadow, Massachusetts, using global materials.
Makita
Since 1985, Makita has been producing products at a factory outside Atlanta, Georgia, USA. The Buford facility, formally known as Makita Corporation of America (MCA), operates capital equipment for manufacturing and assembly, and produces Makita products for US and international users and distributors. In response to continued growth in the US, Makita recently added nearly 1 million square feet of distribution and training center space as well as new facilities in Texas and Nevada. MCA is part of Makita's global manufacturing network consisting of 10 factories in 8 different countries.
Malco Products began in 1950 when a young steel supply salesman, Mark W. Keymer, decided to manufacture and sell his invention of the pipe crimper for installing sheet metal piping systems. Decades later, early Malco seamers, sealers, slotters, and punches have been combined with hundreds of other specialty tools—nearly all of them at the company's Annandale, Minnesota, facility. Factory produced. These include Turbo Shear Drill Attachments, Turbo Crimpers, Hole Cutters, Andy and Max Snips, Seamers and Mini Brakes.
Malco has also recently expanded into their former Vise-Grip facility in DeWitt, Nebraska where they are developing a new line of American made tools
Matco Tools, a subsidiary of Fortive Corporation, was established in 1946. Since 1979, they have sold automotive tools and products directly through a network of independent franchised tool trucks.
miller electrical manufacturing co.
Miller has grown from a one-man operation in 1929 to become the world's largest manufacturer of arc welding products.
Headquartered in Appleton, Wisconsin, the company manufactures MIG, TIG and stick welders, engine driven welders, plasma cutters, generators and wire feeders.
Miller, a sister company of Hobart Welding, is wholly owned by ITW (Illinois Tool Works).
Milwaukee Tool has been manufacturing products in the USA since 1924, so they have a rich American history. The company has manufacturing facilities in Greenwood and Jackson, Mississippi; and Mukwonago and Sun Prarie in West Bend, Wisconsin, where they manufacture a variety of products including LED lights, step drill bits, corded SawZalls, large drill bits, SawZall blades, open Hole saw, band saw and multi tool blades as well as levels and squares.
Milwaukee also plans to expand in Cookeville, Tennessee. In 2020 alone, the company invested more than $100 million and created 350 new jobs in the United States.
At work, Milwaukee also plans to manufacture hand tools at a new facility in West Bend, Wisconsin. The facility focuses on producing tools for electricians, the plumbing and mechanical trades, and utility linemen.
MK Morse
MK Morse makes the blades. Lots of blades. Suitable for nearly every cutting application and tool you can think of. They serve plumbers, electricians, carpenters, industrial manufacturers, and steel service centers.
Nearly all of the company's products are manufactured in Canton, Ohio. The facility has undergone several expansions over the years as the company developed its unique integrated manufacturing approach. It allows them to ship orders for most standard stock products within 24 hours.
western leather
Occidental has been manufacturing quality leather tool belts, bags and pouches for the tradesman since 1980. They honestly make the best tool belts in our opinion. Besides the extraordinary build quality – which we've experienced first hand – the best part includes the fact that All Western designs and manufactures all of their tool bags, pouches and tool belts in Sonoma County, CA.
Proto was founded in 1907 by Alphonse Plomb, Jacob Weninger and Charles Williams as the Plomb Tool Company. It started as a small blacksmith shop in Los Angeles that made chisels. In 1933, Proto (then called "Plomb") released what is widely considered the first combination wrench. Proto now joins the Stanley Black & Decker group of companies.
Proto's manufacturing facility in Dallas, Texas opened in 1986 and produces Proto and Blackhawk sockets, wrenches, drive tools and torque wrenches. This includes calibration and associated heat treatment and plating processes.
The Ridge Tool Company was founded in 1923 in Elyria, Ohio. It started with the introduction of the now iconic Ridgid Pipe Wrench, a tool that is still in use today. In 1966, Ridge Tool Company became part of Emerson Electric. Today, the company still manufactures pressure clamps, pipe wrenches, roll grooving tools, thread dies and threading machines, pipe cutters, hole cutting tools, hand-held power drivers and pipe bevelers at its Elyria factory.
Ridgid also manufactures Sectional, Ejector and FlexShaft drain cleaning equipment at its Orange, VA facility.
Rollei system
A third generation manufacturer based in the heart of Wisconsin, Rolair has been making quality compressors since its founding in 1959.
They assemble all belt drive models, including portable and stationary air compressors, as well as some direct drives, at their Rolair facility in Hurstiesford, Wisconsin. More than 90 percent of the company's compressors are assembled in the United States.
Note: SK Professional Tools was acquired by GreatStar Tools USA on October 28, 2021 (SK was formerly part of Ideal Industries). GreatStar Tools USA is headquartered in Hangzhou, China.
Almost every time we mention an American-made tool, we mention Snap-on. In 1920, engineer Joseph Johnson from Milwaukee and his colleague William Seidemann built the first Snap-on tool. They spent weekends using crude bending jigs and pure muscle to build two sets of samples, each with five handles and ten sockets.
Snap-on currently manufactures many ratchets, wrenches, screwdrivers, roller cabinets, sand blasters, and certain diagnostic tools at its manufacturing facility in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Southwire Company was founded in 1950 in Carrollton, Georgia as a manufacturing company. They have factories across the country and employ more than 7,000 people. The company manufactures everything from wire and cable to hand tools and equipment. Southwire's Made in America hand tool program features an extensive line of products made in the USA – part of their commitment to Made in America. This also includes their Seatek line, Sumner Manufacturing Co. product line, and most of Southwire's extension cord and contractor equipment product categories.
The recent addition of the Maxis XD1 Extreme Duty Circuit Puller marks one of the company's newest American-made products. They make the tool in Phoenix, Arizona.
Starrett
In 1880, Laroy Sunderland Starrett invented and manufactured the world's first combination cube in Athol, Massachusetts. For 140 years, with thousands of employees and millions of precision tools, gauges and saw blades, LS Starrett Company continues to manufacture most of its tools right here in the United States.
american steel corp.
Founded in 1926 by Andreas Stihl, Stihl designed and built the first two-person electric chainsaw. More than 90 years later, Steele is represented in more than 160 countries, providing specialized forestry and agriculture, landscape maintenance and building products.
In 1974, the Steele family opened a 20,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Virginia Beach with 50 employees. Today, more than 2,000 employees work in more than one million square feet of operational space on the 150-acre Stihl Inc. Virginia campus.
It is in this state-of-the-art facility that Stihl manufactures nearly 100 different products using domestic and foreign components. This includes gas and battery powered blowers, string trimmers, hedge trimmers, pole and chain saws, multi-head units, shredders and sprayers
american titan
Headquartered in West Springfield, Massachusetts, Titan USA was founded almost 50 years ago. The company prides itself on producing solid carbide, high speed steel and cobalt precision cutting tools. All are 100% Made in the USA. This includes end mills, micro end mills, thread mills, drill mills, drills, chamfer mills, taps and dies, reamers, drills and countersinks.
Vaughan & Bushnell Mfg. Co.
In the 1800s, 18-year-old blacksmith Alexander Vaughan started what is now known as Vaughan & Bushnell Mfg. Co. in Peoria, Illinois. The company started as a simple plumbing business, but soon moved to Chicago, where Sidney Bushnell joined the company to help it out of the devastating Chicago Fire.
The company currently produces more than 17 different types of tools at its manufacturing facility in Bushnell, IL. This includes hammers, picks, mallets, axes, nail pullers and pry bars. Additionally, Vaughan & Bushnell acquired Dasco Pro and manufactured their punches, chisels, breaking rods and awls.
Located in St. Paul, Minnesota, Viking Drill & Tool has been manufacturing high-speed cutting tools since 1951. From raw material to finished cut, Viking designs, engineers and manufactures cutting tools in their 74,000 square foot Sao Paulo facility.
Wilde Tool manufactures hand tools – from start to finish at their manufacturing facility in Hiawatha, Kansas. Chances are you've never heard of them. In fact, their main business is providing private labeling tools to several national and international companies, large retailers and OEMs.
The company was founded 95 years ago in Kansas City, Missouri, when brothers Paul and Otto Froeschl wanted to tilt the jaws of ordinary straight nose pliers by 32 degrees to create more leverage and grip. Thus was born the original Wilde Wrench, the first pair of angle nose pliers to be patented. The rest is history.
In 1941, Czech immigrant Hugh W. Vogl founded the Wilton Vice Manufacturing Company in Chicago, Illinois, and named it after the Cross Street where the original company building stood.
Years later, the manufacture of Wilton industrial vises moved to Carpentersville, Illinois. There, the Wilton brand appeared alongside JET and Powermatic, which changed its name to JPW Industries in 2014. When we asked Wilton what tools were made in the USA, they replied Wilton Combo Pipe & Bench vises and Machinist Bullet Bench vises.
Since 1927, Wright Tool Company has been manufacturing quality hand tools for professionals. Even since its first forge in Barberton, Ohio, Wright Tools continues to be made in the USA. They continue to use American steel for all of their wrenches, ratchets, sockets and attachments. Precise heat treatment and advanced manufacturing techniques likely help Wright to offer a limited lifetime warranty on most of its hand tools.