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Okay-I'm looking to replace eight old windows in a home I bought in March. Most of them now are old vinyl windows. I got a quote from Window-World in the Western NY area for $5500.00 but when I went to the BBB to do a search I found out they have a "F" rating so they're out. I'm thinking of going with the American Craftsman which I understand is owned by Andersen and have a Home Depot contractor install them. Has anyone had any experience with these windows? Are they Good windows? Since I'm planning on staying in this home for a long time I want to invest in Very-Good Window that'll last a long time.

they are one of the worst windows out there;bottom of the barrel. don't be fooled;just because Anderson owns them does'nt make it a good window..they are complete garbage and any pro on this board will back me up on that. why are they junk? very poorly made with poor quality materials. good window brands are as follows: not in any particular order..
gorell
soft-lite.
okna
sunrise
simonton 9800

Hi vinylpro, I mean advanced energy, i mean Paul, I mean.............

Thanks for the input-Guess I'll research the ones you suggested. Thoe Gorell's really caught my eye. I like their warranty. Are they as good as the Simonton?

better in my opinion.

What specific things are poorly made ? What parts are made with poor quality?I see these windows always get bashed but nothing is ever specific, just broad general statements.Not trying to defend just curious.

Next time you are in HD. just walk up and examine the windows for yourself. You will discover poor quality welds, flimsy vinyl and sashes that are poorly matched to the frame. In the long run this will lead to higher A/I as the windows age and an increased probability the vinyl will warp and crack. Is that specific enough?

I was at Home Depot yesterday and checked out their Siverline and Simonton display since they were side by side.The welds looked to be of the same quality with the exception of the interior side of the Simonton's sash welds.The Simonton sash welds look to be ground down after they are welded.This looks fine except on the windows that have a fake wood interior,it loomakes it look like a different color and stands out.I would not call the vinyl flimsy but the simonton was beefier.The sashes looked to fit the frame nicely but it was obvious that the display was not shimmed and just sitting loose in the frame.

if i were to play a pratical joke on a friend i would install american craftsman/silverline. seriously,its a flimsy window made with a low grade vinyl. simonton is a much beter window so comparing them makes no sense in my opinion. i sometimes bring my customers to home depot and have them look at the so called top of the line american cratsman then we go out to my truck and i show them mine agin for a comparison. it works everytime because even a novice can see a noticable difference in quality. if you are going to flip a house or rent it out then you have my blessing Todd.

I was just comparing them since they were at Home Depot side by side and did not see the obvious flaws that were pointed out.As I said, the Simonton was beefier.It is obvious that the Simonton on display is a nicer window.The Silverline on display was a 9500 series and I am not sure what model the Simonton was.I can buy several name brands lower end models for what a Siverline 8500/9500 cost or even less(such as soft-lite Barrington's and Atrium's).I some times install Siverline's to match existing windows or if owner has bought them already.What window of yours do you show them for comparison?I actually had a Silverline that I gave to one of my suppliers for comparisons.

A lot of windows look "fine" or "good enough", until you install hundreds or thousands of them and wait a year or two until all the service calls come rolling in. That's my own personal experience with a brand that I'd consider mediocre, but better that American Craftsman.

I have installed many and the service calls are virtually non existant.The last one I had was for the release latches on the lower sash.It was done in under a minute.It has been well over a year since the last service call before it.Most of my service calls comes from stress cracks that don't show up untila day or so after install(probally shipping related).I would say somethings up if you are getting that many service calls.I have more problems with Marvin ultima's and have installed far fewer of them.What kind of windows were you installing?

I had installed a lot of Alside Excalibur and Sheffields. I personally think those are both upgrades over most of American Craftsman's offerings, however I won't sell them anymore due to all the issues that I had including stress cracks, bowed sashes, etc... I, nor anyone else is here to tell you what to do. If you want to sell that window then go right ahead. I won't even say I told ya so if you ever come back and change your mind. What I will do is let consumers know that I think its junk, and 9 out of 10 pros agree... The fact that you want to sell a product which is inferior just because you can make an extra buck or two, or close one more job speaks volumes. The real question is, even if you are woefully unaware of what makes a quality window, why on earth would you want to buy windows from a big box store that is your competition!? Do you not think that they'd love to put you out of business and install all of those windows themselves?.... I'd also ask how many of those Am Craftmans you have actually installed?

I actually installed Silverline not American Craftsman but all the same.It was offered as a base window to compete with other companies base window offerings.I would point out to clients that this is a base window and offer other brands as an upcharge.Most people that I deal with consider vinyl as a cheap window and want to pay a cheap price.Whenever we do any high end work vinyl is never mentioned.i do have well over 1000 installed never had any sash bowing problems,I would say that 95% of my service calls are shipping related.It's not that I want to sell an inferior product but fulfilling customers needs.I did draw the line at Silverline's 1200 series.It was very flimsy and had to be heavily shimmed.I never had any service calls on the few that were installed though.I just got a service call today on a Home Depot installed window(Simonton casement) from a client.A lot of these Silverlines were installed in rentals that see a lot of hard use and are holding up just fine.Every product is inferior to some other product and I will install almost any of them to make a buck or two.I would also stop selling them if I had as many problems that you had with your low end to make a buck or two windows.

What would you call a "shipping related" service call just out of curiosity... You mentioned earlier that you would get stress cracks a few days after installation, I don't see how that could possibly be shipping related??? Regardless, you are entitled to your opinion and I respect that. I wish you the best of luck in your installations of that product.