Rate your Harbor Freight Tool Experiences!

^I've had the rolling mechanic's seat like that for about 9 years and like it a lot, too.
BUT the "high impact PVC pan" gets very brittle and breaks off in chunks when it gets old. I guess I'll try to bend up a replacement out of aluminum sheet.

The directions I got with the foot pound and inch pound Craftsman torque wrenches I bought years ago said to always loosen them after each use or they could/will go out of spec.

Another inmate mentioned this plastic welder ten-fifteen pages back...


http://www.harborfreight.com/welding/plastic-welders/plastic-welding-kit-80-watt-iron-67102.html

Another inmate I know, Old Man River, bought one, and also bought one of these too...



http://www.harborfreight.com/weldin...r-motor-and-temperature-adjustment-96712.html

He reported no problems, even though the reviews weren't stellar. I needed to weld some boats where I work so I talked the boss into buying both.
The first one gets OK reviews, nothing special...once it's at operating temp, DON'T push it into the work trying to speed up the process. The plastic handle gets hot and will bend/fail if forced. Let the heat do the work. Higher end units(at $279+) have a tip that has an opening to place a welding rod into the tip. A much better option and a much higher price.

The second one gets poor reviews...always turn the heat adjustment screw to zero before flipping the switch on and always turn it to zero and let it cool before turning the unit off. One thing I don't like about it is the lack of an adjustment for the air. HIgher end units(at $700+) have a few different tips which would be real nice to have.

They both got used moderately this fall and I've had no problems with them...so far. I'm in need of a good plastic welder now and have been looking at other similar models. But at seven times the price it looks like I'll be heading to Harbor Freight soon.

Question.
I notice some folks saying that a certain item will go on sale on a certain date. How do you know when they are going on sale?
I'd like to purchase the Moto table lift but I'm not spending the $420 it list for.

I was at the library in December & saw the coupon for the lift in one of the popular motorcycle magazines that I don't normally read (Cyclist or Motorcyclist?). I think the coupon was good until 1/31. So maybe hit a Barnes & Noble.

Also, search ebay; people sell coupons. Pay $10 to save a $125...makes sense.

Sign up on their web site and you get advance notice of all the sales. Also, check the moto mags for 3-4 page spreads.

Jim

PM me a snail mail address and I can mail you a $299 coupon. They are always in all of the magazines.

Thanks for the info!

Ah, the secret is out! Done! Thank you sir!
Missed you at the RTE last weekend. The weather was kind of crappy but the sun was out West of Skyline Drive!

EDIT: On second thought, if the offer still stands, I'll take you up on the offer! I will PM you my snail mail info. Thanks again!

I'm looking real hard at the 1/2" electric impact gun for tire rotations on my truck. It wears my ass out using a lug wrench to remove then replace 32 lug nuts, not to mention man handling five 34" tires/rims.
For $39 if I get one use out of it I'll be happy.

First, nice thread idea Jim....and thanks to everyone for the reviews .

So I bought this bead breaker from HF, and I think it sucks. I'm not able to use it as well as I want. I have to stand on the tire (rotor-side up) in order to break the bead. This is kind of hard to do, since the bottom stand wants to move away from me as I bring the lever down. It's a real PITA, and I can never really secure it.

I don't think I can break the bead on the rotor side. I'm too scared of scratching the rotor.
Duel rotors up front? Fuhgeddaboudit!

So right now it's a fail. I know some people have reviewed it and liked it. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong.

Any mod ideas for this? I was thinking about securing the base to a 2x4 by a few feet, and then running it over with my car as an anchor point. Sounds lame, I know....

It was a $35 experiment, so I figured what the heck...




http://www.harborfreight.com/bead-breaker-92961.html

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I'm in the process of buying my first home. I'm trying to price out my new "Garage Mahal" , so these reviews were helpful, thanks.
The red toolchest did seem kind of flimsy in person, though....

That tire bead breaker is a century old design. Worked great on VW Beetle rims. Back in the day, you know.

I've had one for about 18 months, and I'd definitely rate this as a pass--with a couple of warnings.

My poor KLR has been up on this thing for almost the full 18 months, as I've been in and out of hospitals with little time to work on the bike. Use the safety pin once you'd got the bike lifted.

Warning #1: drill a hole through the handle, just below the bottom of the handgrip, and put a small bolt through it with a couple of nylon spacers. The handle is stored by sliding into a hole in the top of the support post. It's designed so that the handle will keep the handle from falling all the way down into the lift. But the shaft of the handle can slip out of the grip and drop down into the lift. It's a pain to get it out of there, especially if it happens while the bike's on the lift (don't ask how I know). The bolt will keep the shaft of the handle from dropping down into the lift, and the nylon spacers soften the impact and protect the paint on top of the lift.

Warning #2: this will work on some bikes, but not on others. You'd have to look at your own bike to tell if it can be lifted from the bottom of the frame without breaking anything.

Some engine work will be difficult because you can only access one side at a time. But it's great for working on tires, suspension, chains, etc.

Also, the joints all pivot on shoulder bolts. Apply some grease or anti-seize to the shafts of these bolts during assembly.

This is about half the cost of the table lift, and takes up less floor space. I may upgrade to a table lift one of these days, but I've managed to get an awful lot done using this one.

I love mine too. My girl calls it her BJ chair.

I think I need a picture to fully understand. I'm on my second of these, the first wobbles as the support shaft seems to have gone to hell but it was $20.

I've changed now 6 tires last year with mine and it works great. Rotored front wheels, just put the new tire under it as a spacer.

Works flawlessly and was super cheap. I'd buy it again.

ok...new tire is a good idea....
How do you secure the base of the stand to the ground?

I put my foot on the tire, push the bar down, turn the tire, repeat.

The front lifts just a little but doesn't affect the usage.

It's getting time to do a big HD tire, so we'll see how it works with the big load rated sidewalls soon.

Anyone ever try out one of their security systems? thinking of THIS. less for actual security and more for the purpose of figuring out what dirty fucker is letting their gigantic dog shit all over the sidewalk and in the landscaping.

I've used this extensively with no issues. It works well and is cheap!

http://www.harborfreight.com/ratcheting-crimping-tool-97420.html



Definite pass. I wouldn't hesitate to buy it again!

Jim

+1 Crimper works great. Cheap palm sander has been good as well. The feedback on HF webpages seems to provide valuable feedback.

Sent from my SCH-S720C using Tapatalk 2

^^I paid almost twice that for what looks to be the same crimper from Rat Shack 8 years ago (it does work well).

Without going through all 27 pages...any feedback on the 20 ton press? Can it be made into a tabletop setup?

I have the 12 ton which is a smaller version of th 20 ton. Works great for the money.
I would think it would be hard to convert to table top use since you need the height for adjustment quite often. The 12 ton is actually about a foot shorter than I would like setting on the floor, as far as the 20 ton goes it looks about right.