junk items from harbor freight

[MiamiMotorcyclist]

Originally Posted by Rapid Dog

...

Can't pass up the $5.99 heat gun...just don't drop it.

I love the tennis raquet insect zappers. Great for mosquito season.

They put them on sale for $3 often.

My favorite thing about them besides the zap when it kills a 'squito is the decal that comes on it that says, "Do not drop Made in China."
It's supposed to be two different statements but they put them on one decal so I always see it the same way I read the, "Slow children.....ahead" signs.

[JimVonBaden]

Originally Posted by Rapid Dog

Got a set of the gold drills from my dad, use once and throw away...

Total crap, do not everf buy. Hell, avoid most non-name brand drill bits, even from places like Home Depot. Get Craftsman or Dewalt, or similar.

Jim

[B.Curvin]

This thread keeps coming back up.

I can't help but wonder why anyone would buy anything at a store

that needs a thread to tell you what's good and a thread to tell you

what's bad. Why not just go somewhere (oh, I don't know, Sears maybe)

where 99% of the stuff is good. Plus if it breaks it's probably got a lifetime warranty.

If the reason is because it's a one or three time use tool, instead of adding

more crap to our landfills why not support your local machine shop

or whatever the job at hand is. Instead of buying cheap easy outs

and taps at one of these places, I just paid the massive sum

of $20 to have four bolts removed and the holes tapped on a

rear hub. Gave some guys a little business and I didn't spend

150.00 on good tools nor do I have 20.00 dollars worth of crap

tools laying around my garage. The job was done by an excellent machinist

using a Bridgeport mill and what not so I knew it would be done right.

Just thinkin' out loud.

[mike]

I've had good luck with everything I've bought at HF. Floor jacks, angle grinders, all kinds of hand tools, I did have one impact socket crack on me. You can get crappy stuff anywhere these days.

[MiamiMotorcyclist]

Originally Posted by B.Curvin

This thread keeps coming back up.

I can't help but wonder why anyone would buy anything at a store

that needs a thread to tell you what's good and a thread to tell you

what's bad. Why not just go somewhere (oh, I don't know, Sears maybe)

where 99% of the stuff is good. Plus if it breaks it's probably got a lifetime warranty.

If the reason is because it's a one or three time use tool, instead of adding

more crap to our landfills why not support your local machine shop

or whatever the job at hand is. Instead of buying cheap easy outs

and taps at one of these places, I just paid the massive sum

of $20 to have four bolts removed and the holes tapped on a

rear hub. Gave some guys a little business and I didn't spend

150.00 on good tools nor do I have 20.00 dollars worth of crap

tools laying around my garage. The job was done by an excellent machinist

using a Bridgeport mill and what not so I knew it would be done right.

Just thinkin' out loud.

To each his own.

HF is great if you know how and when to shop there.

It could also be seen as a man's discount toy store.

Sears has their share of crap tools that aren't technically "craftsman" and aren't lifetime guaranteed either.

I have some Snap On and MAC tools too but I can't buy everything at that level. Makes most craftsman stuff look like crap.

I will say sears/kmart have stepped up some of the craftsman stuff to a nice level though.

[JimVonBaden]

Originally Posted by MiamiMotorcyclist

To each his own.

HF is great if you know how and when to shop there.

It could also be seen as a man's discount toy store.

Sears has their share of crap tools that aren't technically "craftsman" and aren't lifetime guaranteed either.

I have some Snap On and MAC tools too but I can't buy everything at that level. Makes most craftsman stuff look like crap.

I will say sears/kmart have stepped up some of the craftsman stuff to a nice level though.

I have bought very little that was pur crap at HF. I have a variable speed rotary buffer that has been great. I have a 4 1/2" angle grinder that is fantastic, and takes a lot of abuse. I have a DA sander that has lasted years. I also have a rolling tool cart, HF motorcycle lift, Flux Core welder, sand blaster, and other misc tools. Many of my less common hand tools are HF, though my main sockets are Craftsman. I buy sandpaper, cutting and grinding disks, and all manor of "supplies" there.

So far the ONLY tools I have had an issue with was a $9.99 very well used heat gun that died (I bought another), and a couple of abused Torx sockets.

For 20% the cost of most tools elsewhere, the HF tools are not bad at all.

Like said above, common sense makes the difference. If it looks flimsey, it likely is.

Jim

PS Buy top quality drill bits elsewhere too!

PPS The vast majority of hand tools at HF have lifetime warranties.

[marchyman]

Originally Posted by B.Curvin

I can't help but wonder why anyone would buy anything at a store that needs a thread to tell you what's good and a thread to tell you what's bad.

Sometimes you run into a problem that can easily be solved with the right tool. The problem is that you've gone 35 years without the right tool in your toolbox and will likely go another 35 years before you need it again. And none of your buddies have one, either.

Checking around shows two options.
1) rent one at Lou's Rents (why is it always Lou?) for $$$.
2) buy one at HF for $

Yeah, it may not last a dozen uses, but you only need it ONCE!

I bought a cheap ($13 on sale) angle die grinder at HF. I doubt it would last two weeks of day-in day-out use. It will likely last me the rest of my life!

[B.Curvin]

Originally Posted by redcloud

...

I don't know what to say without climbing on the old soapbox.

I wrote out a long response but I think I'll keep it to myself.

[PoundSand]

Originally Posted by MiamiMotorcyclist

A friend uses the other syle HF dirt bike lift/stand and has been happy with it.

ya, i got one of those and it's good enough.

http://www.harborfreight.com/350-lb-...and-66552.html


and despite all the naysayers, i secretly love hf. as i think everyone will concede, they sell a lot of junk. but they do have some pretty decent stuff. and they often have stuff that's tough to find locally elsewhere.

[Navy Chief]

Originally Posted by B.Curvin

I don't know what to say without climbing on the old soapbox.

I wrote out a long response but I think I'll keep it to myself.

Your hate for everything HF and love of "real" tools sold by Craftsman is ironic to me...

Yesterday I was rotating the tires on my truck, broke a brand new Craftsman socket loosening a lug nut. Finished the job with a "crap" HF socket with no issues. Including removing the lug nut that the Craftsman did not even budge before it split....

[B.Curvin]

Originally Posted by Navy Chief

Your hate for everything HF and love of "real" tools sold by Craftsman is ironic to me...

Yesterday I was rotating the tires on my truck, broke a brand new Craftsman socket loosening a lug nut. Finished the job with a "crap" HF socket with no issues. Including removing the lug nut that the Craftsman did not even budge before it split....

Sigh. Never said I loved Craftsman. I like them because I can buy made in the USA

tools if I pay attention to the labels. Quality is only a tiny part of the issue.

I said I wouldn't get on the soapbox, so I'll keep it short.

If you have kids, let me know how they like it when they are owned by the Chinese

and the US is a third world country with a few ultra rich and a sea of poverty level people.

I've needed a pneumatic die grinder for a while now. I coulda bought an HF for 12 bucks

or whatever. I bought a Dotco. Look it up if you're unfamiliar.



Two good links about buying American.

http://tiny.cc/nkb5x
http://tiny.cc/rfjpt

[Navy Chief]

Originally Posted by B.Curvin

Sigh. Never said I loved Craftsman. I like them because I can buy made in the USA

tools if I pay attention to the labels. Quality is only a tiny part of the issue.

I said I wouldn't get on the soapbox, so I'll keep it short.

If you have kids, let me know how they like it when they are owned by the Chinese

and the US is a third world country with a few ultra rich and a sea of poverty level people.

I've needed a pneumatic die grinder for a while now. I coulda bought an HF for 12 bucks

or whatever. I bought a Dotco. Look it up if you're unfamiliar.



Two good links about buying American.

http://tiny.cc/nkb5x
http://tiny.cc/rfjpt

I am all for buying American, and do when it makes sense. One of the criteria is that the quality must be comparable or better to the import, unfortunately in many cases it is insanely expensive for no or a minimal gain in quality. In the meantime I have a wife and three teenagers to support so I can not afford to supplement the unions with every purchase I make.

HF is good in it's place, if you need a tool that you are only going to need to use once or twice to get a job done. If you only needed your die grinder for a one time job then 12 dollars at HF makes sense, if you need it to do work regularly then it makes sense to pay the additional money for the additional quality.

And as my (and I am sure others) experience has demonstrated, unfortunately made in the USA does not equal superior quality.

[Waco]

Never been to Harbor Shit. If I need a tool, I go to Sears or Home Labyrinth. Craftsman and Husky tools have served me well so far. There is nothing I hate worse than breaking a tool in the middle of a repair project. Well, I think I would hate it. I can't remember the last time I broke a tool.

[B.Curvin]

Originally Posted by Navy Chief

If you only needed your die grinder for a one time job then 12 dollars at HF makes sense, if you need it to do work regularly then it makes sense to pay the additional money for the additional quality.

As I stated earlier. If I only need for instance a die grinder for one job. I pay someone else to do it, or I break out the hacksaw or files or sandpaper or most likely all of the above. I've made due with less than optimal tools for most of my life. Until my friend gave me an air compressor this winter, for the last ten years I've aired up after tire changes with the emergency road side compressor that came in my work van .

The one use reason is often given as a justification. Is it really socially and environmentally responsible to buy a one use tool that required a lot of resources to make and in the case of HF tools the resources to ship it around the globe. I'm not trying to be an asshole or just argumentative. I'd like to see a change in the way we do things. Consumer and throw away society are terms frequently applied to the US (and other parts of the world).

Originally Posted by Navy Chief

And as my (and I am sure others) experience has demonstrated, unfortunately made in the USA does not equal superior quality.

This can be true too. I do my best to shop around and make wise purchases. Although, you can call me dumb if you like, but if a US made item is only slightly lower in quality (not often) but close in price to an import, I'll still buy the US item.

Did you read my links?

[Waco]

Originally Posted by B.Curvin

Consumer and throw away society are terms frequently applied to the US (and other parts of the world).

That's because countries like China make stuff so cheaply that it isn't worth repairing. People would rather buy crap and replace it over and over than invest in something that lasts and might need service some day.