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Author Topic: Harbor Freight  (Read 12093 times)

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CCM

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Harbor Freight
« on: October 02, 2009, 09:56:49 am »
If anyone needs some cheap tools, Harbor Freight is having a big parking lost sale.  You can get an extra 20% off...

http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?t=1585815

ChadTower

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #1 on: October 02, 2009, 10:10:44 am »

Woohoo!  Maybe you can get the buy/return/buy/return/give up and buy somewhere else cycle done faster that way.

knave

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #2 on: October 02, 2009, 06:49:44 pm »
Actually I'm pretty happy with most things I pick up at HF...Just don't get things with a motor. :D

zip ties, clamps, tarps, toolboxes, pnumatic tools, hand tools, hose, cords...all good


Woohoo!  Maybe you can get the buy/return/buy/return/give up and buy somewhere else cycle done faster that way.

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #3 on: October 02, 2009, 09:51:27 pm »

The pneumatic couplings I bought there sound like a basket of snakes.  The compressors I bought there were both dangerously defective.  The clamps I bought all broke on the first or second use. 

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #4 on: October 02, 2009, 10:20:23 pm »

 I agree that many of HF items are not worth it... and fail quickly...

However... the Radial Drill Press and the Metal cutting bandsaw are Excellent.
Ive used and abused them, and they have stood up perfectly.   They are in
fact my Favorite tools.


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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #5 on: October 03, 2009, 02:08:48 pm »
Any arcade restoration guys absolute DREAM...

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=65057



...CPO's come off like butter...
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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #6 on: October 03, 2009, 02:17:40 pm »

Heh.  Or you could use a belt sander.   ;D

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #7 on: October 03, 2009, 02:30:01 pm »
Any arcade restoration guys absolute DREAM...

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=65057



...CPO's come off like butter...

I was about to mock you and suggest using a real heat gun, but my heat gun didn't cost me $10 when I bought it.

OTOH, I bought it a couple of decades ago and it still kicks ass for CPOs.
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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #8 on: October 03, 2009, 07:37:57 pm »
Any arcade restoration guys absolute DREAM...

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=65057



...CPO's come off like butter...

I was about to mock you and suggest using a real heat gun, but my heat gun didn't cost me $10 when I bought it.



OTOH, I bought it a couple of decades ago and it still kicks ass for CPOs.

I have a nice head gun as well,  but this works BETTER and takes off the glue nice and easy too.
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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #9 on: October 03, 2009, 07:51:35 pm »
Thanks for the link!

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=96275

 For 12.98 tax included was pretty nice.  Should stand up well since I only really plan on using them with plexi.


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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #10 on: October 03, 2009, 07:58:50 pm »
I have no problems with chicago brand names at Harbor Freight
brad nail gun
14 volt drill (love it)
best place to buy nails for my nail gun (  Dewalt not Harbor Freight )
belts for sander
drill bits
chain saw chain grinder (love it)

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #11 on: October 03, 2009, 09:21:07 pm »
Actually I'm pretty happy with most things I pick up at HF...Just don't get things with a motor. :D

Especially little electric high speed motors.  Their 'bargain' dremel-type tool with accessories is scary.

But when the physical therapist recommend I buy a mini-sledge to work my wrist after a motorcycle accident, guess where I went. ;)

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #12 on: October 04, 2009, 12:22:25 am »
I'm going to get on the :soapbox: here for a minute.

Why I dont go to Harbor Freight.

CHINA! CHINA! CHINA!

All their junk is cheap knock off's of tools from Sears, Matco, Stanley and many others. I know we all like to look out for our own wallets, but when we keep buying the cheap chinese junk over and over again, they will keep making it. If you paid a little extra for the afformentioned brands, chances are, you wont have to re-buy it in a short time span. Now dont get me wrong, the other brands do have their issues, but not at the rate of HF's! Most people buy the HF stuff for one time use and I understand that, but I cant tell you the number of people that have bought a large power tool from HF and they had to return it not once but twice or better times. Read their return policy, they do give you three tries on something then give you your money back.

The chinese dont give a rats ass about patents or integrity of ther products. They just keep flooding the docks with cheap goods and we keep buying them. HF is about as bad as Wal-Mart!

At work, our transmissions are 98% US made parts with a 1.5% Mexico and .5 Chinese. If the vendor uses chinese parts, they automatically get sorted not once, twice or three times, they get sorted four times. Then usually a 60-63% reject rate on the parts. The vendor just ships more parts in, again with the sorting. Kinda funny that something similar is now biting Ford in the ass right now, they was making alot of plastic parts in Mexico, but at a 97% scrap rate, they then shipped all the machines and work to Sandusky, Ohio where they have a less than 1% scrap rate.
They tried like hell to skate around paying the labor and benefits and it has cost them 10 fold what it would have cost them from the begining!
ok, i'm off the  :soapbox:!

Fordman
« Last Edit: October 04, 2009, 12:24:08 am by Fordman »

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #13 on: October 04, 2009, 01:02:10 am »
I generally don't like harbor freight, and while I love sears and always buy craftsman hand tools... I am currently holding a tool in my hand that says "craftsman" on one side, and "china" on the other.  This does not negate the lifetime warranty offered by sears on craftsman hand tools, but when I realised this it kinda bothered me. 

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #14 on: October 04, 2009, 05:48:30 am »
Show me a home-user electrical tool of a major brand that is not made in China these days....

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #15 on: October 04, 2009, 07:09:25 am »
Show me a home-user electrical tool of a major brand that is not made in China these days....
+1

Some people either need to only post in P/R or move into the 20th century (at least) and quit freaking out about where something is made.  It's a global economy moron.   ::)

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #16 on: October 04, 2009, 08:28:28 am »
I just took a look on my bench and, with the exception of an old palm sander (made in the US) and the aforementioned heat gun (made in the UK), everything else that I am using on a regular basis is made, at least partly, in China -- solder station, multimeter, power supplies, drills, power drivers, other palm sander, rotary tool, etc. And many of those tools are US-based brands.

Oh, and China doesn't automatically mean crappy (they do sell lots of cheap, low quality stuff) ... this guy sounds like the folks who ran around in the 80s bitching about stuff that was "Made In Taiwan" or "Made In Japan".





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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #17 on: October 04, 2009, 08:35:06 am »
Oh, and China doesn't automatically mean crappy (they do sell lots of cheap, low quality stuff) ... this guy sounds like the folks who ran around in the 80s bitching about stuff that was "Made In Taiwan" or "Made In Japan".

Which is funny, because the Japanese car manufacturers blew the US built cars away because of build quality.
The US and European car builders learned a LOT from the Japanese regarding quality control.

I still prefer to buy tools with a brand name though. Even though built in China, you can bet these companies use their quality control schemes on these factories.
It depends a bit on how heavy I will be using the equipment. On things I know I won't use extremely often, I sometimes choose a cheap option.
« Last Edit: October 04, 2009, 08:37:58 am by Level42 »

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #18 on: October 05, 2009, 05:35:58 pm »
Show me a home-user electrical tool of a major brand that is not made in China these days....

www.kleintools.com

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #19 on: October 07, 2009, 12:25:18 am »
Crap, I bought my 1200watt generator from harbor freight like a year ago. It worked, I ran a full tank of gas through it but now you guys got me worried that it wont be reliable when I really need it...  :-\
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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #20 on: October 08, 2009, 06:57:32 pm »
no worries. I have a craftman that never works when you need it.
eather I left gas in it and it got old. (clean out carb)  runs fine.... next big storm hits I have no gas to put in it.

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #21 on: October 08, 2009, 07:58:23 pm »
Show me a home-user electrical tool of a major brand that is not made in China these days....

www.kleintools.com
Never heard of that brand and it doesn't look like a _consumer_ brand. I can name a dozen _professional_ brands that are NOT made in China.

And Klein is a Dutch or German name (and means small) :P

Frizz could you send one of those 10 bucks CPO removal tools ? Can't find them here. (Or I haven't looked well enough).
« Last Edit: October 08, 2009, 08:02:08 pm by Level42 »

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #22 on: October 08, 2009, 09:16:43 pm »
Klein is all over the place here, my tool pouch is filled with Klein screwdrivers.

I also have a klein bottle.  Does that count for anything?

http://www.kleinbottle.com/
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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #23 on: October 09, 2009, 12:10:55 am »
If it is a Craftsman gasoline powered tool, chances are it is a Briggs & Stratton or Kohler motor. They used to use Tecumseh motors but they were junk! You can find some honda motors on some Craftsman stuff.

Also if any carburated motor has gas left in the tank, the gas, which has some water in it will separate over time with the water evaporating and 'vapor' locking the carb. I make about $2500 a year cleaning 'vapor' locked carbs in lawn mowers in the Spring time every year!

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #24 on: October 09, 2009, 01:42:02 am »
Quote
Also if any carburated motor has gas left in the tank, the gas, which has some water in it will separate over time with the water evaporating and 'vapor' locking the carb. I make about $2500 a year cleaning 'vapor' locked carbs in lawn mowers in the Spring time every year!

The generator I bought from HF is an ETQ (chinese made/designed/etc). I ran it once and made sure that it ran completely out of fuel. I hope this will help prevent any problems with gas sitting in the tank....(At the time I was more worried about the gas going bad and the oil in the mix gunking up the works in the carb...)
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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #25 on: October 09, 2009, 08:39:25 am »

My 2yo Craftsman mower has a Honda engine in it.  That's why I bought it.  The B+S in my prior mower was garbage and needed repair 3 times in 8 years.

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #26 on: March 10, 2018, 01:00:58 am »
Any arcade restoration guys absolute DREAM...

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=65057



...CPO's come off like butter...

Update:

I don't know if Harbor Freight sells the 65057 any more. I can't find it on their website now.

AES Industries sells a similar tool as their # 87600 Hot Blade Decal Remover. It sells for $24.95 at Amazon.

EDIT:

I can confirm that 65057 decal remover is no longer available at Harbor Freight (discontinued).
« Last Edit: March 10, 2018, 12:17:37 pm by Ken Layton »

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #27 on: March 10, 2018, 01:43:12 am »
You bored, Ken?
%Bartop

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #28 on: March 10, 2018, 09:12:43 am »
Klein is all over the place here, my tool pouch is filled with Klein screwdrivers.

I also have a klein bottle.  Does that count for anything?

http://www.kleinbottle.com/

+1000 on the Klein tools. I have been an electrician for the past 40+ years, and Klein tools are by far the best out there. Although not the cheapest. But you get what you pay for.

As far as the general consensus of "just take it back to HF for a replacement when it breaks", who really wants to do that?

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #29 on: March 10, 2018, 09:51:37 am »
   I have only been to H/F once and wasn't very impressed, Kinda felt like I wasted money just going there, But in their defense the heat gun Jenn got does still work after many years (although quite surprised, since there is no cool down setting)....Craftsman has been my go to and has served me very well for years.
« Last Edit: March 10, 2018, 09:58:42 am by jennifer »

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #30 on: March 10, 2018, 12:49:41 pm »
   I have only been to H/F once and wasn't very impressed, Kinda felt like I wasted money just going there, But in their defense the heat gun Jenn got does still work after many years (although quite surprised, since there is no cool down setting)....Craftsman has been my go to and has served me very well for years.

Ha, I just picked up one of their heat guns to use to strip a Dynamo I just picked up. Totally worth the $15 I paid.
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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #31 on: March 10, 2018, 02:14:16 pm »
Man I wish the site was still tweaked on..... we totally need a "Rise from your grave!"  clip to play every time a necro thread gets bumped. 

A heat gun seems like the dumbest tool, until you own one and you realize how stupid you were for waiting so long to buy one.  Mine has gotten a lot of use over the years..... they are particularly good for stripping decals and cpos off of cabinets. 

I'm kind of neutral about the whole HF thing....  I used to buy a lot of tool at BigLots back when BigLots was actually a closeout store and not just a really crappy K-mart.  I also have a lot of craftsman stuff.  For me I try to get really cheap tools when they'll probably be one time use, but stuff like wrenches and screwdrivers are always better if they are name brand because that cheap steel just doesn't hold up.   That being said, most craftsman stuff is made in China now so you are really only paying for a brand name and a lifetime warranty. 

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #32 on: March 10, 2018, 02:37:30 pm »
Craftsman is "name brand"? Yeah, OK... ::)

They don't honor their warranties to those who are professional mechanics for a living. Says a lot about how their tools hold up...
%Bartop

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #33 on: March 10, 2018, 05:45:05 pm »
I'm not sure what you are talking about.  All craftsman hand tools have a lifetime warranty.  You don't even have to explain what is wrong.... walk in with the broken tool, walk out with a new one.  If you've had a different experience then I would suggest going to a less crappier Sears. 

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #34 on: March 10, 2018, 09:31:19 pm »
It's because nobody but a professional mechanic would use a cheater bar and they instantly get suspicious when you show up with a 3/8 wrench snapped in half.

So the mechanics spend twice as much for Snap On tools and moan about not getting calendars anymore.


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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #35 on: March 10, 2018, 11:31:12 pm »
Real life experience. Was a diesel mechanic for 5ish years of my life. Cool stuff. Right out of school I bought the basic tools... sockets, wrenches, pliers, pry bars, torque wrenches and ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- all from Craftsman because they were "great deals". Everything is fine and dandy for a while... but sockets will crack at the hex corners... open end wrenches will widen beyond their nominal size... Sears is alright with replacing the misc tool here and there. But after they saw me a few times, they asked what I did for a living. Told them I was a diesel mechanic at the Peterbilt shop in town. They told me they couldn't warranty any tools for me unless they were from their "professional line". I had a few set from that line. Complete garbage. The molded handles would slip off after a month or two of use. Snap-on... Nice tools. But, Cadillac prices. But there is always Matco and Cornwell. WAY better than Crapsman...

ETA: There is no end all, be all, great tool manufacturer. Some make some tools better than others. The others... well some of them specialize in making other tools great.
« Last Edit: March 10, 2018, 11:38:55 pm by Nephasth »
%Bartop

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #36 on: March 11, 2018, 09:49:24 am »
I’ve never had to ask a man if he was a mechanic.


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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #37 on: March 11, 2018, 10:22:20 am »
Real life experience. Was a diesel mechanic for 5ish years of my life. Cool stuff. Right out of school I bought the basic tools... sockets, wrenches, pliers, pry bars, torque wrenches and ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- all from Craftsman because they were "great deals". Everything is fine and dandy for a while... but sockets will crack at the hex corners... open end wrenches will widen beyond their nominal size... Sears is alright with replacing the misc tool here and there. But after they saw me a few times, they asked what I did for a living. Told them I was a diesel mechanic at the Peterbilt shop in town. They told me they couldn't warranty any tools for me unless they were from their "professional line". I had a few set from that line. Complete garbage. The molded handles would slip off after a month or two of use. Snap-on... Nice tools. But, Cadillac prices. But there is always Matco and Cornwell. WAY better than Crapsman...

ETA: There is no end all, be all, great tool manufacturer. Some make some tools better than others. The others... well some of them specialize in making other tools great.
I have never had that problem, broke a socket once and they were really nice about replacing it, But my sears is gone now, and the tools have been used hard. As replacements oddly enough, Jennifer was thinking a mix of both Matco and Cornwell....Snap-on just aint going to happen after the chrome fell off the 1 wrench I do have.,
« Last Edit: March 11, 2018, 10:29:20 am by jennifer »

Nephasth

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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #38 on: March 11, 2018, 10:43:24 am »
I’ve never had to ask a man if he was a mechanic.

Safe bet you've never had to take a broken tool from a customer for warranty either.
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Re: Harbor Freight
« Reply #39 on: March 12, 2018, 10:36:33 am »
"AvE" on youtube breaks down all kinds of HF tools and ganders at their insides and decides if it's ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- or not. Believe it or not, some stuff is pretty good, while others are quite obviously not.

Generally if it looks/feels cheap... it is. If it's got some gravity in 'er and seems decently made... they usually are pretty skookum.