Went To HF Today

[steve45]

I saw a couple of things I had not seen before. Composite ratchet wrenches? They felt good in my hand and appeared to be well made, but it sure seems odd to have a plastic wrench. Don't really know why you would want one. I figure that the internal parts are metal and can still rust if they get wet.

I liked the new Pittsburgh ratchet/socket sets with the laser engraved sizes. Didn't buy them, as I have plenty of sockets, and the sockets seem excessively long for standard sockets.

I bought a composite Finger Ratchet that seems better than my other ones. It has recesses for your fingers, takes light pressure to make it ratchet, and has 68 (I believe) stops. Part # 96091

Also bought a 3-sided Sharpening Stone. Now, I just have to get around to sharpening my knives. Seems well made, part # 94396

I also saw some stainless steel cleats for boats that seemed nicely made. They were too big for my boat (10" & 12"). Seemed sort of odd to find them in the electrical department...

Also saw a Depth Gauge/Fish Finder. It looked sort of cheap. It didn't have a price on it, and I wouldn't have bought it if it did. Didn't know HF was into boating.

One other thing that was new was an overhead gantry. It was rated at 1000 pounds. The raise/lower mechanism was cheap, but it had locking pins that looked secure. Probably not too bad for the money ($539 sale price).

[comp]

composite,,,hmmmmm

[metalman]

I don't think they are the only ones making composite ratchets. I have seen them elsewhere but can't remember where. Sears maybe?

[aczeller]

i'm in the same boat... i know i've seen them, i jsut can't remember where. when i saw them, i remember they were trying to sell them for electricians and moisture-related occupations. i knwo that i saw them at a better place the HF, and i think it may have been Sears actually. if they were nice, they could have sealed internals, and since they are plastic, they are probably cheaper to make, lighter to hold, and don't conduct heat when they've been sitting in the sun on the driveway for 3 hours.

later,
Andy

[65535]

Composites are amazingly strong these days.

[coldlap]

I am from England never heard of Harbou Freight what equipment do they do.:cry:

[steve45]

http://www.harborfreight.com/

They sell mostly Chinese and Indian-made tools and household gadgets. Some are really pretty good, some really suck. That's why there is the “HF Tools That Don’t Suck” thread.