HF Tools That Suck

[Sandy]

Part 1 of a bad day with made over seas crap. Changing master cylinder, little flimsy 3/8ths flare nut, found a 11mm HF made india open end because it was a more flush fit. Give a litt oomph and it opened right up, split the jaw off. Just a couple more like that and it'll be 100% of the end wrenches I've been given from there are officially crap.

Oh BTW, chucked my 3rd and final HF grinder in the can about a week ago. Sparks, smoke and molten plastic came out of the back end where the cord goes in.

[specter]

Gee Sandy I am glad I am not the only one that had bad luck with those HF 4 1/2" grinders. I stopped buying them for the shop trucks and went to Rigid which has a great warranty.

[rdoss1970]

when it comes to harbour break I stick with wrenches,hammers,scewdrivers etc... my rule of thumb is no HB products that plug in.

[Spar-X]

Originally Posted by rdoss1970

harbour

Like a fugitive?

[-lecroix-]

Originally Posted by PilotAlso

Moderators: Is there some kind of IGNORE feature to keep from having every attempt at providing real information regarding HF tools hijacked by PapaLion? Talk about drifting way, way off track and into stupid RANTS.

... let me see if I can help with the idiot savant that doesn't realize Nikita Khrushchev wasn't from China ...

[bigb]

Originally Posted by DougAustinTX

The absolute MOST ANNOYING things that I have purchased at HF are the automatic tank bleeder/drains for the bottom of the air compressor. Made of solid brass so you think they will work, but the guts of the things start leaking within a couple of weeks. The floor around my compressor is littered with the rejects... which just goes to show what a dumb_*ss I am because I kept buying the same thing over and over thinking I would eventually get a good one. After FIVE attempts, I just gave up and plumbed a curved copper tube to the bottom of the tank with a quarter turn plumbing shutoff and I try to remember to drain the tank every month or so. I can't believe they keep selling those auto drains....

HA! mine only lasted 3 days!!! I did notice the instructions said not to use over 100 PSI, who runs their compressor under 100 PSI???

I've decided except for bungie cords and gloves, I won't be wasting my time with their tools any more.

[SuperNinja]

Their garden hose menders leave a lot to be desired.

http://www.harborfreight.com/lawn-ga...rden-hose.html

They seem like the people who designed them didn't actually test them out on several different hoses.

The center black plastic piece works just fine.

It is the green or yellow plastic clamps, and screws that don't work worth a damn.

The supplied screws are a little too short to thread into the opposite half of the clamp properly, so the part that does thread ends up tearing out and damaging the thread hole while tightening.

It seems like the only answers to being able to use this product properly is to:
1. supply your own longer screws
or
2. only use it on a very thin-walled hose (one which might allow the 2 halves of the clamps to close closer together.

[steve45]

I've got some of their brass garden hose couplings and they are very good. I don't see them in the online catalog, but I saw some recently at our local store.

[Tomhintz]

Chicago (Harbor Freight) 4-1/2" Angle Grinder

I get just enough email from my viewers about looking at "cheap" tools that I actually do from time to time. this time it was the Chicago 4-1/2" Angle Grinder. See the link below for the full review but suffice it to say that the trend continues......

Chicago (Harbor Freight) 4-1/2" Angle Grinder Review

[Pandemonium]

I have two of those grinders and have put them through hell and they are still going, so i am happy with them.

[California]

Originally Posted by Tomhintz

Chicago (Harbor Freight) 4-1/2" Angle Grinder

I get just enough email from my viewers about looking at "cheap" tools that I actually do from time to time. this time it was the Chicago 4-1/2" Angle Grinder.

Your post looks like you are fishing for more readers for your own site rather than coming here to share useful information with us. Why didn't you write your conclusions in this post?

What a surprise! You evaluated, and concluded that a 4.5 amp tool isn't the same thing as 9 amp tool!!!

And the page after page of safety instructions and inclusion of spare brushes somehow causes you concern. (Or gives you something to pad your review.)

These are cheap grinders that serve well in occasional use, not tradesman grade or the over-the-top 'pride of ownership' gear often collected by woodworkers. They are what they are. Many of us need a grinder for very few hours per year and this one is sufficient to get the work done. That is simply all we need. I wish you had listed the cost of your 9 amp grinder that this one didn't quite equal. This could help some of us decide which one we need.

Of course anyone should buy top quality tools where greater productivity is important and cost-effective. That is a different market. You might be happier if you avoid Harbor Freight entirely, I wouldn't want you to endure another disappointment.

[wskynajar]

That was very well said california i really enjoyed reading your reply...

[SuperNinja]

Several months ago, I saw some welding aprons on clearance for dirt cheap (I think they marked down less than a dollar each).
They weren't leather. They were like a tightly woven burlap kind of fabric, and colored green.

I bought some, but THOROUGHLY and quickly regretted it.

You know how some of the items in Harbor Fright can smell a bit?

Well, those aprons made all the other smells in that store seem like roses in comparison.
I wouldn't be surprised if that was the whole reason they were clearance in the first place.

I don't know what they put in that fabric, but it made it stink so bad, I wouldn't be surprised if they had soaked it for a few months at the bottom of a cesspool.

This may all sound like an exaggeration, but it's not. It really did stink so bad, it made you want to vomit. I never even wore it. Just getting near it made me feel like it might have been made out of dogsh!t.

I did return all but 1 though, since I no longer had the package for it.
When the cashier asked what was wrong with them, I told her they reeked way too bad to be able to use. She just looked at them with a disgusted look, and then took them and refunded my money.

[ROBZ71LM7]

Sorry to say this, but their 4.5" angle grinders suck. I bought 4-5 before I swore off of them. A couple had really bad vibration, but most of all they are severely underpowered compared to the Milwaukee, Makita, and old Dewalt grinders I have. Very rough operation overall. I also bought the electric die grinder from them and it burned up in 30 minutes.

I also had to return their metric deepwell impact sockets. They "stuck" themselves to good lugnuts as if they were oversized.

The 8" bench grinder I bought as well as some of their air tools (earthquake impact, die grinders, etc.) have been great. Oh and the 4x6 bandsaw of course.

[steve45]

Originally Posted by SuperNinja

...They were like a tightly woven burlap kind of fabric, and colored green.

...You know how some of the items in Harbor Fright can smell a bit?

Well, those aprons made all the other smells in that store seem like roses in comparison.
I wouldn't be surprised if that was the whole reason they were clearance in the first place.

I don't know what they put in that fabric, but it made it stink so bad, I wouldn't be surprised if they had soaked it for a few months at the bottom of a cesspool.

Sounds like their Russian made welding blankets. They stink.

[Sandy]

Screwed up and bought a couple of HF long ram jacks. Momentarily reverted back to the old sour logic "they're just for occasional use", "gonna set there and sleep most of the time", "light and limited duty".. Bought two of 'em. Need them for this frame rotisserie thing I'm working on.

The one that did work wouldn't pump up all the way. About 16" out of it's claimed 19+", not enough fluid. Added about a cup or cup 'n ½ and now it goes to the top. Oozes back down about an inch with any slight weight. Still some air in there I suppose.

The other one I added some fluid to it right off so it pumped up to about 15" or so then stalled then lurched on up after about three pumps. Now the big problem, it sticks at the top, won't come down. Hold it by the ram and slam the base on the floor and it'll go down once it gets past whatever it is at that 15-16" spot. Two or three times of the same ole chit and I left it in the up position, took it back and got another. At least they've got that "we'll replace them till you run out of gas money" policy.

The replacement goes right to the top but won't hold there. Oozes down a couple of inches. Needs fluid I suppose. I'll have to get some. Used all I had on the other two jacks.

SO how do I rate these? one out of two failed so that's would be 50% DOA but the replacement seems okay so maybe I should rate them at only a 30% out of the box failure. Maybe 30% out of the box failure with points taken away for the lack of adequate fluid.

[LawsonWeldingLLC]

Whats this Harbor Freight stuff , I dont know if ive ever heard of this equipment ......lol junk all junk.....i wouldnt trust my life with a hf grinding wheel ive had a norton come unglued on me once and it scared me enough the reason it came apart the grinder was dropped.... i have used a hf wheel i used it long enough to get it up to speed and slow back down .....never again......You get what you pay for .... my time isnt cheap why would i want to break a tool every day ......i rarely have any of my quality stuff break

[steve45]

Thanks, LawsonWeldingLLC, for contributing absolutely nothing of value to this thread.

[Tomhintz]

Chicago/Harbor Freight 4-1/2" Angle grinder. See my full review at the link below but this thing is trash and scary to run. The gears are badly meshed so this thing get very loud, vibrates and scary at speed. the up side is that the box it comes in says that you even get a spindle nut! Free!

http://www.newmetalworker.com/Review...ggrndrrvu.html

[ak4130]

I got the 66787 tig/inverter arc welder a few months ago.It worked fine at first, but now its doing this thing where a squeeking noise like comes from the tungsten and the amperage goes very low..If you long arc it for a second the arc comes back but everytime you dip the filler rod it happens again..It used to do it only ocasionally but now its at the point where it does this everytime I weld ..saving for a real welder now..

[78Vette]

Bought this small ring roller on my trip to the USA at HF. Didnt figure i can go wrong,
I was wrong. The rollers do not align. Now i get to try and fix it myself or try to return it, which might be a problem, since i had it for a while.
Oh well

[nadogail]

I took a chance on a 9.95 harbor freight grinder, and bought a seconed one so I could have a cup brush and flap wheel without having to change attachments. The grinder with the cup brush goes back on Monday, it will be DOA.

I am glad I bought the insurance policy, I can see myself going to Harbor Freight frequently. I am getting what I paid for.

[SEAR]

ok, i now have 2 of the HF 4 1/2" grinders. one is a old model given to me 4 years ago, one i just bought a month ago. they both seem to have about the same power, fine use for a flap disc or cut-off.
when doing some actual grinding, they suck. but lives up to "10$ grinder expectations"

i just got a dewalt 818, 9 amp unit. the difference is night and day (cost w/ SH was $50)better switch, better guard,theres less vibration, it sounds like higher rpms, and when you put the wheel to metal and apply pressure it actually keeps grinding.

[California]

HF sells more expensive 4.5" grinders aside from the $10 and $18 ones.

Does anyone recommend their better models?

[billyons]

I bought their 18 Volt 1/2" Magnesium Drill/Driver and it work fine for 2 weeks. Then one day it stopped. The battery does not make good contact with the base, hence no power.

I got a refund, but HF didn't want the thing back.