Harbor Freight JUNK!

[747mopar]

So when I built my garage I needed to tool up since a lot of the tools in the old shop were my dad's..... I've got a handful of cheap die grinders from Harbor Freight that one by one quit working... literally brand new! The 90 die grinders constantly back off the nut that hold the gears in mesh so I got them adjusted and peened the aluminum into the nut next thing you know the gear is gone. After loosing all but one of the straight die grinders I opened a couple up, they used little balls sitting in a pocket with no visible way of retaining them in place to hold the bearing ends in the correct position??? I hold everything inline and reassemble and whataya know it works fine! So I guess I'll have to take all of them apart, drill the ball pocket through and drive in roll pins! What kind of junk is this!

 

[1967coronet440]

Ya HF is only good for a select few things. I bought an angle grinder and die grinder from there, using the 25% off coupon I think I paid maybe $20 for both? I remember the angle grinder was under 10 bucks. I bought them fully expecting them to not last long, I’ve only used the die grinder once and it worked fine angle grinder I’ve used a bunch and it’s syill going. At the prices we pay for them can’t expext much.

 

[steve from staten island]

HF power tools are garbage. In my trade i use angle grinders often, they are used under hard conditions and take a beating. Everything is made over seas and it shows. The best small angle grinder hands down is a Metabo, however there not cheap. Ive used them all and most hold up to a degree. I bought a HF to keep at my daughters house, i can count on one hand how many times i used it and when i did it was only for minutes, not your typical day in the field, doing fab work, fitting pipe.
It had decent power but after this short use the main gears are shot, it runs but is very noisy. I suspect maybe another couple of hours tops of use. Then again i paid maybe 25 dollars for it.
I dont mean to knock HF, they serve a purpose i guess but a large part of what they sell is cheap inferior tools

 

[Cranky]

Got a couple of decent paint guns but it wasn't until I opened ALL of the boxes they had and picked out the best parts from each box to assemble them. It was very surprising that they can't seen to center a drilled hole. Is everything they have made by hand with children doing the work? What surprised me even more is that no one came by to ask what I was doing lol.

 

[HD539]

I bought they’re cheap heat gun and it did the job, I get there work rolling stools and work gloves mainly.

 

[Ranger16]

I've had mixed results. Some things have lasted years, though not used often. Others had a short life span. I guess for the price you have to know that going in.

My pneumatic die grinder is probably 20 - 30 years old and still works, but again, seldom used. One problem is that it heats up so much that after a very short time, I have to wear gloves.

 

[65RoadRacer]

I often refer to Harbor Freight as the "One-Use Tool Company". LOL
I know some things will last a bit longer, but many of the tools I've purchased there - well, I got what I paid for. Sometimes I didn't even get one good full use out of a tool!

A friend who's a painter said that he buys their cheap paint guns by the dozen and uses them once and throws them out. He builds it into the price of the labor when he paints a car... a fresh new gun every time, and no cleaning. haha

 

[1967coronet440]

In my opinion the only thing they’re good for really is hand tools. You can’t beat the price and lifetime no questions asked warranty on Pittsburgh brand. Ya it’s made in Taiwan but for the money it can’t be beat. I’d love to have all snap on or Mac tools but there’s no way I could afford it.

 

[Daves69]

Bought a "heavy duty" tarp for winter cover of my boat. It's 11' X 19' silver last year. Taking it out of the package I found the package was heat sealed to the tarp. Had to cut it off. It's on it's second year now. It handled that heavy wet snow that turned to ice we had a couple weeks ago. I also buy their adjustable bungies to hold the tarp down. Good for a couple or maybe three years.
I did buy two 4-1/2" angle grinders (the 11 buck ones) so I could use a flap disc one and grind with the other rather than change attachments. They're not well balanced like my old Craftsman and add fatigue. One with the grind wheel is still running OK. The other had the arbor lock button pop off in the first few minutes of use. Not too long after the switch burned up on it. Filed it in the green WM truck that rolls by weekly.

 

[BeeKool]

At least you ain't out much $$$.
As far as angle grinders go, I've had excellent luck with Milwaukee. Both battery & 110 volt.

 

[65-440]

You get what you pay for. Most of my hand tools are snap on, pneumatic stuff is snap on and Ingersoll rand .... don't get me wrong, they break too but usually long after purchase !

 

[rick68b5]

HF has the best spot weld cutters hands down

 

[65RoadRacer]

I bought they’re cheap heat gun and it did the job, I get there work rolling stools and work gloves mainly.

I got a heat gun from HF and after a while it no longer had two settings, just blaring hot. Eventually, it got so hot I had to wear gloves to use it... so I pitched it and bought a decent one from Lowes... that has worked well for the past few years.

 

[747mopar]

HF power tools are garbage. In my trade i use angle grinders often, they are used under hard conditions and take a beating. Everything is made over seas and it shows. The best small angle grinder hands down is a Metabo, however there not cheap. Ive used them all and most hold up to a degree. I bought a HF to keep at my daughters house, i can count on one hand how many times i used it and when i did it was only for minutes, not your typical day in the field, doing fab work, fitting pipe.
It had decent power but after this short use the main gears are shot, it runs but is very noisy. I suspect maybe another couple of hours tops of use. Then again i paid maybe 25 dollars for it.
I dont mean to knock HF, they serve a purpose i guess but a large part of what they sell is cheap inferior tools

These are air tools, central pneumatic. Yes Metabo's are great grinders but at work we've had just as good of luck with the Dewalts.

 

[747mopar]

You get what you pay for. Most of my hand tools are snap on, pneumatic stuff is snap on and Ingersoll rand .... don't get me wrong, they break too but usually long after purchase !

I'm a stickler for buying top notch tools but when I moved into my new shop there's just no way to buy everything so I got some cheap junk to get me by for now only it didn't get me by lol. I didn't expect them to last but all failing within the first few hours, minutes is just flat ridiculous!

 

[steve from staten island]

These are air tools, central pneumatic. Yes Metabo's are great grinders but at work we've had just as good of luck with the Dewalts.

At work we also used Dewalts and yes they also held up well

 

[Johnpat]

What ever I buy I keep the receipt&buy the extended warranty.
If I take it back within a year they give me a new one
No questions asked

 

[747mopar]

What ever I buy I keep the receipt&buy the extended warranty.
If I take it back within a year they give me a new one
No questions asked

This is one of those things where I can spend 15 minutes on each one and make them last a lot longer or drive 45 minutes to return them every month lol. I'll buy IR next time.

 

[Mike67]

I go in knowing what they are & if you want quality buy IR pneumatic tools and 10x the cost....HF 3 in cut off wheel has been great lasting 5 years...HF mini saw sucked, air hammer quit after 2 yrs, paint guns are excellent value. Electric tools I will buy name brand though.
What have you really lost unless it's doa... disposable tools IMO.

 

[RT6PK]

I bought a buffer from HF to buff a car that I was flipping. It almost last long enough to do the entire car. It still works, but it vibrates like a son of a bitch.