HF comes thru again!!!

STRIPER LOU · March 18, 2016, 09:11:28 PM

Quite some time ago I had let someone borrow my Milwaukee hammer drill. Lost track of it and now I just don't lend out any tools at all anymore!
That said, I needed a hammer drill to bolt down the new mill. Decided to rent one as I don't have as much of a need for one as I use too. Called Home Depot and it was $29.00 for 4 hrs.
Took a look on Harbor Freights website and a new one was $34.99. Had the old 20 off coupon and it came to $27.99 plus tax. Looked decent, was fairly heavy and had a good sized motor. A no brainer!

I was surprised as it made short order of drilling 4 holes in the basement floor. I think it probably worked as good as my old Milwaukee. Doubt if it will last as long but some of the HF stuff I have has been around for a long while. Bought one of the all purpose reciprocating tools when they first came out. Its one of those tools that seems to come in handy when remodeling and nothing else seems to fit the bill. I think it was $18.00. A buddy of mine is a contractor and he bought 2 of them and figured when one died he would just throw it away and use the other. I think he's still using the first one!

I understand its best to buy American made but even looking at some of my name brand tools, some of my Porter Cable stuff was made in Mexico.
Part numbers on the box if you need one. Its really not a bad machine!
regards, .. Lou

fishhead69 · March 19, 2016, 01:07:18 AM

Harbor Freight does have some pretty good tools at great prices. I have bought a lot of tools from HF and have never been disappointed. They also have a really good selection of tools to choose from.

Three se7ens · March 19, 2016, 01:44:45 AM

I have the same one, and also used it to bolt down my mill

MarkT · March 19, 2016, 02:13:20 AM

Harbor Freight is good for stuff you're not going to use often. I recently bought one of their 50' air hoses for my Husky compressor as they finally opened a store near me and they're rated pretty good.

Three se7ens · March 19, 2016, 04:49:53 AM

Quote from: MarkT on March 19, 2016, 02:13:20 AM
Harbor Freight is good for stuff you're not going to use often. I recently bought one of their 50' air hoses for my Husky compressor as they finally opened a store near me and they're rated pretty good.

I have mixed feelings about Harbor Freight. Some of their stuff is very high quality for the price(the red toolboxes), most of it is acceptable for occasional use, and some of it just isnt worth the time to go to the store. Ive had pretty good luck with their sockets and socket wrenches, but their screwdrivers should come with a guarantee that they will destroy your fasteners in most cases.

But I have found that cutting tools, or anything that needs to be properly hardened to work right, dont waste your time. The time you will lose fighting it will more than offset the cost of a quality tool.

MarkT · March 19, 2016, 05:01:24 AM

HF is a good place for hammers, axes and crow/pry bars. How can you screw up a chunk of metal on a stick? I have a breaker bar and some sockets that are just ok. I haven't tried any power tools but have been thinking about a cordless recip saw for trimming trees, they're cheap and I don't use it often. My old Porter Cable corded tiger saw is a POS for this work. I used to always use Sears Craftsman hand tools but my nearest store closed so it's now Home Depot, Lowes and Harbor Freight.

Three se7ens · March 19, 2016, 06:12:01 AM

Quote from: MarkT on March 19, 2016, 05:01:24 AM
HF is a good place for hammers, axes and crow/pry bars. How can you screw up a chunk of metal on a stick? I have a breaker bar and some sockets that are just ok. I haven't tried any power tools but have been thinking about a cordless recip saw for trimming trees, they're cheap and I don't use it often. My old Porter Cable corded tiger saw is a POS for this work. I used to always use Sears Craftsman hand tools but my nearest store closed so it's now Home Depot, Lowes and Harbor Freight.

Craftsman is just a shell of what it used to be. Now its the same cheap crap harbor freight sells, but at twice the cost. If your porter cable is giving you problems, I seriously doubt a HF branded tool will be better. My milwaukee sawzall is a beast, and I havent had any problems with it. Buy a couple of high quality blades, and you will wonder why you ever used anything else.

Home depot and lowes both have pretty good store brands for hand tools (husky and cobalt). They are typically better than craftsman, and also have a lifetime warranty. Their Premium stuff is quite good actually, I really like my Husky screwdrivers.

Alto Mare · March 19, 2016, 01:21:36 PM

I use hammer drills and other power tools daily, most made today are crap. Yes it is a good idea to purchase a cheap brand and toss it when it fails, they're all the same anyway.
My cordless drills only last me 1 to 2 years and if I have to replace the batteries, most times it's cheaper to get a new complete set on sale. This might be their intension to sell you a disposable tool.
My Craftsman corded drill just died recently, I had that drill for over 35 years and used it a lot...good luck finding one of the same today that will last as long.
I must say though, I have a 36V cordless drill with original batteries that it's still kicking after 5 years of usage, the only problem I have it's heavy.

Sal

Reel 224 · March 19, 2016, 05:04:08 PM

I was sooooooo, temped to comment about what was discussed but I won't. Ill just say the craftsman have disappeared much faster the the tools have lost guilty.

present company excepted.

Joe

MarkT · March 19, 2016, 05:30:35 PM

Yeah, Craftsman has gone way downhill. Most of my Craftsman hand tools are 35 years old and are good quality. I have a 50 year old Craftsman sabre saw that is all metal and still works like a champ. The batteries for cordless tools cost more than the tools so when the batteries die I just get a new set of tools on sale that come with multiple batteries. Tools with rechargeable batteries are kinda like ink jet printers. They sure are proud of both ink and batteries!