Harborfreight Tools' tools, how's ya experience?

Joined
Feb 14, 2006
Messages
2,724
I've not had good luck with Harborfreight Tools' tools, except for a digital caliper(which still isn't the best quality)

They have tools that you won't find anywhere else so you really have nowhere else to go unless you want to order them at crazy prices.

How's your experience with them? I bought security bits.. and quality is bad right out of the package... and one broke in use..

http://www.upitall.com/Public/Pictures/1qualityftw.jpg

harborfreight.jpg
 
Last edited by a moderator:

gadget_lover

Flashaholic
Joined
Oct 7, 2003
Messages
7,148
Location
Near Silicon Valley (too near)
It really depends on the specific items. I have a HF lathe and mill, and they have given good service for several years. I probably have 40 or 50 of their products, from screw driver bits to machine tools to power tools.

I have had a fairly low failure rate, but I don't expect to spend 25% of the normal price and get a great tool. I figure HF tools are great for when I need something for just one project, or for occasional use.

Daniel
 

DieselTech

Enlightened
Joined
Mar 10, 2006
Messages
233
Location
Bethpage, TN
Harbor Freight tools are good for the occasional use specialty tool. A puller that I might use once or twice a year? I might buy that from HF. A set of wrenches or sockets that I'm going to use everyday? I wouldn't even think of buying them from HF.
 

LukeA

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jun 3, 2007
Messages
4,399
Location
near Pittsburgh
Harbor Freight tools are good for the occasional use specialty tool. A puller that I might use once or twice a year? I might buy that from HF. A set of wrenches or sockets that I'm going to use everyday? I wouldn't even think of buying them from HF.

No way in hell I'll buy another handheld power tool from them. That angle grinder lasted 1.5 jobs before the spindle bearing broke or became unseated. The Metabo that replaced it is phenomenal.
 

sawlight

Enlightened
Joined
Jan 2, 2007
Messages
617
You get what you pay for!! Sorry, but it's true!!
I have bought their large and small angle wrench sets, if you are working on hydraulics and need to grind one to fit between the fittings, you are not out anything!!
I have used the 10" sliding compound miter saw for four years with VERY good results, but I don't use it daily and if I did I would buy a better one.
I have broken ALL of the crescent wrenches I have bought from them. I snapped the drive lug off of the 3/4" ratchet as well as cracked the wall on a few sockets in the set. I am replacing them with S/K as I break them.
I have a chain fall (chain hoist) that is wonderful, the few times I have used it. The comealongs I have bought I have folded the handles on the first use.
The lathes and milling machines seem decently built, but I am leery of how well they will hold a tolerance, and stand up to hard use.
As for you're security bit set, it was cheap, double the price and you could have had a decent set. I doubt you are out much!
Like I said, if you don't have a huge need for the tool, HF is a life saver, if you REALLY need the tool, spend the money!!! I used to be a HUGE Craftsman fan, now I buy Snap-on and Mac. I have learned some hard lessons!!!
 

9volt

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Oct 14, 2006
Messages
1,235
Location
WI
The right stuff there is a great deal. I buy alot of stuff there that I thikn I'm only ever going to use once or twice. Alot of their hand tools have lifetime warranties, but I don't have any of those.

The wrong stuff there is complete crap. I wouldn't buy any precision tools there.
 

Diesel_Bomber

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Feb 19, 2006
Messages
1,772
My first reaction was rather harsh, but on further thought, I have to add this paragraph:

I guess it really depends on the person, and what their definition of good or acceptable is. I have a friend who swears by Harbor Freight tools and won't buy anything else. The amount of money he's spent on HF tools wouldn't buy him 10% of the same tools in a name brand. His usage is very occasional and very light. He still breaks tools, and thinks this is just fine, because Harbor Freight has free replacement via their lifetime warranty. He's happy with the tools and completely satisfied, and that really is what's important.

Now, back to my opinion: Total and complete garbage. I have work to get done and a reputation to maintain. Lifetime warranty doesn't mean diddly when I break the main tool and both the backups at 3am with an equipment operator screaming at me to get him back up and running, and it's an hour drive to the nearest store even if they were open. Sure, I've broken name brand tools(Snap-On, Matco, Proto, Mac, Craftsman, etc.), but that's definitely the exception and not the rule. If I showed up on a job site or log landing and started unloading HF tools, I'd be laughed at and told to go back home. Even without the above situation, it's cheaper to buy the good tool the first time, instead of buying crap, breaking it, and having to buy the good tool anyway. Add in the above situation and I can't afford to NOT buy quality the first time.

:buddies:

Edit: Yeah, Craftsman has been losing it the last couple years, I won't be buying any more of their stuff either.
 
Last edited:

TooSharp

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Nov 30, 2007
Messages
117
Location
Huntsville, AL
Harbor Freight tools are good for the occasional use specialty tool. A puller that I might use once or twice a year? I might buy that from HF. A set of wrenches or sockets that I'm going to use everyday? I wouldn't even think of buying them from HF.
+1
HF is where I go to buy a once in a while tool. There also have some larger power tools that are not too bad. I've purchased one of their larger drill presses, works great no run out. I also have one of their dust collectors, just need to upgrade the bags and it is half the price of the competition. Their carts, casters, dollies, tarps and a few other tools are great deals as well. Last year I picked up a reciprocating saw just to tear down a swing set in the back yard. I paid $20 and 20 minutes later it was disassembled. I say it paid for itself that day. If your looking to buy a specific tool ask around and see what people say.
 

jzmtl

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Dec 4, 2006
Messages
3,123
Location
Montreal, Canada
I don't have any since there's no HF here, but I know people who test HF torque wrench against craftsman etc. and they are on par with each other.
 

9volt

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Oct 14, 2006
Messages
1,235
Location
WI
I have a HF torque wrench and had a Craftsman. They are basically the same tool, but the HF is 60%. I'm not impressed with the Craftsman wrench for the price. The HF works great for mounting wheels and suspension bits where close and consistent is good enough.

The other thing that I -really- like about the HF torque wrench is that if you drop it you don't have to pay to get it recalibrated, you can just get a new one for $20 or whatever they cost.
 

IsaacHayes

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jan 30, 2003
Messages
5,876
Location
Missouri
I have stuff like impact sockets and basic wrenches and they hold up fine. If they break, I'm out one wrench that for a name brand would cost as much as the whole set did at HF.

Their air-tools seem to be decent (great for the price actually), I have used the $7-9 1/4" die grinder lots on porting out engine parts and it has been fine.
 

ABTOMAT

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jan 9, 2004
Messages
2,869
Location
MA, USA
I've had a couple Harbor Freight power tools and they were the most worthless trash I've ever owned. Ditto for similar no-name brands. I've given up on buying Chinese tools and will only buy quality stuff, even if it costs more. Usually try to buy used when I can.

The "once in a while" thing sounds good on paper but I don't buy it. If you only use your oddball tool twice a year and it breaks on a Sunday night when you need to take a 7-day car trip in 12 hours, the savings will not have paid off. This has nearly happened to me several times, most recently when I used an exhaust pipe expander from AutoZone. Their tools are free to borrow (with deposit) but I would have gladly paid $100 for an American expander that wouldn't break in normal use.

Other than the made-in-US tools, Craftsman stuff is generic Chinese. Sears has basically ruined the brand. I keep using Craftsman wrenches but that's it. Just read the reviews of most stuff they sell on their site--all negative. The lure of short-term profits by reselling this crap is going to kill the industry if this keeps up. Every dollar that goes to these frauds means the companies that make decent tools have to cut corners and raise prices as volume falls.
 

tvodrd

*Flashaholic* ,
Joined
Dec 13, 2002
Messages
4,987
Location
Hawthorne, NV
I have found most of their stuff "serviceable" and it's cheap enough to just toss if broken. A couple weeks ago I received their monthly mini catalog and a threat to cut me off if I didn't buy something. I went through it and found ~$75 worth of oddball stuff I might use someday. I couldn't get their website to work, so I called it in. 3-4 of the items on my list from the just-received catalog were out of stock! I said "No" to the "club" offers and other verbal spam and concluded the order. Still haven't received the goods. :shrug:

Larry
 

InTheDark

Enlightened
Joined
Sep 13, 2001
Messages
570
Location
USA
It is what it is. They're cheap tools, you know it, they know it, everyone knows it. You do get what you pay for, and for some people, that's exactly all they're looking for, a cheap tool to get a job done once. It's the same thing with cheap flashlights. If all you want is a light to light a keyway in the dark, why waste money on a surefire? You can argue all day long about how much better a surefire is than the el-cheapo dollar store light, but most people aren't going to care. They just want to get the job done as cheaply as possible.

If you rely on your tools for a living, then you probably shouldn't be buying tools at HF. If a tool failure would cause you a lot of hardship, then you shouldn't be buying them at HF. If you see yourself using tools a lot in the future, you probably should spend more for a quality tool. But for a LOT of people, who need a specialty tool for a one time repair, they're usable. Yes it might break, it might not be accurate, or it might be complete crap, but that's the risk you take. For me personally, the risk pays off most of the time and I've never been disappointed. Of course I only buy certain things there. Mostly consumable items like sandpaper, wire wheels, brushes, dust mask, etc. But I've also bought angle grinders there that are still going strong after 4 years, even after being broke in half and taped back together. For less than $30, I can buy 3 and have them setup with different wire wheels at the same time. Can't do that with a $100 milwaulkee. If one breaks, I still have 2 backups.
 
Last edited:

fieldops

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jan 29, 2005
Messages
1,100
Location
Cape Cod MA
I have never bought any real tools from HF. The only thing I ever got from them is a 35w HID (Costco clone). Typical cheap build and a bit pricey, but it sure can throw a beam :grin2:
 

PhotonWrangler

Flashaholic
Joined
Oct 19, 2003
Messages
14,432
Location
In a handbasket
It seems that a lot of the inexpensive imported tools are made of pot metal, the stuff that shatters or crumbles easily under stress. I bought a pair of side cutters from there, and the cutting head just snapped one day. No major loss since it was inexpensive, but I replaced it with a pair of Klein cutters ($22 from Graybar) and I haven't had a problem since.

On the other hand, I've purchased a few doodads from them that haven't failed, including a Chicago-branded heat gun. It only gets light use but it works well.
 
Last edited:

TigerhawkT3

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2006
Messages
3,819
Location
CA, 94087
I've gotten some random knicknacks from them, as well as an abrasive chop saw which cost me $60 and works fine, a reciprocating saw which works fine ($20), and a cable winch puller that cost $30 and broke the first time I used it (I don't know if I took it past its maximum or what). If I really need a mill/lathe before I have the money and motivation to buy a really good one (e.g. a 30-year-old American model), I'd probably go with a HF one.

They're a little like DX/KD ("I never knew I could get this so cheap!"), but a little higher quality/prices.

P.S.: Chop saws are SO MUCH FASTER and neater than chopping something with a dremel and cutting disc that it's not even funny.
 

ABTOMAT

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jan 9, 2004
Messages
2,869
Location
MA, USA
Pot metal would be too soft to make any kind of cutting tool out of, even for the Chinese. What they do specialize in is a mystery mix of cheese-grade steel of stunningly poor quality.

Tigerhawk, if you shop around a good American lathe and mill can be had for much less than an import. I got a fully tooled 10" Atlas in perfect condition for about $200 plus some minor work. Got a 7" shaper for $75 needing bearings, and a couple of small milling machines for around $200 that need a little TLC.

The local Craigslist shows several Bridgeports and clones in the $800-1500 range. A good (better than Atlas) 10-12" lathe can be had for about that, too.
 

FlashKat

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Mar 18, 2006
Messages
2,364
Location
Anaheim, CA.
It all depends on the brand you purchase at Harbor Freight. I have good luck with Chicago Electric 18v cordless drill, Pittsburgh sockets and wrenches, and several other tools.
They are not the best, but they have worked just as good as Craftsman for less than half the price.
 
Top