Harbor Freight Win-or-Fail Thread
#61
Cpt. Slow
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Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Oregon City, OR
Posts: 14,179
Total Cats: 1,129
I've purchased three of those orange angle grinders (I think they changed them to red later so at least one of them is red). All work great years later but one of them had the handle break off on me and I almost cut my arm off with it. Was my mistake but the cheap metal gave way that held the handle threads.
#62
Elite Member
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Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Overland Park, Kansas
Posts: 5,360
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Can't believe nobody posted this one yet:
1.5 Ton quick aluminum jack. Serious WIN! Bought my first one in 2004 and used and beat the shiet out of it. Finally stripped out the threads for the release. Gave to my brother and he helicoiled it, continues to WIN!
Bought a new one for $69.00 after a coupon. Continues to win 2 years and counting.
If you buy one, threadloc the **** out of everything on it, or it'll literally fall apart.
1.5 Ton quick aluminum jack. Serious WIN! Bought my first one in 2004 and used and beat the shiet out of it. Finally stripped out the threads for the release. Gave to my brother and he helicoiled it, continues to WIN!
Bought a new one for $69.00 after a coupon. Continues to win 2 years and counting.
If you buy one, threadloc the **** out of everything on it, or it'll literally fall apart.
#64
Get this instead
3/8" on one side, 1/4" on the other, expendable from 8.5" to 12.5" with a nice grip, $11.99. Big win IMO.
3/8" on one side, 1/4" on the other, expendable from 8.5" to 12.5" with a nice grip, $11.99. Big win IMO.
#65
The little blue jack is the best jack I've ever owned. I used to have a big, heavy, orange Sears piece of ****. First, it started leaking, but it was still usable. I abandoned it a couple of years later after it I bent the chassis trying to move a car with stuck back brakes.
I bought one of these for the garage and added an HF power strip to it. I caught it on sale and had a coupon, so I paid $99 for it:
The 3" pneumatic cutoff tool has come in very handy:
Also had good luck with their 5-piece metric flex-head gear wrench knockoffs:
Their Pittsburgh brand pliers and crescent wrenches aren't bad, but I prefer my off-brand AutoZone channel locks over the HF grabbers.
On the flip side, I bought their cheapo orange jigsaw for a roll bar install. It barely made it through the one install, and then I discovered HF didn't sell the ******* replacement blades for it. FAIL. Maybe that's why I don't see it on their website any more...
Agreed:
I bought one of these for the garage and added an HF power strip to it. I caught it on sale and had a coupon, so I paid $99 for it:
The 3" pneumatic cutoff tool has come in very handy:
Also had good luck with their 5-piece metric flex-head gear wrench knockoffs:
Their Pittsburgh brand pliers and crescent wrenches aren't bad, but I prefer my off-brand AutoZone channel locks over the HF grabbers.
On the flip side, I bought their cheapo orange jigsaw for a roll bar install. It barely made it through the one install, and then I discovered HF didn't sell the ******* replacement blades for it. FAIL. Maybe that's why I don't see it on their website any more...
Agreed:
EPIC Failure. Ratchet bar clamp/seperator 6", 12", 18", 24" Item # 46806, Item # 46807, Item # 46808, Item # 46809.
#68
Slowest Progress Ever
iTrader: (26)
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: The coal ridden hills of Pennsylvania
Posts: 6,022
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Guy I work with just bought a wingnut assortment from garbage freight. He opened them up and accidently spilled them on the floor. Some of the wings broke off the nuts on impact. I guess the quality control guy that day was busy watching over 6 year olds that were sewing Nike sneakers together.
#70
6" Digital Caliper =Win
Use them at the shop and have verified their accuracy against way more expensive calipers. Work good and when a tire tech runs off with it or you drop it, your not to worried.
I hate reading manual calipers so I use it at the house alot, measure hose, sway bars engine parts. Reccomend it to everyone, I never wanted one til I had one then I used it all the time.
1/2" extendable Ratchet = Win
A friend of mine is a big tool truck guy and bad mouths cheap tools. Well I love cheap tools so I drug him to HF. He said his master tech had a ratchet like it that was really old and none of the tools trucks had it any more. He got it about a year ago and hasnt had any problems, said it cut his alignment time on trucks in half.
1/4" 3/8" & 1/2" Composite Ratchets = Super Win
They are like ten bucks now when I got them they were between 6-9. I love them 77 tooth count, smooth, havent had any trouble with the coating and Ive used the **** out of them. The same day bought them a friend paid 80 dollars for a used 1/2 snap on 24 tooth ratchet. Both have lifetime warranties. I think I got the good deal.
Use them at the shop and have verified their accuracy against way more expensive calipers. Work good and when a tire tech runs off with it or you drop it, your not to worried.
I hate reading manual calipers so I use it at the house alot, measure hose, sway bars engine parts. Reccomend it to everyone, I never wanted one til I had one then I used it all the time.
1/2" extendable Ratchet = Win
A friend of mine is a big tool truck guy and bad mouths cheap tools. Well I love cheap tools so I drug him to HF. He said his master tech had a ratchet like it that was really old and none of the tools trucks had it any more. He got it about a year ago and hasnt had any problems, said it cut his alignment time on trucks in half.
1/4" 3/8" & 1/2" Composite Ratchets = Super Win
They are like ten bucks now when I got them they were between 6-9. I love them 77 tooth count, smooth, havent had any trouble with the coating and Ive used the **** out of them. The same day bought them a friend paid 80 dollars for a used 1/2 snap on 24 tooth ratchet. Both have lifetime warranties. I think I got the good deal.
#72
Elite Member
Thread Starter
iTrader: (15)
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: San Antonio, Texas
Posts: 4,847
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+1 on the digital calipers. I have had a set for years that still work fine.
I want some of those composite ratchets for the fine tooth action. Thanks for that one.
I want some of those composite ratchets for the fine tooth action. Thanks for that one.
Last edited by ZX-Tex; 08-05-2011 at 02:32 PM.
#73
Can't believe nobody posted this one yet:
1.5 Ton quick aluminum jack. Serious WIN! Bought my first one in 2004 and used and beat the shiet out of it. Finally stripped out the threads for the release. Gave to my brother and he helicoiled it, continues to WIN!
Bought a new one for $69.00 after a coupon. Continues to win 2 years and counting.
If you buy one, threadloc the **** out of everything on it, or it'll literally fall apart.
1.5 Ton quick aluminum jack. Serious WIN! Bought my first one in 2004 and used and beat the shiet out of it. Finally stripped out the threads for the release. Gave to my brother and he helicoiled it, continues to WIN!
Bought a new one for $69.00 after a coupon. Continues to win 2 years and counting.
If you buy one, threadloc the **** out of everything on it, or it'll literally fall apart.
Mine died after about 5? years of service. Would still jack up, but wouldn't hold weight. I think the seals went bad.
Replaced it with the monster jack I poster earlier in this thread.
#74
1/2" extendable Ratchet = Win
A friend of mine is a big tool truck guy and bad mouths cheap tools. Well I love cheap tools so I drug him to HF. He said his master tech had a ratchet like it that was really old and none of the tools trucks had it any more. He got it about a year ago and hasnt had any problems, said it cut his alignment time on trucks in half.
A friend of mine is a big tool truck guy and bad mouths cheap tools. Well I love cheap tools so I drug him to HF. He said his master tech had a ratchet like it that was really old and none of the tools trucks had it any more. He got it about a year ago and hasnt had any problems, said it cut his alignment time on trucks in half.
#75
i wish i would have seen this post earlier. I just got back from my "once every 4 months" trip to hf. It is probably a 60 mile round trip for me (or at least feels like it) to a part of a neighboring town which i never go to. Anyway, i would have purchased one of those extending ratchets if they had one. I've never seen one in the store but it doesn't mean it wasn't there. I ended up buying an extending tree branch cutter (saw on a long stick), some heat shrink wrapping butt connectors, an air compressor $7 drier/filter, and some 4" and 6" long pegboard hooks. I carried the wife with me (extra person for coupons) so we got two of the items at 20% off and two free flashlights.
"
get this instead
3/8" on one side, 1/4" on the other, expendable from 8.5" to 12.5" with a nice grip, $11.99. Big win imo.
3/8" on one side, 1/4" on the other, expendable from 8.5" to 12.5" with a nice grip, $11.99. Big win imo.
#78
Anyone here have a HF MIG wire feed welder? Any decent? I want a starter welder to play around with and they seem pretty well priced. Somethine like this.
http://www.harborfreight.com/welding...der-97503.html
I don't think I need 140amp one for $100 more...
For light duty steel and alum welding, I imagine 120AMP is enough for getting started? That... and the 90 AMP one is the same price so why not get the bigger one, right?
http://www.harborfreight.com/welding...der-97503.html
I don't think I need 140amp one for $100 more...
For light duty steel and alum welding, I imagine 120AMP is enough for getting started? That... and the 90 AMP one is the same price so why not get the bigger one, right?
#79
Anyone here have a HF MIG wire feed welder? Any decent? I want a starter welder to play around with and they seem pretty well priced. Somethine like this.
http://www.harborfreight.com/welding...der-97503.html
I don't think I need 140amp one for $100 more...
For light duty steel and alum welding, I imagine 120AMP is enough for getting started? That... and the 90 AMP one is the same price so why not get the bigger one, right?
http://www.harborfreight.com/welding...der-97503.html
I don't think I need 140amp one for $100 more...
For light duty steel and alum welding, I imagine 120AMP is enough for getting started? That... and the 90 AMP one is the same price so why not get the bigger one, right?