New HF ICON Breaker Bars

[Mr_B]

Upping the game by selling average tools with a new name and rather bold statements of comparison to elite brands doesn't rank as upping their game, to me that taking the piss out of the consumer.
Upping the game would be building and advancing house brands in quality and value for money until it a household name not making it up like a walt disney movie .
It not so much about they don't now what they doing but more about they use the lowest methods possible in retail practice .

 

[bluebolt]

All I know is I have one of the older Harbor Freight breaker bars and tried to use it on a stuck bolt the impact would not get to. The shaft just kept on bending although it did not break. But it would not loosen the bolts. Grabbed my USA made 3/4 breaker bar which was actually shorter. Busted that bolt loose in a hurry.

 

[M_George]

That may well be. Kohl's, etc are getting destroyed by Amazon. Best Buy, BBBY, etc also getting murdered. But the place with 25% off coupons for $5 screwdrivers is opening a new store every 3 days.

They are certainly changing the market. Northern Tool seems to be moving in the other direction (choosing cheaper and worse suppliers, especially sockets and wrenches). I once preferred them simply because they didn't have the cheap feel and Chinesium smell of HF.

I want to like the new torque wrench. I splurged on a Techangle in 1/2" and now my other torque wrench ratcheting mechanisms feel like Craftsman RPs. I'd like a reasonably accurate option with a high tooth count head for ~$100. But it's hard to trust a precision tool sitting on a shelf next to a made in India combination wrench set for $7 with off center broaching and dirt under the chrome plating.

That's why Nordstrom's doesn't sell Haynes. It's purely psychological but a $100 t-shirt won't sell next to a 3 pack for $20.

Kohl's and other clothing retailers are their own worst enemies. I went into Kohl's and Walmart looking for some T-shirts last July when the temperature was in the 90's and they both told me they only stock them during the winter... Went home and ordered some nice ones on Amazon. Company's like HF and Amazon are just working smart.

 

[Tonyuk]

A breaker bar is a breaker bar, i've lost more than i've broke.

 

[Andrew LB]

Sears tried the 2 price tiers on the same product with Craftsman and Craftsman Industrial.

NOT a screaming success.

Yea. When Craftsman began moving production to China, they came out with Craftsman Professional as their premium line with lifetime warranty. Not sure why they dumped that for Craftsman Industrial, maybe because they were no longer making the Professional tools themselves in US but shifted production to Apex i believe.

 

[ftb]

A breaker bar is a breaker bar, i've lost more than i've broke.

Do you not know that it says ICON on it??? A must for a HF tool collector.



I've discovered a 1/4" SO breaker not long ago. Been using it ever since. Why? It's slim and goes into places in race cars where 1/4" ratchet cannot fit.

Have a 18" 3/8 and a pair of 1/2 (18" and 24"). I can't remember ever reaching for the 1/2 18" since I got a 3/8 version of the same. Again, same reason as above - size.

 

[powertrip]

Yea. When Craftsman began moving production to China, they came out with Craftsman Professional as their premium line with lifetime warranty. Not sure why they dumped that for Craftsman Industrial, maybe because they were no longer making the Professional tools themselves in US but shifted production to Apex i believe.

Craftsman professional came out long before they started moving production to China. Craftsman professional started in the late 80's or early 90's I think. China Craftsman within the last 10 years or so. Craftsman Pro was available in the retail stores. Craftsman Industrial was available in some retail but also places like Grainger. Industrial and Pro were basically the same thing, at least as far as wrenches and screwdrivers were concerned.

 

[sk farmer]

in reference to post 45 above.

i disagree with this. craftsman professional was side by side in the stores for years with the us made craftsman stuff. if anything, the import stuff started appearing to replace the professional stuff as us made production started to slip away. much of the professional stuff actually disappeared long before the mainline us made stuff did.

the disappearance of full polish wrenches made by armstrong and sk and the red and black handle screwdrivers are good examples of that happening.

 

[Mechanical Noise]

Craftsman professional came out long before they started moving production to China. Craftsman professional started in the late 80's or early 90's I think. China Craftsman within the last 10 years or so. Craftsman Pro was available in the retail stores. Craftsman Industrial was available in some retail but also places like Grainger. Industrial and Pro were basically the same thing, at least as far as wrenches and screwdrivers were concerned.

As far as I know, Craftsman Industrial was the same as mainline US Craftsman with a few exceptions such as the long pattern full polish wrenches, the screwdrivers and i think there were some black oxide versions of mainline Craftsman.

But the sockets, ratchets and raised panel wrenches were mainline Craftsman with slightly different stampings. Even the pear head ratchet.

Sears had hoped to sell Craftsman Industrial at SK and Proto prices but ended up selling up literally tons of that stuff at Sears Outlet stores at Craftsman SALE prices.

I know, I bought some of it, because it sold cheap. But the only winners I saw were the full polish, long pattern wrenches. Everything else was meh. Even the occasional crooked or run off socket stamping was right there on Craftsman Industrial.

 

[Strouty]

Harbor Freight can be nimble and make quick decisions because they don't have shareholders to answer to. As far as the business model, well usually you see good, better, best, but they are aiming for crackheads, weekend warrior, wannabe mechanics, professional repair order readers, and now they want to add in real mechanics? I think they would need to separate the rest of the garbage they sell before moving into that market. Snap on seems to be going the other way and they keep adding more and more supplemental garbage to their lineup, then they also whored out their name to be put on various ****.

Do I own HF, yes, do I own Snap On, yes, do I like the smell of the tool truck more than the HF stores, yes........... Case Closed.

 

[pbon]

If the lower priced bars are snapping and that is inconvenient or putting people at risk, then maybe heavy duty users do need a better bar. A friend broke my 3/8 HF breaker bar but I have never broken one. If I do, a new one is free. It’s more a snap that causes me to crash into something and hurt myself that would worry me. Anyone had that happen?

 

[zendriver]

Harbor Freight can be nimble and make quick decisions because they don't have shareholders to answer to. As far as the business model, well usually you see good, better, best, but they are aiming for crackheads, weekend warrior, wannabe mechanics, professional repair order readers, and now they want to add in real mechanics? I think they would need to separate the rest of the garbage they sell before moving into that market. Snap on seems to be going the other way and they keep adding more and more supplemental garbage to their lineup, then they also whored out their name to be put on various ****.



Do I own HF, yes, do I own Snap On, yes, do I like the smell of the tool truck more than the HF stores, yes........... Case Closed.

Yes, a company that doesn't seem to do anything but grow each year, can be a real pisser for investors.


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[DFB]

The original 3/8" fixed head breaker bars from HF don't seem to have the same positive feedback the 1/2" ones have, almost 20% wouldn't recommend vs only 4% on the Pittsburgh Pro 1/2".

 

[Mr_B]

^
pretty easy abuse a 3/8 breaker bar, I bust a fair few top brand 3/8 drive ratchets, extensions and breaker knuckles over years when pushing them to max in tight spaces where not much else will fit .
1/2" holds out way better even in cheaper tool and alloy quality and tempering really starts to show on 3/8 and 1/4 pushed hard , at the HF pitts pro prices you know it not going take years of fatigue or extra load a better treated alloy could, just looking at the flex in these bars tells you the grade differs massively .

 

[sgtgeo]

I was just at HF for a 1/2” breaker bar.

Pitts Pro was $25
Icon was $50

They look identical except for the handle. Both made in Taiwan.

Can’t use the 20% off coupon in the Icon (fine print)

I look forward to seeing the Icon ratchets and wrenches but the breaker bar is a non-starter

 

[joey1320]

It doesn't cost HF much to come up with a new "brand name" and color scheme for the same part and ask double/triple the price. Even if you only sell 1 to 10, Icon to Pittsburgh, you're still making 2-3 times as much for the same thing.

 

[DFB]

^^^

Boy does seem like that on the surface at least with this breaker bar. Nothing very definitive is spelled out that actually makes one believe its "BETTER" made than the existing PRO bar really

 

[Xcursion88]

You can get a nice SK or Wright US made bar for that price.

This.

 

[joey1320]

^^^

Boy does seem like that on the surface at least with this breaker bar. Nothing very definitive is spelled out that actually makes one believe its "BETTER" made than the existing PRO bar really

Packaging, display, brand name etc.

 

[mowersplus84]

I saw both the icon and the Pittsburgh pro side by side the icon is beefier then the Pittsburgh pro .

 

[sgtgeo]

I saw both the icon and the Pittsburgh pro side by side the icon is beefier then the Pittsburgh pro .

At least for the ~25” with the handle I’ll have to disagree.

Didn’t compare the other options.

 

[ARFLY]

At least for the ~25” with the handle I’ll have to disagree.

Didn’t compare the other options.

I looked at them yesterday. The Icon and the Pitts Pro look almost identical. The red on the handles is a slightly different shade. The "stops" on the heads are slightly thicker on the Icon. I don't think that makes it stronger or worth $30 more. Maybe the steel composition is different.

 

[6PTsocket]

Before I would spend the money for the ICON name I would buy the 24" PROTO (an established quality name) fo $33.Notice how all the new brands are coupon exempt and come damn close to name brands on cost. They advertised one Hercules tool as a better deal than DeWalt for a saving of 10 BUCKS.

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[kngelv]

I was at Harbor Freight about 30 minutes ago. In the 25" size the Pitt Pro and the Icon are exactly the same except for labeling. The 18" Pitt Pro has a different design than the 18" Icon.

James

 

[jdlong]

I would want to see how much they flex compared to the Pittsburgh variety.

 

[fordgasm]

There are a couple videos comparing the two on YouTube. I have the Pitt Pro one and it's been great. For $16 after a 20% coupon it's a no brainer over the Icon.

 

[ChrisLS8]

I was at Harbor Freight about 30 minutes ago. In the 25" size the Pitt Pro and the Icon are exactly the same except for labeling. The 18" Pitt Pro has a different design than the 18" Icon.

James

They are similar but the icon is slightly beefier. Enough to make a difference noticeable for the price? Not one bit

 

[BD1]

I have the old style from 12 years ago. Back then $8.00 and still going. Used them on pipe flange bolts 5/8'' and 3/4'' and no bending or breaking. Pretty hard to beat that.

 

[Revere Cycles]

I saw the new Icon breaker bars next to the Pittsburgh Pro in my local store, the differences between the two are subtle at best. I haven't had issue with my Pittsburgh Pro breaker bar, so I see little incentive to buy the Icon as an upgrade. If my Pittsburgh bar broke, I would replace it with Proto now that I have a trade account with my local industrial supply store.

 

[patchap]

I have the old one under a different name, the drive shears off long before they break.
Takes a good 4' of pipe to shear em off to, unless your jumping on it. Really don't see any reason to spend more

 

[jd175]

I also compared the Pittsburgh and Icon 25" breaker bars at the store and they appeared almost identical with the obvious exception of the Icon bar having a larger diameter pin at the pivot point. I already have one of the older 25" Pittsburgh bars that i keep in my truck so I figured I'd grab the Icon one since it was on sale. I compared it to my older Pittsburgh one when I got home, and the older one has the same size pin as the Icon. I guess maybe they can now market the Icon as the more robust of the two based on the pin diameter, although I don't know how much difference it makes in actual testing, considering the square drive may be more likely to shear off than the pin is to break.

 

[DFB]

Ya the Pittsburgh Pro @$19.99 before discount should easily handle most people's 1/2" breaker bar duties just fine unless your always reefing on some really big equipment.

And I still can't reason what if any major changes that would make for such a big price difference with the new Icon labeled tool or even the need for it.

 

[zendriver]

Ya the Pittsburgh Pro @$19.99 before discount should easily handle most people's 1/2" breaker bar duties just fine unless your always reefing on some really big equipment.

And I still can't reason what if any major changes that would make for such a big price difference with the new Icon labeled tool or even the need for it.

I think it's because Harbor freight discovered as long as people think they're getting more by paying more, what else matters? They Will gladly take it to the bank.

It's worked well for many other companies some of which are mentioned here regularly


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[DFB]

I think it's because Harbor freight discovered as long as people think they're getting more by paying more, what else matters? They Will gladly take it to the bank.

It's worked well for many other companies some of which are mentioned here regularly


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I get the same problem in my seasonal sales marketing.

People sometimes say..."Why that's so cheap"

and I'll say

"You can pay more if you like...I will gladly take your money"

 

[catron44]

I looked at them yesterday. The Icon and the Pitts Pro look almost identical. The red on the handles is a slightly different shade. The "stops" on the heads are slightly thicker on the Icon. I don't think that makes it stronger or worth $30 more. Maybe the steel composition is different.

I'll add that when I saw them this passed weekend side by side, the Pitts one had a rough feel where the Icon seemed more polished. Doesn't change the usability of the tool, but it might change the perceived value.