I bought the metal cuttnig Dremel blades for my H/F tool, they work "Fein". One caution: no matter whos blade you use, this thing just moves too fast to cut stainless steel. The steel work hardens too quickly and chews up the blade. You need a tool with a slower speed to cut stainless.
HF Multi function power tool
- Thread starter tcianci
- Start date
rich11coop
Member
- Joined
- Mar 20, 2009
- Messages
- 12
I found this supplier of blades:
http://tinyurl.com/m2lozm
Looks like they have figured out how to make 'em all compatable?
Anyone bought from them? Quality, etc?
Cheers,
Coop
http://tinyurl.com/m2lozm
Looks like they have figured out how to make 'em all compatable?
Anyone bought from them? Quality, etc?
Cheers,
Coop
They say it fits alot of manufacturers .. are you going to buy some and report back?
Big_John
Well-known member
I bought some Dremel blades and they don't fit. The hole pattern diameter is too small on the Dremel blade to match the HF tool.
That's very good to know, thank you.
Well, I stopped by HF today and I noticed some changes. They have a whole section dedicated to all of the new multi function tool accessories. The good news is that they have more selection and everything is packaged individually.
The bad news is that the prices seem to be higher now. One standard saw blade is $7.99 (not on sale). If I'm not mistaken you could get the saw blade plus 2 scraper blades for about that prices. I also noticed that the multi function tool is coming in a new box now. This scares me....
I may have seen that same display. There was one in an aluminum case, but the individual unit itself was still in a small cardboard box.
I would be interested in more long term updates. I'm probably going to buy one.
Chris Adams
Well-known member
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2007
- Messages
- 2,117
Interesting question. I used my HF to put the switch and socket holes in half inch thick OSB Radiant barrier a couple weeks ago and it was loud enough to be annoying. Way to loud for a small hobby room, I suspect. Not a problem in a shop.
I did get tired of burning my fingers on the head. Seems like the natural place to grab it is the heat sink... Might fabricate a handle for it.
I did get tired of burning my fingers on the head. Seems like the natural place to grab it is the heat sink... Might fabricate a handle for it.
Oscillating Hand Tool Lab Test: Can These Four Stand Up to Traditional Power Tools?
http://www.popularmechanics.com/home_journal/tools/4325505.html
http://www.popularmechanics.com/home_journal/tools/4325505.html
I wouldn't even bother reading the Popular Mechanics test. That rag has sunk so far in my estimation.
To the poster that says he bought the Dremel blades and they don't fit...I am sorry, maybe there are other Dremel blades that won't fit the HF machine but I bought the 3/4 inch wide wood/metal cutting Dremel blade from Depot and it fit right on to the HF tool perfectly. In fact it has become my blade of choice for this tool, it is inexpensive and I can run right down to Depot and grab one if needed. We have also used the Bosch grout removal blade on the HF tool with no fitment problems. That blade came from Depot as well. Also the life of the Dremel blade is way above the HF parts. But I kinda expected the HF blades to be low end.
My brother just ordered a few blades for his Fein and my HF too from multiblades.com yesterday. I will post and let you guys know how they work out.
To the poster that says he bought the Dremel blades and they don't fit...I am sorry, maybe there are other Dremel blades that won't fit the HF machine but I bought the 3/4 inch wide wood/metal cutting Dremel blade from Depot and it fit right on to the HF tool perfectly. In fact it has become my blade of choice for this tool, it is inexpensive and I can run right down to Depot and grab one if needed. We have also used the Bosch grout removal blade on the HF tool with no fitment problems. That blade came from Depot as well. Also the life of the Dremel blade is way above the HF parts. But I kinda expected the HF blades to be low end.
My brother just ordered a few blades for his Fein and my HF too from multiblades.com yesterday. I will post and let you guys know how they work out.
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Yeah, I was a little confused about this. Some say the Dremel blades fit, and some say they don't. I'm looking forward to your review of the multiblades.com stuff. Thanks
Big_John
Well-known member
That is the one I bought also. There's no way it fits my HF tool. So.... Is there a difference in the Dremel blades or the HF tool??
I bought some blades on Ebay from these guys that fit perfectly and seem to work pretty well, although I haven't done enough to tell anything about their durability.
http://stores.shop.ebay.com/specialtydiamondproducts__W0QQ_armrsZ1
For what it's worth, the new model that HF carries (white box) is 1.6 amps and has little "pegs" that fit into holes in the blade. The old model (black box), which I bought, is 1.5 amps and does not have any "pegs" to help secure the blade. I wonder if this doesn't have something to do with some of the Dremel blades not working????
Big_John
Well-known member
Now this makes sense!!
The one I have has the indexing pins that will "clock" the blade in different positions.
So.... From that it makes sense that the Dremels fit the early versions and not the newer model.
Went to Lowes today and got a Dremel blade as a sample. Although close to the Harbor Freight design, it will not work with the latest Harbor Freight tool. Does anyone know who locally (its not Sears, HD or Lowes) would be selling Bosch blades?
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This is very interesting because I was mad about getting the un-updated version of the HF tool, but now I'm thinking it was a blessing. What if you were to grind off the little indesing pins. Would this allow you to use the Dremel blades on the new version of the HF tool?
Big_John
Well-known member
You could grind them off and use the Dremel blade, but the pins do keep the blade from turning and loosening as its used.
I seem to recall something in the manual about the pins on the HF tool but I think that they said that the newer version was the one without the indexing pins. Anyway the one I have does not have the pins so maybe that explains why the Dremel blades fit OK. Like I said in my earlier post, if you really force the thing, you can get the blade to slip but by then you are really pushing the tool to do more than it was designed to.
I don't know for sure which model is the new version, but I can tell you that the one I bought came in a black box, and now my HF only carries the white boxes. The pulled one out of a white box and it had the pins on it. Mine does not.
Like tcianci said, I think it will work fine most of the time without the indexing pins. Mine seems to work fine without them, although I haven't used it much yet.
OK guys, the update: I got some blades from Multiblades.com. I got a "Japanese Ultra" A Genuine Fein all purpose wood/metal blade and the flat drywall blade.
I combined my order with my brother and that made us eligible for the free blade too.
The Japanese Ultra cut like a hot knife through butter till I hit a nail and then as they say in Japan...Sayonara! I did get lots of cuts from it including about 20 blind cuts on 5/4 x 6 PT decking, then the little nail episode. Then I switched to the Fein wood/metal blade. The teeth on this one are much finer and the cut was somewhat slower but I hit a few nails with this one and it didn't seem to mind. All the cutting was done with the HF Fein knock off multi purpose power tool. Mine does not have the locating pins and blade movement was not a problem, and I did LOTS of cuts with it. I had the thing running for about an hour or so. It never overheated and the mechanism still sounds "Fein"
I combined my order with my brother and that made us eligible for the free blade too.
The Japanese Ultra cut like a hot knife through butter till I hit a nail and then as they say in Japan...Sayonara! I did get lots of cuts from it including about 20 blind cuts on 5/4 x 6 PT decking, then the little nail episode. Then I switched to the Fein wood/metal blade. The teeth on this one are much finer and the cut was somewhat slower but I hit a few nails with this one and it didn't seem to mind. All the cutting was done with the HF Fein knock off multi purpose power tool. Mine does not have the locating pins and blade movement was not a problem, and I did LOTS of cuts with it. I had the thing running for about an hour or so. It never overheated and the mechanism still sounds "Fein"
Shocker
Well-known member
Great thread. So right now, what blades fit this unit? Other than the HF blades?
Absolutely! As with any good blade, I try to avoid the nails but I did not see them. But that's what remodeling is about, if I toast a $10 blade to save a half hour work, I'm still 20 bucks ahead. I did finally toast the Fein wood/metal blade while cutting nails in a siding job. I think the reason was that unless you can hold the tool steady and let the blade rake across the work, it tends to grab on with just a tooth and shake the daylights out of your hand and all the load is being applied to a very small section of the blade. Its just like cutting metal with any type of saw, you want to maintain at least a few teeth in contact with the work at all times otherwise you will break the teeth. All in all, I was satisfied with the Multiblades.com blades, price was good, service was fast. I'm still happy that the Dremel blades at HD fit my HF tool (no pins), cause even the fastest shiopping in the world won't work if you need one today!
JerseyJim
Well-known member
Does anyone have an update on blades that fit the HF multi-function tool? A lot of websites have popped up selling blades that they indicate will fit. Specialty Diamond, Imperial Blades, and MultiBlades are just a few that pop up when you search this. MultiBlades doesn't provide much of a description of the type of metal being used. Anyone have any experience with blades from these online sellers?