HF tool brand names

[Aileron]

Why did HF market their Chinese tools under the name US General? Is the name a disguise? Was the Pittsburgh tool name met to throw one off thinking they are from Pennsylvania. On another note how much longer before Craftsman was labeled sexist?

 

[MileHighRover]

Are you more likely to buy a product sold in the US under the name US General or Xiàng gōngniú yīyàng jiānqiáng? Pittsburgh or Bānshǒu?

US General and Pittsburgh you say? That's what the marketing team decided as well.

 

[Professional Tool User]

That's HF's marketing department for you. It's about as slimy and dishonest as American style marketing comes.

 

[xOccupantx]

That's HF's marketing department for you. It's about as slimy and dishonest as American style marketing comes.

Couldn’t agree more.


And I’m sure Chicago Electric and Central Pneumatic naming is purposefully confusing also.

 

[erty67]

So true. Husky, Craftsman, and Blue Point sound so much more like Chinese. Come on...what's the point of this thread.

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

 

[PelicanPines]

Marketing is targeted to the uneducated... they outnumber us... considerably.

 

[Fedwrench]

Too much time on your hands?

has it been awhile since you've visited a harbor freight?

I think harbor freight uses a random word generator to create their tool names.

I mean Doyle, Quinn, Icon, Zurich, Bauer, Ames, Drummond, Diablo, Atlas, Predator, Lynxx, Hardy, Chicago Electric, Central Pneumatic, Braun, Quantum, Apache, Hercules, storehouse, Yukon, Franklin, Central Machinery, Haul Master, Admiral, Warrior, Diamondback, Banks, Pierce, Fasten Strong, Bremen, Badland, Kenway, Coverpro, Cen-tech, Pittsburgh pro, Daytona, Fischer, Pittsburgh automotive, Holt, Maddox, Titanium, Vulcan, Central Forge, drill master, Earthquake, Earthquake XT, Chief, Baxter, Merlin, Spectrum, Black Widow, McGraw, Fortress, Kraus & Becker, that's a whole bunch of names to stick on different things

I think years ago Harbor Freight might have tried to use similar sounding names like central pneumatic is pretty close to Chicago Pneumatic for a line of air tools and accessories but, I don't think they do that any more. Look at the names above and there's no rhyme or reason for what name goes with which tool

Everyone knows that if they buy a US General box, they're getting a Chinese made box, which by the way is probably one of the most popular boxes and carts being sold today. I think Harbor Freight should put Harbor Freight on their boxes and carts. It would make name recognition that much easier

 

[Shadowdog500]

Anyone that thinks harbor freight tools are made in the USA based on the tool name must think McDonalds is Irish food.

 

[bwringer]

Yep, this is a complete non-issue. They're not trying to fool anyone, and no one over the age of six has ever been fooled or confused.


If you really feel the need to get upset about genuinely deceptive practices, look at Craftsman or Vise-Grip, formerly US manufactured quality brand names that switched to low-quality Chinese manufacture.


Wherever you're selling stuff, you need to come up with brand names the locals can pronounce and remember and that don't overlap with brands that belong to others. There's nothing the least bit sinister or deceptive here.

Lots of Chinese sellers on Amazon, for example, fail pretty hard at this by using some sort of English word generator. If you search for something like "Bluetooth transmitter", you get stuff like:

TaoTronics (that one's actually pretty good; Chinese but in a good way)
TROND
IMDEN
ZIIDOO
Boltune
Nulaxy (the gentle constipation cure)
TECBOSS
VicTsing
Hagibis
Giveet
BANIGIPA (???)
Joypro (at least it's happy...?)
DISOUR


Anyway, one thing I do give HF a lot of credit for is that for a while now they've been producing all their product manuals in the US. So there's no weird Chinglish to figure out.



All the above said, I think HF's brand splitting is sort of nuts. With dozens of brands all in the same medium-size store, it can get really confusing. I can understand having a few different levels of tools available, but in a lot of cases there are wayyyy too many (I think there are at least four levels of pliers, for example).

And having something like four or five different incompatible "brands" of lithium-ion battery-powered tools is plain nuts. I cannot for the life of me figure out why the Bauer, Earthquake and Hercules brands exist and why their batteries do not interchange. Bauer and Hercules especially -- I have no idea which is supposed to "better" or why everything seems almost identical except for color, yet the batteries do not interchange. Heck, Earthquake and Bauer are the same damn colors...?

Is it confusing and baffling? Yes.

But it is deceptive or shady? Nah.

 

[FishingMan]

Wait a minute. Mcdonalds isnt irish. Thanks for the smile. I miss both hf and mcds.

 

[measuredtwice]

Stupid people rarely think they're stupid. It's always someone else. There's lots of confusion and false info on social media. And there's lots of deceptive marketing. Names are important part of marketing for many reasons. VANITY is a big reason. I bet some of you wouldn't buy the US General boxes if they replaced the name with "China General" and painted a map of China on the front of the boxes.

 

[Aileron]

Not upset about it at all. Just was looking at the placards on my 44" lower boxes and got to thinking why they didn't call them General Tso’s.

 

[1982fxr]

I've come across plenty of people who have been completely fooled by hf names. Sometimes they think the name means where it was made, other times they confuse it with another higher level product.

Both are the intended purpose.

 

[House Frau]

I like my General Tso’s five drawer too cart ��

 

[zendriver]

Harbor Freight "brand names" are totally meaningless - yet people can't stop talking about them.

 

[1foxracing]

Milwaukee tools are made in Milwaukee, WI right??

 

[ericlar80]

Anyone saying that the name doesn't matter is kidding themselves. HF marketing has apparently determined that giving a tool a familiar brand name is going to sell more than one with a foreign name. They even mimic the look of the name itself, as in the font that they are using. While everyone knows that HF build their tools offshore, the name is an important step in getting the buyer comfortable with that because it is a name that they can "trust." There is literally no other reason to come out with a new product line called Doyle, Bauer, Chicago electric, etc.

 

[measuredtwice]

Milwaukee tools are made in Milwaukee, WI right??

My Milwaukee drill was Made in Brookfield, WI (near Milwaukee). My drill is old.

Is Pittsburgh a city in China or Taiwan?

 

[eyeball]

Anyone that thinks harbor freight tools are made in the USA based on the tool name must think McDonalds is Irish food.

If it is not Irish please explain mayor McCheese, Uncle O'Grimacey, and of course the Shamrock Shake.

 

[logical]

Its Harbor Freight. The stuff there comes on a boat. I think most everyone knows it's all imported. I think the name may lead some to think less about the fact.



Sent from my garage.

 

[BDT/NWMN]

On My china shoppe tool boxes; Black electrical tape over the U & S letters of the US General works for Me.

 

[vanapplebomb]

I think their brand names have taken a dive lately. From a marketing standpoint, Pittsburgh was probably the best name they came up with. It harkens back to the days of all the many iron works and steel mills that called Pittsburgh home. Good old American iron. Brilliant marketing, however misleading it may be from the coo. But now, stuff like Quinn, etc? That name doesn’t bring anything to the table what so ever from a marketing standpoint.

I always thought they should market their premium tools under the Pittsburgh name and have their entry level stuff be introduced with the other brand names they have.

 

[davewo]

Portland's Admiral Quinn-Doyle "Diamondback McGraw" Bauer agrees.

 

[lardy1]

It harkens back to days when men were men. Real men like Quinn The Eskimo.

 

[Hammer1963]

Looks like boredom has set in. There is no fooling some of you clever guys. And to think I almost feel for those tricky marketing ploys myself. I am so glad that I have been saved!

I would suggest that some of Garage Journal faithful take a trip to Harbor Freight and check out their latest offerings and compare them to the old tried and bitched about names like Pittsburgh and whatever. As a supplier of goods, I too would like to distinguish the difference between my offerings by labeling them different. I suspect the same complainers would post IE: I'm not paying more for a similar Pittsburgh tool with the same name (Pittsburgh) in a different package just because it is a better tool! Same name, same price damn it!

So, hence the reason for the names/brands. Are some of stupid sounding, you bet. But you have to do something to differentiate your products. Maybe people would prefer color coding instead! Maybe using the Crayola index?

 

[Hammer1963]

It harkens back to days when men were men. Real men like Quinn The Eskimo.

Harkens. Bravo my good man/woman? It's not every day that you get the opportunity to slide that one in

 

[zendriver]

Unless I'm missing something - at one time, anyone that wanted to, could purchase and use "Craftsman" brand tools, even if they didn't have the slightest idea what the hell they were doing.

Coincidentally, real "craftsman" often turned up their noses, at that very brand.

 

[Al Borland]

Could you imagine them selling tools named some bad stereotype name?
Sum Ting Wong? Hu Flung Dung?
Not gonna happen. (sadly)

 

[bsaint]

hahahahahahahaa ^^^^^

 

[jgromada]

Who cares? i say
As i finish putting the emergency brake cable springs on a Hyundai using my "Bremen" locking long nose pliers.

That battle has been lost a long time ago.

 

[nadogail]

Back in the day, according to my father of blessed memory, US General Supply Company was a respected brand name.

Packard-Bell was respected for their radios, the company went bankrupt and the name was sold to Chinese business men who then marketed a P.O.S. computer under that formerly respected name.

 

[zendriver]

Back in the day, according to my father of blessed memory, US General Supply Company was a respected brand name.
.

"US General" tool boxes are one of the most popular and some of the highest rated budget tool boxes ever made.

I have 3 myself never a problem with any of them.

 

[nieuport17]

The tools and boxes probably sell with different names at different countries.
Its marketing 101.

 

[Mechanical Noise]

It harkens back to days when men were men. Real men like Quinn The Eskimo.

Harkens? HF should stop being coy and sell QUINN THE ESKIMO tools.

Good for building ships and boats, monuments and even taking notes.

I'd jump for joy!!

 

[Mechanical Noise]

The tools and boxes probably sell with different names at different countries.
Its marketing 101.

They sell alot of the same tools at Menards. Different names, of course. Sadly, none of the names are QUINN THE ESKIMO tools.