BrandoJames
Well-known member
I dropped in at my local Harbor Freight this morning to check out the Icon line. I’ve shopped at HF before, but not for ratchets/sockets/combo wrenches. Here’s what I found:
Ratchets: So all the Icon 3/8” flex head ratchets must be sold out. Oh, I forgot. All the 3/8” flex heads were recalled, lol. Let’s move on. I check the Icon 1/2” flex head soft grip (90 tooth). The first thing you notice is the hard plastic grip. Not comfortable in the hand, not a good start. The chrome shaft and flex head reminds me of my Williams 1/2” flex, they look a lot a like. The give away is Icon’s plastic selector, which reminds me that I’ve got a cheap ratchet in my hand.
I check the other HF ratchets. I must admit, the Pittsburgh-Pro 1/2” Flex soft handle is a nice budget ratchet. It has a black/red trim handle and it’s actually a soft grip. The shaft & flex head (72 tooth) seem pretty solid. Also a plastic selector, but the Pitt-Pro selector has way more resistance and seems quite a bit tighter when I toggle it. A much better ratchet at 10 bucks less.
Sockets: Jesus Christ, the Icon chrome sockets are pure junk. With the ratchet recall, I thought that would be Icon’s achilles heel. Nope—Icon chrome sockets are cover-your-eyes awful. The socket’s inner hex edge feels like cheap tin, like I could peel the inner wall back with my fingers. To be fair, all of the HF chrome sockets—whether Icon, Pitt-Pro or Quinn have the same cheap, flimsy construction. I walk around the aisle to the impact sets. No Icon impact sockets. The only socket set in the store I’d buy is the Pittsburgh-Pro “deep wall” impacts. That’s a credible socket set (despite a few skips). They’re solid in my hand and seem well made.
Wrenches: the combination wrench is where Icon’s “Snap-on fetish” is most evident. I have a few Snap-on combos, and the Icon is a shameless cosmetic copy. Icon’s ratcheting wrenches are all 12 point—I don’t find any 6 point Icon ratcheting wrenches in the store.
The HF Icon line is much worse than I thought. It’s not even the best tool line in the store. The Pittsburgh-Pro line was a pleasant surprise. It’s a credible budget line of tools with real value.
Ratchets: So all the Icon 3/8” flex head ratchets must be sold out. Oh, I forgot. All the 3/8” flex heads were recalled, lol. Let’s move on. I check the Icon 1/2” flex head soft grip (90 tooth). The first thing you notice is the hard plastic grip. Not comfortable in the hand, not a good start. The chrome shaft and flex head reminds me of my Williams 1/2” flex, they look a lot a like. The give away is Icon’s plastic selector, which reminds me that I’ve got a cheap ratchet in my hand.
I check the other HF ratchets. I must admit, the Pittsburgh-Pro 1/2” Flex soft handle is a nice budget ratchet. It has a black/red trim handle and it’s actually a soft grip. The shaft & flex head (72 tooth) seem pretty solid. Also a plastic selector, but the Pitt-Pro selector has way more resistance and seems quite a bit tighter when I toggle it. A much better ratchet at 10 bucks less.
Sockets: Jesus Christ, the Icon chrome sockets are pure junk. With the ratchet recall, I thought that would be Icon’s achilles heel. Nope—Icon chrome sockets are cover-your-eyes awful. The socket’s inner hex edge feels like cheap tin, like I could peel the inner wall back with my fingers. To be fair, all of the HF chrome sockets—whether Icon, Pitt-Pro or Quinn have the same cheap, flimsy construction. I walk around the aisle to the impact sets. No Icon impact sockets. The only socket set in the store I’d buy is the Pittsburgh-Pro “deep wall” impacts. That’s a credible socket set (despite a few skips). They’re solid in my hand and seem well made.
Wrenches: the combination wrench is where Icon’s “Snap-on fetish” is most evident. I have a few Snap-on combos, and the Icon is a shameless cosmetic copy. Icon’s ratcheting wrenches are all 12 point—I don’t find any 6 point Icon ratcheting wrenches in the store.
The HF Icon line is much worse than I thought. It’s not even the best tool line in the store. The Pittsburgh-Pro line was a pleasant surprise. It’s a credible budget line of tools with real value.



That is what you did isn't it? I mean you can hardly see the tools themselves with the overkill anti theft packaging ICON uses.
Take away all of the recalled 3/8 drive flex heads and the shelves are kind of bare.
The ICON stuff is a very small footprint compared to everything else in the store.
