New ICON coolant pressure tester

[Hakeem]

https://www.harborfreight.com/cooling-system-pressure-test-kit-58725.html

https://www.harborfreight.com/pneumatic-cooling-system-filler-and-tester-58001.html

At $400 for the pressure test kit and $120 for the vacuum filler, it’s not cheap. Much less than the tool trucks, but then again—what isn’t. About twice the cost of the Astro kit, but with all-metal construction, i suppose it’s reasonable. Disappointing to see a 1-year warranty.

Above all, it’s nice to see HF continuing to release new tools for professionals and serious DIYers.

 

[Fedwrench]

I agree that it's great to see new products released but, I'm on the fence about these. The price seems a bit high at first until you count up the cost of all of the individual adapters. Then it's a bargain if the adapters are decently made. The vacuum filler set lacks seals or adapters and really isn't a stand alone unit without the adapters included in the pressure test kit unless the vehicle you're working on uses the old style radiator cap. There's a lot of competition and variety in this market segment. Time will tell if this set is a hit or a miss.

 

[Astro_Pneumatic_Tools]

There is demand for the all metal type caps, and i suppose people like them. Though I'm unsure fully why or if people think the metal parts are doing the sealing. The seal mainly comes down to the gaskets & o-rings mainly, and the quality of thread engagement regardless of what its made from - could be bronze. But its easier to form consistent bur free non overly sharp threads in nylon than steel and aluminum. And nylon seals against plastic, composite and nylon easier than metal does.

People will unscrew the composite cap on their overflow tank that's been leak free for 150k miles and look for a steel and aluminum adapter to thread onto the same tank to test it for 5 mins out of preference for unknown reasons to me.
You also can't get them as tight, as they are round you just turn them. If seal IS an issue for you, the set that has recessed dimples in the top of caps and a wrench that fits it, I'd imagine you'd go that route.
If you are cross threading caps often enough to damage adapters, you'd prefer the adapter to take the hit than use metal to do so on the customers car.

We've had the opportunity to offer them a few times, just haven't found a reason to charge 1.5-2X to our customers on caps that hold vacuum the same 24+ hours as our current ones (the good metal ones, there's poor all metal sets that hold vacuum for about 15 mins)

 

[Hakeem]

I agree that it's great to see new products released but, I'm on the fence about these. The price seems a bit high at first until you count up the cost of all of the individual adapters. Then it's a bargain if the adapters are decently made. The vacuum filler set lacks seals or adapters and really isn't a stand alone unit without the adapters included in the pressure test kit unless the vehicle you're working on uses the old style radiator cap. There's a lot of competition and variety in this market segment. Time will tell if this set is a hit or a miss.

The vacuum filler definitely was intended to be an add-on, which isn’t a huge deal to me. A decent move might be to buy the vacuum filler and then buy the adapters from Snapon individually as needed. I think they’d sell more of the vacuum filler if they had the universal adapter like the Airlift…but then they might sell less of the coolant adapter kits.

Looking at it again, the biggest issue I see is a lack of a shop-air pressure tester. Pressurizing the system by hand *****. I have the Astro shop-air pressure tester and it’s amazing. Maybe they’ll be coming out with that in the future.

There is demand for the all metal type caps, and i suppose people like them. Though I'm unsure fully why or if people think the metal parts are doing the sealing. The seal mainly comes down to the gaskets, and the quality of thread engagement regardless of what its made from - could be bronze. But its easier to form consistent bur free non overly sharp threads in nylon than steel and aluminum. And nylon seals against plastic, composite and nylon easier than metal does.

People will unscrew the composite cap on their overflow tank that's been leak free for 150k miles and look for a steel and aluminum adapter to thread onto the same tank to test it for 5 mins out of preference for unknown reasons to me.
You also can't get them as tight, as they are round you just turn them. If seal IS an issue for you, the set that has recessed dimples in the top of caps and a wrench that fits it, I'd imagine you'd go that route.
If you are cross threading caps often enough to damage adapters, you'd prefer the adapter to take the hit than use metal to do so on the customers car.

We've had the opportunity to offer them a few times, just haven't found a reason to charge 1.5-2X to our customers on caps that hold vacuum the same 24+ hours as our current ones (the good metal ones, there's poor all metal sets that hold vacuum for about 15 mins)

Very reasonable. As a consumer, metal just *seems* better, even if there is no real performance benefit. For what it’s worth, I have your pressure tester kit and it’s been great for me.

 

[mikedodge]

What market are they aiming for with that? It's high for a DIYer and most professionals wouldn't be buying a tool like that from HF. It would be nice if they had the tester with a couple of the standard attachments for a better price.

The plus about plastic is ones is the metal ones can corrode over time and stop working properly.

 

[drokihazan]

I'm curious if the Icon adapters fit the Snap-On pressure tester I've been using for years, I think made by Stant. I've thought about buying one of these big kits from a different brand just for more adapters rather than paying Snap-On prices for tools I won't use frequently and probably work exactly as well from any brand.

 

[Sumboodie]

I have a ~$90 kit off Amazon that has worked for my needs. Recently pressure tested a TDI Jetta and OBS F350 to find tiny leaks that I couldn't find otherwise.

 

[Qualitytools]

Unless you need to use these tools on a regular bases, not sure if that’s the best option Is to purchase them. You may want to see what other brands are selling for.

When I need to use those I just get them on loan from my local parts store. Finish the job at hand, clean it and return it for a full refund of the deposit.

 

[zimman]

You can borrow one for free at Autozone or O'Reilly's. (pay a deposit and get it back)=free.
Zim

 

[Callelle]

I have the snap on dual venturi HD refiller because I'm working on semis, otherwise I'd run either this or the astro set up. I personally prefer the metal adapters, they feel more durable, especially when you're using one individual cap on multiple vehicles every day.

 

[lbhsbz]

just start the car and let it warm up and pressurize the cooling system....then see where it's leaking. I have a Stant pressure tester, with a bunch of adapters, but always giggle when I go to use it because it does the same thing as running the car for 10 minutes lol

 

[Twisted Sid]

just start the car and let it warm up and pressurize the cooling system....then see where it's leaking. I have a Stant pressure tester, with a bunch of adapters, but always giggle when I go to use it because it does the same thing as running the car for 10 minutes lol

Except when you pressurize it and have a leak, you're not then working on a 200° engine or waiting for it to cool down enough to work on it

 

[MushCreek]

I just put a pressure gauge where the overflow hose goes and put 15 psi on the system. Found three leaks right away. Fixed them all, and it's still leaking coolant somewhere.

 

[lbhsbz]

I just put a pressure gauge where the overflow hose goes and put 15 psi on the system. Found three leaks right away. Fixed them all, and it's still leaking coolant somewhere.

keep looking for the 4th one lol

 

[MushCreek]

I'm thinking somewhere in the engine, since I don't see coolant on the ground. I'm not pulling the heads or intake manifold- the truck isn't worth it.

 

[signcrafter]

The vacuum filler definitely was intended to be an add-on, which isn’t a huge deal to me. A decent move might be to buy the vacuum filler and then buy the adapters from Snapon individually as needed. I think they’d sell more of the vacuum filler if they had the universal adapter like the Airlift…but then they might sell less of the coolant adapter kits.

Looking at it again, the biggest issue I see is a lack of a shop-air pressure tester. Pressurizing the system by hand *****. I have the Astro shop-air pressure tester and it’s amazing. Maybe they’ll be coming out with that in the future.


Very reasonable. As a consumer, metal just *seems* better, even if there is no real performance benefit. For what it’s worth, I have your pressure tester kit and it’s been great for me.

I saw this kit the other week when I was in there and my first thought was the price was pretty high for HF. But I guess they are going for higher end with their icon stuff. There was a few other items I was a little shocked by like the smoke tester and some other items in that aisle.

They have sold this universal set for a while now that looks to work with the "stant" style testers. https://www.harborfreight.com/universal-radiator-adapter-set-56204.html. This should work with their vacuum filler.

What market are they aiming for with that? It's high for a DIYer and most professionals wouldn't be buying a tool like that from HF. It would be nice if they had the tester with a couple of the standard attachments for a better price.

The plus about plastic is ones is the metal ones can corrode over time and stop working properly.

Guessing they aiming for the serious DIYers and the technicians entering the trade. I have no experience with the set so not sure the quality but looks to be a decent set up and would think the adapters would cover most vehicles you would run into and is at an OK price for everything. It's not for the guy fixing the two cars in his driveway that runs into a coolant issue every 5 years or so. But for the guy doing work on family and friends cars of all makes and models or a tech just getting started that needs something decent without paying tool truck prices because he has a ton of other tools to buy at the same time.

I bought a stant 20 years ago and added adapters as needed. But adapters cost 40-50 bucks each so it doesn't take long to add up to the HF set. I bought the astro set a few years ago because I needed a tester and mine was 6 hours away. Figured it can fill in any gaps I run into if I don't have an adapter for my stant. I agree that they would sell a ton of kits if they had a set with the tester and 4-5 of the most common adapters for a DIY price.

I'm curious if the Icon adapters fit the Snap-On pressure tester I've been using for years, I think made by Stant. I've thought about buying one of these big kits from a different brand just for more adapters rather than paying Snap-On prices for tools I won't use frequently and probably work exactly as well from any brand.

I'm guessing they are the standard "stant" style adapters that everyone uses, but could be wrong. No clue what the real name is but I call them stant because stant was the common name in the game for so many years.

You can borrow one for free at Autozone or O'Reilly's. (pay a deposit and get it back)=free.
Zim

If you only work on a car here and there that is an option. But running to the store is a pain so if you are a serious DIYer or entry tech you aren't running to the store every time you need a tool to rent it.

just start the car and let it warm up and pressurize the cooling system....then see where it's leaking. I have a Stant pressure tester, with a bunch of adapters, but always giggle when I go to use it because it does the same thing as running the car for 10 minutes lol

Ya, no thanks. I will gladly spend the money on a tester so I can test without the car running. Engine isn't cooking you and you can listen for leaks and crawl under the car without worrying about hot coolant dripping on you. I also use my stant tester to test systems after a repair before filling them. Much easier to test the system before putting all the other pieces back together and make sure it's good before filling with coolant. You can deal with the leak without having to drain the system down again.

 

[Zewnten]

There is demand for the all metal type caps, and i suppose people like them. Though I'm unsure fully why or if people think the metal parts are doing the sealing. The seal mainly comes down to the gaskets & o-rings mainly, and the quality of thread engagement regardless of what its made from - could be bronze. But its easier to form consistent bur free non overly sharp threads in nylon than steel and aluminum. And nylon seals against plastic, composite and nylon easier than metal does.

People will unscrew the composite cap on their overflow tank that's been leak free for 150k miles and look for a steel and aluminum adapter to thread onto the same tank to test it for 5 mins out of preference for unknown reasons to me.
You also can't get them as tight, as they are round you just turn them. If seal IS an issue for you, the set that has recessed dimples in the top of caps and a wrench that fits it, I'd imagine you'd go that route.
If you are cross threading caps often enough to damage adapters, you'd prefer the adapter to take the hit than use metal to do so on the customers car.

We've had the opportunity to offer them a few times, just haven't found a reason to charge 1.5-2X to our customers on caps that hold vacuum the same 24+ hours as our current ones (the good metal ones, there's poor all metal sets that hold vacuum for about 15 mins)

As someone that only buys the metal adapters: The plastic doesn't work well in the cold, doesn't hold up to brake clean, hydraulic oil seems to make them brittle, th metal ones have good knurling not smooth plastic and more importantly I cant braze plastic to make custom adapters in th field when I need to.

 

[WhataTool]

As someone that only buys the metal adapters: The plastic doesn't work well in the cold, doesn't hold up to brake clean, hydraulic oil seems to make them brittle, th metal ones have good knurling not smooth plastic and more importantly I cant braze plastic to make custom adapters in th field when I need to.

The car's plastic threads are also cold, we get snow here but i guess not much of the year. So far fine.
They're nylon, handle brake clean pretty fine though I don't know why I'd be spraying them with brake clean - or hydrualic oil but maybe a use I dont know about.
The aluminum ones are a knurled diameter, the plastic ones have deep dimples IMO easier to tighten and fit the included wrench.

Agreed you can't make custom ones though

 

[Zewnten]

The car's plastic threads are also cold, we get snow here but i guess not much of the year. So far fine.
They're nylon, handle brake clean pretty fine though I don't know why I'd be spraying them with brake clean - or hydrualic oil but maybe a use I dont know about.
The aluminum ones are a knurled diameter, the plastic ones have deep dimples IMO easier to tighten and fit the included wrench.

Agreed you can't make custom ones though

I guess I should have clarified the cold has to do with riding around in my service truck during bitter cold winter and needing to be ready to work without leaving in the cab to warm up.

 

[drokihazan]

The car's plastic threads are also cold, we get snow here but i guess not much of the year. So far fine.
They're nylon, handle brake clean pretty fine though I don't know why I'd be spraying them with brake clean - or hydrualic oil but maybe a use I dont know about.
The aluminum ones are a knurled diameter, the plastic ones have deep dimples IMO easier to tighten and fit the included wrench.

Agreed you can't make custom ones though

For what it's worth, I think most service truck mechanics have hydraulic oil and/or brakleen on literally every single thing in their truck most of the time. Hard to stay clean in the field.

 

[AJHD]

If you only work on a car here and there that is an option. But running to the store is a pain so if you are a serious DIYer or entry tech you aren't running to the store every time you need a tool to rent it.

As a former mechanic and AutoZone employee, I would also add the rental tools I've seen and used were broken, damaged and/or missing pieces. Much like borrowing something from the tool room or using shop owned tools.

AutoZone also only carries 1 of most rental tools, so if it's being rented, was kept or is damaged, it may be unavailable until a new tool arrives. Now you have to go somewhere else and hope they have it.

I prefer to have my own tools whenever feasible. Even if I will never use it again or once every 5 years.