The Harbor Freight PASS/FAIL Thread...

[Squankum]

My own need, a Dakota, has a plastic radiator neck fitting, mounted in the middle of the upper hose.

I suggest you remove that thing from your life and install something immortal:

Moroso 63730 Radiator Hose Filler, 1-1/2" Hose to 1-1/2" Hose​

Amazon.com

At the link for the product, there are other, cheaper metal options to consider. I wish I were so clever I thought of this Moroso part for our Durango all on my own, but nah, I found it at the junkyard installed in a dead Durango.

 

[willf650]

I'll give this a Pass with a caveat. I like knives and carry one every day so I would spend substantially more to get around this knife's Achilles' heel. A knife is a tool so I actually use them regardless of cost.



I bought this Icon knife on sale and it was $30. It's an outstanding knife for the price and holds an edge OK. It needs to be sharpened at this point but all knives will eventually need sharpening. It held an edge ok but there are better steels out there.

This is the knive’s flaw. The clip looks beautiful and appears to be a piece of machined aluminum. This is unique and the only knife I own like this.


Between now and when I purchased it I've had to remove this clip 3 times and bend it back in place to keep it clipped in my pocket. It bends from crawling around with it in my pocket. This clip will eventually break on me so we shall see if this is warrantied like a tool.

Here is a selection of my other knives I carry regularly. I generally carry one until it dulls and then rotate it. I will wait and sharpen several at a time.


These knives are ones I carry because I like the form and feel of them. I have others that are the same quality and some nicer but the feel of them isn't as nice so they aren't a carry knife. The carbon fiber Zero Tolerance is my favorite and this one is my third due to loss. Loss is painful to my wallet and my soul. There is a lucky SOB out there somewhere who found them.

Notice one thing on these knives and all I own, the clips are simple spring type stainless or maybe titanium. They stay clipped in my pocket and have never needed to be bent back into shape. A couple of these are close to 20 years old.

The Icon clip is a form over function design and failed trying to be flashy.

Long winded post for the opinion of someone mentally deficient.

 

[M.Brane]

I have a Kershaw that I have lost twice, and it returned to me. I cherish it.

 

[Twisted Sid]

I'll give this a Pass with a caveat.

This is the knive’s flaw.

The one thing I didnt like about mine was how small the cut out was for my thumb on the liner lock. I took my band file to the handle and made the opening a little bigger for my thumb to fit and I am way happier with it.

Picture added

 

[willf650]

The one thing I didnt like about mine was how small the cut out was for my thumb on the liner lock. I took my band file to the handle and made the opening a little bigger for my thumb to fit and I am way happier with it.

Picture added

If that's the case you will hate other knives worse. I'm not a big fan of liner locks and prefer the Benchmade style lock. Out of ones I pictured 3 are liner locks and the Icon actually has the most exposed release.

 

[aka Larry]

MADDOX Universal Locking Lug Nut Removal Set -PASS​

In my 60 years I've never needed such a thing since I've always had the proper key, but this weekend I found myself in the situation where I needed to remove a set of locking lugs on a car where the owner didn't have the key. Grabbed this set for under $50, tapped it on with a dead-blow hammer, and then used a 36" long x 1/2" drive breaker bar to remove the locking lugs. Worked like a champ!

 

[CoThG]

This little gun absolutely RIPS:


This picture doesn’t do the small size justice but it really is a compact little beast. It still packs a wallop , making up for the small size of the hammer with a very high rate of impacts/rpm. I get almost everything off with this, although I do have to resort to a more powerful gun for the really stuck fasteners.

It spins fasteners off super quick compared to other air guns I’ve used, which is much appreciated. It’s also very smooth feeling in operation, with little vibration transferred to the user. I really love using this impact gun. Highly recommended.

—PASS—

Do you oil it daily?

 

[shoggoth80]

Yeah the Earthquake guns are very smart grabs. They're affordable at regular price. If you still use air impacts, they're a no-brainer if you catch them on sale. I've bought several for guys at work, building new boxes etc. and they've been very respectable pieces.

 

[shoggoth80]

Dunno if I've mentioned it. Probably not. Picked up the Hercules 3/8 extended ratchet, a battery, and the slightly nicer charger. It performs as expected. Not a powerhouse... But really nice to save repetition. Quite handy for reassembly. Can't get an impact driver in everywhere. Lol. PASS.

Icon folding work light, magnetic base. My last magnetic light took a trip out from under my hood at about 50mph. So a replacement of some kind was in order. More modes than I was after, and brighter than any of my pen lights at less money on sale. PASS.

 

[M635_Guy]

Greenwood weed torch with ignitor - PASS

Lots of yard work going on, and in the last week we've seen hundreds and hundreds of seedlings emerge from the Mimosa tree we had removed. This thing is on the terrifying side of fun, and did a great job on the areas I treated.

Predator Auger - PASS
Many holes to dig for new plants (approaching 50...might be 60+), and in the rooty mess that is our side yard I wanted help. We're 20+ holes in and it's doing great. My only complaint is the 6" auger bit is a little on the small side for bushes, and they charge $100 for the 8" bit. That seems a lot for what it is, and I only paid $130 (on sale) for the machine and 6" bit. But the machine itself is doing exactly what I hoped.

 

[Loose Ctrl]

@M635_Guy , I have the older version of the auger and it's a definite pass from me as well. If you plan to do more work, I would consider the bigger bit, or find a different used one cheap and alter the connection point to fit the HF auger. I did, and sometimes still do, a lot of 4 to 8 inch posts for decks, mailboxes, carports and small buildings.

 

[Wrench97]

Predator Auger - PASS
Many holes to dig for new plants (approaching 50...might be 60+), and in the rooty mess that is our side yard I wanted help. We're 20+ holes in and it's doing great. My only complaint is the 6" auger bit is a little on the small side for bushes, and they charge $100 for the 8" bit. That seems a lot for what it is, and I only paid $130 (on sale) for the machine and 6" bit. But the machine itself is doing exactly what I hoped.

How well does it handle roots?

 

[M635_Guy]

@M635_Guy , I have the older version of the auger and it's a definite pass from me as well. If you plan to do more work, I would consider the bigger bit, or find a different used one cheap and alter the connection point to fit the HF auger. I did, and sometimes still do, a lot of 4 to 8 inch posts for decks, mailboxes, carports and small buildings.

I'll keep an eye out. An 8" would come in handy in the next week or so...

How well does it handle roots?

No issues with small roots. In the dirt we're digging in (which is a root-filled mess that used to be a wild/overgrown thicket in the side yard) it's just leaving "hairy" holes () that we clean up with loppers. It will break some bigger roots, but it won't get the really thick ones and hangs. The good news is throttle is on the side that naturally comes out of your hand if it grabs a root. If you suspect there are bigger roots, best to brace it a bit on your right leg to minimize how much it can swing around.

 

[413dan]

I am in the market for a floor jack, what is the PASS recommendation if you wouldn't mind obliging. thanks

 

[zendriver]

I am in the market for a floor jack, what is the PASS recommendation if you wouldn't mind obliging. thanks

Harbor freight?

Any of them.

 

[Notgrownup]

I am in the market for a floor jack, what is the PASS recommendation if you wouldn't mind obliging. thanks

I have had this one for like 10 years and it’s still pretty good PASS

 

[Loose Ctrl]

I have the old version of the of the 3 ton gray and black floor jack for around 25 years. I bought it back when they were traveling around selling at various places over the weekends. At least that's what they did around here before they became a retail store. It started leaking down a couple of years ago. In it's defense, I have been using it like it's a professional grade jack. I have not shown it any mercy. Way back when I was an auto tech, we had Snap Off jacks that were always being warrantied and a couple of high lift Craftsman jacks that seemed like they would never die. The owner of the shop bought those Craftsmans in high school in the 60s before shipping off to the Vietnam war.

https://www.harborfreight.com/3-ton-floor-jack-with-rapid-pump-slate-gray-70486.html

Bauer 20v weed whipper. Pass. I recently bought the Bauer 20v weed whipper to do the ditch in front of my house and a couple of other spots I can't get with a push mower. My expectations were higher than they should have been, after watching many videos about it. I give it a pass for light duty work around a small property, that isn't over grown like my ditches with very thick grass and weeds. The main thing is to go slow. It's not a gas unit that a man can hold the throttle wide open and just start swinging until everything is cut down. I used a 5 amp hour battery and killed it in about 20 minutes. It says use the 3ah unit or bigger. I'm going to get the biggest battery I can find. I can use it with my other Bauer tools. The unit's trigger runs the motor at full speed, no throttling. The line feeds out by releasing the trigger, letting the motor completely stop, and pulling the trigger again. It's a ratcheting type mechanism. It works well. I had in my ear plugs and I could barely hear and feel when the line would spool out. It's no louder than other electric weed whippers. I left my ear plugs in from cutting grass with the ride on mower, because they're a pain to get to reseal in my ears. It's also double the weight of the Ryobi Lowes sells. The Bauer unit is approaching the weight of those small two stroke 26cc weed whippers. I'm not sure those are made any more. I had one for close to 30-35 years, and it finally died. I used weed and grass killer for a few years, until I saw the Bauer 20v weed whipper and bought it.

https://www.harborfreight.com/20v-cordless-string-trimmer-tool-only-64995.html

 

[Damon L.]

I am in the market for a floor jack, what is the PASS recommendation if you wouldn't mind obliging. thanks

I have the Daytona long-reach, low profile, 3 ton jack. I would recommend. The pedal to get up to the load is great, and the lift height was slightly higher than all of the others.

 

[ctandc72]

I have the Daytona long-reach, low profile, 3 ton jack. I would recommend. The pedal to get up to the load is great, and the lift height was slightly higher than all of the others.

I concur. But to be fair - the Daytona replaced a Harbor Freight low profile 3 ton I bought 20 years ago - that still works fine. I didn't think it was low profile and $100 off helped. It does roll easier than my old jack - and the body of the jack itself is considerably longer which is useful.

 

[Damon L.]

I concur. But to be fair - the Daytona replaced a Harbor Freight low profile 3 ton I bought 20 years ago - that still works fine. I didn't think it was low profile and $100 off helped. It does roll easier than my old jack - and the body of the jack itself is considerably longer which is useful.

I still have and use the Pittsbugh I purchased 20 years ago as well. I grabbed the Daytona on a great sale for lower cars and the extra lifting capacity.

 

[mrvm]

The Super Duty 3 ton HF floor jack has been problem free for several years. My go-to these days is the 3 ton off-road jack. IMO too heavy for daily off-road treks but has been a good choice for grass, gravel, mud and asphalt surfaces. The big wheels haven’t damaged the asphalt driveway yetbut on hot days it’s safer than regular floor jacks and maneuvering the heavy jack around is simplified in two wheel drive mode

 

[Tarantula]

Speaking of jacks, Harbor Freight will be running some discounts in their next parking lot sale, the first week of June. Clipped from the flyer.

 

[Loose Ctrl]

Speaking of jacks, Harbor Freight will be running some discounts in their next parking lot sale, the first week of June. Clipped from the flyer.

I may have to look at that 3 ton low pro unit.

 

[zanyad]

I may have to look at that 3 ton low pro unit.

I was thinking the same.

 

[kyrbz]

I think I posted about the Bauer cordless mud mixer a year or so ago shortly after I bought it and had a chance to use it a little bit. By now I've probably mixed 170+ bags of concrete, grout and mortar with it. I still give it a pass, but I did run into my first small issue with it. One reoccurring problem with it is the chuck constantly loosens and the mixing paddle falls out. I bought HF's ratcheting chuck key which makes tightening it easier, but I still have to tighten the chuck after every bag. Yesterday I was giving it the usual tighten after a mix and one of the teeth on the chuck broke off. One broken tooth certainly isn't that big a deal, but if they continue to break I was curious about a replacement chuck. I was shocked to see that HF sells the replacement chuck online only for $4 with free shipping. That seems too good to be true, just wish they would stay tight while I'm mixing.

 

[larry4406]

I think I posted about the Bauer cordless mud mixer a year or so ago shortly after I bought it and had a chance to use it a little bit. By now I've probably mixed 170+ bags of concrete, grout and mortar with it. I still give it a pass, but I did run into my first small issue with it. One reoccurring problem with it is the chuck constantly loosens and the mixing paddle falls out. I bought HF's ratcheting chuck key which makes tightening it easier, but I still have to tighten the chuck after every bag. Yesterday I was giving it the usual tighten after a mix and one of the teeth on the chuck broke off. One broken tooth certainly isn't that big a deal, but if they continue to break I was curious about a replacement chuck. I was shocked to see that HF sells the replacement chuck online only for $4 with free shipping. That seems too good to be true, just wish they would stay tight while I'm mixing.

For $4/chuck I would order a couple to have as spares.

Nice traveler coffee mug! I had that one for 10-15 years till it finally died 3-4 years ago.

 

[Gearbanger]

Just FYI,

FORTRESS 27 Gallon, 200 PSI High Performance Oil-Free Vertical Shop/Auto Air Compressor​

Bought one and immediately noticed that it wouldn't charge past 150psi, just sat at 150psi and would run indefinitely. I exchanged it for a working compressor, no questions asked, it works great.

 

[zendriver]

deleted

 

[FTG-05]

The HF 2-ton underhoist jack; finally put it together and used it yesterday while changing the engine and transmission fluid in my Pathfinder. Very well constructed.

A HUGE piece of mind while under the vehicle.

Massive PASS.

Stock HF pic: