The Harbor Freight PASS/FAIL Thread...

[Asymair95]

Does anyone have this drill press?

http://www.harborfreight.com/16-speed-floor-drill-press-43389.html

There is one for sale locally for $250 that the guy says was hardly used. I know the reviews on here haven't been great, but the four reviews on the harbor freight site are not that bad. Anybody have an opinion? Thank you.

 

[Mohawk Dave]

Does anyone have this drill press?

http://www.harborfreight.com/16-speed-floor-drill-press-43389.html

There is one for sale locally for $250 that the guy says was hardly used. I know the reviews on here haven't been great, but the four reviews on the harbor freight site are not that bad. Anybody have an opinion? Thank you.

FWIW, I have the older one with 3 steel handles, not the curvy thing...but it does just fine. It was rusty and dirty when I got it, but I cleaned it up and I have no complaints. It sits next to my big Ridgid/Emerson Floor DP, and I keep different bits on them and have no preference to using one over the other. It drills holes. I'd pick one up again if the price was right.

 

[vrocket]

Its all China ****

 

[emeraldcoupe]

Its all China ****

go mess with another thread troll.

 

[terry1769]

Does anyone have this drill press?

http://www.harborfreight.com/16-speed-floor-drill-press-43389.html

There is one for sale locally for $250 that the guy says was hardly used. I know the reviews on here haven't been great, but the four reviews on the harbor freight site are not that bad. Anybody have an opinion? Thank you.

I have that one. No complaints here.

 

[jam022316]

Its all China ****

Great contribution!

 

[paigej]

Actually, a lot of their inventory is made in Taiwan and even (gasp!) USA. Oh the horror

 

[243]

Does anyone have this drill press?

http://www.harborfreight.com/16-speed-floor-drill-press-43389.html

There is one for sale locally for $250 that the guy says was hardly used. I know the reviews on here haven't been great, but the four reviews on the harbor freight site are not that bad. Anybody have an opinion? Thank you.

I have the older model with the the straight handles.

The chuck would slip even when using a cheater pipe on the chuck key, I replaced it with a keyless chuck off Ebay for about 30.00 and it works great.

The switch has burned the contacts twice, took it apart, sanded the contacts and it is back in business.

The gear mounted on the post broke, I ordered another plus a spare from HF for 6.00/each and all is good again.

Not a total pass, not a fail either.

 

[slowtwitch]

I have a HF 4x6 band saw, which after a tune up works really well. But, that's another story.

This weekend, as can be expected, my bi-metal blade snapped. I usually order them online, but I needed a new one asap. .So I went to HF and see what they had in stock. To my surprise they had a bi-metal saw blade (it's a 10/14 tooth) and it was made in the USA!!!!!

http://www.harborfreight.com/64-1-2-half-inch-x-1-2-half-inch-bimetal-supercut-bandsaw-blade-97119.html

After installing it and using it for a number of cuts... I was totally happy with the results.

 

[route246]

I have the latest version of this cart. The assembly was not tricky or as involved as many stated here for me, but then I'm pretty meticulous with this sort of thing. I used an impact drill driver with 3/8" socket drive attached for most of the nuts and bolts assembly. The key is to get the cart plumb and square and to tighten everything in opposing diagonal pairs. I used a level, miter square and carpenter's square and assembled the cart on perfectly level ground.

I used a lot of jiggling and shaking prior to tightening to make sure there were no kinks or stress in any of the components. I go back occasionally and re-tighten the key bolts at all corners.

This cart is pretty nice. I paid $199 and got refunded the difference on a later promotion ($169?) without any hassle.

Other things I have:

US General 5-drawer Tool Cart (Item #95272) - PASS
Only tricky part is assembly... I had to mount the reinforcing bars differently from the instructions in order to get the holes to line up properly. Doesn't seem to affect the stability of the cart.

 

[ex-x-fire]

Really, if HF put a small sticker on each leg to indicate up or down, it would go alot quicker for everyone.

 

[jjjrmx5]

Really, if HF put a small sticker on each leg to indicate up or down, it would go alot quicker for everyone.

I just spit out my coffee LOLing.



LOLOLOLOLOLOL

 

[ex-x-fire]

Dirty old man!

 

[anthony73]

Inch lb torque wrench -pass- we used it yesterday to do intake gaskets on a 3800 in a Impala was accurate against another wrench but the "click" could be a louder.

 

[beamrider]

Inch lb torque wrench -pass- we used it yesterday to do intake gaskets on a 3800 in a Impala was accurate against another wrench but the "click" could be a louder.

If you're talking about the 1/4" drive torque wrench, I know what you mean about the quietness of the "click", I did the 3800 in my Monte Carlo last year from the heads on up, and had to have absolute silence in the garage when using the 1/4", it's not loud at all. Almost better to try to feel the click than to hear it. I picked up the 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 one day with a $9.99 each limit 6 coupon, all 3 tested accurate to within about 1%, so I was happy.

 

[IONH]

I just used the in/lb wrench last weekend and thought the feel was plenty. I've never used one in a situation that I wanted to rely on the audible click instead of its feel.

 

[Tornado]

Close quarters drill Item #92956 - FAIL

Used it a few times, but it will only hold up in very light duty. If you ever bind it up the gears will break. Not worth it.

 

[shoggoth80]

3/8" Drive Impact Sockets (deep well and shallow): Pass
1/2" Drive Pittsburgh chromed Sockets: Pass
3/8" impact extensions: Pass
1/2" to 3/8" impact adapter: Pass
1/2 to 3/4" impact adapter: Pass
3/8" Drive composite ratchet: Pass. Use it a lot. Pretty comfortable in the hand too.
Pittsburgh high polish metric wrenches (12pt)ass. Not bad for a cheap set of basics. My only beef is that they are 12pt. Lol.

 

[Texican]

2hp dust collector is a PASS
http://www.harborfreight.com/2-hp-industrial-5-micron-dust-collector-97869.html
Same unit from other brands easily cost 2-3 times as much. Surprisingly quiet as well.

 

[IONH]

Close quarters drill Item #92956 - FAIL

Used it a few times, but it will only hold up in very light duty. If you ever bind it up the gears will break. Not worth it.

How many times did you have them swap it out for you or is this just a guess?

 

[NJT Bus Guy]

I don't have much stuff from "Horrible Freight" in my tool box, but what I do have actually has held up. I have 1 7/8" - 2 1/4"combination wrench and 1/2" drive crows foot. I use them on the transmission lines on out D4500's they really take a beating

 

[W650Mike]

My first Harbor Freight Purchase:

$249 - Some Assembly Required.

A 4' x 8' utility trailer that I cut down to 4' x 6'. 12" tires, 3/4 PT Flooring ($29), side boards, front step / platform ($18).

I went this route for a lawn cart instead of the typical bushing bearing - no spring - $500-700 large yard cart.

It pulls nicely with either the electric EZ-Go or tractor and has been a big help in planting, limb trimming, etc. It is more than I care to pull with the lawn mower, but I have a smaller cart for that. With actual taper roller bearings and comparably decent tires, I tow it to the garden center for supplies rather than fire up the truck. (Very small town - and I can stay on back streets.)

 

[BigSteve63]

Still have not pulled the trigger on the 69924 dual action polisher. Anyone else picked one up lately that could share your experience with it? It will be warming up enough to want to buff / wax the vehicles soon!

 

[ChevyEFI]

I was going to post this in a deal thread but felt like it belonged here.

How heavy are these built? I have been looking at these.
http://www.harborfreight.com/hanging-tool-cabinet-39213.html
for 65.00. I have seen them cheaper though.

The HF 39213 is not heavy duty. I have a bunch of screwdrivers, tapes, drill bit sets, studfinder & elec. meters, body tools, my ear & eye protection, calipers, punches & knives in mine, plus a bunch of **** stacked up on top.

The doors are flimsy and only stay closed by the key being turned. I do have mine slightly tilted towards you. It's retained to the wall with drywall screws.

Mine works well for height overall but could be taller. I mounted some framing brackets on the side to hold a box of gloves.

Overall, I'd buy it again, but I need to add door closure retention and door handles.

 

[IONH]

Still have not pulled the trigger on the 69924 dual action polisher. Anyone else picked one up lately that could share your experience with it? It will be warming up enough to want to buff / wax the vehicles soon!

I got one for Christmas, still sitting here in box. Waiting for warmer weather to get it out and put it to use on a car.

There's a few good threads out there where some analysis was done on it which is why I asked for it. Externally, there are no signs on the latest product in the store that anything has changed.

 

[Danglerb]

I have the DA polisher, heard nothing but good on it so far, and last time I was in the store they even had all three styles of pads (which I have heard nothing but bad about) for $4 each and bought two of each. Same here, no time and weather (too hot/cold/wet or I am busy) to use it yet.

That little trailer looks very nice, but why shorten it?

 

[IONH]

I have the DA polisher, heard nothing but good on it so far, and last time I was in the store they even had all three styles of pads (which I have heard nothing but bad about) for $4 each and bought two of each. Same here, no time and weather (too hot/cold/wet or I am busy) to use it yet.

What did you hear about the pads?

 

[capturedlive]

My first Harbor Freight Purchase:

$249 - Some Assembly Required.

A 4' x 8' utility trailer that I cut down to 4' x 6'. 12" tires, 3/4 PT Flooring ($29), side boards, front step / platform ($18).

I went this route for a lawn cart instead of the typical bushing bearing - no spring - $500-700 large yard cart.

It pulls nicely with either the electric EZ-Go or tractor and has been a big help in planting, limb trimming, etc. It is more than I care to pull with the lawn mower, but I have a smaller cart for that. With actual taper roller bearings and comparably decent tires, I tow it to the garden center for supplies rather than fire up the truck. (Very small town - and I can stay on back streets.)

W650Mike, that's a thing of beauty! Well done!

 

[sjlee]

Its all China ****

You do realize that both Craftsman and Snap-On sell tools made in China now, right?

In any case, if you opened your mind a little, you might actually notice that some of the stuff they sell is actually pretty durable and useful... particularly at the prices they sell them for.

Most people who use HF tools are homeowners, hobbyists and DIYers... they don't want to pay the premium that goes along with professional/contractor grade tools... nor do they really need it.

 

[sjlee]

If you're talking about the 1/4" drive torque wrench, I know what you mean about the quietness of the "click", I did the 3800 in my Monte Carlo last year from the heads on up, and had to have absolute silence in the garage when using the 1/4", it's not loud at all. Almost better to try to feel the click than to hear it. I picked up the 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 one day with a $9.99 each limit 6 coupon, all 3 tested accurate to within about 1%, so I was happy.

I also agree that the "click" is easier to feel than the hear.

When I first used mine, I ended up re-torquing the oil drain bolt a few times because I didn't notice the "click" initially, but knew that I was starting to tighten it too much.

 

[IONH]

Purchased the Badland 12,000# Winch (part 68142) today with a single day coupon for $299 (regular $499). Good timing seeing as I just got a $200 gift card a few weeks ago for my Birthday. Bought the 2 year extended warranty for $50 to be safe.

I also picked up Trailer Tongue Box (part 65439) to put it in and mount to the front of my trailer with a coupon to be about $100 after 20% coupon with tax OTD. Be careful because the boxes each seemed to have a tear somewhere on them. I have not opened the box yet, but I think mine was only torn where the white straps held it closed. The straps were missing for whatever reason but the box had it's original tape still in tact.

No pass/fail yet as I have not used either of the above. I will update once I use either/both.

 

[BigSteve63]

I got one for Christmas, still sitting here in box. Waiting for warmer weather to get it out and put it to use on a car.

There's a few good threads out there where some analysis was done on it which is why I asked for it. Externally, there are no signs on the latest product in the store that anything has changed.

I have the DA polisher, heard nothing but good on it so far, and last time I was in the store they even had all three styles of pads (which I have heard nothing but bad about) for $4 each and bought two of each. Same here, no time and weather (too hot/cold/wet or I am busy) to use it yet.

That little trailer looks very nice, but why shorten it?

Looks like it's on sale this month for 49.99 - there is a worker at my local store who will sometimes let me use the 20% coupon on the sale prices. Would be a steal for $40

 

[Danglerb]

What did you hear about the pads?

Wear out fast, but good Lake pads are $12 plus shipping, so I bought two of each and will see how it goes for me. I have to figure a lot of buyers have never used a DA before and may do noob stuff like fail to keep the pad lubricated with goop.

I have a big Cyclo polisher, so other than messing with the HF DA I am thinking about putting a 3" backplate on it and using it for trim and narrow sections etc.

 

[IONH]

Wear out fast, but good Lake pads are $12 plus shipping, so I bought two of each and will see how it goes for me. I have to figure a lot of buyers have never used a DA before and may do noob stuff like fail to keep the pad lubricated with goop.

I have a big Cyclo polisher, so other than messing with the HF DA I am thinking about putting a 3" backplate on it and using it for trim and narrow sections etc.

I'd be interested in a write-up of the 3" backing plate install (posted in a new / separate thread of course). The little I looked at it, it appeared the standard backer is glued in and I was not sure if/how it could be removed.

 

[RedFordTruck]

100 pack 8-inch Black Zip ties: PASS
http://www.harborfreight.com/8-inch-black-cable-ties-pack-of-100-34635.html
What is there to say. They're zip ties. They work just fine, and I paid 79 cents for a pack of 100 after my coupon.

6 inch Magnetic Parts Holder: PASS
http://www.harborfreight.com/6-inch-magnetic-parts-holder-97825.html
Its a dish with a magnet in it. Hard to screw this one up. Magnet isnt the strongest in the world, but can hold basically anything you need. I paid $2.00 on sale. At that price you cant go wrong.

12'' Ratchet Bar Clamp/Spreader: FAIL
http://www.harborfreight.com/12-ratchet-bar-clampspreader-68975.html
These make a great paper weight, but dont bother trying to use them on anything more than paper. I only paid $1.99 each for 4 of them but do not buy them at any price. They dont clamp very tightly on anything, and work their way loose even when you clamp them. Clamped down a board to cut out a section with a jigsaw and one clamp worked its way loose and fell off onto the ground while i was cutting. Kicked it out of the way and pulled out a jorgensen

 

[Danglerb]

12'' Ratchet Bar Clamp/Spreader: FAIL
http://www.harborfreight.com/12-ratchet-bar-clampspreader-68975.html
These make a great paper weight, but dont bother trying to use them on anything more than paper. I only paid $1.99 each for 4 of them but do not buy them at any price. They dont clamp very tightly on anything, and work their way loose even when you clamp them. Clamped down a board to cut out a section with a jigsaw and one clamp worked its way loose and fell off onto the ground while i was cutting. Kicked it out of the way and pulled out a jorgensen

They just aren't that kind of clamp, but work fine for a lot of light duty applications like gluing where its handy to have half a dozen small clamps. I have a bucket full of 6" and 12", break one every time I misjudge just how light of duty and replace free next trip to HF.

I can't see spending the $$$ for a bucket full of Jorgensen's, but I do have a couple.

 

[skulldrinker]

They just aren't that kind of clamp, but work fine for a lot of light duty applications like gluing where its handy to have half a dozen small clamps. I have a bucket full of 6" and 12", break one every time I misjudge just how light of duty and replace free next trip to HF.

I can't see spending the $$$ for a bucket full of Jorgensen's, but I do have a couple.

They are rebuild able. I took one apart and the plastic part that breaks can be drilled out and a machine screw put in it's place. Good as new and 10X as strong. I only did one the second one s still all apart guess I got lazy.

 

[The Ratchet Man]

Another PASS for the 44" box and the side box. Really happy with them!

 

[cheechi]

They are rebuild able. I took one apart and the plastic part that breaks can be drilled out and a machine screw put in it's place. Good as new and 10X as strong. I only did one the second one s still all apart guess I got lazy.

This works with a rivet also. These clamps work really well at some things. Clamp the level to plywood to make cuts, gluing, 'not too tight' clamping if you need some wiggle room before really clamping it. I have some Irwins of similar design and if i need real clamps, I go with them or grab F clamps.

I will say, for 2 bucks on light duty and swap them every trip you need to make, you can definitely get 2 bucks worth out of them. I have about 10, I bought a few different 'designs' to see which held up the best. Haven't fully cycled through them yet, but the ones with the pointy handles seem to be the worst.

when I go to buy them, if it slides well, clamps really tight (almost to the point where you can't break it loose again) then I have one that will last for a while. Sometimes when I clamp it gets so tight it breaks in the store, i won't buy it.
I bring them up to the register in a big pile and say 'you had some broken ones on the shelf' they never mind. Saves someone else the hassle. Takes me 10 mins to go through all they have, if i need that many.

 

[pendragon1998]

I've had 3 or 4 of those clamps break on me. I just tossed the plastic and kept the metal bars. They're actually pretty useful to have around for poking things (I used one to poke a fire the other day). I used another one once to prop open the ejection chute on my lawn mower that was getting clogged up in some dense grass. lol