The unexpected...

[eschoendorff]

Sometimes you buy a **** tool just to get you through a job, but then the damn thing doesn't die. My case in point: those POS HF made in India three jaw pullers. I don't even remember what the original project was, but I had a couple laying around here. I have pulled more pulleys, hubs, bearings, etc with those things - fully expecting them to break - and yet they don't. I know that MANY other people have had bad experiences with these things... but mine are still going. Kinda leaves me scratching my head. And it's not even like I got teh "good" HF ones... it these:

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=8832

Here's to **** tools that won't die.












ps... I know I just jinxed this

 

[Deafautotech]

damn.... my dad bought it before and i used it once and jaws keep bent and crack while i try to pull pulley. that why i got lucky that my tech friend let me take his proto puller (2ton, 5ton, 10ton pullers) it is two jaws. he said no use them anymore so i told him thanks and took whole of pullers. also i just took his snap on adjustment for front end for dont know vehicle but i had it to pull seat on jeep front axle housing and it work good. he said i can keep it because he said he dont use it anymore....

 

[MXtras]

I have a MIC (made in China) wrench that's 20+ years old that I heated up and put a double offset in to reach underneath carbs and things like that. The bends have ended up being a lot more versatile than imagined at the time and that stupid wrench is still one of the first ones I reach for when I need a wrench of that size. It's still kicking!

Scott

 

[Deafautotech]

my dad have lot of oversea wrenches and i used them to heat up to fit where i need to fit and it is work but other time it crack when i trying to loose first. it is good to use for creative way without damage th values of good brands of tools.

 

[mulepackin]

Got a set of HF ball pein hammers. Been beaten on stuff with em for years. The handles were junk, but the heads keep on pounding. Always expected chunks to fly off em, but hasn't happened yet. For whatever reason ordered a set of HF flare nut wrenches once. Looked like a 5 year old sand casted em. Not even close to porper size. Real ****.

 

[wilbilt]

My case in point: those POS HF made in India three jaw pullers. (SNIP)
Here's to **** tools that won't die.

I don't have any of those, but will keep them in mind. I have had some bad times with the slide-hammer bearing/axle pullers from HF, though.

The Chiwanese tools are looking better these days. I guess practice makes perfect (along with US tooling and know-how getting transported lock, stock, and barrel over there).

I'll raise a glass to **** tools that won't die

 

[rose jackets67]

Geez - I have one to add here. The harbor freight 4" angle grinder. $9.99 when they are on sale, I paid $8 for mine with a 20% coupon. The oldest one I have is getting onto 4 years of service. Used with grinding and cutting attachments. It's been used for everything imagineable, and just generally abused ub every way.

It's loud and vibrates like crazy, but that thing won't die.

adam

 

[eschoendorff]

As long as you see these tools for what they are.... it's kind of amusing!

 

[TNToy]

I've killed three 4" and 4.5" harbor freight grinders, rose.

But I keep buying them, because I can buy four of them for half the price of a good paddle-switch equipped one, and don't have to switch wheels all the time.

I've got a grinding wheel on my good grinder... and a wire wheel, flap disc, etc on cheap ones. Speeds up fab work.

 

[wilbilt]

I've killed three 4" and 4.5" harbor freight grinders, rose.

I've killed two without trying. One had no bearing, and the next melted within a few minutes. But it's true they are disposable.

Figure out what it would cost for emery cloth/files/burrs to achieve the same result...and the cheapo grinder wins.

If they would only sell them on a roll, like paper towels....

 

[kartracer55]

This is the kind of tool I would really be carefull of with HF. Tons of pressure on those jaws and if one lets go it could get ugly. I use older US made gear pullers. You can pick them up used and they are built VERY well compared to alot of things today.

OTC makes a VERY nice kit, but its a couple hundred$$$, so its a bit outa my range at the moment.

Jim

 

[mulepackin]

OTC makes a VERY nice kit, but its a couple hundred$$$, so its a bit outa my range at the moment.

My dad got an OTC set with the heavy bearing plate in the 70's. It is an incredible tool. Tougher than a cheap steak and hell for stout. I don't know if they still make their tools with that kind of quality or not. I know some of my OTC 4 lug wheel nut sockets didn't hold up like I expected. My KDs have been better.

 

[trainer]

I've got a puller like that.
It's all the local auto place had when i was looking for one to work on a snowmobile engine. Its always done whatever i've asked it to.

The tool thats surprised me most is a pair of Fuller sidecutter pliers that I bought from the five and dime in the late '70s while i was still in hichschool.
They are very well made, feel right, are still tight and still cut everything they should.

 

[Canadian Charlie]

I've got a puller like that.
It's all the local auto place had when i was looking for one to work on a snowmobile engine. Its always done whatever i've asked it to.

The tool thats surprised me most is a pair of Fuller sidecutter pliers that I bought from the five and dime in the late '70s while i was still in hichschool.
They are very well made, feel right, are still tight and still cut everything they should.

I have the same side cutters, got them from Crappy Tire back in the early 80's Fuller is made in Canada so I wouldn't classify them as off shore tools

 

[russlaferrera]

In the 1950s it was Japanese products they were ****. They were the Chinaese tools of today Then they started building their products to a higher standard. I think the labor rate in China is so low it doesn't pay for them to make great tools because of "planed obsolescence" They want to sell more to keep the employees /economy strong, and it is very strong.

Most of our complaints are with metal heat treatment. Should they heat treat the metal properly the world is in trouble. Think of it! Better bearings, the tools run better . Harder screws for pullers. A little more effort they are there. They have the state of the art factories. Even Japan is outsourcing !

 

[martell06]

those hf tools seem to die on the first use or last forever

 

[safetyfast]

A friend of mine uses a cheap spark plug socket with a crack in it. When the crack starts to open, he knows the spark plug is properly torqued.

 

[NTAPHSE]

I've killed three 4" and 4.5" harbor freight grinders, rose.

But I keep buying them, because I can buy four of them for half the price of a good paddle-switch equipped one, and don't have to switch wheels all the time.

I've got a grinding wheel on my good grinder... and a wire wheel, flap disc, etc on cheap ones. Speeds up fab work.

I bought a cheapo HF grinder to have an extra too. I learned that the HF grinder vibrates a lot with a wire wheel on it, but is fine with a flap wheel on it, so I use my good Makita with the wire wheel, and only use the HF for less vibration prone jobs, like the flap wheel or a plain old grinding disk. Seems like the already unbalanced HF grinder doesn't need anything to throw it even more off balance.

 

[NTAPHSE]

Got a set of HF ball pein hammers. Been beaten on stuff with em for years. The handles were junk, but the heads keep on pounding. Always expected chunks to fly off em, but hasn't happened yet. For whatever reason ordered a set of HF flare nut wrenches once. Looked like a 5 year old sand casted em. Not even close to porper size. Real ****.

I might have the same set. I bought a 3 set of ball pein hammers with yellow fiberglass handles probably 5 yrs ago and I still use them a ton. My dog even chewed half way through one of the handles, it still works!

 

[Brad54]

I needed to drill a couple holes in the foundation of my shop, and desperately needed a hammer drill to do it. Renting one was $45! Harbor Freight sold me one for $19. Biggest POS you've ever seen...plastic body (!), plastic "keyless" chuck...really junk. But it drilled those seven holes like they were in butter and got me through the project. If I ever have to use it again, it's like money in the bank. I bought it with the thought that if I got through that job it was worth it, and any future jobs would be a bonus. It's been three years and I haven't needed it again...if I'd have rented the tool, it would have cost me more and I'd have to rent again if I ever needed one. If I'd have bought a decent one, it would have cost a TON more, and how many times in my life will I really use it? Every other hole in concrete I've ever made was fine with a regular drill and a concrete bit, and Dad made it to 60 so far without ever needing a hammer drill, so I think the cheap Harbor Freight junk was well worth it.
Your results may vary.
Brad

 

[Deafautotech]

i was surprised that OTC make special tools for GM (kent Moore) and Daimlerchrysler (miller tools)......

 

[Jay H 237]

I work on robots and other automation systems and I do alot of soldering and heatshrinking. I bought the orange $14.99 heatgun from HF 1 1/2 years ago and the thing just keeps on working. It's sometimes borrowed in the shop and the main reason I won't bring in my Milwaukee from home or buy another expensive one. I see it on sale at times for $9.99 now and a few others in my shop have bought them.

I wouldn't hesitate to buy another if something happens to this one.

 

[Deafautotech]

my dad bought me a heat gun from harbor frieght for 10 bucks. i use it few time and it is work good.

but most time i work on transmission or engine. i do use heat gun to repair oil pressure sensor wires which Sebring with 2.7L have problem with sensor and wires. that cause the driver a panic as it show oil pressure light light on....

 

[Canadian Charlie]

I guess not everything from overseas is junk. That is if you don't use it everyday in a shop

 

[milly]

It seems that the only time I break a tool is when I'm in a hurry and it just happens to be the only tool for the job. It doesn't matter if it's a $1.00 junk tool or a high end $$$$$$!!! Snap-On tool. If I'm in a hurry, you can bet it will break.

 

[lbgradwell]

The tool thats surprised me most is a pair of Fuller sidecutter pliers that I bought from the five and dime in the late '70s while i was still in highschool.
They are very well made, feel right, are still tight and still cut everything they should.

I have the same side cutters, got them from Crappy Tire back in the early 80's Fuller is made in Canada so I wouldn't classify them as off shore tools

Charlie, unless your pair actually says "Made in Canada" on them, I'd assume those Fullers were made in Japan; I have some T&G and linesman pliers and an adjustable wrench from back then and all are Japanese. They're all very good too!

 

[RickP330]

I bought this knife from horror freight when it was on sale. I have a couple of SO and other assorted knifes in my box, but I use this stupid one almost every day:


http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=90802


Just swap the blade out and you have a new knife...

 

[Kevin54]

ps... I know I just jinxed this <!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

I was going to say now that you brought it up, you will be in the middle of a big job, on a Sunday, need one of those, it will break, the only one that will work and HF will be out of any others. LOL!!!

 

[Uncle Buck]

I still say it, I cut many corners where I can in tool quality but pullers are not one of those areas, nor are taps & dies. Only trusted brands for me thanks.

 

[dxdexter]

Sometimes you buy a **** tool just to get you through a job, but then the damn thing doesn't die. My case in point: those POS HF made in India three jaw pullers. I don't even remember what the original project was, but I had a couple laying around here. I have pulled more pulleys, hubs, bearings, etc with those things - fully expecting them to break - and yet they don't. I know that MANY other people have had bad experiences with these things... but mine are still going. Kinda leaves me scratching my head. And it's not even like I got teh "good" HF ones... it these:

Here's to **** tools that won't die.

I have a few tools like that. One is a Chinese lug nut flip socket that I purchased about 15 years ago. The damn thing won't even dent, let alone break, so I can justify the purchase of a name brand tool.

I guess they can't be classified as **** even when you pay a few bucks, if it lasts decades under frequent use.

 

[creatureofthewheel]

lots of good tools come out of india. they and russia have great foundries and even better cold forgings. i had a colleague from india in the tool and die trade. he gave me some cheap stuff that was as thin, light, and shaped as well as some of my SO stuff. ive used and almost abused those tools and they just continue to bewilder me. no labels ; coldforged india.

 

[eschoendorff]

lots of good tools come out of india. they and russia have great foundries and even better cold forgings. i had a colleague from india in the tool and die trade. he gave me some cheap stuff that was as thin, light, and shaped as well as some of my SO stuff. ive used and almost abused those tools and they just continue to bewilder me. no labels ; coldforged india.

Yeah.. I haven't seen any of the "good" tools then.

Everything that I have ever seen bearing the name "India" has been complete and total ****.

I even have a set of flare nut wrenches (India) that I keep around just to remind me what "****" looks like.

 

[creatureofthewheel]

Lmao dude. i didnt say i "like" using the indian stuff. i keep mine around to remind me of being broke as hell in college eatin ramen noodles and beefjerky! i had the shittiest tools then so now i appreciate the **** that lasted me. its like three wrenches and a run of 3/8 short wells.

 

[eschoendorff]

Lmao dude. i didnt say i "like" using the indian stuff. i keep mine around to remind me of being broke as hell in college eatin ramen noodles and beefjerky! i had the shittiest tools then so now i appreciate the **** that lasted me. its like three wrenches and a run of 3/8 short wells.

I still have some of my tools that I had in college... it is embarrassing. How I never got hurt using some of them is beyond me.

 

[wilbilt]

I still have some of my tools that I had in college... it is embarrassing. How I never got hurt using some of them is beyond me.

"Hurt" is a relative term. The long-term effects can be hard to detect.

 

[RickP330]

I worked for a company that made tube expanders in NYC. Or main competitors were from india and our tools would outlast theirs by 4 to 1 easy. Our tools were not as good as they could have been either. I was rather disappointed with our quality. however, our price was 10X their price......
RickP