Harbor freight tools

[ndz98]

The harbor freight where I live is having a huge sale and I'm wanting to buy some stuff from there but I want some opinions first. Now I know it's not like top of the line products that they sell but for the most part, are they pretty decent?

I'm going to be building my own stand soon and was wondering how many of the materials I would need I could buy from there. I'll probably end up using these things once and not touching them again for a very long time. I'm looking to get clamps, jig saw, circular saw, maybe a router, and some hole saws. You think these things would work good enough for the job at hand or not so much?

Again, I really only need these things for this one project.

 

[pelphrey]

I can't cut a straight line to save my life with a circular saw, if they have a miter saw prices decent pick it up!

 

[Fish Werx]

Stuff like angle grinders, cut off wheels, sledge hammers and clamps. Why not?
For my shop use heavy electrical or pneumatic I stay away...
However, if you are literally going to use it once and prob not use again for a long time I would think just about everything they sell would be a viable choice.

 

[ndz98]

Stuff like angle grinders, cut off wheels, sledge hammers and clamps. Why not?
For my shop use heavy electrical or pneumatic I stay away...
However, if you are literally going to use it once and prob not use again for a long time I would think just about everything they sell would be a viable choice.

Just curious but what makes them not suitable for multiple uses? Is it just because they don't hold up well as far as quality and just break or is it another reason?

 

[cromag27 Verified Sponsor]

Hit or miss. some stuff is made of cheap materials and they break easily. I've had good luck with most of their products.

 

[saltnewb]

i'm not a fan of harbor freight. i've bought power tools from there in the past because it was the cheap way out. ended up having to buy everything again, so ended up spending more in the long run. they use cheap motors and components in their tools. i suppose hammers and screw drivers would be okay, but i wouldn't buy any power tools from them.

 

[cromag27 Verified Sponsor]

Just a few things that have worked great for me, tool set and misc hand tools, paint sprayer, air polisher, bench polisher, hole saw set, straight edge clamps, dollies, air compressor, drill press, various clamps. I use some of these items multiple times a week when fabricating wood and acrylic goodies.

 

[davocean]

HF is ok for things like clamps, iron like sledges and breaker bars and things, but saws, nail guns and most all mechanical stuff is junk, does not last, hard or impossible to get serviced.
Just go to home depot or similar for those things.
Ryobi has some decent stuff at budget prices, rigid is ok, porter cable has great stuff for the price, I'd stick w/ those brands for budget saws/tools.

 

[jsker]

pawn shop, you find quality tools at Harbor Fright prices;).

 

[Chain]

Harbor freight is a great store if you know and expect the outcome.

I've bought crap tools at HF, but also master craft tools at menards or black and decker, they are horrible.

You get what you pay for. The HF tools are fine. = black and decker > mastercraft > Dewalt > anything else haha

 

[thejuice24]

Had a mitter saw from harbor freight for 5 years, can't complain at all ...

 

[Fish Werx]

Just curious but what makes them not suitable for multiple uses? Is it just because they don't hold up well as far as quality and just break or is it another reason?

Ive had some stuff from HF like an angle grinder for a few years with no problems at all. But some stuff Ive had for one use and it has broken. I think they just deal in inferior designed and manufactured products sometimes? A major concern when buying their tools is consistency in manufacturing. I know some guys that have been through 5 of the same exact grinder that I own fom HF and mine is still running great....
I have to admit I am kind of biased because I have an automotive custom paint and body shop. So we are pretty hard on most of our tools. That said, a good amount of my go to tools at the shop are Craftsman ad Dewalt. I dont buy into those super overpriced tools like Snap-On or the other big names just because of the name. We do our research before dropping $800 on a set of breaker bars! Haha!
For my home tools I just check out the Facebook yardsale app or Craigslist. I have some really nice, high end tools that I have basically paid way less than HF prices for! I picked up a table saw with all the fences and a stand alone 1/2hp drill press for less than $100 the other day!!!

 

[Seanb1]

I buy mechanics tools from harbor freight, if I break them they replace them.
I've purchased a generator from them for home use in case of power outage and I have another for my job use and they both work well.
You just have to take care of them, not allow fuel to sit for long periods in the carb and tank.
I also buy super glue gel there 10 tubes for 3 bucks.
They always have free coupons where you get a item free for buying anything else.
Got a free multimeter just the other day for buying a 3 dollar pack of glue which I needed to track down which component was allowing stray voltage into my system.

 

[jimk60]

Bought numerous items from HF for years some good some junk. Definitely would not trust my butt to their free multimeter

 

[Miketay89]

I have bought many things from them, gas powered air compressor wood chipper being the biggest items plus many smaller tools. They are nice inexpensive solutions for tools that you are not going to use often.

 

[SteveSTL]

I have a chip collector that's hooked up to the planer and jointer that's probably 15 years old and going strong. It's hooked up to a cyclonic lid that sits on a trashcan so I only have to empty the bag once a year or so. Also have a bandsaw but to be honest, it's never been worth much. Someone gave me a Delta benchtop that cuts better than the Harbor Freight. Hopefully I'll be getting a 40's vintage Walker Turner soon and my bandsaw woes will be over.

For small bar clamps, hand clamps, tow straps, etc they really can't be beat. For hand tools, stationary tools, etc. I stick with Ridgid, Milwaukee, Jet, Powermatic, etc.

 

[Jofiel]

Make sure you sign up for the email newsletter and they will send you super coupons. I wait until something I need has a super coupon.

I've moved 3 times in the last 5 years and ended up giving away all my nice tools. I'm in an apartment now so not using them much but can't stand not having the basics on hand.

With the super coupons I paid like $12 for my corded drill and circular saw. $19 for the 1/4" router and variable speed multi-tool. At those prices I don't expect them to hold up to heavy abuse but they certainly work well enough for the limited projects I have now.

 

[Centerline]

I bought a couple of their large bandsaws that ran 10 hours a day for a good year before they were retired for a couple of industrial saws made in the US that cost a whole lot more and have been running flawlessly for the last 5 years. So while their tools are most often inexpensive its not all junk. We still have drill press that we purchased 5 years ago that is used 8 hours a 10. The drill press was $600 and it sits next to one of our $4000 dollar Ellis drill presses looking like a pretty good value.

 

[JBradford]

I buy disposables there. Saw blades, sanding discs, glues, tape, etc, heck ever airline. I try to stay away from tools that I plan to keep and last me a while. Drill, ratchet set, never measuring devices. Or if I'm doing a one time project and they have the tool at half the price I'll buy it there.