Harbor Freight Tools that DO SUCK II

[jjeff]

Well the "heavy duty" hf chop saw I bought years ago started on fire after the first cut I attempted, I believe it was thin gauge rectangular tubing they did refund me when I returned a half melted carcass. Tried the small 5 speed bench top drill press I was surprised (well not really) a pine 2x4 could stop the chuck dead using a 1/4 inch bit. Finally I was using a friend's hf 100 amp Flux core welder at his place the lead touched some rather hot steel and burnt right through it. The liner the wire travels through was thinner than a cocktail straw.

 

[von-mil]

Back when the HF catalogs were still being mailed out, it seemed that every other item listed had the words "Heavy Duty" in their description.

 

[jjeff]

Said before and will say again, I have had zero issues with Bauer cordless tools and I use the heck out of them As cheap as they are, finding the smoke isn't a big deal but I've yet to find it.

I have found the smoke in DeWalt and in Makita before. They both stink like rice paper insulation.

Dewalts are great. had Milwaukee's 18volt nicad tools was always replacing batteries fortunately the Milwaukee stuff was stolen 15 years ago so I started buying Dewalt they had a smarter charger. I still have 15yr old xrp nicad batteries that hold a charge, barely. Dewalt has a three year warranty and had a service shop in Milwaukee. To my surprise They rebuilt my 18 volt xrp impact and xrp drill no questions asked no cost to me, both were beat to crap and smoked among other things. The key I found is to research the model numbers and get the xrp stuff not the consumer brand name compact junk at big box stores. Ive replaced the Nicad stuff with the brushless lithium ion tools and love it! somehow in my head I justified upgrading and bringing my old 18 volt dewalt tools to my cabin where they became invaluable. Dewalt also makes a lithium ion battery converter so you can run 20volt batteries in the 18 volt stuff which worked pretty good during my upgrade. Getting back to the subject HF clamps and vises are complete garbage in my experience.

 

[5030]

HF clamps and vises are complete garbage in my experience.

Mine too.

DeWalt replacement XR packs cost as much as an entire Bauer tool with a battery and a charger.

 

[jjeff]

Mine too.

DeWalt replacement XR packs cost as much as an entire Bauer tool with a battery and a charger.

But does Bauer say made in the USA (with global components)
Lol. I used to use these tools to make a living. hands down The xr and older xrp line are some of the best cordless tools out there in terms of durability, customer service, and reliability imo. however I will say the DeWalt drill bits and impact driver accessories suck.

 

[5030]

But does Bauer say made in the USA (with global components)
Lol. I used to use these tools to make a living. hands down The xr and older xrp line are some of the best cordless tools out there in terms of durability, customer service, and reliability imo. however I will say the DeWalt drill bits and impact driver accessories suck.

Candidly, I don't care. I don't use them for a living, I'm retired.

Not made in USA anyway. 'Assembled' in USA is more like it. For some reason (most likely marketing), the words made and assembled get blurred a lot.

I will say both the Icon and Chief brands are top shelf quality tools Not as cheap as Bauer but not as expensive (by a long shot) as Snap-On or MAC or IR and just as good, if not better, Those tools I'd use in my job if I needed to.

In defense of Bauer, I've yet to find the smoke in any of them. I have found the smoke in DeWalt. Sure stinks too. Smells like rice paper.

 

[jjeff]

Supposedly Bauer and DeWalt use the same battery cells I believe Samsung? To me Bauer are good hockey skates not power tools . If I didn't have a good previous experience with DeWalt I'd probably try hf cordless stuff. I'm also impressed with all the DeWalt 20volt tools available not really related to building like the grease gun, chain saw, weedeater, pole saw, etc.

 

[grsthegreat]

My dewalt tools are old, and keep on going. I made a living off of them tools.

i had an apprentice that bought a brand new HF hole hawg knockoff. Fried it on the first job. My milwaukee hole hogs are over 25 years old.....only replaced 1 trigger switch in one of them, and a couple of pigtail cords. I have 3 of those.

 

[Doughknob]

The pittsburgh 16" end nipper is crap. knife edge keeps breaking off little bits. it is apparently not heat treated properly. had 2 of these do this so far.

 

[Cougsfan]

It's easy to love HFT and easy to hate China but it takes a patriot to do both well.

As for HFT tools that do suck, you get what you pay for.

Boy have you hit the nail on the head, Old Grind.
I get so tired about people questioning if stuff is made in China or the third world. American companies, appealing to American's patriotism to get a sale, will lie through their teeth to claim it product is "American Made" when maybe 90% of the labor involved in manufacturing comes from the third world or China. It is empty patriotism.

But as far as Harbor Freight tools go. If you make your living using tools, you probably shouldn't buy tools there. If you are a guy who is going to use a tool once or twice and it will set in your shop seldom used, you should definitely buy tools there. And even at Harbor Freight you get what you pay for. More expensive Bauer is better than Warrior, and even more expensive Hercules is better than Bauer.