Harbor Freight Tools that don't suck

PHPaul · Dec 27, 2018

L120 said:
I'm the type of guy who needs a tool chest for everything. Yes, I like mech tools in an upright. Oh...did you know you can stack the base chest to give a huge storage capacity? Anyway, I like wood tools in a chest, electrical & plumbing in a chest, and definitely all welding tools in a chest.

Exactly.

I have a BIG box with a top chest for general mechanical tools. Then I have:

A chest for machinist tools for the little equipment in the basement shop
A chest for machinist tools for the big equipment in the garage
A box for plumbing tools
A box for modeling tools
A bag for electrical tools
A bag for electrical test equipment and leads
A pegboard wall for woodworking tools
A pegboard wall for welding/grinding/metalworking tools.

And then there's about lebendy-seven sets of drawers, shelves and various containers for spare parts and supplies sorted by purpose and size.

A casual acquaintance of my wife's had occasion to be in our basement and commented on all the shelves and organization.

My wife said "He's German." like that explained everything.

Which, I guess, it did...

LD48750 · Dec 27, 2018

PHPaul said:
Exactly.Snip...........................

A casual acquaintance of my wife's had occasion to be in our basement and commented on all the shelves and organization.

My wife said "He's German." like that explained everything.

Which, I guess, it did...

No it doesn't...... I'm German & my barn is a MESS along with the basement.
Best I can say is the boxes in my Suburban have almost everything I ever need..
And I know where it is.

TSO · Dec 27, 2018

Anyone have the HF "Central Machinery" dust collection system, 2HP, 1500 CFM ? I'm starting to look for a system for my shop and this one can't be beat on price, and the reviews are great...

PHPaul · Dec 27, 2018

LD48750 said:
No it doesn't...... I'm German & my barn is a MESS along with the basement.
Best I can say is the boxes in my Suburban have almost everything I ever need..
And I know where it is.

My ancestors are from a little known town in the State of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania: ****-Retentive...:laughing:

TMGT · Dec 27, 2018

Rock Crawler said:
Pump Guy,

I bought the 4 drawer tool cart and I am sorry that I did. Consider it carefully. The 5 drawer upper bin is deeper (up and down), the 4 drawer one is shallower and does not fit larger screw driver handles dropped down into the holes. The 5 drawer is deeper and more accommodating here.

The 5 drawer cart has deeper (front to back) and as such will fit more tools and do it better. The 5 tool cart also has added space along the outside sides. Overall, the 5 drawer cart is a better use of nearly the same floor space and will allow you just a bit more everything for the next 30 or 40 years that you own it. I know it seems like the $170 compared to the $85 is a deal breaker.... but I find myself kicking myself now for buying 2 of the 4 drawer units. When I bought they were on coupon for the 4 drawer at $99 and the 5 drawer at $149! I was such a fool!

I just noticed the 5 drawer coupon is good for over a year. Misprint maybe?

Rock Crawler · Dec 27, 2018

TMGT said:
I just noticed the 5 drawer coupon is good for over a year. Misprint maybe?

I doubt that it's a mistake, the price is absurdly high. You have to consider that the coupon price last spring was $149.99 for the 5 drawer and $99.99 for the 4 drawer. Today the 4 drawer in Black is $84.99, while the 5 drawers with the new 5 color mix is $189.99.

That's a very lucrative coupon for Harbor Freight! If they drop it to $149, or even $159 this coming year... I'll buy in. But for today, it's just not worth a $105 premium over the 4 drawer coupon price.

Rock Crawler · Dec 27, 2018

Same as above, but the $85 premium over the 4 drawer for the 5 drawer older colors on coupon also doesn't seem fair to my perspective. $50 is fair enough. Maybe I'm just as cheap S o B?

TMGT · Dec 27, 2018

Rock Crawler said:
I doubt that it's a mistake, the price is absurdly high. You have to consider that the coupon price last spring was $149.99 for the 5 drawer and $99.99 for the 4 drawer. Today the 4 drawer in Black is $84.99, while the 5 drawers with the new 5 color mix is $189.99.

That's a very lucrative coupon for Harbor Freight! If they drop it to $149, or even $159 this coming year... I'll buy in. But for today, it's just not worth a $105 premium over the 4 drawer coupon price.

Weren't the prices last spring on the older generation carts? I have 2 of the first generation 5 drawers and the series 2 are a definite upgrade.

When I saw those low prices I figured they were clearing out the older units.

Rock Crawler · Dec 27, 2018

No, it was just after the Gen 2 came out. I bought 2 of the 4 drawer Gen 2 carts. Now I want to give these away and get the 5 drawer versions. I'll just chill and wait for the pricing to stabilize after the new colors and all....

California · Dec 27, 2018

Rock Crawler said:
Today the 4 drawer in Black is $84.99...

Is that the same chest that they were selling last year that never (seldom?) went below $99? For some reason I thought this one is more cheaply made.

Update: after a little research that $84.99 coupon was 'released in error' and was recalled. Likely some stores will override and honor it, some won't.

FYI, this $84.99 coupon for the black 4... - Harbor Freight Coupon Database | Facebook

3" 4 Drawer Tech Cart Coupon "issue" : harborfreight

Rock Crawler · Dec 27, 2018

California said:
Is that the same chest that they were selling last year that never (seldom?) went below $99? For some reason I thought this one is more cheaply made.

Nope. It's the exact same one that when it was at $99 it was like the heavens opened up and Angels poured gifts down upon us. Now that same one is at $84.99.

tomplum · Dec 27, 2018

I've talked to a few guys that had the miter saw stand. Pros: It is very stable, nice height and works well. Con: I had the idea to get an extra pair of mounting brackets for another saw. They apparently don't sell them except piece by piece via parts. This is much better stand than my POS Grizzly.

crazyal · Dec 28, 2018

Rich B1 said:
Ok, all this discussion of tool carts.......so right time to ask.

I am helping a young guy who races flat track with motorcycles. Kid is quite talented.

But, time in the pits seems to be a fire drill of grabbing things to work on the bikes. But it seems to me, we use the same stuff 90% of the time. So I want to simplify.

I am about to pull the trigger on a 4 drawer service cart to give to him. Reality is, we really only use a handful of tools normally. But we change sprockets, clean the chain, check tire pressure, lubethe chain, etc. we don稚 need a lot of tool storage, we do need a place for the sprocket carrier, spare chain, lube, rags, gloves, etc. in other words, i want what we use 90% of the time in one place.

The slightly taller storage area under the cabinet of the 4 drawer is an advantage from how I am looking at the carts. The smaller overall capacity should cut down on the temptation to put tools in that are not needed.

Thoughts?

BTW, took advantage of the Black Friday pricing on the tool storage. Got a 44嚢22 set. Merry Christmas to me! Went from overflowing drawers to a couple of empty drawers. And no, don稚 need more tool! Kept my Craftsman side cabinet. Much better storage than I had before.

I think the 4 drawer would work fine for you. However I would make some upgrades. Since you are talking flat track I'm assuming the pit is dirt. I would get larger casters for it unless you do all your work in a trailer. When I was racing I had a 26' enclosed trailer so lots of room, you may not. The extra depth of the 5 drawer would help make it a little more stable but probably not enough to make it worth while. The other things I would think about is adding the attachment to hold cans (I can't remember if it comes with the 4 drawer cart). They have them in magnetic fastening but you'll want to mount them with screws (easy to do). Also the side work self and I would look to see if the 5 drawer one can be mounted on the 4 drawer cart as it's larger and seamed stronger to me. On the 5 drawer cart the top lid is a couple inches longer than the box so having a slightly longer shelf wouldn't be an issue. It would make for a nice place to set things like sprockets while cleaning/ changing them. I think the ultimate setup would be a small parts washer mounted to the side that had a cover to seal it for transport.

PJSprog · Dec 28, 2018

tomplum said:
I've talked to a few guys that had the miter saw stand. Pros: It is very stable, nice height and works well. Con: I had the idea to get an extra pair of mounting brackets for another saw. They apparently don't sell them except piece by piece via parts. This is much better stand than my POS Grizzly.

I have that stand. We used it every weekend for about 5 or 6 weeks this fall while building a deck, and it worked great with our Craftsman compound sliding miter saw. An excellent and highly recommended piece of equipment, in my opinion. It was rock-solid.

Diggin It · Dec 28, 2018

Given certain current conditions, I would expect the cart and cabinet prices to rise, possibly significantly.

thepumpguysc · Dec 28, 2018

Thanks for all the info on the 4 & 5 drawer carts as I'm going tomorrow..
I DID FIND the coupon for the 4 drawer box for 86.00 ON THEIR WEBSITE.. and marked as "active".. I took a snapshot of it & will "make them" honor it.. {Yeah right}
The SUPER coupon I HAVE NOW is for 109.00{4 drawer}.. Its 107.00 if I wait afew days..
I cant find a GOOD DEAL on the 5 drawer tho.. I think its 186.00 w/ a coupon.??

TMGT · Dec 28, 2018

thepumpguysc said:
Thanks for all the info on the 4 & 5 drawer carts as I'm going tomorrow..
I DID FIND the coupon for the 4 drawer box for 86.00 ON THEIR WEBSITE.. and marked as "active".. I took a snapshot of it & will "make them" honor it.. {Yeah right}
The SUPER coupon I HAVE NOW is for 109.00{4 drawer}.. Its 107.00 if I wait afew days..
I cant find a GOOD DEAL on the 5 drawer tho.. I think its 186.00 w/ a coupon.??

I just got an email today for the 4drawer at 84.99, RC posted a coupon for the 5drawer for 169.99 a few pages back