Harbor Freight Tools that don't suck

[TheMan419]

Bought the fold out hand cart that can handle 150 pounds. Seems decently built for $23. Needed to move some stuff around the house. I have chronic lower back pain. So this will come in handy.

It will be interesting to see how it holds up. For $23 if it fails tomorrow I will simply find something better.

 

[crazyal]

You do realize that we lost a member here - Mikim - doing exactly what you do. The chain slipped and his they found him dead under the mower. He left behind a very devastated and grieving family. And I lost a very good friend.

I'm not usually the safety police and this isn't exactly on topic but close. When my father was in his late teens he found my grandfather dead pinned under a car he was working on in the garage. This was back in the 50s (I'm guessing since my father never talked about it) when car jacks fit into slits in the steel bumpers. The jack fit into a base and you would use the lug wrench to ratchet the jack. Anyway either he didn't use the base or didn't chock the tires to prevent it from rolling and, as you would say that was it. I don't think he suffered much but it impacted my father a lot. As a kid I was always working under a car and my father would always put an extra jack stand (or two) before disappearing into the house. I didn't know why until much later when my grandmother told me the story. So while you may trust your loader or jack just remember, it's not you who is going to find your body. Are you OK with the hurt you will cause the family member or friend who is going find you?

On a side note when my father passed away I bought a real two post car lift and several jack stands with part of the money he left me. I think I caused him enough worrying watching me as a kid that the least I could do is spend it on something he would approve of.

 

[TheeKb]

Picked this up on a coupon code deal using the HFQPDB site. Can I use it for anything on my Mahindra 4025,Nissan Titan,Honda 4 wheeler or Nissan Maxima? Thought I needed it doing a repair on my truck but i read the wrong thread by accident.... ugh

Tool is the Pittsburgh click type torque wrench Item 807
Accurate with +/- 4%
Range 5-80 ft Lb
Reversible

 

[Midniteoyl]

Picked this up on a coupon code deal using the HFQPDB site. Can I use it for anything on my Mahindra 4025,Nissan Titan,Honda 4 wheeler or Nissan Maxima? Thought I needed it doing a repair on my truck but i read the wrong thread by accident.... ugh

Tool is the Pittsburgh click type torque wrench Item 807
Accurate with +/- 4%
Range 5-80 ft Lb
Reversible

Can always use a torque wrench, even a 3/8". I use mine for manifold/starter/water pump, pully, etc bolts, smaller wheels, mowers and blades, etc, etc.. At 80lbs it wont quite do large trailer/truck/car wheel lugs, or head bolts, but for just about every thing else, its a nice size to have.

 

[TheeKb]

Can always use a torque wrench, even a 3/8". I use mine for manifold/starter/water pump, pully, etc bolts, smaller wheels, mowers and blades, etc, etc.. At 80lbs it wont quite do large trailer/truck/car wheel lugs, or head bolts, but for just about every thing else, its a nice size to have.

Sweet! Man,thx Midniteoyl! I won't take it back then hahaha Besides,what man doesn't need extra tools laying around?

 

[JRobyn]

I keep one each of HF 1/2", 3/8" and 1/4" torque wrenches all on a double-peg set on the pegboard. Very handy to have all 3, especially when they go on sale for $9.99 ea.

 

[TemporaryKubotaOwnerMark]

I have a general drilling question: I have plenty of plumber's pipe thread cutting oil. Is this the same thing, or suitable, as oil for a drill press?

Yep. Transmission fluid works just fine, too. So does motor oil. Don't overthink this.

 

[dragoneggs]

Yep. Transmission fluid works just fine, too. So does motor oil. Don't overthink this.

True enough... just trying to carry heat away from the cutting edge.

 

[California]

Interesting. I wonder why this plumber's thread cutting oil is labelled as a specialty product due to its high sulfur content.

 

[DFB]

Picked this up on a coupon code deal using the HFQPDB site. Can I use it for anything on my Mahindra 4025,Nissan Titan,Honda 4 wheeler or Nissan Maxima? Thought I needed it doing a repair on my truck but i read the wrong thread by accident.... ugh

Tool is the Pittsburgh click type torque wrench Item 807
Accurate with +/- 4%

Range 5-80 ft Lb
Reversible

Bought a Pittsburg 1/2 inch torque wrench last summer for work up at farm so could leave my more expensive Craftsman's home in the garage. Overall I like it and it worked well for all the bolts had to torque up towards 100ftlbs.

I am going to stock a few on the tables under my tool tent later this summer

 

[Norm W]

Sulfur probably causes cancer in California, at least in their mice. It makes cutting steel much easier. Sulfur is added to some steel to make it "Free Machining"

 

[TemporaryKubotaOwnerMark]

Interesting. I wonder why this plumber's thread cutting oil is labelled as a specialty product due to its high sulfur content.

Some things work best, and some things work well, and some things work... acceptably. If I were a machinist, doing a lot of work every day, I would probably want something in the "best" category, which is usually made specifically for a particular job.

But for a home mechanic... if I have some ATF around, I'll use it, and if not, I'll use motor oil or WD-40 or whatever oil is handy. I many be down in the "well" or even the "acceptably" category, but that's okay, I'm not making a living at this.

 

[California]

But for a home mechanic... if I have some ATF around, I'll use it, and if not, I'll use motor oil or WD-40 or whatever oil is handy. I many be down in the "well" or even the "acceptably" category, but that's okay, I'm not making a living at this.

Me too. You'll chuckle at this: the high sulfur pipe threading oil I'm describing came from ... the free , recycle, table at the county hazardous waste collection facility.

They put out for reuse anything brought in that is legal to sell. I drive right by there often and have picked up paint occasionally, preferably rustoleum primer or topcoat for my implements where a few specs in the paint won't hurt anything. Here's a project that was 100% Rustoleum where only the final coat was purchased.

HF tools: I use the $9 HF spray gun, and thought I might crud it up with particles. But HF's cone filters work great to purify out the crust fragments from the several half-used cans of red primer I got there. After that recycled paint was filtered and thinned it sprayed identical to newly purchased paint. Hmm I just remembered - I sprayed flat black Alkyd paint that Dad must have bought 20+ years ago, repainting my trailer, and that took a month to harden where it couldn't be scratched easily. Paint of unknown history isn't for critical applications.

Last visit's prizes in addition to the threading oil were: A half gallon of pressure washer soap, and close to two gallons (across several containers) of pure tiki-torch and kerosene heater fuel. This makes decent 'diesel' for my old tractor after adding 2-cycle oil - which come to think of it came from there as well. (I don't run more than 10% of this bogus fuel in a tankful however). Also a couple of half-quarts of chainsaw bar oil. I'm not poor but I'm 'frugal' where opportunities like these are found. That's partly how I was able to retire early and live comfortably.

 

[TemporaryKubotaOwnerMark]

Me too. You'll chuckle at this: the high sulfur pipe threading oil I'm describing came from ... the free , recycle, table at the county hazardous waste collection facility.

Ha! I love it!


My Kubota is currently running on #2 heating oil, picked up for free from a Craigslist deal. Guy was moving to electric heat and wanted to get rid of the oil tank, which was nearly full. Works for me! :thumbsup:

 

[California]

You did good!!!! :thumbsup:

 

[Soldier415]

Just ordered a 25 inch 1/2" drive breaker bar from HF

 

[sixdogs]

Just ordered a 25 inch 1/2" drive breaker bar from HF

That is a good purchase and I may have posted those comments earlier. I use mine almost exclusively where it gets abused. I stand on it, hit it with a big rubber hammer or do what it takes when I need to use it. So far, so good and in maybe 8 years it's only loosened up a little bit. The huge half inch ratchet is also good and while I haven't broken it, it keeps feeling like it wants to.

 

[TemporaryKubotaOwnerMark]

Heh. I managed to bend the handle on their 1" ratchet. A 5 foot cheater pipe and my 300+ pound son AND me leaning on it didn't budge the bung on my air compressor, but it did manage to bend the ratchet handle.

I gave up and solved my compressor problem a different way!

 

[Midniteoyl]

I gave up and solved my compressor problem a different way!

New. I always go with 'screw it! I'm getting a new one!'... Right?

 

[California]

A 5 foot cheater pipe and my 300+ pound son AND me leaning on it didn't budge the bung on my air compressor, but it did manage to bend the ratchet handle.

How in the world did you hold down the tank against that kind of torque? Long before that handle would bend, I'm picturing the tank flopping around like a dolphin that jumped into your boat.