Harbor Freight: Friend or Foe?

[Ford Man]

The only thing I can recall having any problem with was breaking a couple of their impact sockets, but they have a lifetime warranty and they've never given me any problems with replacing them. I have a 1/2" electric impact wrench I've had for about 10 years and still as good as the day I brought it home.

I wish they'd send me some of the 20% off coupons since I have one of their stores about 15 miles away.

[theholycow]

AFAIK, the stuff inside most of them is just a bunch of AA batteries soldered together. No need to buy specialized cells when you can use off-the-shelf (or off-the-eBay) rechargable AAs.

[GasSavers_maximilian]

Not needing to look pretty definitely makes this easier. Sometimes you can get surplus batteries (occasionally even with tabs soldered to them already). Slightly different form factors than AA, but you're quite right they'll work. Maybe I should go with Ds? Gotta do the math to see if it's even worth it.

[Jay2TheRescue]

I've used tools with Versapak batteries. I always thought they were underpowered, and the batteries didn't last long between charges. The batteries would be dead before the spare set was done charging. I have been extremely pleased with the Milwaulkee 18v Lithium drill. As mentioned earlier I can even drill into concrete with it and not kill the battery.

-Jay

[GasSavers_maximilian]

I'll have to give lithium's a gander. Maybe I can run my corded drill for a while and save my pennies.

[Jay2TheRescue]

I would not buy a tool that used NiCd battery technology. Lithium is far superior. Like I said earlier, my Milwaulkee is fantasitc and comes with a great warranty of the batteries, its a couple of years if I rememer correctly. It wasn't cheap (I got a fantastic deal and I bought mine for $190) but you have to pay for quality tools. The batteries last so long now that even if they go down to half capacity they would still be better than a new NiCd. I especially like the power curve of the lithiums, the drill runs at full speed until 5 seconds before the battery dies, not like the NiCd that only run at full speed for a few minutes after the battery comes from the charger.

-Jay

[theholycow]

What about NiMH?

Cheap corded tools tend to work out much better than cheap cordless tools.

[Jay2TheRescue]

That's a lot better than NiCd, but from my experiences with the lithium battery based tools right now I wouldn't buy any other. My brother in law has a cheap lithium based battery drill that he just loves, and I love mine as well. If you have an opportunity to use one for a day you'll see what I mean.

-Jay

[GasSavers_maximilian]

I did a little searching and found a lot of reconditioned lithium battery tools. That makes me pause. I guess I should find out the warranty they're offering before just automatically rejecting the idea. When you have to ask for specific warranty info it does not build confidence.

I notice a lot of people voting for 0-20% on the poll. Either HF's quality has increased, I've been unlucky, or people are buying less risky stuff.

[suspendedhatch]

HF is cheap *** **** that you should expect to break/wear out early. I go there for crap when I can't afford a name brand and I'll likely be using that tool only once anyway.

Some of their stuff wont work at all and you should know better than buying it. Small moving parts is a no-no.

I got a pack of impact sockets. Every one of them is cracked. But I got my money's worth out of them!

Same thing with the 3 pack of unibits. One of them chipped and is unusable on that step, the other two are worn. But they lasted 2 years of heavy use when I worked first for Circuit City and then Best Buy as an installer.

I got an aluminum "racing" jack from them and it has worked remarkably well for the past 4-5 years. Same thing can be said for the engine hoist and engine stand, though I haven't used them that much.

"Earthquake" 1/2 inch impact gun outlasted my Craftsman!