The Harbor Freight PASS/FAIL Thread...

[bchee]

I have the same cheap dollies (I think $80 for all four) and I had a hard time moving my car around (jeep project with a FIBERGLASS tub). I just assumed it was because the floor was pretty rough concrete.

[OldSchoolSS]

PASS!!! I have both the 3/8" and 1/4" version of these and I like them a lot. The ratcheting action is very very precise. The only improvement they could make would be to have a little more grip on the outside. I'd recommend these for any tool box. I think I bought them on sale for $6 for the pair.

[shocksystems]

US GENERAL RECHARGEABLE 24 LED WORK LIGHT
ITEM 95181

A big PASS. I love this thing. Very bright, had for over a year. Holds a charge for a long time.

[JebNY]

Originally Posted by bchee

I have the same cheap dollies (I think $80 for all four) and I had a hard time moving my car around (jeep project with a FIBERGLASS tub). I just assumed it was because the floor was pretty rough concrete.

A friend has these and before he used them the first time rebuild the wheels to add good sealed bearings and now they are great according to him.

Jeb

[tpolley]

has anyone used their tap and die sets?

[Bo Heck]

Originally Posted by tpolley

has anyone used their tap and die sets?

I think they were already mentioned only to be good for thread repair, chasers, etc. not actually for cutting threads. and the handles suck.

[milkovich]

Fail... but all I can afford because people keep outbidding me at auctions. Good bandsaws go for big money and when you need one, I guess you use what you can get. Hard to keep tensioned and on track, motor wont even turn over on a new blade. No way it makes 1/4 hp, let alone 1 HP.


Fail... Valve is hit or miss, sometimes it starts, sometimes it hisses, however, it's a good cheapie for a single project vs. the $100 for a real one. I'll be getting an IR or CP to replace this one.


Fail... The good news is they dont' last long enough to explode but I'd still wear ballistic safety glasses.


They also used to make a Grinder/Buffer in green hammer finish for about $100. This is a beast but it pulls every ounce of 25 amps when you start it up... and don't wear baggy clothes. I've polished A LOT of aluminum with this sucker and it' going strong... too bad they discontinued it.

Awesome pass: natural bristle brushes can handle the worst strippers or paints and you just pitch them. If there's one thing the chinese know... it's paint brushes.

[Frank Elson]

stock up on those brushes.
I've been buying, using then throwing, them for years but just last week I went to the cheap shop and the chinese brushes had horrible man-made bristles.

[J.A.F.E.]

46 pc. Radio Removal kit BIG PASS.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=96675

I think this is the Astro Pneumatic kit everyone else sells for much more $$.

~Steve

[Bolster]

Evapo-rust, major PASS. I think this is the best thing I've purchased at HF.



There was a thread on this product a while back, and I figured all rust treatment products were alike so I got HD's Must for Rust instead. It's OK, but not nearly as good as Evapo-Rust. I am truly impressed.

None of my tools are rusty anymore, and on most of them, you wouldn't be able to tell they ever were. Dad's old rusty tools look new.

[Paladin]

HF wrench racks (made in India)- FAIL I had to cut the heck out of them with tin snips to be able to fit my wrenches. Only a few of the slots would fit a wrench. The rest I had to modify.

[Kev442]

10" Compound sliding saw PASS

I bought one for the cottage build. These are not for doing a hardwood floor project, but for general zapping of construction lumber, I have thousands of cuts on the original orange version. The safety switch was bypassed immediately, its awkward. It is so nice to be able to cut 2 x 8 and 2 x 10 lumber with it. Did I mention it did the 3 stall garage last summer too? I also bought the new style silver one and tossed it in the basement for the remodel I'm doing, no more carrying them around!

6 Ton Jack Stands PASS (Sturdier than the old set I've had for 30 years)

Car Dollies PASS (I have a smooth floor, push the car myself)

Air Regulators/Moisture traps FAIL (They all leak or restrict air flow too much)

Purple Brad Nailer PASS (Lower your air pressure to 80, or it will blow up, ask me how I know)

Recip Saws PASS (light duty, but I have one with a metal blade and one with a wood blade loaded for $60 less than a single Dewalt was gonna cost)

4.5 Grinders PASS ( I must be lucky, although I rarely run one for more than 5-10 minutes at a time. I now have 4, 2 up north, 2 at home. Cutting disk in one , grinding disk in another, all for less than 50 bucks!)

Automatic Float Battery Chargers PASS (5 bucks on sale, my battery failures have dropped 80% since I started sticking these on everything)

[T56 Impala]

Okay, I'll chime in:

SAE/Metric Pittsburgh PRO stubby combination wrenches. Old ones made in Taiwan. ------ PASS Too bad they don't sell these anymore. These are very good quality with a great finish.

Light blue gloves----- FAIL.

24" 3/8 breaker bar----- PASS under light use.

RED finger ratchet mentioned earlier------PASS

Made in India wrenches....ALL of them----- FAIL I could cast things that look better and function better in my kids sand box!

Large MM 1/2 impact sockets-----PASS

Screw Drivers (SO look a likes)-----PASS under light use. (Household)

Black tape------ PASS but needs to be kept cool.

4" Bench vise (Blue One)------ PASS Home use only and the screw is very tight.

Ball Pein Hammers (Fiberglass handles)----- PASS

Dry tile cutter (not the wet saw)----- PASS worked good for me.

Heat gun------ FAIL

22ga nailer (Blue one)-----PASS Used a lot and works great.

[bchee]

Hose grip pliers - FAIL. I feel like I've used these enough to make a fair assessment, and I really don't like them. They flex too much so they don't provide much grip, and the teeth don't seem to bite into the hose either. On 2 of them the jaws bent.
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=37909

[bchee]

I figured out a cool way to view this thread. Search for "harbor freight pass fail" using the search function. It will highlight PASS and FAIL in red, making it easier to read.

[nissan_crawler]

Originally Posted by bchee

Hose grip pliers - FAIL. I feel like I've used these enough to make a fair assessment, and I really don't like them. They flex too much so they don't provide much grip, and the teeth don't seem to bite into the hose either. On 2 of them the jaws bent.
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=37909

I'm the opposite, I would give them a pass, BUT, I haven't used them for their intended purposes. They are excellent for putting bolts/pins/etc. in some place you can't reach.

[mikeceli]

Originally Posted by 64merc

Has anyone tried their drilling hammers? I am tempted because of the much lower price.

I used one to install my lift. I burned up the first one after drilling about 16 5/8 in holes, 4" long. I brought it back and they gave me a new one, NC.

[nissan_crawler]

Originally Posted by mikeceli

I used one to install my lift. I burned up the first one after drilling about 16 5/8 in holes, 4" long. I brought it back and they gave me a new one, NC.

He said drilling hammer, not hammer drill.

[deadguy]

Mini Grease gun ----PASS
(refillable Dualco clone) works as good as the Dualco I have had both
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=93486

Cable Cutters (red handle older style) ----PASS
I haven't seen these in a few years, they were FELCO copies. for small gauge cable they have worked great for years. heres what they would look like, but this is a link to the real deal FELCO
http://www.felcousa.com/felco/pages/...ame=FELCO%20C3

Grinding Wheel Dresser ----PASS
for the $3.00 works well
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...temnumber=1682

Pro Seal Threadlocker Blue& Red ----PASS
seems to be as good as loctite and way cheaper
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=96059

Emory cloth in box on roll ----FAIL
one use and pitch it, it's cheap but the PITA factor is high
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=93069

[autoace]

Originally Posted by bchee

Hose grip pliers - FAIL. I feel like I've used these enough to make a fair assessment, and I really don't like them. They flex too much so they don't provide much grip, and the teeth don't seem to bite into the hose either. On 2 of them the jaws bent.
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=37909

I have these in my junkyard set, they have been fine, not anywhere near my KAL's but, they are ok.