I was in the library today looking at their wood working magazines. I was surprised that they are including Harbor Freight in their reviews. Their assessment of their palm sander was spot on. (not very good) I wonder how many look at a quality tool and the price, then say I'll get the HF solely on price. If the reviews are good, I'd think that way too. I have a hobby type shop and it wouldn't make much difference. However, when I buy major tools, I buy the good stuff

Edited December 8, 20178 yr by Ron Dudelston
tags added

1st and most important, look to the company...
evaluate their CS and will they step up to the plate should there be issues...
see if they have a planned obsolesce program in force...
what will the company and their product do for me...
and figure out if they will respect me in the morning...

no sense in buying something that can't be fixed a few years later...

next the product...
quality...

is it well made and easy/comfortable to use...
will it have a long productive life...
will it do/deliver more than I need it to....
is it a good value...

what are the tangible and possible intangible costs...
will it protect my bottom line...
will it go obsolete or become disposable in short order...
tools that don't cut the mustard, hold their own, suffer from down time, hurt production and the bottom line need to left on the store shelf...

Online reviews...
not too much...
read a few too many that my VOE said other wise...
I prefer to use and abuse different brands and evaluate them myself and pay attention at large job sites as to who has what and what, if any, issues they are having......

the testers should evaluate a tool and then put it in production mode for a few years and then do another evaluation...

 

pay attention to what tools people are looking for repair parts for that are pretty much unobtainable...
there are a lot of forums out there w/ many threads devoted to this one subject...
also what issues/failures people are having w/ their tools...
when many are having the same issues it's time to take notice...
ie.. Craftsman, Delta, (new) PC, Rockwell, and etc...

Edited January 25, 20179 yr by Stick486

As any woodworker/carpenter/construction guy knows. You can't use "do I need it?" as a criteria for buying a new tool. Whether or not you'll even ever use it is besides the point! For all you confused people out there, I will give you the listed reasons for buying a new tool straight from "The Man Bible" Chapter 35 Section 72 Subsection D Paragraph 23 states:

You simply buy a new tool because:

1) It's there...

2) You can..
I hope this has cleared up any questions any of you may have for buying new tools, and hopefully relieve some of the guilty feelings you may have about purchasing that new tool with the money you should have spent on a new dishwasher for your wife.

Edited January 25, 20179 yr by Stick486

It's been a few years, but sometime back Wood reviewed floor model drill presses and included the HF version. It got the "top value" rating from them. As for customer, they (HF) will take mot stuff back and exchange it immediately, with no questions asked. Parts are a mixed bag, but I did have this experience. I have a hydraulic lift table I bought from them, and when we moved 6 years ago I broke the little finger than releases the hydraulics to lower the table. I was loading it onto my trailer and the finger got caught on the ramp, breaking it in 1/2, and making the lift useless. Some months later I had to call them order an optional something for a tractor attachment I had bought (from HF), and asked about the finger, I did have the part number from the manual. To my surprise they were able to order it for me. They asked if I would accept a used one if available (I would), explaining they sometimes keep returned items to part out. To shorten the story, a did get it...almost 8 weeks later (slow boat from China). Doesn't matter, I was happy to not have to buy a replacement table. Lest this story be misinterpreted, I'm not a HF fan and I'm not trying to convince anyone to buy their stuff.. although In some instances it may make sense. Just pointing out they have some minimal amount of CS, so that shouldn't be overlooked.

My HF DC and magnetic parts trays have performed flawlessly. 

I must have missed the Wood review of a HF product and will be missing all future ones. I do shop at HF but only hand tools . The quality of electric power tools seems to be improving, but I do not believe it is up to quality yet. I do have a 4 inch grinder and a trim router. Both still work but are very loud and the router is difficult to adjust. It is kind of a buyer beware such as the solar panel lights , yes they work but maybe not too long.

14 hours ago, Stick486 said:

You simply buy a new tool because:

1) It's there...

2) You can..
I hope this has cleared up any questions any of you may have for buying new tools, and hopefully relieve some of the guilty feelings you may have about purchasing that new tool with the money you should have spent on a new dishwasher for your wife.

No problem there..... I AM the dishwasher!

John

FWIW, a lot of the longevity of a tool depends on whether it's USED or ABUSED. I have a b-i-l who has destroyed more skill-saws than even he can remember. According to him, there isn't a single decent saw out there. The problem is, he's always in a hurry, jerking the saw from side to side to try and make it cut faster. Tried to tell him, slow down and let the tool do it's job. Some folks NEVER learn.

John

i had some down time in my shop yesterday, so i cleaned and waxed the TS top.  it's so nice looking now!

 

point is:  take care of your tools.  clean them, put them back when you are done with them.  keep things sharpened.  i also regularly clean my TS blades (a mix from Rockler) so they cut clean next time.  clean up sawdust.

 

dirty tools never out perform clean tools.

maint isn't an issue...

on rotation basis, someone has broom and shovel (mop if required) detail... this is everyday...

Friday is sharpen detail... rotation basis again...

the person on rotation does maint... waxing tops, belt changes, lube, dressing cutters, makes pellets, GPL, minor tool repais, etc,,,

everybody is on the rotation list...

site projects are run the same way...

EOD - all put up up/clean up...

Edited January 25, 20179 yr by Stick486

1 minute ago, Stick486 said:

on rotation basis, someone has broom and shovel (mop if required) detail... this is everyday...

Good idea, but in my case, the only one rotating is me, and I'm getting dizzy!

John

1 minute ago, HARO50 said:

Good idea, but in my case, the only one rotating is me, and I'm getting dizzy!

John

 

it's just me or the dog, and she won't go into the shop, so it's just me.  i answer to no one, and i boss no one around.  if i don't do it, it doesn't get done.

7 minutes ago, HARO50 said:

Good idea, but in my case, the only one rotating is me, and I'm getting dizzy!

John

w/o the rotation so much will become overwhelming in short order....

Waxing in my shop doesn't get done near as much as it should.

6 minutes ago, HandyDan said:

Waxing in my shop doesn't get done near as much as it should.

 

wax on, wax off!

I haven't bought any big ticket items there yet but I have bought a few power tools there. The first about 6 years back was the oscillating multi tool.  I was remodeling and the flooring guy let me barrow his to trim some door jambs with. I was impressed so much I bought one for myself the next day. The next tool I bought was a 1/2" hammer drill. I had seen a review of hammer drills and they had a Craftsman tool and the HF tool in the review and the assumption was that both came from the same manufacturer. I was building a deck and knew I would need the hammer drill so my next trip to HF I picked one up with. I has done absolutely everything I needed it to. It was stolen along with a bunch of other stuff and when I replaced it I went back to HF and got another one. Or so I thought, when i grabbed the box off the shelf I grabbed to wrong box  and never noticed it. I got around to opening the thing up about four months later and realized what had happened. Of course the receipt was long gone so I figured I was stuck with it. I loaded it up and headed back to the store and they were able to pull up the receipt at the register and swapped out the drill for the one I wanted.  I also have one of their 18 volt drills. It has worked well but I only use it once and a while at work and it stays in my company vehicle.  I actually bought it because my previous drill and other tools were stolen out of my truck. I need a drill every now and then and figured if I got one from HF it wouldn't be a big loss if it happened again  I did buy a jig saw from them that was a piece of crud and I actually tossed it.  I have bought tons of smaller stuff there like brushes, wrenches, storage containers, sandpaper, clamps etc and haven't had any issues. If you get on their mailing/e mail list they will send sale flyers monthly and there are usually coupons for free items with any purchase. Some of the coupons are for pretty deep discounts as well. 

I'm not much for there power tool but the last time I stopped in

I bought an air compressor and I did not even need one. as I

was walking in the store they had a sign on it saying (try me 

I'm quite) ...? I had to flip the switch. Wow... Never in  my life

have I ever seen an air compressor so quite. I use it in my 

basement just for my pin nailer. So far it's working great.

On 1/24/2017 at 9:51 PM, Ron Altier said:

I was surprised that they are including Harbor Freight in their reviews.

Call me a cynic, but I'm getting suspicious about reviews.  Always wondering about some hidden motives of the reviewer. 

 

Ever hear of click farms?  A company hires people to submit positive reviews for their own products or negative reviews for their competitors.  Amazon has their "verified purchaser" tag, but so what?  Order it, review it, return it, especially for negative reviews.

 

I read several reviews of table saws before purchasing.  Most articles reviewed maybe 5 saws, sometimes mixing jobsite saws with cabinet saws.  Or including saws from the same parent company (Grizzly/Shop Fox).  I never did find a review of a specific type of saw (i.e. 3 hp/220v cabinet saws-there must be a dozen!)

 

On the other hand, I'm not a pro.  If I need an angle grinder for a task, I'll do HF.  If it dies after a dozen uses, that's ok.   And I always wonder if it's built on the same Chinese line as the Milwaukee.  But for the go-to tools - my circular saw is a Makita.

 

OK, I feel better now...

Jim

I have watched HF tool reviews on Youtube. It is easy to tell which reviews are good ones. The ordinary guys in dirty work clothes, in unorganized shops and use "shop talk".....are the most believable. These reviewers told it like it is. Some had performed some very good fact finding results, Amps, torque, etc.  If it was junk, they would say so and it was worth buying, they show you why. 

 If nothing else, it is good entertainment. 

IF someone claims they can just "feel" the quality.....but the only thing that CAN feel the "quality" is your wallet.....walk away...better yet..RUN!

 

 

A higher price point for a tool...is NOT a way to judge it's  Quality.....example?   BMW = Bust My Wallet...as in repairs.   At least Ford was honest about it...Fix Or Repair Daily....