Opinions Please: Grizzly vs. Harbor Frieght?

[Joe Hardesty]

I put this in off-topic because it has nothing to do with woodworking.

I am looking to buy a small milling machine and trying to decide whether to buy from Harbor Freight or Grizzly. I have never purchased anything from either, so I am interested in any comparisons between the general quality of machines and customer service of these two suppliers.

I have a local HF store who can special order a machine and the Grizzly showroom is about 2 hours drive.

Generally it appears that HF machines are less expensive, but wouldn't mind paying the extra at Grizzly if the quality and service is justified.

Opinions?

[Chris Kennedy]

I avoid HF like the plague. They may have diamonds in the rough according to some, but I am totally unimpressed with them.

That being said, I haven't ordered anything from Grizzly. From what I have read on here, everybody says that the CS is excellent.

Cheers,

Chris

[Jerome Hanby]

I see HF milling machines on CraigsList all the time. That might be a cheap way to try one...

[Cary Falk]

I have som HF gems. I have several Grizzly tools also. Grizzly gets a bad rep from a lot of people. Grizzly is right on par(or maybe better) with Jet, Delta, Steel City, etc. Like all companies, there are bound to be some duds in the lineup. You would be way better off with Grizzly in general.

[Steve Sawyer]

I have no experience with milling machines, but based on my experience with HF and the reputation and experiences others have had with Grizzly, I would not hesitate to advise you to go with Grizzly. Very reasonably priced machinery of very high quality. HF is very inexpensive machinery very cheaply made. A milling machine is a piece of precision machinery, and I would place nothing from HF in that category - or almost - I have a set of HF digital calipers that have served me well ;)

[David G Baker]

When milling metal the machine should be built strong enough to do the work you need to do. There are some very usable items sold by Harbor Freight but if you want or need a tool that will last and do the work you need Grizzly is probably the better choice.
I have a small tool room mill made by Bridgeport that is well made, is probably at least 50 years old and is still working great. If you are planning on doing some serious and accurate metal working you may want to shop for a used Bridgeport mill. If you are planning on doing hobby work a Grizzly is fine. If you occasionally want to do some light metal work the HF mill may work for you.
I am no precision machinist but my father and brother were and I have been around it most of my life.

[Joe Hardesty]

Thanks for your thoughts.

The unit that caught my eye (in the HF store) is a #5980 (http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=5980).

On the web site, the price is $599, but in the store they are $499, but I have a 20% coupon which brings it down to $399. With store pick-up there is no shipping charge. But it almost sound too good to be true with very sketchy specs (no HP ratings on the motors) and even the smallest Sherline and Taig mills go for twice that.

The closest thing Grizzly has is combo lathe G4015Z (http://www.grizzly.com/products/Combo-Lathe-Mill/G4015Z) at $1150.

Hence the quandary. Perhaps I have no choice but to go look at the Grizzly.

[Garth Keel]

While I don't know about milling machines, in woodworking tools Grizzly is by far the best value. In addition, if you read the tool tests in the mags, a number of times Grizzly wins it all, and almost always best value. The Grizzly tool I have now 555X bandsaw is very good. And, Grizzly customer service is outstanding; something to think about.

[Cary Falk]

I have a hard time spending $400 on an item at HF. With that being said, 1/3 the cost of Grizzly makes you take a second look. I don't believe HF has enough precision to do metal work. Customer service is something else you have to consider. Grizzly has excellent customer. I am not sure about HF. I have always heard about how long it takes to get parts from HF. I think I would still stick with Grizzly. Have you look at Craig's List? I see mills come up every so often.

[Joe Hardesty]

Thanks again for all the comments.

And for those suggesting CL, yes I have been checking there along with local new/used machinery dealers and only found stuff way out of my price range.

[scott spencer]

It's always a little inaccurate to generalize, but look at this way....HF has some functional tools, Grizzly has some excellent tools...I'd be far more comfortable buying a critical machine from Grizzly.

[Eric Larsen]

Opinions?

Grizzly. No contest.

I've purchased lots of stuff from Grizzly, never a problem. But if ever there WAS a problem, I have no doubt in my mind that they would make it right. And if nothing else, Shiraz checks in here occasionally.

My mother in law has a neighbor who buys EVERYTHING at HF. He's constantly coming over to use my tools (particularly my tile saw) because his HF tools don't get the job done.

I, too, have heard there are "diamonds in the rough" from HF. But I don't gamble -- especially on quality tools.

[Scott Loven]

Spend the two hours and make the drive to Grizzly after you have looked at the HF unit.
Scott

[Dave Lehnert]

Being cheap myself I know what you are going through.:D

Go to yahoo groups and do a search for metal working groups. A lot of guys with HF stuff that could get you first hand info.

My first thought would be HF is very good about returns. Buy it, try it, if you don't like you are not out any money. Like it, you saved a bunch of money.

[Dave Lehnert]

Just checked each tool in your links.

The HF unit will not cut threads
The Grizzly will.

Check your PM for a link to the Yahoo group.

[Frank Hagan]

My experience with HF has been that they use the same model numbers for different configurations of tools. You can sometimes see it when they have more than one in the store. When I bought my small grinder, there were three different configurations, all with the same parts list inside.

I suspect they are that way on their larger tools also. For hand tools that are "throw aways", the savings can be substantial. They are very good about returns during the warranty period. But I would hesitate to buy something big there.

[Steve Clardy]

Grizzly for sure.

My motto when entering the HF store.
If it has a electric cord on it, I don't buy it.

[Scott T Smith]

No contest - Grizzly. I have looked at their machine shop equipment and would definitely purchase it. Harbor freight would not even be a consideration.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

Griz.

HF for odd things that can be made well by barefoot people with stone tools.

[Dave Lehnert]

Harbor Freight is a mixed bag. You never kniw what you will receive.

I once purchased some air guns on the web from them. They were doctored up in the photo to hid the color of the gun. They also had the writing blacked out. Was sold under the HF brand U.S. General.
I received the guns and they were the Senco Accuset guns. Got then for like $20.