HF Multifunction tool vs Makita cordless & apologies to Fein users...

[Rich Engelhardt]

Short - sweet and to the point...

The Makita is to the Harbor Freight as a unicycle is to a F350 4X4...and/or a Lambo.

I've had a couple of the HF tools for the last few years & really only had a miserable Dremel to compare them to.
Recently, I picked up a Makita cordless as a freebie with the purchase of a three piece set.

I had the occasion to use it the other day to trim a bit of a tongue off a shelf that gets glued in place (refer to the Sommerfeld cabinet system) that's usually trimmed off using a bearing bit on the router table.

All I can say is WOW!
What a difference!
No vibration, laser straight cut. Baby bottom smooth surface left by the tool.

I can appreciate now what the Fein users had been trying to get across.
The HF tool is ok, but, until I tried a much better made tool, I had no idea how crude the HF tool really is.

[Van Huskey]

The HF tool is ok, but, until I tried a much better made tool, I had no idea how crude the HF tool really is.

"There are known knowns. There are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say, there are things we know we don't know. But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we do not know we don't know." D.R.

[Mike Cutler]

"There are known knowns. There are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say, there are things we know we don't know. But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we do not know we don't know." D.R.

Ahh yes, Mr Rumsfeld.

To the OP
Those multi tools can be pretty handy. Not a tool you'll use every day, but they can bail you out on occasion.
Mine is a Rigid Model that I bought to carefully remove barn board and batten siding. Sure beat the heck out of a hacksaw blade wrapped in electrical tape.

[Jim Becker]

I don't know those two versions, but I did pick up a Ridgid a few months ago when I had a home-repair project that was going to benefit from one of these small saws. The price was reasonable and the warranty meaningful. (as long as you register it) I don't know that I'll use it very often, but it's a nice to have tool for sure.

[John TenEyck]

From the ones I've used, the blade seems more important than the tool driving it.

John

[Art Mann]

The Porter Cable model works well. It is occasionally just short of a miracle worker doing renovations of old houses. For example, I have used it for hours on end cleanly cutting off the bottoms of door casing to install tile.

[Bill Dufour]

The HF blades last about one minute cutting wood before all the teeth are gone. I do not mean worn. I mean worn completely off to a smooth chisel edge. It does not seem to slow the cut much by losing teeth. The diamond blade does work well in hard plaster. My one Bosch Swiss made blade has lasted at least 15 minutes so far. It cuts faster straighter and cleaner then the new HF blades.
Bill D.

[Rich Engelhardt]

From the ones I've used, the blade seems more important than the tool driving it. Agree - somewhat. I use decent Imperial blades on my HF tool and the stock Makita blade on the Makita.
The HF blades - with the exception of the "half moon" one are terrible. The "half moon" and the diamond blade seem to work ok.
I'll have to pick up a good "half moon" blade for the Makita just to see how much difference that makes.

[John Goodin]

"There are known knowns. There are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say, there are things we know we don't know. But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we do not know we don't know." D.R.

The most interesting quote from that administration. Without getting political these words made me question what I thought they thought they knew and what they knew was not the truth.

[Jack Frederick]

I have the Fein and it is excellent. I do call it "the tool I can't afford to use" due to the blade cost. When you are in a spot, they are terrific.

[Mike Kees]

I have a Dewalt,pawnshop purchase . I have been using imperial blades and get reasonably good life from them. This tool has turned into one of the ones that I thought I would not use very much to a tool I would not live without. I wonder if a fein is way bettter....

[Mike OMelia]

I had the HF version. Died within 6 months. Bought the DeWalt, that is a NICE tool. Seems with HF, any upfront savings are more than offset when replacing the tool with a quality version. :)

[Lee Schierer]

I have the corded Bosch multitool. The first one I used was a Dremel and after a few minutes of operation it got very hot. I liked what the Dremel was able to do, but the Bosch is head and shoulders better by far. The Bosch and Imperial Blades hold up well. The wood cutting blades definitely don't like hitting nails but work well in wood. I used mine when I remodeled our front hallway to install light switches in the door jambs for the closet lights. It works very well for shortening door trim so that laminate flooring can be installed without removing the trim. I also used it to shorten a top hat on my heat duct in the joist space where I could barely reach the duct work. I had done the same job earlier and it took over an hour to make the same cut I did with the multi tool in 5 minutes.

If you don't own one, you'll be amazed at what project problems it can solve quickly with the proper blade.

Added note: The multi-tool with a bimetal metal cutting blade makes short work of toilet mounting bolts. Far better than a hacksaw blade wrapped with tape.

[Steve Rozmiarek]

I agree Rich, that cordless Makita is a nice tool. When my old Porter finally finishes dying I'll buy the Mak. One of the guys I work with has one I can borrow though....

Imperial blades are pretty darn good in my opinion.

[Nick Decker]

I'm on the verge of buying one of these things, never used one. With the proper blade, will they cut through a 3/8" stainless steel bolt?

[Steve Rozmiarek]

I'm on the verge of buying one of these things, never used one. With the proper blade, will they cut through a 3/8" stainless steel bolt?

Yes, eventually. Probably use several blades too. A sawzall with a milwaukee "torch" metal blade will do it significantly faster, or better yet a plasma cutter...

[Van Huskey]

I'm on the verge of buying one of these things, never used one. With the proper blade, will they cut through a 3/8" stainless steel bolt?

Back in the summer, I cut six 1/2" SS bolts off my neighbor's boat for him, someone didn't use SS nuts and that had become "welded". Where they were at it was just impossible to get sufficient torque to break them loose even soaked with Liquid Wrench. There was no way to get a larger tool to the bolts so the multi-tool was the tool. I used 4 bi-metal Imperial blades to get the job done, partly because of the confined space I could not move the blade much so I was only using the center teeth. As a result, it was an expensive fix but one he would have paid 5 times as much to get done. The key here is with proper access to the bolt there are tons of "better" ways to cut one and most of them will be cheaper. In general, the multi-tools shouldn't be the first choice of a cutting tool but more like the last line of defense prior to snapping and going the sledge hammer route.

[johnny means]

So what's the deal with blade prices, anyway. I've bought hundreds of blades for all manner of machine and have never run into anything even remotely close to multi tool blades in price per cut.

[Nick Decker]

Back in the summer, I cut six 1/2" SS bolts off my neighbor's boat for him, someone didn't use SS nuts and that had become "welded". Where they were at it was just impossible to get sufficient torque to break them loose even soaked with Liquid Wrench. There was no way to get a larger tool to the bolts so the multi-tool was the tool. I used 4 bi-metal Imperial blades to get the job done, partly because of the confined space I could not move the blade much so I was only using the center teeth. As a result, it was an expensive fix but one he would have paid 5 times as much to get done. The key here is with proper access to the bolt there are tons of "better" ways to cut one and most of them will be cheaper. In general, the multi-tools shouldn't be the first choice of a cutting tool but more like the last line of defense prior to snapping and going the sledge hammer route.

Access to the bolts in question is why I think this is the right tool. My project isn't a boat, it's a toilet, and I may be looking at a similar situation of someone putting regular nuts on SS bolts (can't even get my head in position to confirm that). Won't budge, and it laughs at PB Blaster and heat. I'm hoping to avoid the sledge hammer solution, so at this point a multitool and blades look pretty cheap.

[Lee Schierer]

Access to the bolts in question is why I think this is the right tool. My project isn't a boat, it's a toilet, and I may be looking at a similar situation of someone putting regular nuts on SS bolts (can't even get my head in position to confirm that). Won't budge, and it laughs at PB Blaster and heat. I'm hoping to avoid the sledge hammer solution, so at this point a multitool and blades look pretty cheap.

I just used a multi-tool for that exact purpose. It worked great. Be sure to use the Bimetal metal cutting blades. It took longer to coil up the cord and put the tool away than it did to cut the two bolts. Ear protection is highly recommended.

[Nick Decker]

Excellent, thanks Lee. Do you remember what brand blades you used?

I'm looking at a cordless Milwaukee bare tool for about $50, since I've got Milwaukee batteries.

[Jim Dwight]

The one Bosch blade that I've found is definitely better is the carbide blade for cutting metal. If you need to cut a large bolt, you should get one of those blades. I've only cut framing nails with it but it cut those as fast as a reciprocating saw. I'm sure on a big bolt it would be slower. I have a HF, a cordless Ryobi, and a Fein. The Ryobi and HF cut at about the same speed. I use the Ryobi to make holes in drywall. Any tool would do it and the lack of a cord is nice. The Fein cuts faster than the other tools because it has a larger stroke and is also better made. I got the Festool plunge base and used it on the Fein to cut a square hole in a stair tread (5/4 oak) for a post. Works nice.

I also leave it in the drawer most weeks (all three of them) but when I need them, for serious work the Fein comes out but for simple things, usually it's the Ryobi.

[Rich Engelhardt]

My project isn't a boat, it's a toilet, and I may be looking at a similar situation of someone putting regular nuts on SS bolts
These work really well for frozen nuts.

https://www.sears.com/craftsman-nut-cracker/p-00904772000P

On toilets, I always just drag out the Harbor Freight 4.5" angle grinder with a metal cutoff wheel on it.
https://www.harborfreight.com/4-12-in-43-amp-angle-grinder-69645.html

[Van Huskey]

For toilet bolts, you can cut them off with a Dremel and cutoff wheel. For me, it is easier to prevent damage to the toilet since it is easier to control.

[Nick Decker]

The bolts I'm dealing with aren't the bolts that hold the toilet to the floor. They're the ones holding the seat and one of those plastic riser things that make the seat sit higher. The toilet itself sits in a very tight area, vanity on one side, wall on the other. I can't even get my head in/under there, so everything is done by feel.

My plan is to cut through the plastic riser thing to get to and cut the bolt, without breaking any porcelain. I'm thinking a multitool with a long blade would work, and I found out last night my brother-in-law has one I can borrow.

Sorry for steering this away from woodworking, but I figured there were folks around here much handier than me with this stuff.

[Van Huskey]

The bolts I'm dealing with aren't the bolts that hold the toilet to the floor. They're the ones holding the seat and one of those plastic riser things that make the seat sit higher. The toilet itself sits in a very tight area, vanity on one side, wall on the other. I can't even get my head in/under there, so everything is done by feel.

My plan is to cut through the plastic riser thing to get to and cut the bolt, without breaking any porcelain. I'm thinking a multitool with a long blade would work, and I found out last night my brother-in-law has one I can borrow.

Sorry for steering this away from woodworking, but I figured there were folks around here much handier than me with this stuff.

Dude, that is gonna. Good luck. Let us know how that one goes. If it were me I would probably pull the toilet to work on it.

[John K Jordan]

I think a good multi tool is one of those things you might not know you need until you have one.

I bought the Fein years ago and have used it on things I'm not sure how I'd do otherwise - special cuts on PVC pipe, trim in tight spots, cutting bolts and things, tile with carbide blade, fitting trim when installing siding, cuts in plywood and sheet rock where I couldn't use a blade that would protrude through the other side, power sanding in tight places.

The Fein was expensive but I prefer to buy quality and never look back. I like the cord - must be over 12' . The blades are expensive but last a long time if not abused. I look for good deals on Amazon.

JKJ

[Lee Schierer]

I'm away from home so I can't check. Most likely it was a Bosch but many of their blades don't seem to be available.

[Rich Engelhardt]

For toilet bolts, you can cut them off with a Dremel and cutoff wheel. I tried that. Way too expensive. Those fragile Dremel cutoff wheels shatter at the drop of a hat. I've gone through a half dozen of those wheels on one brass toilet bolt.
I'm convinced that's why they come packed in such a large quantity! (20 per pack..)
The HF 4.5" metal cutting wheels are great & a pack of 10 lasts a long, long time. Plus they are worlds tougher.

The only advantage I can see with a Dremel is that it can get into tighter spots. Provided the tool itself works.
IMHO - Dremel lacks any sort of quality anymore.

[Van Huskey]

I tried that. Way too expensive. Those fragile Dremel cutoff wheels shatter at the drop of a hat. I've gone through a half dozen of those wheels on one brass toilet bolt.
I'm convinced that's why they come packed in such a large quantity! (20 per pack..)


I use metal (diamond) cutoff wheels, the abrasive ones explode as soon as you put any side load on them which is almost impossible to avoid unless you are using it right in front of you on small parts.

[Rich Engelhardt]

I use metal (diamond) cutoff wheels,?? The Dremel diamond wheels (the #545) aren't recommended for metal. The one I tried on ceramic tile was pretty bad for that also. Ditto for using the diamond wheel on cement board.

[Nick Decker]

So, I fought the toilet today, and finally won. Borrowed my BIL's tool, which was a pretty weak Performax (Menard's) machine. He didn't have any metal blades, so I picked up a Dewalt bi-metal blade at Lowe's ($20).

Had to cut through some plastic (see below) to get to the metal bolt. That went slower than I had expected, and the metal took a looooong time. So long that the machine got too hot to hold. Let it cool and cut some more until the machine shut itself down. After doing that several times it no longer worked at all.

So, good tool borrower that I am, I went to Menard's to buy him a new one. Found one that was a little better than the old one, for $50. Obviously not a great machine, but an upgrade. It came with several blades, one of which was for metal. Put it on and went back to work on the second bolt.

First, it cut through the same thick plastic like it was paper. It then handled the metal bolt in a few seconds, more like it was a wood dowel. Very surprising, given that it was just a stock blade bundled with the tool. If you're ever faced with having to buy a Dewalt bi-metal blade for one of these things, I'd suggest you pass.

Here's a shot after cutting the first bolt.