Another just curious thread . . . .

[Mark Rainey]

https://www.familyhandyman.com/tools...ight/view-all/
https://www.itsahusbandthing.com/bes...freight-tools/
http://toolsinaction.com/10-best-too...arbor-freight/

But I have seen something longer and more comprehensive than these lists, compiled by the loyal HF customers!

Whatever you buy there, you won't worry about your neighbors borrowing them!

Simon

Thanks for the lists. And I will loan them out freely!!!

[Greg Parrish]

The 44”, 56” and 72” tool chests are good for the price.
The nitrile gloves are good for the price.

[Frederick Skelly]

Have heard good things about their full sized bandsaw and the lathe....many like the Dust Collector they sell.

I've got one of their wood lathes. It's fine for what I need.

[steven c newman]

Oh....having worked for a long time in both the Polymer and Plastics factories,.....I would know THAT type of smell......and it ain't the same as H-F's

[steven c newman]

Maybe check out what Paul Sellers does to those bar clamps......to make them work like a bar clamp should....

[Jim Koepke]

My wife wanted to purchase a dolly/hand truck. None of theirs seemed to be of the quality she wanted. She found a better one for a lower price at Lowes.

We have bought the shipping blankets their.

Of course one time when there wasn't a Harbor Freight in the area my brother led me to getting regular blankets at the Goodwill or other thrift store and use them. My wife was happy for that last time. We use the blankets at times now.

jtk

[Noah Magnuson]

Their US General tool chests are a bargain and quite good. 95% of the stuff will just frustrate you with the level of fit and finish. I think I have been three times in the last 6 years -- 2 tool chests and a moving flat (4-wheel) dolly.

I hate going there and feel sad for the employees. The toxic fumes from all the third-world adhesives, plastics and whatnot in that place have to be leading them to an early grave.

[Simon MacGowen]

The toxic fumes from all the third-world adhesives, plastics and whatnot in that place have to be leading them to an early grave.

If there is proof, can the ex-and current employees file a lawsuit against HF?

Simon

[steven c newman]

In total...22+ years making Rubber hoses of every type......Plastic parts for everything from a price marking gun to the lens in aircraft lights, to the insulator panels in the breaker boxes you wire your shops with (2 yrs+) and 8 years of making P.E.T. bottles that hold your Pepsi products in. NONE of those smells are anything close to H-F's. Well, maybe the EPDM Polymer blends we used for the auto water heater hoses ( that also made excellent garden hoses), but that was more like walking into the local tire center....and getting a whiff of the new tires. Plastics do not "off-gas", the glues are also in sealed packages. About all I smell is the oil/grease used to keep the metal from rusting.

The "early grave" would be more from the smoking outside the building, than working inside.

[Greg Parrish]

smells like cosmoline in there to me.

[Simon MacGowen]

Maybe check out what Paul Sellers does to those bar clamps......to make them work like a bar clamp should....

I watched that video soon after it came out, and was tempted to do just that. In the end, I sold all my imported (Taiwan and/or China) aluminum bar clamps, and topped up whatever money I recovered to buy all the Dubuque clamps. For cabinet/case work, they are my first choice, followed by the much heavier Bessey type parallel clamps. I actually have enough clamps, but every time I finish a project with them, I have an urge to get more! They are that good.

In one interview, the Dubuque owners (husband and wife, I think) said the demand for their clamps was huge, but they refused to expand their production line to catch up with it. They chose lifestyle over more business revenue. Good for them.

Simon

[Noah Magnuson]

In total...22+ years making Rubber hoses of every type......Plastic parts for everything from a price marking gun to the lens in aircraft lights, to the insulator panels in the breaker boxes you wire your shops with (2 yrs+) and 8 years of making P.E.T. bottles that hold your Pepsi products in. NONE of those smells are anything close to H-F's. Well, maybe the EPDM Polymer blends we used for the auto water heater hoses ( that also made excellent garden hoses), but that was more like walking into the local tire center....and getting a whiff of the new tires. Plastics do not "off-gas", the glues are also in sealed packages. About all I smell is the oil/grease used to keep the metal from rusting.

The "early grave" would be more from the smoking outside the building, than working inside.

I bought a can of all rubber bungees (not stranded, just rubber and hooks) from the local hardware store. They had replaced the prior brand with some Chinese import. We cracked the seal on the can and had to move the whole contraption out of our huge shop with open bay doors for several days before they could come inside. Maybe you just don't smell as well as the old days, but there was only "rubber" in the plastic container and some metal hooks. It was horrendous. Off-gassing, airborne particles, who cares. It's toxic. Perhaps you should read about the conditions of factory workers in China working with stuff that has been banned here for decades before dismissing the seriousness of it.

And yes, they do off-gas, particularly dibutylphthalates and DEHP from PVC based plastics.

[steven c newman]

Like all the PVC plumbing in your house?

Was put off more by the smell of Korean Cole slaw that the workers were having for lunch....used to get the DNR Polymers from Japan.....Nitrile was bad enough...Blended that with SBR and a dab of Poly iso, to make fuel lines. There was a type of rubberized plastic we used....Hypalon....nasty stuff. Worst part? To get rubber hose black ( instead to that ugly greenish/yellow) you added as much Carbon Black to the mix as it could hold......300 pound batch would have over 90 pounds of the stuff. Was hard to use the paper timecards to clock in with, without getting your fingers black.

Yep..the Cosmoline is about all I smell at H-F.

Spent some time working at a wharehouse for a Honda supplier....US made parts, mind you....and had trouble with the smells of the dunage when they came back from the two auto plants in my area....if that is how a new Honda smells like....don't ever want one. Smells worse than H-F ever could.....

[Dave Lehnert]

Just like any store, Some things I will buy, other things I will not.
I like Harbor Freight. I have no problem shopping there. Some people seem to think they will lose their man card or something if seen there.
I have some HF tools at work. One is a center punch I purchased in 2006. Still going strong. Guys at work is always borrowing it.
All of us at work each have the HF $99 black tool cart with drawers. They are 3 years old now. all are in good shape.

I like them for tools I need but are not used often. Sometimes you just don't need to spend big money on a tool. For example..........
Years ago I purchased a Milwaukee saws-all. Paid a lot of money for it. No question it is a quality tool. Bet I have only used it 3 times in 10 years.
Looking back, I should have just purchased a $20 HF and used the extra money for lumber or ?????? Yes, I have used the HF Saws-all. It is very low end compared to the Milwaukee but it would have worked for what I need.


My belt sander just gave up and want to get a new one. I looked at HF but decided I want something better. I judge each tool, not what store it came from.

[Simon MacGowen]

Exactly.

I like them for tools I need but are not used often. Sometimes you just don't need to spend big money on a tool..

In my shop, I have some Ferrari-class tools but also some Kia-level shop aids. I use a grinder once or twice a year, that is why it has for over 10 years, even though it is as cheap as money could buy.

Simon