HarborFreight Score....

HF deals are in some cases too good to be true. Most everything I have ever purchased there wasn't worth the gas to drive there to save a few bucks on an item and its real handy to my house.

I purchased a sandblasting cabinet from them for use for other purposes, but I used the sandblasting nozzle for what it was designed for...lasted about half way through a small job. They replaced the parts I needed, but I experienced the exact same thing. When to a different supplier spent a few more bucks for the parts and it hasn't failed me yet.

I look at most purchases from there as 'disposible' items, you just got to watch what your getting. The 'Made in China' clones they sell are just that...clones...not OEM. I thought about picking up some of their 'premium' airbrushes...from what I have heard and read I'm glad I held onto my money.

HawkeyeHobbies wrote:

HF deals are in some cases too good to be true. Most everything I have ever purchased there wasn't worth the gas to drive there to save a few bucks on an item and its real handy to my house. I purchased a sandblasting cabinet from them for use for other purposes, but I used the sandblasting nozzle for what it was designed for...lasted about half way through a small job. They replaced the parts I needed, but I experienced the exact same thing. When to a different supplier spent a few more bucks for the parts and it hasn't failed me yet. I look at most purchases from there as 'disposible' items, you just got to watch what your getting. The 'Made in China' clones they sell are just that...clones...not OEM. I thought about picking up some of their 'premium' airbrushes...from what I have heard and read I'm glad I held onto my money.

\a buddy of mine and my brother inlaw both bought lathes an mills from them, and I got to rebuild both heads on the mills in less than a year. The lathes were OK, but were not of a precision quality. For what we do they'd be OK at best. I found the stuff from ENCO to be of better quality, but still nothing to write home about. The ones to watch for are the ones built in Tiawan or even Korea.

gary

I really like Harbor Freight but you really do need to watch what you get there.  The metal cutting band saw I got there has been great.  Some other things not so great.  In the realm of modeling, I got a pair of "jewelers" tweezers, they have become one of most used tools and are still working fine.  I got them for like half of some of the other tool stores.

Grizz

grizz30_06 wrote:

I really like Harbor Freight but you really do need to watch what you get there.  The metal cutting band saw I got there has been great.  Some other things not so great.  In the realm of modeling, I got a pair of "jewelers" tweezers, they have become one of most used tools and are still working fine.  I got them for like half of some of the other tool stores. Grizz

Agreed with all above. The tweezers run abuot 6 bux and I LOVE them for general and specialty use. They are SSteel and work fantastic. Other things....well, thier wrenches are great for ctting up and using for speciality tools or keep a cheap set in the car for breakdowns.

I love thier jacks and jack stands. Very sturdy and will accomodate my full size truck.  Don't bother with thier airbrushes and consider thier Central Pnuematic tools to be fair quality only.

David

I bought one of those "professional" regulator/moisture traps 5 or 6 years and like it - having said that, the first thing I did was to modify it.  It's my personal opinion the nobody in the Far East knows how to make NPT fittings or NPT connections that don't leak - cure: New fittings and lots of JB Weld or Teflon tape - airleaks cured. 

And I replaced the large clunker of a regulator with a much smaller unit I had in the shop.  All in all I'm pretty well satisfied with it - Only other mod I plan on making is to replace the OEM guage (0 to 150 psi, in 5 lb increments) with another smaller guage (0 to 50 psi, in 1 lb increments)  which will hopefully give me a little better control over the low pressure settings.

If I were useing it to paint 1 to 1 cars or aircraft, I wouldn't even thinking about buying it.  How ever, for modeling, it's pretty well perfect because it does what I want it to do.  And I can replace it several times over for less money than what a single item would if I had bought one made by, say, Binks.

There are tweezers and there are tweezers.

These are offerings from Xuron...these will be the last tweezers you'll ever have to buy. They are 'professional assembly quality' and are so good you can pluck the hair from a fleas butt and be able to hold onto that hair to paint with. I love em for working with PE and decals as well as applying and removing masking. You can get under the tape and pull if off without maring the surface.

You'll be seeing more about these beauties soon! 

PatlaborUnit1 wrote:

grizz30_06 wrote: I really like Harbor Freight but you really do need to watch what you get there.  The metal cutting band saw I got there has been great.  Some other things not so great.  In the realm of modeling, I got a pair of "jewelers" tweezers, they have become one of most used tools and are still working fine.  I got them for like half of some of the other tool stores. Grizz Agreed with all above. The tweezers run abuot 6 bux and I LOVE them for general and specialty use. They are SSteel and work fantastic. Other things....well, thier wrenches are great for ctting up and using for speciality tools or keep a cheap set in the car for breakdowns. I love thier jacks and jack stands. Very sturdy and will accomodate my full size truck.  Don't bother with thier airbrushes and consider thier Central Pnuematic tools to be fair quality only.   David

Spoken like a true journeyman mechanic!! I've bought more 'Gitchy Goomie of Taiwan' tools to cut up and make one-of-a-kind wrenchs than you can shake a stick at!! Even made a few line wrenches to make it easier to remove hydraulic lines in tight quarters. That is once they were loosened!! 

 I pretty much agree with all that's been said.

 I needed a trap/reg, and a magnifier, and the price was right.

 I wouldn't give the scrap metal price for their machinery, such as their metal lathes. They are pure junk.

 A friend of a friend bought one, and had to go into it in less than a year. He found a pile of sand casting sand in the head and gear box of the lathe, left over from the manufacturing process.

  Camo

chopperfan wrote:

PatlaborUnit1 wrote:  grizz30_06 wrote: I really like Harbor Freight but you really do need to watch what you get there.  The metal cutting band saw I got there has been great.  Some other things not so great.  In the realm of modeling, I got a pair of "jewelers" tweezers, they have become one of most used tools and are still working fine.  I got them for like half of some of the other tool stores. Grizz Agreed with all above. The tweezers run abuot 6 bux and I LOVE them for general and specialty use. They are SSteel and work fantastic. Other things....well, thier wrenches are great for ctting up and using for speciality tools or keep a cheap set in the car for breakdowns. I love thier jacks and jack stands. Very sturdy and will accomodate my full size truck.  Don't bother with thier airbrushes and consider thier Central Pnuematic tools to be fair quality only.   David Spoken like a true journeyman mechanic!! I've bought more 'Gitchy Goomie of Taiwan' tools to cut up and make one-of-a-kind wrenchs than you can shake a stick at!! Even made a few line wrenches to make it easier to remove hydraulic lines in tight quarters. That is once they were loosened!!

Yeah the one time I wish I had a set of wrenches from HF I didn't have any.  Ended up cutting a craftsmen wrench in half.

Grzz

Ooooooooo! Don't you hate cutting up good wrenches! Biggest trouble is, you rarely have to use special wrenches twice. But when ya gotta have it........

Gerald: I came across some very nice tweezers like yours a few years ago. Getting back into modeling recently, I bought a set of HF tweezers.....yes, very servicable. Then I saw your post.....and I'm wondering..."What the heck am I saving the 'good' ones for???"

My good Solingen locking tweezers are much better for instance, than the Chinese. ((Anyway, I have a lot of tweezers, now)

HawkeyeHobbies wrote:

There are tweezers and there are tweezers. These are offerings from Xuron...these will be the last tweezers you'll ever have to buy. They are 'professional assembly quality' and are so good you can pluck the hair from a fleas butt and be able to hold onto that hair to paint with. I love em for working with PE and decals as well as applying and removing masking. You can get under the tape and pull if off without maring the surface. You'll be seeing more about these beauties soon!

How about these? http://www.tdiinternational.com/tweezers.html 

MikeV wrote:

How about these? http://www.tdiinternational.com/tweezers.html

Dude...now them be some tweezers!

Grizz

grizz30_06 wrote:

MikeV wrote: How about these? http://www.tdiinternational.com/tweezers.html  Dude...now them be some tweezers! Grizz

Yes if you have a doctors income.

namrednef wrote:

Ooooooooo! Don't you hate cutting up good wrenches! Biggest trouble is, you rarely have to use special wrenches twice. But when ya gotta have it........ Gerald: I came across some very nice tweezers like yours a few years ago. Getting back into modeling recently, I bought a set of HF tweezers.....yes, very servicable. Then I saw your post.....and I'm wondering..."What the heck am I saving the 'good' ones for???" My good Solingen locking tweezers are much better for instance, than the Chinese. ((Anyway, I have a lot of tweezers, now)

Only thing worse is if you have to do it to a Snap-On wrench - Had to do that once to an angle headed 7/16 open end - needed a wrench to get to one nut on an R-2000 prop governor - worked great but I still cringe when I think about it. 

Ain't it the truth!

Not long ago, my boss had to hack in two an open-end/ratchet-end(!) Craftsman wrench! Part of an 8 or 10 piece set!

The worst thing I ever had to do was grind off part of the frame of a 0-1" micrometer in order to make a critical measurement. But I was able to run to the supply house and pick up a 'cheapie' to disfigure instead of my Starretts or Browne & Sharps.