Harbor Freight for budget minded preppers

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Absolutely have to tread carefully. I really like their "use and toss" small paint brushes, and have numerous 6' x 6' blue tarps, which work great for covering stuff up before rains, and makes a great 2 minute tent if needed. Their zip ties are great, as is their tie down ropes. I do have pretty much all of their boxes of Nylock nuts, "C" clips, cotter pins, machinist screws and bolts, heat shrink tubing, "O" ring assortment, hose clamps, etc, because the purchase price for just one item at Home Depot is about the same price as HF's full case.
 
I've heard surprisingly good things about US General brand toolboxes. Considered one before landing on my Masterforce from Menards.
I think I've actually bought maybe 3 things from them. More than likely I can find a close-enough item at Walmart or Menards when I'm there. HF just isn't worth the special trip for me.
 
I have a top and bottom 44" General brand tool boxes. Had the bottom for 5 to 8 year, got the top for Christmas this year. No complaints about either. I wouldn't want them to work out of every day in a shop. But for tool storage for occasional use you can't beat the price. Although they have gone up about 50%
 
I consider most Harbor Freight stuff to be "disposable". But sometimes all you need/want is something disposable. But make sure just how much "disposable" is tolerable to you before you buy.

Once many many years ago, I needed a punch to remove a pin in an airgun. I had never needed a punch for anything before, figured I probably never would again (an incorrect assumption in hindsight!) so I bought a punch set at Harbor Freight. Well, the punch didn't even make it through the first pin. Bent like a spaghetti noodle on tap number two (and these were very light taps and I was very anal about getting the punch perfectly vertical and had the airgun supported well). The stupid punch set was THAT disposable.

On the other hand, I bought an el-cheapo drill press from Harbor Freight a long time ago. That thing is still meeting all my needs to this day (admittedly, my needs are very meager). Yeah, parts of it are showing a little rust (which is rare in dry Colorado). If you want to change speeds you have to open the top and move the belt to different pulleys by hand. So it's not high end by any means. But the dang thing still works and drills perfectly good holes (for my needs).

You just never know what you're going to get at Harbor Freight. It probably pays to read the reviews on a potential purchase. It is difficult to find the "diamond in the rough" anywhere these days, Harbor Freight included.
 
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Haertig said:
I consider most Harbor Freight stuff to be "disposable". But sometimes all you need/want is something disposable. But make sure just how much "disposable" it tolerable to you before you buy.

Once many many years ago, I needed a punch to remove a pin in an airgun. I had never needed a punch for anything before, figured I probably never would again (an incorrect assumption in hindsight!) so I bought a punch set at Harbor Freight. Well, the punch didn't even make it through the first pin. Bent like a spaghetti noodle on tap number two (and these were very light taps and I was very anal about getting the punch perfectly vertical and had the airgun supported well). The stupid punch set was THAT disposable.

On the other hand, I bought an el-cheapo drill press from Harbor Freight a long time ago. That thing is still meeting all my needs to this day (admittedly, my needs are very meager). Yeah, parts of it are showing a little rust (which is rare in dry Colorado). If you want to change speeds you have to open the top and move the belt to different pulleys by hand. So it's not high end by any means. But the dang thing still works and drills perfectly good holes (for my needs).

You just never know what you're going to get at Harbor Freight. It probably pays to read the reviews on a potential purchase. It is difficult to find the "diamond in the rough" anywhere these days, Harbor Freight included.
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I love Harbor Freight!

Between my brother @Firepolice271 and myself we have purchased 90% of their offerings. If the product is useful and fails we bite the bullet and get a name brand replacement. If it doesn't fail we don't have to buy another.

Exemption:
Their dirt cheap 3-1/2 angle grinders are a great deal for me. Must have 5 or more. But I digress...

I would not buy precision machining equipment from HF. Just too many factors that require measurement gear to decide if good or bad.

As to the quality of HF tools.

They are better at doing their job than I am at using them.

Ben
 
I bought a drill press years ago.
It's a full size and you have to move the drive belt from one pully to another to change speeds.
Never had a problem until the power switch broke.
I ordered a new switch from HF for less than $5 and it's back working.
I have one of their big rolling took boxes that I really like.
It's their Yukon brand.
HF is like every other store. Some good stuff and some junk.
 
They have the knock off green plastic "ammo boxes". Which are great for storing odd items, exp. their small size is perfect for D-cell batteries. I've bought several of them, great around the house for organization.

Their tools? might as well buy from the discount bin at TSC. (funny, best wire crimpers I've ever owned were $2 bin item. have used them over 30yrs)
 
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Although I have about 3 sets of old Craftsman tools I bought a variety of wrenches, pliers, ratchets and sockets to hang on the garage wall for quick access on simple projects and I am impressed with them. I did notice their Pittsburgh brand adjustable wrenches have the same appearance and machine marks as the Cobalt brand from Lowes, except Pittsburgh has their name molded on the handle and Cobalt is plain.
Last month I broke the 1/4” wobble using it with my impact driver to remove a 10mm bolt on my truck. I took it back and with their lifetime warranty they swapped it for a new one. I admit I should not have used the impact, it was my fault for abusing it.
 
IMHO the video gives a pretty accurate and honest assessment. I know nothing about power tools except that I am not allowed to use them without adult supervision, but I would agree with his review on many of the items. Harbor Freight would be a good source for some items.
 
Their Apache cases are excellent and a fraction of the cost of Pelican cases.
 
The past month or so I've been taking Dad there every day off. He always just "needs" something from there. Sometimes it's because it's on sale and he wants to have one up at the cabin or in his outside toolbox. Funny thing is he has tons of stuff from when he closed his auto body shop.

I got my grow lights there and am very happy with them and the price wasn't too bad. If I keep having to take the old man, I'm threatening on eliminating some of his backyard and buying a greenhouse.
 
I have craftsmen, Snap-On, Stanly, Grainger, Mann tools, Buffalo, many no name tools.
Most of these tools preform the same regardless of the cost.
So anything you would buy from Walmart, you are safe to buy from Harbor Freight or Northern Tool.
I have machete, ax, fire starters & lights from Harbor Freight.
Tons of Milwaukee tools & toolbox sets, from Harbor Freight, Northern tools & Home Depot when they are on sale..
 
I use HF tools at work, because nobody will steal them. Any "better" brand has a tendency to walk away. There's a difference between their "Pittsburgh" brand and the "Pittsburgh Pro" brand. The Pittsburgh tools are pretty much lowest common denominator Chinese junk. The Pittsburgh Pro are mostly Taiwan made and seem to be equal to Craftsman, Kobalt, etc. I've had great luck with the Pro ratchets. I wouldn't mess with the cheapest sockets, and the cheapo wrenches aren't held to good quality control. I've had the open ends be so far out of spec that they just slip right off the nut.

I've had good luck with HF flashlights and other various small things. I got a magnetic triangle light with a hanging hook that I love..
 
Went to the Flower show today, just before I left to go home I bought a drink.
I noticed that the food truck had a predator Generator on the tongue of the trailer.
Being a man, I ask about how it preforms & he said great , but not full throttle, because that spikes the amps & shuts the generator down with a internal safety switch.
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Bacpacker said:
I'd love to have a 3500 watt Honda. I'd run a full load on our camper.
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Kinda off topic but many years ago, prior to Y2K, I bought a Briggs & Straton 6250 watt generator and NEVER had any problems with it. First pull start, plenty of power to run most anything in the house, and I used it 7 years ago on a daily basis for 2 years to run the air compressor and power tools while building my house until I was connected to the grid. We had a scheduled power outage a few months back and I was concerned about getting it started after sitting for a year but even on old gas it started first pull and kept us warm and comfortable.
I have no experience with Predator or any other brand but I would not hesitate to buy another Briggs & Stratton generator. I know Honda is known for being quiet but they are also known for being pricey. When using my B&S I would lean a piece of plywood against it to "push" the sound in the other direction and it made the noise on my side very reasonable. Making a 4 sided "box" around it would push the sound upwards to also keep it reasonable. I will also add that I had a friend who "attached" a muffler onto his noisy generator and it made a huge difference in noise reduction.
All that being said, if I had to start from scratch and buy what I could afford I would be looking at Harbor Freight. I am all for American Made but very few things in the tools and electronics or in the case generators are made in USA. Especially in the budget friendly category.
 
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