Referencing some recent comments on the previous post.
Harbor Freight, or as I call it, Hobo Freight, is a constant in my shop. I buy a lot of Harbor Freight tools, because they work.
My buddy, Jay, who died in December, had his A&P license and ran a small manufacturing business where he made tools for the helicopter maintenance trade. Jay didn't mind spending money on tools, that is how he made his living. His machine shop had big lathes, mills, all the high-dollar stuff. In the welding room, I happen to notice one day that every bench had a cheap, Hobo Freight angle grinder on the bench.
I asked him about it.
"They work," he said. "And when they quit, I go buy another one for $15.00." He appreciated high quality tools but realized the value in a cheap angle grinder that would work for him for two or three years. Sometimes there is value in cheap tools.
Twenty years ago, I didn't trust battery tools. If I could find a plug and string an extension cord, I could work all day. Nowadays I don't care to work all day. When the battery needs a recharge, I take a break.
I can still do a full days work, it just takes me most of the week.
Any man who is 70 and works as hard as he did when he was 35, didn't do much when he was 35.
1. Interestingly (at least to me), I worked in the Helicopter maintenance trade for half my military career. H-2's, H-46's and H-53's.
ReplyDelete2. The only battery powered tools that were worth a crap for many years were drills. My first battery powered tool was a Porter Cable 12v drill that I bought (stand by...doing math) about 35 years ago. At the time I was helping a Navy buddy who was into buying foreclosure houses and flipping them. Learned A LOT about construction and home repairs during that time.
Anyway, I still have that drill and it still works, the only problem is that the battery packs have gone and won't hold a charge for more than 10 or 15 minutes. They don't make them any more. I've been intending to send the packs in to a place I found that replaces the cells in battery packs, but I bought the aforementioned Dewalt driver/drill package to replace it so it hasn't been a priority and I've never gotten it done. I'll get around to it someday.
That drill was made back when Porter Cable was the preferred brand of many in the construction industry. Back then the brand was expensive, but worth every penny. The company has since been bought out by some conglomerate and their stuff is Chinese crap now just like everything else.
It's just a shame. We used to be capable of making such quality stuff. Now everything is disposable crap.
I'd gladly pay 3x or 4x the price for tools if I was confident they would last me 35 years rather than the 3 to 5 you can expect these days.
But, then again, from a business perspective, you can make a lot more money selling a new tool to someone every 3 to 5 years than selling them one at 4x the price that lasts 35...so there's that.
Sorry for rambling. I'm on the road for work and nothing better to do of an evening in my hotel room.
Cheap and disposable for the win!
ReplyDeletea friend told me getting old wasn't for the weak...very true words...
ReplyDeleteHobo Freight - that's a good one! Actually, they have impressed me with the way that they stepped up their game 10 years ago or so. Cleaner, more professional looking stores (at least around here), wider selection and decent quality.
ReplyDeleteStick with the big 3: Makita, DeWalt or Milwaukee. They all have nuances with each particular tool. Drills, saws, etc..
ReplyDeleteI have a buddy that's a contractor and uses Harbor Freight battery tools, like drills and saws. When I was a tech, I always bought top of the line stuff, so I was curious. He told me even the name brand stuff would get torn up an break, or stolen. So he used them instead. Did the same job.
ReplyDeleteI bought my first air tools 30 years ago. When I did, I went to HF to get impact sockets. I bought two sets - SAE and Metric, $14 a set. I still have them and use them. I've found their hand tools work every bit as well as craftsman or husky. I have a set of craftsman screwdrivers that aren't that old, but they've worn out. Made of Chinesium I guess. So for some tools, like those, I buy the good stuff. In this case, Klein and Channelock.