Harbor Freight Tools that don't suck

[gemini5362]

I have mostly Ridgid brand pipe wrenches and they are darned good. I have friends with HF and they seem to work OK.

Here is my concern. I do have direct comparison knowledge of real VISE GRIP brand vise grips vs HF version of vise grips. I have various models and sizes of HF "vice grips" and some are crap but mostly the HF stuff works fairly well EXCEPT when you are trying to grip something like a dry wall screw shank (head is broken off) and in cases like that the real thing works really well and the cheapies from HF or other sources just don't work at all most of the time or work poorly. If I have to grip something sma

How does this relate to pipe wrenches? I'm not entirely sure but I'd buy one and test it before I bought a set or multiple copies just in case when you really needed to put some BIG TORQUE to something that the jaws hold well.

If I have to buy more pipe wrenches for any reason I will probably try one of the lightweight alloy handled HF units and test it, then if satisfied I cold buy more. Why light weight alloy handles? Because as you know these suckers are heavy, especially in larger sizes. Even little Rigid ones are a handful in hard to get to tight spaces.

If you take the plunge, let us know how the HF works ouit.

Pat

Pat next time you are at my house you can install all the pipes you want useing my HF aluminum pipe wrenches and see for yourself. As a matter of fact I will start my list on what I want you to install and have it ready for you.

Actually I have no complaints about my HF pipe wrenches. I have the ones with aluminum handles and they work well. I installed my new gas line useing them. I did however get a ridgid pipe threading set for threading the pipe.

 

[AlanB]

I have the aluminum and steel pipe wrenches at work, (they grow legs too much here) and they work,

That said I just bought a Rigid for the house.

 

[3RRL]

I have Rigid and Gedor pipe wrenches that work great. I needed a large one for the property and got one of those alloy ones at HF. Maybe it's just me, but I can hardly get a bite with it. I also bought their smaller models and they are like 50/50. So in that respect, my personal experience with their pipe wrenches is not that good.
On the other hand, I do buy a lot of their tools since they for my property and are there really only for occasional use. The lower price is attractive for that and most work very well. One in particular, I bought a giant set of bolt cutters that were awesome. I cut a bunch of chain for a rotary cutter chain guard project and the jaws are good as new. They cut GREAT!
Chain Guard Project
I think they were 30 bucks on sale. Most of the very big tools I bought were all under 30 bucks like the big pipe wrench, even their giant set of wrenches in SAE and Metric. They are goo too.

 

[Danno1]

Question: how are the HF pipe wrenches? The reason I ask? I've had no less than 5 pipe wrenches sprout legs and walk off. I spent about 12 hours yesterday rerouting plumbing, gas lines, and installed a water softener. When I needed my pipe wrenches the only ones I could find were the little 8" dudes or my 24" and 48" ones. That leaves the most commonly used ones missing. I figure that even el cheapo pipe wrenches ought to be just fine. Anyone have any experience with them?

Ya, I do. I broke the large one first time I used it trying to take a trailer hitch ball off. Also, the others don't bite very well on round things.

.

 

[bx23barry]

While I think alot/most of the HF stuff is junk and hate buying Chinese anything, I did get a cheap little drill press on sale for 20 or 30 bucks 5 or 6 years ago. That thing has drilled a bunch of holes and still works fine as long as ya go slow. I think I just got lucky.

 

[patrick_g]

Ya, I do. I broke the large one first time I used it trying to take a trailer hitch ball off. Also, the others don't bite very well on round things.

.

Dan, The problem you report is exactly what I was afraid of after the several A-B comparisons I made of the real deal VICE GRIPS vs the HF copies.

Thomas (Gemini), do you have much experience with a good brand of pipe wrench like Rigid with which to compare to the HF pipe wrenches? I'm all for light weight handle and good steel jaws but not just any steel jaws.

Go ahead with your list making and start without me if my arrival is delayed by some circumstance. If I get there in time I'd be glad to help plumb. I bought the HF pipe threading kit on sale for cheap but haven't used it yet. Hopefully it will not be a big disappointment like my DeWalt (made in China) 14 inch abrasive cut off saw which just died. Lowe's is now offering a combination extended warranty and a ONE TIME exchange privilege at an almost reasonable price. Isn't HF's an unlimited number of exchanges?

Pat

 

[gemini5362]

Actually pat when i reach into my tool box it is a 50/50 chance which pipe wrench brand I will come up with if it is an 8 or 10 inch pipe wrench. I have ridgid and HF pipe wrenches both. I actually have a ridgid 24 inch pipe wrench I bought but dont use much because of the weight. Most of my bigger pipe wrenches are the HF because i bought the set with the aluminum handles. For most of the smaller stuff I work with (usually 3/4 inch ) I dont see any difference between the two. Maybe if I was doing more commercial work where you were constantly getting rusted pipes apart or something like that it might make a difference but for the everyday work such as installing new pipe ( new gas line and i am using metal pipe to plumb my air line around my garage. The HF ones are working fine.

Pat are you coming back this way for thanksgiving again. If so plan on a night at our house. We have a working stove so we can actually fix breakfast this time. (although we cant make waffles and bacon etc for everyone at the same time like you can ) I promise you a ride in the porsche this time if you can get a chance to stop and visit.

 

[Dargo]

Well, I can't report back on whether I bought any HF pipe wrenches or not. Dang it if work didn't get in the way of my...well, work. You know what I mean!

I have a mixed set of all sorts of pipe wrenches I got back when a friend of mine owned a dozen or so pawn shops. I'd always get a deal on something back then. I think that 48" one I have is a Ridgid. I can't imagine it being worth too much because it weighs a ton. I'd think the better large pipe wrenches would be lighter alloy handled. Which brings me to my next question...since I'm likely to have time to get by HF tomorrow, should I go ahead and buy a set of their lighter weight alloy handled ones or just get the heavy pot metal ones? I'm no professional plumber or HVAC man, but I do enough work to justify having some around. Which is it, alloy or pot metal? I'll go you guy's advice.

 

[gemini5362]

ALLOY

 

[Ken_CT]

Probably used a Ridgid pipe wrench for the first time in the 50's. I have used every size up to 60" of the steel wrenches. There is a difference in the old, I'm guessing at least 15 year old, Ridgid and new Home Depot type Ridgid. You can guess which is the higher quality one. In aluminum alloy in my opinion there is not much of an advantage under the 18" size, but one thing I have seen is if you use a hickey (pipe extender to increase power) on a steel wrench you can actually bend the handle. On an aluminum one it will snap. I've seen some steel wrenches that had some amazing bends in the handle, and a few snapped aluminum ones. Believe me, having a wrench snap is not a good thing. I know you are not supposed to put a pipe over the handle, but I'll bet there aren't too many old plumbers who haven't. Oh, by the way, you have to hammer the end of the pipe out of round to fit over the end of the handle. Really old pipe wrenches had slightly tapered handles so you could easily use a hickey.
Just a small tip as an afterthought: always use the bigger wrench to back up (hold back on) what you are tightening and the smaller one to do the tightening. And if you are pushing toward an immovable object, keep your hand open while pushing. If the wrench slips that will save some smashed fingers. That's simple common sense that you gain after smashing your fingers.
Quick question: The old wrenches are Ridgid, made by Ridge tool. Are the HD ones spelled the same way? I noticed most people were spelling it Rigid.

Ken