Harbor Freight Tools that don't suck

[dragoneggs]

I can vouch for their 60 gal. 5 HP 165 PSI Two Stage Air Compressor, I cant remember what I paid for it. But after 15 years my old 60gal died.. I replaced it two years ago with this one from HF. It is aired up 24/7 runs my cabinet sandblaster from HF without issue, runs all my air tools without issue and most importantly has not failed yet. It was a lot harder to install the auto purge into but that was an availability issue in my area and not directly related to the unit. It has operated flawlessly and so far has given me no indication that it will fail in the near future. I will add it is loud compared to my old unit. But it pumps up faster from drained on the occasion that I do drop it to zero.

Thanks Rick, that is the one I am targeting. The dB level advertised seemed lower than the next size down and I figured I wouldn't grow out of that but noise is always a concern. Thinking of trying to isolate it somehow to save my sanity a little longer.

 

[IslandTractor]

It's generally not a design issue with HF... true enough the Chinese are great at cloning/copying. It's the QA part of the equation thus a bit of a reverse lottery. Odds are you will get a decent machine but if you don't... it's on you. The other issue is missing parts/replacement parts. They don't have the customer service that I want for big ticket items. That said, I spend money at HF regularly. My wife waits in the car because of the new plastic smell in the store. She can't handle it.

I agree though I get the impression their quality control is steadily improving. Certainly you want to put any HF device into use immediately and hang on to the receipt. Generally things that are poorly put together will break within the first month. As you note, there is virtually zero customer service or spare parts available for anything they sell. Their idea of customer service and spare part supply is to sell you an extended warranty which as we all know is simply a trade out replacement program.

 

[aczlan]

My wife waits in the car because of the new plastic smell in the store. She can't handle it.

Mine too

Aaron Z

 

[Pixguy]

Mine too Aaron Z

Mine stays home cuz she knows I'll be awhile.

 

[dragoneggs]

I agree though I get the impression their quality control is steadily improving. Certainly you want to put any HF device into use immediately and hang on to the receipt. Generally things that are poorly put together will break within the first month. As you note, there is virtually zero customer service or spare parts available for anything they sell. Their idea of customer service and spare part supply is to sell you an extended warranty which as we all know is simply a trade out replacement program.

Yes poorly put together is one thing. With machinery, the dimensional tolerances are extremely important (moving parts). Tightly held manufacturing is key to quality. As cutting tools dull the hole sizes changes. If someone isn't watching tolerances and taking care of production tools (common problem with knock off companies trying to cut corners to sell cheaper) then bad apples come out the door from time to time. Customer squawks and then the copycat manufacturer figures out what particular dimension to hold is important and maybe tweaks their process. Usually the brand manufacturer has this already figured out in part of their production process hence the higher price for quality.

 

[California]

That, and I'll bet HF changes manufacturers for the same identical item when a QC problem appears. So when we discuss a purchase here, it may not reflect what the next customer experiences if that one came over on a different boat.

Overall they seem to be selling better designs. But the uneven quality, 'Some Assembly Required' (ie final QC verification), still leaves it the buyer's responsibility to determine if his item was built to spec.

 

[IslandTractor]

Isn't the DR belt driven with a vertical shaft engine? Looks like the HF is shaft driven with a horizontal shaft engine.

yes, you are correct. I didn't see that until I looked closer at the manual. The DR has a very similar pin that attaches the mower accessory to the base power unit that pin is just to hold the two parts together. The DR mower accessory is powered via a belt.

I'm trying to figure out whether the HF version can pivot or if the PTO is a rigid connection. The DR pivots (that is the point of the pin) which is nice when working on uneven terrain.

Still, at $600, the HF is by far the cheapest walk behind brush mower out there.

 

[Wa11banger]

I thought I was the only one... My wife does the same

 

[MossRoad]

That's not the smell of new plastic...

It's the smell of cheap.

 

[MossRoad]

....

Still, at $600, the HF is by far the cheapest walk behind brush mower out there.

I'd be thinking that as I walk back to the house to get the tractor to retrieve the brush mower....