crazyal
Super Member
It really comes down to longevity and parts. I have name brand stuff that I have abused for decades and it just keeps working. 10 years ago I was still leery about buying anything with an electric motor from HF. But over the years I've bought some HF stuff (their 10" tile saw for example) that was cheap enough so if it died I would still come out ahead that have shown they can make stuff that lasts. I'm still not sold on their cordless stuff yet but I'm invested in Milwaukee because I wanted a cordless grease gun so by the time I might be ready to switch brands HF could be a contender.
What hurts HF is the number of duds that I've bought from them. For example a 1/2" corded impact gun that the detent ball that holds the socket on fell out making it useless after a few months of light use. Also when you see things on their shelves, like the aluminum speed squares that are so thin they wouldn't actually work as a straight edge for a saw it give the impression that everything is low quality.
I personally would like to see HF take things to the next level. Have each store stock common parts and have a terminal with access to all the parts for the stuff they sell so you can order anything you need. Often you'll find it's cheaper to just buy a new one but not always. For example, a generator. If the carb gums up trying to search the internet to find what engine they copied with that design so you can buy something that might work 9assuming your generator was made in the same factory) screams low quality to me vs just going to the local store and picking up a new carb.
What hurts HF is the number of duds that I've bought from them. For example a 1/2" corded impact gun that the detent ball that holds the socket on fell out making it useless after a few months of light use. Also when you see things on their shelves, like the aluminum speed squares that are so thin they wouldn't actually work as a straight edge for a saw it give the impression that everything is low quality.
I personally would like to see HF take things to the next level. Have each store stock common parts and have a terminal with access to all the parts for the stuff they sell so you can order anything you need. Often you'll find it's cheaper to just buy a new one but not always. For example, a generator. If the carb gums up trying to search the internet to find what engine they copied with that design so you can buy something that might work 9assuming your generator was made in the same factory) screams low quality to me vs just going to the local store and picking up a new carb.