Tools & equipment that are fantastic.

[ArlyA]

I will say, a few tools from HF seems to do fine. I'd guess they have upped there quality over the years.

 

[scootr]

Same good ryobi experience here. I have 30 yr old 18v drills, saws, flashlights, and more that were used in daily trades and now still serve me. Makita was another good brand of battery power tools. My buddy has an array of 20v Dewalt drills and ratchets that work great. I have a 40 yr old HF 4" bench sander that is still going.
Corded angle grinders from Dewalt and Makita working great after more than 20 yrs.

 

[jjeff]

I own a cheap corded Hitachi, a recorded variable speed metabo when they built real quality imo, two cordless DeWalts,one 18 one 20 volt and a corded Makita. I own 3 larger 7-9" grinders and polishers, Milwaukee, a Ridgid and a older variable speed Makita for polishing. Most now make funny bearing noises but all still work and work good for my needs, only grinders that failed completely was a cheap Chicago electric hf brand (gear box exploded) and a larger 7-9" hf polisher/grinder. One thing about being a self proclaimed deal finding tool horder, is certain tool brands i shy away from especially if at auction or used, brand names I'm familiar with from experiences using them Ill buy without much hesitation, if the price is right unless it's a used battery pack which ill always buy new during promos. Recently talked about a Lincoln 140c welder that never operated correctly despite owning and using a few Lincoln welders over the years that were problem free, I'll never consider buying a Lincoln welder again and will now stick with Hobart, same with certain tools of the HF brand.

 

[Gator6x4]

I have an old Craftsman angle grinder, still works. I also have a DeWalt Angle grinder that works. The only time I have had a battery or electrical tool fail was the battery died and the replacement battery cost was more than a new tool on sale. Now I have dropped several tools and had to replace them. Seems the suddenness of stopping or the impact on a concrete floor is something that they didn’t like and they cracked or broke.

 

[ArlyA]

I have an old Craftsman angle grinder, still works. I also have a DeWalt Angle grinder that works. The only time I have had a battery or electrical tool fail was the battery died and the replacement battery cost was more than a new tool on sale. Now I have dropped several tools and had to replace them. Seems the suddenness of stopping or the impact on a concrete floor is something that they didn’t like and they cracked or broke.

When 4.5 grinders make funny bearing noises, 90% of the time it's the angle gears have gone dry. Pull the arbor cap off and add some.

 

[jjeff]

When 4.5 grinders make funny bearing noises, 90% of the time it's the angle gears have gone dry. Pull the arbor cap off and add some.

Definitely put it on my list of projects I should do. If it's real bad should I also add some sawdust j.k. lol.

 

[5030]

I have a friend who has a steel fabrication business. He told me that angle grinders, don’t last that long for him, no matter what brand. He used to buy the better tools, but now buys HF angle grinders. He said that HF grinders last only half as long as his better tools, but he can buy 4 of them for the price of one better grinder.

All my angle grinders are air powered, nt electric and I've found from hands on experience that the HF line of air grinders are the exact copy of the IR units at about half the price so that is what I buy.

Buying any tool is entirely my choice (it's my money) and I pay little attention to other's opinions on here and elsewhere concerning any of them. I do use TTC (Torque Test Channel) as a sounding board often times but not 100% of the time.

IMO, Ryobi tools suck big time as well. Had a couple that puked pretty quick and went to the landfill.

 

[ArlyA]

Definitely put it on my list of projects I should do. If it's real bad should I also add some sawdust j.k. lol.

One of my 20yo ones started to "rattle" and thought it was on its last leg. Took it apart and found the grease was to thick to be on the gears. Got another dated one from parents that sounded the same. Left old grease in and added some new on top. Just like new!

 

[5030]

One thing I do with EVERY gearbox on EVERY tool I buy before I even use it is, I take it apart and clean out all the Chineseum wannabe grease and replace all of it with real synthetic EP grease. Always. Cheap Chineseum grease looks like thick Soy sauce and stinks too. I don't wait for them to rattle, I do that right away. By the time they start rattling, the damage is already done. Even the one cheapo HF corded 4.5" grinder I have an have beat on forever, is quiet as a mouse and never gets hot either.

No point in waiting until the 'horse is out of the gate' to rectify what will become an issue, no matter what and that applies to even the cheapo throw away grinders.

 

[jjeff]

Yeah as an occasional purveyor of more complicated cheap Chinese junk ill usually go out of my way to make it more durable and keep it somewhat functional, including adding a little bit of synthetic two stroke to gas on Chinese knock off 4 strokes during initial break in. Snow drift but had good results using quality lubricants, occasionally welding extra bracing and gussets in, using higher quality fasteners etc.