Harbor Freight tools that DO suck

Diggin It · Oct 5, 2018

Just stumbled on this while looking at something else:

Name of product: Portland, One Stop Gardens, and Chicago Electric 14 inch electric chainsaws
Hazard: The power switch can malfunction and allow the chainsaw to continue operating after the operator moves the switch to the “off” position, posing a serious injury hazard to the operator.
Remedy: Replace
Recall date: May 14, 2018

Incidents/Injuries: Harbor Freight Tools has received 15 reports of chainsaws continuing to operate after being turned off by the operator, resulting in three laceration injuries including one serious injury to the arm requiring stitches.

Harbor Freight Tools Recalls Chainsaws Due to Serious Injury Hazard | CPSC.gov

California · Oct 5, 2018

Diggin It said:
Portland, One Stop Gardens, and Chicago Electric 14 inch electric chainsaws

Hazard: The power switch can malfunction and allow the chainsaw to continue operating after the operator moves the switch to the off position

Incidents/Injuries: Harbor Freight Tools has received 15 reports of chainsaws continuing to operate after being turned off by the operator, resulting in three laceration injuries including one serious injury to the arm requiring stitches

Harbor Freight Tools Recalls Chainsaws Due to Serious Injury Hazard | CPSC.gov

Oh great.

One thing we learned quickly with professional Skllsaws: never release the trigger while the motor is still under load. That welds the contacts together and the saw keeps running. I expect the same thing applies to any power tool from HF. Lift the saw or whatever out of the cut slightly before releasing the switch!

Travelover · Oct 6, 2018

The handgun safes from HF are also being recalled. Harbor Freight Tools Recalls Handgun Safes Due to Serious Injury Hazard | CPSC.gov

Threepoint · Oct 6, 2018

Diggin It said:
Just stumbled on this while looking at something else:

Name of product: Portland, One Stop Gardens, and Chicago Electric 14 inch electric chainsaws
Hazard: The power switch can malfunction and allow the chainsaw to continue operating after the operator moves the switch to the 登ff position, posing a serious injury hazard to the operator.
Remedy: Replace
Recall date: May 14, 2018

Incidents/Injuries: Harbor Freight Tools has received 15 reports of chainsaws continuing to operate after being turned off by the operator, resulting in three laceration injuries including one serious injury to the arm requiring stitches.

Harbor Freight Tools Recalls Chainsaws Due to Serious Injury Hazard | CPSC.gov

It's only certain model numbers of the Chicago Electric and Portand 14". Recall was back in May. Was fairly heavily publicized then, but obviously not well enough. Had never had a problem, but returned my Chicago Electric in June for a new Portland. Local store will do the swap.

These are handy little saws for indoor trimming of bowl blanks in the shop, or light cutting outside near a power source. But my 40v lithium Lynxx 14" saw has pretty much made it a dust gatherer.

Threepoint · Oct 6, 2018

Travelover said:
The handgun safes from HF are also being recalled. Harbor Freight Tools Recalls Handgun Safes Due to Serious Injury Hazard | CPSC.gov

This from the CPSC website: "The handgun safes can open without the use of a key or combination upon impact..."

Now, seriously, if someone were trying to break into one, who would think of hitting it with a hammer or banging it against something hard?

Fuddy1952 · Oct 6, 2018

A friend is a locksmith, has a store and sells safes. One older fellow bought a large heavy safe from him years ago and put his life savings in it in his garage.
One night his shop was broken into, thieves wrapped a chain around the safe and dragged it out with a truck. You could see where at some point they loaded it onto truck (winch?) and left. Never caught them.
My friends point was never assume a safe is safe! It should have been bolted to the floor.

Threepoint · Oct 6, 2018

Fuddy1952 said:
A friend is a locksmith, has a store and sells safes. One older fellow bought a large heavy safe from him years ago and put his life savings in it in his garage.
One night his shop was broken into, thieves wrapped a chain around the safe and dragged it out with a truck. You could see where at some point they loaded it onto truck (winch?) and left. Never caught them.
My friends point was never assume a safe is safe! It should have been bolted to the floor.

Yup, and with the lithium-ion impact wrenches becoming more and more powerful, it's safe to assume even that isn't a safe safe.

Fuddy1952 · Oct 6, 2018

Threepoint said:
Yup, and with the lithium-ion impact wrenches becoming more and more powerful, it's safe to assume even that isn't a safe safe.

Bolted from the inside. I should have clarified. Wherever the safe is needs an alarm system also.

crazyal · Oct 6, 2018

Threepoint said:
This from the CPSC website: "The handgun safes can open without the use of a key or combination upon impact..."

Now, seriously, if someone were trying to break into one, who would think of hitting it with a hammer or banging it against something hard?

I read an article that people were bolting them to nightstands (not just the HF one). Thieves would just smash the nightstand or take the whole thing and deal with opening it up at a remote location. Think about it, if one had a crowbar it wouldn't take much to pry the safe from what ever it was bolted to. Maybe the HF has a feature where it'll open up to prevent damage to your nightstand, lol.

Diggin It · Oct 19, 2018

The black and yellow batteries (the ones on the free coupons) may be the most useless batteries I've ever encountered. Sometimes free items aren't even worth that.

Threepoint · Oct 19, 2018

Diggin It said:
The black and yellow batteries (the ones on the free coupons) may be the most useless batteries I've ever encountered. Sometimes free items aren't even worth that.

YMMV. Alkaline they're not. But the AAAs work fine for me in the free flashlights. The double AAs are ok for other small battery devices. I've not tried the C or D cell versions; no coupons for them, that I know of.

dragoneggs · Oct 19, 2018

Threepoint said:
YMMV. Alkaline they're not. But the AAAs work fine for me in the free flashlights. The double AAs are ok for other small battery devices. I've not tried the C or D cell versions; no coupons for them, that I know of.

HF batteries are one thing I have never tried. I just assumed their lasting power isn't top notch and when I turn on a disposable battery powered thing, I generally don't have spares laying nearby.

California · Oct 19, 2018

I got a batch of the free yellow AA's some 5 years ago and the first few I tried were completely dead. I gave the rest to a kid to try out in his toys.

Recently I got the free Yellow AAA's and they work fine in my cordless mouse. So they should be ok for the tv remote etc, anything that uses little power.

And today I got the free AA's. I'm going to try them in the free flashlights. We shall see... Nothing lost if they won't power the flashlights.

Be careful with any of HF's batteries. I've had a couple of the alkalines sweat, expand, release corrosion fuzz in tv remotes while the remote still worked properly.

fried1765 · Oct 24, 2018

I always store my 3400 TLB on blocks for the winter (I go to FL.)
It is a mid size old TLB, and probably weighs almost 4T.
I only need to jack up one side at a time.
Got out my 25 year old 10T bottle jack, and it would not even lift one side (2T).
Decided I need a new jack. Drove to nearest HF (60 mi. round trip), and bought a new 12T HF jack.
12T should be serious overkill for 2T..... right?
Nope! The new HF 12T jack would not even lift 2T
Checked the hyd. fluid level, and even added a little bit more.
NO DIFFERENCE!
Used a Wally World 6T jack that I had forgotten I had.....it worked fine.
The HF POS is going back for a full refund, but I will not make a special 60 mile round trip just to do so.
I still need a new 12T jack, but don't know what I will get.
They are all made in China, and many sellers probably get them from the same supplier/factory.

4570Man · Oct 24, 2018

Why were you using a jack to put a tlb on blocks?

fried1765 · Oct 24, 2018

4570Man said:
Why were you using a jack to put a tlb on blocks?

The TLB has turf tires, and I don't like the soft turf tires sitting on a concrete floor for 6+ months.
I also jack up my Jeep, as well as my equipment trailer with a Cadillac stored on it.
I leave my Corolla, Suburban, and Ford 1920 stored, with just higher than normal tire pressures.
Maybe none of it is necessary,.... but it is just me!
The poor old 8n looks good, but just sits in the back, getting no attention at all.
I did not even start the 8n this summer.

4570Man · Oct 24, 2018

fried1765 said:
The TLB has turf tires, and I don't like the soft turf tires sitting on a concrete floor for 6+ months.
I also jack up my Jeep, as well as my equipment trailer with a Cadillac stored on it.
I leave my Corolla, Suburban, and Ford 1920 stored, with just higher than normal tire pressures.
Maybe none of it is necessary,.... but it is just me!
The poor old 8n looks good, but just sits in the back, getting no attention at all.
I did not even start the 8n this summer.

I knew why you did that. I meant why not use the backhoe stabilizers and loader to lift it up?

fried1765 · Oct 25, 2018

4570Man said:
I knew why you did that. I meant why not use the backhoe stabilizers and loader to lift it up?

TLB was already sitting in my Morton bldg. snug against an outside wall.
Could not put one of the stabilizers down without moving the machine away from the wall, thus sacrificing some floor/wall storage space.
I could have used one stabilizer, and just jacked the other side.
Either way though, I still needed a jack that would do the job, and the HF 12T was a complete flop.
HF POS will be returned tomorrow, as I have to go near HF tomorrow anyway.

Threepoint · Oct 25, 2018

fried1765 said:
TLB was already sitting in my Morton bldg. snug against an outside wall.
Could not put one of the stabilizers down without moving the machine away from the wall, thus sacrificing some floor/wall storage space.
I could have used one stabilizer, and just jacked the other side.
Either way though, I still needed a jack that would do the job, and the HF 12T was a complete flop.
HF POS will be returned tomorrow, as I have to go near HF tomorrow anyway.

Kinda wondering if that 12T jack failure was a fluke. Maybe just a leaking seal on that unit. They seme to get good reviews, although I understand how you might not want to take a chance on another one if the nearest store is so far from you.

FWIW, my 20T HF bottle jack has worked very well. And five years ago, my 4T HF floor jack had no trouble liftjng each wheel (one at a time!) of a 15,000 lb motor home for brake service.