Harbor Freight Tools that don't suck

[dragoneggs]

Are you guys using a tap lube? I use Tap Magic or Fluid Film.

I used cutting oil and hand twisted... easy does it. Snap! My guess is the bigger diameters fare better though.

 

[weldingisfun]

Has anyone tried their new Lynx 40V pole saw?

Yes, and it is well worth the price.
4V Lithium Cordless Pole Saw The pole extension lock needs to be tightened frequently but that is not a problem. The battery lasts for hours and charges quickly. This one does not suck.

 

[dragoneggs]

Yes, and it is well worth the price.
4V Lithium Cordless Pole Saw The pole extension lock needs to be tightened frequently but that is not a problem. The battery lasts for hours and charges quickly. This one does not suck.

For about a third the price you can buy the 110v electric. I put a small generator in my tractor bucket and run a 25ft extension cord wherever I need pruning. Not knocking the 40v cordless, but there are cheaper sort of cordless options for cheaper if you have a portable generator that can travel.

 

[newbury]

Yes, and it is well worth the price.
4V Lithium Cordless Pole Saw The pole extension lock needs to be tightened frequently but that is not a problem. The battery lasts for hours and charges quickly. This one does not suck.

For about a third the price you can buy the 110v electric. I put a small generator in my tractor bucket and run a 25ft extension cord wherever I need pruning. Not knocking the 40v cordless, but there are cheaper sort of cordless options for cheaper if you have a portable generator that can travel.

I greatly dislike corded tools designed to be used outside if they have a reasonable battery powered alternative. I'm pretty sure I'm going to buy an Echo PPT 280 w/ extension at the upcoming sale. But the minimum length on that is about 9.5 feet (but it will go out to 17 feet) and it's almost 20 lbs, I'm looking for an in between tool for my arsenal. So with a thumbs up from TBN I'll keep an eye open for a good discount on it.

And dragon - can you run an inverter off your tractor? Leave the generator behind?

 

[sixdogs]

Same here. I would not buy another set. I know how to use a tap properly, too. I was not cranking hard on it at all. Snap. Junk.

I don't remember if mine is the cheap or semi cheap one but I have broken a couple of the small diameter taps on first use (steel).

Are you guys using a tap lube? I use Tap Magic or Fluid Film.

Forget which one I bought - grey case - but, a little lube and slow drill ,and haven't snapped one yet. Lube is king when tapping ..

There were several quality levels of tap and die sets mentioned. To buy a cheapie set and expect to do anything with it in not a good idea and it won't work. Save your money.

As I noted above, the high priced sets $70? before coupon) are decent enough to use for chasing threads or maybe changing a thread pitch in an emergency or maybe even cutting one. These are fine for that purpose. It would not be OK to use an $8 and try to do anything with it other than plastic. Don't try.

I think the one in the gray case is the good one and goes up to 3/4" or even larger. Works for me.

 

[crazyal]

I greatly dislike corded tools designed to be used outside if they have a reasonable battery powered alternative. I'm pretty sure I'm going to buy an Echo PPT 280 w/ extension at the upcoming sale. But the minimum length on that is about 9.5 feet (but it will go out to 17 feet) and it's almost 20 lbs, I'm looking for an in between tool for my arsenal. So with a thumbs up from TBN I'll keep an eye open for a good discount on it.

And dragon - can you run an inverter off your tractor? Leave the generator behind?

I think the tractor would struggle to keep up with the demand. The battery on a tractor is pretty small as well as the alternator. What's the power draw of a corded pole saw? I'm guessing at least 5amps @120v. Rough math says that's 50 amps at 12v. I guess it would depend on tractor size and if you were just cutting an occasional branch or if you had to do lots of trimming. Most likely would require you to have the tractor running at high RPM to get the most out of the alternator so you didn't drain the battery.

 

[California]

I think the tractor would struggle to keep up with the demand. ... guessing at least 5amps @120v.
... Most likely would require you to have the tractor running at high RPM to get the most out of the alternator so you didn't drain the battery.

That's 600 watts. I see HF's inverter rated 750 watts continuous/1500 intermittent should be sufficient and is only $40. I think a corded pole chainsaw is practical if you can drive to the trees to be trimmed.

However - HF's new 40 volt battery model sure looks attractive - just its a little pricey for something that won't get many hours use per year.

Related - I just paid $10 for a similar but no longer sold Remington battery pole chainsaw lacking its battery and charger, which I see are NLA. It tested fine off the tractor 12v battery. I'm trying to devise a way to feed it the 18v it wants, probably by hacking an 18v cable out of the flashlight I never use that came with my Ryobi 18 volt kit. This Remington has the same 10 inch Oregon bar and chain as my Ryobi 18v chainsaw, so if I can feed it battery power it should work as well as that chainsaw.

 

[TemporaryKubotaOwnerMark]

Are you guys using a tap lube? I use Tap Magic or Fluid Film.

I always use a lube. Lots of it. One of the hallmarks of junk tools is inconsistent quality, which is what you'll see all across this thread. Some tools work fine for some people, some people find them to be junk.

 

[crazyal]

I did the math using the Portland pole saw, 7amp draw. That's 7amps x 120 VAC = 840watts. So you would want a 1000 watt inverter for a little cushion. 840w/12VDC=70 amps would be the theoretical battery draw. In the real world that number would need to be multiplied by 1.1 so under load you can expect 77amps. The battery on my L4240 is 55 amp hours. With the saw under full load my battery will last for about a half hour. With a BX I'd guess the battery would last 20 minutes.

The saw will not be under full load the whole time. Secondly with the tractor running it should put out about 35 amps assuming you have nothing else drawing power (like headlights). So you could double the time. Of course starting batteries don't like to be drawn down like that repeatedly so I think that about 15 to 20 minutes of medium to heavy cutting is the most I would do (staying under 10 minutes would be better) to avoid shortening the life of your battery.

 

[Poopdeck Pappy]

I greatly dislike corded tools designed to be used outside if they have a reasonable battery powered alternative. I'm pretty sure I'm going to buy an Echo PPT 280 w/ extension at the upcoming sale. But the minimum length on that is about 9.5 feet (but it will go out to 17 feet) and it's almost 20 lbs, I'm looking for an in between tool for my arsenal. So with a thumbs up from TBN I'll keep an eye open for a good discount on it.

And dragon - can you run an inverter off your tractor? Leave the generator behind?

I've got the Stihl Kombi KM130R with the pole saw attachment and an extension. It works fantastic, but with the extension on it is wickedly heavy. Without the extension it will give you a workout, but is not too heavy. The extension just makes it unwieldy.

One of the great things about the Kombi or the Echo PAS system, is that it breaks down into two pieces (head and attachment), or three pieces with the extension, so you can haul the pieces in the FEL bucket.