Harbor Freight Tools that don't suck

[crazyal]

I blanked out the barcode. It's the instore part that's an issue. Most of what I wouldn't mind getting 25% off isn't in stock at my somewhat local HFs. There's two that are an hour away. I could always use another US General tool box. The 56" box in yellow for $450 would be tempting but I'm not going to drive 4 hours each way to a store. I had thought about the 8750 inverter generator but don't really need it.

 

[Pixguy]

 

[daugen]

my two year old HF electric powerwasher blew up a few days ago, while running a foam gun soaping down my rv.
Bang, water everywhere out of center of unit, and circuit breaker blown.
oh well. 80 bucks for about 30 hours of use.
And I had just bought the foam cannon attachment for it.

I really liked that little pressure washer and will take it apart at some point to see what blew.
Ordered a 140 dollar Greenworks to replace it. It has the same cheapo plastic wand that comes apart.

in the past I have had Karcher, AR, and Northern Tools powerwashers. Never had one blow up.
still....the HF unit met expectations.
Am hoping by buying next tier up in quality that pump will last longer.

will report back at some point on what blew up

 

[AWSubie]

The Doyle anvil is an excellent value in my opinion.

 

[Pixguy]

I picked up the Bauer 12.5" planer yesterday. Manager gave me the 20% off even though it was excluded. I had to adjust the feeding trays for level but like it so far.

 

[crazyal]

I picked up the 8750 inverter generator on Thursday. I called and asked if they had the 56" tool box in stock but they said no. When I got there they had a black one on display but I didn't take the truck so I didn't bother asking about buying it. They did say I could buy the yellow one now with the coupon and when it came in they would call me. But I've not had much luck with getting boxes from them without dents so I ask to see it first before I buy it.

The generator looks to be well built. I only ran it for a few minutes. The oil fill/ dipstick is in a hard to reach location so they include a funnel and clear hose that works well. They also include a cable to charge the battery. It came with a lithium ion battery, not a wet acid type. It does have a pull starter so there's a back up way to start it. The battery was fully charged but now I'm wondering if the engine will charge it. The cable has gator clips on one end to connect to the terminals of the battery and a funky plug that looks like a 120v plug but they are at slight angles. I didn't look but I suspect it'll plug into the 12v outlet.

I wouldn't mind knowing more about the battery. I suspect that at some point it'll go bad since it could be months (or more than a year between uses). If I can find a charger that will only charge it when the capacity drops below 20% and stops at about 80% automatically I may do that and just put a power connector on the wires so it can be removed easily. Otherwise it'll most likely have no charge when I need it.

The generator does have an auto throttle feature so it runs at about half throttle until something demands power. I think there's a switch to turn it off but I would like to watch what the voltage does briefly when it ramps up the engine RPM.

 

[John_Mc]

The generator does have an auto throttle feature so it runs at about half throttle until something demands power. I think there's a switch to turn it off but I would like to watch what the voltage does briefly when it ramps up the engine RPM.

That auto-throttle is a great way to shorten the life of equipment that is sensitive to low start up voltage.

 

[Gregster613]

my two year old HF electric powerwasher blew up a few days ago, while running a foam gun soaping down my rv.
Bang, water everywhere out of center of unit, and circuit breaker blown.
oh well. 80 bucks for about 30 hours of use.
And I had just bought the foam cannon attachment for it.

I really liked that little pressure washer and will take it apart at some point to see what blew.
Ordered a 140 dollar Greenworks to replace it. It has the same cheapo plastic wand that comes apart.

in the past I have had Karcher, AR, and Northern Tools powerwashers. Never had one blow up.
still....the HF unit met expectations.
Am hoping by buying next tier up in quality that pump will last longer.

will report back at some point on what blew up

daugen, Was it a Bauer? I hope not - since I just bought a HF Bauer electric washer about 3-4 months ago. Have used it about 3 times since purchase and it has been flawless so far. Now I'm nervous!! I've also got the HF Bauer battery hedge trimmer and work it hard, about 5 hours just this Saturday and again - flawless operation. I sure hope my luck holds!!

 

[Cycledude]

That auto-throttle is a great way to shorten the life of equipment that is sensitive to low start up voltage.

I believe your not supposed to turn on the auto throttle until after the engine has been running and charging.

 

[daugen]

daugen, Was it a Bauer? I hope not - since I just bought a HF Bauer electric washer about 3-4 months ago. Have used it about 3 times since purchase and it has been flawless so far. Now I'm nervous!! I've also got the HF Bauer battery hedge trimmer and work it hard, about 5 hours just this Saturday and again - flawless operation. I sure hope my luck holds!!

No it was the least expensive Portland
Interesting the Bauer is almost an identical clone to the Greenworks washer that I bought