Hit or Miss
Written: Jun 09 '08
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How would you like to buy a nice compact bow saw for $2.99? Or how about a finish sander for only $14.99? How about 2 HP 4 gallon twin tank air compressor for only $99.99? Or a pair of kitchen scissors for only $0.99? These - and hundreds of other deals are typical at www.harborfreight.com.
Notice, however, that I did not mention name brands in the descriptions above. That is because a lot of the lesser priced merchandise are foreign made stuff - usually made in China - that use one of Harbor Freight's house brands (Central Forge, Pittsburgh tools, Chicago Electric Power Tools, etc.) You probably will not find these brands in Home Depot any time soon.
I have bought thousands of items from this company over the past 15 years or so. They sell a lot of tools and a lot of other stuff ranging from household items, toys, hardware, clothing, and electronics. They do not currently sell food items, plants or drugstore items. Most of the products are "hit or miss" - some are great! Others are pure junk.
For instance, I bought a pneumatic brad nailer for them for only $14.99 on sale which soon became one of my favorite air tools. It is a quality product that outperforms some of my more expensive tools. It came with spare parts and a carrying case too. Then I bought a pneumatic sand blaster that is the biggest piece of junk I ever paid money for. It sat in my garage for a few months before I ever got to use it, so I lost my opportunity to return it. The thing simply did not work - regardless of medium I used in it. Another time I bought some wrenches that work just as good as the ones I would have bought at Sears, but less than a tenth of the price. A fantastic bargin! Then, I bought a plastic welder, that would have been a novel tool if it would only work the way it was advertised.
Lately, I have a strategy for succeeding when I buy something from them. I only order items I will use immediately and test them out as soon as I get them. If they work, I keep them. If they do not, I return them immediately. They have a very liberal return policy but you must adhere to it exactly. You have 45 days to return a product to them if you are not satisfied with it. You need to call their customer service department to have a label sent to you for returns. They try to offer you a replacement first, so if that is what you are after, go for it. Most of the time when I return to them it is because the item is pure junk and does not meet my expectations. I simply repackage the item, stick the decal they send to me on the package, and bring it to the post office.
When ordering from them, they do tend to take their sweet time sending orders out. Most of the time the package comes to me via UPS Ground service - which, in my opinion, adds to delivery time (UPS stinks!). Packages usually come in oversized brown boxes filled with packing peanuts and most of the products you order. I always receive an inventory list of items ordered, along with some promotional materials. Often, they will not send me my complete order at once. Many times orders are split into multiple shipments due to availablity. Those packing peanuts tend to make a big mess! My answer is to save them and use them to return junk products back to them, should I buy a dud (this happens to me often). I would roughly estimate one out of ten products I buy turn out to be junk products.
Here is a list of some of my favorite products that I purchased over the year (in no particular order): Work gloves (various types - all good deals), chip paint brushes, open end and box wrench sets, tarps, air compressor fittings, air nailers (bought several), sump pumps (bought several), paper cutter, pry bar set, socket sets, electric drill, electric chain saw sharpener, metal grinder, grinder disks, titanium coated drill bits, rope chain saw, chain saw chains (GB brand!), hose nozzles, air paint sprayers, trailer light kit, off road lights, extension cords, wire brads for nail gun, riveter, tin snips, wire cutters, pliers, carpet kicker, knee pads, razor blades, tool caddy, tool belt, glass cutter - and many, many other products!
Here are some of loser buys: Pretty much anything electronics: Thermometers, battery chargers, solar crap, batteries, battery boosters, electric nailer, air sand blaster, non-titatanium coated drill bits, metal recipricating saw blades, plastic welder, manual chainsaw blade sharpener, hex bit set (harden steel rounded out), some screwdrivers, halogen light bulbs (burn out quickly), razor knife (breaks easily), car heater, wheeled tire jack (buckled under heavy load), plastic wheels/casters (buckled under heavy load), many plastic handled parts (cheaply made plastic), any rechargable battery product -such as the 18V rechargable drill (battery dies after a few recharges, internal plastic gears strip), plastic tool boxes (break apart all over the place!). This may sound like a very long list, but I do a LOT of business with this company and often the products are pretty good.
This company has a pretty good web site with most of their products listed there. The search feature is ok, but often it will return an item that has nothing to do with what you are searching for. Other times you need to know the term they use in their descriptions to call up the product. The company also sends out printed catalogs to repeat customers. Often prices in the catalogs differ from those on the web site. You can get the catalog price by entering it into a special section of the web site (usually the last 4 digits are different). Sometimes, you can play around with the last 4 digits of an item number to find a better price: 0VGA for example...). You can place your order over the internet with a credit card or call their customer service. Harbor Freight also has retail stores where the same products are offered, but often the prices are a LOT different. Also, I do not believe the retail stores are related to the web site.
A few tips to make when ordering: First, the company often provides coupon codes for special free shipping discounts or dollars off or for a free product. Do a Google search for "Harbor Freight Coupon" to find a site that offers these codes. Second, the company ususally charges a fixed price for shipping (or a handling charge). So, it is better to order a lot of stuff all at once versus order several shipments. Also, compare their catalog with the website and check their Specials section, and Clearance section for great deals (a lot of stuff is posted there). Finally, check with others on web groups, such as "Google Groups" to see if anyone has had experience with expensive items you are contemplating buying. Many times you will find detailed opinons for some items.
Overall, I have had many pleasant experiences with Harbor Freight. It is a lot of fun shopping their web site (and/or catalog). If you are a contractor who's livelyhood depends on tools of the trade, don't be a fool! Get the better brands from trade stores. However, homeowners can get a good by on many of the items sold there. Thanks for reading my review and best wishes for a nice day!
Mike
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Many tools, household items
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shoehorny
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Location: The Garden State
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Everything is green and submarine...
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