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Whither HF...???

XOverZero

XOverZero

Well Known Member
I?m a bit new here, been lurking for several months and intend to start building this year, so kindly take pity.

I?ve searched the forums to no avail?it might be in there somewhere, but if so it eludes me. The ?It? I?m looking for is a poll of the builders ? a compilation list of which RV specific tools from "HF" have been found to be Good, Fairly OK, Indifferent, Ugly, and No-Way-Not-For-Any-Price. Is there a sticky perhaps, which I haven?t found yet?

My one and only excursion into the darkest depths of HF, years ago, rendered me the sad owner of one of the worst power door planers imaginable. I never went back, assuming all their stuff was likewise cheesy junk. Silly me was therefore surprised to find in these forums so many individual recommendations for this tool or that device from HF. OK then, as long as I stand to be corrected on this matter, my Scots lad evil twin takes over and is very interested to learn which thrrrrifty tools actually do a good job ? and which do not.

So, Builders, I would be most grateful to know where I may find the master summation of all your HF tool experiences and recommendations, if it exists.

BTW, I bless the day I discovered VAF. This site is beyond awesome. I?ve never seen a better example of how good the internet can be in bringing people, ideas, and knowledge together. What a great community! Thank you, DR, it?s simply brilliant.
 
Harbor freight is an interesting company. Many things you buy will be half decent and do s great job for that one job and then it is trash. Some will surprise you, like my belt/disc sander, and will never ever let you down. Then there are some like the circle cutter that are complete **** and not even worth looking at.
 
John, welcome to the insanity!

As was said, HF is hit-or-miss. I'd probably steer clear of anything that requires precision. Things like bench grinders and bending brakes are probably fine.

The good news is that a lot of exotic tools are NOT required to build an RV. Yeah, there are some pretty slick, expensive, precision equipment gizmos that would be nice to have (if you know what to do with them in the first place!), but not necessary.

Most things can be bought through good companies like Avery and Cleaveland. Lots of threads about both companies, and both support the RV world. Stuff like drill bits, dimple dies, gauges, hand tools, clecos, etc., can be found there.

A couple of larger ticket items that I think are indispensible are a bandsaw and a pneumatic squeezer. You CAN cut things with a hacksaw and grind them to shape, but it's SOOO much easier and faster with a bandsaw. Same for the pneumatic squeezer. You CAN hand-squeeze everything (or use a C-frame tool), but after a few thousand rivets, you'll wish you had an easier way.

Good luck with your project! VAF is a great resource for help.
 
Been building airplanes since the early 1980s. I have lots of HF tools. Some are fine, some are not. The price is such that you can afford to get a bad one every once awhile. My advise is stay away from anything with a cutting edge. i.e. drills, saw blades, etc.
I have a HF air drill that is still running great after quite a few aircraft builds. And remember, my RVs didn't come with ANY holes! Not even lightening holes in ribs and bulkheads.
 
I would buy their air tools - drills, cut-off wheels, etc. I'd buy their fein tool knock-off, belt sanders, buffers, etc.

I wouldn't buy drill bits, wrenches, or anything else that is tolerance sensitive.

Been there, done that. Still puzzled over how far outta spec their step drills are...
 
Stuff with hydraulic jacks - jacks, engine hoists, etc - are a pretty good deal if you have a local HF outlet (I'd hate to pay shipping for those things). Hard to mess them up!

Paul
 
If your not sure how much your going to use the tool but think you have to have it buy it there. If you use it enough to ware it out go buy a good one. if you didn't use it that much then you saved yourself some money.
 
deburring tool and cleco pliers

They have a dog leg deburring tool and cleco pliers that can usually be found for $1.99 or less during their parking lot sales.

I always end up buying the pliers since I can never find them when I need them. I swear I have a cleco gnome talking them.

I also have their 'air hydraulic riveter. Works great and cheap.

I've also never had a problem with their body saw or die grinders. If I do, they can be replaced for $10.
 
I bought a couple of thier paint guns for primer and also for final paint (Stewart Systems). It was all junk! Finally went to the local auto body shop and bought a nice $150 HLVP sprayer and started getting much better results.

HF air tools seem to be fine. I've got a nibbler, a grinder, and various other air tools and have been satisfied with all of them.
 
DakotaHawk said:
I bought a couple of thier paint guns for primer and also for final paint (Stewart Systems). It was all junk! Finally went to the local auto body shop and bought a nice $150 HLVP sprayer and started getting much better results.

HF air tools seem to be fine. I've got a nibbler, a grinder, and various other air tools and have been satisfied with all of them.
Click to expand...

Scott - kindly check your PMs
 
Regret

I have regretted nearly every purchase I've ever made at Harbor Freight.

The only thing I got there that was any good were some C clamps, and I even had to sort through the bin to find the good ones. Half of them didn't screw closed all the way. How can they mess up a C clamp?!?! Sheesh. :eek:
 
I guess it's another case of hit or miss bc I also have both of their hvlp paint guns and love them. They produce a nice even spray and clean up very easily. To each his own however......

-david
 
Hi John and welcome
I think you and I are in a similar situation in that we are just getting started and have lots of questions. Maybe one difference is that I have been lurking and asking alot of questions on here for the past year plus. I'm about to pull the trigger on a kit before the Feb.1 price increase, but let me pass on one bit of advice. Never feel like you are imposing by asking a question on here. Sure, it is prudent to search the archives first, but often you won't get what you need there. I have found that my thought process is quite different than many folks. It takes me a bit more pondering to make big decisions than most, but prolonged contemplation also means that I don't make many regretable decisions. I have found that the people on VAF, as a whole, are very tolerant of newby questions, although I have been shouted down in a few PMs by some who I believe have misunderstood my intentions. Those instances are very few though and I have grown to really enjoy the wide variety of personalities that frequent VAF. I'm new to aviation and look forward to meeting these great people in person down the road. All that just to say "keep the questions coming" and you will make better decisions as a result.
 
My favorite purchase at HF has been the HVLP spray gun I bought for primers. I'm sorry to hear that others haven't had a good experience. On sale it was less than $40 and it works beautifully. It has served me as well as the much more expensive DeVilbiss gun I bought for the topcoats. I'm also pleased with all the air tool accessories like air hoses, fittings and connectors, etc.

I also buy disposable supplies, like latex gloves by the box. Why spend more on stuff like that?

As far as tools are concerned, I would consider your long-term usage. If it's a tool seldom used but necessary or desirable, why pay top dollar for the best of the best? A $19 die grinder cuts just as well as a $99 one, for those few times you need one. I may not need the quality or durability that goes into a tool designed for industrial or professional use that will get used every day, day in and day out. I'm only building one airplane, and when it's done these tools will likely sit in storage. My $89 air drill, for example, shows signs of wear. But do I really care? I'm almost through drilling holes anyway. I'm sure it will last me through this airplane and probably one more if I ever decided to repeat. So I'm glad I didn't spend $250 for the best one on the market, because I don't need the tool that will build a dozen airplanes before it wears out.

I also agree with Kyle and Mel. Stay away from drill bits, tools with cutting edges or where precision is important. Spend the money there.
 
HF. Grrrrrr

Almost everything I have ever purchased there was junk! The HVLP gun plastic cup reacted to the reducer I was using for small paint jobs and became very brittle. When it broke and I took it to the store, they gave me a web site to contact who gave me an 800 number. To make a long story short it went in the trash!

There is one thing I buy there that actually is a good deal, their disposable gloves. Just don't use em around lacquer thinner, they melt.

My advice, buy good tools and they will last a life time and do a better job.
Buy cheep supplies, you just toss them anyway!

The last thing I want while working on the RV is junk tools. It's already challenging enough.
 
Another yes vote for HVLP sprayer from HF

The real key to the HVLP sprayers is to clean it up immediately. Don't lay it down and say you'll get to it in a minute. On air tools, I had one guy who was complaining about HF air tools. He never used an oiler. I have a permanent oil dispenser on one output line from the compressor and one output line dedicated to paint with a filters on it for that purpose. I agree with advice to spend better money for good drill bits. Anything that spins a disc, cutter, sander, drills have worked just fine for me.
 
I needed a tool to turn an abrasive cut off wheel that came with the finish kit to cut the canopy and found this High speed drill at HF. It worked better than the other 2 choices I tried being a Fein Multimaster and an air grinder. Did a great job and still works fine. You can see it here. It is the one in the middle.
http://www.jimsairplanes.com/images/canopytools1.jpg
 
I got a little pancake air compressor from HF that has worked flawlessly for about a year. Worked fine to build the practice kits, and nice to tote around the house for use with my nailers and such. Price was like $25 or something with a coupon.

But... +1,000 to not buying anything with an edge, with precision, or that you need to be a "cornerstone" tool. (Although...my cheapo HF digital caliper aligns perfectly to feeler gauges and has gotten all sorts of use.)
 
I posted this on another thread recently, but I've promised myself to never again buy anyting with an electrical cord from HF.
 
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