Harbor Freight Tool Boxes (10 Viewers)

[aztoyman]

I took a 9/16, six point, chrome, 3/8 drive Craftsman socket back that I cracked in for a warranty exchange at my local ACE. I grabbed the exact same socket off the rack and the manager would not warranty it. He said it has to be the same part number. Mine was made in U.S.A from the 70's or 80's.

If I have to buy my replacements now, I'll just find an NOS American made one on eBay. Sad. I made a good living with a lot of Craftsman tools.

 

[JAG666]

Yes, I've read multiple good reviews. And it's not like a tool box can have too much seriously wrong going on with it.
If you had to replace all wheels with generics after a while, that would be what, $100 maybe? $150 for very nice ones?
Drawer slides are also easy to replace and inexpensive but finding some that fit (cuz I would not trust HF with spare parts availability) may be harder.
I personally would not dream of ever buying a tool truck box, the prices are just frankly obscene.
I'd pay serious attention to evaluations of the slides and loaded drawers operation on whatever you're thinking about. I have an inexpensive box with one particular drawer with all my bits (many boxes), well over 100lbs I guess. It is a pain to open and close, swearing every time..

.. pawn shops!!

 

[JAG666]

RE: Pawn Shops.. YUP!! I bought a damn good (barely used!!) Roll-Around box (MAC) from a pawn shop at a VERY affordable price!! Same with tools.. I'd been to several pawn shops before I found what I wanted/needed AND at affordable prices.. not cheap.. but affordable... Bottom line.. It pays to "graze" Chas
PS... My parents bought me a set of SK Wayne tools when I was sixteen.. (I worked on my 1946 Harley, A Lot and my Dad got tired of me using HIS tools!!)

 

[fjwagon]

Your opinion of Craftsman tools is understandable but a decade or so past it's prime. You know that Sears went out of business right?

Understood, Sears did go out business about 3-4 years ago. But you can buy craftsman at Lowes. I have a mechanic friend that will not touch Craftsman tools he only buys Snap-on tools. I don't blame him, he harder on his tools and uses them everyday. Anyhow, I also buy tools at The Home Depot, otc, and it's rare if buy something from Snap-on...i guess whatever gets the job done at reasonable price. There are lot of decent tools out there but when tried HF, I pretty much gave up on there first use, decades ago.

 

[fjwagon]

I agree,,Craftsman tools are not the same caliber they once were back in the 80's. They got me throughout college when I drove a piece of junk to school. I remember parking on top of hill to pop the clutch to get the truck to start. A week later when I got I paid I purchased a starter with a lifetime warranty at Chief Auto parts(does not exist anymore). Them were the days.

 

[ntsqd]

Craftsman is carried by our local Ace Hardware. I'll buy that over the house brand at any of the big box home improvement stores.

I only buy HF hand tools when I have a special need and will be modifying the tool. The exception is 2lbs & 3lbs. hammers, they do a decent job on those and for a decade or more every vehicle I owned had one. I broke that tradition when I bought a brand name hammer for Snowball.

A while back e9999 posted a link to Tekton Tools and I liked what I saw so I gave them a try. Been very pleased with the deep offset double box-end wrenches that I purchased from them.

 

[PAToyota]

There are lot of decent tools out there but when tried HF, I pretty much gave up on there first use, decades ago.

I only buy HF hand tools when I have a special need and will be modifying the tool.

You guys may want to check out what HF is offering these days. Their ICON, Doyle, and Quinn hand tools are definitely a step up from what they've sold in the past. I'd liken them to what Craftsman was back in the day, except for one issue - that they don't sell sockets and wrenches individually. Craftsman was always significantly more expensive to buy singles compared to getting them in a set, but you could always buy those one or two "extra" sockets or wrenches that you specifically needed. With HF, if it isn't in a set you're out of luck.

I know people using the Bauer and Hercules cordless tools and with the warranties they offer on both the tools and the batteries they seem to be a decent option. I started with DeWalt years ago, so am not really looking to add another battery system. I do have some Bauer and Hercules corded tools and have no complaint on them.

I've got SnapOn, Mac, and Matco right alongside the old Craftsman, HF, and other brands. It really comes down to how hard I'm going to use something and whether there are any special features that warrant spending more money.

 

[Eyedaho]

You guys may want to check out what HF is offering these days. Their ICON, Doyle, and Quinn hand tools are definitely a step up from what they've sold in the past. I'd liken them to what Craftsman was back in the day, except for one issue - that they don't sell sockets and wrenches individually. Craftsman was always significantly more expensive to buy singles compared to getting them in a set, but you could always buy those one or two "extra" sockets or wrenches that you specifically needed. With HF, if it isn't in a set you're out of luck.

I know people using the Bauer and Hercules cordless tools and with the warranties they offer on both the tools and the batteries they seem to be a decent option. I started with DeWalt years ago, so am not really looking to add another battery system. I do have some Bauer and Hercules corded tools and have no complaint on them.

I've got SnapOn, Mac, and Matco right alongside the old Craftsman, HF, and other brands. It really comes down to how hard I'm going to use something and whether there are any special features that warrant spending more money.

Exactly. HF's higher echelon lines like Icon are better Chinese tools than a lot of others. They're no longer nearly as cheap, but they still offer the lower echelon lines if people want to buy junk. True about not selling individual tools. I'm guessing that would be a supply chain and inventory nightmare. At least they sell multi packs of 10mm sockets.

 

[PAToyota]

I'll also say that there are options online - and I have some of those too. But the "higher echelon" stuff at HF tends to be the "best" of the local options. I haven't really been impressed with the other local options - Husky, Kobalt, etc. I have picked up some Craftsman at Lowes since they started carrying stuff. Those are the main options in my area. There may be better options in other parts of the country.

I'm not sure that individual tools would be a logistical nightmare. Now, if you break something they take an entire set, give you the item you need, and put the rest of the set on the clearance table. That hardly seems efficient either. I will say that since they've been bringing out the new lines and new items over the past couple years, the one local store that was the first one in the area is about bursting at the seams. The other stores in the general area are probably twice as big.

 

[fjwagon]

I get what you are saying PaToyota, like I said earlier there are a there a lot budget tools out there. Maybe i will pick up a wrench you recommend and see how it feels on my hand. I have very seldom broken Craftsman sockets. The day when Craftsman stops swapping my broken tools that will be the day when I start looking else where to replace my sockets sets. I have several snapon tools and other truck tools but cannot justify buying them. I do not use them everyday. My first set set of sockets were impact type off brand. They were cheap and harder to break. Not pretty but got the job done.

I do have more than just several knipex pliers and what not. I found a pair of 6" diagonal cutters on the side of the road going home. I cleaned them up and tried to give them away. No takers, so I tried them....and I was sold. I bought the same cutters but in 8". Used them and quickly bought more tools from them and wish I bought them sooner. Now if I can find wrenches and sockets of the same caliber I would definitely consider buying a set.

 

[ntsqd]

If you don't want to buy chinesium, which is part of my aversion to HF, I'd encourage looking at the Tekton tools that I linked above. If my two wrench sets are any indication, they know how to make tools in Michigan. I rate their appearance and apparent quality right there with the tool truck tools. Others may feel different, but I think that they are fairly priced.

I have two sets of Snap-On short wrenches, metric & SAE. They are my go-to when I need a short wrench, but I'm glad that I didn't buy them in std length or longer. The cross-section of the handle is a bit too thin for a fastener that needs a lot of applied torque. For those needs Craftsman, Mac, or Proto are my preference due to their thicker and more rounded edges.

 

[PAToyota]

If you don't want to buy chinesium, which is part of my aversion to HF, I'd encourage looking at the Tekton tools that I linked above.

Except, from their website: About Us | TEKTON Hand Tools - https://www.tekton.com/about-us

About 76% of our current product lineup is made in Taiwan, 21.5% in the United States, 2% in Canada, and the remaining 0.5% consists of 11 items from Germany and 1 item from Poland. You can find the country of origin for every tool on Tekton.com by referring to the “Specs” section at the bottom of each product page.

 

[ntsqd]

Taiwan is not China, no matter what China wants.

 

[cruiserinsanity]

So, a little update. The Chinese craftsman box I bought stopped locking intermittently. It has a really stupid mechanism that rotates a rod and snags the back of the drawers. It stopped locking a month or so ago but would lock if you hit it with a hammer, so, it turned into a routine of beating the box with a hammer to get it to lock. It’s done now, and has been replaced with an older, better Craftsman box. None of my classmates with US General boxes have had any issues out of their boxes thus far at school.

Chinese craftsman is a shame.

 

[greenbeast]

Literally just took delivery of my Stor Loc tool boxes. Heavy as shyt! Delivered to my farm in Oklahoma from Illinois.

I had to have dad meet him for delivery due to some mechanical issues with our pig we drove to see our alma mater play. I was suppose to pay with check since they don’t take any money until it’s delivered and was told personal check would be fine.

Told guy who was delivering my dad would have to write a check for me since I was stranded for little bit and I’d send one out immediately Monday. He said don’t worry about it, just send a check when you can it’s no big deal.

Made in USA.

Super happy with quality. As i said it’s stupid heavy. Glad I went this route. Tomorrow I’ll move it into place and start putting tools in it.

Tool box is 43”h x 90” w x 30”d. Then I had 24” riser added

Welding table weighs over 400 pounds. 1/2” top. 37” h x 48” w x 36”d

Can’t say enough good things about my experience with these folks. Love everything is made in USA.