Back in the day I knew a mech that had Mac, Snap-on, and Craftsman rachets. We were talking about which one was the best. He put the Mac in a vice and broke it with a little effort. Same with the Snap-on. Then he put the Craftsman in and couldn't do it. I found a 3/8 flex head in the road that was broke, got a new one from Sears and still use it today. All this was about 20 years ago. I agree the quality has gone downhill lately. They used to be the "go to with confidence place". Kinda like cans of tuna, smaller can. higher price.

 

I agree, 20 years ago there was no question where I'd go for a tool, Sears. Good prices and high quality tools with a great warrantee. Back then you could walk into their store with a mangled tool and they'd give you a brand new one, no questions asked. Not any more, their tool quality has slipped, I have sockets from my dad that are at least 40 years old and look almost as good as new after 40 years of hard use, I have a set that I bought maybe 10 years ago and the plating is chipping and the ratchet gearing skips and doesn't stay in the direction I set it in. You'd think with all the competition out there Sears might have at least kept their quality up and emphasized the replacement agreement with their sales staffs.

I do remember about 25 years ago going to Sears to have a deep well 1/2" socket with a crack replaced. The salesman in the tool department started giving me a hard time about abusing the tool. He asked what I did to crack it, I told him I drove an army tank over it but it didn't matter because they were suppose to replace it, no questions asked. He finally did give me a new one. I think that might have been the point they started to turn.

 

I have a lot of old Craftsman tools. They are top notch. Something like a ratchet the last
time I checked I was able to get a repair kit for it. This about five years ago. The kit was
an exact parts replacement to what was originally in there. I think it is the only old Craftsman
1/2 inch ratchet I have ever stripped a gear in. I has a 4 foot pipe on it for
a cheater. So with a sears Craftsman ask for a kit for your old tool. They are out there
and still the same quality as original as it is NOS.

As for HF and other Chitcom stuff ya get what ya pay for. I have had the cheap HF disks
blow up and break apart. But never there more expensive ones.

I do believe it works this way with any thing. Ya get what ya pay for. If I plan to use like
a power steering pulley puller for one job I will buy a cheap one. When done I may never
use it again or maybe once or twice a year. But if I was still commercial I would pay
whatever the cost to get the best.

 

I have only purchased a few things from Hf that I thought was worth having: #1 their low profile aluminum racing jack (usually about 65.00 on sale) I used one to change tires on the race car for about 10 years, carried it all around the country. My wife could pump it. just need to be sure to keep it full of hydraulic oil and bleed the air out of it per the instructions. #2 The 40x48" trailer kit with the 12" wheels. This trailer is very popular with AXers to carry a set or two of racing tires and a tool chest. I towed one >100,000 miles at speeds I won't admit to in print. Replaced the hubs and bearings once in all that time. Just need to keep the wheel bearings greased, throw away the fenders and the incandescent bulb lights. Just leave it without fenders (doesn't need them) and use LED marker and taillights. #3 their self darkening welding helmet that sells for about 35.00, actually quite good.
The DIY coop shop I taught at bought all HF power tools IMHO most were near junk, bushings instead of bearings, poor machining tolerances, replacement parts unobtainable. They don't buy or stock replacement parts, just cannibalize returns, display items until parts are gone. Consider power tools as disposable once warantee is over, don't spend more than you are willing to throw away.
They have a liberal return policy, so if you need a one time use tool or expect heavy abuse, save the receipt and packaging, return when job is done.

 

I have a lot of tools. Hand tools from older Craftsmen up to Snap on. I never even look at the hand tools at HF.....partly because I don't really need them, and most are lower quality.
I have bought quite a few other things at HF though......mostly low use stuff as stated. I just bought a portable generator, seems like a nice unit. Started on the first pull.
Yard sales and estate sales are a great place to find quality tools as well...

 

Interesting reading

Ratchet-Handles Torture Test - Hot Rod Magazine

Torque Wrench Testing - Shop Tools - Car Craft Magazine

 

I use a few of their tools without issue and I guess I pick and choose what I'll use knowing they supply lesser quality. I have their digital caliper and it works like a champ, but that type of tool doesn't take a beating like an impact, cutter, or other main use tool does.

I have a couple of their floor jacks, I'm very surprised and happy with those. Sanding discs, grinding pads and such do their job pretty well. They carry a nice array of clamping tools that I can vouch for for welding and other odd jobs. Also, they have caster dolly's that are good for keeping things mobile on the floor.

 

I too buy a few things from HF. And as posted above most is junk. I purchased a Hydraulic pipe bender and a 20 ton press that has worked great so far. Both have paid for themselves. I did learn a valuable lesson this past weekend. Don't buy the cheap cutoff wheels. I was using one this past weekend cutting a patch panel for the floor of the old 53 and it just exploded. It was cutting good and looking at it it looks like it turned loose from the hub part. I was really lucky, tore my pants leg and put a scratch on my thigh. Could have been a lot worse. I'll still buy some of their 1 time use type tools.

 

I have decent luck with HF items, I have been using the funnel top sand blaster, with good results. It's slow so you don't have to worry about warping. I do not like their battery drills, I have a older one that will not pull a greasy string out of a cat's butt. I should have know better. Like Grandpa said "Son you get what you pay for"
Mike

 

I'd suspect that problems with exploding grinding and cutoff discs is partially due to mishandling at the store, being dropped, falling off the shelves, roughly handled by customers and stock clerks. I buy my cutoff disks in quantity on line from the manufacturer at near or lower prices than HF.

 

I bought the smaller blaster from HF last fall. It won't quite hold a 50lb. bag of media. I had read plenty of negative reviews so I knew it might not end well. I plugged it up about 20 times in 20 minutes. I did some searching and found the Texas blaster. It had 1/2 fittings coming out of it. I changed mint to 1/2 from the bottom of the tank to the ball valve at the end. I used a wye under the tank for a smoother entry. End of problem. I buy coal slag from tractor supply also but I pay less than $8 a bag???I've run about 500 lbs through this rig and so far, the only thing I've gone through has been nozzles. I found some on ebay for a fraction of HF and I'm still going. I dislike blasting but if you want to do something as good as possible, it seems to be necessary. I bought my tank on sale for 1/2 off. No complaints after the plumbing change. I also use the ball valves wide open at the nozzle end. The media control under the tank is the only one to be partially open. I blast with about 100 lbs most of the time and I'm not having trouble on thick older vehicles. I sure wouldn't try that with anything modern.

 

Be damn sure to read that in context.