Harbor Freight's Dirty Little Secret - How Their Tools are so Cheap and Which Ones You Should Avoid

As a construction company owner I can honesty say that our TOOL-THEFT has gone down 95% since we started buying Harbor freight tools for our workers. The resale value on stolen harbor freight tools is NOT worth the jail time to our workers and the local pawn shops will not even consider buying Harbor freight tools. They only buy Dewalt and Milwaukee tools for pawn.

As a professional truck mechanic for 38 years, I can say that Harbor Freight has stepped up their game with some of the brands they now offer. Unlike DIY customers, I am fully aware that most of Harbor Freight tools were never meant for commercial use. If I buy a Pittsburgh brand wrench from their store, and it breaks the first time I use it at work, that's on me. However, within the last couple of years, Harbor Freight has been carrying Icon and Quinn brand hand tools that they advertise as direct competitors to SnapOn. I have purchased some of these hand tools and agree they are every bit as good as SnapOn. Their timing was perfect; both SnapOn and Mac tools used to visit my shop bi-weekly until the pandemic. Neither has returned even with the pandemic behind us. I still needed tools, my job didn't stop during the pandemic. Harbor Freight was available that entire time. They got my business and continue to serve me well. But I am going to tell you why I support our local Harbor Freight and am happy to give them my business- This is a relatively small community without a lot of opportunities. Since the store opened here, the management has made it a point to hire the "unemployable"; Ex-cons, recovering addicts, parolees, those wanting to get off welfare. This has worked out very well because the store has very little turnover. Its impressive when I go in the store and see a guy who I used to read about in the police blotter, now wearing a managers vest. If Harbor Freight can give these people a second chance, I can too.

I got into Bauer cordless tools [BCT] about 3 years ago & have my small shop outfitted with about 7-9 tools. My first BCT was a 1/2" cordless drill/driver Model 1991C-B. I also had a DeWalt 1/2" cordless drill/driver Model DCD771 at the same time. I bought the Bauer with the intention of using the Bauer and not wearing out the Dewalt. Well the truth is this . . . after using both drill/drivers, side by side, for about 3 years I have come to the conclusion that there is not much noticeable difference between the power & battery life in these 2 drills. I have done the same work with either one and the only difference is teh color of the tool. 3 years later abd they are BOTH drilling & driving the same. Hope this helps someone.

Agreed on most everything in the video. I did hear Dave say electrical tape is ok to buy at HF . . . . . and having spent 30 years using tape, outdoors, in all weather on a daily basis . . . . it's definitely best to stick with 3M.

I have to disagree on the jacks. In fact, Snap On attempted to sue for infringement on one of their jacks, which were cast at the same factory in China. Long story short they failed, you can buy a jack from the truck or the same one from HF for about 1/3 the price. I would also add if you get under a vehicle supported only by a jack you probably deserve whatever happens to you. Jacks don't kill people nearly as often as stupidity does.

I worked in a machine shop and needed a 1/4" die grinder. I bought one at Harbor Freight for $9. I used it every day at work for 2 years. I was so impressed with it I upgraded to the $15 one. It lasted 3 days. I went back and bought another $9 one and used it for several more years.

I buy most of my tools used. I buy older, US made hand tools at flea markets and estate sales. My lathe and mill I bought from CL sellers. You can't go wrong with older US made tools.

Excellent unbiased video. Dave is right on the money. Start with simple products and make your own mind with quality. Tarps, zip ties, screwdrivers, etc. They all work fine. You shouldn't compare a $50 power tool you find there to well known brand that costs 3 times as much. I always find stuff there I can use later. Just follow the sales and see what they have. IMHO, there is always something they have that will satisfy your needs.

As someone in the trades, HF helped me out a lot in the early days in my career. I still have a random HF tool here and there in my tool bags. I never feel bad beating up on a HF tool. HF is great when I need a random automotive tool that I'll probably only use once or twice.

I used to be a professional heavy equipment mechanic . I mostly bought “ quality “ tools like my wrenches ( MAC ) from 1982 , that I still have . That being said , my first experience with HF , was in the early 1980’s , and it was “ mail order “ ! I ordered a set of 1/2” drive deep- impact sockets . I STILL HAVE THEM and have worked on garbage trucks , and over- the- road trucks for years and years - they are still in my rollaway box 40 years later !!! I now have a retail store down the street ; I’m a “ regular “ customer , I’ve NEVER returned anything … ( I’m now a senior citizen and I walk up and down the aisles looking at all the stuff that I now can AFFORD , but my two knee surgeries , three triple shoulder surgeries , and five spinal fusions will not allow me to use anymore … )

I buy tools for our ranch use at HF. Bought a 7” grinder to sharpen blades on the bat-wing shredder every month. Works fine. Reciprocating saw had the blade holder fall apart with normal use. 3/8” drill is ok. Hand tools, jack stands work fine for tightening tracks on the compact track loader…(just won’t get under it!) Budget level tools with a budget price. Choose your tools selectively and allow for failures occasionally. (Former Makita area sales manager)

GREAT advice! I'm not a professional mechanic, however my father was. During my time in the USAF, I was an electronics technician on B-52 aircraft. I can fix most things, because I understand how many things work. But I don't consider myself a "mechanic or carpenter." I make my living as a CPA! I have MANY tools and I love to go to Harbor Freight as my first stop when I need a new or replacement tool. YOUR advice was spot on!

Back in the mid-2000s, I was a superintendent at a large homebuilder in Illinois. One day, one of our tradesmen came into the construction trailer with a broken pneumatic nail gun. Might have been a Paslode - don't remember. He partially disassembled it to find a broken part relating to its air piston. After a bit of complaining and water cooler talk, the consensus was that he might go grab a cheap one from the local Harbor Freight to finish out his day. Upon his return, we gathered around in amazement to see that the "Chicago Pneumatic" tool was PHYSICALLY IDENTICAL to his broken big-name brand. Next, he took it apart to the same degree as the broken one, and we found that the internal parts were also perfectly identical - to the point that they fit flawlessly into the old tool. Reassembly and subsequent testing showed full functionality was restored. Conclusion? At least SOME products at HF are just rebranded big-name tools. Our tradesman kept the HF version and I never heard that he had problems with it. And that was in a high-volume production environment, so that's probably worth something.

One of the things I purchased at HF (with a coupon) was a little "Dremel-like" rotary tool, for about $5. I've used it for many years, specifically because "it doesn't have much oomph". I use it for hobby projects, drilling and cutting plastics, where a stall from too much pressure is preferable to a crack. Limitations in the tools are not necessarily a negative - if you understand what you are using the tool for.

All good information and advice. One tool from HF I know of is definitely worth the money: Half-ton press. Stew-Mac sells the exact same press for three times the cost. Guitar repairers use these presses to install frets. SO buy the HF press and use your own homemade cauls for different fret radii.

Well said. I was so happy when Harbor Freight opened a store in my neighborhood. Wonderful place, but let the buyer beware. I bought tools from Harbor Freight back when it was only a mail order company, and I didn't have much money. I believe in Harbor Freight, and I am grateful to them for the many tools in my garage. There are times that I need something high end or task-specific, and I go elsewhere, but I nearly always try Harbor Freight first. Excellent video, and well done.

I still have and still use the 230v mig welder. I've probably been through 30 of the 10 lb spools and 50 of the 2 lb. I have made my money back 10 fold and can say I agree with most of the video but I also know if you read the directions you will have a tool that lasts much longer than if you just use like a name brand. For those who can't or don't know how to read, don't worry because you won't have read this either! 😉 lol

I used to work at a large manufacturing plant that did a lot of large assembly on heavy equipment. They used Proto impact sockets, which are expensive. They would occasionally wear out with such constant use. I brought some Pittsburgh impact sockets of the most- used sizes just to put them to the test. They ended up outlasting the protos by A LOT. I eventually told my supervisor what I did. Our M.E. bought a set from harbor freight to do documented testing. It was officially proven that Pittsburg impact sockets had almost twice the life of Proto. They changed all the assembly stations over to Pittsburg, saving a huge amount of money. The Proto rep was not happy with me.

I bought some medium sized handheld sprayers for water, chemicals, fertilizer, or whatever. I found they are great for spraying down large sections of my linoleum floor prior to mopping. Works well with diluted bleach for the tub/shower. Because the pump action is pressurized, it doesn't wear a person out with having to constantly pump a cleaner. Great for windows, too, as I can cover a huge area with very minimal effort. I've bought tons of small batteries through them, too. Great for my collection of flashlights.

Their current design jack stands are outstanding. They had to do two successive recalls on their older defective ones a few yrs ago, but they really stepped up and IMO the curent Daytona jack stands are the best of the chinese made jack stands on the market today. Their rolling hydraulic jacks are excellent as well.