Harbor Freight Non-Gem

[MsNomer]

Foam Brushes. They look just like the ones at Woodcraft, Lowes, etc., but the stiffener in the middle is much shorter, leaving the outer edge unacceptably floppy.

[Steve N]

Agree, also their pencils, absolute junk

[John Mihich]

Another is their painter's tape. I bought some because it was cheap. I have a hard time peeling the tape off the roll w/o tearing it down the middle.

Another - sand paper - wears out too fast.

[Rick LoDico]

I order boxes of 48 from Jamestown Distributors.
http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/use...o?pid=1189

[TomFromStLouis]

Frankly I amazed that people even go to HF. The false economy of throw away products never tempted me.

[kompera]

TomFromStLouis said:

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Frankly I amazed that people even go to HF. The false economy of throw away products never tempted me.

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Way to generalize.

I have a large pile of their clamps (at $2-5 each) which work great, and I have never broken a single one in the ~3-4 years I've been using them.

I wouldn't buy just about any power tool from them, but I'm glad there's one in my neighborhood.
That said, you should feel free to keep buying Jet or Bessey f-clamps that do the same thing for 3x more money (or even higher).
Go nuts hating the store.

[John Mihich]

I have their aluminum clamps - they are very inexpensive. I have about 30 of them. No way could I have afforded the name brand stuff. Their speedy clamps I have briken a couple of them but they replaced them.

Most of their mechanic tools are great for hobbyist.

It took me some time to go into their store to buy something. I still limit what I but.

And yes I do buy because of the price. I would rather buy American but we just don't make them at the same price.

[kompera]

John Mihich said:

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And yes I do buy because of the price. I would rather buy American but we just don't make them at the same price.

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Yarp, this.
If it's a tool I use constantly, I'll buy a good quality one; buy once cry once.
If it's a tool I'll use a few times, I'll buy it at HF as it's usually cheaper than renting one.
One-offs still get rented or borrowed.

[Richard D.]

The foam brushes fell off the handle when I tried them. The only expendables I buy at HF are Nitrile or Latex type gloves and chip brushes.

There are many "Gems".

A friend of mine is the corporate pilot for HF. When the owner saw the mechanics were not using HF tools he asked why not. They asked him if he would want to fly on a plane that was serviced with his tools!

[Joel H.]

I recently bought a small dolly for $6.99 (I think) that I use to make my Earlex follow me. I couldn't buy the 4 wheels for near that. Also got a small stool on 5 wheels for under $10 that is perfect for my needs.

Many things don't have to cost a mint to be useful.

Joel