|
iForge posted:For an upcoming job I need to get a rotary hammer with the SDS-MAX spline chuck on it. Normally I would just rent the drill because I use that size drill too infrequently to justify such an expensive tool, but for this particular job, I am looking at about $500 in rental fees, so I may as well just buy one. I already have SDS-MAX bits to go with the drill. Anyone have experience with the cheaper drills out there? Harbor freight sells a sds-plus drill that has great reviews, but nothing in sds-max. I already put a wanted ad up on craigslist for a used one. Any recommendations for a good brand to get? Not looking to go too much over that $500 mark, so a new Hilti is out of the question. Absolutely do not get Harbor Freight, I wouldn't buy anything electric from them. 500 dollars isn't bad, and you could probably find a bosch or dewalt for under that at Home Depot. And depending on where you are check out pawn shops, the store I work at frequently has used ones and I've never seen em go over 300 and that was like for a brand new Makita or something and we had the receipt. Just make sure you ask about their return policy (don't even bother with as is or 3 days) and try it out in the store. They won't let you drill poo poo, but at least make sure it runs and doesn't smell like burning plastic. Could be a good alternative to Craigslist. Some of them are very used, and dirty, but will still do the job just as well and usually cost less than half new (which is a lot when we're getting into the 500-900 dollar range).
|
#
?
Jun 24, 2013 06:29
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 28, 2024 06:40 |
|
|
My general rule for Harbor Freight is (1) nothing electric and (2) nothing that can kill you if it breaks. So no power tools, no jacks, no welders, nothing with hydraulics or high-pressure pneumatics or gasoline in it. However tire irons, zip ties, cheap workgloves, sockets, tape, all that kind of stuff is fine. And regardless of what it is, it's good practice to wear eye protection while you're using it.
|
|
#
?
Jun 24, 2013 06:39
|
|
|
Sagebrush posted:My general rule for Harbor Freight is (1) nothing electric and (2) nothing that can kill you if it breaks. So no power tools, no jacks, no welders, nothing with hydraulics or high-pressure pneumatics or gasoline in it. However tire irons, zip ties, cheap workgloves, sockets, tape, all that kind of stuff is fine. Yeah, pretty much whatever can fit in your toolbelt and/or has no moving parts. The no moving parts is the big thing. Though if you're a mechanic or something I wouldn't recommend their sockets or tire iron, but if you're just trying to change your own oil or tire, then yeah gently caress it.
|
|
#
?
Jun 24, 2013 06:52
|
|
|
Sagebrush posted:nothing with hydraulics. Somebody's missing out on a great jack.
|
|
#
?
Jun 24, 2013 15:47
|
|
|
Sagebrush posted:My general rule for Harbor Freight is (1) nothing electric and (2) nothing that can kill you if it breaks. So no power tools, no jacks, no welders, nothing with hydraulics or high-pressure pneumatics or gasoline in it. However tire irons, zip ties, cheap workgloves, sockets, tape, all that kind of stuff is fine. no power tools I agree with, especially after a friend's HF angle grinder fired a loving cooling fin out a vent slot at my face at like warp 9. Never again. How the gently caress do you make an angle grinder that throws fins? I'm glad they don't make jet engines for planes because that poo poo doesn't fly, literally. Jacks: I have been dragging their steel one around for years, and leaving it outside, and it works great. Their engine hoist is ok too, I have been abusing mine since 2010 and it's still working. Welders: I sure wouldn't buy their consumables, heard of nothing but trouble with weld quality, and their wirefeed welders are something I want nothing to do with, but it's kinda hard to gently caress up an inverter welder. I played with a friend's 50 amp inverter stick welder from HF and it was decent with 1/16 rods. Not sure I'd pay for a welder that small but hey, it works. tire irons: I bought theirs. I bent the poo poo out of them trying to use them. I said they were total poo poo. A friend of mine made fun of me for not knowing how to use tire irons without bending them. 6 months later he borrowed them from me. He bent the poo poo out of them too. I made fun of him for not knowing how to use tire irons without bending them.  Their zip ties loving suck, their electrical tape really loving sucks, and their cheap workgloves really really loving suck. Spend 14 whole dollars and get a bucket of 650 good quality zip ties AND 10 rolls of 3M Tartan 1710 electrical tape at home depot, thank me later. I own 6 of their larger jackstands, too, and they do the job just fine. kastein fucked around with this message at 16:24 on Jun 24, 2013 |
|
#
?
Jun 24, 2013 16:19
|
|
|
Sagebrush posted:My general rule for Harbor Freight is (1) nothing electric and (2) nothing that can kill you if it breaks. So no power tools, no jacks, no welders, nothing with hydraulics or high-pressure pneumatics or gasoline in it. However tire irons, zip ties, cheap workgloves, sockets, tape, all that kind of stuff is fine. I follow more or less the same rules, but I've heard from multiple people that their rotary tool is actually quite good.
|
|
#
?
Jun 24, 2013 16:58
|
|
|
Word on the street is that the HF torque wrench is not too bad either. Not too bad= fine for tires and less precise requirements an the like.
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2013 13:49
|
|
|
Im happy to admit that I've bought and used a large number of harbor freight tools, with hardly any real issues. If you do a little research on what you'rd intending on buying it's easy to avoid the junk. I don't really hesitate buying their electric tools, but avoid the cordless stuff. Specifically, I've had the rotary hammer drill for a few years and it hasn't let me down. I probably had a dozen hours of use on it just from knocking down a bomb shelter in my basement.
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2013 18:17
|
|
|
dyne posted:I probably had a dozen hours of use on it just from knocking down a bomb shelter in my basement. In order to build a larger bomb shelter, correct?
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2013 18:52
|
|
|
dyne posted:I probably had a dozen hours of use on it just from knocking down a bomb shelter in my basement. Do you have any pictures of this? I'm fascinated by those kinds of structures, especially ones in private residences. How old was it? Was it fallout-rated?
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2013 19:40
|
|
|
Bosch sells one for $399.99 that should fit the bill just fine, and they have a thing right now that if you spend over $400, you get 20% of your total purchase price in free accessories/bits. Probably gonna do that and buy one cheap bit to put me over the $400 mark.
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2013 22:07
|
|
|
dyne posted:Im happy to admit that I've bought and used a large number of harbor freight tools, with hardly any real issues. If you do a little research on what you'rd intending on buying it's easy to avoid the junk. I don't really hesitate buying their electric tools, but avoid the cordless stuff. I have mixed feeling on the harbor freight issue. On the one hand good tools are good. On the other hand, variety matters. It's better to have a cheap version of the right tool than an expensive version of the wrong one. I guess my problem with harbor freight is that I think their tools are cheap beyond the point of diminishing returns. There is only so much cost you can squeeze out of large powered peices of metal and I think harbor freight pushes the limits. Brands like Ryobi and Black and decker are a few dollars more, but I think a lot better as a result.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2013 02:58
|
|
|
Walking into Harbor Freight and blind buying is a huge gamble but they have good, bad, and everything inbetween, tools. Some things are worth buying if you know ahead of time that some tinkering will be necessary. Their sandpaper is poor but their $8 handsaw is a steal, many people buy their lathes and dust collectors because with a little tune up they are good values. Tldr; research before buying
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2013 04:10
|
|
|
Cross-bragging from the metal work thread. Forged by I. NASH & SONS of Stourbridge, there's no date that I can find but it's from somewhere between 1888 and about 1920. I've seen a near identical one online that was part of a war department contract in WW1. This anvil was bought at an auction from the contents of an old garage that went out of business last year. Upon mentioning this to my grandfather he replied "Oh, well that makes sense, that garage was a blacksmiths when I was a boy" (around 1940). Got it for £100 from a nice old guy who was thinking of making it into a garden ornament. Going rate for an anvil like this here in  is £250.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2013 10:35
|
|
|
That's a fine looking anvil.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2013 18:26
|
|
|
iForge posted:For an upcoming job I need to get a rotary hammer with the SDS-MAX spline chuck on it. Normally I would just rent the drill because I use that size drill too infrequently to justify such an expensive tool, but for this particular job, I am looking at about $500 in rental fees, so I may as well just buy one. I already have SDS-MAX bits to go with the drill. Anyone have experience with the cheaper drills out there? Harbor freight sells a sds-plus drill that has great reviews, but nothing in sds-max. I already put a wanted ad up on craigslist for a used one. Any recommendations for a good brand to get? Not looking to go too much over that $500 mark, so a new Hilti is out of the question. I found this in a HF ad; I wasnt able to find it by their search http://www.harborfreight.com/85-amp-2-in-1-1-916-variable-speed-sds-max-type-rotary-hammer-69334.html
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2013 03:24
|
|
|
iForge posted:Bosch sells one for $399.99 that should fit the bill just fine, and they have a thing right now that if you spend over $400, you get 20% of your total purchase price in free accessories/bits. Probably gonna do that and buy one cheap bit to put me over the $400 mark. Hopefully not too late, but the HF hammer drill we had vomited its gearbox after about two hours of drilling 3/4" holes in a 6" concrete slab. The replacement did the same, as did its replacement. That time, we returned the thing entirely and got a Bosch, and it worked great all the way up to 2" dry core bits for a few years until it got left in the back of the truck and submerged for about a week. Now it makes a funny noise, but works just fine.
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2013 16:43
|
|
|
I just bought this power generator. Will be here later this week. Storms seem to be getting worse and worse. A friend who lives nearby was without power for almost a week, just last week. That length of time would ruin all my food, and frankly would be really boring and awful. So, I'm getting ready before it's our turn to lose power. I plan to have an electrician wire a plug directly to my house, for convenience.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2013 05:13
|
|
|
babyeatingpsychopath posted:Hopefully not too late, but the HF hammer drill we had vomited its gearbox after about two hours of drilling 3/4" holes in a 6" concrete slab. The replacement did the same, as did its replacement. That time, we returned the thing entirely and got a Bosch, and it worked great all the way up to 2" dry core bits for a few years until it got left in the back of the truck and submerged for about a week. Now it makes a funny noise, but works just fine. You probably rusted the bearings leaving it in the water awhile. Keep an eye on that. If they're working too hard they'll overheat, burn the grease inside the bearings off, and you'll fry your motor.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2013 06:14
|
|
|
Agreed, and if you catch it before the bearings spin and turn it into an unrecognizable, unrepairable mass of metal, it's likely that you can just order a handful of bearings off the internet by part number (almost everyone uses the same part numbers, or similar ones, for their bearings, just with different company prefixes, and those who don't usually have a crossref tool) and put it back together and it'll last another ten years.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2013 07:01
|
|
|
We have a very nice Kitchenaid dishwasher, stainless steel interior, etc. It started making a clicking or buzzing noise when filling with water, then the run would cancel and drain. Doing some research, it seemed the pump was probably faulty or a couple other things. I called a local store and had them order the cheap part for me. For $25, I replaced the chopper, but that didn't do anything. I'm still not entirely sure it's the pump that's broken, so I went and bought a decent $200 dishwasher from someone on Craigslist to use while I determine what's wrong with our kitchenaid. Meanwhile, I found a parts store online that will sell the entire motor assembly along with basically everything under the dishwasher for $176. I intend to use the CL dishwasher until I order that, fix it, and then sell the CL dishwasher again, maybe at a slight loss. Having never worked on nor installed a dishwasher prior to this past weekend, I can safely say it is the worst appliance for install. So much bending over and lying on your stomach and banging knuckles against everything. gently caress. And now I have to do it again after I get the replacement parts.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2013 15:29
|
|
|
johnny sack posted:I just bought this power generator. Will be here later this week. http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3515309
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2013 22:45
|
|
|
kastein posted:Agreed, and if you catch it before the bearings spin and turn it into an unrecognizable, unrepairable mass of metal, it's likely that you can just order a handful of bearings off the internet by part number (almost everyone uses the same part numbers, or similar ones, for their bearings, just with different company prefixes, and those who don't usually have a crossref tool) and put it back together and it'll last another ten years. Even better, get the number stamped into the seal side of the bearing (6000Z, for example) and go down to a bearing and drive house and get them even cheaper than at an authorized parts house.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2013 23:43
|
|
|
Mr. Yuk posted:Even better, get the number stamped into the seal side of the bearing (6000Z, for example) and go down to a bearing and drive house and get them even cheaper than at an authorized parts house. Yup. Reminds me of a project for work a year or so ago. I needed to design an az/el antenna rotator assembly for aiming 3 and 4 foot microwave dishes. Started out speccing the bearings on mcmaster, they ended up being Timken parts, races 3" OD (iirc) and cones 1.5" ID. It was costing around $35 per cone/race pair. The next time I was ordering replacement parts for my jeep I had a flash of brilliance when I recognized a part number format and remembered Timken makes auto bearings too. Guess what? The bearings I'd specced were extremely commonly used on various chevy passenger vehicles as front wheel bearings throughout most of the 60s, 70s, and into the 80s. They came to ~$12 per cone/race pair on RockAuto.com  leaving only the custom turned and welded bearing housing assembly to gently caress with the per-unit pricing.... on the next revision of the product design I ended up redesigning it to quite literally use mid 90s Jeep front wheel bearing assemblies, because they were $36 each and could be made to bolt right into the design with minor changes. If I did it again today, I'd likely use 90s/00s Ford Focus rear wheel bearing assemblies as they have more convenient flange patterns to mount to things and are cheaper, I believe. Those part numbers can be used to buy parts drat near anywhere, it's great. I've ended up finding bearings I needed for a project/repair for cheaper on RC/hobby/roller skating sites than anywhere else, especially the manufacturer/authorized repair parts source.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 01:13
|
|
|
I don't know if this is the right venue for this or not, so I can pull this and start a thread elsewhere if necessary. But... I work for an authorized repair facility. I used to be a repair technician on smaller power tools, but have worked here long enough that I can at least give a very general, snap diagnosis/advice on pretty much any ailing electrical tool. I'm pretty useless for help on anything gas powered, though. 
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 05:33
|
|
|
Sagebrush posted:My general rule for Harbor Freight is (1) nothing electric and (2) nothing that can kill you if it breaks. So no power tools, no jacks, no welders, nothing with hydraulics or high-pressure pneumatics or gasoline in it. However tire irons, zip ties, cheap workgloves, sockets, tape, all that kind of stuff is fine. That's a decent enough guideline, although the quality on HF stuff is so over the map it's hard to say. I bought a low-profile jack there years ago to get under a low car, and it's the best I ever bought. Their jack stands are fine, and most of my pneumatic stuff is HF and holds up good. On the other hand, I never buy hand tools there and one day I threw a co-worker's entire impact socket set in the trash because a 19mm socket fragmented and left a nasty little rip in my shoulder. I'd never ever gently caress with something like a grinder from there. Basically my rule is "nothing high-energy".
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 15:09
|
|
|
Add "nothing precision" AKA no digital electronics of significance or small precision sockets, etc... I forget if I mentioned this but I had a friend's harbor freight angle grinder fire a cooling fan blade out a vent slot AT ME. Never again. My Ryobi angle grinders have been great though, after 3-4 years of beating on them I just finally damaged one. The threaded hole for the guide handle on one stripped out since it's threaded directly into aluminum, I'm probably just going to tap it out for a steel threaded plug and loctite it in place.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 15:23
|
|
|
I'm looking for a new drill to replace my old dying Ryobi set. I looked back a few pages and someone mentioned Porter Cable as kind of the low end of the high end. I found this drill and impact driver set on Amazon for $110. It seems like a pretty good deal. Can anyone tell me why I shouldn't get it or what they might recommend for around $150? I am planning to build a shed this year and could definitly put an impact driver to use.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 16:32
|
|
|
Economic Sinkhole posted:I'm looking for a new drill to replace my old dying Ryobi set. I looked back a few pages and someone mentioned Porter Cable as kind of the low end of the high end. I found this drill and impact driver set on Amazon for $110. It seems like a pretty good deal. Can anyone tell me why I shouldn't get it or what they might recommend for around $150? I am planning to build a shed this year and could definitly put an impact driver to use. Yu might want to look at Lithium Ion stuff I don't know much about Porter Cable, but have seen them recommended a few places, they have a Lithium ion version at Lowes for 169: http://www.lowes.com/pd_374767-34252-PCCK410L2_0__?productId=3652610&Ntt=porter+cable&pl=1¤tURL=%3FNtt%3Dporter%2Bcable&facetInfo= they have another Lithium Ion set for 179 as well If you have the Ryobi One+ stuff you can upgrade to Lithium Ion and save a little money if they still run okay ntd fucked around with this message at 18:46 on Jul 2, 2013 |
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 18:43
|
|
|
Yeah, you really want to go lithium ion if you are willing to spend any non-trivial amount of money on power tools. The same tool will perform better (less internal resistance in the battery), run longer (higher capacity), and will even run harder with a depleted battery (lithiums have a very flat power curve, right up until they fall off completely). There's very little that you would be able to do with a full lithium that you wouldn't be able to do with a 75% discharged one, and that's not the case with NiCd or NiMH at all. Also, you can charge the batteries so much quicker. My Milwaukee compact cells will go from completely dead to fully charged in 15 minutes, so there's no worry about having to charge packs in advance of doing a job.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 18:52
|
|
|
Alright, Alright, you sold me on Lithium Ion. Any recommendations for Specific brands, or ones to avoid?
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 19:02
|
|
|
grover posted:It's archived now, but I posted a big generator thread last year that talks about this. The thread talks about having your house wired with a transfer switch so you can just plug the generator into the switch to power your house? I am 99% certain my city would require a permit/licensed electrician to do this, so I wouldn't do it myself either way. I don't have archives, and I'm not sure I want to pay the for the upgrade to it...Is there a lot of good information in this thread? Also I was able to return the generator I linked above, before it shipped to me. My local Costco had a Champion 9000W peak/7000W steady for $549. For less than I paid for the Champion 6800W max...I had to get it instead. johnny sack fucked around with this message at 19:29 on Jul 2, 2013 |
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 19:25
|
|
|
OK, good advice on the lithium-ion batteries. Now you've got me looking at this Milwaukee set for $199 at Home Depot: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwauke...cz#.UdMZ2m0wuVg
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 19:25
|
|
|
I bought these and LOVE them. The impact driver alone is worth that price. I've got a ton if use out of them, and with a lifetime warranty on all parts and batteries you cant go wrong. http://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-18-Volt-X4-Hyper-Lithium-Ion-Drill-Driver-and-Impact-Driver-Combo-Kit-2-Tool-R9600/203266851#.UdMbkVc3g28
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 19:28
|
|
|
mds2 posted:I bought these and LOVE them. The impact driver alone is worth that price. I've got a ton if use out of them, and with a lifetime warranty on all parts and batteries you cant go wrong. I'm 99% certain that this was on sale for like $149 or something last week  Wish I'd bought it then.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 19:30
|
|
|
I've got a DeWalt 20V drill/driver set that I've been extremely happy with. I'm reasonably sure this is the one I've got, though mine came with a hard case instead of the soft one.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 19:42
|
|
|
Does anyone have an impact driver bit set they can recommend? I don't need too much variety, a couple of phillips sizes, a few sockets, basic stuff. A few different lengths would be great, but really I'm just interested in something that is good quality. If there is a brand or product line you can recommend I'm happy to assemble the pieces I need, I don't need a prepackaged kit. Basically, my wife destroyed 4 or 5 of my phillips bits in about 15 minutes this weekend while using my impact driver  (I destroyed 1 non impact rated bit, but that was after my last impact rated bit was destroyed)
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 20:11
|
|
|
Johnny Aztec posted:Alright, Alright, you sold me on Lithium Ion. Any recommendations for Specific brands, or ones to avoid? Can't go wrong with DeWalt 18 volt. If you're looking to save a few bucks, there's a huge reconditioned market for them. I don't know about the 20 volt stuff, it seems to me like a cynical attempt to sell more tools. GD_American fucked around with this message at 20:16 on Jul 2, 2013 |
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 20:13
|
|
|
I have that Milwaukee lithium set and have put it through hell and back andthey still work flawlessly. I recommend the Milwaukee set.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 20:14
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 28, 2024 06:40 |
|
|
ntd posted:Does anyone have an impact driver bit set they can recommend? I don't need too much variety, a couple of phillips sizes, a few sockets, basic stuff. A few different lengths would be great, but really I'm just interested in something that is good quality. If there is a brand or product line you can recommend I'm happy to assemble the pieces I need, I don't need a prepackaged kit. What are you trying to remove that the screws are that stuck? I would say gently caress it and drill out the screw instead.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2013 20:14
|
|