HF is pretty much a hit or miss outfit. On the one hand, I bought a
$30 (on sale for $10) dado blade that I'm very happy with. I've been
using it (hobby use levels) for over a year and it still cuts clean.

On the other, I bought a set of $4 allen wrenches that stripped off in
the first bolt I tried them in and I spend more time fixing the 7x10
lathe than working with it.

One set of 3/4" pipe clamps has been great, but the other set I bought
(since the first set was good) was the pits. The $30 (on sale for $15)
digital caliper has also been a good buy.

Save your money and take your chances I guess.

On Sun, 16 Jan 2005 07:33:33 GMT, Lobby Dosser
wrote:

"tablesawnut" wrote:

I am an avid woodworker and It is a good rule of thumb you get what you
pay for when you buy power tools. HF power tools are great for a one
time project after that the tool will probably just colect dust in a
garage.

The argument of buying a cheap tool to learn with I find very strange.
Why not buy a good tool that is easy to use. I makes learning much
easier and fun.



The two exceptions to this are the 4" angle grinder which can sometimes be
found for as low as $12, and the 7x10" machinist's lathe which has sold for
as little as $250 in the past and gets very good reviews from folks who
seem to know what they are talking about. My angle grinder takes a licking
and keeps on ticking. If it ever stops, it goes in the trash with few
regrets.

LD