Found a general-merchandise site with some tools that look like a pretty good
deal, but I don't recognize the brands -- and some of the brands aren't mentioned
at all. I would be interested to know if any of you woodworkers might recognize
any of these, and share your opinions...

1) 2 gal. air compressor. No brand name given. $52 http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2826
Is 2 gal/4cfm enough for anything useful?

2) Air Brad Nailer by American Tool Group. $26. Don't recognize "American
Tool Group".
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2823
Also, they had an air hose for $8 (good price or not?)

3) Benchtop drill press. No brand name given. $40
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=52&3=1900
I could definitely use a drill press. I hestitate to plunk down $40 for something
from an unknown manufacturer that might be junk, but I'm still tempted, because
the local borg's similar-sized DP is about twice the price.

That's about it for their tool selection. They had some hand tools (screwdriver
sets, drill bits) pretty cheap, but I don't need any cheap screwdrivers just
now, and I have seen forstner bits cheaper elsewhere. The site is mainly
oriented towards toys, jewelry, and knives.

--
Howard

Sure sounds like harborfreight.com. All these are chinese made products and
not a good quality. But, if it is something you do not intend to use every
day, then they should be ok. At these prices, the tools are pretty much
disposable. I personally have the brad nailer. I use it rarely, but when I
do, it works as advertised.

You can't buy a good dinner for $40 and you were gonna buy
a drill press for that amount ???


Howard wrote:


3) Benchtop drill press. No brand name given. $40
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=52&3=1900
I could definitely use a drill press. I hestitate to plunk down $40 for something
from an unknown manufacturer that might be junk, but I'm still tempted, because
the local borg's similar-sized DP is about twice the price.

Pat Barber writes:


You can't buy a good dinner for $40

Man, I am GLAD I don't live where you do!

Charlie Self

"Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfils the same
function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of
things." Sir Winston Churchill

"PPH" wrote in message ...
Sure sounds like harborfreight.com. All these are chinese made products and
not a good quality. But, if it is something you do not intend to use every
day, then they should be ok. At these prices, the tools are pretty much
disposable. I personally have the brad nailer. I use it rarely, but when I
do, it works as advertised.

I don't think that the frequency of use is a measure of a tools worth.
If you only use it twice a year and it didn't work either time it
wasn't a bargin at any price.

"Pat Barber" wrote in message
...
You can't buy a good dinner for $40 and you were gonna buy
a drill press for that amount ???


Aren't you being a bit hasty? After all, the money saved can go toward
getting the BEST personal injury attorney available. OK, scratch that as I
guess you have to have SOMEBODY to sue, not some anonymous company in some
anonymous country somewhere in the world.

Follow-up: my take on tools is if they are ashamed to put their name and
address on it, I never buy it.

"George" wrote in message
...

"Pat Barber" wrote in message
...
You can't buy a good dinner for $40 and you were gonna buy
a drill press for that amount ???


Aren't you being a bit hasty? After all, the money saved can go toward
getting the BEST personal injury attorney available. OK, scratch that as
I
guess you have to have SOMEBODY to sue, not some anonymous company in some
anonymous country somewhere in the world.

I have pretty much stopped buying cheap tools. If you are lucky they fail
the first time you use them, so you can still take them back, but even that
is a hassle.

There are exceptions; I bought some nice pipe wrenches for $8.

So, look at the tool carefully. If it seems okay, then maybe take a risk.
If in doubt (or buying sight unseen) let it go.

No free lunches anymore....... You get exactly what you pay for and
sometimes not even that!!
"Howard" wrote in message
...

Found a general-merchandise site with some tools that look like a pretty
good
deal, but I don't recognize the brands -- and some of the brands aren't
mentioned
at all. I would be interested to know if any of you woodworkers might
recognize
any of these, and share your opinions...

1) 2 gal. air compressor. No brand name given. $52
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2826
Is 2 gal/4cfm enough for anything useful?

2) Air Brad Nailer by American Tool Group. $26. Don't recognize "American
Tool Group".
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2823
Also, they had an air hose for $8 (good price or not?)

3) Benchtop drill press. No brand name given. $40
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=52&3=1900
I could definitely use a drill press. I hestitate to plunk down $40 for
something
from an unknown manufacturer that might be junk, but I'm still tempted,
because
the local borg's similar-sized DP is about twice the price.

That's about it for their tool selection. They had some hand tools
(screwdriver
sets, drill bits) pretty cheap, but I don't need any cheap screwdrivers
just
now, and I have seen forstner bits cheaper elsewhere. The site is mainly
oriented towards toys, jewelry, and knives.

--
Howard

Pat Barber wrote:

You can't buy a good dinner for $40 and you were gonna buy
a drill press for that amount ???

Howard wrote:

3) Benchtop drill press. No brand name given. $40
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=52&3=1900
I could definitely use a drill press. I hestitate to plunk down $40 for something
from an unknown manufacturer that might be junk, but I'm still tempted, because
the local borg's similar-sized DP is about twice the price.

Damn, where do you live? I can buy 4 good dinners for $40.
Never paid $40 for a dinner in my life and don't plan to.
And for $40 I can make a great dinner for about 10 people.

As far as the drill press I plunked down $40 for the
benchtop from HF and am very happy. Never had a drill press
and found out what I had been missing. Not lots of power
but smooth.

larry wrote:

"PPH" wrote in message ...
Sure sounds like harborfreight.com. All these are chinese made products and
not a good quality. But, if it is something you do not intend to use every
day, then they should be ok. At these prices, the tools are pretty much
disposable. I personally have the brad nailer. I use it rarely, but when I
do, it works as advertised.

I don't think that the frequency of use is a measure of a tools worth.
If you only use it twice a year and it didn't work either time it
wasn't a bargin at any price.

And you live in what world? I suggest that you drive one
family car 400 miles every day and the other one 10 miles a
day 4 days a week and see which one fails first.

Pat Barber wrote:

You can't buy a good dinner for $40 and you were gonna buy
a drill press for that amount ???

You can't? I can buy a good dinner for four for $20. Of course my
standards aren't so high.

--
Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan
Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/5407/

Good luck with getting an answer. You're going to get answers in two basic
categories. One will be those that say buy the best available ("pay once",
"you get what you pay for", etc). The others will say the cheap tool is
fine for occasional use ("I've got a cheap one and for the one time a year I
use it it works fine", etc).

I think it depends on how often you'll use a tool and how much money for
tools you have. Buying two cheap tools that work "ok" for you might be
better than one tool that works fantastic. I do think you generally get
what you pay for. The question is, and only you can answer it, is how good
of a tool do you need?

For those that say buy the best...I propose that you DO NOT buy the best
available 100% of the time. Do you have the best car, the best
washer/dryer, the best house, the best set of chisels, the best saw blade,
the best suit, eat at the best restaurant, etc?. I doubt anyone can say
they have the best of everything they own, but they're quick to tell YOU to
spend your money on the best available.

Just my opinion, but everyone else is welcome to use it...
--
Larry C in Auburn, WA

"Howard" wrote in message
...

Found a general-merchandise site with some tools that look like a pretty
good
deal, but I don't recognize the brands -- and some of the brands aren't
mentioned
at all. I would be interested to know if any of you woodworkers might
recognize
any of these, and share your opinions...

1) 2 gal. air compressor. No brand name given. $52
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2826
Is 2 gal/4cfm enough for anything useful?

2) Air Brad Nailer by American Tool Group. $26. Don't recognize "American
Tool Group".
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2823
Also, they had an air hose for $8 (good price or not?)

3) Benchtop drill press. No brand name given. $40
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=52&3=1900
I could definitely use a drill press. I hestitate to plunk down $40 for
something
from an unknown manufacturer that might be junk, but I'm still tempted,
because
the local borg's similar-sized DP is about twice the price.

That's about it for their tool selection. They had some hand tools
(screwdriver
sets, drill bits) pretty cheap, but I don't need any cheap screwdrivers
just
now, and I have seen forstner bits cheaper elsewhere. The site is mainly
oriented towards toys, jewelry, and knives.

--
Howard

"Larry C in Auburn, WA" wrote in message
news:n1Asb.186047$e01.670297@attbi_s02...
Good luck with getting an answer. You're going to get answers in two
basic
categories. One will be those that say buy the best available ("pay
once",
"you get what you pay for", etc). The others will say the cheap tool is
fine for occasional use ("I've got a cheap one and for the one time a year
I
use it it works fine", etc).

A cheap tool is fine for occasional use, but a cheap tool is a Ryobi. The
stuff he is talking about is crap; its probably not good for anything.

Do you have the best car,
No but my truck is pretty good.

the best washer/dryer No but I really don't care thats SWMBO's department.

the best house. Not yet, but when I win the lottery watch out

best set of chisels, maybe.

the best saw blade, As far as I can tell, yes.

the best suit. Don't ware em don't own one

eat at the best restaurant. does Buger King count?

As far as the quality of the tool you buy I don't think it's the frequency of
use but what your going to use it for.

Maybe you only use it a few times a year but if what your doing is critical you
should have the best you can afford.
Bob making sawdust in Salem Or.

Wade Lippman wrote:

So, look at the tool carefully. If it seems okay, then maybe take a
risk. If in doubt (or buying sight unseen) let it go.

I bought some HF bar clamps over the internet, half expecting to chuck them
in the trash. They're actually very acceptable for the price. I intend to
get some more.

-- Mark

Define "afford". I've never really understood it when someone says "buy the
best you can afford". Does that mean save all your extra money for 6 months
then buy it? Does it mean spend whatever cash you have in your pocket at
that moment in time? Does it mean cash out the equity in your house? Does
it mean go without lunch for a week and use that extra money? In other
words, it all comes down to individual priorities. How much money a person
is willing to spend while accepting that in most cases the more you spend
the better quality you'll get. None of us can answer that question for
others.

Is a $50 drill press as good as a $500 drill press? I highly doubt it.
Does everyone that needs a drill press need a $500 drill press? I highly
doubt it. Is there anyone that could benefit from a $50 drill press rather
than going without? I'm sure there are.

Why didn't you buy the best truck available? I bet you could "afford" it,
although you might have had to give up something else that you also wanted.
So, you made the choice to settle for less than the best so you could spend
the rest of your money on other things; like going out to a nice dinner at
Burger King

These threads crack me up how people can decide what tool someone else needs
and how much money the other person should spend as well. Of course it's
somewhat humorous to see people ask questions like "What tool should I buy?"
or "is this brand any good?". There isn't one answer that fits everyone.
--
Larry C in Auburn, WA

"RPRESHONG" wrote in message
...
Do you have the best car,
No but my truck is pretty good.

the best washer/dryer No but I really don't care thats SWMBO's
department.

the best house. Not yet, but when I win the lottery watch out

best set of chisels, maybe.

the best saw blade, As far as I can tell, yes.

the best suit. Don't ware em don't own one

eat at the best restaurant. does Buger King count?

As far as the quality of the tool you buy I don't think it's the frequency
of
use but what your going to use it for.

Maybe you only use it a few times a year but if what your doing is
critical you
should have the best you can afford.
Bob making sawdust in Salem Or.

George wrote:
Follow-up: my take on tools is if they are ashamed to put their name and
address on it, I never buy it.


Point well taken.


--

Mark

N.E. Ohio


Never argue with a fool, a bystander can't tell you apart. (S. Clemens,
A.K.A. Mark Twain)

When in doubt hit the throttle. It may not help but it sure ends the
suspense. (Gaz, r.moto)

"Larry C in Auburn, WA" wrote:

Define "afford". I've never really understood it when someone says "buy the
best you can afford". Does that mean save all your extra money for 6 months
then buy it? Does it mean spend whatever cash you have in your pocket at
that moment in time? Does it mean cash out the equity in your house? Does
it mean go without lunch for a week and use that extra money?

snip

Yes. ;-)
--
Jack Novak
Buffalo, NY - USA
(Remove "SPAM" from email address to reply)

Larry C in Auburn, WA wrote:

Is a $50 drill press as good as a $500 drill press? I highly doubt
it. Does everyone that needs a drill press need a $500 drill press?
I highly doubt it. Is there anyone that could benefit from a $50
drill press rather than going without? I'm sure there are.

Consider this as well: Experts can often work around the limitations of a
tool; Newbies don't have a clue.

Example: When I started making serious sawdust I had a low-end Craftsman
1/4" router. As I look at some of the things I built with it, I can see
inaccuracies. Some (most! g) are due to newbie mistakes, but some are due
to the fact the mating between the router base and motor is imprecise: when
you change the depth, the bit is unlikely to be at exactly the same angle as
the previous cut. So a multipass cut for a newbie is almost guaranteed to
be sloppy!

I recently used the Craftsman to make a 19" diameter circle. I took care to
make sure the second pass bit angle was the same as the first. (Not that
I'm an expert, but I have learned that much. g)

In a moment of weakness I bought a Craftsman 9" bench drill press on sale.
With a 1/4" drill bit chucked, when you pull the handle and hit the depth
stop, the end of the drill bit moves a full approx 1/8" to the back left!
This happens at all depth settings. The DP was constructed with an
excessive amout of play! Maybe an expert could use it for making accurate
mortises; I doubt if a newbie could.

My first table was was a Delta benchtop saw. I eventually outgrew it and
got a Grizzly contractor saw. Some of the first cuts I made with the Griz
were crosscutting thin strips off the end of a 2x4". I cut a bunch that
were no more than 1/32" thick. I put several of them in an envelope and
mailed them to my folks with this explaination: "This is what my new
tablesaw can do. (The pieces were whole when I put them in the letter.) My
old saw had too much vibration. It couldn't make these. Someday, if I get
good enough, I'll buy a saw that can make cutoffs half as thick as these."

-------------------

If I make a sloppy dado now, it's my fault. The DW 621 in my router table
is very accurate in its range of motion. If a table saw cut is inaccurate,
it's my fault, not the Griz contractor saw with the Shop Fox fence. Table
saws and routers need to be of a certain minimum quality.

-- Mark

No free lunches anymore....... You get exactly what you pay for and
sometimes not even that!!


Or, stated another way: You don't always get what you pay for, but you
do always pay for what you get.



"Mike" wrote in message news:7Izsb.185853$e01.668811@attbi_s02...
No free lunches anymore....... You get exactly what you pay for and
sometimes not even that!!
"Howard" wrote in message
...

Found a general-merchandise site with some tools that look like a pretty
good
deal, but I don't recognize the brands -- and some of the brands aren't
mentioned
at all. I would be interested to know if any of you woodworkers might
recognize
any of these, and share your opinions...

1) 2 gal. air compressor. No brand name given. $52
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2826
Is 2 gal/4cfm enough for anything useful?

2) Air Brad Nailer by American Tool Group. $26. Don't recognize "American
Tool Group".
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2823
Also, they had an air hose for $8 (good price or not?)

3) Benchtop drill press. No brand name given. $40
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=52&3=1900
I could definitely use a drill press. I hestitate to plunk down $40 for
something
from an unknown manufacturer that might be junk, but I'm still tempted,
because
the local borg's similar-sized DP is about twice the price.

That's about it for their tool selection. They had some hand tools
(screwdriver
sets, drill bits) pretty cheap, but I don't need any cheap screwdrivers
just
now, and I have seen forstner bits cheaper elsewhere. The site is mainly
oriented towards toys, jewelry, and knives.

--
Howard

Heck, I can get a good dinner with, well, what does a box of 20 gauge run these
days?

Chew, spit, plink. Chew, spit, plink.

GTO(John)

You can't? I can buy a good dinner for four for $20. Of course my
standards aren't so high.

--
Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan
Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/5407/

Silvan wrote:

You can't? I can buy a good dinner for four for $20. Of course my
standards aren't so high.

Every time I go through Mac and Dee's Supper Club (McDonald's g) the
"Dollar Menu" comes into play. g

-- Mark

Careful Mark. If the food is TOO cheap, you can't even depend on it being
AMERICAN road kill. g

"Mark Jerde" wrote in message
news
Silvan wrote:

You can't? I can buy a good dinner for four for $20. Of course my
standards aren't so high.

Every time I go through Mac and Dee's Supper Club (McDonald's g) the
"Dollar Menu" comes into play. g

-- Mark

I'd temper your advice a little with "consider if a poorly made item can
injure you"...with that in mind, I'd avoid any power machinery that I didn't
trust (look for UL labels, etc) and cutters, especially brazed ones like
carbide tipped circular saw blades.

If your clamps break and you're wearing your safety glasses (thanks Norm),
you'll most likely be OK.

"Larry C in Auburn, WA" wrote in message
news:n1Asb.186047$e01.670297@attbi_s02...
Good luck with getting an answer. You're going to get answers in two
basic
categories. One will be those that say buy the best available ("pay
once",
"you get what you pay for", etc). The others will say the cheap tool is
fine for occasional use ("I've got a cheap one and for the one time a year
I
use it it works fine", etc).

I think it depends on how often you'll use a tool and how much money for
tools you have. Buying two cheap tools that work "ok" for you might be
better than one tool that works fantastic. I do think you generally get
what you pay for. The question is, and only you can answer it, is how
good
of a tool do you need?

For those that say buy the best...I propose that you DO NOT buy the best
available 100% of the time. Do you have the best car, the best
washer/dryer, the best house, the best set of chisels, the best saw blade,
the best suit, eat at the best restaurant, etc?. I doubt anyone can say
they have the best of everything they own, but they're quick to tell YOU
to
spend your money on the best available.

Just my opinion, but everyone else is welcome to use it...
--
Larry C in Auburn, WA

"Howard" wrote in message
...

Found a general-merchandise site with some tools that look like a pretty
good
deal, but I don't recognize the brands -- and some of the brands aren't
mentioned
at all. I would be interested to know if any of you woodworkers might
recognize
any of these, and share your opinions...

1) 2 gal. air compressor. No brand name given. $52
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2826
Is 2 gal/4cfm enough for anything useful?

2) Air Brad Nailer by American Tool Group. $26. Don't recognize
"American
Tool Group".
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2823
Also, they had an air hose for $8 (good price or not?)

3) Benchtop drill press. No brand name given. $40
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=52&3=1900
I could definitely use a drill press. I hestitate to plunk down $40 for
something
from an unknown manufacturer that might be junk, but I'm still tempted,
because
the local borg's similar-sized DP is about twice the price.

That's about it for their tool selection. They had some hand tools
(screwdriver
sets, drill bits) pretty cheap, but I don't need any cheap screwdrivers
just
now, and I have seen forstner bits cheaper elsewhere. The site is
mainly
oriented towards toys, jewelry, and knives.

--
Howard

Mark Jerde wrote:

You can't? I can buy a good dinner for four for $20. Of course my
standards aren't so high.

Every time I go through Mac and Dee's Supper Club (McDonald's g) the
"Dollar Menu" comes into play. g

We don't eat there anymore because they switched to some funky oil that
makes the chicken nuggets taste awful, but yes, our idea of fine dining is
Chick-fil-A or Fazoli's, and the dollar menu *always* comes into play.
Lately we've been getting a lot of those Little Caesar's $5 pizzas too.
Those are great because I can feed the whole family an enjoyable dinner for
$5.48 and still have money left over to do it again before having to resort
to cooking.

(Before anybody starts crawling up my ass about poisoning my kids, they're
both perfectly fit and trim, get plenty of exercise, and voluntarily eat
all sorts of veggie stuff that you couldn't get me to touch with a 10'
pole. Pizza once or twice a week isn't going to ruin them, and they love
it. Pizza is the only thing I can feed everyone that will disappear down
human, rather than canine stomachs in its entirety.)

--
Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan
Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/5407/

"Silvan" wrote in message
(Before anybody starts crawling up my ass about poisoning my kids, they're
both perfectly fit and trim, get plenty of exercise, and voluntarily eat
all sorts of veggie stuff that you couldn't get me to touch with a 10'
pole. Pizza once or twice a week isn't going to ruin them, and they love
it. Pizza is the only thing I can feed everyone that will disappear down
human, rather than canine stomachs in its entirety.)

Nothing wrong with baked dough, tomato sauce, cheese, and maybe some meat.
It will be dinner at my house tonight and my kids are grown and gone. .
Ed

Silvan wrote:
Mark Jerde wrote:

You can't? I can buy a good dinner for four for $20. Of course my
standards aren't so high.

One more try... I looked a little closer at the site, and apparently, the
manufacturer is "MTG". I don't recognize MTG -- does anybody else here recognize
that name?

Any rate, for $40, I think I'm just going to chance it and buy the thing.
I guess I could let y'all know how it turns out...

BTW, just how do you go about evaluating a drill press, anyway? Do I need
to get a runout guage, or what? I'm guessing that for my needs, almost any
drill press will beat the funky attachment I got to mount on my hand drill
(forgot what it's called, but it has about a 6" circular base and two rails,
with another chuck mounted on a cross piece... it's supposed to steady your
drill to make it easier to drill at a precise 90-degree angle, and you can
push the rails down to do things like straddle a pipe. Works ok, but requires
more than two hands sometimes...)

--
Howard

The manufacturer is "MTG", but I never heard of them...
--
Howard


Mark wrote:


George wrote:
Follow-up: my take on tools is if they are ashamed to put their name and
address on it, I never buy it.


Point well taken.


--

Mark

N.E. Ohio


Never argue with a fool, a bystander can't tell you apart. (S. Clemens,

A.K.A. Mark Twain)

When in doubt hit the throttle. It may not help but it sure ends the
suspense. (Gaz, r.moto)

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:

Nothing wrong with baked dough, tomato sauce, cheese, and maybe some meat.
It will be dinner at my house tonight and my kids are grown and gone. .

Yeah, all four food groups. The perfect food, except for the 12.5 ounces of
grease dripping off every slice.

--
Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan
Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/5407/

"Howard" wrote in message ...
Found a general-merchandise site with some tools that look like a pretty good
deal, but I don't recognize the brands -- and some of the brands aren't mentioned
at all. I would be interested to know if any of you woodworkers might recognize
any of these, and share your opinions...

1) 2 gal. air compressor. No brand name given. $52 http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2826
Is 2 gal/4cfm enough for anything useful?

2) Air Brad Nailer by American Tool Group. $26. Don't recognize "American
Tool Group".
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=53&3=2823
Also, they had an air hose for $8 (good price or not?)

3) Benchtop drill press. No brand name given. $40
http://www.suzyqshop.com/product.asp?0=51&1=52&3=1900
I could definitely use a drill press. I hestitate to plunk down $40 for something
from an unknown manufacturer that might be junk, but I'm still tempted, because
the local borg's similar-sized DP is about twice the price.

That's about it for their tool selection. They had some hand tools (screwdriver
sets, drill bits) pretty cheap, but I don't need any cheap screwdrivers just
now, and I have seen forstner bits cheaper elsewhere. The site is mainly
oriented towards toys, jewelry, and knives.



I had to set up a "second workshop" at my daughter's home. Tools were
to get me by so I had something on my occasional visits. I used HF a
lot. I leared some lessons. Here are some in case of interest:
I bought some pipe clamps without a name. They broke on the first
use. I bought some more from them on sale but had the Pittsburgh name
and lifetime guarantee. Great. Still using 'em. About the same
price because these were on sale.
I then bought some bar clamps with red handles and no name. Slipped.
Pieces of crap. I bought some more grey ones with the pittsburgh
name, on sale, and were great. Still use them a lot.
I bought, with great trepidation, an 18 volt drill. Curiously, it
still works fine for me when I'm there. Also a steel cutting chop saw
and expected the worst. Have worked it heavily on a special project
calling for a lot of 3/4" pieces of pipe. Still going strong.
I have bought the "cheapo" brad nailer (18 gauge)and use dheavily.
Going great. Also the roofing nailer (huge trepidation) to get the
shed and roof repairs done. Occasional misfire but OK. gets it
done. Wouldn't want to make my living with it though!
I bought a 2 HP, 4 gal pancake compressor for $90 on sale. Used very
heavily for blowing dust, nailing, painting etc. Going great still.
Noisy little sod but solid and reliable.
Got a small bench drill press. A bit underpowered but accurate and
handles what I need in every other way.
No, I wouldn't buy some of this for my shop but it all works great for
the 9 weeks or so I spend up there. I remodel their house and help
them build two businesses. It's all heavily used.
Bottom line:
Avoid hand tools/clamps etc without the Pittsburgh name.
Think of electric items as "adequate" in performance but great value.
Not to last a lifetime or undergo very heavy use.
Brad nailers are OK.
etc. etc.
As usual, "it depends".
HF helped me get a lot done in "worshop north" (I live in South) at a
moderate cost. It isn't the best, but adequate.
Don't write them out of the plan if you are thinking "starter set" or
"light use". Just choose carefully and for bar clamps etc. the sales
are great. Get on their catalog list and start reading and
"stalking". You'll get the picture after a while.
Sorry for long reply. Hope it helps.
Paul

"Mark Jerde" wrote in
:

Wade Lippman wrote:

So, look at the tool carefully. If it seems okay, then maybe take a
risk. If in doubt (or buying sight unseen) let it go.

I bought some HF bar clamps over the internet, half expecting to chuck
them in the trash. They're actually very acceptable for the price. I
intend to get some more.

-- Mark



Keep buying those cheap tools. But someday you're going to want a high-
quality, U.S. made clamp, and guess what? Jorgensen will be out of
business because they can't get away with paying $0.50/hour for labor with
no environmental or OSHA protections!


--
Hitch
"If I knew what I was doing, I wouldn't be here"

Hitch wrote:





Keep buying those cheap tools. But someday you're going to want a high-
quality, U.S. made clamp, and guess what? Jorgensen will be out of
business because they can't get away with paying $0.50/hour for labor with
no environmental or OSHA protections!


For some of us our basic tooling goes back to pre - import.

I inherited a selection of clamps, saws and tools collected when if it
wasn't made in the USA it wasn't worth having.

It's easy for me to buy American when I'm expanding capabilities or
replacing old equipment.

I wouldn't want to start over.



--

Mark

N.E. Ohio


Never argue with a fool, a bystander can't tell you apart. (S. Clemens,
A.K.A. Mark Twain)

When in doubt hit the throttle. It may not help but it sure ends the
suspense. (Gaz, r.moto)