Chinese Tools

[SteveM]

Ok, who has not bought anything from Harbor Freight. I dont think it goes
without saying that most everyone considers their stuff inexpensive if not
dispoasble for the most part. A few of the items now and again however do
display some note of decency for the price and utility.

When shopping there the other day I pondered a question to myself. What
tools do the Chinese use , who makes them and where do they get them when it
comes to higher quality choices for their hand and power tools. Do they use
things imported from Europe and the US or do they have some domestic better
quality producers or do they use the same old things that we buy at Harbor
Freight. ( Thinking contractors, factories, mechanics, etc )

Anyone have any idea ??

Steve

 

[meaneyedcatz]

My guess would be that the professionals use quality tools like Makita, Dewalt, etc. Why not? Professionals want heavy duty quality no matter where they are.

I normally buy name brand tools for automotive and woodworking. But I never buy the most expensive or the cheapest, but a quality tool.

On the other hand if I need a tool that I know I will use once or twice a year I buy the salt water salvage at Harbor Frt.

FYI......when the guys in China who buy the cheap stuff read the label on the tool it says "made around the corner".

 

[gm272gs]

I used to work in a golf shop a long time ago. We would get rich businessmen from Japan in there all the time, and they would NOT buy anything Japanese. The would only buy stuff made in the U.S.A.

You'd think they were union, or something.

 

[Rastoff]

Home Depot opened a store in China. The store was not doing well and they couldn't figure out why so, they interviewed several people outside the store who just walked by without going in. When asked why he didn't go in, one Chinese gentleman said, "Why would I go there? All they have is Chinese cr@p!"

 

[ChuckS1]

I buy a lot of stuff at HF, mostly because it's inexpensive. Expendable stuff, like sandpaper, foam paintbrushes, junk like that, are cheaper there than at Lowe's. Since I don't depend on my tools for my living, I don't mind cheap screwdrivers and pliers. Besides, at the rate the wife and kids "move" my hand tools around, if they get lost or left outside, I don't get upset too much.

But on the other hand, why should I pay more for a US brand name that gets made in China simply because it has "Craftsman" stamped on it? If the American companies really want my business, they'd make and sell the tools at the same price HF does. But we all know the unions won't let that happen.

 

[OFT II]

I've been to China several times. The stuff that they have is mostly cheap junk. A Chinese engineer who was in Houston looking at some oilfield equipment wanted to go shopping so I took him to Walmart. He said that the stuff there, even though made in China, was of a higher quality than what he could get in Beijing. When we sold them a major piece of equipment we included a large took kit to take care of problems. It was mostly because SAE tool are hard to find there but also because of the quality of local hardware.

A few months ago I saw where Harbor Freight had socket sets on special if you had a coupon for $3.99 each. I bought three sets, one for the boat, one for the camper and one to keep in my truck toolbox. I consider them disposable kind of like a styrofoam coffee cup.

 

[Comrad]

I hate cheap stuff but the problem is, that's all that is available these days. How sad for us that **** has become standard and acceptable.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

A while back I needed a pipe wrench to work on some sprinklers at a house I was overhauling. I have a pair of big adjustable pliers for my other wrench. Since I don't plan to turn that much pipe, I bought a Harbor Chinese pipe wrench. I really like US tools and have a bunch including some passed down from my Dad.

 

[Chromedhearts]

The company I work for has a facility in China. Ningbo. Been there a few times. There tradesmen were using stone age tools. Absolute junk.
And no saftey concerns at all. My boss said if you see some one die, just walk away and don't be around when they cart off the body. They are paying people some thing like 5 dollars a day for skilled work.

 

[Old Corp]

I've bought some of the HF stuff. Especially when I know it will be abused.
Prime example was a chore where I was digging several postholes for putting up a split rail fence. Kept running into tree roots that I could not cut with shovel or posthole diggers. Solution - a HF reciprocating saw and several sacrificial sawzall blades. Reach waaaay down in the hole,loose dirt and all, cut root, problem solved, several times. Out maybe $24.00 total.
Is it a 'good' saw? Probably not. Would I want a 'good' saw to do that with? No.

 

[Bkreutz]

I bought a HF cement mixer that I cut up and modified into a tumbler for cleaning brass. If it burns out I'll just get another without attempting to fix it.

 

[Alk8944]

At Harbor Freight you get what you pay for. As a matter of fact, when you compare high quality American products such as Snap-On and Cornwall you might actually be getting more than you pay for. And speaking of many "American Made" brands that you still pay good money for, guess where a lot of them are made, CHINA! You have to watch closely.

 

[therevjay]

If you use tools once in a while the "Made in China" stuff from Harbor Freight will work just fine. If you plan on using them on a daily basis come on, you know better. Don't whine when they break.

 

[wheelgun28]

I have been in Chinese factories. I found lots of the same crumby tools the they sell in Horrible Freight. They will buy some decent tools to mostly European brand stuff, Bosch, AEG, etc.

I did find some decent Chinese made measuring tools, they dont import them to the US.

Somethings are funny over there, factory air piping all welded stainless steel. The rubber air hose soft as butter, swells up and pops in short order.

We had a very hard time to buying SAE allen wrenches. When we did the sets did not include a common size, just skips over it.

We made a joke and said that most of the Chinese tools are made out of lead.

 

[GaryS]

I follow the general rule of never buying anything with moving parts at Harbor Freight.

My work doesn't depend on my tools, but I hate the aggravation of having a tool break when I'm working on something. It just adds to the time and often the expense of doing the job. I have a mix of mostly Snap On and Craftsman tools. Most of the Snap On stuff I inherited in the mid 1980s when my uncle died. They weren't new then, but looked like it. As they do now. The Craftsman tools I've mostly bought myself. They aren't as good as the Snap On stuff, but I don't need that level of quality. They also come with a life time warranty.

A locksmith that I used to do a lot of business with had this sign over his counter,

“The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten”

That's attributed to Ben Franklin and I think it's as true now as it was then.

 

[Old TexMex]

I bought my hydraulic motorcycle lift there, and it was inexpensive and works fine. But I did check the welds. Got a six yr old angle grinder, use occasional, still working.

 

[Texas Star]

I'd never heard of Harbor Freight, but I can tell you that I'm plenty ticked off that a US company bought the Schrade Cutlery name when the company folded and sells Chinese- made copies of Schrade knives. I guess we now think of Uncle Henry as Uncle Hong. I'm not selling my REAL Schrades.

On the other hand, I have a Henckels kitchen knife in their Henckels International range. They claim to use German steel and the workmanship looks as if it'd been made in Germany, in Solingen. It's done well so far. Maybe Henckels makes sure they perform at a Solingen level. I also have a kitchen shears/scissor that I think is made in China, for Wusthof. It has a tiny mark that I suspect reads "China", although it's too faint to read, even with a magnifying glass. But the shears sure don't say "Solingen, Germany" on them, as would a knife made in Solingen. (I also have a Wusthof knife that is Solingen-made.) The shears were a premium for buying a certain amount of groceries from a gourmet grocer here a couple of years ago. The shears are quite nice. They look to be typical of Wusthof's legendary quality. I also have some Chinese-made copies of Fiskars scissors. They LOOK as good as the Finnish-made originals and so far, work fine. And one scissor is marked Made in Japan. The stamp is relatively crude, but the scissor is almost as precisely fitted as the more expensive Finnish one. They ARE NOT marketed by Fiskars/Gerber.

If any of you has a Chinese - made Schrade, how does it compare with the former US-made ones?

 

[RonJ]

I did find some decent Chinese made measuring tools, they dont import them to the US.

I used a Chinese made plastic yard stick to make measurements for 6 glass shelves. Picked up the shelves and they were all 1/8 inch too long. I took them back and the glass cutter showed me that they were exactly right. I checked and the Chinese yard stick was definitely off! To this day I wonder how they could do that. Measurements are VERY important.
The glass cutter was gracious enough to re-cut the glass gratis.

 

[redlevel]

Then there are Norinco 1911s. Supposedly made of Chinese railroad steel, or so I have read. I also understand that some US customizers won't work on them because the steel is so tough and dulls their tools. Have also heard that one or two customizers prefer them for the same reason. You can bet that they are all forged steel. I have owned one for 20 plus years. I have probably fired 2000 rounds during that time with no problems.

Relating this to this thread: how did Norinco produce what is really a pretty good quality 1911 using "cheap, poorly made" Chinese tools?

 

[DeathGrip]

Relating this to this thread: how did Norinco produce what is really a pretty good quality 1911 using "cheap, poorly made" Chinese tools?

American machine shop tools. Have you ever wondered where the machine shop down the street went?

There was a time when we made the best tooling and other countries all know where to find it.

 

[BigBill]

Back in the 80's I built five cnc lathes for China. As they arrived on the docks there one 200,000lb lathe was apart in 25,000lb pieces. Here in the
USA it takes five heavy duty tractor trailer trucks to haul this 144" sized Chuck lathe to its buyer here. From what the feed back was from China they uncrated these parts and they sat on the docks with no way to move the 25,000lb pieces. Then our field guy who was assembling the monster sized lathe found out he had no permatex sealer. We had to air ship permatex out there asap. Not having the equipment to move this big machine they knew was coming? Now let's give them credit there bicycle bare foot doctors cure cancer too.

I find the harbor freight tools aren't that bad I've used them for decades in normal applications were bolts weren't stuck. But we're I had stuck bolts and the sockets from harbor freight cracked so did every American made brand socket crack too. In the end the torch had its way with stuck bolt when it cut the head off.

So some of harbor freight tools are ok. When working at home I can get by with them.

But I made my living using American made tools from snap on, Mac and craftsman.

 

[bamacisa]

Made in China tools are made to sell, not use.

 

[PR24]

Sears has gone Commie too. Many of the beloved Craftsman products is made in the PRC. Our greatest generation is disgusted with they way this nation has gone after sacrificing so much to protect it.

 

[Marshwheeling]

If any of you has a Chinese - made Schrade, how does it compare with the former US-made ones?

I have one, an Old Timer stockman. I kind of like it; it was cheap enough to permit that. The fit and finish do not measure up, however.

The "bone" scales look to be some kind of translucent resin with a brown dye mixed in, then rough-cut to simulate bone. After a couple of years of ownership, they are warping and pulling away slightly from the liner. They were never quite flush with the bolsters, but are now a little worse. The heads of the rivets that retain the scales are all a little different from on another. A couple of them are flush with the scales; the other four stand proud, but are each differently shaped. The "Old Timer" escutcheon is set crookedly into the scale, slightly proud on one end, slightly recessed on the other.

Even without much use, the bolsters are losing their brassy color, but have a nice patina. I can't say too much about the blade steel. The clip blade is etched with "1280T" on the ricasso, which may tell you something about the steel, but I can't find it. It takes a decent edge; I don't work it enough in a day to dull it. The sheepfoot blade will nicely cut as many cigars as I am likely to smoke in a day, or in a month.

It opens and closes smoothly, and the blades don't wiggle excessively.

It looks innocuous enough. I sharpen a lot of pencils on my school bus, and don't need ignorant people accusing me of carrying a weapon. On second thought, I don't actually care about that, and carry an assisted Benchmade more frequently.

The clip blade is engraved witn "SCHRADE" on the other side of the ricasso. The knife does not say "China" on it anywhere, but I am pretty sure the package did.

It apparently was not a big seller at $17, because I found it marked down to $9 at Fleet Farm. As I said, I kind of like it. I wouldn't suffer any anxiety if I lost it. I have paid more for worse knives, and passed on even more.

 

[W.E.G.]

Chinese tools is the price we pay for clean air in America.

 

[Fishslayer]

I also have some Chinese-made copies of Fiskars scissors. They LOOK as good as the Finnish-made originals and so far, work fine. And one scissor is marked Made in Japan. The stamp is relatively crude, but the scissor is almost as precisely fitted as the more expensive Finnish one. They ARE NOT marketed by Fiskars/Gerber.

If any of you has a Chinese - made Schrade, how does it compare with the former US-made ones?

The Chinese are capable of making good stuff. But if you want the absolute cheapest per unit cost, where do ya go?

My boxes contain everything from "worse than HF" up through Snapon & better. Ya just gotta know where the extra quality is really needed & if the extra $$$ is gonna be worth it. Is my $100 set of polished Craftsman wrenches as good as the $300 set of Snapon? Probably not. Are the Snapons 3X as good as the Craftsman? No.

 

[quneur]

There are used to be two lines of tools sold by Sears; Craftsman and Compainion/eVolve. Original Craftsman used to be made in the US and the other in China. Now, everything is made in China. As a DIY, US made Craftsman is a good compromise in quality which fills my toolbox. I do have some HF like breaker bars. Its something I don't use a lot but stands up to whatever pressure needed to break bolts - so far. I also have a full set of socket drivers. Great for those over sized bolts.

Many professional mechanics like Gearwrench wrenches made in Taiwan. I have older similar racheting wrenchs made by Craftsman and the quality is nice.

I sometime scrounge for US made tools in bins at pawn shops. You can find some nice proto or SK Wayne sockets for a few cents. Its a nice way to supplement the toolbox.

 

[williamlayton]

The only on hands experience that I have to compare with is a Norinco .45. I bought it on a dare from a naysayer. The steel in the Norinco is harder--without being brittle--than any American steel that I know of.
My gunsmith who worked it up for me said the only cutters that would work were Korean and Chinese. One craftsman refused the work because it was Chinese steel.
I will tell you that this Norinco that I own is a Tank and works flawlessly after the hands of a good smith was laid to it.
Blessings

 

[BigBill]

The steel the Chinese use for there guns is said to be our old scrap railroad track. I think they call it 5100 steel. The norinco company manufactures some awesome firearms.

 

[Cobroller]

I just bought a pair of Bushnell binoculars that I knew were made in China from trying the floor model. Clerk handed me the box and I went home.

The box has "Bushnell -- established 1948" and a "Proud USA Company". The made in China is in very small print on the back. I ignored the cancer warning since it only applies to California and I live in Missouri.