Cheep tool stores
We have Harbor freight.They have a very low end mill/lathe combo.I want a small machine like this to preform some basic tasks.Anybody have experience with these machines?
0
-
Where are you located Phill?[:D]
Don0 -
IMHO harbor freight is junk! everything they sell is junk!
you can find a odd and end good buy but I dont look any more, there products are crap, thats why they are so cheap.
Just my HO..[8D]0 -
quote:Originally posted by dongizmo
Where are you located Phill?[:D]
Don
Shreveport,Louisianna0 -
quote:Originally posted by divebomb
IMHO harbor freight is junk! everything they sell is junk!
you can find a odd and end good buy but I dont look any more, there products are crap, thats why they are so cheap.
Just my HO..[8D]
I agree, Just wanted to see if anybody has bought one.Ive seen a few different ones.Tractor Supply sells one to.[?][?][?]0 -
Phill,
The multi-purpose machine was designed to be used in a u-boat, where space is very limited, if you have the room, a decent lathe (12 x 24" or 36") would be your best investment. If the machine you are looking at is the one I think it is, it has limited capabilities, like no thread cutting, no power longitudinal feed for the lathe, and all machines of that genre have a long reach from the spindle nose to the top for the vise, E.G. you have to have your quill extended to make a cut, of you have to make a riser for the mill table/lathe saddle so you are not overextending your quill.
Not that I would know anything about them[;)]
http://www.wttool.com/product-exec/product_id/14868
Don0 -
I own a "cheap tool store" similar to HF. People ask me CONSTANTLY "is this stuff any good"? Some of it is pure crap, some is decent. It just depends what it is. If it is crap, I'll tell you it is. It shocks people, but they appreciate the honesty. Often, they'll buy it anyway! [:D]
Remember: You get what you pay for. If you want a low-end machine, it'll have a low-end price. Period.
99.99% of people are too CHEAP to buy decent stuff. They want CHEAP, and they don't care if it is CRAP or not. Thats why Walmart is the biggest company in the WORLD!
Merc0 -
Grizzly makes a pretty good lathe/mill/drill -- has power feeds, cuts threads and is about 30" between centers on the lathe. $1400.00.
It's an import, but is similar in quality to Smithy, etc.0 -
I have a Model A Southbend 9 inch lathe, 24 inch centers. Can do a lot of operations with it, the only real problem is the swing, there are many times it would be nice to have a 13 inch and a little more center would be nice. If I didn't have a lathe and was in the market for one, knowing what I know now I would go for more swing 0 -
There is lots of good deals to be found on CRAIGSLIST.Lots of good FREE stuff there also.
EvilDr2350 -
I agree that they have cheep low end stuff, but I do buy stuff from them from time to time.
I do not use the stuff verry much and for my use I have had good luck with things from there.
I have a Northern Tool near me and buy stuff from there too. Northern tool seems to be alot better quality.0 -
They both go hand in hand. If you pay a cheap price, you are getting a cheap tool. The problem is that most of the people out there have had no experience in the jobs that these tool have to accomplish. Therefore they can't judge what's good and what's bad. Some swear by them, others swear at them. If a person has had any experience on a top grade machine he will see it right away. It's best described by an earlier post as mostly a pile of junk 0 -
I might have a couple of these left @ $425.00 (EA): 
They are in MA, and it would cost a bundle to move them out of the New England states.
Don0 -
I built my first speargun reel on a drill press. It's amazing what you can do with just a drill press.
But then reality set in and to build spearguns, underwater lights, still camera and movie camera housings I had to go with a real mill and real lathe.
Once you've had the real thing, you will never look back.0 -
My family uses the saying: "The Chinese have to have some way to get rid of their toxic waste", a lot! 0 -
products made in china some with free giger-counters now. 0 -
The nice thing about having a Harbor Freight store locally is they have a no questions asked return/replacement policy. If it breaks they will either give you a new one, store gift card, or cash back.
I keep breaking my Harbor Freight bench vice. I guess I really shouldn't use a bar on it to press in those AK Barrel Pins but it works till it breaks. [;)]
I then go trade it in for another one.0 -
The reason Im asking is the article on building a belt loader in SGN.they make it sound as if this can be done with a hack saw.YEAH RIGHT!That dont look like no hack saw job to me.Anyway, these are the small projects that Im interested in right now.Anything bigger would be farmed out to yhe professionals.Keep in mind were talking LIMITED use.Its not cost effective for me to buy a 5000 dollar rig for just a few small tinkering type projects a year. 0 -
Phill,
Like I said before, get a decent lathe, you can do milling and drilling on it by using a angle block.
I would watch the local craigslist, you never know what somebody wants to get rid of cheap.
Don0 -
quote:Originally posted by dongizmo
Phill,
Like I said before, get a decent lathe, you can do milling and drilling on it by using a angle block.
I would watch the local craigslist, you never know what somebody wants to get rid of cheap.
Don
Copy that.Thanks Don0
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Comments
19 comments