Harbor Freight Angle Grinder

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Huckleberry

Senior Member
Aug 25, 2013
1,698
96
48
#1
Okay, the thread title was a ruse.
Sshhhhhhhh!!!
This is the actual secret "Man's Thread" where we can talk about guns, cars, tools, beer, etc.......
We will NOT be discussing curtains, cats or wine, and when
we need snacks, we'll pilfer 'em from the decoy "man thread".
I almost made the title "Harbor Freight Coupons", but then realized
the word "coupon" would attract every woman within 25,000 miles.

So I'm in the market for a new cordless drill/impact kit.
I'm leaning towards a Makita brushless set.
I currently have a Milwaukee, but the impact crapped out and
since I can't find the receipt, Milwaukee won't honor the warranty.
So me and Milwaukee are now divorced.
What brand of cordless do you prefer?
 

razor17

Senior Member
Aug 16, 2017
192
23
18
#2
Okay, the thread title was a ruse.
Sshhhhhhhh!!!
This is the actual secret "Man's Thread" where we can talk about guns, cars, tools, beer, etc.......
We will NOT be discussing curtains, cats or wine, and when
we need snacks, we'll pilfer 'em from the decoy "man thread".
I almost made the title "Harbor Freight Coupons", but then realized
the word "coupon" would attract every woman within 25,000 miles.

So I'm in the market for a new cordless drill/impact kit.
I'm leaning towards a Makita brushless set.
I currently have a Milwaukee, but the impact crapped out and
since I can't find the receipt, Milwaukee won't honor the warranty.
So me and Milwaukee are now divorced.
What brand of cordless do you prefer?
stihl or craftsman
 

lightbearer

Senior Member
Jun 17, 2017
2,375
504
113
57
HBG. Pa. USA
#3
I am a Carpenter Field foreman/ service tech for a fire/water mitigation and restoration company. I have been running Makita for 10 years with zero issues. I have not made the transition to brushless.

Let me know what you think if you go for it.
 

shittim

Senior Member
Dec 16, 2016
13,607
7,643
113
#5
i've heard Ryobi is the only company that has kept the battery design the same, no planned obsolescence.
 

Dino246

Senior Member
Jun 30, 2015
24,555
13,320
113
#6
My old cordless died about two years ago. I saw a review for a new model in Fine Woodworking. Then I saw the same model on sale (about 40% off) at the local tool vendor, so I bought it and have been very pleased.

It's a Bosch 18V Li-ion. It charges quickly and holds a charge for months in between uses.
 

Oncefallen

Idiot in Chief
Staff member
Jan 15, 2011
6,029
3,240
113
#7
Almost all the power tools that I've bought in the last couple of years have been Ridgid from Home Depot. You can't beat a lifetime unlimited warranty that includes batteries for cordless tool sets. The warranty is registered online so you don't have to worry about losing receipts.
 

shittim

Senior Member
Dec 16, 2016
13,607
7,643
113
#8
I like the thread title, the "vimin" will never find us here!
blessings
 

Mem

Senior Member
Sep 23, 2014
5,679
1,620
113
#9
What the...?!!

 
Aug 2, 2009
24,574
4,262
113
#11
I actually own a harbor freight angle grinder... :p So now I'm like... :confused:
 
Aug 2, 2009
24,574
4,262
113
#12
I dont really have a recommendation but my old line of work used to put me in contact with contractors and they always seem to have Makita power tools. One even had makita posters up on his shop wall.. I remember because they always had a Makita girl on them.. :rolleyes:

In case u guys have never seen a Makita girl before... :rolleyes:

 
Last edited:

JesusLives

Senior Member
Oct 11, 2013
14,551
2,171
113
#13
Harbor Freight is a manly man's store and it is the stinkiest store I have been in a cross between rubber tires and tar they put on roof smell. I've only been in the store a couple of times...bought my tool box there.
 

JesusLives

Senior Member
Oct 11, 2013
14,551
2,171
113
#14
Oh yeah power tools I like Black and Decker...
 

JesusLives

Senior Member
Oct 11, 2013
14,551
2,171
113
#15
I quit home yuck in school and switched to woodworking class. I've made some furniture in my younger days.
 

JesusLives

Senior Member
Oct 11, 2013
14,551
2,171
113
#16
I'm great at demo work too. Took out tile in a bathroom, knocked out a wall in my home, took popcorn of the ceiling and gave it a smooth finish.

There is something about beating the stuffing out of an inanimate object with a hammer or tearing something down or out to help get your frustrations out.

Was great at the demo work but had to hire in help to put things back together.... I'm more of a smash and bash gal.
 

hornetguy

Senior Member
Jan 18, 2016
6,623
1,381
113
#17
I don't have any experience with the hammer drills, as I don't really need one... I've heard they are great for driving long screws in decking. They are irritatingly noisy for everything else.

I bought a really nice Hitachi Lith ion drill a while back, and had both batteries crap out on it in about a year, with very little use at all. Replacement batteries were going to be a bunch... maybe seventy dollars each? Can't remember exactly, but it was way too much.

I went back to the old standby deWalt, NiCad 18V. It's been rockin along for a couple of years now, and it's been boringly reliable. I can get the hammer drill for that battery system if I want, for about 70 bucks, I think...

I've heard good things about Bosch, and I have quite a few other tools by PorterCable, just not a drill.
 

Huckleberry

Senior Member
Aug 25, 2013
1,698
96
48
#18
I am a Carpenter Field foreman/ service tech for a fire/water mitigation and restoration company. I have been running Makita for 10 years with zero issues. I have not made the transition to brushless.

Let me know what you think if you go for it.
I picked up a Milwaukee brushless kit a little over
four years ago, which has a five-year warranty.
It's the best cordless kit I've ever had.......until.......
about eight months ago the impact started malfunctioning.
It would quit working intermittently, and gradually got worse.
If you removed the battery and put it back in, it would resume functioning.
Then it developed a new problem.
It wouldn't change direction unless you
removed the battery and put it back in.
That's when I finally sent it in for servicing.

A few days later they sent an email
saying my warranty claim was denied
because I didn't have proof of purchase
and the serial number was unreadable.
They offered to repair it for $118.
At that point I'm pretty ticked, and basically
swore off Milwaukee products, but I've
still got a perfectly good drill, charger,
and two good batteries, however I need an impact.

Well, rather than spending $450 on the Makita kit
I've been eyeing, I found this on HD dot com for $99,
which will make my kit complete again, plus give me
another (albeit smaller) battery, charger, and bag.
So I'm going to buy it with the caveat that it
is the last Milwaukee product I will ever buy.
 

lightbearer

Senior Member
Jun 17, 2017
2,375
504
113
57
HBG. Pa. USA
#19
I picked up a Milwaukee brushless kit a little over
four years ago, which has a five-year warranty.
It's the best cordless kit I've ever had.......until.......
.
I've used friend's Milwuakees and Dewaults drills. I think they are better. When I started with Makita I bought it because of the torque the drill had with it. The compact drill came with more bang for the buck so I went with it and built my kit from it. I have 7 batteries now. It would be hard for me to justify switching at this point.

I have not had any issues, but if I could justify getting another kit from one of those brands I mentioned I would.
 

razor17

Senior Member
Aug 16, 2017
192
23
18
#20
Makita makes good drills as well. I have one that is over 10 years old and is still going strong.