Harbor Freight Tools

 

I love Harbor Freight; yes, I know, some people say their tools are crap, others love them. I belong to the latter, not the former. I've had a set of cheap Harbor Freight picks that I bought years ago and have been invaluable in getting stuck rings and seals out, I've never had any of their wrenches or sockets break, and their sand blasting cabinets make great vapor blasters! (More on THAT later...!) 

But starting off, I have to recommend their electric 1/2" impact wrench. I bought mine years ago and have never had a problem with it.  

I call it 'The Persuader.' I've taken apart car main axle and transmission nuts with this thing, and whenever I run across a nut that Just Won't Budge, I throw this thing on it just to show the nut who's boss. Running around $50 when I bought it, I've never had a problem with it. They might still be available, but I think HF has replaced a lot of their impact wrenches with Bauer, Earthquake and Hercules - but not having used those brands, I can't speak to their reliability. A great tool! 

 

Another great Harbor Freight tool I have is their Central Forge 5" vise. I previously had some rinkydink little three-incher that was 'okay', but when I had the chance to upgrade I took it. Heavy, sturdy and durable, I love this thing for those jobs that need a good gripping. Runs about $79, or at least it did when I bought it.

Another Honorable Mention is their 6-piece wood chisel set; unbelievably inexpensive, but not 'cheap,' these come in handy for scraping off gaskets and biting those screws that don't want to turn while tapping at the handles to get them to turn! (See also my "Nejisaurus Pliers". ) 

And speaking of which, I have to mention these - this little three-pack of steel, brass and nylon brushes. They're indispensable for light scrubbing jobs. I think HF sells them for something like $3 a pack, but I get mine at the Dollar Store! For a buck! Just sayin'...

And I MUST mention my Harbor Freight blast cabinet that I converted into a vapor blaster! This has really upped my restoration game, and I don't know why I never did it sooner! Plans for how to convert it to a vapor blaster are all over the Internet, I used a video made by some good 'ol boy and it turned out great. I still have to seal up some seams in it though, which I missed the first time around, but it's very nice to have.

If you look around on Facebook Marketplace, you can sometimes find them cheap, for 50 or $100 bucks or so. I paid $50 for mine; I had to drive a little to pick it up, but hey - I'm cheap like that. Note the modified viewing port - since the blast media (glass bead) makes the glass go foggy over time, I replaced all the original screw holes with 6mm thumb screws, making it easier to replace the pane. 

You'll need a pretty decent air compressor pushing at least 15 CFM to get good results, though. You can use the littler ones - I ran a 'proof of concept' with one of the little upright 22-gallon compressors from Harbor Freight and it did the job but needed to refill frequently so I bit the bullet and got a 60-gallon Puma PK7060V 6.5 HP single-stage that pushes 19.5 CFM, I love it.