Harbor Freight tools thread.

Bring your own tungsten...lol

 

It'll be good for one or two tires. If you try to air up 3 or more, it's garbage.

 

Yeah, I read that it will overheat if run too long and needs to sit a while to cool off, but I'm mostly worried about just airing up one tire enough to turn off the TPMS light...

 

Has anyone bought the HF log splitters- 10 ton manual, 5 ton electric, or 20 ton gas model?

 

The digital torque adapter is dead accurate. I bought one tested its accuracy and use it to make sure my clickers torque wrenches are accurate.

 

Thanks , I’m going to probably break down and buy one this weekend . I wonder if you can use it to loosen a bolt and measure what the torque was ? Or of it only works to tighten ?

 

It works in both directions. But id loosen w/e bolt then re-torque properly on whatever it is.

When i got it my clicker wrenches were rather far off when used within their specified range.... a little bit of time adjusting and they are spot on now. Ill use the torque adapter on say the first n second torquing of a lugnut to make sure the clicker is still adjusted right then to the rest with just the clicker.

 

You could fix the tire....

 

Yeah, but finding a slow leak that is THAT slow can be a real challenge...it loses maybe 1 pound of pressure a day...

 

^ exactly. The leak will show very quick. It doesn't take much of a leak to make bubbles form.

 

So I got one last night , and today I was fooling around with it and wanted to try it out on say my bed bolts , I’ll be adding d rings soon and figured let’s try it out on a bed bolt . So I hit the arrow to the left and set it to 60ftlbs (do you press anything after you reach you desired torque setting while the number is blinking?) .

So I try it out on the bed bolt and 60ftlbs is really freaking tight or this thing is wrong . I was using a craftsman 1/2” drive ratchet and I was pulling hard to reach 60ftlbs , it seems toooo much like the unit is off . Or am I wrong ? Should I be using a breaker bar for more leverage or is it I don’t know how tight 60ftlbs really is ?




That was just my peak torque at where I ended up tightening them too , so if I’m reading that right I have them set at 45.7 ftlbs and that was really pulling on the 1/2” ratchet

The number that’s left on the torque adapter is your peak torque if I’m understanding the instructions lol


Oh yea what’s the difference trace mode and peak torque mode ? I know peak torque is probably the maximum torque being applied at that time but what’s trace do ? And which mode should I be in lol

 

It really depends on how long the ratchet it IMO. 60ft with my torque wrench (or breaker bar) is pretty easy to do when you have 18" of length to use as leverage. Now if i were to try to apply that same 60ft-lb with a shorter 12" ratchet, its going to feel like it take more. Same if you use a stubby ratchet getting to 60ft-lbs is going to be pretty hard to do.

 

Peak vs trace. Exactly what they sound like. In Peak mode it will show the current torque being applied and the number will stop at the highest torque value seen. This is the setting you would use to calibrate a clicker type torque wrench. Put it in Peak, set your torque wrench to a setting, torque something down, and compare the Peak recorded value (which is right when the torque wrench clicked) to the setting on the torque wrench and adjust as necessary.

Trace will simply trace in real time the torque being applied it will not stop at the highest value.


A good test for you to see how much 60ftlbs feels with that ratchet would be to hook up a 21mm socket to it, pop it on a lugnut (which should be torqued to 83ftlbs) and watch the adapter till it reads 60ftlbs, the lugnut should not move.

 

I’m going to mess with it once I get home , I think I had it set on the wrong setting for 1 , I had it set on peak torque and I think I needed it set on trace hitch allows you to watch as your tightening the torque setting. Plus I was using a regular craftsman 1/2” ratchet also

 

Harbor Freight motto 'Great tools at a great price just don't use them more than twice'.

 

Yea I was really wrenching on it yesterday but I ended up backing it off and tightening it where I thought it should be and not what the torque wrench says

 

Yea the snap on ones are better shape for tightening stuff real tight .

 

I love the shape of kobalt ratchets, but the toggle for tightening/loosening is backwards and drives me nuts.

 

I had bought a cheap scissors jack, steel ramps and a really cheap tiny floor jack with a loose 3 piece pump handle many years ago when I just started driving and working on my cars. They are good to have when needed but what I really wanted was a decent floor jack.

My neighbor bought a 1.5 ton HF slick floor jack I have recently used and fell in love with it instantly. I put it off and waited for it to go on sale - and it finally did -

1.5 Ton Aluminum Racing Floor Jack with Rapid Pump® 60569 $70 delivered.
How I wish I had this many years ago!

HF tools, you have to pick them right and know their limitations. It's nice to buy High end tools - but when you don't use them daily/earn your living with them - it's hard, in my opinion, to justify the huge costs. Most of my mechanics tools are Craftsman these I consider hard to beat for cost durability and warranty. But I do buy some Items, selectively, used or non high end.

Often Times I've bought the cheapo tools from HF knowing I'll either modify them for one time use - or know I'll only use them one in my life.

 

I got the same one last year and love it. It doesnt see much use but when it does its perfect. I really like how light it is cause i can send my 6 yr old to get it for me and he has no problem dragging it!