reciprocating saw

[krw]

How about electrical supplies? I've heard loads of stories about fake UL labels. HF GFCIs, anyone?

Agreed.

[krw]

Some stuff is acceptable. Certainly not the best tools, but acceptable. Most is junk.

Isn't that the sale price?

...and the Dremel is $100. Point?

That's a large exaggeration. I buy them at Lowes for $.39. 4" foam brushes for $.79. They're still a good deal, though they're about the same price, on sale, in places like WoodCraft and better quality. HF is a great place to buy nitrile gloves, too. I wouldn't buy them for my doctor, but...

Cheap date tonight?

My bet is that you'll easily notice a quality difference.

I bought a bunch of HF bar clamps; garbage. After breaking the third one, with the glue clock ticking, I decided to replace them with Besseys. Junk. OTOH, I have an HF 10" SCMS that is serviceable, for construction. It won't make it for woodworking and I'll most likely replace it with a Bosch, but it does what I bought it for.

The bottom line is that Harbor Freight sells a lot of junk, but as you point out with the multi-tool, there are a few decent buys in there, too. You really have to know what you're buying or you *will* end up with a lot of junk.

[mm]

I think a buzzsaw is a small circular saw, but I haven't looked it up, and I don't know much about milwaukee.

It would be nice, almost essential, if you told us how high the shrubs are, how thick the branches are, how big everything will be in a few years, in 30 years, etc.

I think people are writing about what works for their yards and not about what works for yours.

[mm]

And how many shrubs you have, whether they are woody or something else.

And how big your yard is. I have one 100 foot extension cord that reaches everywhere and if I had to go farther, I could plug in another one, and definitely, when you don't have to carry the electricity around with you, tools that plug into the wall are lighter than battery operated tools of the same power. Batteries are some of the most dense parts (weight per volume) of any device.

I think a buzzsaw is a small circular saw, but I haven't looked it up, and I don't know much about milwaukee.

It would be nice, almost essential, if you told us how high the shrubs are, how thick the branches are, how big everything will be in a few years, in 30 years, etc.

I think people are writing about what works for their yards and not about what works for yours.

[Jim Elbrecht]

Circular, yes-- I don't think small, though. This is what I call a buzzsaw-

In context from I'd say it was regional thing- but this guy is in Montana- and I've lived in NY most of the past 60 years.

-snip-

In my yard- a combination of a good set of pruners, a hand saw, an electric chainsaw- another one on a stick, and a Reciprocating saw with an 'axe' blade.

Jim

[HeyBub]

The quality is virtually irrelevant on hose clamps and handcuffs (and totally off the list for sponge brushes!). I WAS mistaken on the hose clamp business: the set contains 40 clamps, not twenty. As an ex-cop, I can also tell you quality is unimportant in handcuffs. Heck, for rounding up herds of squints, we used cable staps! My HF does have handcuffs. It also has sextants. That may be because we have more goblins than you and sometimes have trouble finding our way.

Right. For the life of me, I can't see what could possible go wrong with a

4x12' canvas painting dropcloth for (regular price) $10. It sure can't trip a circuit breaker, leak, slip on a nut, or have a short battery life.

[Jim Elbrecht]

-snip-

Like everything at HF- you have to anticipate what it will be used for. I wouldn't try to keep Hannibal Lector at bay with HF handcuffs-- but they'd be fine for keeping the little woman in a friendly position-- as long as she was willing.

I use their rubber & leather gloves, cutoff wheels for angle grinders, disposable $10 angle grinders for high grit jobs & a bunch of other stuff. [including a $40 multi-function tool]

I thought I'd seen them at mine-- but they don't come up on a search of the HF-- so maybe he was funnin' us. [or maybe it was a temporary thing]

-snip- Ditto-

Jim

[DerbyDad03]

Hide quoted text -

Log into their website and sign up for e-mail ads.

I believe that you can choose to only get coupons for "web specials".

[DerbyDad03]

de quoted text -

As far as clamps go (of which you can never have enough) I just picked up 4 of the 12" bar clamps for 1.99 each, and I'll be going back for at least 4 more.

Are they anywhere as good as my Jorgensen bar clamps? No way!

Will they hold 2 pieces of wood together while the glue dries? Absolutely.

I'll use the Jorgensens when real clamping pressure is required, but the HF cheapos will serve their purpose also.

[krw]

quoted text -

I've had a bunch of the longer ones break on me.

The rest of them might, but I won't trust them anymore without backup at the ready.

[Anthona]

I have a 15' crape myrtle and don't want to half it, just thin it out and some of the branches are almost 1/2'' to 3/4'' thick. and also a forsythia and the burning bush. and a dogwood.

[Anthona]

I am an 81 year old man and still handy enough to do chores, but i am looking for a product that does the work for me and not the other way around...the last time I used clippers on my aborvitae, i was sore for days...so i was looking for a power tool, just put it on the branch and let it do its thing. LOL

[Jim Elbrecht]

-snip-

Problem with a power tool in shaky hands is they can do more damage than good in the blink of an eye.

For branches under 2 inches I'd be trying out some ratchet loppers. They don't need batteries or cords- they can get into places that power saws can't [easily]- and they aren't likely to takeoff the wrong branch [or body part].

If you can't handle them- maybe it is time to have someone else do that work for you. Do what you can without endangering yourself.

I know that's a hard choice because just last week I spent a lot of time trying to convince my 85yr old dad that *I* would put on the snow-shoes and rake the 3 feet of snow off the roof-- while *he*, with his relatively new artificial hip could spend the time behind his snowblower on more-or-less firm ground.

He *had* to try the snowshoes on and take a few step before he saw the wisdom in my way. No sense in hurting yourself when time is so precious.

Jim

[professorpaul]

Just my 2 cents, for small jobs, the hand "bow" saw works great. For more massive projects, the small electric chain saws are useful, and for really light stuff, the "lopping" shears work well for branches less than 1/2" in diameter. Also a good pair of leather work gloves to save your hands, and a set of goggles for your eyesight if you use the chain saw. I would stay away from battery saws, as they just don't have enough power for big jobs. It has been rare that I haven't been able to run a good extension cord to run the electric chain saw on a modest sized property.

[aemeijers]

BTDT. The role reversal is a hard thing for both sides to handle. I still help my 83 YO father with projects when I am down there visiting. He is down to one useful eye, also has a redone hip, and can barely walk at this point due to a botched 'routine' spinal surgery. But he still gets out in his shop every chance he can. He saves the big stuff for when I am there, but I have to keep a close eye on when he starts getting shaky, and find some excuse to call for a break. After being the Old Man to all us kids for sixty years, he is finding it very hard to dial back.

[Master Betty]

My 2 cents and I'm sure someone already said this....Get a small chain saw. That way if the branch is too big for a reciprocating saw you're covered.

[benick]

Ditto on the above only my battery sawzall is a Roybi...Even the wife uses it for pruning...I have the Black &Decker electric chainsaw on a stick for the high stuff and Echo gas chainsaw for clearing brush and small trees..Works good...HTH...