Bill Daniels wrote:
I generally agree but I have bought unusable tools from HF. An example is a
tap and die set which contained taps and dies that didn't match any known
thread, metric or SAE. As it happened, the one size I needed when I bought
the set (M8 x 1.25) was useable. I discovered the bad ones when I had long
since lost the receipt. Anyway, the set cost little more than a single tap
from a machine supply company so I didn't lose more than the trip to HF.

I decided that taps and dies need to be sufficiently accurate that they
should be sourced from known reliable vendors even if at a higher price.

Then there was the electric metal shear that disintegrated upon its first
contact with sheet metal. The motorcycle was still warm from the trip to HF
when that happened - they happily replaced the unit. I just lost two hours
work.

There is no HF anywhere near me so I order online. I will not order
anything that might require customer service based on personal
experience. I bought a small Central Machinery lathe from them. It's a
good machine, but any support I needed from HF was like pulling teeth.
They sent me the wrong size key with a chuck. I contacted them via
e-mail. Long story short: they only replied after I sent at least 3
e-mails per reply. Four months after initial request they finally sent
me a new chuck key, wrong size again and never did respond to my
complaint. When I attempted to get technical questions answered about
the lathe I was asked for information about my shipping address and
order number. That was the last actual response I received. The others
were "we are working on it." They never did answer and seemed perturbed
when I reminded them it had been over 30 days since I had last enquired.

Littlemachineshop.com provides excellent support for the lathe and
has better communications skills. They also ship faster than HF.

The only things I will buy from HF are those I will not expect to ask
for customer service on. I also don't ever recommend them as a source
for anything more complex than screwdrivers.

Dan, U.S. Air Force, retired