Harbor Freight Pilgrimage

So now we have local HF stores. I visited for the first time yesterday to acquire a hitch mounted cargo carrier for the purpose of transporting carboys full of sulfuric acid and other cargo, such as propane tanks, that shouldn't ride in the back of an SUV. Although I am currently trying to reduce the amount of commercial/industrial tools and material in my back yard, the 1 ton Gantry Crane looked mighty sweet :-) But I think I'll wait and pour a concrete slab area in front of my shop first. Meanwhile I'm filling a dumpster and loading a trailer with scrap metal...

Reply to
ATP
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How big are those carboys? Say, how many gallons of sulfuric acid are you planning to carry at any one time?

Reply to
Ignoramus3716

They're only 5 gallons each and I have two, but this is nasty stuff that you don't want spilling inside a vehicle, or even on a pickup truck bed. The smell would probably never leave even if it didn't eat through the deck. I also plan to use the cargo carrier to carry my wet kiteboarding gear...

Reply to
ATP

If you carry more than 440 lbs of it, you will need a hazmat placard and have a CDL with hazmat endorsement.

Reply to
Ignoramus3716

Not likely, it's for cesspool maintenance at my house. $20 per five, it's the same stuff the cesspool companies use.

Reply to
ATP

Just make sure that you have it well secured. You don't want the lawsuit if it comes adrift and the contents land in the convertible behind you.

Reply to
J. Clarke

I've got bad news. As far as I know, HF stores do not barter.

Reply to
David Lesher

Maybe not, but steel is fetching about thirteen cents a pound.

Reply to
ATP

Rochester, NY got their first HF stores, two or three years ago. Cram pack with Chinky junky, and everything goes on sale if you wait long enough.

For sulfuric acid, you gonna trust that on a low bidder Chinky trailer hitch? Or are you getting a good quality one? Like the other writer says. Tie it good, so you don't flip a carboy of sulfuric into the convertible that's tailgating you. Well, on the other hand......

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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Reply to
Stormin Mormon

Ah, maybe somebody else can't stand horrible fright. It all looks chinky junky to me. i don't shop there.

karl

Reply to
Karl Townsend

I made a pipe up for aerating it, it's amazing how the bottom forms a crust.

Reply to
ATP

You mean, they won't take scrap for their crap?

Bummer ...

(Just kidding)

pyotr

Reply to
pyotr filipivich

Hey Stormin, I forgot you were in Rochester. I was just up there last Saturday to buy the South Bend shaper that was on Craigslist. The guy still has a Rockwell tool & cutter grinder that's in decent shape and an Induma knee mill. 3.5 hour drive each way from central PA up there.

Reply to
GeoLane at PTD dot NET

It really depends on the item. Not everything is from China. They have some combination wrenches from India, grinding wheels from Russia. And some things from China are good. Most everything is worth the price they sell it for and a few things are worth more than the price. But you are right, a lot of what they sell is not what you really want for everyday use.

Do not buy the 4 1/2 inch wheels made in China for angle grinders. The ones from Taiwan are okay. The Russian ones were really good, but I can not find them anymore.

Dan

Reply to
dcaster

With the distances on this list, it's so rare to have a chance to meet in person. I'm sure it would have been fun to meet. As to having a home shop (don't have one), you'd be disappointed. I have a few tools, and a few memories of running a lathe in high school. I do a very little bit of machining with hand tools as needed to repair my vehicle, and sometimes a little bit of sheet metal work as needed.

I'm sure I'd learn a lot from you.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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Hey Stormin, I forgot you were in Rochester. I was just up there last Saturday to buy the South Bend shaper that was on Craigslist. The guy still has a Rockwell tool & cutter grinder that's in decent shape and an Induma knee mill. 3.5 hour drive each way from central PA up there.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

A year or so ago, a friend needed a 25 inch breaker bar. Sears had one for $50. The guy only needs it once a year or so, fixing his car. HF had one on sale for ten bucks that will do the job for occasional use.

Some things have their uses.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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It really depends on the item. Not everything is from China. They have some combination wrenches from India, grinding wheels from Russia. And some things from China are good. Most everything is worth the price they sell it for and a few things are worth more than the price. But you are right, a lot of what they sell is not what you really want for everyday use.

Do not buy the 4 1/2 inch wheels made in China for angle grinders. The ones from Taiwan are okay. The Russian ones were really good, but I can not find them anymore.

Dan

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

they sell enough scrap metal as it is, they don;t need any more for trade in

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Reply to
not

I'm guessing that the Chinese send us merchandise on barges, and take scrap on the return trip. Easier to remelt US made scrap iron, than to mine and forge it from the ore. Just a guess.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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they sell enough scrap metal as it is, they don;t need any more for trade in

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Reply to
Stormin Mormon

Chinese domestic steel production in 2010: 637 million tonnes.*

US ferrous scrap exports to China in 2010: 9.9 million tonnes.**

US scrap contribution is pretty much negligible (about 1.5%).

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Reply to
Spehro Pefhany

So much for that theory.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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Chinese domestic steel production in 2010: 637 million tonnes.*

US ferrous scrap exports to China in 2010: 9.9 million tonnes.**

US scrap contribution is pretty much negligible (about 1.5%).

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Reply to
Stormin Mormon

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