Harbor Freight is the go-to for tools of all price ranges and types for many enthusiasts, but not everything the store sells is guaranteed to be perfect.
Tool manufacturers like to make big claims about their products, but not all of them live up to scrutiny in the real world. Harbor Freight is no different: many of its products have proven to be cut-price alternatives to big-name brands, but there are still plenty of products that are worth avoiding. Working out which Harbor Freight finds are bargains and which are a waste of money isn’t always an exact science, but the reviews left on the retailer’s website are a great place to start.
Whether they’re tools or other highly-rated Harbor Freight products, the retailer’s best finds boast average review ratings that hover around 4.7 or 4.8 stars. On the other end of the ratings scale, its worst-reviewed products are lumbered with ratings that sit well below four stars on average.
For each of the worst offenders, reviewers have left dozens — or in some cases, hundreds — of negative reviews, many detailing exactly why they think the product in question isn’t worth your hard-earned money. These five tools and accessories are all among the worst-reviewed offerings in Harbor Freight’s current range, with key flaws that make them all worth avoiding.Pittsburgh Quick-Connect Compression Tester
One of Harbor Freight’s many in-house brands, Pittsburgh’s range is a mix of hits and misses. At its best, the brand offers a range of automotive-focused tools that undercut their competition on price while being durable and capable enough to handle all kinds of projects. However, the brand also offers products like the Pittsburgh Quick-Connect Compression Tester, which doesn’t live up to those same standards. At the time of writing, the tester has an average rating of 3.7 out of five stars from over 700 reviews and is available for $34.99.
Many of the most negative reviews left for the product make the same complaint: the tool simply isn’t accurate. Most of those users say that their readings were consistently too low, while a few claim that the accuracy of the tool seemed to degrade after one or two uses. The build quality of the tester is another common complaint, with several reviewers saying that the fittings frequently got stuck during testing.Central Pneumatic 40 Pound Capacity Floor Abrasive Blast Cabinet
The Central Pneumatic 40 Pound Capacity Floor Abrasive Blast Cabinet receives very mixed reviews from buyers, with some appreciating its cheap price and others claiming that its build quality isn’t up to par.
