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Hi everyone.
I was looking through a building magazine & I came upon an ad for tools at REALLY low prices.
In the ad they had a Chicago ElectricPower Tools 10″ compound mitre saw for $99.00 (us) Im from Canada & I have never heard of this tool company before but even with the exchange that REALLY cheap. The cheapest 10″ slider we have around here is at Sears its still well over $500.00
I was wondering if anyone has used or owned tools by Chicago Power Tools & what they think of them.
Ive never mail ordered tools before so Im a little leary on it. I am how ev er not that dull & understand you get what you pay for.
Basically what I need to know is if its a tool that wil last & be acurate enough for the 1st year of business untill I can buy a good Makita or Dewalt slider.
Someone let me know.
Ted
Replies
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Ted, don't do it! Chicago Electric tools are the cheapest of Taiwanese knockoffs.
If you just want to get by until you can afford a better saw, look at one of the cheap Delta saws. They can be had for right around the same price.
In a pinch,I might even go with the Ryobi(another Taiwanese konckoff) to save money. They sell them at Home Depot for $99, and they will take back as many of them as you can bust.
*Ted,I have a hunch the ad you are referring to has something to do with Harbor Freight, as they are the only mail order company I know of that sells Chicago brand tools. [They also sell "Pittsburg" brand tools.] They have a website and it is something like harborfreight.com or something equally obvious.They can send you a catalogue. They have an odd mix of good stuff and junk. They do have good prices on Channelocks, ViseGrips and Uni-Bits for instance. They also offer "factory reconditioned" tools from DeWalt - about 1/3rd off. For instance, I got a DeWalt 1/2" hammer-drill (reconditioned) for $99 [US] instead of $149 [List] but, on the other hand, it was back-ordered for six [6] months!In general, I think the rule for dealing with them is this: if you only need some tool for one time use, it might be a good way to go. For instance, they sold me a 48" pipe wrench for $30 but I don't really need it that often in my line of work, but then, it is impressive. In your case, since you seem to be professionally involved in cutting wood, you should bite the .50 cal bullet, sell one of the kids and buy a decent radial arm saw.Oh yes, this site sometimes discusses Harbor Freight:http://www.insidetheweb.com/messageboard/mbs.cgi?acct=mb772776&TL=also known as Mark KWs Tool Nut page. Interesting site in itself.Hope this helps and causes an avalanche of further responses. -Peter
*PM, those big pipe wrenches are handy. I've got a 30" or maybe it's 36" Rigid........It's one of those tools that when I need that, things have really turned to s**t. Heavy though, makes a hell of a noise when it slips off something. Joe H
*Ted,I agree with Joel. Don't buy Chicago. I bought a reciprocating saw 2 summmers ago to use on a deck addition. I think I cut through 3 or 4 2x4's before the thing started binding up. You get what you pay for, or as my father used to say "there's no such thing as a free lunch"Don
*In the FWIW dept. I bought a Chicago Electric 4" wet cutting tile saw about 20 years ago to do a little job, thinking that it would burn out about the time I finished. I still have that saw, have never had one bit of trouble with it, and must have cut a million tile by now and it still runs like a top! It was a Harbor Freight tool. They still have the identical saw in their catalog (at the same price) , so that should tell you something....I have never seen such a screwed up outfit to deal with. They must have the most incompetent staff in the world. Most of their stuff is junk, but like Peter said above, you can get some super deals from time to time on name brand stuff if you are willing to wait forever to get it. On top of that, they usually send you 2 of everything you ordered and refuse to admit they made a mistake and seem unwilling to spend any time trying to straighten the matter out. They charge for one and send you two....better than playing the lottery when you order from them!
*Names like Chicago Electric or Milwaukee Pneumatic are a sure sign of junk (G.L.'s experience not withstanding). Chicago Pneumatic and Milwaukee Electric tool companies make quality professional tools, and then these knock off scam artists come up with these twisted names in order to sucker people (including me in the past). I would never buy anything that had a name similar to another company, and that includes Florida Pneumatic sold by Grainger.
*"Chicago Electric" and the other couple of "Chicago" names they carry are companys owned by Harbor Freight. Keep in mind the key word to remember is "dependable", If you have to depend on it to make a living...buy good stuff. As others have said, there are some good deals there (Harbor Freight) if it's stuff you don't use all that much. Example: I purchased a 10# sledge hammer for about 5 bucks, pretty tough to screw up anything technical on a 10 pound hunk of steel on a stick (not saying it can't be done)but for as much as I use something like that, I can't see spending over double that at other stores.
*Wed,I have purchased 2 major power tools from Harbor Freight and have found them to all or more than I expected. The first was a 14" band saw and the second was a 7" jointer. What I received in both cases could best be described as a "tool kit". Each large box contained about 100 + pieces and a set of directions/drawings. This was enough if you had an understanding of how the things should fit together anyhow. The English in the instructions was drafted by people not having it as a first language. One of the kits had 3 broken parts (the box had been dropped during shipping). Harbor Freight was very helpful in furnishing the parts, but it did take weeks.Now the up side. It did take care with alignment during construction but the tools I ended up with are very workable and I am happy with them. They cut and plane with great accuracy (remember I had to align them as I built them). The motors do not overheat and are sized correctly for the tools. The bearings were well aligned and lubricated. The finish work on the case pieces could have been better. Bottom line: I like what I bought.
*As most people know, you get what you pay for. A few years ago I had to buy something made by Chicago whatever, just to see for myself. I bought a cordless drill for $39. I think I threw it out!Not to hijack the thread, but I just saw an ad for a Grizzly cordless circular saw, 18 volt, for $99. Should I get it, or should I just wait and buy the Dewalt kit with everything in it. (I have not bought the Dewalt kit for $500.00, not because of the price, but I do not have room in my truck for that huge case.)Barry
*No room for more tools? Seems clear to me that what you need first is a new truck, then pile on the tools. If you were a true tool junkie you wouldn't worry about having room, you'd just GET THAT TOOL!(Wrong thread, but I couldn't resist the temptation).
*Chicago Electric is the Ultimate Crap!! Sold by Harbor Freight and others, maybe Northern.It is garbage. It may not last a week. Save your money and buy the Makita. If money is real tight, find a good used tool store and get to know the guy. I've bought tons of used Makita tools and they all still work. You can tell what kind of animal has been driving it. Stay away from those off brands!!
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Hi everyone.
I was looking through a building magazine & I came upon an ad for tools at REALLY low prices.
In the ad they had a Chicago ElectricPower Tools 10" compound mitre saw for $99.00 (us) Im from Canada & I have never heard of this tool company before but even with the exchange that REALLY cheap. The cheapest 10" slider we have around here is at Sears its still well over $500.00
I was wondering if anyone has used or owned tools by Chicago Power Tools & what they think of them.
Ive never mail ordered tools before so Im a little leary on it. I am how ev er not that dull & understand you get what you pay for.
Basically what I need to know is if its a tool that wil last & be acurate enough for the 1st year of business untill I can buy a good Makita or Dewalt slider.
Someone let me know.
Ted