Harbor Freight Jack Stand Recall

[Nick1911]

I'm sure some of you have seen this.  Let me know if I missed the thread talking about it...

Some Harbor Freight jack stands have some issues collapsing due to side loads/shifting weight.

They have recalled a number of them.  See here: https://images.harborfreight.com/hftweb/recalls/Jack-Stand-Recall-56371_61196_61197.pdf

If you have 3-ton or 6-ton HF jackstands with item numbers of 56371, 61196 or 61197, stop using them immediately and return them to HF for a full value store credit.

I checked mine.  Not impacted model numbers.  Wheew, I'd hate to be doing something unsafe!

[dogmush]

  at the picture.

In seriousness though, the key to HF is knowing what you are getting, and making smart decisions on where to save money.

I have two HF Jack's, and they work great, but I put the vehicles on US made jackstands before I get under them.

A good rule of thumb is if the tool failing at a single point could kill you, don't source that tool from the cheapest chinese brand you can find.

[Boomhauer]

They were produced with worn tooling so the notches that engage the pin are too shallow

[Brad Johnson]

I go to HF on occasion for those will-only-ever-need-it-once kind of tools but I still consider them the merest of improvements over "white van in a parking lot" quality/reliability. When it comes to my safety or welfare, I trust HF stuff to hold together about as much as I'd trust a room full of politicians to tell the truth.

Brad

[Ben]

I go to HF on occasion for those will-only-ever-need-it-once kind of tools but I still consider them the merest of improvements over "white van in a parking lot" quality/reliability. When it comes to my safety or welfare, I trust HF stuff to hold together about as much as I'd trust a room full of politicians to tell the truth.

Brad

Yup, I've found a lot of good things at HF, even stuff that seems to be just as good s expensive US made stuff (Icon ratchets, for instance) but absolutely would not trust my life to any of their stuff. Even US made stuff, I go the overkill route regardless of cost if it's something that could kill me on failure.

[Angel Eyes]

[Silver Bullet]

Make sure you use good wheel chocks too.

[lupinus]

Yup, I've found a lot of good things at HF, even stuff that seems to be just as good s expensive US made stuff (Icon ratchets, for instance) but absolutely would not trust my life to any of their stuff. Even US made stuff, I go the overkill route regardless of cost if it's something that could kill me on failure.

It also really just comes down to the item rather even more so than the product line.

I recently found myself in need of a set of ratcheting wrenches and stopped at harbor freight. I looked at their basic Pittsburgh line, IIRC had 5 wrenches in the set, and were flex head. The metric set? I could find nothing at all to complain about compared to my kobalt wrenches I usually have on hand. Flex head was fine, ratcheting mechanism felt like every other half decent 72 tooth ratcheting wrench I've picked up, etc. No complaints. The SAE set, same exact set other than being SAE instead of metric, was GARBAGE. The flex heads were all inconsistent with some being darn near floppy and other so tight they barely moved, the ratcheting mechanisms all felt gritty and nasty, etc. And not just one set, all the ones they had hanging on the shelf. I then noted that the metric set was made in Taiwan and the SAE set was made in China. Why on Earth they sourced the same exact wrenches from two different countries is beyond me.

[Boomhauer]

It also really just comes down to the item rather even more so than the product line.

I recently found myself in need of a set of ratcheting wrenches and stopped at harbor freight. I looked at their basic Pittsburgh line, IIRC had 5 wrenches in the set, and were flex head. The metric set? I could find nothing at all to complain about compared to my kobalt wrenches I usually have on hand. Flex head was fine, ratcheting mechanism felt like every other half decent 72 tooth ratcheting wrench I've picked up, etc. No complaints. The SAE set, same exact set other than being SAE instead of metric, was GARBAGE. The flex heads were all inconsistent with some being darn near floppy and other so tight they barely moved, the ratcheting mechanisms all felt gritty and nasty, etc. And not just one set, all the ones they had hanging on the shelf. I then noted that the metric set was made in Taiwan and the SAE set was made in China. Why on Earth they sourced the same exact wrenches from two different countries is beyond me.

If you look on the website most items have two different SKUs for the item in question denoting a potential difference in manufacturers. I personally try to always choose Taiwan ones when I’m in the store picking out what to get

[lupinus]

If you look on the website most items have two different SKUs for the item in question denoting a potential difference in manufacturers. I personally try to always choose Taiwan ones when I’m in the store picking out what to get

Same here. I did look at the ones on the shelf, all the metric were Taiwan and all the SAE were China. I'd be interested to check them periodically to see if any of the SAE ones show up as made in Taiwan and if so, they're as decent as the metric set I bought. Multi sourcing is a perfectly fine thing, but it's a major pita when one source is right and another source is crap.

[Cliffh]

I bought a set of made in India box/open end wrenches from HF in 1982.  They're still going strong.  The oxy/acetylene torch set bought at the same time finally bit the dust last year, all the rubber has rotted.

Even though they've served without problem, I will be checking the jack stands.

[230RN]

Wasn't there a guy killed recently because an earthquake rocked the car off the stands while he was  under it?

Pretty odd circumstances, but kind of goes to show you.

[HankB]

. . . A good rule of thumb is if the tool failing at a single point could kill you, don't source that tool from the cheapest chinese brand you can find.

I've seen this basic suggestion before.

I think it's excellent advice.

[Pb]

Make sure you use good wheel chocks too.

What makes a good wheel chock?

[zxcvbob]

What makes a good wheel chock?

You want something that won't slip.  The HF ones made of Chinese stinky rubber are fine.  The smell goes away eventually.  (what is that smell anyway?)

[lupinus]

You want something that won't slip.  The HF ones made of Chinese stinky rubber are fine.  The smell goes away eventually.  (what is that smell anyway?)

Communism and the tears of underage labor

[Silver Bullet]

I tend to use both my chocks, and then grab a few bricks so I can have a couple wheels chocked both forward and reverse.

Sounds paranoid, but I'm allergic to cars crushing me.  I get a rash and a caved in chest. 

[Pb]

You want something that won't slip.  The HF ones made of Chinese stinky rubber are fine.  The smell goes away eventually.  (what is that smell anyway?)

Yeah, those are the ones I got.

[dogmush]

What makes a good wheel chock?

https://www.globalindustrial.com/p/material-handling/dock-truck/chocks-wheel-tire/rubber-wheel-tire-chock-10-l-x-8-w-x-6-h?infoParam.campaignId=T9F&gclid=Cj0KCQjwwr32BRD4ARIsAAJNf_1UiRNDlbPy1CxSLA-KGNGyqgkLJL9GRVLYkPhqWN1kJnEKTkk9in8aAvbmEALw_wcB

Those will hold a Deuce-and-a-half, and are damn near indestructible.  I got mine.....cheaper..... but $30 for a pair of chocks that will outlast you is a decent price.

[Brad Johnson]

Got a pair of these last year. Heavy suckers. Seem sturdy enough.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CGU14T2/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1





Brad

[WLJ]

You want something that won't slip.  The HF ones made of Chinese stinky rubber are fine.  The smell goes away eventually.  (what is that smell anyway?)

The burnt carcasses of Hong Kong Protesters

[Ben]

Well, they apparently replaced the defective jack stands with... Defective jack stands. 

From an email I received this morning (I don't have the stands, I think this is just an email to all their customers vs just those who purchased the stands):

To the Harbor Freight Community:

I'm writing to apologize. I often reach out to tell you about Harbor Freight's commitment to quality and all the investments we've made to deliver quality tools at the lowest prices. Your trust matters deeply to me and I'm proud of how far we've come. So when we have a product recall, it hurts.

A few months ago, we recalled our Pittsburgh 3 ton and 6 ton steel jack stands (SKUs 56371, 61196 and 61197) due to a manufacturer's defect. We asked customers to return them and receive a gift card that could be used to purchase replacement jack stands. I felt terrible about that recall because you should never have a concern about the safety of any of our products.

Today, I feel even worse. I'm disappointed and embarrassed because we've identified a welding defect in a small number of the Pittsburgh 3 ton steel jack stands (SKU 56373) that replaced the recalled jack stands. We're now adding these jack stands to our recall. Unfortunately, this defect wasn't discovered during the initial recall investigation. If you own these jack stands or any of the jack stands in our original recall, whether or not you have had an issue with them, please stop using them immediately and bring them back to your local Harbor Freight Store for a full cash refund or store credit (see details here).

We have investigated all of our other Pittsburgh 3 ton steel jack stands (SKUs 56371, 56372 and 57308) as well as the Pittsburgh 6 ton steel jack stands (SKUs 56368, 56369 and 56370) and Pittsburgh 12 ton steel jack stands (SKUs 56374 and 56375) and did not find the defect. Although none of these other jack stands are being recalled, if you own any of them and have any concern whatsoever, please bring them back and we'll give you a full cash refund or store credit for those as well.

I want to apologize to all of our customers. While we've dramatically grown our team of engineers and inspectors, and intensified our tests and inspections, I assure you that the lessons learned from this will drive further improvement.

As the owner and founder of Harbor Freight, I want you to know that we stand behind every product we sell and that safety will always be our top priority.

Sincerely,

Eric Smidt
Owner and Founder
Harbor Freight Tools

[WLJ]

Those responsible for sacking the people who have just been sacked, have been sacked.

[bedlamite]

https://www.harborfreight.com/js-details

[RoadKingLarry]

Don't buy crap from Harbor freight that you are going to bet your life on.