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Harbor Freight quality

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Xdriver

Xdriver

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Sean
Besides being from Harbor Freight what would cause this plastic to get cracked up. No it wasn't dropped. All I did was clean and let dry in my garage.

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You might have bought it there but MityVac is not a Harbor Freight brand. I've had good service life from their handheld pump. Sure looks like it took an impact. or maybe you cleaned it with carb spray or another chemical that attacked the plastic.

_
 
Seriously?????? Nothing. I can imagine some cleaners that would melt or discolor the face if it's plastic. That looks like it's been dropped several times. What did you clean it with?

My best suggestion is that the gauge was used, abused, and returned -- and the original owner had covered it with some sort of clear-coat (I couldn't possibly tell you what) that did a pretty good job masking the scrapes. And when you came along and cleaned it, the gouges reappeared in all their glory. I've used some polishes (can't think of exactly what at the moment) what would make a piece of scratchy old plastic look good, but not for long.
 
I just cleaned it with water. When using it some brake fluid came through the pump handle, which I figured was a bad seal in here somewhere. Could that have gotten in there caused that plastic to crack up.

The glass was fogged with moisture after I cleaned it. I guess that moisture cold have had some dot4 in it?
 
Mine is cracked too. I remember dropping it on the ground from not a great height. Any shop hand tool should survive such a drop, IMO.
 
It wouldn't exactly be the first time somebody has returned something to a store under fraudulent circumstances. Last summer I bought a new bicycle tube. Brought it home. Took it out of the package. Not only was it not shrink-wrapped as tubes always are, it was blown, and it was a different brand. Somebody had bought a tube, then rolled the old one back into the box to get his $6 back. Redefines the meaning of cheapskate.
 
tshelfer said:
...Somebody had bought a tube, then rolled the old one back into the box to get his $6 back. Redefines the meaning of cheapskate.
Click to expand...

I take pride in being a cheapskate, I look for the best value without any concern for tags or brand names, try and minimize waste, sometimes buying second hand and always recycle and re-purpose when possible.

That person is not a cheapskate that person is a thief pure and simple. They stole that item and could be prosecuted.

_
 
That really looks like it was crushed rather than dropped.
If you piled it into your toolbox or cabinet with a bunch of other tools, it may have been damaged when the drawer was closed.

That or someone else in your household knows what happened.
 
Mityvac can take chemical abuse. Mine has, looks like some one dropped it pretty hard to do that. The H/F brand pump has poor reviews, leaks badly and falls apart freely. Nice brass body to boot, shame as it is a fair looking tool.
I really do like all that I can do with mine. It has been a very good and sturdy tool. Unless the gauge allows the vacuum to fail about all you can do is replace the gauge itself, just a threaded mount.
 
I put my finger over the inlet and pumped. It seemed to hold pressure so may just be a cosmetic thing. However I do wonder about the fluid coming through handle when I was using it. Guess we'll see again in a couple years.
 
SilverBullet said:
I take pride in being a cheapskate, I look for the best value without any concern for tags or brand names, try and minimize waste, sometimes buying second hand and always recycle and re-purpose when possible.

That person is not a cheapskate that person is a thief pure and simple. They stole that item and could be prosecuted.

_
Click to expand...

Yep. There is a difference. And I am cheaper than you are. ;-)
 
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