Harbor Freight Tools
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| Harbor Freight Tools | |
|---|---|
| Type | Private |
| Founded |  Los Angeles, California, USA (1968) |
| Headquarters | Camarillo, California, USA |
| Key people | David Martel, Executive Vice President Robert Glickman, Chief Financial Officer |
| Industry | Retail Catalog Tools |
| Website | www.harborfreight.com |
Harbor Freight Tools is a retail tool and hardware company that started in 1968, primarily selling through its mail order catalog, which still exists today. The Camarillo, California-based company offers more than 7,000 varieties of tools on its web site, mail order catalog, and retail stores. Harbor Freight Tools has over 314 retail store locations nationwide.
Harbor Freight Tools sells tools under a variety of house brands with American-sounding names though most are made in China, such as Chicago Electric, Drill Master, Central Machinery, Central Pneumatic, U.S. General, and Pittsburgh Tools. Many of the brands, such as machine tools, available from Harbor Freight are also sold under different brand names by other United States tool distributors, usually at somewhat higher prices.
The products are typically significantly less expensive than other brands making them ideal for low-end hobbyist use. Some of the tools are decent, or at least adequate, while others may not have the same consistency or quality of higher-end tools, as might be suggested by the price difference.
Several of these products, such as the perennially available 7"x10" metal-cutting mini-lathe and the 4"x6" horizontal/vertical metal-cutting bandsaw, have achieved near-legendary status among metalworking hobbyists.
