Who can do a group buy on wholesale stuff?

[mrblaine]

These are pretty good for most of our needs. I used Garry's and it is pretty high quality. I know the HF is a lot cheaper, but we discovered that all the sleeves in this one are heat treated.

http://www.specprod.com/PROD_DIR/PROD_PRODNUMBER.HTML

I would like to know what we can get these for. The one Garry has, I can buy for 120.00 but would like to investigate a better price if possible.

It takes you to a part number screen and the part number is 7250.

You are just another ride in the amusement park of my mind.

[Jeff Weston]

It's not as nice as the one you show but you can get a cheapie from Harbor Freight for $26.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=38926

Jeff

[Jeff Weston]

Here's a better looking one for $55.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=42236



Jeff

{edit} It actually looks to be the identical product.

[Bushwhacker]

I just changed my ball joints with one from Autozone that sells for $100. Luckily rental is free. It looked alot like that kit from HF. I will probably buy that HF one for $55 in case I need to change Ujoints on the trail.

Jim Klouzek
97 TJ Sport

[Stu Olson]

Jeff,

I agree with you. Other than the color of the case, it certainly appears to be the same unit.

I have one of these (different model) from HF. It has the 3 tubes that store inside of each other, but not the 3 cylinders that are of different lengths.

How strong is mine? Well, I can tell you that if you get a bad case of dumb ass and decide to press the u-joint out without first removing the clip, you will bend the ears. DOH!

I caught mine on sale at HF for $29. I would not pay $120 for what appears to be virtually the same tool (sans the 3 cylinders).

Everyone that has used mine on the trail has been totally impressed (and quite thankful too!)

The ONLY cabana boy in this community who has won a raffle!
http://www.stu-offroad.com

[Robert J. Yates]

Blaine said the difference was in heat treating - that being said, is heat treating worth an additional $65 or so?

98 TJ Sport
D44ARB/D30Detroit/Teralow/35" MTr's

[mrblaine]

The only reason I would consider getting one that is heat treated, is that my tools seem to get quite the workout.

Robert was kind enough to swap out some ratchets for me Saturday morning and that was the fourth time for both of those in the past six months.

Garry said that the HF item they used only a couple of times is already showing a bit of wear on the sleeves.

Anyway, it will all have to be ordered because none of the HF stores around here stock them anymore.

You are just another ride in the amusement park of my mind.

[Chris L]

Blaine--
I have a wholesale license I can use.

97 ZJ 8.0" lift, Armed and plated "short bus".

[Richie]

I'll check out what kind of pricing I can get through the shop in the morning. I bought an OTC unit a while ago, but I can't remember what I paid. How many units do you think we are looking at?

Richard
97 TJ with sprinkles
97 ZJ

[Stu Olson]

So....I am curious. Would China export two versions of the same tool? One heat treated and one "standard"? Or, is this not a Chinese made unit and the HF Chinese units are a knockoff of it? Not trying to stir the pot, it just seems odd to me.

The ONLY cabana boy in this community who has won a raffle!
http://www.stu-offroad.com

[TObject]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Stu Olson:
Would China export two versions of the same tool?[/quote]

Yes they would, IMHO. It is common for that part of the world to have different quality models of an esentially same product.

[Joe Dillard]

I've been pushing the envelope by not buying one of these types of tools & a full set of extra u-joints.

I do recall reading about the HF unit on Stu site, but....

[TJRON]

Stu,
That practice is very common on over seas tools. Harbor freight is the main seller of them. Some of their woodworking tools are made by the same factorys that make top quality tools (Delta and Jet for example). The imports have little quality control and do everything as cheap as possible. Some of the things they omit are heat treating, flatening things that have to be flat (like saw tables), cheap motors, bearings and bunches of stuff. I would think for occasional use the tool you have would work fine, but probably not too good for constant use. You all ready got your moneys worth and it's still going so I would buy one of those in a heartbeat if my local store had one. I would also buy a heat treated one if this deal goes through.

The thing is, I WANT ONE!
Ron.

I like the way my Jeep is now..... I'd just like it, well, a little higher off the ground with more ground clearance!

[Jeff Weston]

This may be the one Stu has. It is cheaper at $39.99 and appears to have a few less fittings.



It is item no. 38335-ORPH

Jeff

[Richie]

I just got a price on the OTC 7249 3 in 1 service set. They are $84.85. This one includes the C-frame, 3 reciever tubes, an installing adaptor and a removal adaptor. Made in USA

Richard
97 TJ with sprinkles
97 ZJ

[Ace!]

So, if I read it right, it doesn't include these parts of the one Blaine posted?:

#38354 - 4WD Receiving Cup
#38355 - Installing Cup
#204508 - 4WD Installing Adapter

Áron O'Proinntigh is ainm dom

[papromike]

Blaine, I can do it ...no problemo...

8" locked and armored "grocery getter":

[Stu Olson]

Jeff, that does look like mine. That was the price and I caught it on sale for $10 off. I have used the heck out of mine.

The first time I saw a guy use on (it was a HF like I have) on the trail....heck, Robert was with me on that run down by Tucson, two years ago. It was so slick. I figured if I ever had to do a u-joint swap on the trail, it would pay for itself in just one use!

Ron, I have indeed gotten my money's worth out of it. It's done my front drive shaft, two complete sets of front axle shafts, and several drive shafts of friends on the trail (not to mention my buddy's front axle shaft too....almost forgot).

The ONLY cabana boy in this community who has won a raffle!
http://www.stu-offroad.com

[Jeff Weston]

For those interested, in the Harbor Freight mailer that came today, the 3rd press I listed (P/N 38335) is on sale for $10 off. For $29.99, I'm all over it. If it only lasts a year or two, so be it.

Jeff

[mrblaine]

The verdict is in. After a good comparison of both, I have it from a very reliable source that there are huge quality differences between the import and onshore presses.

Will this make a difference to the casual user? Absolutely not!

However, some of us will be using them a bit more than casually. Some of us are also using them on Warn axles and upper and lower balljoints. The upper ball joint requires a long cheater pipe on the press to get it fully seated. That is a lot of wear on critical parts.

Anyone else in the same boat, post here and we will get a quantity and see if a price can be dealt with.

If it is just something you are going to throw under the seat in the jeep for the odd trail repair, by all means get the HF one.

You are just another ride in the amusement park of my mind.