High Quality Chinese Tools!

With the weather cooperating again, I thought by this time I'd have photos of new sheet metal tacked into place, but my Chinese tools thought differently.

First to go was the nearly new Ingersol Rand air shear. I bought it just before I began cutting patch panels, so I've not used it much, but the center blade broke off. Since I originally paid twice what the no-name shear cost I expected the quality to be better, but I guess expensive Chinese products are just as crappy as cheap Chinese products.

I located replacement cutting blades on line, but they were only $20 less than a new tool. I suppose I made another bad decision by ordering the new tool, but I'm hoping the first tool failure was a fluke, since user reviews were very good. If the new one goes belly-up I can use the first tool to cannibalize parts...unless the same thing breaks!

Next, I set up the Chinese bead roller to put some rigidity grooves in the trunk floor. The manual says 20 gauge is the heaviest it will form. The manual was right, but I had to try it on the 18 gauge required for the floor. When trying to form 18 gauge, the frame flexes and the die wheels will not track true. The set screws meant to secure the dies also slip if you set the dies too tight, which means you have to roll the panel through, then tighten the setting and roll it back again. It took three passes to form the panel and because of the flex, the repeats drifted off-line. I finally got them done, but pretty doesn't describe the results.

The day wasn't done yet, as I decided to use my Chinese bench grinder to clean up some welds on small panels. Despite being the most powerful and expensive model carried by Northern Tool, it's laughably gutless. I've learned how to baby it and still get some work done, but apparently its days are numbered also. The cast aluminum part-rest broke off at one wheel, so I can only use one side. Today the light switch broke and the plastic shield can no longer be adjusted, and keeps falling out of place. It's over a year old, so perhaps I'm expecting too much.

Not to be outdone by the more expensive tools, my pick hammer lost its head when the wood handle split. Not much of a crisis, but just one more little aggravation.

If I could buy North American made tools, I'd gladly do it, but almost none are made for the home owner and shade tree mechanic. Even professional and commercial grade tools made here are a rarity, and all are prohibitively expensive unless used on your regular job every day.

One piece of sheet metal stock had quite a bit of surface rust, so I used my dad's 1951 vintage Craftsman belt sander to clean it up quickly. That thing had thousands of hours of heavy use on his construction job, yet keeps on doing the job after more than sixty years, with only a couple of small parts replaced. I sure can't say the same for the modern crap.