Tried a $30 angle grinder from Harbor Freight and it caught fire after 4 cuts on some rebar

I was out at a job site in Riverside last Saturday cutting up some old rebar for a retaining wall... my buddy said just get the cheap one, they're all the same. Well, four cuts in and smoke started pouring out the vents, then a little flame popped up. I unplugged it fast but the thing was too hot to touch for 20 minutes. I guess there's a reason the pros spend over $100 on a grinder. Has anyone else had a budget tool just give up on them like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

thomas.tyler29d ago

My neighbor had a similar experience with a cheap drill from one of those discount tool places. He was just putting together a deck, nothing heavy duty, and the thing started smoking on the third screw. The smell was something else, like burning plastic and bad decisions mixed together. He ended up borrowing my old Makita and finished the whole job without a hiccup. Sometimes you really do get what you pay for, especially with tools that spin real fast.

kim19129d ago

My uncle bought a $15 drill from a big box store to hang some curtains and it lasted through three houses before he finally gave it away. @thomas.tyler I get that some cheap tools are junk, but my experience has been different with the lower end stuff. That little drill wasn't fast or fancy, but it did the job without smoke or weird smells. I've also got an old Craftsman from the 80s that still works fine, so maybe it depends on the specific tool and what you're asking it to do. Take my opinion with a grain of salt, but I've seen cheap tools hold up better than expected, especially for light duty stuff like putting together furniture or fixing a fence gate.