I am an employee at harbor freight tools. My store loves watching these videos. Im personally a welding student and have used all four of the angle grinders we sell and the hercules one is my favorite. We just released more Hercules and Bauer drill drivers, hammer drills, impact drivers, and more electric Earthquake impact guns and electric ratchet. They advertise the hercules drills against a specific Dewalt drill, I think a side by side comparison of these drills would make for an awesome video if not the rest of the new stuff as well
AWESOME REVIEW!!! I'm a heavy equipment mechanic and I'm SO tired of cheesy uneducated tool reviews where these guys pretend they have a clue! You covered all the important stuff and beyond and you're very educated and went into extreme detail on bearing and switch manufacturers. My friend I'm EXTREMELY IMPRESSED!
So 5 years ago you tore apart the same model Hercules grinder I have, to see how well it’s made. ( I agree btw, love Hercules tools). But, I was looking for a video for someone doing a cord replacement. I’m not going to admit how I came to grind through my cord but… think, NC, working in hellishly unusual cold weather… that’s my excuse, sticking with it. The second stupid thing I did was not take a picture of the switch assembly before I took it out to disconnect wires. Your shots of the switch removal saved my bacon. Many thanks. 5 years later.
finally another person to teardown tools and review them, thank you so much, also pls do some reviews on Ryobi and Kobalt power tools plus they are more budget brands
Went to Harbor Freight today and bought one of these Hercules 4-1/2 inch grinders. Your teardown and review pushed me over the edge. Thanks for a good, honest report. I'm a subscriber now.
After 2 years of minimal use my old HF Chicago Electric grinder died. I was debating the Herculise or Dewalt but after your video I purchased the Herculise. I am very happy with my choice. Thanks for all the great info on how HF stepped up their quality. Keep the videos coming.
Just came across your teardowns since I’m about to buy a couple of new grinders. Subscribed...thanks for the straightforward look without all the hype.
welder here, I purchased one and use it everyday, actually a better word would be abuse, left it in the rain, 14 foot drop onto concrete, and use it for everything, every attachment that you can put on a grinder I have used. I am well beyond the 1 year warranty that I got for it too, I own the 11 amp model, I like paddle triggers allot more. I actually in fact love this grinder. if you are looking for a grinder, it would be a mistake to get anything other than the hercules
I've had this grinder for about 18 months. Use it almost every day. For $35 with a coupon, IMO, it's a true bargain. Doesn't skip a beat. Didn't think the optional warranty was worth it. If or when it breaks, I'll buy another. A terrific tool for the money. I also have a similar Hitachi grinder. The Hercules is more powerful and runs smoother. Have a newer Craftsman grinder, as well. Closer, performance wise, to the Hitachi. Really, for $35 the Herc is fantastic.
Yup. No extended warranty here. Just take them back and say you want to upgrade to the next model. For HF members, just pay the difference for new tool.
Thanks for the video! If it still works, along with the other two, try a comparison between vibration and power. One major improvement with more expensive tools is almost always less vibration and it might be interesting to see how much, if any, there is a difference between them.
I just bought the Hercules today. I have been using the drill master ones for a while and throwing them away basically. The Hercules runs a lot smoother with a lot less vibration and cuts smoother without skipping, bogging or jumping.
I've burned up a number of grinders and the failure is either a shorted field winding due to excess heat or a broken rotor to commutator wire. Looks like they've addressed those issues in the Herc. It's a pretty nice tool in my opinion but I'm sticking with the "yellow or green" ones for now. I really like this review, very well done.
Thanks for the teardown and overview. I have the blue, paddle switched one. If it ever fails, I'll pick up the Hercules version. The last time I was there, I noticed several buyers of the new branded products.
I just shared your review on my Facebook page. You did a great job, like the way you stay on subject, your videos are clear, looks like you planned your shots out well, your audio is clean, and you know what you're talking about. Happy to be a subscriber.
Not as FUNNY as AVE, but I gotta say I like this review style better!! Earned my sub!! Also make sure you tear down the new Hercules 20v tools before AVE does!!
I have that grinder and I put gear oil in the gear case to help with heat. I put a oring under the spring for the push button lock and it hasn't leaked yet! It runs quite a bit smother
I purchased this grinder on this videos advice. I like it better than my Milwaukee and Bosch, on par with my Makita. I like that it's side handle mounts at 90 degrees and the guard is quick to adjust without tools.
Been using the Hercules since it came out. This is June 2022 and prices are a lot higher now but it seems to be holding up just fine doing a lot of cutting and wire brushing with a heavy twisted cup brush to remove weld slag.
I'm impressed with the quality of your content, the grinder looks great too. I haven't tried the new Hercules grinder yet but I like the ease of use of the midrange harbor freight grinder more than a dewalt grinder. I suspect it's mostly because of slightly less torque on startup yet still plenty of power once spun up. I subscribed and am looking forward to more videos.
AWESOME tool reviews!!! Honestly the best review on tools I've ever seen!!! And I'm a heavy equipment mechanic so it takes a lot to impress me with tool reviews! These other guys are quite honestly just a bunch of glorified carpenters that really have no clue
this looks extremely familiar to the guts of my hitatchi i bought for $36 about 10 years ago. it's still running strong so i can't say anything negative. HF stepping up!
Hey man, nice channel! I'm an AvE fan, but I appreciate your no-nonsense approach with 100% less jokes about putting things in vises. I've been holding off on buying a grinder as I don't have a serious need for one in most of my work, but I might just pick one of these up for some light duty work with one of their infamous coupons. Thanks for the exceptional review!
I own this grinder. This thing is awesome. I don't use it daily. I have used it on many tough job's. Doesn't lose power and can handle just about anything ( within reason )
The advantage of the spring on the Hercules isn't more consistent spring pressure. It allows for longer brushes as the pocket doesn't need to include room for the coil spring.
Thanks for your video !!!...I just bought the Hercules and I have made a video of it cutting through a 3/8 inch thick piece of steel using the grinding disc & a cutting disc
I've been posting videos on RU-vid for over 10 years, but I do like their new feature of matching me up with hammer and chisel guy stuff. I use Grinders everyday, and my landlord just gave me an expensive seasonal Kobalt grinder three guys, 20 minutes, we could only get it to work for a couple of seconds. too fancy, too many buttons, Whadapieceifjunk. So he threw away the box, and lost the bill. So I went to Harbor Freight and I bought him the $25 grinder, for the little bit he uses it, we'll see how it works. I was at Lowe's a couple years ago and they were liquidating the $25 grinders for $5, I bought the shopping cart full of them and guess I'm set for life. One thing I've noticed about these grinders is sometimes the switch is so annoying to use, and I like to put 5 inch thin cutting discs in, and some of them rub the guard, some of them except the 5-inch disc which is more convenient for my cutting purposes then a 4 1/2" disc. Harbor Freight doesn't sell a 5in disc at all. and thank you very much for your videos, I'll be a subscriber
The same grinder, with some very minor visible differences such as the shape of the handle bar, is being sold here in Finland under the Biltema brand for 21.50€ which is about $25. Since we're in Europe it is naturally a 230V version. The power rating is 700W. I had the previous, nearly identical model for about 5 years and used it quite extensively in some pretty heavy duty work, until it finally broke a couple of days ago. One of the copper contacts in the commutator had come off, which means that you cannot fix it by replacing the carbon brushes, because the gap in the commutator will eat away and destroy the brushes instantly. The machine was definitely worth the price. By the way, did you mention in the video that the quick lock mechanism actually allows you to detach the guard and not merely adjust it, which is a very useful feature?
I've worked in the automotive tool business for many, many years. There is good reason why cheap tools are cheap.. One of the companies I worked for was an importer/ manufacturer of pneumatic (air) tools. The point of manufacture was was Taiwan, in the same plant as Ingersoll Rand. Many of our air tools were exactly the same inside as the IR tool. Many were not. The changes we could make to a tool were amazing. Cheaper bearings, maybe even a bushing instead, press fit items instead of bolt together items, no seal or cheap seal. You get the picture. The problem is that many big name companies have made changes like this and still ask the big bucks. They also make a less expensive line, but it looks just like the premium line !! If you want a good tool, ask around and look at what the pro's use. Get the MODEL number of what they use.You won't go wrong.
One of the most important parts, the switch, you mention nothing? Grinder switches get over used. Can you get a replacement or do you trash it when it breaks?
I'd like to know which factory is making these new Hercules line of tools. Comparing things like brands of bearing, switch, cord, etc, should provide clues. Guess we just have to take apart every grinder to find out, haha.
Was in the HF store and bout the Hercules on a whim. Gotta say I like it a lot more than my DeWalt paddle grinders. The DeWalt's get very hot after just a few minutes grinding. I mean uncomfortably hot. I will likely replace the DeWalt with other Hercules.
I really appreciate your reviews. For instance I always thought the grind markings on the steel portion on the rotor were defects or wear but I learned on the other video that they are to balance the motor. Also I didn't know about the glass reinforced plastic. You are even able to interpret codes for the cables, plastic parts, and bearings! Since you talked about revenue for the channel, do you know if you still get ad revenue from someone that has both a youtube premium subscription AND an adblocker on their browser? I'm wondering if I need to disable my adblocker.
The dewalt warranty is not as great as it first seems. It's 1 year parts and labor, and the next 2 years they only pay for parts. What's more, if you want them to fix it, then you have to mail that thing to them, which will cost you at least $15. Finally, they might just tell you that your warranty doesn't cover w/e happened to it , which means you have to pay out of pocket to fix it. So, are you going to do all that for a $60 grinder or are you just going to go buy another one? You are going to go buy another one. Thus you really only have a 1 year warranty with Dewalt. The HF warranty is 2 years, drive to the store, throw it on the counter for ANY REASON and get a new one. If you want a warm and fuzzy warranty feeling, then HF is the better experience by far. Great review though, subbed.
@John Handcock....excellent breakdown of the "warranty" game. I wish Dewalt would just do a three year warranty covering parts and labor with no questions asked. I think Milwaukee does five years but am not completely sure. Ridgid, with the LSA, if you register it properly, gives you a lifetime warranty.
Thank you so much for the clear review! I was just looking at it in the store yesterday. From your video, the ring hear is friction fit to the shaft and I don't like that. Basically I just dislike anything that's friction fit as that's always harder to remove for maintenance :-) Also, you should include some running test to compare the noise levels and power.
Thanks for covering the details! I agree this represents a major step forward for HFT. I've heard there's a new welder upgrade coming under the Vulcan brand. I've seen the signs in the stores, but then they pulled them. Heard anything?
Interesting, seems like a reasonably good value (I don't care much for warranties, usually more trouble than they are worth unless something is DOA). Bummer you can't use the 20% off coupons on them though. I look forward to seeing the Dewalt comparison.
Considering the decent quality of the Hercules, it makes me wonder who does the manufacturing. Looks like it's either one of the cheaper lines from TTI or Stanley B&D with blue plastic and the Hercules name slapped on. I'll lean Stanley B&D and it being most like a Porter Cable.
nice job man, I'd like to see you do the new Hercules drill/driver and the Hercules impact driver. They are supposed to be DeWalt killers... let us know if they are worth it or not. I bought this grinder and I really like it.
nice video. I'm surprised to see alot of Hitachi grinder parts there. I do wonder if you can stop it under load like one can of the other two cheaper grinders.
My 4 1/2” Milwaukee grinder has a bushing at the head instead of a bearing. It kinda irks me that it’s made that way. But whatever. That Hercules looks really good.
For the same price I can buy 4 of the cheapest angle grinder and have a different wheel on each one. One for metal, one for masonry, one for grinding and a brush from cleaning/polishing. That way I don't ever have to change the attachments.
p.s. I ended up purchasing a Hercules Grinder. I had purchased the cheaper Drillmaster but after watching the video I realized the huge difference between models and took it back for the Hercules. Although I won't use it a lot, I don't want to have to keep purchasing the same item.
I have all three of these and while I enjoy each. The Hercules is the nicest and smooth as butter. The dark blue CE paddle is a damn work horse but vibrates a lot. The cheap $10 one has good feels but lacks power, don’t get me wrong it can still do a lot but you really have to let the tool do the work. The only reason I have a Hercules is because everytime I element back for a CE dark blue $29 paddle grinder (seriously they are work horses) they were out so finally I said F-It.
I bought the cheap $10.00 drill master grinder and it burnt out after 35 seconds... yes 35 seconds. I am grinding down a cement slab ... have a crack which is slightly raised and using correct grinding wheel (diamond). Do you recommend the Hercules over the 30.00 drill master? Ps GREAT VIDEO! First time I saw one of your videos.
First off as tool head and gearhead thank you for spending your monies and time. 2nd honestly with Hercules it's in pro tool cost they are gonna have to prove themselves. I got 4 grinders 2 dewalt u.s. made, one bosch and one Chicago electric... I use the c.e. short light stuff. And at the cost of ten bucks I'm not too upset. But a lot of hazard fraught stuff has been failing me and i upgrade to dewalt etc. I'm a weird duck though... a farmer winter wheat, a harris county deputy and ffl. But I build or make most stuff I want and hate any lost time. Whether a tool breaks or not and can be returned sounds great. Till its 100 plus miles and 2 hours of my time.
so - big difference with hercules vs $10 grinder is the epoxy on motor windings? Why not just put some jb-weld on cheap $10 grinder windings? I am going to do that with my $10 HF grinder. Should make $10 grinder even more reliable!
I was impressed with the quality of that tool, I did not see anything that looked designed to fail, you don't even see that on AvE teardowns in higher end tools. I might give harbor freights newer powertools a second look. I have always liked them for some hand tools, such as breaker bars and the like, there is just some things you can't justify spending 10x as much. but to steal a line from AvE this grinder was skookum (spelling?)
It's not a rotor. It's an armature. Rotor is for bushless motors and hold magnets. The "strings" are probably Kevlar to hold the windings to the armature and keep it from flying apart.
+Drew w it’s even simpler than that. The rotor is the part of an electric motor or generator that spins. In this motor design, the terms armature and rotor are both correct.
To bad about the warranty. I think Metebo's cheap one has a year. The paddle switch grinder quit after the third use and the warranty was already expired.
I got the sorta cheap one and so far it's held up well. really give her hell beveling 8in pipe. gets hotter than a 2$ pistol but haven't smoked her yet. so all in all for under 30$ so far it's held up
John Gibson I've had the mid priced one for awhile.. smoked two now have the Hercules... Needed a grinder for school I wouldn't cry if it broke or got stolen. Anyways 2 days in with hercules and it's held up has alot more power than the mid priced
I just bought the 6 amp paddle switch one. The one that say's "pro". I don't know how good it is yet because I haven't used it yet. The Hercules sounds great and got me thinking about switching. The thing that's stopping me is, I like the paddle switch instead of the other switch. If Hercules had the paddle switch I would have done switched already. Anyone have an opinion for me? I'll listen but just don't be rude about it. Take care my friends.
FYI, The Hercules Brand isn't owned by Harbor Freight is just distributed by HB same goes for The Diablo Brand sold at HB and 20 % or 25 % discount coupons aren't being honored at the time of check out. I just bought the " Hercules 16 " Tool Bag" was a bit surprising. Read the fine print of the 20 % and 25 % coupons not sure if you were aware of it.
No tool disposal sales? Deal breaker! Really at $40 I'd rather kick in a few more bucks and get a decent name brand. But this grinder looks OK. Still Hercules? I really don't like side switch grinders either. Being left handed the switch is on the wrong side for me. I go for rat tail and paddle switch grinders.
most of the grinder you can unscrew the gear box and rotate it in the position you lioke, i prefer the switch on top and almos all bosch grinder permit it
