Eastwood Company?

What are your guys' oppinion on this company? Prices, service, quality of their tools, etc. I am looking into getting a new set of body hammers, some metal forming tools like a shrinker/stretcher, tubing bender, and POSSIBLY a bead roller later down the road. I haven't really looked around for the best prices and quality and would like to get some personal oppinions from those that have used these.
Thanks!

 

Whatever it is, if its in the Eastwood catalog, its too expensive.

I've never bought from them.

 

I've got a blast cabinet and most of my buffing supplies from them. Everything seems to be decent quality. They have some cool stuff in there.

 

here is an example
4 body panel clamps Eastwood $29
8 boby panel clamps Harbor Freight $5.
Tossed the 8 new ones in the drawer with the 4 old clamps I could not tell you which one are which.

 

Maybe, it is good quality stuff, but I think for the average guy, they are too expensive. If you are a pro, fine buy their tools,...............depends on how much you will use them.

 

Yeah it seems their products are much too high and that is my problem. Not sure where else to get them. I do want to get an E wheel later as well but theirs is WAY too expensive and I try to find plans on them and keep comming up with half assed plans and the other ones the people just made up and never even tried them out. I am stuck here and not sure what to do. Ron Covell sells a English Wheel for about 1600 bucks with some anvils, etc. Better yet, it's 44 inches deep unlike Eastwoods 28 inch deep one with no anvils or nothing for 900 bucks. I will have to go to Harbor Freight and get me some of those clamps too because I only have 2 lol. Anything else that is good from Harbor like those clamps that can come in useful? I work on vehicles everyday so whatever I buy is not a waste and whatever I buy I need lots of so I can't buy really expensive shit here.
Thanks again!

 

eastwood is a good company , but i agree their prices are too high

you have to do some checking around to see who else sells what you want

for example: a bevery shear B-2 is $849 from eastwood , mittler brothers sells it for $745

for an english wheel , check out Metal Ace , i have their 22b and i'm very happy with it

here's a link: http://www.englishwheels.net/

 

I got a beverly shear from harbor freight...I paid $78 bucks for it...it works real good for the "home" shop. For that price, how can you NOT get it. Cuts like butter and pulled me through some jams...plus it beats using metal shears.

The english wheels from Metal Ace are great, I called them and they can set you up w/ all of your English wheel needs. Great people too...very helpful.

Do any of you guys have a part number for those body panel clamps?

 

I appreciate the help guys! I will look into this...

 

alot of my tools are from Harbor freight. Mostly the tools that assist you in your work...like fold out tables for body work, clamps, wrenches and even air tools.

In the last 7 years, I broke one tool because I dropped it, my 90 degree angle (air) grinder. It really isnt that bad of stuff....it even helped me make my living too....

 

I have bought a ton of shit from Harbor Freight, almost my entire garage is supplied by them...the trick is to get the most heavy duty equipment they have, and if need be strengthen it up a bit...case in point, bought a Harbor Freight bead roller...made bracing and brackets out of angle iron to stiffen it up, added a 12v windshield washer motor w/ gear reduction and a foot switch and it's done...the main thing is you got to know how to use the tools without beating the living shit outta them...otherwise nothing you buy is going to last, especially not cheaper stuff...so far to date the equipment I've bought from them and been happy with...

110v Gasless welder (on sale) $150
Beverly Shear (open box/damaged) $70 bucks...no damage
Standing bead blasting cabinet (on sale) $200
16 spd. standing drill press (on sale) $200
7"x10" mini-lathe (on sale) $350
Bead Roller (on sale) $100
30" Sheet metal brake/shear/roll (on sale) $320
Heavy Duty Chopsaw (on sale) $45
4"x6" belt/round sander (on sale) $35
and shitloads of air tools, an angle grinder, welding clamps, you name it...the only bad thing that's happened so far is the speed control for my welder burnt out and had to order a new one after almost 2 years of "abuse"...I got my money out of it before it crapped, and it's still working with replacement parts...

 

The only thing I use the Eastwood catalog for is to see what the tools look like, like a set of radiused T-dollies for example, and then make my own...although I have considered buying their body leading kits, unless I can find one somewhere else for a better price...

 

I bought thier leading kit w/ the video...it was good and informative. I was real excited...until I went to my local body shop and found the same stuff for cheaper.

 

hahaha, shit I doubt any of my local body shops even know what lead is/was...how much is the kit in your area and how much is shipping?...hahaha...

 

I will check into Harbor Freight then. I take good care of my shit. Clean it after every use, blow it off, and during use I baby it as well. Like with welders, some people just throw the cable on the floor, drag it around and step all over it, etc. I keep it layed out nice and keep it nice. I've had it for 2 years now I think (maybe it's 3 I don't know) and the same cable on it and the thing still looks like BRAND spanking new. Then again, it's a Miller welder so of course I am going to take care of the damn thing.

 

Harbor freight does have some good prices-sometimes the quality is not right up there but overall much of their stuff will get the job done. I do not believe they sell bumping hammers/dollies but if they do I am not sure I would buy them. At this past Autorama in Detroit, Dagger tools had a display and their bumping hammers and dollies looked pretty decent at reasonable prices. Might give them a try at daggertools.com-jim

 

i wanna hear more about that modified HF bead roller, I've got one too and wanna see how you've got it reinforced and motorized!

 

Their catalog is good for seeing what tools are out there, then you can check around and find a better price. I did use their Rust Encapsulator with good results(good, not spectactlar, but worth what it cost)

 

As soon as I can get a working digital camera I'll be doing a tech article on it...my digi-cam fucking busted so the 20+ pics of the progress on that and my former project car are now stuck on the memory card, and I haven't finished all the photos of the bead roller yet either...it's actually quite slick...the reason I modified it is because I was sick of the damned thing flexing on me so much, and I was sick of calling my friends over everytime I wanted to 'roll a large panel so that they could hand crank it for me...got the idea for the windshield wiper motor from a friend who had done it and used a car battery...I'm using a homemade foot pedal made of 2 push-button ignition switches and a sheetmetal box, and a battery charger set on the 4 amp setting for power...sucker works like a dream now...

 

I agree on eastwood being like a wish book anything in there can be bought cheaper with a little looking around=I got one of their 110 volt centech welders set up with a extenal fan and loosened up the heat sensor inside works haul ass on light stuff use it more than my Lincoln sp170 t

 

I own a ton of tools from Harbor Freight, and most of them a pretty good quality, espically when you consider the prices, and Eastwood sells some of the EXACT SAME imported crap that HF does.

Eastwood is overpriced, but have a lot of hard to find/speciality tools. I get my buffing suppiles from there.

Does anybody know any better places to get leading kits/supplies????? I know there has to be a better place to get them, but when I asked at my local paint sup. store, they said they havent seen it it 20 years and wouldent know where to get it.....

 

You do get what you pay for, but like I said if you don't beat the shit outta your tools the cheaper stuff will last enough for it to pay for itself...I have a $20 Northern Tools angle grinder that I've used constantly for 2 years and never had a problem with it, ever...then a friend of mine came over and used it in my shop one weekend and blew it up within a day, because he sinks the thing into whatever he's working on and bogs it out constantly...I went and bought another $20 dollar angle grinder and I showed him how to use one properly and keep the rpm's high and cut light and it cut faster than when he was pushing it through...I use my "cheap shit" tools on nearly a daily basis and have yet to have one fail me, except the speed control on my welder which was a cheap fix...but believe me, if I find quality tools used or at auctions you're damned right I'm going to snatch them up...patience is your friend when it comes to finding good deals, but thrift can get you working now while you're waiting for good deals to come along...

 

Here is San Berdoo, the local welding shop and paint shop has all the stuff you need.

The only alternative is Eastwood im guessing...for the wooden paddles and such.

All this talk of tools got me to break out and mount the planishing hammer; I made a couple blisters w/ the down time.

 

didnt this tanget off really quick.

bottom line H/F tools are not bad...they have made me thousands of U.S. Dollars...

Thank God my tools dont determine my status in the "HOT ROD Community"

 

Back to the topic at hand....

HF does have body hammers and dollies, but they suck - lumpy, unfinished, soft. If you spend money anywhere, do it here.

For buffing supplies, I went to Caswell Plating.

 

Harbor Freights tools are crap.... and I have some to prove it... if you buy them get the lifetime replacement warranty, you'll need it... For body hammers get some Martin hammers, they're far superior to most anything else on the market right now. If you don't think there is a difference between these and the cheapies then you have no idea of what you're really doing... Plus they'll last a lifetime...As for Eastwood, they are overpriced for most things (i.e. junk) but they do have some things that are hard to find anywhere else....

as for Bead roller sand such I think http://www.mittlerbros.com/ has the best deals on quality products that work straight away...

 

I stopped at Harbor Freights' retail outlet in SC last week...just like Christmas! Most of their tools are a bargain compared to others. It helps to be able to see everything in person as opposed to buying from a catalog.

I've also bought a lot of tools from Eastwood. Their prices are much higher than anyone else but their customer service is excellent. I bought a tubing bender from them for $900. Kept it for two months and just couldn't get it to work right. Returned for a full credit with absolutely no hassle!

Don't forget about Sears. They have an awesome tool catalog.