I'm not much for ranting but.... Harbor Freight is stupid!

[Scott E]

I need a small shop press and my local Harbor Freight store lists a 12 ton that uses a bottle jack for power. Perfect for modifying for a job specific bit of kit a small industrial shop asked me to build for them. I check the web site and it has a green check mark beside the in stock block on the product info page. It's an in-store item only so you can't order one on-line. I head out to go buy one and discover they can't sell it to me because not all 3 boxes it comes in was there. That was two weeks ago. The manager told me to come back Wednesday because the missing box will be on the truck and then he can sell it to me. I go back and find out the missing box was still missing. Then he claimed another truck would arrive Friday morning and come back after lunch Friday. The missing box is still missing in action. Then I get another BS story about it coming next Wednesday. I ask the manager to order another press because it's become obvious the missing in action box is gone forever. He says he can't do that and they only keep one in stock in every store. Anyway today is another Wednesday and the now missing in action box of shop press parts has still not returned from it's long overdue patrol so I have moved it over to the "Overdue and sunk or destroyed" category and have ordered a press from Amazon.com, which I should have done anyway. Apparently Harbor Freight store #582 will never sell another 12 ton shop press for as long as it remains in business due to that unrecoverable box of missing in action shop press parts. For everyone that has no idea what a Harbor Freight store is they sell all kinds of tools and supplies to us common folk with thin wallets and poor quality tastes and would quickly run out of stuff to sell if a Chinese trade embargo was implemented here in the USA.

[Vance Blosser]

Sounds like you got a bad manager. The local store here would not let that missing box prevent them from ordering another.

Good luck with your press. They come in very handy.

[RussN]

I agree with Vance, based on my own Harbor Fright experiences:

You discovered a missing manager.

RussN

[Scott E]

I don't know if it will do any good but I found a customer support phone number for Harbor Freight. I called it and explained the problem I was having buying a shop press from store #582. She told me that the store manager was in error and should have sent the shop press with the missing box back to the warehouse as soon as it was discovered it was missing parts and put a complete shop press on the next truck to the store. She put me on hold and actually called the store like a customer would asking for the shop press I wanted. When she took me off hold She told me she got the same shady story about waiting for the missing box for that shop press and call back again after Wednesday when the truck would make it's weekly delivery. From the tone in her voice I could tell she was upset about that. Quoting her "That's not how we treat our customers". I kind of get the feeling some heads are going to roll over the situation at the regional warehouse and store #582.

[Vance Blosser]

As well they should. One of the worst things a store manager can do is give the company a bad reputation by disobeying policy.

[Northernduck]

I spent a lot of time beside one of these Harbor Freight presses rebuilding motorcycles.  Must say they are good value for the money if you’re regularly rebuilding engines, gearboxes, swing arms and final drives.  ND

[Scott E]

22 hours ago, Northernduck said:

I spent a lot of time beside one of these Harbor Freight presses rebuilding motorcycles.  Must say they are good value for the money if you’re regularly rebuilding engines, gearboxes, swing arms and final drives.  ND

I think that press is sold under many brand names all over the world. The one I ordered looks just like the Harbor Freight press. I think I will drop by Harbor Freight next Friday and see if the home office has done anything about that manager.