Harbor Freight

Harbor Freight for Lutherie Work

I had mentioned Harbor Freight a few months back when I purchased one of its mini toolboxes at a radio swap meet (https://luegra.design.blog/2026/02/21/buys-at-the-livonia-swap-meet/). However, I have never mentioned that the store is extremely useful for securing some tools to do basic stringed instrument repairs.

I joined the store’s Inside Track Club, which gets me unadvertised sales as well as additional discounts and occasional free stuff. While the store itself is geared more toward professional workers such as electricians, carpenters and auto mechanics, there are some items here that can prove priceless in the guitarist’s gigbag or on the luthier’s workbench.

Precision screwdrivers – try to use a regular screwdriver on those screws holding the tuning gears in place, and you will probably strip the head. The sets that I have purchased at the dollar stores are terrible to say the least. Harbor Freight’s Pittsburgh line of hand tools have a lifetime guarantee, and it has a few different sets of these screwdrivers for as low as $5.99.

Pliers/side cutters – the smaller-sized ones that are perfect for musicians. The small needle-nose pliers ($2.99) are great for getting in to tight spots as well as tightening an output jack nut or tuning gear nut when a small wrench won’t fit or isn’t available,. The side cutters ($2.99) are a must for cutting the cat whiskers on guitar strings.

Sandpaper – yes, you can get this just about anywhere, but not the selection that you can find at Harbor Freight. Most stores sell grit up to about 1200, but here you will find 2000 grit, which is great for final sanding on finishes.

Precision Files – while this set ($5.99) may still too wide for slots in nuts, they can still be good for getting into places that a larger files cannot, like tuning gear mounting holes and output jack holes.

Soft-face mallet – useful when you want to fit something into a tight hole and not leave scratches. This mallet ($7.99) has a rubber and plastic head for light tapping parts into place.

Ammo boxes – there are two sizes: .30 caliber ($5.99) and .50 caliber ($19.99). I use two for storign my guitar strings, and one serves as my traveling guitar repair kit, holding all the necessary tools that I may need if I have to handle a minor repair at a show for someone (it has happened).

Magnetic parts holder – this looks like a shiny metal ashtray ($4.99), but has a heavy magnet on the bottom. How many times have you taken the pickguard off of a Stratocaster and end up losing a screw or two when putting it back on? This holds those metal parts tight in the bowl until needed.

Rotary tool – Harbor carries a light-duty model ($9.99) that is a lot cheaper than a similar Dremel model, and will prove its worth when doing some small drilling/sanding/polishing jobs.

Mini toolbox – this item is perfect for keeping the small luthierie tools in one place. It usually goes for $19.99, but often go on sale for less.

Other items available are cable ties, shop towels, batteries in bulk, mini flashlights, and a lot of other stuff. Joining the Inside Track Club may be worth it at $30.00 for one year or $45.00 for two years. I use it to get plenty of other tools and accessories for home repairs plus it gets me some free stuff about once a month.

Chew on it and comment.

Buys at the Livonia Swap Meet

So this morning I went to another swap meet. This one is sponsored by the Livonia Amateur Radio Club in Livonia, Michigan. It is an annual one that I always attend, and while about 75% of the items for sale are related to ham and amateur radio enthusiasts, the remaining 25% is made up of computers, consumer electronics, and musical instrument items. Forty years ago, there would be swap meets like this at least once per month in the area. These days, I only know of this one and the antique radio swap meet I hit last month, so finding needed electronic parts is getting difficult.

I picked up a few things that made it worth the trip. First off, I secured a brand-new Shure SM48 microphone for $25.00. I made sure to hand-weigh it to make sure it was the real thing and not one of those fake ones coming out of China (see my blog https://luegra.design.blog/2021/01/14/are-you-sure-that-its-a-shure/). For those who are unaware, the SM48 is a more budget-friendly version of the stalwart SM58. The frequency response is a little less bass responsive, but still does a great job as a dynamic vocal mic. I’m not sure if they are made any more, but they used to run for about $70.00 new, and I see online that used ones are going for about $30.00. Beware of ones advertised as new on Temu, Wish, or eBay for less than that, as they are fake Shure microphones.

I snagged a microphone shock mount in a bundle package with a 1970s-era AM bicycle radio from Radio Shack. I already have a shock mount, but for a few dollars, it was worth buying to have around, or perhaps selling for a buck or two more on Craigslist. The radio is one that I wanted as a kid for my bike. Back then, to have any accessory on your bike was cool, and a radio was one of the ultimate blings! Besides the AM band, it had a horn and reflector. It is missing the handle-bar mount, but it will look cool in my transistor radio collection.

One item that I was planning on getting from Harbor Freight soon is a U.S. General Mini Toolbox. I have been seeing positive reviews for these on YouTube. It has two drawers and a flip top, all with pads to store smaller tools and items without them banging around. The drawers have a magnetic closure so they won’t open if the box gets tilted. One vendor there had a few new ones for $15.00, which is a few dollars cheaper than what Harbor Freight regularly sells them at (I was waiting around for a sale). This will make a great way to store some of my luthier tools that are currently in a large tote, as well as small containers that hold screws and electronic parts.

There were two musical instrument vendors there, which I often see at the other swap meets that I attend. All of the items that they sell are too much for my wallet, pretty much going for what can be seen on eBay. There were also some other microphones that I would have considered if the prices were right. I enjoy hitting these events, but I have some complaints:
-Setting up the vendor tables with too narrow of aisles, so it becomes hard to move along when there are others stopping to look at items.
-People with backpacks that make it even more difficult to get through an aisle
-People that bring their kids, especially infants in strollers that literally take up the entire aisle, so you have to wait at the end until the inconsiderate grandpa pushes the stroller through.
-People who decide to stop and have a conversation with each other in one of the aisles instead of moving into an open area along the wall of the hall.
-People who decide to have a cup of coffee without a cover while walking the narrow aisles, and when bumped, the coffee spills, usually on me!

I hope to hit the Lansing Guitar Show on the weekend of March 7-8. On March 9th, I start a new job as a valet/porter at a car dealership. Working at a logistics company for the last five years has been a drain on my mental well-being, and I’m willing to take a cut in pay and change my hours to get back my mental (and physical) health back.

Chew on it and comment.