We have a HF in our town that opened up a few years ago. Other retailers have closed. We now have a small Sears home and garden type franchise store that sells a limited line of Craftsman tools and a K-Mart that also has a limited line of Craftsman. Given the way things are going for both Sears and K-Mart, I don't expect K-Mart to last much longer here.
Since I bought the Model A a couple months ago I have been a pretty regular customer at HF. Now, I notice that they have the same lifetime guarantee on their main line of tools, just like Craftsman.
The dichotomy here is that on one hand, I think about HF's lifetime guarantee, and wonder how long HF will be here to make good on that guarantee, and then I think back on Craftsman and where we thought Sears would always be around, guess what! Nothing is permanent!
So, like I said, I am a pretty regular customer at HF, and like everyone else has said, they are great for us hobbyists who don't use our tools to make a living, but who need or would like a tool that isn't sold in your average hardware store. Especially in a smaller town like the one I live in which isn't terribly small, but not big enough to have many choices like the bigger cities.
Yup, some things are crap, but overall I have had great luck.
