Two months ago, Harbor Freight recalled several Pittsburgh jack stands. Today, they sent out an email informing customers that the recall has been extended to include one additional model, 56373.
The way they are approaching this is unusual, as brands and retailers typically don’t email their entire subscriber base to announce product recalls, although this is certainly a practice that could and in some cases should be followed.
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Basically, they have identified a small number of Pittsburgh 3 ton jack stands (56373) to have a welding defect. Thus, these jack stands are added to the existing recall.
If you own any of the recalled jack stands, stop using them and bring them to your local Harbor Freight store for a cash refund or store credit.
The email also says that they have investigated ALL of their other Pittsburgh 3 ton jack stands (56371, 56372, 57308), 6 ton jack stands (56368, 56369, 56370), and 12 ton jack stands (56374, 56375), and found them to not have this same defect.
If you own one of these jack stands that are not being recalled, and are concerned about their safety, you can still bring them back for a cash refund or store credit.
Following is the email sent out by Eric Smidt, owner and founder of the company:
To the Harbor Freight Community:
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I’m writing to apologize. I often reach out to tell you about Harbor Freight’s commitment to quality and all the investments we’ve made to deliver quality tools at the lowest prices. Your trust matters deeply to me and I’m proud of how far we’ve come. So when we have a product recall, it hurts.
A few months ago, we recalled our Pittsburgh 3 ton and 6 ton steel jack stands (SKUs 56371, 61196 and 61197) due to a manufacturer’s defect. We asked customers to return them and receive a gift card that could be used to purchase replacement jack stands. I felt terrible about that recall because you should never have a concern about the safety of any of our products.
Today, I feel even worse. I’m disappointed and embarrassed because we’ve identified a welding defect in a small number of the Pittsburgh 3 ton steel jack stands (SKU 56373) that replaced the recalled jack stands. We’re now adding these jack stands to our recall. Unfortunately, this defect wasn’t discovered during the initial recall investigation. If you own these jack stands or any of the jack stands in our original recall, whether or not you have had an issue with them, please stop using them immediately and bring them back to your local Harbor Freight Store for a full cash refund or store credit (see details here).
We have investigated all of our other Pittsburgh 3 ton steel jack stands (SKUs 56371, 56372 and 57308) as well as the Pittsburgh 6 ton steel jack stands (SKUs 56368, 56369 and 56370) and Pittsburgh 12 ton steel jack stands (SKUs 56374 and 56375) and did not find the defect. Although none of these other jack stands are being recalled, if you own any of them and have any concern whatsoever, please bring them back and we’ll give you a full cash refund or store credit for those as well.
I want to apologize to all of our customers. While we’ve dramatically grown our team of engineers and inspectors, and intensified our tests and inspections, I assure you that the lessons learned from this will drive further improvement.
As the owner and founder of Harbor Freight, I want you to know that we stand behind every product we sell and that safety will always be our top priority.
Regardless of Harbor Freight’s reputation for cheap and inexpensive tools, inexpensive tools should still be safe to use. They’ve got quite a bit of egg on their face for this string of automotive jack recalls, but at least it seems like they’re doing an admirable job of owning up to it and in their attempts to make things right.
Recalls can diminish public confidence, but I can’t imagine a better way for them to be handling this. Let’s hope this is the last Pittsburgh jack stand for Harbor Freight to have to recall.
More Info – ToolGuyd Recall Post
More Info – Harbor Freight Jack Stands Page
Jim Felt
We could only hope other manufacturers and vendors were as (apparently) forthcoming.
Being the founder and sole owner in this age of hedge fund buyouts and cost cutting it is really nice to see. Good on him personally.
skfarmer
is it a crappy deal that there is a defective bunch of jack stands? sure is. whose fault it is unknown and doesn’t really matter. shit happens to all mfgs.
to offer up that sort of statement? that’s pretty stand up. who attaches their name to anything and takes ownership of said mistake.
hopefully as many of these as possible can get tracked down so no further harm is done
John
Automotive lifting can be pretty dangerous outside of the shop environment. It’s surprising that there are no mandatory third-party testing approvals for automotive lifting equipment in the US. There are guidelines published by ANSI/ASME regarding design, testing and quality control, but these are only recommended best practices. These guidelines are not compulsory and do not require a third-party to test and approve a product before it can be sold. A lift equipment brand can say they follow the ASME guidelines, but the actual product they are producing may be woefully inadequate. Buyer beware.
Jim Felt
Lousy Federal oversight? Or was this never a testing / compliance situation?
John
I’m not sure why there are no federal guidelines. Even OSHA washes their hands when it comes to jack safety. They will not test for compliance to the ANSI/ASME, since the recommended guidelines are not their own. It sounds a bit crass, but maybe there haven’t been enough workplace accidents to get their attention. Since the ANSI/ASME standards are are not mandatory, manufacturers can decide to test to the standards (or not). Even manufacturers who follow the standards run into trouble. Simple things like weld quality, tooling wear or contamination inside a hydraulic cylinder can cause catastrophic failures. These considerations aren’t covered in the standards, but pose great risk to consumers. Anybody in the business of selling lift equipment needs to make sure there are effective quality control and inspection protocols in place at their factories. Competent engineers, process control and internal testing capabilities are critical too. These simple considerations may be the cause of HF’s problems,
eugene
As the owner and founder of Harbor Freight, I want you to know that we stand behind every product we sell and that safety will always be our top priority.
As the owner is he willing to stand under every product?
Jim Felt
Good one! Bet you can already guess the answer. ;-)~
But what else could he/they say that was as positive?
Evadman
I had a heck of a time finding replacements for my 61197 6 ton stands. After a few sets I didn’t like, finally ended up with omega 32068 6 ton double locking stands. I tried the big red 6 ton stands ($45), and the lock didn’t engage (a common review complaint). On the Esco’s I got ($140), one of the stringers had the weld snap (and the crossmember cut through the rubber pad like butter). Even the omega’s that I ended up with have multiple reviews that say the same thing, but mine were fine.
It is way too hard to find decent stands. almost every 6 ton stand set that I looked at was made in china, and looked nearly identical besides the color. the Esco’s were the exception. If these omega’s didn’t work, about the only option left was the 20 or 22 ton pin style stands, which I don’t like because they don’t have many adjustment points in height.
Harbor freight is being very communicative, which is how every recall should be, especially something this dangerous. I wish all companies had this attitude.
Chris I
I have my fair share of HFT items in my arsenal, but when the email starts off with “I often reach out to tell you about Harbor Freight’s commitment to quality….” ya lost me. I’m sure we can all agree that we don’t mind bargain hunting for cheap stuff like tie straps or mechanics gloves or free batteries, but “a commitment” to quality? As you’re drafting a recall email?
Can you possibly be any more unaware or ignorant of your true business model?
Toolfreak
Better headline:
Harbor Freight Recalls the Jack Stands Meant to Replace the Recalled Jack Stands
https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/buying-maintenance/a33235534/harbor-freight-replacement-jack-stands-recalled/
Jacob Larsen
There’s no way the factory that made these didn’t make the same or similar stands for other brands. Has anyone else announced a recall?
Matt J.
No…certainly has me wondering about my 3 ton Craftsman stands that are made in China…
RCWARD
I give them credit for being this transparent. Nice to see. But I have to say it , HF don’t know jack about jacks. ?
RCWARD
Considering how many people that get under cars with NO jack stands I guess they were better then nothing. Maybe
Matt
An aside, but has anyone noticed that Sears Outlet is now American Freight? What a rip off of Harbor Freight.
Matt J.
A ripoff combine with complete and utter pandering. Especially considering that almost everything in the tool section is made in China (unless they’ve changed inventory, but a quick look at the website doesn’t make it seem that way). Granted, it probably works. Craftsman = ‘Murica in most peoples’ minds.
Orlando
I applaud him on this. It would just be nice to know who did the welding; and for whom else.
mattoneous
And this is why you don’t buy anything from harbor freight because it’s garbage. I don’t know why recently this site has been repping their tools….bad idea
Rich
So what stands are you all recommending at this point?
Dominic S
This may be an abundance of caution on my part but I would NEVER get underneath a car supported only by something sold by Harbor Freight.
Not that other manufacturers don’t have their defects, but Harbor Freight’s reputation doesn’t make me feel too comfortable.
SteveP
I have a completely different brand of these (Big Red) which are supposed to be good, but TBH I am never comfortable under any of the ratcheting stands. At least with the old-style through-pin stands you can see all the critical parts and note wear or cracking. Plus it would seem the failure mode could be slightly less catastrophic
John
I just learned about this recall and I had one of these jacks is it too late to receive a refund on this?
Stuart
It shouldn’t be; contact HF.