Thread: Might be good, might be terrible - aldi workshop stuff coming up

The Aldi quickclamps are decent. The button for releasing the clamp can be really hard to press if the clamp is squeezed on tight... but the larger size is $5 a piece and it does the job.

Much of the Aldi stuff is good, and some of it you wouldn't bother with.

If it's a machine it will probably be noisy, the ergonomics might be rubbish.
If it's a cutting edge the steel probably won't be much good.
Leather gloves are usually very thin (the Workzone black and yellow jobbies with the raised knuckles are good for a couple of weeks, and then fall apart)
Spanners, wrenches, screwdrivers etc - probably hard to go wrong, but they may be uncomfortable in the hand.
Don't squeeze the clamps too hard.....light duty only


In short, think about each one and what could be inferior about it, and you won't waste too much dough.

The Spirit levels are a classic example. I regards them as excellent value. They are NOT robust, but how inaccurate can an air bubble in spirit be???? It is bound by the laws of physics. The only thing that could be wrong is the engraved lines, and they are easily checked by just reversing the level to check for the same result. Maybe the level's body might be out of square? Pretty unlikely I would say.

I know a guy that spent $100s if not over a grand on a set of German BMI levels. They are just as accurate as my Aldi jobbies.

I've had a few Aldi tools. The spanners are excellent! Drill bits not so good. F-clamps better than most of the other cheapies, but as posted above "even an imperfect clamp is useful...".

But one thing they all have in common is the very low price, often so low that I can't be bothered returning them if they're not up to scratch.

Clamps are great and spanners are excellent as mentioned. I picked up a mix of screws which have been good for the light jobs. Some heads have sheared off at the top of the thread when they hit resistance - that was fun.

The router bit set is good - I don't notice any difference to my other hand me down/odds and sods bits.

Looking at the Router and maybe the router table just to do some odd jobs - rebates etc. Anyone have any experience with this - worth it? or better to spend a bit more.

I had a router like this, different brand but I'm pretty sure it came out of the same factory. I found it to be very frustrating to use as the bits were difficult to remove from the chuck (I've read complaints from others with this problem) and the lock to hold the router height became inoperable. I ended up repurposing it permanently mounted in a slot mortising jig.

However in saying that I can see the attraction in the price and the three year warranty. So I'm not saying don't buy it, just be aware that using it will not be the same happy experience as using say a Makita.

BTW you can buy second hand Makitas on Gumtree/eBay for less than $100. And you don't need a warranty because they go forever .

Originally Posted by Tccp123

I found it to be very frustrating to use as the bits were difficult to remove from the chuck (I've read complaints from others with this problem) and the lock to hold the router height became inoperable.

That is very typical of what you get (or don't get) with cheap machines, but the problem is that you don't know until you use them. OTOH, Aldi have a 60 day return window, which I believe is "no questions asked".

My Aldi bandsaw is still going strong. Even run a 1/2" blade in it

+1 for Aldi ratchet spanners, their hole saw kit is also fantastic

Picked up an Aldi 25litre wet workshop vac today. Haven't plugged it in yet, but will be interested to see how good it is for $80.

If it's anything like the Aldi vac I used a few years ago, it'll be LOUD (earplugs are highly recommended, if not essential) and disappointing on the suction for all the noise it makes.

Originally Posted by AlexS

Picked up an Aldi 25litre wet workshop vac today. Haven't plugged it in yet, but will be interested to see how good it is for $80.

I had one of those. The filter gets clogged very quickly, and then it won't suck. Noisy as hell. The biggest problem with vacs of this type is that they mince up the dust even finer and then spew it out into the shed as a more dangerous beast than you sucked up in the first place.

I just bought the shop vac and it is not loud at all. It has a soft start feature and another outlet for power tools that automatically turn on the vac when the tool is switched on.