Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Best small generator today

Close @ $450

https://www.harborfreight.com/gener...tor-with-co-secure-technology-57063.html

The advantage is that the motor doesn't have to run at high speed to output 60 hz power (typically 3600 rpm). An inverter style can ramp the motor up and down with load. Electricity is produced AC, rectified to DC, stored in capacitors, and then converted back to AC electronically at 60 hz. A bit more complicated, but more efficient and quieter running.

Jerry

This is why we'll be speaking Chinese and eating rice in 20 years.

Inverters can also run in series

I just bought a westinghouse 2500 inverter on Ebay. So far so good. I did all the research and for my intermittent uses, this little guy is perfect. I'll probably pick up a larger dual fuel inverter for my cabin. I didn't find advantages to the Honda that closed the price gap for my uses. Ymmv.

I have become more aware of what I buy since China has become more obvious of what their intentions are. I have not knowing bought anything made in China in years, and bitch if I find my wife has.
It starts with us. We have the choice to use discretion when purchasing, especially if it is a larger ticket item that costs hundreds of dollars.
I cannot stomach the idea that in making a purchase I am financially supporting a Chinese government that I believe we will be at war with in my lifetime or my children's lifetime.

If you can justify doing it to save a few bucks that is your choice.

EXCACTLY!

I've heard the Honda and Harbor Freight 2000 watt units running side by side several times in camps and on job sites and I honestly couldn't tell you which one was quieter. As far as function I didn't see any difference there either. If you have money to blow on something you may only use once or twice a year, get the Honda. If you want to save your money and get something that will work as well as the Honda and sit on the shelf just as well as the Honda the rest of the year, get the Harbor Freight or Champion unit. Even for heavier duty uses I would still consider the Harbor Freight equipment these days. Even their larger units are highly rated these days for way less than most of the competition...

won't burn up the circuit board on your appliances and electronics

Actually in parallel for more current capability if needed.

Jerry

Harbor freight for the win.

Also, the high-tech circuitry in virtually all modern-day household electronics -- TVs, stereos, ranges, refrigerators, deep freezers, computers, etc., etc., require 'clean' stable current which is what inverter generators provide vs non inverter generators which could cause unwanted problems including service calls, parts replacements or new equipment replacement altogether.

You must not read labels on anything you own lol. Clutch those pearls harder. BTW it wasnt the Chinese who outsourced our industries and factories.

Anyway Ive heard good things about the Predator gens but I have also heard the new ones that have the CO detector shutoff arent as good as the pre-detector version.

If Predator had a dual fuel version I would have picked it up but I went with a Champion inverter dual fuel when I was looking. I'd rather run on propane than gas. I converted my big Generac to run on propane also with a $30 carb conversion via Amazon via China (most likely).

Honda has long been recognzed as premier small generator with price to match.

I was shopping a while back, and unwilling to pay Honda prices. I ended up with two Generac 2200 inverter units with a parrallel box. I wanted them small and light enough to lift onto a 12 inch shelf behind my pickup bed mounted camper.

Not as cheap as Harbor Freight. Easier to handle than a single 4000 watt generator.

It will take the coupled pair to run the AC on either the camper or the 28 foot trailer, and I bet we will still have to turn off the AC before using the microwave.

First world problems.

I have the duel fuel inverter by Champion as well. I thought it was the best value on the market. Electric start is a bonus

Honda got my money. I’ve got the same motor married to a transfer pump and it is one loud sob! Crazy how quiet they have made that little buzz box.

Screw China.

I'd rather have 2 or 3 less expensive Champion or Predator gensets than one Honda. Hondas are great, but not that much money great, for a generator I might use one every 3 or 4 years. I have a 4000 Watt Champion and a 2200 Watt Westinghouse inverter. They will keep our house going in an emergency, and won't break the bank. Another thing to think about is, if you get a large generator that can run everything, you have to feed it. Mine are large enough to keep us and our food in good shape for a decently small amount of fuel. I keep at least 20 gallons of gas in our shed and rotate it through the lawn tractor. That much gas will last long enough for about any power outage we will ever have.

I bought the Honda 2200i a couple of years ago. I have never needed it but once. My wife has needed it numerous times while I was away at work. She can carry it. Fuel it and start it. It works great. I considered the Harbor Freights but read the reviews and all of them don't run. They take them back and replace them. I wanted one that was bomb proof. I paid my money and got what I thought was the best.

We installed a Predator 9500 (pure sine wave) up at our new mountain house on Roan Mountain a few months ago and have run the heck outta the thing several times since. Just returned from up there late yesterday.

We paid $1995.00 for it in January ... love it so much I went to buy another one this morning and they're up to $2395.00 so I held off for now but I'm probably going-back to get another one when they go back on sale.

The lesser model Honda is $5845.00 ...`fewer watts, lesser run time. Plus I can run two of the 9500s in series.

Hondas and Yamahas are very good but they've gotten too expensive. My electrical engineer Son-In-Law put it to me this way when we were setting up power at the new cabin. He observed that Hondas are still running strong 10, 15 and sometimes 20 years later ... and that these Predators are better than the 10, 15 and 20 year old Hondas so, return for the money ... given today's new Honda prices ... the Predators are a better investment.

This new Predator is amazingly quiet too.

I've got a diesel Lister-Peter that I put a gen set on (not inverted but we tune it to 60mz) ... got a couple of Briggs and Strattons, a Champion, they all still run. The Honda we used to use for tailgaiting I gave to my Son and it still runs great.

If you invest in good quality and maintain it, change the oil regularly, tune-ups, run it dry before storing it and don't leave bad gas in it, crank it up every once in awhile even when not needed, etc., ... they'll last longer. They'll last a long time under normal use. I've got a friend who swears by those small yellow ones at Tractor Supply. Not the red Champions but I think they're yellow Champions. He's been showing up at Fish Camp with one pf those for years and it wasn't very expensive.

I had my mind made up on Honda but the RV dealers were pushing Yamaha when we bought our 5th wheel, claiming they're quieter. No scientific testing, but I feel like our friend's Honda is noticeably quieter than our Yamaha running them sxs.

Now it seems the same dealers are going back to Honda. I'm told the Yamaha 2000 in tandem is very marginal operating AC units on RV's whereas the Honda 2200's work fine for that. We seldom use the AC but when we have, it shuts off frequently due to inadequate power supply (or so I'm told that's the reason).

Starting over, I wouldn't consider anything but Honda for our use...