Good Morning! I was part of a discussion regarding tools in another thread. I really enjoyed talking about tools in the other post. Name one unique tool you really enjoy that is out of the ordinary. A tool you started using that was never thought of before, but after the first use deemed illreplacable. I also enjoy discussing good quality tools, specifically American made tools! Let's see where this thread leads.
You should see the "custom" tools I have on my truck. All made in the field as needed..........pics of them would take up 10 pages here. Everyone of them are worth their weight in gold when needed, but just take up alot of room when not.
vetech 63 you are my kind of mechanic, get job done do what you have to , my hat is off to you. so many do not think outside the box.a mechanic job is not cut and dry, some time you have to reengineer to get it done, that is what makes a mechanic.
My father's tool box has a combination wrench he made for getting bolts on the back side of a starter. Probably more if I looked through it. I have made pullers or presses with threaded rods, and sockets and washers.
Mentioning pullers, I really like my posi-lock puller. It is made in America and it is really convenient to use. It has a cage over the puller jaws that locks them in position to prevent them from slipping off the part. When I first made this post I did not think of custom tools. I will have to think about the ones I created over the years. Most of them like vetech 63 are only good for a specific purpose / use.
I've a question on sockets … Why 12 point sockets over 6 point sockets for hex heads ?... (This isn't about Torx, or triple square, or spline drives.) Seems like the 12 point has less grip than the 6 point. My six point sockets are no thicker than the 12's Never have rounded a bolt with the 6 point but have slipped a few 12 points.
6 point fits the bolt or nut exactly. 12 point contacts the fastener in the points of the socket or box wrench. 12 point is handy in spots with less room to move. Not that it makes much sense with a ratchet? Maybe? I guess?
They also have specialty sockets which are called surface drive. They are kind of like 6 point sockets, but they slide on the hex easier and have a radius area that contacts all the flats in the middle of the hex. I have only used these in industrial applications, but they work great! Apex makes them as well as others.
My favorite tool I made-neutral lock for Eaton transmissions. Keeps the sliding clutches in neutral when standing transmission to vertical position, for ease of installing rear section and setting pre-load on counter shafts in rear section.
These two adapters-one for drums and drive lines the other for inboard hubs [mainly disc brakes}. The one for drums gets used every day, it's 30 years old and has removed and installed thousands of drums. The jack was $110.00 bucks and is 18 years old. And for installing or removing a drive line it works perfect.
I could have used that drum handler just a day or so ago. I just rebraked two flat beds . drums are sure getting heavier as I get older
See- I was 11 and the newest Sears catalog had showed up. Somehow it fell open to the lingerie section. I was------ never mind.......
Now we know!
Being a third generation tool junkie I have quite a collection of things. Some quite unique, some I have no idea what their original purpose was. Like others, I’ve made dozens of “special” tools to get things done . Many are ugly but effective. I have to say though that one of the best things I have is a cheap $39 inspection camera. That thing has saved me more hassle and helped me retrieve more lost/dropped items than anything else. Like the bolt that fell and bounced just right to go in the small hole on the bellhousing on the 3304. Camera and a homemade magnet wire. Good to go. Just today when trying to get pump off the excavator. Manual says - Step 1: Remove counterweight. Are they serious? Thing weighs 17,000 lbs.! Get camera, fish around for a few minutes, weave my arm between intake runners and after a few choice words about engineers I have the bolt out without ever laying eyes directly on it.
Genius! My only floor jack invention was a 7/8" socket (because it fit in the jack plate hole) bolted to a flat board. We used it as a transmission jack for light duty trucks and cars. After wrestling with transmissions like this for years we finally bought a real transmission jack. It works like a dream and having adjustment knobs for the angle is awesome. We were living high class! Go figure after we bought the real transmission jack it was only used one or two times. The old board model got way more use than the specialty jack ever did!
What you don't have lift handy to sit that weight aside? Just kidding. I am a mechanical engineer, but probably one of minority who actually wrenches on things. Shhh don't tell everyone they might shun me from their bad experiences with engineers. My dad has an inspection camera. I will have to remember that next time I get in a tight space. I use my telescopic magnet all the time. Buying one with 16lbs of pull was a game changer.
I built a lifting bracket for the saddlebags on my Goldwing. It beats pulling each bag off separately and then the frame they are attached to. It makes changing the rear tire by myself pretty easy and a lot quicker. I'll get a photo later today.
I have few custom items I created that come to mind. I turned down multiple deep well sockets for electrical components with fasteners in deep counter bores and no room for a standard socket. It is typically for ford ignition modules. Why design it for a standard socket when you can sell a custom one. I have shortened sockets to fit in tight places and made custom offset wrenches for different applications. I will try and catch a few pictures of the small things I created after work today. One notable tool I use a lot, more so in construction projects, is my heavy duty mixer for my 1/2" drill. it works great for drywall compound and even mortar.
Tire changer I built for GL1800 Gold Wing tires, but it was built to handle any cycle or ATV tires. And a bead breaker to go with it, the changer would break down so could be hung on wall.
That old Dodge is in great shape
gift from a dealer about 40 yrs ago
Where’s the dirt and grease?
never had anything fancy enough to justify getting em dirty
+ I designed and built this 4 station 18V ni-cad battery charger for Dewalt cordless tools. It mimics the bottom of the tool and four batteries can be installed. When they are installed they clip on the charger in the same fashion they clip on the tools. It has two separate cooling fans to draw air in through the holes on the ends and force it out the radial slots in between the batteries. My dad was a handyman and I noticed when he helped me work things he wood drag out a mess of 3-4 different single base battery chargers. I said he needs a four station charger with a single plug that can handle the abuse of a traveling handyman. I looked for a unit you could purchase, but they were not offered. I machined this out of solid aluminum and was proud to offer it as Christmas gift to him. Unfortunately it was belated a couple months because it took me a little longer than anticipated to machine all the components (delivered May or June 2016). He still uses it to this day, but it has since retired as a full time handyman. It still works great! The pictures were taken when I first completed it. Since the photos i added a heavy duty yellow coiled cord (its like a slinky) with a heavy duty plug. This was my most complicated custom tool by far. If I were to design and build this unit at my old job it would have been a $5000 plus unit. I hope you like it. I forgot about it until I was looking around in the garage for my custom tools. I will add a few other small items in a later post.
Items pictured in the image: -Wilton hitch receiver vice (awesome unit) plan on doing a video review / bench bracket install someday -Stir stick used to stir drywall compound and mortar -Custom offest 1 1/8" combo wrench -Custom offset 7/19" combo wrench -A cork used to find TDC / compression stroke -6mm & 7mm deep well sockets turned down -7/16" 12 point socket shortened -Alpha one hinge pin socket (purchased) -Armstrong 3/8" ratchet (I found this on the road riding my bicycle when i was 12) -3/8" short extension drilled out for shift cable install on Alpha 1 outdrive -Maxwell house coffee can wired with a switch and fuse on top, it has a switching relay and a 1157 light bulb inside. It has 4 alligator clips. One set clips on the battery source. The other set is the switched set. When the cables are attached to the source battery and getting power the light inside is illuminated. It lets you know it is getting power. The second set is used to manually energize components for testing. I got tired of draping long runs of wires on cars or whatever I was testing. Plus you would get poor results if one of the leads has a bad connection. This homemade test unit lets you know visually if everything is connected to the source, is safely fused and provides a switch. It sure beats quickly rubbing a stray wire on something, hoping it stayed connected, and does not melt anything.
Items pictured in the image: -Fluke infared thermometer -Fluke safety circuit testor -Anometer (going to use to adjust all my duct work / heater vent dampers) -Telescopic adjustable pry bar, I was at a job sight working with some mill rights. One of the workers used this in an application other standard tools would not fit. I highly recommend this pry bar. It works great!
My portable Hand press. Not my invention. A old-timer Caterpillar Field Tech in Craig, AK showed me this trick. A handle with 1” cable to soften the blow for the fella hanging on to it. A 1 1/2” square tube that accepts the driver, which is a chunk of pry bar. They nice thing is being able to take it apart to transport easy. Like flying out to the bush. I have used it to hammer out excavator track master pins, bucket pins, yada, yada.
Assembled.
The flex from the cable provides the cushion. Good idea!
Have the same set plus a matching 3/8 ratchet extension and sockets. Just to go back to the 12 point heads I find the common use is starter bolts u joints etc where a smaller head is needed on a larger diameter fastener. I believe twelve points provides a better connection between the socket than a normal hex.
Here is one of my special tools. This I use as a press. It can be a pain to maneuver things onto using porto power jacks a bearing splitters but it is perfect for the project in the field out in the woods. It doesn't take much room in the truck and I don't have to take another day or two traveling back and forth to the shop.
I use this set up for my bags on the Goldwing.
If you have even done steering clutches on a D8K or older dozer, these are used for properly torquing the bolts. I've used the chains and come along probably as much as any tools in my collection. Pulling and setting engines and adjusting level, installing tracks on anything, removing front idlers and recoils and who know what else when a third hand with a lot of muscle is needed.
John C., Hmmm. I'm intrigued about your press. Please share a few more details.
It's three inch square tube with quarter inch wall thickness. The distance between the bottom legs I set to fit my bearing splitters and strong back set. I was going to set up some kind of clamp on the top to hold the porto power jacks but found it would have been nice but I was able to make it work somehow whenever I used it without the clamp.
Thanks.! That is simple brilliance. Coaldust signing off. Catch ya, on the flip-flop. out. Headed to get me some steel,......
I have an old come along similar to the one shown by John C. above. Great tool to have around the shop! His looks much nicer than the one I have. Mine has a nice patina from the previous owner leaving it outside.
Saw something similar to that for holding a press in place. They used 3 of them to press the flywheel off the shaft on the jaw crusher. They would chain the wheel up to an excavator, place the 3 jacks behind the wheel held in place with the bracket, and use a little hydropack to break it free.
Lever chain comealongs in all sizes (especially the baby 1/4 tons) are my best friends. Like duct tape with moving parts.
Yes, I love my baby comealongs. This: "Like duct tape with moving parts." may be the best line on HEF all year.
I have the same set, in metric, but its missing the 10 mm
I just remembered the custom compression ring pliers I purchased for small fuel line. Used them for the first time the other night on the Bobcat engine. They are a simple concept, but I really like them so far. It is much easier than installing a bulky traditional style hose clamp.
Ah, another who remembers "the Gear Jammer and the Hobo". Although, I don't believe the hobo was 11
Whole lotta 3 stooges lines, in that 'on!
Most recently used necessity; scrap 2"x4" pieces for lifting and prying! I also used old heater hose as bumpers for a radiator mount. This kind of encouragement creates hoarders! However, when it works it's a beautiful thing! Now if I can just find that blank_______! Anyone have good ideas for pallet rack organization / storage that is unique?
who on here remembers Gene Tracy& or Rusty Warren?
Gene Tracy on 8 track? Just the mention of the name might get us reprimanded.
Tame by todays standards, but racy enough, in its day... Search for Hurricane Gussy, on youtube
hair in the soup
And if I find a noodle in here I ain't paying!
I was looking into a small diesel fuel container to store a small amount of fuel for my skidloader. The high end units have a mechanical hand crank pump. I see Handy brand offers an american made unit. I have one of their motorcycle lift tables. They are great quality units. The fuel tank is expensive though. It is more than 2X the cheapo units. Any experience with small storage tanks or suggestions? I have even thought about designing a custom unit or buying a larger transfer tank that is more economical.
These are nice for pressure washing inside engine, pump, trans compartments Tools Pro Quick Connecting Pivoting Coupler 120 Degree with 5 Angles and Safety Lock for Pressure Washer Spray Nozzle, Cleaning Hard to Reach Area Max 5000 PSI 1/4 Inch Plug https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FXXXXJ3/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_PgVZEbXN9V80M A heat gun directed on radiator hoses, heater and hydraulic suction lines makes them turn loose a LOT easier. They used to **** me off trying to get the stubborn things loose and I always seemed to rip them with the picks but the heat gun works every time no matter how old, hard and stuck they are
I pulled this old pair of pliers out if the tool box last night. It isn't the pair i normally use, but it made quick work of the task at hand. The garage was dark due to a local power outage. If it was not dark I may have rummaged around for different pair. I forgot them in my pocket so they made their way into the house and on my kitchen table. Today I noticed they look different than other pliers I have seen in the past. The lower jaw is more straight while the upper jaw has a nice curve to it. Reminds me of an alligator. I also noticed one of the handles has a screwdriver flat on the end. Any ideas what this was used for? Anyone think it was a specialty pair or just a unique universal tool of it's day? It is a pretty cool old pair of pliers. I think it may have belonged to my grandfather.
I have had a pair like that with the screw driver tip on the end of a handle. Have to look to see if I still do some where. Think it was just a tool made to try and combine one into two, for homeowner use. Well found two one pair pretty close to your's but with more rounded shape of jaws. Second has a few differences, fist thing is they have cutting jaws in place of the gripping jaws, second along with one handle being a screwdriver the other handle is made to pull small nails and third if you look close near the pivot they also have a notch for cutting wire?.
If you want to see some crazy tools I have some my wife's late husband tools. He worked at least part time as a mechanic at a Chrysler deal and had an assortment of maybe half a dozen distributor (you remember those things?) hold down bolt wrenches!
Are your red ones not for fencing?
I suppose they could be but they are barely six inches long, it seems like the fencing pliers I have seen were a bit larger and had a head more like a hammer. Like these: Maybe these are for miniature livestock?
The red ones are a hoof nippers/ but with multi tool handles. They would be terribly short handled for actual work.
Maybe but even as hoof nippers think they would be a bit on the small size. Not sure why a hoof nipper would have a screw driver bit on one handle and a small nail puller on the other and the wire cutter near the hing. Don't recall hearing about horse shoes that were installed with screws! Maybe I should ask my ex-wife's brother as he spent many years as a farrier. Then again who knows what the guy who designed them was trying to accomplish!
Hard to tell with these old tools. It looks interesting. I bet the red paint makes it easier to locate. I just thought about carpet tack strip removal? The short barrel head of the pliers makes it great for pulling nails without damaging the surface beneath. I use a larger pair with the same head on nails in material I do not want to damage. Thought tack strips because they use small staples / nails.
I've seen the small pair of nippers used by people working on stained glass or tile. The tool looks like something found in a bargain bin by the door of a hardware store back in the sixties.
Those might be for Oetiker ear clamps. https://www.grainger.com/product/OETIKER-Forged-steel-Standard-Jaw-4E607?
my most important too is hand wrench extension i forget who makes it was a gift from friend wont slip like two wrenches and will fit box or open end
I use this specialty tool for pretty much everything. For real, the Harbor Freight car trim and fastener removers was a game changer for working on car interiors. For bigger equipment, my 20v DeWalt 1/2" impact has been wonderful, I don't think I have used my Snap-On 1/2 air impact since I got the DeWalt.
Everyone needs a 'BFH'..... When all else fails break out the big effing hammer. What do the interior trim tools look like and how have you used them? I have seen plastic looking pry bar kits before, but never purchased a set. Interior pieces are always a challenge for me. I almost always break something on the first attempt at disassembling an unfamiliar model.
@Flat Thunder Channel - those are the ones. Like a lot of things there, one piece is invaluable and never use the other ones in the set. I picked up the plastic pry bars and the set that looks like screwdrivers with different size forks on the end. I too, always seem to break some plastic clip anytime I have to remove car panels. The metal screwdrivers with forks are good for the type of fastener that you have to pop a head out first and they pry the rest out. They are commonly used on GM fenders. I have to take the inner fender off my dually to change the fuel filter and same thing for the wife's suburban to change headlight bulbs.
@JBrady Thanks! I have to disassemble the dash on my 2006 F250. The lights behind the temperature gages went out on the cluster. Anyone have experience with this? Old cluster's used to have replaceable bulbs, but I'm not for sure about this vintage. Definitely will be purchasing a set of the tools for task. Hope to complete the job without breaking too many plastic pieces.
similar tool also used by shoemakers and farriers years ago
I posted this in another thread on skidsteer attachments, but thought it was a viable part of our tool talk. I purchased an electric jackhammer last week. It is a chinese unit :/ and was priced accordingly. I needed a tool to demolish an old section of concrete foundation out back. The old foundation is right in the way of my new driveway addition. Previously I tried sawing it, hammering it, digging it, and pushing on it with the loader to no avail. This stuff is serious concrete! My neighbor called it, 'real man's concrete' and I have to agree with him. During the demolition I discovered it contained heavy rebar horizontal and vertical throughout its structure. Some areas contained two horizontal runs of 1/2" rebar. I wish I purchased an electric jackhammer similar to this years ago! It makes breaking concrete and rocks an easy task. It is still time consuming, but I was able to make much more progress than any of my previous methods. If you need to break up some concrete check out this video review first! It will show you what to expect when using a jackhammer. Cheers,
I already know what to expect. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/474355773249964665/ AND:
That didn't spend part of it's it's as a shopping cart did it ?
When I was young and dumb, I used to be the only person I knew who liked running a jackhammer. If you like an electric one, wait til you grab a real one.
I wish I had access to a commercial grade unit. My tight budget really limited my options. I was entertaining used models, but do not own a compressor large enough to run a pneumatic version. I enjoyed breaking large chunks of the foundation off and it was fun when I started making good progress! If I knew my bobcat would run a hammer without any issues I would have spent the rental fee. The time savings alone would have been worth it. However my unit is a fixer upper and it might have required fixing up before a HB980 would work correctly. 'Moral of the story. It ain't easy being cheap, but you might learn something along the way. If you approach it with the right mindset even the hard things in life can be fun. Or something like that'
Might just be a local thing but as I recall my dad always said a Jackhammer was the tool with the drill bit for driving holes in stone or concrete and the tool with the non-rotating point or chisel was a pavement breaker or just plain breaker. All I know is the main place I used the breaker tool was back in 1968 when I helped another guy "dig" the footers for the surge pile conveyor they were putting up at the quarry. These footers were into the solid bedrock of limestone. Engineers laid out the spots with spry pain and another guy came through with a track drill and drilled a bunch of hole then us "kids" had the job of cleaning the rest of the stone out. As I recall the footers were something like 4 feet by 2 feet and maybe 18 inches deep. Guess when building on solid rock you don't have to worry about getting below the frost line. 52 years latter and the conveyor is still standing!
I always refer to the rotary tool, with hammering action, as a 'hammer drill'. Fun fact that I didn't learn until about 7 years ago, do not push hard on hammer drills. Let the weight of the tool land it's action progress the tool into the concrete. Lots of people mistakenly push too hard and damage the tool. Happy Independence Day everyone!
Well dad spent sometime working for a contractor back in the late 1940's and early 1950's that did a lot of work for the city digging up streets to repair or replace utilities so maybe that is where the name pavement breaker came from, tearing up the city pavement!
If you still utilize or have old Halogen work lamps try out some LED replacement bulbs. My neighbor gave me a few LED replacement bulbs to test out and they are awesome. They burn cooler and are more forgiving than a standard Halogen bulb. So far I have tipped the tripod light over multiple times and the LED bulbs are still going strong. Every time I do that with a regular halogen it is typically dead on impact. In this weeks video I perform a side by side comparison of LED vs Halogen bulbs in my Regent double lamp work light. If you get bored check it out. I think I might be done with halogen bulbs.
I used my universal ladder tonight and I have to say I am grateful to have one. My Dad gave me this ladder as gift. I was skeptical at first, but now I'm a believer. The extruded aluminum make it much more be rigid than traditional fiberglass units. It is also very versatile. My particular unit is a Werner brand, but several different companies make similar units. Give one a try sometime. Thanks Dad!
I too am swapping to the LED counterparts, expensive little buggers where most seem to last indefinitely save the inevitable ones to out and out fail early. As to the Gorilla series ladders yes they are Some handy but talk of a heavy bustard to manipulate in off conditions or awkward situations, do have options pieces for uneven terrain and to expand for scaffold type use. Believe it or not they are making a 17' unit now and that bugger needs TWO full grown men to maneuver.
I think the LED flood light conversions are awesome! Everytime I tipped my light over, got it wet and or bumped it the halogen bulb would blow. The LED's are much more resilient. Agreed the universal 'gorilla' style ladders are heavy buggers. I found a weird / unique way to move mine when in the step ladder configuration (high position), I stand in between the A frame and tip it so one side of each leg is on my shoulders. Seems to work decent. I don't think I could or would want to yield a 17 footer. You are gettingigetting man lift territory and I'm starting to become a sissy at those ladder heights!
We talked about it on another thread and I decided it was time to buy a new tool! Just received my rod seal install tools today. These are meant to contort the seal into the correct shape to safely install them in the gland. I'm excited to give them a try. I think I will get that opportunity on my Hyster forklift cylinders.
Recommended by many.
Never knew about those until I was almost to retire but did see a guy show how they worked and I know I would have bought a set if I was planning on doing that work in the future! Almost a stupid simple design!
Those things are awesome. I never had trouble with larger cylinders but the little cylinders that are so aggravating they make it much easier to get that seal in. A set is about $70 on Amazon.
I got mine on eBay for $28. I was really eyeing the ones on Amazon, but they were made of plastic. These are made out of steel. Possibly stainless steel? Another HEF member recommended them and I was all over trying a set. eBay Listing: https://www.ebay.com/itm/223486453439
I have this set. It is plastic, but so are most of my screwdriver handles. It has been tough. It has four sizes, but the one for the biggest cylinders, I can get my hands in a 6" bore, but it's easier. That little plastic block was real handy, once I figured out how to use it. https://www.amazon.com/Kit-King-Install-Hydraulic-Installation/dp/B01HUZ7KHI BTW, Amazon has your set for $30.99.
great
I stand corrected... When I was researching I could only find kits made out of plastic rods. I haven't gotten an opportunity to use them yet, but will update after I give them a shot. I do not have the little block. Is the block just for loading the seal onto the tool?
I am sure this is rather trivial to most equipment operators / mechanics on HEF. This week's video depicts how to test ethylene glycol antifreeze for freeze protection rating. I am also giving away a tester identical to the one used in this video. If you'd like to enter to win the free tester, type "Prestone", in the comments section of the video shown below. If nothing more this is just a friendly reminder for everyone to check their antifreeze before cold weather sets in. I like this new antifreeze tester and hope it will continue to provide years of service. Its predesessor was much smaller, difficult to find and broke rather easily in my toolbox. Happy Veterans day to all those my who have served, thank you for your service. Cheers,
i prefer the refractometer style. much more accurate. one shop i worked at would not allow any other type due to inconsistencies between testers and mechanics in the shop. the tool crib had a refractometer that was supposed to be used. after the foreman saw a guy using a cheapie tester one day, he stopped all shop work and had all the guys get their own testers, line up and lay them on the floor. then he proceeded to stomp on any that were not refractometers. end of problem. years later i still chuckle about it
I suppose the foreman paid all those guys with something else to go get the refractometers. Oh right! When I was doing the appraisals for the local Cat dealer we had a machine that had something different for antifreeze and my six dollar Napa tester wouldn't read it. It was 15 years old. So I made them buy me a refractometer. I hated that thing. I don't have much time to inspect a machine as the potential buyers didn't like their machines shut down. At any rate I got a new seven dollar Napa tester and so far haven't found any antifreeze types that it won't test. That $125 refractometer sat under the seat in the pickup until I had to check battery cells after that.
The refractometers are much more accurate. I am only interested in close approximations on my equipment. In the past I have gaged the quality strictly off of visual inspection. If I ever question the quality, if it's too discolored, I change it out for 50/50 mix ( maybe a little less water). It would be my luck I'd drip antifreeze in my eyeball looking through the eye piece on a refractometer. I live in the Midwest states and typically does not get much more below -10°F. Occasional -20°F. I'm all for another winter with little snow and 20 - 30 degrees Fahrenheit. The cheapy gage gives a little more reassurance that my blocks are safe. At least one step over my vision test. Here's to a warm winter.
Please more detail about the little plastic block.
it just holds the tool while you get the seal in position on the tool. Pushing the seal into its installation shape it wants to go anywhere but where you want it so it helps to have the third hand
Seeing is easiest... here's a video of the plastic block in use.. A bench vise would help too.
What is this? Ebay is determined that I can't live without them. It says tire tool, but surely it's not for valve caps? https://www.ebay.com/itm/2-Pc-8-Sid...otionHighArwV3&_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851
Nice animation! I thought that was the general idea, but seeing it in action is handy. Thanks for sharing
That would be my best guess. Plastic wrenches for chrome plated valve stem caps. The listings description is worded poorly. It must be a translation thing.
It is $40 for both. I can't believe that's what they are.
Its for knocking off dayton wire wheel centers. Ebay knows your rollin in your 24" hooptie wheels in that dropped '84 cutlass
Haha hooptie that's great! I have never dealt with these wheel centers before, but it makes sense...... Speaking of wheel center covers. Has anyone found a tool to remove the lug nut caps on F250 wheels? A pry bar or screwdriver works fine, but I like to remove them without damaging the finish top coat on the aluminum. Previously I have always just gripped them by hand to pull them off. I have seen guys in the Ford garages use a folded up plastic lid before. I am noticing my gripping power isn't quite as good as it used to be.
My friends and family were nice enough to set me up with a couple new tools for Christmas . Thank you everyone who enjoyed exchanging gifts with me. It's a nice gesture that certainly wasn't required. Your friendly face and companionship was the real gift this year. I received a few specialty tools that I'm itching to try out. The first is a pretty basic tool, but I never had one previously. It is a ratcheting crimp tool for crimped connectors. Hopefully I can make solid connections without destroying the plastic insulators. I used it for the first time last night while working on my 520 Wheelhorse garden tractor. So far I like it! I'm excited to use it on other projects. This was also my first go at using heat shrink connectors. They are pretty nice, but I need a better attachment for the end of the heat gun. Did anyone else get some new tools over the holiday?
That is a pretty nifty looking crimper. Enjoy using it.
I don't know if it counts as a tool but I went out and became Prepper Level 2.0 over the weekend after buying a generator that should keep the whole house running should the power go out. We haven't ran the lines into the house to be able to run the house proper yet, but that should be done shortly. I went the Harbor Freight route with pretty beefy 9000 watt model and ran it through its break-in period. It looks like a decent machine though I'm always nervous about Chinese HF stuff. Reviews were good and hopefully I don't need it... Theoretically, I can run a 240 welder off it too, right?
Depends on the welder.
My 60 ton puller kit.
Extra points for creativity! I see screw jacks, a porta power jack, weld table, hold down clamps and a vertical overhead lift. I guess she had a 'little wang' in the panel. Did you get it all squared up and straightened to your liking?
Hydraulic cylinder piston nut removal tool. Made out of chunk of I beam, various holes cut for different lengths and sizes of cylinder. The torque multiplier is 1:64 lug nut removal tool, works well for stuff under 4000 ft/lb those seal benders mentioned above are a awesome investment!
Good idea! What keeps it from flipping over? Do you stand on it or clamp it down somehow?
The Pin goes through the eye of the ram up top there and is cantilevered. It has enough weight to stop from spinning. On a 966 lift ram we did have to get a little more creative to hold it down. The lock nut broke free at around 5000 lbs. Currently we are going to tackle some king pins on a KW dump truck, Going to make a small press to get them out, ill post pics of that "custom tool" as well!
100%, without s shred of doubt would be the Power Probe. The inventor of these, should be a millionaire.
I never heard of these until now. Looks like a neat tool. If I understand correctly it is an advanced multi meter with the ability to supply ground/positive feeds for testing purposes. Sweet! I made a similar tool several years ago (probably 15 plus years ago). It's an old Maxwell House metal coffee can. Inside it has a relay configured and hooked to a switch. It has four sets of alligator clips and long leads. The theory.... Hookup up one set of leads to the battery +/-. The second set is used to manually energize circuits on the vehicle, but it's on a fused switch. Hook everything up then switch the toggle to energize the circuit. Also has an 1157 bulb inside so you know when it's on. I swap the inline fuse out for small amperage ones when working with sensitive stuff. I created it because I got tired of searching for wires to run all the way to the battery. Having them fall off or disconnect during testing was also problematic in troubleshooting. I made mine with long leads. It's the in the attached picture. The toggle switch fell through the plastic lid and I need to re-mount it. It looks crappy, but it has helped me diagnose/troubleshoot many different electrical issues.
I was given a Stihl electric chain saw for Christmas. I Haven't had a need to use it yet. But I will when it gets warmer out. Seems like it would be nice not to have oil leaking out of it like the gassers. I hope !
yes, I have the dewalt one. Very handy! It’s battery length is amazing. Unfortunately you won’t get away from the bar oil though. And where mine has been sitting for the last few months it leaked some oil out
I think an electric cordless saw could be handy! Especially if you don't use you chainsaw everyday. That reminds me I need to service mine someday. They have been dead in the case for over a year. I used my new mini tire changer tonight. It's an harbor freight special. I wasn't excited about purchasing it, but sometimes you are in need. I fought with the little tires on my garden tractor and ultimately ruined a new tire. All I had was a set of spoons and that second tire and wheel wasn't giving up without a good fight. I waited until I had the specialty tool to install the 'replacements replacement'. It worked great! Now I'm ready to plow some snow. Looks like we might finally get a few flakes. ❄️
FTC; I don't see a YouTube video on your channel for the tire changer in action. In regards to electric saws-- I have been in many situations where starting or holding a running chainsaw is not a good position to be in.[/QUOTE]
Lol.. I too have been fighting flats on my rider.. SO FLAT that they would break the bead.!! So off comes the wheel, out comes the stem and then finding something that’ll fit the bottom side of the rim yet give me enough leverage to get the tire back on the rim.. This got old QUICK.. so like u I bought new rubber.. There was no way I could get them off and back on.!!! So INSTEAD, I bought inner tubes. Lol.. laugh now but they worked.. The tires have been up for over a month now..& I can jump on’r any time I want w/o wasting an hour and breaking a sweat..
Tire changer and bead breaker I built for motorcycle and ATV tires would probably work on the ones above too. Mainly built it for the Gold Wings I had, the side wall on a GL rear tire is about as tough as it gets to break and remove tire from wheel.
It isn't quite as powerful as a 1" air, but it makes stuff happen without a tether.
I will include a video of the tire changer in action on my next video. Look for it Wednesday. It will be part of the 520-H wheel horse series. The $45 tire changer was well worth the expense! It made swapping the tires so much easier. This is an awesome tool!! Jealous
I just, yesterday, bought one of these laser engravers . I'm very excited to try it out and see what happens, though it'll be a couple weeks until it shows up. Looks like it can engrave all kinds of junk and cut some stuff too! My wife has a Cricut which is similar but for lighter weight stuff (she sews and is crafty) and not as burny... Ideally, I'll think of something custom that people can't live without and sell the crap out of it, to the point of needing 5 engravers running all the time.
If anyone's interested here is a link of the video where I struggle with the tires on my little snowplow tractor. The new tool worked great! I'm far from perfect and I typically include my screwups in the video's. I could easily edit them out, but figure it might help others out who are in the same position. The tire changes are the first portion of the video. The remaining video is me repairing other minor issues. I wrap up the video with a little snow plowing action. This tractor works great for a lil guy. Go go little Wheel Horse!
That little wheel horse gets it!
It really impressed me. This was my first time using it in several years as a snow plow. I think my weight / size helps. The majority of my time using it as a plow was from my younger years. Now I have little bit of a weight advantage! Over 200# versus the little 135# on average younger me. Thanks for watching. I try to have a little fun.
Bought on 2/1/2021, the laser engraver I mentioned above still hasn't been delivered yet. Supposedly this Monday, so, you know... only 2 and a half months later. Gearbest seems like a decent place to buy junk like this but after reading some reviews, specifically about shipping times, they seem a bit scammy. They do supposedly ship the items and they are fine but it also looks like they play around with money spent and the fees for shipping and customs. I don't know. It's been a bit frustrating to wait around this long. Hopefully it shows up in one piece. FWIW I could have got the same thing on Amazon for about a hundred bucks more.
Supposedly, the laser is on a truck bound for the compound today! Woop!
Alright, I haven't messed with something so enjoyable for a while. I got home and straight away set up the laser, watched 3 LightBurn (the recommended software) tutorials and got on my merry way. Ended up screwing around for about 7 and a half hours drawing different stuff and experimenting. I expected the learning curve to be much longer than it is as I made several engravings that I'm thrilled with, as first attempts. This is very exciting to me and I can see big potential for using it with who knows what. These were done on two different materials, a very small sample sized piece of plywood they send with the laser (I cut holes in it! Probably 1/8" thick) and a piece of cardboard/pressboard stuff I have covering my workbench. The only real problem I have so far is that the entire machine jumps around a bit as it moves. Slowing the machine down helps a lot but I'll have to figure out a way to bolt it to a stage of some sort. I started off just printing random stuff on the cardboardy junk but it engraved beautifully. You can see just shapes drawn in the software, then two pictures, the little tree is a close replica to a tattoo I have and then the dark stuff near the top right is a map of my neighborhood, that one is blurry due to the machine shaking. Too cool!
I bought a CNC laser awhile ago for an engraving project. They are really cool. I needed one for a custom engraving project. I have a few videos on the unit on my YouTube channel. Mine is a Fox Alien branded diode laser. In the future I hope build an enclosure for it. I'm not overly confident in the safety level of the Chinese supplied glasses. The main reason I purchased it was to make black etching on mirror finish stainless steel plates. It has a lot of potential.
My new ratcheting load binders arrived yesterday. I am super excited to try them out. They look like well made units. Peerless brand ratcheting load binders. I like the fold down handle, the rubber grip on the body, and the ability to install a pad lock on the mechanism. Now I just need to buy something to haul..... It's getting harder to hide my purchases from the wife. All my interests are big, heavy and often confused as junk by the un educated.
Not sure like the Folding handle, makes slimmer but can also allow free roll off when not suppressed by contact.
I haven't used them yet, but did look at them closer in the garage last night. I think the folded handle would need pinned or wired to the chain in the folded position. This should prevent it from being able to unwind.
@Flat Thunder Channel I'll check out your videos, thanks for the heads up. That Fox Alien and the Ortur I have look like similar designs, at first glance. I didn't realize there were so many "affordable" laser etching options out there. I bought some new glasses from Amazon that are supposedly in the range of protection needed because I didn't have much faith in them either. Even the ones I bought seem a bit less than desirable as I stare at the place being engraved. Seems like they could be darker. They are also yellow tinted(?) and made the outside world look real weird. An enclosure seems like a good idea, and it sounds like well rated plastic is pretty easily available. If nothing else, for as long as these things take to do their work it'd be nice to set it and forget it while doing other stuff, without the eyewear. Also it would mean I could leave the laser in the workshop and it wouldn't get too dusty, and could make for easier exhausting too... Have you built any kind of stand for yours? I've found that detailed work or short, multiple bursts will move my entire machine around causing inaccurate etching. There's a guy on the ForestryForums that built a pretty neat rig with his Ortur, here's his YT video , I really like the table and feet he's made to hold everything. Also, the learning curve is interesting. At first things were great! Designs, on the sample wood they sent with the machine, and the pressboard/cardboard junk I've got covering my bench are very crisp and dark. I tossed some Balsa wood on for a different project and the burns came out very, very light, unless I etched about half the thickness of the wood away. I haven't messed around with other woods/materials yet but it'll be interesting to see how it goes. What I was trying on the balsa was a much more complex design than I'd tried previously and it appears as though I'll have to take the design apart and rework things a bit for it to etch properly.
I have 6 of them and love them, just hook your chain across the load and take the slack up with those and bind it down, take excess slack and wrap it around the handle after you fold them down. Get some oil on them and keep them oiled they work beautiful.
No I have not built a stand yet, but I plan on building a solid one. I am going to place a camera inside the box. This will allow me to watch the unit operate remotely (from the house or away from the work bench). I think a heavy grade polycarbonate will work fine, but the bright light could bother your eyes. When I watch mine work I'm overly paranoid. I usually place my shade 5 oxy/act glasses over the ones supplied with the laser. I too would like to let it operate without worrying about stray beams of light. With any luck the should box will include an exhaust fan too. I haven't had any issues with mine jumping around. It's really smooth being a belt drive. On the table/stand I will place reference blocks to capture the feet, but this is only for repeatability. I am going to burn a reference grid in the table for alignment / work piece reference. Try burning in a power grid matrix as a test. This will allow you to more easily select power and feed settings. I found wood works best at lower to mid power levels with medium speed & multiple passes. Too hot/slow scorches the wood.
It sounds like a winning combination! I am excited to test these out.
I picked up a 1 3/8" and 1 7/16" combo wrenches at tractor supply to change a couple of hoses on the 120. Now I have to cut a couple of cheater pipes I don't have the horsepower to break the nuts loose.
I actually need those two wrenches myself here. You could always use a 4 lb maul to hit the wrench to bust it loose, like using a impact.
I've done that many times over the years
Not this time. I have to hold and oppose, since the line is just clamped to the boom and I could kink it of I go after it without backing it up. I tried a few love taps and the line was bending precipitously!
@Flat Thunder Channel I love the idea of a power matrix! That's a great idea! Mine is also belt drive and very smooth until it has to fill sections less than maybe quarter inch and it starts jumping back and forth like crazy. I made a thing for a girl I work with, last night, that, as a practice run, I'm very pleased with. She's one of those people that can seemingly sell anything on FB Marketplace, so we're coming up with some ideas to take advantage of this laser. I can see a world where I have about 5 lasers up and running at the same time (the comment so nice, I made it twice, apparently). That world is still a ways off, but would still be cheaper than the $10k laser systems out there. I guess I should learn more about them too... When I brought it in to work, immediately, 2 or 3 other people had ideas for me.
Take and hit the flats of the outer fitting nut a few licks with a hammer even if you have to back up the other side of the fitting with another hammer then she will turn loose.
I broke them all. There was only one really bad one that needed the full on scissor treatment. Now I'm putting it back together, working my way back out. I changed out five lines total to the main valve body-boom. I had earlier done the 4 boom cylinder hoses boy those were gravy compared to today!
It's been awhile.....I watched one of my favorite YouTubers use one of these ignition spark tester and had to have one. It's a Lisle brand tool. I always thought their tools were pretty good quality. Now I just need to organize the shop well enough to easily locate it. Previously it was always a old/spare spark plug.
OOH, I gots a money making ideer fer ya! Hang on to your hat, you could make loads of $$, branding millennials, steada tattooin them! Alls you need to build is a clamping table to keep em from squirmin, and a ball gag, to keep from havin to listen to them whine...
I think somewhere somehow I can convince young'ins laser burning art work on your body is a great idea. Heck I might even get them to pay for the service....... All I have to do is post it on the internet. Haha
Watch wes work? I like him too and saw him using the spark tester
@DIYDAVE I haven't had the guts to stick my hand in there yet... I'm assuming it would brand the same as an iron... It burns wood pretty easily and last I checked skin was not quite as tough as wood.
Yes sir! He has a great channel! I try to learn a little from his techniques and videos. It has me wanting all kinds of specialty tools!
Somewhere in the world of despising 'hot saws' I found myself in need of more abrasive cutoff discs!? My torch gas ran out several weeks ago and I just can't seem to get them filled. I managed to make the journey to my supplier (several weeks ago), but they were out of oxygen on that particular occasion. It isn't that great of a distance, but regular business hours only allows me to try it on Saturday mornings. Enter all the other roadblocks now; scheduling, playing Mr. Mom, other projects with Saturday morning completion requirements. Yada yada you get the picture. I recently found a new carbide tipped sawzall blades and gave one a shot. I think it has its place in the shop, but it doesn't compare to the quick and dirty abrasive saw. I found these abrasive discs online and decided to bite the bullet and buy a box. Much to my surprise they are made in America! Even though I dislike all the flying sharpenel these put off I am excited to give one a try! #merica Do you have a preferred saw or power tool for these discs? I have used Metabo's before in industrial settings. They work great, but I'm open to suggestions on models and potentially even different makes. I don't want fall for the cheepo Metabo version; ie the green la cheapo grinder with a Metabo sticker. I tried purchasing a DeWalt cutoff saw specially for these discs, but ended up with the wrong model.
They are made for an angle grinder and you need the right backing plate and/or inner and outer arbor and nut. Not sure why they say for portable saws and show a small angle grinder??? Be very careful not to flex them or let them get stuck. They will shatter and pieces will fly. Wear a face shield. Metabo merged with Hitachi but the good Metabo grinders have a slip clutch and are top of the line. The discs you bought are 6in. which may limit your choices of grinders. Some grinders are 5/6in. and come with guards for both. You want a guard so you don't slice your fingers off. The good thing is I don't think there is a cheap grinder that uses 6in. discs. Dewalt, Makita, Metabo, Walter(made by Metabo but have an exclusive model with anti-vibration) tried a demo at a Walter training session. It was the smoothest grinder I've ever used but not sure you need something like that for occasional use. Some grinders have soft start and even variable speed but not sure if you need those either.
Great explanation! I have been using them for years incorrectly; take the guard off a smaller grinder and cut with an unsafe piece of equipment. Largely because I didn't know Metabo's existed until using them at a professional shop. I am really interested in one with a slip clutch and soft start. Those sound like great features. Are you implying that all (or most) 6" units with those features are made by Metabo regardless of brand selection? One other feature I liked about those Metabo's is they would shut down when they overheated. This was a fail safe to keep them from melting. We would take multiple units to a job site. When one shut down from heat we would sit it to cool for a couple minutes. We really beat those units up and they seemed to last.
I use the Pearl Cut-Off wheels, I think they are 6 inch. I love those things, you've gotta keep them from binding and chattering but the cut very well. I like flap disks for cleaning up the edges after.
Walter has top of the line Zip disc wheels too. I know Makita has grinders with soft start and a bunch of electronics. They actually have dozens of models. Dewalt has several models too. Their 5/6in. model is popular because it has a compact shape. Have to do some searching on the net. I got a really good deal on a Metabo 5in. rat tail grinder at a trade show. Red-A-Arc had pallets of them for $139 cad. List price was over $200! Too good of a deal to pass up, I thought about about buying a bunch of them for resale. If you're careful I don't know if you really need soft start or variable speed. I also bought a Mastercraft 5" with a rotatable head at Canadian tire. I needed a grinder and the only reason I bought it is because it was on sale for $29.95 down from $99.95. It works OK but the switch is a little wonky. I also bought a 10 pack of their cut off discs on sale for $9.99. I won't make that mistake again. I bought some Tyrolit cut off discs from a friend (best value for the money) and no comparison. One tyrolit lasts for about 4 of the Mastercraft garbage. Sait makes decent wheels but availability can be an issue and customer service wasn't very good when I worked for a large industrial supply that sold many brands. The Metabo is much better than the Mastercraft grinder. Look at the amp rating when buying a grinder. Some have a much lower rating which translates to... they are for lighter duty and won't hold up as well.
X2 for the Walter Zip discs. But i bought one of these the other day to try. Seems ok so far but time will tell. it has to last 4 times as long to be cost effective but the other advantage is that it doesn't decease in diameter as it wears
What ever you get make sure it is a 6" those are set up for the cutting wheels. Keep the guard on it . I have an old metabo that keeps on going and a newer makita in the shop both work well. Bob
I tried one of those about 10 years ago and I didn't feel like they cut as fast as a fiber disc. They also felt like they were constantly vibrating off the material, Just my .02
We use the diamond cutoff wheels, they're nice for cutting rod/rebar, small stock. Heavy plate cutting I go back to regular .045" wheels, especially on my 6", that's my cutting wheel machine.
I was at the local lumber yard and they have a new display of carbide skillsaw blades 6 1/2 to 14 and a lot of them were for cutting metal . The prices weren't that bad if I need to cut thinner metal in the future I 'm going to try some . Can't remember the name but they are red. I have a 14" carbide cold chop saw and it cuts well. Bob
I was curious too. I tried a carbide toothed Milwaukee sawzall blade. It was impressive! However, it doesn't hold a candle to the quick and dirty abrasive disc. I hope to touch on it's performance in a video (possibly). It was used to cut up part of 'the big mean green parts machine' aka a 95' F150 I'm parting / scrapping. On the front I perform the same cutting processes on each side. One side with my carbide toothed sawzall blade and the other with a cutoff abrasive wheel. I think I'll buy a carbide toothed blade again, but will be very selective on when I use it. They are pricey!
I haven't bought a new tool in awhile..... Least that's what I tell the wife. I found this American made beauty at one of my local surplus stores. It is a brand new 12 ton bottle jack. I happy to add this one to the tool collection. Well worth the $30 price tag. All my other tube jacks are just little guys.
I really like stopping by my local Ace hardware. I'll find all sorts of tools, pieces, and parts that are Made in USA that I won't find at TSC, Home Depot, etc. Just simple, small things like screwdrivers, transport chain, shovels, and SS hose clamps to name a few. I can find these things online, but my local Ace is in a rural, podunk town and it makes me happy knowing they care enough to stock this stuff.
I have a tool complaint. Recently doing an overhaul on a JATCO CVT, (kids car) Just guessing about the dimensions, the nuts (on the 2 variators) have a nice taper on top so from the bottom to actual flat is maybe 3/16 or so. Then the nuts are smaller than the size socket that will fit by more than normal, then the sockets and for that matter all sockets have a lead in angle, that moves the flats up from the bottom of the opening about .050 to .060. All I could see happening is rounding off and ruining some nuts I probably can not get. I've run into this problem many times through out the years of wrenching. Yeah had to get undersize sockets and rework them to fit with a very tight slip fit. Why are there no tool outfits that offer sockets with out that lead angle for use on thin headed nuts and bolts? I had to spend a bit of time with a grinder reworking the tools. No they where not expensive snap on's, but still they are now just special application tools.
Interesting... I never encountered this before, but probably would venture towards the same solution. Probably face the sockets down on the lathe and have another specialty tool in the ole toolbox. I'm betting the manufacturer has 'specialty' tools for the job.
I've seen a few you tubers just grab an old socket and go for it, so don't know if the manufacture has a special socket or not, I don't think most people think about it, and what will or could happen. Wish I had a nice large lathe.
Even a smaller lathe can work well for small jobs. I've turned down sockets and made lots of specialty tools just because-- (1)i can (2)i enjoy it,( 3) it can take too long to get the special tool, ( 4) there may not be a special tool (5) i live in a rural area and it is usually quicker to build it myself and get on with the job
with the cutoff saws, The big selling point on the carbide tooth blades is they don't leave that big mess of folded over metal melted inside tubing. They make a nice clean cut with a very little dressing to do.
Here is an American tool made in Washington state that some fabricators find useful if doing a lot of same cuts on a pipe. Will forewarn you they have tight tolerances and won’t work on all drill stem pipe. This one is advertised for 2.5” pipe 2.875” tube but some drill stem is around 2.925”. It’s called a pipe master, don’t despair if it’s too tight just roll it over piece of EPDM or 1/8” MVL (mass loaded vinyl) sheet and mark the stencil out then cut it out and use it instead.
And for us cheap SOB's, we have this... https://www.harborfreight.com/search?q=tube notcher
Only goes up to 2” pipe so wouldn’t work on drill pipe. If you want to go cheap pick a roll of receipt paper up, Pipe Fitters Blue Book, a Curv O Mark wrap and get after it, it will be cheaper, way more accurate than that Horror Freight chunk of low quality steel and can do more sizes than it can.
The most recent tool added to the shed; a propane torch weed burner / fire starter. I knew these existed for a long time, but never tried one until of recent. Oh boy! Why did I wait so long? It works great!
I have burnt several hundreds of gallons of propane through them and never burn a weed with one.
They work great as big rosebuds-=-- or driving around setting sage fields afire in the winter
Pipe Masters come in a lot of sizes and are portable. They are the cat's meow for things like roll cages where you could have several pipes all coming together on different angles. There are pipe coping jigs for larger pipes that have the most common angles. They open up so they can fit around the pipe.
I don't think talked about my Wright Brand combination wrenches on this posting. I just had the tool roll opened up last night! It's a super handy set that can be easily carried to the job, unrolled and put to work. This saves me a ton of time by not having to walk back n forth to the tool chest! Best part they are quality hand tools made in the USA!
Wright doesn’t get the love as they deserve. Good stuff.
I’ve got Wrights from 1 1/8 to 2 1/2. The 1 3/8 and above are humongous wrenches, extremely thick. No worry about breaking them when pulling on them with the cranes
You paid $30?
Yes sir! It was a heck of a deal at my local surplus store.
A fantastic deal. I hope you bought all that they had.
Isn’t Wright tools owned by snap-on?
No. Williams is, both cater towards industrial customers as opposed to auto mechanics. Wright is 100% made in the US, Williams is a mixture of US and Taiwanese depending on tool/price point. Both are very good brands.
I couldn't find my sled gage for checking liner protrusion and at my age a $250.00 dollar one that I probably won't use again was out of the question. So I bought this digital indicator below from amazon for $30.00 and had a machinist friend of mine make the sled {he did it for free}. Very accurate easy for a old fart to see. I will take a picture and post it tomorrow.
Didn’t see this tool mentioned in this thread, one of my favorites in the shop or in the field. Cooling system vacuum set up, eliminates the risk of any air pockets in cooling system and is a must for any engine with an EGR cooler. It will save a lot of irritation caused by air in a cooling system when filling.
I have that very tool. I don't fill any coolant system without it. It is also very helpful for putting a vacuum on hydraulic tanks. So that you don't have to drain the tank to change a hydraulic pump.
Only takes getting burnt one time to use it every time!
I love the vacuum cooling system tools I won’t use them on old machines that look like they may pop hoses or heater cores from vacuum but anything else I love it, no air pockets and full fill every time. Cat says you have to use them on all machines with EGR coolers to prevent any air pockets in the cooler.
The EGR cooler on the DDEC V was one, a real problem.
I bought a jack that was branded like this one i think the label was the only thing made in USA.
I've had similar experiences with other products. In particular a Mr.Gasket branded product sold at Napa. Cardboard packaging says 'Made in USA'. Open the blister package to find a smaller bag branded with a made in China sticker. What!? This one is indeed 100% American Made. I bought it from a super small store that sells surplus. Some of the items appear to be old army surplus, random crates of products, down to old used items. This Jack was brand new with the original manual wrapped around the handle. Old Army supplies or one someone bought and never used. One heck of a deal, but it was only a single item. I'd buy a whole skid if they were available at $30 each.
I'll have to look into one of these units! I still fill the old fashion way and hope the bubbles work their way out. Thanks for sharing!
I added to the over crowded garage last week. Once saw it in the sale flyer I couldn't say no! It's my first home shop welding bench / fixture table. No more welding on the floor. I'm impressed with it's quality and price point. If you are interested more I posted a video on the YouTube channel on this Kutch Welding Workstation.
I've almost bought the harbor freight version but so far I weld very seldomly. Maybe once this barn is built and I get some real power out there... That one looks pretty nice!
A former coworker has one like that and really likes it too. Light enough to move around the shop easily. I did mount him up some better cast iron casters however as welding berries readily melt into the originals and the bearing setups weren't very good for a lot of weight, (considering).
I'm not sure of the exact manufacturer's rated capacity, but I'm guessing it's only in the hundreds of pounds (maybe 200-400 area?). I think much more could become a tipping hazard. At the price point I didn't think I could go wrong. It was $267 plus tax and shipping. I wish I had room for a full size honey comb table. I think those are the best option, but do not have the space or funds available. I did not know harbor freight had one available. In general the appearance, fit and finish seem to be a little nicer than HF's norm. It didn't even smell like cosmoline (sp.).
My buddy rebuilds a lot of antique and collectable John Deere, and Simplicity/Allis-Chalmers garden tractors. All of these have cast iron engines and transaxles and get heavy. The table has worked well for him in that all thread rod and steel strapping are easy to use through the tabletop for clamping things down to work on them. I've line bored several of his steering axle beams to straighten up the bore wear where the spindle(s) ride and articulate through bushing them back down to proper size. Lots nicer to work at waist level than on the floor too.....
The HF one I know of is a fold up job that doesn't look nearly as nice as what you've got there FTC, if I recall it runs about 120 bucks or so.
Just be careful. A buddy of mine bought a work bench. Looked great in the picture, but it was so flimsy, he gave it to his mother for potting plants.
Be damned careful with anything that folds up in the way of a bench. These things are made to work with and on and it's unbelievable how much crap anything can hold; and how heavy that crap can be. Don't need something flimsy folding up, or collapsing on your feet or otherwise damaging what you are working on.
I imagine that may certainly be the case with this welding table. I will say the Harbor Freight tool chests (whatever they are called, the big rolling ones with drawers and junk) are very good for the money. I have one of the smaller ones that I'm quite pleased with.
US General and then they have a high grade Icon line.
I just bought a spud handle ratchet from Wright Tools! I was so smitten using my combination wrenches a few weeks I had to give this a try. I see other YouTube creators using spud style ratchets and they look pretty handy. This is my first ratchet of this style. It feels pretty stout, but it's missing a USA branding! I reached out for confirmation from them. I'm hoping it's American Made like the wrenches I own, but I'm questionable with the stamp/forging.
What is the advantage of a spud handle ratchet?
Much easier to impale your self.....
Much easier to align holes in floor plates and structural members using the tapered end. Then you can insert a fastener and tighten it down
Is so can carry a added 10 lbs of Sockets to use the ratchet when need to tighten High Steel Mounting Bolts
The only use I'm familiar with is using it as a drift key. You always have the drift punch with you to help align holes for pins, bolts etc,. I never thought of sliding your sockets over the handle! This would be another benefit over a traditional ratchet. Good Call!
Or someone who is giving you grief!
Oh now a LITTLE Sarcasm can't hurt!!
At work some of the crews used them on bolted manhole lids. The spud for aligning the holes and a socket to bolt down the lids. The “hooks” are hard to fine tune the alignment.
Iron workers all had a wrench like that with a crescent wrench on the end. Used for aligning beams and starting the nuts on the bolts. I hadn't seen a ratchet before.
I think I have an old iron workers wrench, from my Grandfather's garage, with a spud end. The other end has an offset open end wrench. I will check the garage after work.
We have a bunch of spud wrenches around, I use an 8" one all the time as a quick guide pin and to undo shackles that people tightened lol.
I found it! Here is old wrench I mentioned above..... It's quite a bit larger than my new ratchet. It has a 1 1/4" wrench opening.
Part of the name of that wrench is in your your username ! It is a spud wrench. Before I retired I used to see iron-workers use them all the time for aligning bolt holes.
Martin sprocket & gear makes a good selection of those spud wrenches....Klein tool has them as well. Ed
Crappy photo of my cheap digital liner protrusion gage/machinist friend made the sled, gage $30.00 very accurate-I like cheap.
That's pretty fancy. I've got one from Central Tool that is older than my kids. It's a dial type. No one had digital indicators back then unless they stole it from Boeing.
Looks like a copy of the Cat one we had at the shop, but that one had an analogue gauge, digitals were not common when that one was purchased!
My old one was analogue but for some reason couldn't find it, And I wasn't going to spend $250 plus for a new one at my age.
Here is what was common when I started doing engines with liners. I haven't rebuilt a motor now in around 10 years. I could put the bar on the top of the liners and check to the block or go from the block to the liners. I don't recall what I paid, but there wasn't much money around to spare so it wasn't much compared to what could have been spent.
Here is a side project from my father in law. He passed away a few years ago and the brother in law was cleaning out the barn. There were several of these hanging on the wall and he didn't want to throw any away so he gave me two of them. This one had broken handles so I removed those and clean the steel up, then primed and painted it. I got one handle from Crosscut Saw and had to make a new vertical handle. When the weather warms and dries out some I'll put some kind of finish on the wood. I'll probably mount it over the door of the shop when done.
I mentioned I have an experienced come-a-long. It used to have safety latches and they didn't touch the small end of the hooks anymore. It put on a lot of dozer tracks and leveled out plenty of engines and transmissions in its days. I bought it used back when there was a Boeing surplus. We called these things coffing hoists back then.
The shop at the quarry had one just like that along with some other Central brand measuring tools, seemed to be good quality and as I recall the price was pretty good compared some of the major brands.
Just make sure however it's mounted it's secure that could do some damage if it fell on you!
Well if we are showing saws how about these: Anyone know what the bottom is for? Well while I'm at it one more:
Ice?
Bottom one of the top/ first picture? I've always heard them called a hay knife, but I've never used one. I think john c's saw is a ice saw, for cutting blocks out of the river in winter. That's why its only handled on the one side and the big gaps in the teeth.
I believe it is a bucking saw. The is a hole on the far side for another vertical handle.
1-man crosscut (bucking) saw. They're still available today, somewhere around $250+/-.
Neat looking saws guys! I've got a big one hanging in my shop too!
I like all the old saws! I have a couple old hand saws from my Grandfather's garage. They too need new handles. I hope to mount one on the wall someday.
My older brother got the old family crosscuts from the Greenville Farm. One two man and a one man for use with a Buck for firewood. I agree the Wide tooth saw is an Ice Saw. STL had a Ice House for winter harvest of river ice, the museum for that piece of history had saws as that, some over six feet long.
That's what I was told by the guy who gave it to me years ago. He also gave me that red wooden "bow saw" Did a search on "Antique Ice Tools" and found this site: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/vintage-ice-axe-ice-saw-and-ice-tongs.990460/ And this picture: And doing a little more reading I see where some say they were used both for the ice or hay cutting so might be both uses for one saw!
Hey, JohnC--i've got a comealong identical to yours. Mine was made by JET. 3/4 ton rating. I bought it new about 40 years ago. Its been well used over the years. I had to take the brake apart once when it jammed on. I am pretty sure i had exceeded the rating limit
Get yourself one of the little 1/4 ton baby come alongs they are about a hundred bucks for a good one let me tell you you will never find a better helper in tight places.
You got that right JD
I've wanted to replace the hooks for years and never found anything even similar. Anyone got a suggestion?
If you ever come down this way, I will trade you one for a cup o coffee. Bob
I'll post up when we next head down that way.
I went to boeing surplus about 20 years ago. wow they had a ton of stuff
In all AMEREN Power stations when the hooks spread the hoists were destroyed enough could not ever use again and off to scrap. Coffing has replacements, better off buying a replacement hand hoist.
Bob's offer is the best, but if you watch ebay, there are usually hooks for around $30-40 (they may not be exactly like yours, but they are chain hoist hooks). New hooks from a good supplier (harrington, etc,) will usually set you back $100-150 each- depending on the capacity of your come along. https://www.mcmaster.com/chain-hoist-replacement-parts/ https://www.ebay.com/itm/361865774252?hash=item5440e184ac:g:3pIAAOSw0QFXCEH~ https://www.amazon.com/Top-Hook-Ton-Lever-Hoist/dp/B01IWIV4YM
Monday I used my 3/4" drive ratchet. It's a clunky import model. It got the job done but left a lot to be desired. This lead me to start searching for a quality replacement. The goal was to find a nice older unit that was made in USA, affordable and a quality brand name. Well I found and purchased two different units. The first arrived in the mail yesterday and I carried it around the house like a 5 year old with a new toy. I am exceptionally happy with this Armstrong ratchet! #Merica Armstrong Model: 13-906 3/4" Drive - 18" long
And because we were talking about John C's come along, I saw this picture the other day in a jobox advertisement. There's little hooks in the lid of the new jobox's, and evidently the advertising department thinks that would be just the place to store chain falls and come alongs....
I knew l kept that railroad car bearing around for something.....cause magnetic lights don't work for **** on plastic. Ed
As far as any ratchets go, i only buy the ones i can get head kits for. It may appear as though i have occassionally abused mine, most often the 3/4" drive
My second 3/4" drive ratchet arrived today. It's bigger and has a tighter ratchet mechanism than the Armstrong. I think this one was used and abused less. It's 24 inches of power. Only problem I noticed is it won't fit in my toolbox. My old shop manager always said if your knuckles turn white you are using the wrong tool! Now, think I have enough 3/4" drive ratchets. If these won't do the job something must be wrong. All that said I still have a hankering for a 1" drive unit that's 30 inches long. Wright Brand Model#: 6400-2 .
Wright makes 1” and 3/4 drive ratchets with 42” long handles. You won’t find a stouter brand of tools either. You ought to see my big Wright wrenches they weigh about 15 lbs apiece.
We have a set of wright 3/4 sockets i have abuse the ratchet bad over the years and not used the break over much because of not being able to get it in the right position. I was losening the lug nuts on my truck with the breaker bar and it broke i didnt even have alot of presser on it. I would like to find a place to warranty it.
I have a 3/4" wright with the 42" handle. I also have the 1" drive with the 30". I much prefer the longer handled one. Your 18" long armstrong is pretty short for any serious work. but it does fit in a toolbox or is handy if you are carrying up a ladder.
https://www.dakotariggers.com/Wrigh...svS2FSzhJAMlfCR-xtmJCDwkbLukasZhoCLYIQAvD_BwE Still readily available. Model #6425 We always put a 36" pipe(or 60"...) over our foreign made ¾" ratchet. Somehow, we have not broke it yet, but it sure gets sketchy putting 200+ pounds on the end of a 5' pipe trying to break lug bolts loose on tractor tires. Someday we'll upgrade the air supply to handle a real air gun.
I would contact wright direct. 800-321-2902 They were great about getting me a kit for my 1" drive ratchet. They actually ended up getting me a whole new ratchet, after we figured out mine was the old design and had a no longer available kit.
I use mine mostly for tires also, and that long handle is great. Usually no cheater pipe needed. Its really nice to just check lugs with, a little lean on the long handle and I know they are tight.
I was concurrently looking into a 1" drive with be a 30" inch long handle. It seemed to be the unicorn on the old auction site; cheap enough to be affordable and described as in good working order. I made an offer contingent on the how smooth the ratchet mechanism functions. I thought it was fair, but maybe the seller doesn't think the same. It's time to stop spending money on toys I suppose.... For now I will always have a cheater handy for the stubborn nuts and bolts. Usually it is my old jack handle. I am hoping the larger mechanism will handle the load better than my poor 1/2" drives. They have seen some things! Okay let's be honest I just really wanted some American Made Ratchets!
I have one of those also. I've used it for a flat faced anvil beating surface for near 30 years and I've still not torn it up with my bare hands.
I want to get a 3/4 or inch breaker bar and socket to have in my truck to change a flat but I will call them. Gearwrench has been a good place to deal with. We had a broken ratchet that the dealer couldnt find parts for i called them and they sent me a new ratchet .
I blew the head apart on a Challenger 3/4" drive but cannot find anyplace to warranty it or even buy a head kit for it. I think its an 1861C. It seems to be an orphan. It seems like STANLEY has so many different lines, they don't even know where they get their stuff from or who makes it for them . I found a head kit for my old Craftsman just before Sears pulled out of Canada, so at least i have one 3/4 drive that works. I have the Snap-On 3/4" detachable torque wrench that i also bought the ratchet handle for but its long enough to be cumbersome. I hate to think about what that detach handle is worth now . I've had it about 30 years
Most of the old challenger was proto, I think. But most of that stuff isn't available either- they make new designs and then you can't fix the old. If it is marked as proto- I'd call them and see what they will do- 800-800 TOOL. All they can say is no. It may be a issue from us to canada. Mac is part of SBD and they have been great when I needed some ratchet kits- and the mac tool truck won't even come to my place.
Well I spoke too soon! The gentleman on the auction site did accept my offer. I now own a Armstrong 14-906 the big brother. It's a 1" drive ratchet that is 30" long! Super excited to try it out. Now I just need some sockets and it adapters to 3/4" drive. ***While I don't agree with, like it, sponsor it or endorse it, I had to create a Tik Tok account to protect the channel brand. Just to re-iterate I do not watch Tik Tok videos.*** Here is a link to a video showing off the size of the new ratchet. It's on the channels branded Tik Tok page. https://vm.tiktok.com/ZTdaHoqLp/
Rummaging through a box of old tools saved from my Grandpa's old garage I found a couple nice adjustable wrenches. I always refer to them as crescent wrenches regardless of the brand. I found three wrenches branded 'Crestoloy', a 'Diamoloy', and a Proto. Pretty excited to clean these old wrenches up and use them in the shop! I never saw a wrench with the Crestoloy branding. It's a pretty cool piece of American history.
I think Diamoloy may have been a private label sold by Ashdown's hardware. I don't have an old Ashdown's catalogue at my residence to check. My grandfather was the Calgary branch manager for many many years until he retired. As a salesman he got a new car every year during the 30's!
They also have glass pliers for breaking glass along a score line.
Diamalloy was used by the Diamond Caulk Horseshoe Company. IMO the best adjustable wrenches made.
curious why you like them more than other brands?
I've had and used all those brands of adjustable wrench but I never thought that much of them. Just old tools rattling around in the tool box. The best ones I have used by far are Channellock brand, currently made, in Spain (or at least made 10 years ago when I last bought some). They are stronger and have thinner jaws to fit in places but most importantly they have smaller clearances so the movable jaw does not wiggle around as much and stays parallel a lot better.
Have never owned any, will never own any.
How do you get by not owning hammers? Next you'll be saying you don't own any prybars...
I have an 8,12 and 16 that I carry in the truck all the time. They are for the nuts and bolts that have degraded and a regular wrench is only going to slip over anyway. I have a 24 in the shop tools that I figured that I won't work on things that big anymore. The other reason to have them is I'm not going to carry three or four different wrenches to the top of a boom for a hose fitting or under, thru or over some mess to then have to do it again and again because I got the wrong tools.
Robo Cop----You there Stop what your doing! Adjustable Wrenches? I thought that is what a wrench/socket set was designed for. Adjustable wrenches are a great tool--great for rounding off square head pipe plugs and used as a hammer. Screwdrivers are screwdrivers-Pry bars are pry bars. Hammers are for smashing your cell phone, PC, TV, or any other electronic devise.
I keep a couple adjustable wrench/hammer/pry bar/shot put on the truck. I like the snap on version with the size readout on the side and the extra wide opening jaws.
Now those are a good deal-{That extra wide jaw allows for it to fit around the fat head of the customer}.
Mexican speed wrenches. Had a teacher back in high school automotive shop who was also a supervisor in an aviation shop in a previous life told us a story that has stuck with me to this day,,If he saw any of his mechanics pull one of them turds out to work on anything in his shop he would send them packing, tool box in tow..Have had several "kids" working with me pull one out of their box and said "hey, that's a pretty cool wrench, let me check it out".When I got a hold of it I chucked it out the shop door into the yard and told them to get the right wrench for the job and reitterated the previous story,not always to the approval of the owner..
I keep some adjustables in all sizes up to 24”. I use them mostly for holding stuff or straightening bent stuff and prefer the ones with the eyeholes in the end of the handle
Adjustables are great for hydraulic lines, holding fittings and such, bending thin metal, turning out broken bolts after you weld a nut to them and so on.
Tho I hate adjustable wrenches the set of 4 I bought off snapon when I was 19 are pretty awesome. They don't tighten or slip when pulled. I only use them on hydro lines
I bought a 42 inch, 1 inch breaker bar to crack the lug nuts on my backhoe. I couldn’t budge them. The 3/4 inch Milwaukee impact wrench took them off like they were greased. I haven’t touched the bar since.
Uh fellers--------------there is no place you can use a adjustable wrench on late model trucks, you can just fit a open/box end in most places. There ain't any extra room for a fat headed adjustable wrench.
I don't work on any highway trucks other than my own pickup. I stopped that nonsense in 1994 and never worked on another. It doesn't matter how well you fix one, the driver will always complain, the drivers will break them even they are not complaining about your fix, all failures are the mechanics fault and the owners alway whine that you aren't working hard enough, take too much time and cost too much money. I will acknowledge your skills, expertise, contrary nature, smart ass remarks, and general orneriness. I know you would have been a much different person if you had chosen another way to make a living.
Thought those were under warranty.....
Not all. Gee I didn't mean to upset you John, but if everyone worked on yellow iron-you wouldn't have any parts delivered to fix that yellow iron. And yeah general orneriness.
Those of us that work out of a truck and have to hoof it some distance to get more tools are not too proud to use adjustable wrenches and we know when to quit to not round something off. Increases the overall speed of the job if done right. I also have a shop and a fancy rolling toolbox but rarely get to use that luxury. The wrenches in there are clean and shiny.
It was tongue in cheek
Well I work out of a truck too-not all the time. Usually service calls in the middle of the night getting a refer started normally no more windshield time than 2 hours one way. Or operating the tow truck, longest one way 900 miles. Still never carry adjustable wrenches. But really all I'm saying is {I don't use them, I couldn't give a rats ass if someone else does. And my wrenches are dirty and greasy.
Well I will say this. I rarely, almost never use an adjustable wrench on a bolt or nut. Usually some kind of hose fitting, they seem to do better there. I use sockets for 99% of fasteners of this type and electric drivers usually to save time. So it gets used to hold a rusty nut while the electric driver with the proper size socket is driving the bolt out of its place. It saves a lot of customer's billable hours I am sure. Maybe that makes me a bad businessman but I want someone to go to my funeral.
No one going to mine and that's ok.
I like to have a lot of wrenches, in many places. My favorite wrench is the one that's closest to the job! That being said, for grins, look up double ended adjustable wrenches, and the prices that collectors pay for 'em! I think that they were originally a marketing tool, to save space in a store display, yet people really think they really have something special, when they find one...
Adjustable wrenches are like alot of stuff if you know what your doing their a good tool. They are not the best on bolts and nuts but on hose fittings they are good. Not to nitpick but alot of guys work on about the same thing day after day so when you have to do a repair you know what you need and have it . But guys like me some times work on some thing one time and never agin so its hard to have that 38mm wrench that you never needed before or after. Also a adjustable wrench is alot easyer to handle than a combo wrench when you get bigger than 1 inch. I dont use a adjustable wrench on a truck much or see the need to but truck repair is different unless its something add after its leaves the factory.
I have one some were it looks to be hard on the hands.
I agree adjustable wrenches are not ideal in all applications. However sometimes they are a real life saver. I will reach for the correct wrench of it's available, but sometimes that odd ball nut, bolt or fitting shows up. They are also great at bending things even though it's not it's originally intended purpose. Perfect example the 1 - 11/16 piston nut I recently encountered. I have 1 - 5/8 and 1 -3/4's, but no 1 - 11/16's. Who's idea was that?
double ended adjustable wrench! What an idea! One end for sae and the other end for metric!
au contraire mon ami ! When one is in the hay field with a baler, rake, or haybine that needs tightening or adjusting ... And the shop / truck is half mile across the mentioned field... adjustable wrench that lives in the tractor, saves much time... and hay when the rain is coming.
Its been over 60 years since I learned in high school shop class there is correct way and a wrong way to position a crescent wrench to turn nuts and bolts. Without an internet search how many of us knows what I am talking about ? Believe it or not I picked up a metric crescent wrench that was laying on the pavement of a highway intersection. I never would have known there was such a thing if it weren't for finding it.
They look good too hanging from your belt along with a bull ring full of keys. The women go crazy for that look.
Pressure forcing jaw down to body of wrench. IIRC
Most of the newer adjustable wrenches have the metric measurement on one side, turn it over the SAE measurement is on t'other...
I think there may even be left handed crescent wrench's where the screw turns the opposite direction. They come in handy for some things.
BAHAHAHA....I literally laughed out loud!!
From time to time I'll use that as a caliper....too lazy to go get the caliper on the other end of the shop.
My 24" crescent wrench has straightened out more bent stuff than its taken off... Ed
Nice! I like the slide hammer modification. I've been meaning to make a set for years, but never seemed to get around to it. Maybe this will be my motivation?
That's all you need is a roll of 100MPH tape and you're good to go..
Lazy Susan workbench with air brakes
Does the elbow behind the cut-off saw lead to a particle trap of some sort ?
Yes it does I have the end closed up so it can fill with sparks from the saw the elbow sticks down into that wheel a ways Its working out pretty good so far Still have a few tools to get set on there but it cleared up a lot of space for lesser used ones
My daily driver is a T300 Kenworth loaded down with 20 years of tools, guess what gets used the most? They are always in my pocket and I don't leave home without them. The reversible jaw is handier than you would think. I have several sizes of crescent wrenches up to 24 inch, they are mostly used for straightening or bending stuff or hydraulic lines. When you have to hike through the brush a long ways to change a hose on a Feller Buncher they are a god send. If you can't get the fitting loose because the wrench won't turn you can at least get an accurate measurement to know exactly what wrenches you need to grab. I had a Snap On that I found on the road, I wish I had never taken the time to stop and pick it up, I hated that thing but couldn't bring myself to chuck it. I finally gave it to a buddy who thought Snap On tools were the best, we were both happy!
I use the **** out of a 6" proto adjustable. That things changed more pilot lines, air fittings then I can count.
The words I have for this person are unusable on this board
I'm not a Snap-on nutcase, but I have started acquiring some. When I wear out or break a socket or other tool, I replace it with a Snap-on. In two years I have replaced most of my screwdrivers, wobblys, adaptors, and a handful of sockets. I have, however, decided that after my second 1/2" wobbly, when I kill this one I'm going back to Carlyle.
Many moons ago l bought a snap-on ratchet. Liked it so much my most used ratchets are snap-on. Thats as far as the loyalty goes.....anything else with that name came from an estate sale. Ed
I have 3 Snap On ratchets that I have bought off the truck, about 450 bucks worth and worth every penny. I have seen a few examples where other pretty good tools broke under extreme abuse (Loong cheater pipes or pulling on an end wrench with a chain puller breaking a bolt loose for example) and the Snap On worked. Most of the time everything else works fine for me though. Snap On impact wobbly sockets are awesome too.
As to 'adjustable wrenches'- it is simply another tool. We all are tool junkies. We all have many tools that do the 'crescent' job much better. However, we all find jobs where we are glad to have the thing. My Uncle Tom chased down a wrench with very narrow jaws he loaned to his brother. Fantastic for hyd work. I do not recall the brand but is was 50's American. Tom was on a mission to get it back from his late brother's estate because it was the best tool for that job. No good for head bolts, but hey.....
For me snapon or proto ratchets snapon screw drivers proto or snapon sockets and preferably knipex pliers the rest as long as there decent I'm happy.
I have some of every brand made i bet but i have only one snapon ratchet 3/8 long handle it is a lemon. The chrome is worn from riding around on the dash of my pickup looking for a snap on truck to get it fixed. I got it fixed maybe 20 years ago but i am afraid to use it because it broke 2 times and i was being carful. I have other snap on stuff that has been good. I have S K ratchets that have been on the end of a pipe several times and never had a problem.
SK made a really nice ratchet. My grandpa has a couple SK 1/2" drive ratchets and a breaker bar that have been well abused on the farm and are still around. We've even broken the square drive off, called their customer support number, and they sent out a rebuild kit free of charge. Works for us when our tools dont get used hard, all day, every day.
I have a SK 3/4 set I bought used around 35 years ago. It has seen its fair share of use and abuse and has held up like the day it was new to me.
I am likely in that same Abuser of tools boat as all here!! I have Snap on ratchets they will not warranty as many other brands that end up in the scrap bucket as I destroy them!! As to Crescent Hammers or Rigid Hammers or even Vice Grip Hammers they have plenty of meat in the jaws areas and do not need additional Hammer Heads here!!
Here is my egg laying wool milk pig.
That is a thumb detecting nut f$&*er
Snap on ? In the late 60's dad got a 1/2 drive snap on ratchet for about 14 bucks, back then and into the late 70's a person could just go to the warehouse and purchase tools. I hate buying anything from the trucks. Always have to hunt them down or call to figure out where they will be. Many years ago had a tool stolen by one of the drivers that was going to check on getting it fixed, this was at a shop I worked at and had a witness. Got a kid on a route in a particular area that is worthless. The prices and the trucks make snap on bad, sorry just a bad taste here. The trucks = more mark up.
If that ratcheting end is 3/4", that wrench would cover half the work I've done this year.
My son in law sells Grey Pneumatic tools at work and I've been purchasing them. Nothing in chrome but I don't have anything except positive things to say about their ratchets, extensions, sockets, etc. in all sizes and drives. I've not busted anything yet and seemingly know how to literally "explode" tools on command. Going to purchase a 3/4" deep well set next as I have their shallow set(s) already in both std. and metric.
The Snap-On fella was a crook, and a snooty one at that. They sell some stuff that no one else makes, and you know you need it. I bit 3 or four times, but eventually that a**h*le cured me of the big red truck. Unrelated, sorta My "Dayton, the Grainger brand" wirefeed welder suffered the cooling fan biting the dust. I went digging to find the machine is made by Century, and sold under the aforementioned Dayton brand, but also Marquette, Matco, and, yup, you guessed it- Snap-on. I would love to see the prices from each.
Last time I looked at Snap On welder’s prices they were far in excess of the three big brands worth owning- Miller/Hobart, Lincoln, and ESAB I tell my apprentices “look, your money is your money but that truck wants to sell you a small single rail of sockets or a small set of wrenches for two to three times the price of a quality set from elsewhere (including US made industrial brands such as Proto and Wright) and if you had to pay $400-500 for seven wrenches outright you wouldn’t consider it but because you can pay $25 a week it sounds like a good deal to you, but it’s not. You can take that same amount and get a lot more for your money of the stuff you need”
I have some Grey Pneumatic sockets and swivel sockets and they seem to be good but the last set i ordered i finally gave up on after 6 weeks.
im a huge fan of Grey Pneumatic and Sunex. Great sockets, great (and complete) size ranges, good prices. Large variety in their catalogs. Matco and Cornwell both relabel either GP/Sunex sockets or something really close for their ADV and Bluepower brands.
I have Sunex impacts, 3/8 drive only so far. They have held up well, and have a good finish. My only complaint is that the deep sockets will eat your nut/bolt. It is hard to find a deep socket anymore that doesn't.
Gearwrench brand sockets have a ledge inside so they dont eat the nut We have and have had many great Snap-on and some of my snap on stuff I wouldn't give up but I don't find much that I need from him anymore there are just to many other great options
I tell the guys at my shop that they are paying for the service. The extra expense is to compensate the delivery and salesman's commission. They always buy from him, but I usually source tools from other vendors. In my mind it's the same component at a better rate! Now I don't get the same replacement service, but that's because I do not purchase from the truck. Often the markup is so large I can afford to break a tool or two, replace it with a new one and still be ahead on expenses.
Exactly. And with modern tools breakage is pretty rare for most tools. another angle is that expensive tools are lost just as easily as cheaper ones. My apprentice dropped his brand new 10mm Snap On impact socket in a belly pan today. I asked him how much would it have been to replace it if it had been inaccessible…$34. The exact same socket with a Cat logo costs $4.50 to replace. It’s a hell of a lot easier to let a $4 socket go if you can’t find it vs a $34 socket.
Yeah, its always a 10 mm...
My equipment is so old its 9/16".....
And the mechanics are so old, the 9/16 have a patina no other wrench does. I can see it from across the shop.
And, when one has to modify a tool in an pinch, it hurts less to cut/heat & bend a $5 wrench than a $34 one...lol. Years ago I bought a HF quality box/open end set just for the purpose of making "special tools" Cheap screwdrivers are shown no mercy either. Ed
I hear that! I have no problem 'customizing' Cheap Chinese Sheet (CCS), but really take a second look at modifying one made in USA. I have a dog leg 1 1/8" combination end wrench I custom bent. Couldn't bring myself to bend a good one and ended up buying a new cheapo version for the job.
I got a new tool last night! I've seen folks using cordless circular saws and I finally got an Milwaukee M18 cordless. I haven't tried it out yet but I have a feeling, in the long run, I'll do a lot more circular sawing due to just being able to grab it and go without worrying about power.
We have Milwaukee and Makita 18 volt saws, the M18 fuel saws are animals with a good demo/framing blade. That along with a cordless miter is all we use building forms.
I"ve gotten so used to cordless I get pissed if l need a cord, even in the shop. A friend is a pipefitter, corded tools are NOT allowed on site unless there is no other option. Cords must be elevated on stands as they are a trip hazard. Ed
I believe it. I love the never ending power of corded but the cordless stuff I have is nice and it seems we're finally getting to a point where battery tech, while not perfect and still expensive, is sufficient.
A couple years ago I got a milwaukee 7 1/4” M18 saw and I love it. No cord to throw it off balance and catch on stuff
If you want something to go with that cordless circular saw, take a look at this: I bought a WRX 103" clamp, the saw guide, and 2 clamps at Lowe's for about $107. WRX Is slightly different, in both the guide and clamp, but damn does that thing cut straight!
I worked at a shop that got an expensive new radiagraph for cutting steel. First thing they did was cut the power cord short so if the cord happened to get in the way or burn't, it was the extension cord that took the hit and not the power cord on the tool.
That makes no sense to me. If it got damaged just put a new end on it shorter, how does it matter if the saw cord or an extension cord gets damaged? My skillsaw has a 1' cord now because someone may have damaged it while cutting, may have been me. I do kinda prefer it that length though, it's nicer not having a long cord to wrap around it.
I cant remember the brand but they did make a saw that the cord plugged into it. It didnt have any cord.
I'm thinking that it was done that way as just about any job site will have a few spare extension cords laying around but maybe not have a replacement cord end. And if the site is like some MSHA regulated sites they might get in trouble if just anyone was to be caught repairing a cord end on a tool.
Bosch Ed
Milwaukee
I remember milwaukee also having that set up. It had a quick disconnect cord that would fit the saw and drill and other electrical tools. Have problems with the cord and you could just quick swap out. I don't know if its still available or not. I never had a saw with it, but I had a drill set up that way. And like khansen says, its a great set up for inspectors. Everything sealed and factory.
No just toss a piece of belt over it be as good as new there's a factory end on that cord nothing to see here
I got 2 milwaukee drills from a scrap clean up.One is a 3/8 with a regulare cord the other is 1/2 with that replaceable cord and it is missing .The cord is $35.00. I riged it up and it didnt sound that great if i had a cord i would send it off and have it repaired for $100.00.
With cordless tools it's a game changer out here, you aren't stretching a cord a mile away to do a project, I'm not dragging a generator that mile either and for when it's cloudy or less than desirable weather for getting solar. When the sun shines charge the cordless tool batteries and when it doesn't they will run until then. Now we just need a charge controller capable of charging them directly since so much energy is loss no matter if you are on or off grid living. Out here sun hits solar panels DC (+/-21% efficient), energy is transferred to charge controller which some is loss in the lines (1-3% drop), then from there it goes to the batteries which energy is now loss in the charge control (+/-5%) and the cables that go to the battery (1-3% drop) which then goes through more cables (1-3% drop) to inverter AC (94% efficient) which then must go through more lines to your plug you plug a battery charger into (1-3% drop) which then more is is dropped as your battery charger inverts it back to DC and one can only surmise how efficient those are. Sure there is factors of voltage drop or loss but it's an estimate. I know it will never happen as the market is so slim for it with a plug being everywhere.
At my age and with the corded tools i already have, it was far less expensive to purchase a 1,500 watt inverter generator. It will run multiple tools at once and at full output for about six hours. If I have to drill multiple big holes in a piece of steel, I don't have to worry that the drill has enough power or that the battery will go dead after twenty minutes of run time. Were I less than forty years old I would probably have every battery tool that was available.
Exactly! It's all about production. When you have 2 or 3 guys working on a project you can't afford to have them standing around waiting for a cord to get repaired. If an extension gets damaged, you can grab another one and there's not a panic to get the damaged one repaired right now.
It would be nice if cordless tools and the batteries weren't so expensive. It's odd that some cordless tools lack power compared to their corded counterparts but other cordless tools like impact wrenches have way more torque than corded guns and even more torque than air impact wrenches. The highest torque models can cost $300 just for the tool and then a good battery can cost over $100 cad. If you need one on a regular basis, they are the cat's meow but for occasional use, it's hard to justify the cost.
All my corded tools have been sitting on the shelf for years unused because for the odd job cordless is so much easier. Now with a shop i'm getting in the habit of using the corded tools for shop stuff as they are so much cheaper to replace. But even for a die grinder it's so easy to grab the cordless, instead of firing up the compressor and dragging around a hose.
This was a bit ago but I got dewalt 5 amp battery for $70 each. I use them for everything. Even the chainsaw and weed whacker are so handy. No more gas as it's such a pain because I use them so rarely.
How many hundreds for the tools and how long does the battery last? Cordless is great but sometimes cost prohibitive. I needed a circular saw for a very small project. Cordless would have been great but the battery alone was more than a basic corded saw. I lucked out and got an open box circular saw at a 50% discount for $32.98. It will run all day and do any future projects I have. No way to justify over $200 to go cordless.
When I was just a little shaver before wrenching on/driving trucks I did new home construction/remodeling and milwaukee corded saws were the norm but then I got turned on to the light weight makita corded circular saws,they were a game changer and very reliable even when dropped from the second floor deck depending on how they bounced Now that I'm (retired) the nail slammin' jobs are coming out of the woodwork due to the pi$$poor state of the work force and when I show up on the job I have my Makitas and a 28 oz.estwing hammer hanging from my pouch they know I'm there to work....and I always bring a couple of good quality cords with as well..
In my shop, I mostly use the corded grinders and saws. They hang on a stand and the power is right there. The skil saw and corded drills are right in a drawer ready to pull out. If I need to move away from my central work area or just need one cut or screw driven, I take cordless tools. Cam
Most bare tools like grinder, grease gun, etc are around $200. Combo with 2 drills, circular saw, recip saw, radio, and 2 2.0 amp batteries use to be under $400 though. The 5 amp hour last forever in virtually anything. The only thing that burns them up quick is the chainsaw but if I take 2-3 can do a ton of cutting.
I got the Milwaukee circ saw for about 130 bucks, tool only, as I had the battery that came with the grease gun and I'd bought an extra because I was too dumb to figure out how to plug the first battery in all the way. I used the saw a couple times this weekend. When I pulled it out of the box and got the blade on and all that junk, I fired it up and was disappointed. It sounded like a kids play-saw. It didn't seem to spin the blade very fast and I was curious if the battery, which was on the unplugged charger for a while, was running low. I didn't feel like dragging a couple hundred feet of extension cord out, and I just bought this new toy, so I took it out and I'll be dogged if it didn't slice right through the 2x10s I've got! Very well done, and quiet! It was weird. New tool again! I got an inexpensive Craftsman angle grinder. My last one was a HF cheapo, and it's ergonomics left a bit to be desired. I've yet to use it but it seems like, with a trigger trigger instead of switch, I think I'll like that a bunch more. I also got a grinding wheel rather than using a cutoff wheel to grind. I don't think I realized there was a difference, but that makes sense, duh.
I have a lot of m12 and M18 tools and batteries and use the hell out of them in the service truck but in the shop I still prefer air. Especially for grinding/cutting. I know it's probably not that big of a deal but with all of the magnets and fans in corded/cordless tools I just can't help but think that metal shavings aren't real good for them.
Needed a big saw, but I couldn't justify buying a Stihl or Husqvarna. I've run an old Homelite 540 and a 410 for awhile, but they're getting tired and parts are scarce. I've seen these clone 660s around for a few years and finally ordered one up. Dressed with a 32" Oregon bar, skip tooth, full chisel chain. I put a tank through it today on some large white oak that was bigger than the bar. I don't know how the performance compares to a true 660, but this saw flat ripped through that oak today. I am plenty happy with it so far. Let me get a few tanks through it and I'll report back. Tomorrow it is scheduled to break down 2 more 30" plus white oaks, a 30" locust, 32" walnut, and a 36" sugar maple. The walnut and maple are standing dead, rest are hazard trees that need to go.
You’re right about that... I have a few 18v grinders in the tool graveyard... brushed and brushless variety... they can’t withstand metal dust
Short of the compressor flying apart there is no where for dirt/debris to enter an air tool and they are easily rebuilt. If I am doing a big project in the field I will use air but with a pto driven compressor it gets old listening to the truck all day. Not to mention the ridiculous fuel prices now and general wear and tear from idling.
Nice, colson! Can I ask what something like that ran you? I'd love to get a bigger saw for a chainsaw mill but the 500 bucks was already plenty for my Husq 455, which isn't big enough. You got good plans for all that wood?
I sware off cheap tool barn angle grinders back in the traveling tool tent days. This was before harbor freight existed. Then you could buy a 4 1/2" angle grinder for $10. After the last one I tried to use ate the bearings and started throwing sharapnel I gave up on knockoff imports. I think at the time I went through multiple units on a simple job. I was pissed! Now I only buy name brand units, but they are not the quality they used to be. Ironically I think some of those are all import now too, but with a fancy cover/sticker. I need to spend the money for a Metabo. Those are industrial units in my opinion. Try flap disc grinding wheels. They will blow your mind!
Thanks FTC, I saw some of those but didn't get any. I was too shocked by the $17 cutoff wheel 5 pack. My uses are minimal so I haven't needed anything too robust but the more welding I get into the more I seem to need it.
Cordless is great but they are high . I use a sawzall alot junking cars and its very hard on one. I have thought alot about burying a line so i could have a plug in were i load stuff. I guess it all comes down to how much do you want to spend to get something done.
My little Homelite Super2's would run and hide from that one! Then again the only tree near me that would need that big of a bar is a large Poplar and from my experience with that is it burns so fast it's hardly worth the time it take to cut and split! Also if you don't split it fast it will rot from the inside!
I found one of those super 2s in a trash can it had a broken part that held the bar i fixed it . I had alot of fence row to clear i bought a new Stihl 034 . I was cutting the trees and skiding them to a ditch. I ended up using the Homelite because i ether had to haul the saw on the tractor or leave it along the fence row. After it gave out years later i got a poulan. You can say bad stuff about cheap saws but they are great for what they are.
@aighead , search Ebay for a G660 chainsaw. Another option would be a G466. Those are clones of Stihl 660 (92cc) and 460 (76cc). I would have loved to have bought a Stihl original, but a new 92cc Stihl is over $1300, and a used ones are $500 to $1000 with unknown history (cut one log, only used on Sunday's by a lil ol gramma, etc) So far, it's getting the job done. The powerhead was $360, the bar was $90, and the chain was around $30. It ripped through oak and walnut with ease, as it should. I had the full bar buried in that white oak and the 660 just powered right through.
Farmertec.com is where my friend showed me for the "Repair Kits" to build your own saw. He was interested in building one for a project, and got me interested to do the same.
If you expect to have more projects that can justify the cost then cordless could be worthwhile. Air die grinders are nice because they are smaller but you still need a decent compressor. I know a few guys that several of the cheap imports, $20-$30. They don't last very long but are cheap to replace. Name brands are much better... if the shop supplies them. I worked in one shop where they wanted you to supply your own grinders. It's pretty rare a welding shop doesn't supply the power tools. Buying a $20 die grinder because the shop is too cheap to get one is one thing but with a grinder you need a name brand if you expect to last more than a week.
Lots of stuff there MarshallPowerGen, thanks for sharing. Anyone use one of those bump chainsaw chain sharpeners ? The kind the you stick your tip into then push, and supposedly it sharpens pretty nicely? The one linked is less than 5 bucks, which makes me want to try it but I haven't seen anyone talk about it so I assume it can't be great.
Great way to ruin a chain. Learn to hand file. After a long day churning out chips, it can be a very peaceful way to wind down with some tunes and a cold beverage. Only takes a few strokes per cutter. I usually give every cutter a couple strokes when I fuel up, or if I notice the chips are getting smaller/dusty. Then, end of day, I try to get through each saw. Sharpen chain, blow out air filter, clean off any excess oil, check & file rakers if needed, grease bar tip sprocket, etc. I have 2 saws that get used a lot, 3 others that are lightly used, so I'm really focusing on the 2. Also, I have an Oregon bench mounted chain grinder. That's mostly used to reshape chains that got rocked, or buried in the ground by the hired hand. But, if you're into milling, it can be used to reshape standard chains into milling chains.
I dont have one but i can see it dosent sharpen the chain in they way a chain is normally sharpened. I wouldnt want to use one ever. I have 2 cordless sawzals . They are ceap ones . Yes they are handy but ones battery is about gone and the saw is old. The other has charger problems. The sawzal and drills are handy and not that high for a cheaper one that will do what i need. I worked at a place that was all messed up when it came to grinders . They had some grinders and some guys had there own . It went back and forth on if you needed to have your own then they finly said and did provide grinders. They never had any die grinders and i needed one . I cant remember the brand but they had a warrenty . I would buy one when it gave out take it back one time then when that one gave out i would buy one and start over.
Yeah, the way those bump sharpeners works looks like it misses the important part. I know there are people that swear by hand filing but I don't cut enough to get good. I used a cheap harbor freight grinder sharpener that I really like. It took a bit of reprofiling the chain teeth but it works very well for my uses.
I’ve got one of the bench-mount electric sharpeners that you remove the chain from the saw in order to use. It’s fast and accurate and I do a couple of spare chains and take them with me. I can hand-file but I don’t have the patience for it and it only takes a few minutes to swap a chain out in the bush
What I use is similar to this: Mine is an Oregon brand and for what I use the chain saw for seems to work out pretty good. Usually just hit each tooth with 10 or 12 strokes.
A friend of mine has a clone 660 that he has had for about a year. On a tree clearing job a couple weeks ago I had a large cottonwood that I was struggling with trying to get it rolled up out of the hole. I asked him to come and cut the root ball off. He pulled that clone 660 with a 36 inch bar out and made a cut down each side of the trunk in no time at all. It ended up measuring 69 inches across. Pretty good size tree for this neck of the woods. That saw was pretty impressive. Hope you have good luck with yours.
I too have a garbage freight bench mounted sharpener, think I paid $20 with a super coupon and it suits my needs just fine..One of the neighbors scored one of them fancy blue saws too and he loves it..I've had my finger on the BUY button more than once but I really don't need another saw(said no self respecting redneck ever) also a little heavy to swing around for several hours..Barely escaped the drunk amazon/e-bay forces...
That looks like the old mcCollugh sharpeners, takes a special chain, and bar, now being hawked to homeowners by oregon (and chinese knock-offs), or like ColsonO4 said, you'll ruin a good chain. At best the McCollugh system was designed by idiots, for idiots!
I just watched this the other day, these guys know a thing or two about saws.
I've been following Guilty of Teeson for quite awhile now. Lots of great information, neat techniques, quality video, etc.
Guilty of Treeson was a great show that seems to have shut down production. Jake the host of the program, was great at show and tell and explanations.
The best chainsaw specislists I've ever seen were the guy's from Pioneer Log homes. They were the subject on the TV show Timber Kings. They even taught the forestry service recruits and showed some of the things you can do with a chainsaw. One of builder's said he could do finer, more accurate work with a chainsaw than someone could with a circular saw. Then there's the guys that do the sculptures, unbelievable craftsmanship.
I never knew! I recently purchased a manual pipe threader from a Chinesian specialist. I completed a gas line project with Dad's help and he brought his threader. What a game changer! After seeing how handy his was I needed to have one of my own. Wish I knew about these 18 years ago!
IMHO, pipe threaders are going the way of the landline phone, but What I have found since buying a nearly new one about 5 years ago, is that pipe threaders are a lot like snowblowers. Buy one and it wards off jobs that you need it for!
It's not my favorite job so I'm okay not having a need for it anytime soon! I used to have my old fashion hardware store thread all my pipes. It was super convenient, but since I moved I'm stuck trying to get pipe threaded at one of the bigger commercial outfits. It's a painful process that sucks the life out of me every time I enter the store. Hopefully this tool can help me avoid fewer trips like those!
I got one of those Chinese threaders and on the first set of 1/2” threads I attempted, it literally crumbled apart. Very poor casting material of the die holder. I managed to get warranty on it but am now wary of using it. I should have bought a Ridgid set but don’t often need them and couldn’t justify the expense. The closest place to get pipe threads made is an hour away
I have some that a very old they work good. I see threaders at junk store,flea markets and garage sells very cheap.
I agree an American made set is the way to go! I'm just like you and cannot justify several hundreds of dollars on a set that barely, if ever, gets used. Dad has owned his la cheapo for several years ~10 years and performed multiple projects. One of his projects was a complete home rebuild requiring all new gas line. Hopefully mine works for the few times I need to reach into the box. Dad said his key to success is lots of cutting oil and working the die slowly. I forget how he said it exactly, but he referenced how, 'it's not the best steel and it's best not to overdue it'. Hopefully your damaged die was just a fluke and the others/replacement work well.
Like you said lots of cutting dont try any thing but cutting oil.
I just brought home threading equipment from work as needed. The Rigid dies are replaceable. I will buy a used threader next time I need one now that I am retired and replace the dies if needed. Cam
I have plans to take some tools to a auction most wood working stuff that i have 2 of. The bad part is i think i will be out of town that day. I am going to take a table saw ,wood band saw maybe a shopsmith, air compressor or 2, lawn mower trailer,maybe my claw hammer collection, and who knows what else. This will real help on the shop clean up. Its one of those deals were you dont take any thing that you think is valuable because you never know what it will bring.
I saw a Ridged pipe threader set in the box on Marketplace for $15.00.
After about 2 gallons of gas run through the Farmertec G660 saw in the past week, I am going to have to make some upgrades. The oil pump struggles to put out enough oil for a 32" bar, and the chain tensioner doesn't feel right and doesn't seem to hold tension on on the chain very well. Reading around about other guys struggles, most have upgraded their clone saw to the factory Stihl oil pump and chain tensioner. I'll be ordering a Stihl replacements this week.
I'm not "liking" that you have to upgrade, I'm liking the info! Bummer to it not working properly!
Holy sh!+, blow my mind indeed! I got like a 40 grit flap wheel and within 2 seconds of using it I was giggling like a little kid! It works great!
^^ I picked up a flap disk that wraps around to the top surface. It gets into a 90 deg corner and in finishes both sides of the corner.
I finally bought a small little Honda generator. I recently leased a new storage facility and it does not have power available. I have the option to connect to the grid, but I suspect it would cost around $45 a month just to operate a few light bulbs on occasion. I decided a small quiet operating gen set was a better option. So far I'm super impressed! It's a used unit and it started on the second pull straight out of the box. It made it's way across the country be bopping around in a UPS box and the fact it started so easily was a surprise. It's light weight and super quiet. It came with a custom fitted Tele-Light halogen light attachment and I consider it my tiny light plant. It seems like a simple idea to attach a light directly to the generator, but it makes it really convenient. This eliminates the need to carry around extra lights and cords.
My wife's family has an off grid cabin in northern Michigan that we pack in a 2000w inverter generator everytime we go up there. Those things are super impressive. Quiet, fuel efficient, and lightweight are what come to mind. We'll be up there a week or so and maybe put 5 to 10 gallons through, running a standard refrigerator and some lights. I've been wanting to pick one up for myself, but haven't had a good excuse to get one. On a side note, I've always thought Honda makes the worlds easiest starting small engines. My grandpa has 2 hard hose irrigation traveler's that are wound up by 5hp Hondas. They sit from August until May or June. Then its fresh fuel, 2 or 3 pulls, and away they go. Then they run at an idle reeling in the irrigation unit for 2 or 3 months, then drain fuel and forget about it until next year. We do change oil weekly during peak irrigation as these units rack up hours quick running 20-22 hours a day.
I always had Honda motorcycles and thought they were the best. A place i worked at bought 2 new trailers that had Honda engines They were the worst starting engine i was ever around .I dont know if it was because of the hard ride they saw or what.
Chalk up another Honda fan. I think I've only owned their cars and I have one of their motorcycles now. Typically great engines. When I went to buy my bike, used, it was about 15 degrees out and almost blizzard snowy, it fired right up like it was nothing. Now, granted, it may have been started a few minutes prior to us getting there. I've had it sit for months, slapped a new battery in, and it's fired right up like it ran yesterday. Very pleased. The bike does take some choking, and it's a little slow to get warm but it's never been a real problem, just ride for a mile or so, push in the choke button and gettyup.
So far I'm loving the generator and find excuses to use it on odd jobs. Used it just last night to trim a drainage pipe. It was easier than uncoiling an extension cord! I've owned Honda motorcycles and still have an old school 80's vintage cruiser. The motorcycle has always been cold blooded, but never failed to start with clean carburetors, fresh fuel and a good battery.
That looks like a little robot buddy sitting there, from some kids movie, almost Wall-e-esque. Cute!
So, I'm hopefully de-crittering the barn by putting this annoying screen up. I was hand stapling but it sucked. I looked up if harbor freight had a power stapler. They do, 40 bucks. It was incredible. As usual, with an HF product, it could use a bit of tweaking, namely a v-groove cut in the safety button thing, but used with 2 hands this thing can fly through some staples, cordless!
Hey y'all. Does any of you guys know the gross weight of a New Holland 855 round baler?
Don't know the weights of balers, But if anyone can tell me where there is a good buy on a Black & Decker Mind Reader I'm interested.
I would guess 4-5,000 lbs. Those old chain balers were a bit heavier than belted balers
I’m not sure why I bother to even post this as I believe it to be irrelevant information to the topic at hand. But, nevertheless I asked google for the requested information and like usual, they were more than willing to provide.
Someone asked the weight so it is relevant.
In an already established thread labeled “tool talk” it’s relevant?? I’m not splitting hairs here but there is an agricultural equipment section in this forum and I’m almost certain a hay baler would most certainly qualify as agricultural equipment.
Welcome to HEF, Zachary Fischer !
You helped someone out. Who really cares if it technically wasn't in the right forum. There are lots of instances where members post in a different forum, perhaps because they think more people will see it. In this case it was the 1st. post by a new member and he may not have looked through the entire site before posting.
It's been awhile.... Someone at the shop was selling an older welder generator. It just so happens I need to perform some remote welding so I took a chance on this unit. It needs some work, but I hope it will be a good unit / backup power source. It is a Lincoln Ranger 8. .
What'd ya have to give for it, if you don't mind sayin?
Likely too much, I picked it up for $1,000 and she needs some tinkering.
If it runs and works that's not a bad price.
When I checked my research showed several of them with prices all over the board. Some sold for $300 with others yielding over $2000 at online auctions. I took a shot in the dark and offered what I had available. The best part is it was only 5 minutes from the shop and didn't require a bunch of driving / messing around. The idle speed adjustment does not work reliably. I hope that is just a corroded contact. It runs medium to high rpm all the time. The other concerning discovery is it welded fine on AC when I demoed it. I burnt 2-3 old rods thru it without any issue. Ever since I got it home I cannot weld on AC. It just sticks the rods, but it welds fine in DC positive? Hopefully it's all related to dirty contacts and not being used. It has less than 500 hours on the meter.... Not that those are ever accurate
Not very often you'd want AC but it could be tied to the idler issue or maybe a bad ground. Sometimes it can be the rods too. I have an old SA200 and it welds beautifully but on the weekend I had a 3 or 4 instances where after burning 7018, the rods would just stick when trying to strike an arc a 2nd time after moving to a different position. Sometimes it was because the flux chipped off and it was a bare wire and the other times I think was just the way the flux burned and left the rod end bare. It's always a little frustrating when you can't strike and maintain an arc. It happens to everyone though.
In my experience, the rods sticking when you try to strike and arc was due to low open circuit voltage. I have no idea why or how that comes up but I used to just turn up the amps and run hot. I know it throws lots of sparks but I never liked running AC at all anyway. It happened a lot on DC machines as well. Someone will correct me but most of the machines that ran well on constant current started out around 32 volts open circuit and dropped when the arc was struck. I've also seen engine speed drop suddenly when an arc was struck and then the rod sticks.
Open circuit volts should be around 70 or higher but AC buzz boxes are worse for trying to strike an arc. Some inverters only have around 60 OCV but have no problem at all striking an arc. In my case I think it was just the way the last weld with the rod left the flux on the end. I was burning 7018 where you often have to tap it on the work to not the slag off that forms on the end. Sometimes a bunch of flux comes off too and leaves you with a bare rod that is hard to establish an arc.
I've never run 7018 on AC. As I recall the "8" in the designation means DC reverse polarity.
All interesting feedback! I am far from a welder and haven't arc welded since my high school days. I was super impressed I was able to lay a bead when I first looked at the unit. I think the bouncing from transport may have knocked something loose or further restricted an existing corroded connection. I never had an opportunity to use DC in the past, but I hear it's superior to AC welding. I think I'll try a test, by attempting a weld with my old tombstone AC unit powered by the generator and compare the same test with the Ranger.
The welder is a nice score. Welding with DC is a lot easier and looks a whole lot better. The generator part will run most of your house depending on the heat source and hot water heater.
7018 is designed for DC+ or AC but most rod manufactures offer a special AC 7018 that is easier to use on the low end buzz boxes. Higher end AC/DC machines will run standard 7018 just fine on AC. If you were burning 3/16" or 1/4" around weird corners or something and arc blow was a problem, running on AC is a good remedy.
Have never tried 7018 with AC, good tip thanks. And some low end places "box stores" only have that AC 7018, is it any good or do they use similar flux as something like 7014 or 6013 (the go to AC buzz box rods)?
The flux is similar to a regular 7018 rod
I burned alot of ac7018 but now you can buy a good AC / DC welder for less than it will scrap out for. Its hard to believe how times have changed . I never dreamed i would have the tools i now have and be able to get them for scrap iron prices.
I've ran a lot of 7018 in years past too. Still do. A commutator based DC machine does exceptional with it. I still use my portable machine often as everything is kept together and really easier to deploy for a quick job than the remote feeder setup of the later machine. Know what Doug is saying in regards to industrial machines available for small shops.
I use my slim jim for pushing upper main bearings out. Not a homemade tool but it does have a secondary use for me
One of my favorite go to tools I carry daily. Dewalt 20v die grinder with Chinese import carbide burr set. It rides in my truck daily and gets pulled out for odd jobs weekly like this one. My bobcat forks came with a hole in one fork that was flame cut kind of egg shape. Supposed to be a ¾ hole, but a ¾ pin just won't fit. About 15 seconds with the die grinder on the narrow spot and now the pin fits like a glove. Took longer to get the die grinder out and set it up than it did to fix the fork. I've used this die grinder for a lot of different uses over the last 3 years I've had it. My dad doubted it being handy when I got it, now he wonders how we got along without it before.
You must have had to be careful the burr didn't start wobbling around violently in a fairly small hole. However with a hole in your fork it doesn't meet OH & S standards. Have to throw it out now. LoL
It's all about having the right tool! I wish the forks for my skid loader were fabricated. They are would be handy.
2 new tools for the showing today! Well one is a jig but kind of a new tool. Dust collector! Harbor freight had a damaged box one in stock when I looked yesterday, though I didn't know it was a damaged box when I went to buy it. They gave me 20% off. Everything was there minus a few pieces on hardware, namely a few washers. No big whoops. Next is a table router table. I didn't feel like digging out a 4x8 sheet of melamine, so I just went with an easy to access sheet of plywood. I sanded it down so it's relatively smooth but I wouldn't surprise me to have to redo the top, we'll see.
Oh yeah! The router almost killed me! I got real lucky that the cross piece of wood at the front/bottom, running horizontally, was there holding the legs stable. The router fell out of the hole while running and I didn't notice for the first few seconds, I stepped back and looked and all the spinning bits were pointing at my stomach, with the router body laying up against that cross piece. My miscalculations of wood thickness, router bit depth, and beveled holes for the screws to hold the router to the bottom of the table almost cost me a good ol' fashion trip to the hospital. I guess I was serious about redoing the top.
Not tools but just as important, tool organization! I finally installed the 'Wall Control' branded peg board behind my work bench. It was a gift from my sister and I have been sitting on it for years. Yesterday Dad stopped in and helped me mount the shop cabinets and my peg board. The peg board is really nice and it's made in the USA! The hangers are also much more robust than traditional wire hooks! I have a pretty awesome family! #winning
Nice.. I noticed the coffee can.. those are SOOO handy.!! I store extra gaskets and orings for different pumps.. Handy to grab 1 and head out to a field job., Enjoy your set-up.!!
Thanks! I use them all the time! They are extremely handy for several different things. I just used a smaller plastic one earlier today to soak a paint brush in mineral spirits. Last week I had a 'diagnostic tool' I created out. It was a vintage metal Maxwell house can. You don't see those anymore!
I finally bought an arbor press for the shop. It's a cheap import model, but I couldn't pass it up. It was $220 plus tax with free shipping. I always envisioned a Dake American made unit, but they always sell for big money. I have a first impression / unboxing video on the YouTube channel. Now I need to build a solid mount! No more using the lathe as a press.
Wow.!!! That IS a nice one.. I got my #3 from Northern Tool and it IS a cheapie.!!! I only use it to press in/out the brass pilot tube in “RoosaMaster” pumps, so it doesn’t see any real action.. U may not think u need to but find a permanent home for it AND BOLT IT DOWN.!!! The first time u use it it’s gonna tip forward on u and scare the bajesus out of u.!!! Enjoy
Yes! I have tried using a smaller one in Dad's shop previously with similar results! Not sure why we never built a stand for it? Haha Luckily Dad brought over a small fabrication from his pile of cool unused parts. It fits the base of the press very nicely and with a few mods should make a decent stand. The tricky part is I cannot bolt it to my floor. I have pex tubing in the concrete for radiant heat. The plan is to affix the stand to the pallet rack.
Arbor press is an often unappreciated and underutilized tool. I occasionally lust for a Dake.
You could fabricate a bracket to the stand and bolt it to a wall. Maybe ?
I picked this up off Kijiji for $100. Its a two ton. I have used it enough that it was money well invested.
Arbor Presses can be a challenge to find used and in good condition. They never become obsolete. I looked for a couple years to find one that wasn't stupid money or further than I wanted to drive. Got this one.....online auction, rural area and stupid cheap. Atlas #5, 40's vintage, 15 ton capacity and 1700 lbs of cast iron. The 17" Delta drill press was bought 2 weeks ago. Has the Morse taper spindle and table raise options. 1946 vintage, has been re-bearinged and original paint. The po installed the ball brg chuck and foot switch.
Awesome! I wish I had space for something of that size. It's a beast! Does the front press plate hinge outward? I have never seen this model / version.
Now, you know a foot switch on a sensitive drill press is a great idea! Wonder why I never thought of it or saw it before?
There are 2 lower platens that will swing out of the way, the work piece can go all the way to the floor. The foot switch was added by the previous owner. Power switch on those was mounted where the light mounts. Awkward toggle type and hard to reach if something went wrong. Ed
I picked up a used miter saw a few weeks ago. Definitely beats a circular saw for doing trim and moldings. Have already done new trim around my garage window and a door with it and the 45° angles come out perfect every time.
Yeah, my 70 or so y/o drill press has a toggle switch between the pulleys, I have once or twice had a workpiece break loose and go to spinning and I didn't have the guts to do anything but flip the breaker.
a good miter saw, even better if it’s a larger one with the slides and compound miter, is indispensable for carpentry. you can also use them to cut PVC pipe easily and neatly.
The window I just did I used PVC moldings and it cut them really nice. Next to zero carpentry experience but learning quick when the only other option is to pay someone else.
I like the foot switch on the drill press too. Pretty slick.
If you don't have one already get a stand for it. I used my first saw on the ground or a temporary bench. A dedicated stand with work supports makes a huge difference. Mine was cheap $100 (or so), portable, light and it folds up for storage.
I cleaned my deck a few days ago and Dad stopped over with a cool new tool! I never used one before, but after trying it out I'll never clean concrete or deck boards again without one. Check it out in action on this week's video if you're interested. The Simpson pressure washer scrubber attachment is freaking awesome! It cleans uniformly, fast and shields you from over spray!
I just got the mid torque Milwaukee 1/2 impact and can't wait to try it out. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08VN7CSTJ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
We use one to wash the shop floor. Works like a hot damn!
I was just talking with someone two days ago about getting some cordless impacts. I would also like a 3/8" drive M12 ratchet and a angle die grinder M12. I just learned about the die grinder from a YT video and they look pretty darn handy!
my friend has the higher torque unit and we hit the lugnuts on my truck last night at #2 just to see how it did. I guessed 135 by gut feel, but it was really close to the 150 spec. It was a hit it and forget it setting for 150 pounds. His toque wrenches get calibrated at the shop regularly. I am going to see how this new gun hits after I get the batteries hot.
I've still got one of the early 1/2" drive M18 impacts from probably 14 years ago. Only 400 or 450 ft-lbs but I just can't justify buying a newer one while this one still works.
that one I got is half the weight and size, no kidding. How it holds up is yet to be seen. $169 for the bare gun on Amazon.
the mid torques are amazing impacts. Don’t expect the world out of it torquewise but for pulling panels, components, guards, and general duty it’s awesome. The high torque impact is of course lots more powerful but a lot heavier and larger. the one I would NOT waste my time on is the M18 “compact”. The head is a lot smaller and it’s much lower torque but the big battery gets in the way and means it really isn’t going anywhere the mid torque isn’t. The M12 compact which is same head is a much better choice.
This is for my truck lug nuts and @150 pounds they are easy for this gun, at least on paper.
I used my milwaukee 1/2” high torque on 24.5 unimount lug nuts with no problem although i find it a bit heavy for light duty jobs
I don't remember if I mentioned it but I got a Bosch 3/8" I believe and it worked great for turning lug nuts on the front backhoe wheel.
I keep our M12 3/8 behind the seat in our pickup when we travel. It will break free 7 out of 8 lug nuts that are torqued to 135 ft lbs. and also lower/raise the spare tire. It is small and light. I leave the M18 at home now. Cam
Well I wanted a Hypertherm, but settled on an import plasma cutter instead. I only ran a few test cuts just out of the box. The cut quality and initial impressions are pretty good! However the operator needs some practice and the shop setup needs some upgrades; air and power. Time will tell on this unit as I have big plans for it in the future. Check it out on my YT channel if interested. It is Hynade 80 amp plasma cutter.
I picked up a Primeweld TIG225X tig welder about a month ago. I got a chance to learn some basics about tig welding years ago in a welding class and I've always wanted to do some more. I sold off some 'junk' around the house and used the money to purchase the welder. I've been so busy with harvest since I got it I've only put about an hour on it. Once I get a couple hundred hours, I'll try to figure out if this was a good choice in a machine or not.
That thing sure has alot of knobs on it. I would like to have a tig but the way welding gas has gone up i dont know .
I picked up a Harbor Freight special a month or so ago. The mini tire changer, on sale with a coupon for under $40. This thing is handy. Both front tires on my lawn tractor rotted out and seeped air through the sidewalls. I bought 2 new Carlisle lawn tires for $50 and finally found time to change them out this afternoon. Super simple. I watched a YouTube video on how to use it and had both tires changed out in under 30 minutes. I did have to use a shot of ether to set the beads but the task was a breeze overall. I got them back on the tractor just as the rain started coming down again. Now to pickup new tires for my dad's golf cart. He drives it so much, the tires are showing cords. I also have 2 wheel Barrow tires to replace and a snowmobile dolly with a bad tire as well. Always something.
Try a cheap bead blaster, it makes short work of them little tires, also blows them across the shop!
After pumping up wheelbarrow tires about hundred times I put two solid tires on it. That wasn't a typo. I bought some pencil rod and made a new axle and put 2 tires on it. I should have done it a long time ago.
I tried changing my garden tractor front tires without one last year. It turned into a real poop show....I ended up buying the tire changer and it's an amazing tool. It makes tire changes a breeze and I smile everytime I use the tractor without having to inflate the tires first.
I wouldn't use a bead blaster or ether for the tires that small, a small ratchet strap or rope with a rod to tighten the rope wrapped around the tire tightened till it pushed the bead to the sidewall and air up.
You have a picture of your setup?
I tried that today and the beads kept smushing inwards, away from the bead seat on the wheel. I said phoney, grabbed the ether and gave it a shot and lit with the torch. Worked great on both and was faster then putting the strap around it. Normally, small tires like that will seat easily without any persuasion, but these two tires didn't want to cooperate today.
I crushed the rim on a lawn tractor trailer this past spring trying to pry off the bead to replace a tube. It was just a thin piece of stamped sheet metal and any side pressure crumpled it. I replaced both of those tires with a flat free wheel combo. Now I don't have to worry about that trailer.
I think the flat free pneumatic style / looking tires are great replacements. I installed a few on my small generator last year. No more tiny tires popping off the bead!
Something I thought I would never buy because it was too expensive, but I now can’t live without is a Milwaukee cordless fluid transfer pump. Makes changing hydraulic fluid a breeze!
I have a few new tools. Most recently I installed a new regulator/gage set on my set of torches. I saw these while on a job site and I needed a new set. I opted for the same model because it is made in USA! Harris branded #Merica
By far the best tool addition to the garage....My PK12000 Palfinger Knuckle boom crane! She's still a work in progress, but temporarily mounted and putting in work. Videos are up on the channel if anyone's interested in learning more about the shenanigans.
I'd love to have a crane like that, so useful for so many things.
My little crane is quite handy also.
That is not a little crane, and the handiness goes without saying
Crane ? What will it lift? There is no counter weight ! Nice idea otherwise. Looks very easy to tip over.
I believe it's rated to pick 3000 pounds has outriggers on it. It is plenty stable
I'd love to have a crane on the yard like that. We have a Gradall 534 that's handy as a shirt pocket sometimes but that crane is the ticket.
Better watch out there Tyler your crowding in on C.O's territory--with all that crane action.
Thats just my home owner one the HEF union may start after me if I post up the 15 ton
Have never seen a vice like that before. Pretty cool.
I could use one of those! Much more practical than a straight jaw vice.
Sure would be easier to just spot weld the item you're working on to a set of sacrificial jaws on a standard vice... Man sure has a lot more patience than I do!!!
I made a pair of aluminium jaws for my smaller vice. I really like them.
I've had Al jaws in my 6 inch vise since I think it was 1969? Dad made em and have a nice V in the solid jaw to hold round stuff.
here's one I had never seen, afore!