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heyou posted:I bought a set of the metric sockets ($13) to use until I can afford some nice Snap On ones for work, and I've used the hell out of them for over a month and have yet to break, round or twist one. I've used my 1/2" impact on them and they laugh at it. I hammered away at the axle bolt on a passat for 2 or 3 min with one and it didn't even leave a mark. I have no idea why I haven't broken one yet. And if I do, hey it was only 13 bucks! And I've snapped a few of them with a 5" rachet. Buy 2-3 sets, and stockpile the spares. That 10$ Multimeter from Sears is on my list to order tomorrow, I saw it on Techbargains, but the free shipping wasn't active yet.
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Mar 4, 2008 05:49
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daddy grapes posted:Since this is turning into a Harbor Freight tool review thread, I was wondering about their 48" imitation hi-lift farm jack for $29.99. I need to raise the front end of my vehicle farther than my crappy Sears jack allows. Just how unstable are these things? I was thinking about using one in lieu of an hoist for an engine swap in the next few weeks. The jack point is already at the radiator support and so I was thinking about using one of these to lift the radiator support to jack the car up to about 30 inches and then use jack stands on the sides. Would a conventional hydraulic jack be more prudent? I'd use a regular jack, and just work it up in steps. Jack up both sides, insert jackstands. Jack one side up farther with stacked and screwed blocks of wood, insert jackstand with a timber nailed to the bottom. Repeat for other side. Repeat all steps until car is way loving up there. Thats how I did the engine swap on my GTI, except I used cinder blocks (Solid ones, not hollow). I'd still use timber though. Check your local marina for timbers... they are used for blocking boats in the winter.
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Mar 4, 2008 15:34
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RealKyleH posted:If you're looking for an economical bender, I've used this one a few times, it got the job done just fine. (.125 Wall 1 1/8" CRS) http://www.jd2.com/ JD2 benders are by far the best benders out there for that range of costs. Problem is, they are regularly out of stock thanks to their popularity. Definitely a good choice if you are in the market. The cage builders over on h-t love them, which says a lot.
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Mar 5, 2008 00:03
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Hypnolobster posted:Anyone want to recommend me a wideband air/fuel ratio monitor? LC-1 from innovate, and whatever gauge you want, or an o-meter. http://www.14point7.com/JAW/JAW.htm DIY WB... very good from what I hear.
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Mar 5, 2008 04:38
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Hypnolobster posted:Portability is key, as it'll float between vehicles. After posting that I started wandering around and I'm considering the Innovate LM-1 basic kit. It's on ebay for 299 shipped. The LM-1 is a good kit, but the same functionality can be recreated for less. The LC1 is $130, and a gauge is pretty cheap. Whichever way you go, Innovate is a great company, and makes good products.
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Mar 5, 2008 17:11
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Nitrox posted:I understand that you have a co2, I'm just stating what I have an air tank with hose and regulator, that serves the same function, only cheaper. It holds enough air to play with pressure at the track and cost nothing to refill. http://www.xenocron.com/catalog/wideband-permanent-install-c-25_44.html $199, and you can get it for a little less on honda-tech. The prices have moved a little from when I bought mine a year ago, i guess. I got mine for $149 with the sensor. The CO2 tank is about as safe as anything, so long as you unhook the hose and regulator. I'd keep it in the trunk, and lashed down. I've carried my 80CF Argon tank in my car... never had a bit of trouble.
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Mar 6, 2008 00:06
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Delivery McGee posted:Give it time. There are a couple like that in my late grandfather's shop. I need to dig through there next time I'm at Grandmother's house, and claim my inheritance (and also take pictures for an awesome old tools megathread). I love my 18" Craftsman adjustable. I use it as a hammer just as much as I use it as a wrench. I used to keep it in my car for a "tire knocker"... AKA headsplitter.
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Mar 6, 2008 05:08
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Taymar posted:I doubt this will exist, but on the offchance - Anyone know of an inexpensive micro torque wrench?
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Mar 9, 2008 15:14
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Delivery McGee posted:"As tight as you can get it, plus a quarter turn" is my dad's go-to torque for . . . well, pretty much everything (adjusted by how the "as tight as you can get it" is achieved -- e.g. for valve cover bolts use a slippery screwdriver handle and 1/4"-drive socket, for spark plugs a short-handled ratchet, for lugnuts a three-foot 1/2" breaker bar). It's never failed us. I keep a beam-style wrench in my car, as does my fiance, and I check my lug tightness just about every 3rd gas fillup. They are regularly off by a few ftlbs, plus I check tire pressure at that time too. I follow the directions. Clean the mating surface, oil the gasket, and hand-tight+1/4 turn. I'm not going to say anything about my success rate. sharkytm fucked around with this message at 15:52 on Apr 9, 2008 |
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Apr 9, 2008 15:49
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Tindjin posted:You would need full closure valves on intake and output to have it hold pressure longer. Quick connects and such will still allow air to bleed out over time. Nothing wrong with it. This is not true. My 33G Craftsman compressor holds pressure perfectly. Try opening and closing the bottom drain valve a few times, and then set the compressor in its side, and spray soapy water on the drain valve. If it bubbles, its leaking, a new one is about $13. You QD should seal perfectly, unless its worn out. You could also try taking it off, and re-applying teflon tape to seal the threads. Try the soapy water trick there too. And since not too many people answered my thread, does anyone have any really cool toolbenches/workbenches they'd like to share? I'm going to be building about 25' of them in my new garage, and I'd like some ideas.
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May 26, 2008 22:04
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PainterofCrap posted:$60 yard sale score. Upgrayedd posted:And about air ratchets, I've found that they don't really help. Its not like Impact wrench where it uses the inertia of the hammer to drive the bolt in. In the end, you still have to supply the torque, it just goes a bit faster. The Torque rating doesn't really matter, if you can't get it off with a normal socket wrench, an air ratchet won't help, it'll just jerk your wrist around a lot more.
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Jun 13, 2008 19:28
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Taymar posted:I need a vacuum brake bleeder, and have been advised to get one which runs on compressed air. Since you don't have a compressor, a hand-pump powered one is fine. Just give it a few squeezes as you are bleeding the brakes. Protip: Don't forget to securely attach the bleeder hose to the bleeder. Brake fluid is really awful stuff, and can make you pretty sick if it gets all over you, plus it eats paint like nothing else. Teeny-weeny zipties work fine for keeping the hose on.
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Jul 8, 2008 22:05
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Taymar posted:Thanks for the advice. Would something like this http://www.actron.com/product_detail.php?pid=16292 do the trick? (or any specific brands to look for/avoid?) I will probably only be using it once a year or so. ChiliMac posted:I recently picked up a tungsten carbide 1/8" endmill bit that [I was surprised] was very good at tackling a bit of hardened 400 series [45+ HRC]--at least for the tiny amount of material I wanted removed.
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Jul 10, 2008 13:06
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ChiliMac posted:I suppose if you are worried you can check it against a beam wrench first. I came in here to say the exact same thing. Weld two nuts together (the larger, the better), lock them in a vise, and put your beam on one side, your clicker on the other. Set the clicker at 20ft-lbs, and watch the beam scale as you push them against one another. Repeat again at 40, 60, and 100 ft-lbs.
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Aug 18, 2008 15:04
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Kynetx posted:Why not just buy a beam style and be done with it? Its useless in 80% of situations, where you can't see the scale, or don't have room for the width, etc.
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Aug 18, 2008 23:09
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B4Ctom1 posted:Copper is outrageously priced these days. It also involves heating and soldering the pipes. edit: also copper does rust too, but too a lesser extent. The smallish amount of copper oxide is much easier to filter out but it still gets into in paint and tools. Copper prices have come down some, and will continue to tumble as the commodity market gets nailed. I own FCX stock, so I know alllll about it. I checked out push-lock nylon lines, but they aren't rated for pressure continuously (most I've seen here are 5bar burst pressure) if they are inexpensive plumbing parts. The expensive stuff is pressure rated. That stuff you linked to is pressure rated. However, a 10' stick of 1/2" Type L copper is about 13$ here in the US. A 3m (10' appx) piece of the plastic pipe is 7 Euro, which puts it pretty close to 9$. Considering the big jump in the fitting prices (2E for a straight connector, 3E for a 90* bend), copper will still be cheaper.
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Oct 27, 2008 22:29
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EvilDonald posted:Nope. Sounds needlessly complicated. [/luddite] Its a good system, the ebrake cable just twists the piston, so it screws the pads onto the caliper. Better than a separate ebrake shoe, for sure.
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Oct 28, 2008 02:20
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Well, I've decided to go ahead and upgrade my toolboxes for Christmas. I'll be picking up the 42" HF toolbox, which I've read is really really nice. I've got a 15% off coupon, and its on sale, so it'll be less than $350. Rollaway: http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=90320 Reviews: http://weldingweb.com/showthread.php?t=11596&mode=linear
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Dec 6, 2008 22:05
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BrokenKnucklez posted:I am pretty sure that the compressor parts from Sanborn and Campbell Hausfeld are the same or close. Still entry level. To be honest, I think your better off finding the best one of the best price. More importantly, check your CFM @ 90 PSI. That is where a majority of air tools operate, and that will determine how long you can run say a die grinder with out waiting for the compressor to fill. Also seconding the idea of a belt drive, much quieter. Though I haven't had much experince with oil less... any thoughts?
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Dec 9, 2008 00:43
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ease posted:I've considered building a sound dampening box around mine. I'm building one around mine. I'll use lead flashing and 3 densities of foam to try and absorb the noise.
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Dec 10, 2008 15:56
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laymil posted:What do you plan to do about heat dissipation? It won't run that much first of all, and I'll install a vent and a fan if its an issue. Alternately, I could save up and buy a 220v industrial compressor and mount it wherever.
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Dec 10, 2008 21:19
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Kynetx posted:Water-cool that bitch. Been there, done that... With my PC, of course. My HF toolbox is in the garage, and looks awesome. I've got to transfer my tools over, then I'll take pictures. Its seriously nice, and very well-built.
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Dec 17, 2008 20:52
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I just got back from Linen's 'n' Things. They are now selling the store hardware, AKA shelves and lights. I bought 2 4' 4xT8 bulb fluorescent fixtures for $20 ea, and 5 rails and 12 metal shelves for $72. $117, and I've got enough shelving for most of my garage. If you have one near you, I'd head over tomorrow and get your fill.
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Dec 19, 2008 04:44
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grover posted:Do NOT do this! WD40 will coat everything, and you can't get rid of it. Also, it's an insulator. Special-made electronics cleaner does an even better job, and evaporates completely after you've used it. I have a can of electronics cleaner I bought at AutoZone years ago, and I use it constantly for cleaning electronic connectors.
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Dec 26, 2008 02:55
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Z3n posted:I'm looking for a halfway decent micrometer. I need to it measure shims on motorcycles, which come in .05mm increments, so it needs to be at least .01mm accurate. I found a cheap digital one on ebay that served me well for about a year, but then it gave up the ghost. Should I just order a couple of new cheap digital ones or is there one that I can go out and buy that'll last me longer? I prefer digital, but could be convinced otherwise. I've amazingly had decent luck with the cheap Chinese mics. I buy 3 at a time, and when they die, I toss 'em. I always have a precision "standard" to check them with (like a shim that you know is .05mm) and they never get out of whack unless abused (dropped).
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Dec 26, 2008 18:21
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I've bought about 300 things from HF, and at some point this winter, I'll make a post with all of them, linked. In the meantime... Here's the breakdown: If its electronic, and spins, it'll be junk. The only exception to this is the drill press I bought for work. Their grinders wobble a little, but are acceptable. Their small dremels, drills, jigsaws, and whatnot are total crap. Good for one job if you push them, but not worth the effort. If it has rechargeable batteries, they'll die quickly, and replacements aren't any better. If its a basic tool, it'll be awesome, and completely worth the $. Screwdrivers will bend easier than better counterparts, but they cost so little, it doesn't matter. Pliers and such are good. Wrenches are decent, but not for critical use because the tolerances are pretty loose. Anything with an edge will be dull and soft. (Drill bits, chisels, etc) I've got their 42" toolbox, and will be posting pictures of that once I get it set up. Its awesome, and better than the Craftsman ones costing 3x more. :edit: I forgot about air tools. Their air die grinder is OK, mine has a dead spot on it where if the shaft is turned to a specific spot, it'll stick, and you have to move it a fraction of an inch before it'll spin. Once it going, its perfect. The stones that came with it were OK, nothing to write home about. I've got an air ratchet, it works better than my craftsman one. No complaints. sharkytm fucked around with this message at 17:35 on Dec 30, 2008 |
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Dec 30, 2008 16:50
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meatpimp posted:You can't see from the pictures, but I had slatwall originally over my workbench only. I got that from a local retail supply place last year. It is "standard" slatwall which just has the grooves routed into the MDF. The Linens-n-Things slatwall has nice extruded aluminum channel inserted into each of the slots... that adds a ton of strength and finishes the wall nicely. Plus, if you price those aluminum channels themselves, you're looking at way over what I paid for the entire aisle. I bought 2 4T8x4' fluorescent fixtures, 12 of the heavy duty metal shelves that attach to rails that screw into 2x4's, and 5x8' lengths of the rail for $107 inc. tax. The lights were $20 apiece ($50 each at HD, without commercial-grade ballasts), the shelves were $6 apiece, the rail was free with the shelves. I'll get off my rear end and get some pictures of what I mounted in my garage. I looked at the slatwall, and didn't like it that much. I also didn't have enough time or space in the Fit to carry it. I tested some of it, and it seemed unfit to carry heavy stuff. I could bend the hangers with one hand pulling down. My metal shelving can handle my full 250lb weight.
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Jan 6, 2009 01:04
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Well, I finally uploaded my pictures of the garage. A few are old, and reposts from the Civic thread. This was the North Wall when I moved in.  Drywall and R-13 insulation:  Painted with el-cheapo primer and semi-gloss paint, LnT Shelving installed, plus one 8' 4x4' T8 fixture badly installed (I need to run conduit and do it right:  The rail used for the shelving (free with shelves at LnT):  My Wheel/Tire rack   My new toolbox from HF... seriously well made, probably 80% of the quality of Snap-On, and only $340 with coupon.  LnT fluorescents installed in the woodshop/workroom (soon to be converted to a wall switch instead of a cord.  Cabinets from Freecycle installed (the dark ones came with the house)   My compressor is still in the corner, not hooked up, no air lines, and basically useless. I need to get on that soon. I'm going to run a single copper line down the middle of the garage, with taps in the workroom, in the garage, and one outside, for filling tires and such.
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Jan 7, 2009 16:04
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EvilCrayon posted:I'm looking for tools to start working on cars again. I used to use my friend's tool's or my dad's tools when I lived at home but now that my friend is in another state, I need some tools! I'm on a pretty low budget but I still want tools that last. I've been looking at getting a couple small pieces from snap-on or matco. Not too much but the bare minimum for working on cars. Craftsman have gone downhill in the past few years, but they are still fine for most jobs. I'd buy a big Cman set, and supplement that with some quality pieces as you can afford them. HF dead-blow hammers are fine, but their screwdrivers are only marginal. Basically, if you use something every time you work on a car (like a ratchet or a few specific sockets/wrenches), you probably ought to replace those with high-quality US-made pieces. Oh, and buy some spare ratchets and a bunch of extensions. A good addition is at least one universal joint in 1/4" and 3/8". They come in very handy.
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Jan 15, 2009 15:20
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Kynetx posted:For cheap hand tools, you can hardly miss with Harbor Freight. Their wrenches and socket sets are nearly as good as Craftsman or Cobalt and they have the same warranty. As others have said... Their wrenches are soft and badly toleranced, and their sockets are fragile. Ratchets are OK, nothing I'd trust my knuckles to. Sears stuff is regularly on sale, and if you are a craftsman club member, you can get the 254-piece kit in the molded box for around $180. Well worth it, as it has 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 in metric and standard, and a decent set of M/S wrenches too. Thats where I started.
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Jan 15, 2009 19:15
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RealKyleH posted:HF ratchets are awful, I have their thumb ratchets and swivel heads as just-in-case-I-need-them type tools and they are not near loose enough to be useful. They will stop ratcheting before the bolts can be unscrewed with their fingers. Craftsmans are way way better about this and I'd say that that quality is as or more important than durability. Have you lubed them up? I've got a set of the stubby flex's, and they used to be too tight. I soaked them in ATF, and they dropped a bunch of metal grinds into the can I had them soaking in. Now they are much better. I've got one of the Pittsburgh 3/8" ratchets, and its just fine, the action is almost as smooth as my Cman, but nowhere as nice as my S-K. Another source of decent ratchets is AutoZone. The Duralast ratchets are pretty nice, and their warranty is great. \/\/My fiance just bought one of those ultrasonics for cleaning oboe reeds... somehow I don't think ATF is going in that thing. A good soak in ATF helped all my ratchets loosen up, and the guys on GJ think its required. sharkytm fucked around with this message at 20:33 on Jan 15, 2009 |
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Jan 15, 2009 20:18
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RealKyleH posted:Same thing here, only time I have cracked a socket is doing that. I also got a bolt basically pressure welded to a cheapo socket one time. I left mine in there for a day or so, then ran them about 20 rotations in each direction, then soaked them for another day or so.
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Jan 15, 2009 22:48
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EnergizerFellow posted:Get some new lines. They must have hardened over time. You can also swap the lines for the much-more-flexible tygon, or lines silicone.
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Jan 16, 2009 00:45
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Hypnolobster posted:Their electric poo poo is pretty solid. I'd trust a shop vac. We've got two. One is from the early 80's and has been beaten to hell and back and still runs perfectly, and the other is about 2 years old, and while it has a lot of irritating poo poo on it (hose carrier, pipe and attachment carrier, pop-off leaf blower) that the older one doesn't have or need, it still does its job well. I've got a Cman shopvac with the removable leafblower. Its awesome, and has held up very well. And Cman wrenches are heavy, thick, uncomfortable, and not particularly well toleranced. They are fine for starting out, but its a good idea to replace them with something better when you get a chance. That said, all I have are Craftsman wrenches.
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Jan 17, 2009 15:54
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Dyscrasia posted:Ive got the exact same jack (The aluminum colored one, they did not have the blue one). Its winter here though, so I have not had a chance to use it yet. And the other difference: the HF one won't blow up like every single Craftsman AL jack. Read the reviews on Sears.com. gently caress those things. As for jackstands, don't buy chinese crap. Buy something thats way overbuilt.
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Jan 21, 2009 21:42
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Wagonburner posted:Recommend me an air compressor for under $200 for use with air-hammer, ratchet and impact. maybe a jack in the future (do jacks need a lot of air?) You don't need higher PSI. You need more CFM, or a bigger tank. A tank will let a smaller compressor "act" like a bigger compressor for short periods. I'd look for a 15 gallon or 33 gallon compressor. The compressor itself will put out some pitiful amount of air, but if all you need is to put on and take off wheels, you can just turn on the compressor, let it fill up as you drive the car in and jack it up, then use the air in the tank to remove the wheels. It'll probably need to refill after that, but you've got the time as you swap the wheels or whatever. I've got the Craftsman 33G vertical thats always on sale. Its 110v, oil-less and loud as gently caress (all oil-less ones are, but they are a lot cheaper than an oiled unit), but gets the job done. It only sucks when I have to sandblast or use an air grinder. Then its grind/blast, wait 3-4 minutes, grind/blast, wait, etc.
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Jan 22, 2009 22:50
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InitialDave posted:Not usually. Most of the time the advertised CFM is the output from the compressor assembly, the output from the actual connector to your tool is the Free Air Delivery, and will be slightly less. Correct, plus as the compressor heats up, the air it puts out expands, which isn't good for your tools (warm air=wet air), and de-rates it even more. Plus, lovely companies love to over-rate their compressors. My Craftsman is "rated" at 3.5hp, but its actually 1hp. They used the starting amperage draw to calculate HP, and got called on it. Lawsuit, etc, now its a true rating. Basically, buy as much compressor as you can afford.
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Jan 22, 2009 23:41
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Kynetx posted:I use the Jet version which is identical. They are awesome to the max. I hate to break it to you, but the Jet version isn't the same. Its very similar, but the guys on h-t did a thread a few years ago comparing them. The rollers and bearings in the Jet are way nicer, which explains its cleaner cuts. I'm headed down to HF this weekend, $210 in gift cards and a 20% off coupon! \/\/ A bottle of brake fluid upside down in the MC reservoir, and a piece of tubing that fits the bleeders stuck into an empty plastic bottle works for me. Just open the bleeder, and the brake fluid just obeys gravity and flows out. When the level drops low enough in the reservoir, it'll burp the fresh bottle, and refill. It depends on your MC size, but it always works for me. sharkytm fucked around with this message at 20:04 on Jan 23, 2009 |
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Jan 23, 2009 18:56
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Kynetx posted:Any reason a guy couldn't just mod it to match? you could, and some people have, usually when their sleeve bearings fail on the HF machines. The biggest problem is the rollers, if you had a good machine shop, you could machine your own. The better the roller (harder, less wobble) and the smoother the bearings, the straighter the bandsaw will hold the blade, and the straighter your cuts will be. The other gripe, iirc, was that the HF machine had problems holding blade tension. It would loosen up over the course of a few cuts.
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Jan 23, 2009 22:40
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RealKyleH posted:I saw that, isnt it just a hand pump unit? Its a hand pump with a small cup to catch liquid. If you use a long enough piece of tubing, you can stand in front of the car, adding brake fluid as needed.
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Jan 24, 2009 00:59
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