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Skyssx posted:Smart charger with a reconditioning cycle. This may or may not work. New gel-cells are probably cheaper than the charger. Yeah this is really just a "we were going to throw this away but maybe I can make something cool with it for < " type project. That battery eventually ended up pulling the whole 600+ ma from that wallbug (I plugged it into my truck cig lighter for a min and it pulled 1.5a) and I do believe its actually charged pretty decent for a free/old/abused batt. It's stayed at 12.2v for a couple days now unplugged and I've charged my phone twice with it + car charger I also jsut for fun ran a 120v fan and light off an inverter. The other battery I got never pulled more than 6ma from the psu even after a few hours. I think I'll just keep on charging it with my 600ma hp jetdirect psu and feel lucky that it works and when I eventually kill it I'll feel lucky for the time I had with it that cost me nothing. Vin BioEthanol fucked around with this message at 17:27 on May 18, 2011 |
# ? May 18, 2011 17:23 |
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# ? Mar 29, 2024 12:38 |
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I decided that I was sick of dithering about what hand tools I needed to pick up to do some simple maintenance on my car and after reading numerous positive opinions of HF's Pittsburgh brand I picked up the 301 Piece Mechanics Tool Kit yesterday for $143 after a 20% off coupon. I haven't done any wrenching with it yet and I will be the first to admit my tool knowledge is based mostly on this thread, but given that it's extremely inexpensive price I thought I'd give my first impressions:
Based on my initial opinions going through the set and the unanimously positive reviews on HF's website I would highly recommend this set for anyone who doesn't already own reasonable quality versions of this stuff.
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# ? May 18, 2011 17:57 |
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A quick heads up for any UK goons wanting a decent toolkit for carry duty. Halfords have an offer on their professional line 150 piece socket / spanner / various bits set here . from £199 to £99. I picked one up on Sunday for the Land Rover.
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# ? May 18, 2011 23:01 |
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Colonel K posted:A quick heads up for any UK goons wanting a decent toolkit for carry duty. Halfords have an offer on their professional line 150 piece socket / spanner / various bits set here . from £199 to £99. I picked one up on Sunday for the Land Rover. Keep your receipt, they used to be quibble-free on the lifetime warranty, now they ask for one. Might just be one of my local stores being dicks, though.
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# ? May 18, 2011 23:46 |
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Colonel K posted:A quick heads up for any UK goons wanting a decent toolkit for carry duty. Halfords have an offer on their professional line 150 piece socket / spanner / various bits set here . from £199 to £99. I picked one up on Sunday for the Land Rover. Hurrah. I've got the previous version of that kit and it's been great so far. Done various horrible things to my land rover (bulkhead replacement for a start) with it, replaced the water pump on the MX5 with it, no complaints
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# ? May 19, 2011 01:29 |
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Looking for what I can best describe as a manual impact driver. You just stick a socket on one end and hit the other end with a hammer, when struck it takes some of that force and twist the socket just a little but to break the bolt loose. A buddy of mine has one and made short work on some stuck bolts on my motorcycle.
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# ? May 19, 2011 03:53 |
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evilnissan posted:Looking for what I can best describe as a manual impact driver. http://www.harborfreight.com/7-piece-reversible-impact-driver-set-93481.html It's most handy for stuck Philips screws like those holding brake rotors.
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# ? May 19, 2011 04:09 |
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Snap-On sells them for $60ish.
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# ? May 19, 2011 04:16 |
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eddiewalker posted:http://www.harborfreight.com/7-piece-reversible-impact-driver-set-93481.html The most handy thing for those is a metal drill bit, gently caress those goddamn screws.
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# ? May 19, 2011 17:39 |
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So I saw Harbor Freight has this new counter-rotating blade monstrosity: http://images.harborfreight.com/hftweb/campaigns/emails/doublecut/doublecutemail511.html Anyone tried it or something similar to it? I kind of just want to see how the thing works.
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# ? May 19, 2011 17:53 |
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mod sassinator posted:So I saw Harbor Freight has this new counter-rotating blade monstrosity: http://images.harborfreight.com/hftweb/campaigns/emails/doublecut/doublecutemail511.html The original was one of the cooler things on that Billy Mays show, it's a neat idea at least.
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# ? May 19, 2011 17:54 |
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BeastOfExmoor posted:I decided that I was sick of dithering about what hand tools I needed to pick up to do some simple maintenance on my car and after reading numerous positive opinions of HF's Pittsburgh brand I picked up the 301 Piece Mechanics Tool Kit yesterday for $143 after a 20% off coupon. I haven't done any wrenching with it yet and I will be the first to admit my tool knowledge is based mostly on this thread, but given that it's extremely inexpensive price I thought I'd give my first impressions: So this looks really great to me, I wanted to know what other people's opinions were? I've read the whole thread, but man.. it's long. Was the consensus that HF is great for everything as long as it's not electric? Everyone's been talking about the decline in craftsman tools, is HF a decent alternative? As long as I'm not wailing on the tools with hammers, are they good enough to rebuild a whole car? Maybe that's a stupid question...
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# ? May 19, 2011 19:03 |
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Your Dead Gay Son posted:So this looks really great to me, I wanted to know what other people's opinions were? HF's lineup is something of a crap shoot. Most of their handtools are decent, but that said its kind of hard to gently caress up something simple like a hammer or socket set. Their power tools are somewhat questionable, some of them will work fine, others you'll be lucky to finish the first job you use them for. If you're looking to buy something that's going to last a long time or get used daily HF isn't the best place to go, but if you go into it with the mindset that they're for the most part selling cheap chinese-made stuff (and don't get disappointed when your $20 reciprocating saw dies three hours after you bought it) their stuff isn't half bad.
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# ? May 19, 2011 19:13 |
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Don't buy combination wrenches from HF, I bought a couple sets and they're all too loose. The HF flare wrenches I got were the worst, in addition to being loose, they flexed open with very little torque. However, their impact sockets have been good, and the reversible telescoping socket wrench I got is loving incredible. Basically, buy anything you think looks good and make sure you use it hard before the return period expires. If you still like it, keep it. Be prepared to return anything you buy. Splizwarf fucked around with this message at 19:53 on May 19, 2011 |
# ? May 19, 2011 19:51 |
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Splizwarf posted:Don't buy combination wrenches from HF, I bought a couple sets and they're all too loose. The HF flare wrenches I got were the worst, in addition to being loose, they flexed open with very little torque. However, their impact sockets have been good, and the reversible telescoping socket wrench I got is loving incredible. I'd like to second HF's impact bits. I've broken freaking craftsman impact sockets (understandably) and the HF ones always picked up the slack. I can still hear the craftsman sockets yelling "oh yea well i loosened it up for you!"
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# ? May 19, 2011 20:55 |
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Your Dead Gay Son posted:So this looks really great to me, I wanted to know what other people's opinions were? If you're just starting out, a huge set with every socket is a really great starting point. The stuff you use all the time might break, but then you can upgrade as you go. Not much point in having $100 tied up the that Snap-On female Torx 100 deep 1-1/4" left hand thread unobtanium impact socket you never use.
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# ? May 19, 2011 21:13 |
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Splizwarf posted:Be prepared to return anything you buy. On this tangent, if you're looking at something that's on the high side and/or you expect to use it frequently it doesn't hurt to buy the replacement plan they try to sell you at checkout. In my experience the stores are very lax on reasons for taking items back. I've also found their airtools are fairly high quality. For an example, a friend of mine works as a diesel mechanic and found that the $40 Central Pneumatic compact 1/2" drive impact wrench HF sells is a dead ringer for his $260 IR compact 1/2" drive impact wrench.
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# ? May 20, 2011 02:25 |
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bolind posted:If you're just starting out, a huge set with every socket is a really great starting point. The stuff you use all the time might break, but then you can upgrade as you go. Not much point in having $100 tied up the that Snap-On female Torx 100 deep 1-1/4" left hand thread unobtanium impact socket you never use. Good call. I think I'll jump on that then, and just upgrade as necessary. Thanks.
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# ? May 20, 2011 06:52 |
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Just bought a very unique set of open socket ratchet tools from Lowes, 1/4 - 1/2, metric, SAE and hex drive with standard socked adapters, clearanced for... $ 99. I was told the set originally sold for 229.00! What's unique about the set is all the hex head nut/bolt sockets, wrenches and extensions are hollow and pass through, so fastener length becomes a non-issue. Someone actually made a video review on YouTube, if you can excuse the shitdick redneck presenting the products: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdCkFrcQ1nw Also an interactive view of a smaller set: http://webapps.easy2.com/cm2/flash/generic_index.asp?page_id=35818426 R-Type fucked around with this message at 15:37 on May 20, 2011 |
# ? May 20, 2011 15:31 |
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I've got a small set (both few pieces and for small sized bolts) like that. It's great for adjusting my valves on the bike as I can put the screwdriver through the socket and tighten the valve down while using the wrench to keep the adjusting nut from turning.
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# ? May 20, 2011 17:25 |
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How well do ratcheting box end wrenches hold up to excessive torquing? Comparable to a regular socket ratchet?
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# ? May 20, 2011 19:34 |
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It's the same guts AFAIK. I hit mine (Gearwrench brand, locking pivot heads) with a 2-pound sledge a lot. Same goes for that socket wrench I mentioned earlier. I can usually spot my tools by the hammer marks. The bigger ones (14mm+) have also stood up to a 3 foot cheater pipe. I have broken two of them, but both were a broken pivot locking mechanism on the neck; one because I got something jammed in there and didn't take the time to disassemble and clean it, and the other because I was using the wrench to turn the pusher on a balljoint popper. When the balljoint popped, so did the lock. I was using the wrong tool. Don't let that discourage you from buying the pivoting head ones. The number of things you can do with pivoting gearwrenches and no other tool is loving absurd and has won me bets, gotten me out of a lot of dumb positions, and saved me about a million year's worth of work. With a set of gearwrenches, a screwdriver with changable tips, some picks, a 2-lb sledge and a pair of vicegrips, I can fix loving well anything. Also, buy a set of the adapters that are 1/2", 3/8", and 1/4" drive shafts with hex heads, and you can use your gearwrenches as super-low profile socket wrenches.
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# ? May 20, 2011 19:57 |
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Splizwarf posted:Also, buy a set of the adapters that are 1/2", 3/8", and 1/4" drive shafts with hex heads, and you can use your gearwrenches as super-low profile socket wrenches. This is a fantastic way to get to otherwise impossible to reach header bolts.
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# ? May 21, 2011 02:16 |
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Is there anything better than this blower as a canned-air substitute, around the same price? I don't have an air compressor, and I'm tired of buying canned air to get poo poo out of our many home electronics.
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# ? May 21, 2011 22:22 |
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Splizwarf posted:Is there anything better than this blower as a canned-air substitute, around the same price? I don't have an air compressor, and I'm tired of buying canned air to get poo poo out of our many home electronics. For not very much more you could get a cheap pancake air compressor and have a much more useful tool.
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# ? May 21, 2011 22:27 |
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I actually prefer my Toro electric leafblower (~$45 at most home improvement stores) over a compressor for blowing out electronics. Its also nice to have to blow out your garage (turns on instantly and no lingering mix gas exhaust smell) and I use it when I'm drying my car after washing to drive water out of all of the nooks and crannies that it inevitably drips out of two hours later while driving.
Geoj fucked around with this message at 22:33 on May 21, 2011 |
# ? May 21, 2011 22:30 |
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Shopvacs are also great for blowing stuff out if they have a hookup on the blower side.
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# ? May 21, 2011 22:36 |
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meatpimp posted:For not very much more you could get a cheap pancake air compressor and have a much more useful tool. Please go into more detail? I thought this thread hated compressors under a hundred bucks with a passion.
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# ? May 21, 2011 22:52 |
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Splizwarf posted:Please go into more detail? I thought this thread hated compressors under a hundred bucks with a passion. Different types of compressors. A pancake isn't going to run an impact wrench or a sander, but there are a number of small air tools that it can run, so they're good utility tools to have around if you don't have a larger compressor. Air chuck to inflate tires? Sure. Blow wand for the cleaning you're talking about? Sure, it won't have 100% duty cycle, but plenty enough to blow out your dirty-rear end laptop fans or the Cheeto crumbs from your overclocked tower. One of the nice things it'll do is run a brad nailer, so you can do some small carpentry jobs much easier.
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# ? May 21, 2011 23:18 |
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Does there exist any kind of tool that can help pulling off old dried/shrunken hoses? The other day I had to pull a fuel hose off a level sender and I had to literally stand on it and pull with both hands as hard as I could, even after getting it to turn so it wasn't stuck to the connector.
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# ? May 22, 2011 00:14 |
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?
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# ? May 22, 2011 00:41 |
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That's my solution too. It works well. A small slit and viola, off it comes.
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# ? May 22, 2011 00:52 |
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Nerobro posted:That's my solution too. It works well. A small slit and viola, off it comes.
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# ? May 22, 2011 00:55 |
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Besides cutting the hose.
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# ? May 22, 2011 01:07 |
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You can get a variety of small, handled hooks for getting hoses off (or just make your own with old screwdrivers) Also, use the hook to just pry at the edge and squirt a little silicone spray or similar into the gap, working your way around the joint, that helps a lot.
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# ? May 22, 2011 01:14 |
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So what's a good compressor between $40 and $60 bucks? I don't care if it's noisy but a handle on top is good (me big, me carry heavy thing). Wheels are bad, I'm 6'7" and bending down to be at the right angle to roll those little fuckers sucks. Don't care if it takes a week or two to get it off the internet. No eBay or Craigslist, I want it new so I know what abuse it's taken. Lowclock posted:Besides cutting the hose. L-shaped pick with a sharp round tip, like a needle. Get it in and sweep it around. Watch out, you're guaranteed to tear the gently caress out of your finger a minimum of once. efb
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# ? May 22, 2011 01:19 |
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Splizwarf posted:So what's a good compressor between $40 and $60 bucks? A bit more than $60 but comes with an air wand, inflater, brad nailer and some other crap (plus free shipping): http://www.homedepot.com/Tools-Hard...catalogId=10053
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# ? May 22, 2011 01:46 |
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InitialDave posted:You can get a variety of small, handled hooks for getting hoses off (or just make your own with old screwdrivers) I would consider buying those, but it goes against my policy of ever buying tools that would spend more time being used to play pirates than for their intended purpose.
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# ? May 22, 2011 03:49 |
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What a dull policy. I have one whereby I buy tools that let me play pirates whether or not I'll ever use them for their intended purpose.
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# ? May 22, 2011 13:01 |
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# ? Mar 29, 2024 12:38 |
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Lowclock posted:Does there exist any kind of tool that can help pulling off old dried/shrunken hoses? The other day I had to pull a fuel hose off a level sender and I had to literally stand on it and pull with both hands as hard as I could, even after getting it to turn so it wasn't stuck to the connector. I grab pliers and twist the rubber section back and forth until it spins freely. After that, it usually just pops off. If not, cut the fucker off since the hose end won't be worth saving.
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# ? May 22, 2011 15:39 |