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dwoloz
Oct 20, 2004

Uh uh fool, step back
Locking pliers will do the trick also

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Josh Lyman
May 24, 2009


With respect to not buying a ratcheting screwdriver set, shouldn't I buy a set of screwdriver tools in some form so that I'll have random torx bits should I ever need them? Or was my original idea okay and I just need to avoid the ratcheting part?

ibpooks
Nov 4, 2005
The ratcheting multi-bit sets are okay for the various sizes and odd bits, but be sure to get the common types in regular screw drivers. An average sized flat screwdriver and a #2 Phillips are essential.

kid sinister
Nov 16, 2002

Josh Lyman posted:

With respect to not buying a ratcheting screwdriver set, shouldn't I buy a set of screwdriver tools in some form so that I'll have random torx bits should I ever need them? Or was my original idea okay and I just need to avoid the ratcheting part?

http://www.wishpot.com/product/craftsman-7-pc-torx-dual-material-fold-up-hex-key-set---46003/13534854

Sears also makes a foldup version for tamperproof torx if you need it. I suppose you could use tamperproof torx in regular torx screws, it just wouldn't be as strong.

let it mellow
Jun 1, 2000

Dinosaur Gum
I don't get the hate for ratcheting multibit sets. I have a couple of them and they are very useful for miscellaneous things. Yeah, they aren't heavy duty and if I have anything that requires a lot of force to do, I'll use a real screwdriver. But they work perfectly for a variety of things and are generally useful. Also, they tend to be nearly as cheap as buying the bits separately.

wormil
Sep 12, 2002

Hulk will smoke you!
Cheap ratcheting screwdrivers are worse than cheap jig saws which is probably where the hate comes from but I have a couple nice ones that I love. One I found on the side of the road and it's a beast. The logos are all beaten off it but I think it's a Mac. Unfortunately it only has one double sided bit, with a straight and #2 Philips. My favorite that I lost had a L shaped handle which allowed a lot of leverage and was perfect for working on PCs.

dwoloz
Oct 20, 2004

Uh uh fool, step back
The venerable and inexpensive Buck Bros 6 in 1 is my screwdriver of choice

dwoloz fucked around with this message at 02:11 on Nov 18, 2011

sharkytm
Oct 9, 2003

Ba

By

Sharkytm doot doo do doot do doo


Fallen Rib

dwoloz posted:

The venerable and inexpensive Buck Bros 6 in 1 is my screwdriver of choice



I buy the cheap harbor freight ones for use on the boats, perfect nut drivers.

stubblyhead
Sep 13, 2007

That is treason, Johnny!

Fun Shoe
A quick question about Dewalt batteries. I understand that older tools that were designed for NiCad can use the newer Li-Ion batteries. I have an old cordless drill, the DC727. The batteries it came with have long since bit the dust, and the replacements I got are rapidly going the same way. This drill uses a 12V battery, but the only 12v Li-Ion I see (http://www.dewalt.com/tools/cordless-batteries-dcb120.aspx) uses a totally different form factor than the 12V NiCad. Am I out of luck for using LiIon batteries with this drill?

Mercury Ballistic
Nov 14, 2005

not gun related

stubblyhead posted:

A quick question about Dewalt batteries. I understand that older tools that were designed for NiCad can use the newer Li-Ion batteries. I have an old cordless drill, the DC727. The batteries it came with have long since bit the dust, and the replacements I got are rapidly going the same way. This drill uses a 12V battery, but the only 12v Li-Ion I see (http://www.dewalt.com/tools/cordless-batteries-dcb120.aspx) uses a totally different form factor than the 12V NiCad. Am I out of luck for using LiIon batteries with this drill?

Does Dewalt have a service email or phone? I bet they would be quick to sell you a new Li-ion batt if they can.

Bogatyr
Jul 20, 2009

stubblyhead posted:

A quick question about Dewalt batteries. I understand that older tools that were designed for NiCad can use the newer Li-Ion batteries. I have an old cordless drill, the DC727. The batteries it came with have long since bit the dust, and the replacements I got are rapidly going the same way. This drill uses a 12V battery, but the only 12v Li-Ion I see (http://www.dewalt.com/tools/cordless-batteries-dcb120.aspx) uses a totally different form factor than the 12V NiCad. Am I out of luck for using LiIon batteries with this drill?

Looks like you are SOL from what I see. But think about this, even if you were able to upgrade to Li-Ion. Assuming a Li-ion battery existed, a new charger would be needed I bet. So ~$30 and change each battery and and a charger would get you to around 100 bucks if you get 2 batteries. Buying a new 12V setup with 2 Li-Ion batteries is ~$130. Personally I would work with what you have and then replace the whole shebang when the batteries go. The next gen drills are on the horizon, brushless motors. So hold off to see what the price points on those will be. Milwaukee has some(Milwaukee Fuel) shipping in January. Also the current gen may get cheaper...

Iskariot
May 25, 2010
You can get LiIon batteries for that model but it's going to be nearly as expensive as a new drill for two batteries and a charger. May as well upgrade to a newer model. If you don't, look at third-party retailers.

Brush-less drills and drivers are here now. Makita's newest impact driver is brush-less. Hitachi has a drill that's been out for ages that's brush-less. Festool/Protool have brush-less models. Looking forward for others to follow.

grover
Jan 23, 2002

PEW PEW PEW
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:circlefap::circlefap::circlefap:
:circlefap::circlefap::circlefap:
:circlefap::circlefap::circlefap:
:circlefap::circlefap::circlefap:

stubblyhead posted:

A quick question about Dewalt batteries. I understand that older tools that were designed for NiCad can use the newer Li-Ion batteries. I have an old cordless drill, the DC727. The batteries it came with have long since bit the dust, and the replacements I got are rapidly going the same way. This drill uses a 12V battery, but the only 12v Li-Ion I see (http://www.dewalt.com/tools/cordless-batteries-dcb120.aspx) uses a totally different form factor than the 12V NiCad. Am I out of luck for using LiIon batteries with this drill?
No matter how nice they seem, I treat every cordless tool I buy as disposable. It's, sadly, a lesson everyone seems to need to learn for themselves, as cordless tools are so enticing, but replacing failed batteries quickly becomes an exercise in frustration and futility.

If you're handy with a soldering iron, you can probably replace the NiCads yourself and string it along a few more years.

Error 404 NpH
Nov 26, 2000


That set is horrible and a complete waste of $15. The adjustable may be ok, but the pliers are all junk. When you go to squeeze something hard with them the handle grips slip and dont provide much leverage at all.


Shell out the 39.96 and get a real set from channelock


Channellock Ultimate Pliers Set 4-Piece
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100190542/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

No adjustable wrench, but you can get a cheap one of those that'll make due.

Josh Lyman
May 24, 2009


Error 404 NpH posted:

That set is horrible and a complete waste of $15. The adjustable may be ok, but the pliers are all junk. When you go to squeeze something hard with them the handle grips slip and dont provide much leverage at all.


Shell out the 39.96 and get a real set from channelock


Channellock Ultimate Pliers Set 4-Piece
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100190542/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

No adjustable wrench, but you can get a cheap one of those that'll make due.
I realize Harbor Freight != quality, but if the handles are an issue, maybe I should consider these for $10?


http://www.harborfreight.com/6-piece-pliers-set-38082.html

In a related question, I picked up a 19" Stanley toolbox from Target and it seems alright for $10, but it's not big enough to hold a cordless drill. Should I expect power tools to be kept in their own molded plastic containers?

Josh Lyman fucked around with this message at 18:54 on Nov 20, 2011

Hypnolobster
Apr 12, 2007

What this sausage party needs is a big dollop of ketchup! Too bad I didn't make any. :(

That harbor freight set is totally usable. The slipjoints are sort of loose compared with quality stuff, and the sidecutters will turn into mangled pieces of poo poo after some harder usage.

Still worth the $10


e: on a related note, the Vise Grip Groovelock pliers are absolutely awesome. 10" v-jaw option is pretty much perfect.

http://www.cycleworld.com/2011/06/14/irwin-vise-grip-groovelock-pliers-tool-time/

Hypnolobster fucked around with this message at 20:24 on Nov 20, 2011

stubblyhead
Sep 13, 2007

That is treason, Johnny!

Fun Shoe

Josh Lyman posted:

In a related question, I picked up a 19" Stanley toolbox from Target and it seems alright for $10, but it's not big enough to hold a cordless drill. Should I expect power tools to be kept in their own molded plastic containers?

Most of them do come with a carrying case of some kind, so I'd just use that. Harbor freight's hands tools are ok I guess, no worse than the bargain brand at Lowe's anyway. I would be wary of anything from there that plugs in though.

Josh Lyman
May 24, 2009


stubblyhead posted:

Most of them do come with a carrying case of some kind, so I'd just use that. Harbor freight's hands tools are ok I guess, no worse than the bargain brand at Lowe's anyway. I would be wary of anything from there that plugs in though.
Yeah, if I was going to pick something up from Harbor Freight, it was only going to be hand tools. And so far it only looks like that pliers set.

As for a "cheap screwdriver set with an assortment of bits that won't replace proper screwdrivers", I found this at Home Depot. Slotted, philips, torx and square for $20 with a storage system for bits on the go? :swoon:


http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-202397605/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

ibpooks
Nov 4, 2005
Personally speaking, I do not buy any tools at HF. Even if you get store brands at places like Sears (Craftsman) or Ace Hardware the hand tools have lifetime replacement warranty. I simply don't want to deal with a cheap, broken or ineffective tool when I'm in the middle of a project. It's a waste of my time which is more valuable than the price of a quality tool upfront. Quality tools will last a lifetime.

HF fills a need in the market for people who need light-use disposable tools. If that's you, then enjoy sending some more dollars to China and some more crap to a landfill. If you're going to actually use your hand tools and keep them the rest of your life, buy quality lines like Channellock, Klein, Crescent, Ridge Tool (RIDGID), some Irwins, etc. There's a reason those brands have been around since the mid 1800s.

Mercury Ballistic
Nov 14, 2005

not gun related

ibpooks posted:

Personally speaking, I do not buy any tools at HF. Even if you get store brands at places like Sears (Craftsman) or Ace Hardware the hand tools have lifetime replacement warranty. I simply don't want to deal with a cheap, broken or ineffective tool when I'm in the middle of a project. It's a waste of my time which is more valuable than the price of a quality tool upfront. Quality tools will last a lifetime.

HF fills a need in the market for people who need light-use disposable tools. If that's you, then enjoy sending some more dollars to China and some more crap to a landfill. If you're going to actually use your hand tools and keep them the rest of your life, buy quality lines like Channellock, Klein, Crescent, Ridge Tool (RIDGID), some Irwins, etc. There's a reason those brands have been around since the mid 1800s.

I thought Craftsman is chinese as well, and HF hand tools also have lifetime warranty. I agree with you on more complex tools and anything electric, but for what I need, HF stuff is perfectly adequate.

Iskariot
May 25, 2010
"Made in China" doesn't mean it's typical Chinese no-name bullshit. Almost every tool manufacturer makes stuff in China and the ones that don't probably buy a lot of parts from China. Chinese companies makes things according to specs and can do so as well as a high-end German company if you hand over enough money.

That said I try to stay clear of HF-type tools as they usually break or are inaccurate. Even if I could buy five or ten no-name Chinese pliers for the price of a quality German one, I usually get the latter. If nothing else, it won't break on me when I need it and I don't have to contribute to the massive pollution due to cheap manufacturing.

If you get no-name poo poo, get stuff with warranty. If it breaks, return it. This makes the product more expensive for the store and they may discontinue the bullshit tools. This may in turn lead to more quality tools being sold and prices drop from quantity production. Better tools at lower price.

/end rant

Antinumeric
Nov 27, 2010

BoxGiraffe
Ok I've been looking for a tool - A compass that is a ruler with one end a point that the ruler can rotate around and the other a sliding marker. Does anyone know the name of this? I can't seem to find one anywhere.

kid sinister
Nov 16, 2002

Mercury Ballistic posted:

I thought Craftsman is chinese as well

Most Craftsman hand and garden tools are still made in the USA. Their power tools however are not.

Antinumeric posted:

Ok I've been looking for a tool - A compass that is a ruler with one end a point that the ruler can rotate around and the other a sliding marker. Does anyone know the name of this? I can't seem to find one anywhere.

You're looking for a "beam compass", specifically a graduated one. There are measuring tape variants also.

kid sinister fucked around with this message at 16:28 on Nov 22, 2011

Antinumeric
Nov 27, 2010

BoxGiraffe

kid sinister posted:

Most Craftsman hand tools are still made in the USA. Their power tools however are not.


You're looking for a "beam compass", specifically a graduated one. There are measuring tape variants also.

Ah ha! Thank you very much

ibpooks
Nov 4, 2005

Iskariot posted:

Chinese companies makes things according to specs and can do so as well as a high-end German company if you hand over enough money.

Except that Chinese manufacturers routinely attempt to build under-spec and hide it, only issuing mea culpas when they get caught. All of the regulatory framework in the country is corrupt and supports the deception in every way they can. The whole approach is how can we do the least possible quality and not lose the contracts (which are negotiated with huge kickbacks and bribes). I'm not saying the USA and European manufacturers are angels, but there is a huge difference.

ibpooks fucked around with this message at 22:22 on Nov 22, 2011

Circus Pies!
Feb 11, 2011

I thought you were getting me a pie shaped like a clown, instead you mangled my dick!
I'm looking for the bets bench top drill press that <$200 can buy. I'm mainly going to use it for wood and a little aluminum and I don't mind it taking all day to drill through 1/8 steel as long as it will do it. Anyone know what I should look for?

kafkasgoldfish
Jan 26, 2006

God is the sweat running down his back...

Circus Pies! posted:

I'm looking for the bets bench top drill press that <$200 can buy. I'm mainly going to use it for wood and a little aluminum and I don't mind it taking all day to drill through 1/8 steel as long as it will do it. Anyone know what I should look for?

I got one of these guys http://www.harborfreight.com/heavy-duty-16-speed-floor-drill-press-38144.html a while back and it has served me well. It's sub-200 if you get one of the easy to find 20-30% coupons. It's a decent induction motor that runs smoothly and relatively quietly. Mild steel is a cake walk to drill through, especially if you have decent bits and cutting fluid.

edit: there's a benchtop version of that model for the same price

Iskariot
May 25, 2010

ibpooks posted:

Except that Chinese manufacturers routinely attempt to build under-spec and hide it, only issuing mea culpas when they get caught. All of the regulatory framework in the country is corrupt and supports the deception in every way they can. The whole approach is how can we do the least possible quality and not lose the contracts (which are negotiated with huge kickbacks and bribes). I'm not saying the USA and European manufacturers are angels, but there is a huge difference.
I'm sure there is but once a company issues a large enough contract, it's not uncommon to send overseers from the ordering company. It's hyperbole to expect everything coming from China to be worse than if it had been made in the western world. One could speculate that the savings in manufacturing could be used to bump specs up a bit but I'm too cynical to believe it would. Still, you have companies like Foxconn that have parts in every iPad and the likes. Don't think they break more than the competition. (Working conditions at Foxconn aside)

My uncle used to work as an overseer for cruise ship construction. He traveled all over the world to keep work in check for his employer, China among them. My brother often goes to Korea to interact with a large construction company. There are vast cultural differences, some good, some bad.

grover
Jan 23, 2002

PEW PEW PEW
:circlefap::circlefap::circlefap:
:circlefap::circlefap::circlefap:
:circlefap::circlefap::circlefap:
:circlefap::circlefap::circlefap:
:circlefap::circlefap::circlefap:
:circlefap::circlefap::circlefap:

Iskariot posted:

If you get no-name poo poo, get stuff with warranty. If it breaks, return it. This makes the product more expensive for the store and they may discontinue the bullshit tools. This may in turn lead to more quality tools being sold and prices drop from quantity production. Better tools at lower price.
Does dollar tree give refunds?

taqueso
Mar 8, 2004


:911:
:wookie: :thermidor: :wookie:
:dehumanize:

:pirate::hf::tinfoil:

Suggestions for a low-priced right-angle drill? Cordless is fine, but not needed.

let it mellow
Jun 1, 2000

Dinosaur Gum

taqueso posted:

Suggestions for a low-priced right-angle drill? Cordless is fine, but not needed.

I bought a right angle attachment for my power drill. It was 20 or 30 bucks, but it works like a champ. Maybe look into that. Big box stores have them in the bit section.

therunningman
Jun 28, 2005
...'e 'ad to spleet.
With all this talk about good/crappy pliers I need to mention Knipex.
For the longest time I was buying the Canadian Tire specials, until I finally broke down and purchased a few different Knipex pliers.
No comparison, the tools ooze quality and now I can never go back to the cheap stuff.

sharkytm
Oct 9, 2003

Ba

By

Sharkytm doot doo do doot do doo


Fallen Rib

therunningman posted:

With all this talk about good/crappy pliers I need to mention Knipex.
For the longest time I was buying the Canadian Tire specials, until I finally broke down and purchased a few different Knipex pliers.
No comparison, the tools ooze quality and now I can never go back to the cheap stuff.

Any German brand is way nicer than anything made here.

the spyder
Feb 18, 2011

sharkytm posted:

Any German brand is way nicer than anything made here.

German tools are my FAVORITE.



However they will make you broke rather quickly...
Wera, Wiha, Knipex, Hazet, NWS, Metabo, ect are my brands of choice.

Iskariot
May 25, 2010
Are those... Wera bottle openers? I must have one now! :argh:

Bosch made bottle openers using their new grinder handle with vibration reduction. They were pretty neat.

Error 404 NpH
Nov 26, 2000

Josh Lyman posted:

I realize Harbor Freight != quality, but if the handles are an issue, maybe I should consider these for $10?


http://www.harborfreight.com/6-piece-pliers-set-38082.html


On a limited budget I'd definitely put those ahead of the husky set you posted. They aren't as good as the real things but they are at least useful for light jobs.


Also its the cordless tools from harbor freight that are junk, some of the corded ones are quite nice and well worth the price. I have an awesome tile bridge saw from there, works flawless. I bought a real blade for it instead of the harbor freight blade, and it cut through porcelain tile and travertine beautifully.

sharkytm
Oct 9, 2003

Ba

By

Sharkytm doot doo do doot do doo


Fallen Rib
Their tile saw is indeed awesome. I did all the cutting for my glass time backsplash with one. Just put on a decent blade and away you go.

taqueso
Mar 8, 2004


:911:
:wookie: :thermidor: :wookie:
:dehumanize:

:pirate::hf::tinfoil:

jackyl posted:

I bought a right angle attachment for my power drill. It was 20 or 30 bucks, but it works like a champ. Maybe look into that. Big box stores have them in the bit section.

Any downsides to an adapter? It seems like the perfect solution.

stubblyhead
Sep 13, 2007

That is treason, Johnny!

Fun Shoe

taqueso posted:

Any downsides to an adapter? It seems like the perfect solution.

Right-angle drills usually have a fair amount of power behind them, but if all you're doing is putting holes in 2x4s in tight spaces, then it will probably be just fine.

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bhukBC
Feb 19, 2007
stealth mode
Saw this browsing Sears. Future of ratchets?

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00931088000P?mv=rr

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