dan91
Part of things
Posts: 416
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Mar 10, 2013 12:24:55 GMT
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Ok so taking on my first resto soon, interested what you guys think are essential tools and any tips and advice is always welcome Currently have a medium size tool chest, have all the standard tools, sockets, spanners, allen keys, multimeter etc etc. Have access to a welder What are good/very handy not so common tools worth having? Also I should probably stock up on WD40 and Brake cleaner etc? Also tips in general on restoration, my kind of thinking at the moment is once the cars back at my Garage strip it down to the shell, assess the rust etc and go from there, get the shell sorted and under sealed then start building the car back up? Cheers
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Last Edit: Mar 10, 2013 12:27:16 GMT by dan91
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Mar 10, 2013 12:35:35 GMT
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IMO an essential piece of kit would would be saftey goggles / specs and a good first aid kit coz trust me you will need them if your anything like me. An invaluable tool I bought when doing my escort was an auto darkening welding mask makes welding easier and frees up a hand, good quality set of axle stands wouldnt go a miss. If you could get a rollover jig that would make the welding of your floor and the removal of the underseal a lot easier
Hope that's a wee help for you
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Mar 10, 2013 12:48:28 GMT
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Stuff I wish I knew years ago
Buy a large tub of cheap thinners, you should be able to get 25L for about £15. It's great for degreasing, cleaning, etc etc and works out a lot cheaper than normal degreaser. Get plenty of old rags (you can buy bags of them from charity shops) and paper towel too.
WD40 is curse word, get some proper penetrating oil like plus-gas and it'll blow your mind!
Buy two cheap angle grinders so you can have both a grinding disk and a 1mm slitting disk to hand. Don't use the normal "cutting" disks, get 1mm disks - they are loads better but for some reason not easy to get hold of from normal retail places, although screwfix have just started doing them. Silverline ones are cheaper but a false economy - Good ones are twice as expensive but last 4 times as long. If you are feeling flush, get three grinders and have one with a wire wheel in it. eBay or autojumbles are best for grinding consumables.
Don't use the cheapo wibblepoo goggles unless you already wear specs - A proper pair of safety giggs are only about £8 from screwfix, and get some ear protection too. Same goes for gloves - get some thick gloves that fit properly and it'll make your life a lot easier. A full face shield also comes in handy when wire wheeling or grinding when laid on your back under the car.
All the lot should come to under £100, it's all stuff I didn't really think about years ago but I wouldn't even bother starting a job without nowadays!
Oh and an auto dimming mask for your welder is about £40 off ebay, absolutely invaluable.
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Mar 10, 2013 13:37:26 GMT
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Decent storage to put stuff away in. Nothing worse than tripping over stuff whilst working. Decent broom for sweeping up afterwards,always better for the mojo starting work in a clean area.
Best bit of kit though, gotta be the camera,esp when taking things to bits and storing them away. Having a reacord of what goes where, is invaluable when you come to rebuild stuff in a few months time. Stops the sinking feeling of 'where did that go' !!! Plus you can post pics on here and ask for advice
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taurus
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,084
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Mar 10, 2013 13:51:50 GMT
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I second the PlusGas advice - I took my '72 Viva to bits with only one seized bolt using that stuff.
Good quality jack(s) and axle stands are essential.
One of the best tools I used to remove rust was a powerfile - I never rated them before but fitted with ceramic belts they remove rust back to bare metal better than anything else in confined spaces.
Invest in some good rust treatment - I use Dinitrol but there are equally good alternatives. Don't waste your time with the stuff from Halfords.
Good quality inspection lamp is a must.
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Mar 10, 2013 14:25:44 GMT
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For body work:
A shrinker/strecher, I use mine quite often on the van and it has made such a differance to the quality of my work.
If you are doing alot of sheet metal cutting get a proper metal cutter. I use this one (http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/cps75-mini-sheet-metal-cutter) for the majority of my cutting.
If you can affored , don't go cheap. I remember my dad would always get those cheap 1000w angle grinders that give you full power straight away. Horrible, horrible things. A good 750w Bosch is much easier to control and safer.
Magnets are also very handy for holding things when tacking in patch pieces.
Clamps, lots and lots of various clamps, you can never have too many.
Pieces of various scrap metal, 25mm box, 50 mm angle, 30 mm tubign etc.. all come in handy when forming metal.
A drill always comes in handy. Get spot-weld bits from machine mart too.
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Mar 10, 2013 14:38:11 GMT
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Drawered metal filing cabinets make the best storage. I've got 6 in a row. A couple were free off Freecycle and I paid around £10 each for the rest - which are mint condition. Over the years used Dexion shelves, pallet racking, industrial stacking plastic boxes but nothing compares to the filing cabinets.
Paul H
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grumpy
Part of things
Posts: 557
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Mar 10, 2013 16:04:37 GMT
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Advice - take pictures , write notes if needed , mark parts 'this way round' etc , anything you need before you take it all apart . If it looks like you mess it up make it idiot proof ! Ziploc bags for parts and refit nuts bolts washers into parts and store them in plastic tubs . Don't do anything with out the right gear on - gloves goggles/glass's , earplugs . Its no fun getting curse word in your eyes or cuts and burns etc .
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dan91
Part of things
Posts: 416
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Mar 10, 2013 18:12:51 GMT
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Thanks for the input so far, Grinder is definitely the next thing to buy, anyone know of a good cheap ish one?
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grumpy
Part of things
Posts: 557
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Mar 10, 2013 18:18:04 GMT
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No such thing as good and cheap !! A makita for under £45 is a good buy and will last for ever and be nicer to use than a piece o curse word.
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Mar 10, 2013 18:20:18 GMT
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Any cheapo grinder will be fine to get you going - sure, you can spend £70+ on something slightly lighter and quieter, but I'd rather buy two £18 ones, that way you have a spare for when one packs in, although the real cheap ones will last long enough to restore a few vehicles www.screwfix.com/p/direct-power-pga115-900w-4-angle-grinder-230v/63218I think that's what one of mine is. They are good enough.
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RobinJI
Posted a lot
"Driven by the irony that only being shackled to the road could ever I be free"
Posts: 2,995
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Mar 10, 2013 18:20:46 GMT
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Makita grinders seem to be generally accepted as the best value for money ones out there, they're also pretty rebuildable, which is a bonus. We kill a LOT of grinders at work and the Makitas last noticeably longer than anything else has managed, to the point where it's all we use now.
I'd never spend more than what a makita costs, as it's false economy for something that'll never last forever, but at the same time I'm really not a fan of the really cheap ones, they vibrate noticeably more, and aren't as powerful, as well as the heads tending the be bigger, which makes getting into tight spots and using all the disc up a lot harder. I'd be tempted to get one cheap one for grinding discs (they always vibrate anyway, and you tend not to bother wearing them right out) then something mid-range like the Makita's for cutting discs/flap discs. If budget's really tight, then personally I'd rather swap discs around on a single Makita than have several cheap ones, as it's just kinder on your wrists in the long run, but I get the reasoning behind the cheap ones. (My fussiness may be a result of doing a lot of one handed cutting at work though.)
A die grinder/dremmel with a tungsten burr in it's a seriously handy tool for metalwork too.
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Last Edit: Mar 10, 2013 18:29:25 GMT by RobinJI
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grumpy
Part of things
Posts: 557
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Mar 10, 2013 18:44:57 GMT
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A makita ga4534 is £51 . A bosch pmf is good but perhaps a luxury to start with . I do see the point of cheaper grinders in that you can have a cutting disc in one and and grinding in another , that can be usefull . It all depends on your budget and if you don't like buying twice or buying disposable stuff .
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Mar 10, 2013 23:44:00 GMT
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Thanks for the input so far, Grinder is definitely the next thing to buy, anyone know of a good cheap ish one? I buy my grinders from b&q there own preformance range have been good enough for me, altho I did reflex mine with a really long flex as I felt it was too short
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I recently bought one of these: www.ffx.co.uk/tools/product/088381628723Makita 9554NB. 115mm (4.5") is best for consumables, and that's the cheapest Makita in that size. FFX is about as cheap as I could find that model, especially as it comes with 3x flap discs and a grinding disc (not listed, but AFAIK it's standard with the grinder - the box and flap wheels are the extras). Compared to the cheapo ones I've used in the past (Clarke own and one similar to the B+Q type) it's massively better - quieter, torquier, smoother, lighter and easier to hold. That, combined with a pair of Peltor Optime 2 ear defenders and a 3M filtered face mask (about £60 on ebay - not cheap, but you won't get anyting in your eyes, and your snot won't go black from breathing grinding dust ) make grinding a pleasure rather than a chore. Oh, and Cromwell tools - who have lots of branches across the UK - sell 3M branded 1mm cutting discs for 64p each inc VAT. Use them carefully - don't force the cut - and they'll last ages. Finally, when it comes to storing small parts, compartmentalised, lidded plastic trays are perfect. No rooting though boxes full of poly bags with peeling off labels - just write on the lid in sharpie over each compartment and you'll have an instant reference as to where that particular sprungle flange, humgrummit, or flibbertigibbet goes. EDIT: trays - look for "compartment organisers" or "compartment boxes", esecially at craft suppliers ('cos they're cheaper than at tool suppliers...): www.shcweb.co.uk/eshop/product.php?xProd=240www.shcweb.co.uk/eshop/product.php?xProd=133www.plasticboxshop.co.uk/craft-storage-boxes-c4/compartment-boxes-c37I have one similar to the first example which came with a Halfords tool bag - I find it invaluable for small spares. Now you've prompted me to think about it I plan to get a few more.
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Last Edit: Mar 11, 2013 1:18:52 GMT by jrevillug
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fred
Posted a lot
WTF has happened to all the Vennies?
Posts: 2,957
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Mar 11, 2013 10:05:33 GMT
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If its drivable, drive it, just a run down the block many a project has been given up, because the owner has never had it going and never felt what its like to drive before breaking it down to make good All depending on how big a resto is gonna be, I found its not the big things which cost me, its the hundreds of sundries which hit you brake/carb cleaner and plus gas is essential, drill bits of varying sizes, safety goggles, gloves, welding apron etc.. its never nice to have a welding spark running down the inside of your t shirt grinders n welders have been covered above main thing is if its still a runner Drive it just for a short while give you inspiration
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'79 Cossie ran Cortina - Sold
2000 Fozzer 2.0 turbo snow beast
'85 Opel Manta GSI - Sold
03 A class Mercedes
Looking for a FD Ventora - Anyone?
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fred
Posted a lot
WTF has happened to all the Vennies?
Posts: 2,957
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Mar 11, 2013 10:07:44 GMT
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Oh electrics, when you are taking them apart LABEL them, so you know when refitting where they go, saves many hours of head scratching
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'79 Cossie ran Cortina - Sold
2000 Fozzer 2.0 turbo snow beast
'85 Opel Manta GSI - Sold
03 A class Mercedes
Looking for a FD Ventora - Anyone?
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fred
Posted a lot
WTF has happened to all the Vennies?
Posts: 2,957
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Mar 11, 2013 10:09:32 GMT
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what car are you going to be making good then?
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'79 Cossie ran Cortina - Sold
2000 Fozzer 2.0 turbo snow beast
'85 Opel Manta GSI - Sold
03 A class Mercedes
Looking for a FD Ventora - Anyone?
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Mar 11, 2013 10:58:42 GMT
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A Singer Sport?
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smurf
Part of things
Posts: 829
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Mar 11, 2013 14:53:06 GMT
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Decent screwdrivers A good quality hammer or 2 Dressmakers chalk ( i use it for marking metal) A notepad or 2, maybe a whiteboard for quick notes Copper grease everything when it goes back together
Ad check out the thread for making body panels, it taught me a hell of a lot
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Laser cutting and cnc punching (up to 3mm stainless and ali, up to 6mm mild steel)
Mail me a dxf file and i'll get you a price Metal folding and custom fabrication service also available
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