stealthstylz
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 14,836
Club RR Member Number: 174
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Probably my 2 favourite "not run of the mill" tools are a Pinto inlet valve bent 90 degrees through the stem, then a bit of a flat ground in one side of the head. Drop the stem in any bellhousing/starter bolt then let the head drop into the teeth of the ring gear and voila, any engine instantly locked solid so the crank bolt can be removed. Much better than jamming a chisel or similar in.
2ND one is a small square of rubber mat which I use for doing the valve clearances on shim over bucket OHC engines when they're on the bench. Wind the cam over to open the valve then put the rubber mat behind so as you wind it off it keeps the valve propped open. You can then flick the shims out with a screwdriver without having to remove the cam. Saves lots of time.
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Other weights are available:
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melle
South West
It'll come out in the wash.
Posts: 1,983
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I agree with Dez on the pencils; the red ones for aluminium are very useful too.
My favourite spanners are Gedore 1b combis.
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www.saabv4.com'70 Saab 96 V4 "The Devil's Own V4" '77 Saab 95 V4 van conversion project '88 Saab 900i 8V
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,712
Club RR Member Number: 34
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I agree with Dez on the pencils; the red ones for aluminium are very useful too. My favourite spanners are Gedore 1b combis. Mine too. It’s rare I reach for conventional combi spanners when the 1b are available. I’m surprised at how many people, even within the trade, have never seen them.
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LowStandards
Club Retro Rides Member
Bigging Up The Sum Sum Man Since '99
Posts: 2,640
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Nope that’s some of the sh1t I was referring to. [/quote] Ah, you're one of them
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Rich
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 6,244
Club RR Member Number: 160
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Nope that’s some of the sh1t I was referring to. Ah, you're one of them Yea, seems that way. I’ve had the same set of Taskmaster spanner’s I bought when I was an apprentice. Probably about 10 years ago now. I’ve looked after them, and, well, they still undo nuts and bolts, and no better or worse because of the brand name on them. I also have a lot of Halfords tooling from when I first started too, I’ve killed a few ratchet spanners but that is from downright abuse.
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Last Edit: Mar 5, 2020 8:10:46 GMT by Rich
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Rich
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 6,244
Club RR Member Number: 160
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I agree with Dez on the pencils; the red ones for aluminium are very useful too. My favourite spanners are Gedore 1b combis. They look dead handy. I’ll probably have to have a look for them!
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Nope that’s some of the sh1t I was referring to. Ah, you're one of them [/quote] No, I’m not ‘one of them’ & it’s ‘one of those’ btw. The op asked a simple question, I answered it, the fact that you prefer something different is your choice. Your user name is obviously literal
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Yea, seems that way. I’ve had the same set of Taskmaster spanner’s I bought when I was an apprentice. Probably about 10 years ago now. I’ve looked after them, and, well, they still undo nuts and bolts, and no better or worse because of the brand name on them. I also have a lot of Halfords tooling from when I first started too, I’ve killed a few ratchet spanners but that is from downright abuse. I’ve got loads of gear from loads of manufacturers. Quite simply Snap On is the best. Everyone knows it, it widely excepted that is the case, that’s why it’s in its 100th year, this year. Yes there is the argument of cost & I’d agree, it’s never going to be for everyone, but it IS the best
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Rich
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 6,244
Club RR Member Number: 160
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Yea, seems that way. I’ve had the same set of Taskmaster spanner’s I bought when I was an apprentice. Probably about 10 years ago now. I’ve looked after them, and, well, they still undo nuts and bolts, and no better or worse because of the brand name on them. I also have a lot of Halfords tooling from when I first started too, I’ve killed a few ratchet spanners but that is from downright abuse. I’ve got loads of gear from loads of manufacturers. Quite simply Snap On is the best. Everyone knows it, it widely excepted that is the case, that’s why it’s in its 100th year, this year. Yes there is the argument of cost & I’d agree, it’s never going to be for everyone, but it IS the best And that it’s the best is simply your opinion. It’s not a fact, I’m afraid. Expensive isn’t best. Granted a lot of their stuff is very nice. But again, doesn’t mean it’s the best.
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,712
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Even snap-on themselves know their stuff isn’t the best in all cases. It’s why they subcontract the manufacture of so much of their range to other companies. They’re freely admitting so people are better at making some things than they are.
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Rich
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 6,244
Club RR Member Number: 160
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Anyway, enough rabbling over brands. Things in line with the OP.. we’ve had vice, I would say that, but if you are going down the ‘workshop/shed’ route I’d definitely say a decent workbench. Invaluable to have something sturdy and solid.
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Anyway, enough rabbling over brands. Things in line with the OP.. we’ve had vice, I would say that, but if you are going down the ‘workshop/shed’ route I’d definitely say a decent workbench. Invaluable to have something sturdy and solid. I’d agree, snap on obviously 🤣🤣🤣
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PHUQ
Part of things
Posts: 859
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We have a set of those Gedore spanners at work, they seem to put up with a lot of abuse. I've got Halfords stuff at home and can't fault it, but it doesn't get a particularly hard life there.
We had a snazzy Snap On torque wrench on one of the prototype lines here. After 2 replacements in quick succession they wouldn't replace the third one so we got a Stahlwille one instead. We still have the Stahlwille one in almost constant use. The last Snap On one is now used as a (very expensive) breaker bar. Your mileage may differ.
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moglite
Part of things
Posts: 815
Club RR Member Number: 144
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One of these - no seriously I'll get my goat
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1967 Morris Oxford Traveller 1979 Toyota LandCruiser BJ40 1993 Daimler Double Six 2007 Volvo XC70 2.4D
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Darkspeed
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 4,688
Club RR Member Number: 39
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The other things that I now make sure I have a good selection of is the correct PPE - mainly gloves and glasses but also decent dust masks. Through use of decent gloves my range of Manista/Swafega hand cleaners does not see much use these days.
Another good one to have - Impact gun - mine is currently air - but I will be also putting a cordless into the rack soon.
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bricol
Part of things
Posts: 284
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Lump hammer.
I've got my dads, which was his dads . . . they managed with one handle, I've had to replace it, and it's not quite the same. Done car repairs, house re-modelling, garden paving, joinery, tent erecting . . .
regarding Snap-On - only ratchet I broke was one of theirs - the Kamasa one I bought 32 yrs ago is still going strong.
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Carpet, not strictly a tool but standing or kneeling on it certainly makes life a lot easier, especially for the 'mature' amongst us.Keeps the dust down and adds a bit of style to the garage, espically if its 70's pyshcadelic purple lol
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The other obvious one is an angle grinder. I agree but I'll add: get two, and have one with a cutting disk and one with a flapdisk / knotwheel / grinding disk. That way you're not constantly swapping disks and looking for the grinder spanner. Makes things much more efficient on a bigger job. Incidentally, if you're working with mainly bodywork I recommend the thin slitting disks rather than the thicker cutting disks. Yes they're more fragile if you're not careful, and don't last as long, but they give a much neater precise cut than the 3mm thick cutting disks.
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Lots of light, and one or three of these for when "lots" isn't enough: A good broom doesn't go unused either...
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