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Tools of the trade – your favorites?
We’re always looking for great ideas for reviews and resources for our members. So I’d love your feedback on what you would like to read when it comes to tools.
This can be good hand tools, power tools, electrical test gear or something else you like. The floor is yours:
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10 Replies
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Next to a good set of meters one has to have, you need acsess. Many cabinets and control areas have panels that are covered with plates and a lot of screws. This is were a pair of battery powered impacts and screw guns come in. Today they have shrunk down a lot in size but increased in power and capacity. I have gone through a few over the years. Having tested many and settling on Panasonic for Years. The last one would break your wrist if you used it wrong, but it was nice for making connector holes for Knock-out punches. But too big for panel work.Then Bosch came out with there mini gun pairs. Never go anywhere without it. Many different hex drive tools added has made it a go to tool. They even have drill bits to 1/2 inch with the 1/4 hex. The impact model is great for 1/4, 5/16, 3/8, 7/16, and 10 MM. But one needs to have multiple lengths of each. Also having Torx, Phillips, Posi-drive, Allen and square completes it. Along with adapters for 1/4 and 3/8 square drive. I also carry a Wiha magnetizer / de-magnetizer too. Helps placing those small screws back in close quarters.
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I LOVE LOVE LOVE Bosch tools. Their 12V tools are simply incredible. One of my friends used to work there, and my wife would always get the newest stuff at a good price from him. Thanks to that, I have almost every Bosch 12V tool there is, plus a couple of their 18V tools.
And then there is the incredible Bosch Nano Blade which for some reason isn’t sold in the US (But Amazon will gladly ship it to the States):
And finally, I have also slowly been upgrading my toolkit from random assorted stuff to a mix of Wiha and Wera.
The guys at KC Tool Co. often have amazing deals on good German products:
https://www.kctoolco.com/tool-of-the-day/
Being the nerd I am, I also have a whole assortment of cool tools I’ll never really need – thermal imager for my phone, various endoscopes, portable oscilloscope and a huge collection of knives and flashlights.
Yet, I can almost never find what I need at home – I know exactly where a good clamp meter is, but a hammer? Not a clue… 🙂
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Before I bought my first battery one, ( used many a AEG plug in) I went to a local contractor supplier that most majors used and asked questions. Found out that the NYS thurway authority had bought two of every make model they could find and rotated them every two weeks through different workers with a evaluation sheet. They also kept track of repairs and failures. This was back in the early nineties. The best of the bunch was the Panasonic 12 volt. Later they came in with 15.5 volt and 18, but they were much later releasing those than others like Dewalt , Black and Decker and Milwaukee. But even being a lower voltage, they had the power and longivity.. I’ve even used 2.5 inch hole saws on the 15.5. But your looking at carrying a 18 by 14 by 5 box. Where my pair of Bosch are in a bag 12 by 8 by 3. I’ve never had to charge on the job with them. I think that the impact is much more power efficient than a normal vari-speed. And the LED lighting is a big advantage. I strongly believe that one should not buy a battery tool till they actually try it. Not everybody has the same hand or muscling. I’ve used other’s screw guns, And some of the 24 volt ones have awesome power, but I find then bulky and heavy. Like a 1/2 inch electric impact gun vs. air. They don’t need to be big to have power. It’s the engineering of the motor and drive that really counts.
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They don’t need to be big to have power. It’s the engineering of the motor and drive that really counts.
Very well said!
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Leatherman.
Having that on me at all times is such a lifesaver I don’t think I could live without it, it is the ONLY tool I EVER sent in for warranty because I love it too much.
Living without it for the 1 or 2 weeks was a nightmare, I felt so naked without it and I use it all the time.
So that would be my favorite tool in the box, the leatherman I always carry on my belt.
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Leatheman today has so many different models they confuse me. Little tiny miniature that I find of no or minimum value to huge thick ones that do everything imaginable. Finding the right one for you is a major job. Get the wrong one and you don’t bother carrying it. I’ve worn bib overalls for the past 20 years for work. Got tired of the butt crack syndrome and the provide some protection from steam and hot water.
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I forgot infrared when welding. Suffered a serious chest burn once when MIG welding in spray mode with phosphor-bronze
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Lol.
I got the leatherman wave, it’s not too bulky but it’s got what I need. Had it for 6 or 7 years now, I can recommend it.
Lol, I didn’t know you could mig bronze.
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It’s expensive wire. as I recall it cost me $465 for a roll in early 80’s. Hard to come by, but to be able to lay down a bearing over a 6 by 8 inch area made it worth it for the project. And it made it one piece instead of countersinking a plate with screws. I can’t remember if it was .030″, 035″, or .045″ wire, But I had UV burns through two layers of clothing. My cousin was at the shop briefly (as I had a keg in the fridge) and even though he was in the next room he got a flash from reflection. I had to soup up my Millermatic 200 to do spray welding I only had single phase at my shop as 3 phase didn’t go out that far. And my old GE 450 amp machine wasn’t CV capable. (Chysler 6 cylinder from 1955)
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Wow, that sounds crazy.
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