It’s easy to forget that the adjustment part of adjustable wrenches don’t require much force; All that’s required is that you adjust the wrench’s jaws to fit the bolt — not crush it.  Thankfully some manufacturers haven’t forgotten this simple fact, and have come out with some cool alternatives to the standard thumb-wheel adjuster.  To adjust the RapidSlide, for example, you simply move the slide-button mechanism back and forth.

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(Thursday, October 19th, 2006) It’s typical empty thursday, TV wise.  What can we say?  Thor is unhappy that his day is devoid of hammering.

All times are central.

• DIY Tools & Techniques: Shop Vacuums and Cool Tools (DIY, 5 p.m.)
• Classic Tractor Specials: “Max Armstrong’s Pedal Tractor.” Farm toy factory; heritage tractor adventure; tractors working the field. (RFD-TV, 7 p.m.)
• Rock Solid: Concrete Countertop (DIY, 9 p.m.)
• Unique Whips: Heart Broken (Speed, 11 p.m.)

Our insomniac’s suggestions: Watch Speed, or just get some sleep…

Here’s an interesting idea: a Dustbuster-style vac with a ten position pivoting nozzle to make it easier to fit into tight spaces and to improve accessibility in high and low places.  Even if you have a shop vacuum, sometimes these little vacs are just the thing to pick up small amounts of sawdust from a quick single cut. 

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Reader “Myself” posted this great list of links as a comment a while back, and (ironically) because of all the links it contained, our CMS immediately tagged it as spam and dumped it in the moderation queue.

Sadly, we see around 2,500 such messages daily, so it took us a while to get around to moderating it.  So, to Myself: I apologize for taking so long.

Here’s the list:

Ever wonder how those gearless ratcheting screwdrivers work? Stieber makes some mechanisms and explains them with nice pictures: http://www.stieber.net/

Trailer-lights plug wiring reference, for the 4-way flat connector, all the way up to the 7-way round found on commercial and horse trailers: http://www.etrailer.com/faq/wiring.asp

NEMA outlet and plug connector reference. The straight-blade page is good if you have to deal with 20A plugs, and the locking (circular) page will save you a headache if you ever have to make generator cordsets. http://www.stayonline.com/reference-home.aspx

Micro Tools: Itty bitty pliers, screwdrivers, and specialized tools and chemicals for camera and jewelry repair among other things: http://micro-tools.com/

Lehman’s Non-Electric Catalog has long been a favorite around our house. Everything from woodstoves and butter churns to hand-crank drills and apple peelers, this is just a fun one to browse: http://www.lehmans.com/

Kevin Kelly’s cool tools: One of the founding editors of WIRED, this guy has an interesting take on life. To him, a “tool” is anything that helps you accomplish a task, so the category includes books and stuff. It’s incredibly fascinating to browse. Heavy emphasis on bicycling and world awareness. http://www.kk.org/cooltools/index.php

Nice job, Myself.  We use a couple of these references already here, and we’ve tacked the rest on our list.  We’re pretty big Kevin Kelly fans, too.  Thanks again for commenting.

History and experience teaches us that there are many different tools needed both on the jobsite and in the shop: tools for driving fasteners are no exception.  The Bostitch PN100K Impact Nailer is just such a specialty tool, constructed for driving common bulk nails in tight spaces or for nailing off metal connectors and joist hangers. 

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Recently DeWalts begun releasing their 18V line in kits complete with vehicle chargers, and this strikes us as a great idea.  How often have you found yourself using your drill where there’s no power at all available?  That is one of the major benefits of cordless tools, right?  Though you’ve (almost) always been able to purchase vehicle chargers, now you can just purchase a kit that includes one from the start.

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(Wednesday, October 18th, 2006) Look out for a new Mythbusters tonight; They’re up to some dangerous hijinks with an air cylinder.  Also tonight: the Junk Brothers make one of their most insanely stupid projects out of an old bicycle, a new I Love Toy Trains, and some chimney rebuilding on Finders Fixers.

All times are central.

• DIY Tools & Techniques: Cutting, Shaping and Scraping (DIY, 5 p.m.)
• MythBusters: Buried Alive (Discovery, 7 p.m.)
• MythBusters: Air Cylinder Rocket (Discovery, 9 p.m.)
• Unique Whips: Back With a Vengeance (Speed, 9 p.m.)
• Finders Fixers: The Smoking Windows (DIY, 9 p.m.)
• Junk Brothers: The Desk and the Bike (HGTV, 10 p.m.)
• Hammered with John & Jimmy DiResta: Old-School Fishing Boat (HGTV, 10:30 p.m.)
• I Love Toy Trains: “EnterTRAINment.” Ellion Feeinbey’s model train layout located in the largest shopping mall in the U.S. (RFD-TV, 11:30 p.m.)

Our insomniac’s suggestions: Shooting Cars (Speed, 2 a.m.) or Chop Cut Rebuild (Speed, 2:30 a.m.).

We keep a set of 24″ bolt cutters around the shop for all sorts of reasons.  Besides cutting bolts, they’ll also cut any kind of rounded material — even very hard cable and such.  Of course, you can also use them to cut many locks, so be aware that carrying these around in your car may bring you second looks from members of the law enforcement community.  But when you need to cut something big, they’re just the ticket.

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Bessey claims these are “America’s favorite woodworking clamp,” and indeed we have seen a number of these clamps appear on various woodworking shows.  We don’t have any personal experience with them (yet), but they look pretty slick  Their large, flat jaws are encased in “super-polyamid” — a plastic-like material that’s supposedly non-marring and glue resistant, yet strong enough to prove durable.  A cold-drawn, profiled steel rail makes holds those jaws together, and a set-screw-based locking system locks them down.

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With all the battery/charging systems out on the market today the shelf starts to look like a small electrical city of red and green blinking lights.  (And if you think your shop’s bad, you should see our test bench!)  Each tool with its own battery system and respective charger makes placing a new charger on the shelf the beginning of a load vs. structural stability calculation.  Black & Decker is among the first to at least try and address some of these issues with the FSMVC 9.6v - 18v Multi Voltage Fast Charger. 

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(Tuesday, October 17th, 2006) It’s mostly reruns tonight, but there’s certainly a lot to watch — especially if you’ve been out in the shop a lot and missed the first-runs.

All times are central.

• Machinery of the Past: A collection of 20 plus restored Fordson tractors, a customized Ford 8N (RFD-TV, 5 p.m.)
• DIY Tools & Techniques: Table Saw Guard and Viewer Jig (DIY, 5 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Episode 28 (Discovery, 7 p.m.)
• Rides: Hollywood Speed (TLC, 7 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Episode 35 (Discovery, 7:30 p.m.)
• Overhaulin’: Lowrider Girl (TLC, 8 p.m.)
• Dirty Jobs: Skull Cleaner (Discovery, 9 p.m.)
• Overhaulin’: All in the Family (TLC, 9 p.m.)
• Made in America: Frye Boots (Travel, 9 p.m.)
• Made in America: E-One Firetrucks (Travel, 9:30 p.m.)
• Trade School: Auto Mechanics (DIY, 9:30 p.m.)
• Dirty Jobs: Viewer’s Choice (Discovery, 11 p.m.)
• Unique Whips: A Unique Dream (Speed, 11 p.m.)

Our insomniac’s suggestions: We don’t know why we bother listing all these reruns, but hopefully they’re helpful.  If you’re up late, try the five (!) episodes of Pimp My Ride MTV’s running starting at 1:30 a.m.

Sorry we didn’t get this out to you on Friday, but we were loaded down and the weekend started a little too soon.  If you’ve been loaded down, too, and haven’t been keeping up with Toolmonger, we suggest you start with these posts: 

Finds: The Dyson Root 6
A friend of mine tells me that the Root 6 “seems as powerful as your shop vacuum,” but you can carry it around — which makes it sound like just the thing to have around the shop and home.  We haven’t tested one of these in person yet, but you can bet we will soon.

Finds: Grinder Tool Rest
It’s so easy to get hurt using a grinder, but a good tool rest’ll go a long way toward helping you keep control of the item you’re grinding.  As you’ll see in comments, many readers think this’d be pretty easy to fabricate on your own — and we completely agree.

Finds: French Handmade Rasps
Sometimes tools seem like art in and of themselves, and that’s certainly the case with these beautiful handmade French rasps.  The woodwork looks awesome, as does the brass ring around the grip.  But the irregularly shaped and spaced cuts in the rasp itself really steal the show – and cut better than uniform, machine-generated cuts.  This store in Germany carries an wide variety of handmade rasps, and you’ll just have to see them to believe them.

Finds: The Anything-But-Basic Home Tool Kit
Nothing starts a discussion among Toolmongers more effectively than a “basic tool kit.”  We’ve all got strong ideas about what should be contained therein, and we love to express them regularly and forcefully.  We ran across this toolkit in its slick-looking James-Bond-nuclear-weapon suitcase and couldn’t help but post it — but you’ll probably enjoy the comments even more than the post.

Finds: Uvex Bionic Shield
Like with the toolkit above, opinion seems split over this cool-looking face shield.  Love it or hate it, you’ll definitely want to see it.  And it’s pretty cheap, too, if you’d like to give it a whirl.

Next Week (OK, This Week since we’re late posting the Top 5)

Look for the return of “Doh!” of the Week and The Week’s Best Comment, as well as some great hands-on reviews.

We’ll freely admit it — now, anyway.  This is something we did right here in our shop.  We were replacing a Porsche 944S2 water pump — one of the most frustrating and difficult jobs in the automotive world short of removing, rebuilding, and re-installing an engine.  What makes the job so difficult is the fact that the Porsche’s water pump is located underneath just about everything on the front of the engine including the timing belt, the balance shaft belt, two accessory belts, and a bunch of other stuff.

So, having dutifully removed all this mess — and having suffered through the difficulty of finding #1 TDC on a car with an aftermarket flywheel without markings — we finally got the twelve (!) bolts off and removed the water pump.  Then we installed the seal, bolted it back up, and put everything back on the car — without bothering to check it for leaks.

As you can imagine, when we finally got the whole thing together the next day and filled it up with coolant, it leaked like a sieve. 

Hey, it only set us back two freakin’ days.  But we’re not mad.  Not at all.  We’re sitting in our calm, happy place right now, taking the time to offer you this great piece of advice:

If you’re installing a part that’s underneath half the engine, test it for leaks before you reassemble.

That is all.

PS: Oh yeah, and don’t buy a 944 unless you’re really, really serious about expanding your tool kit.  The word “special tool” appears over 1,000 times in the car’s repair manual — assuming you managed to find a repair manual.

I realize that this isn’t something most of you are going to want to run out and add to your tool collection, but it’s such a nice solution to a common problem that I couldn’t help but share it here.  If you’ve ever seen an A&P perform standard maintenance on a light aircraft, you’ve probably seen a 1″ hex oil filter.  Now Snap-on’s created a special 3/8″ drive 1″ ratcheting box wrench just for that special application.

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Fall is finally here and with it comes the leafy invaders from what was once a shady refuge — now turned lawn care enemy.  Cleaning up fallen leaves in the yard is a big part of lawn care in the fall, but it doesn’t have to be a nightmare. One of our favorites is the leaf blower: it’s loud, moves stuff around fast, and (best of all) does a great deal or work without requiring you to pick up a rake.  In short, the leaf blower is your fall weather friend. 

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According to many homebuilders, PEX tubing is the way of the future — replacing more difficult to work with copper tubing and bringing additional health benefits.  But whether you agree or not, one thing’s certain: we’re starting to see more and more PEX used in new homes.

RIDGID’s released a set of interchangable jaws for their Compact 100-B Press Tool — which many contractors already use for copper with different jaws — designed specifically for crimping fasteners to PEX tubing.

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(Monday, October 16th, 2006) Tonight we’ve got a new Biker Buildoff, American Hotrod, and an interesting Trains and Locomotives.  (Everyone needs to know about steam locomotive maintenance!)

All Times are central.

• Trains and Locomotives: “Railway Journeys, Part 4A.” The 346; Gergetown Loop; maintaining a steam locomotive; 489 Westbound (RFD-TV, 5 p.m.)
• DIY Tools & Techniques: Raised Panels and Tool Manufacturing (DIY, 5 p.m.)
• American Chopper: NY Yankees Bike 2 (Discovery, 7 p.m.)
• American Hot Rod: ‘36 Roadster 3 (Discovery, 8 p.m.)
• Biker Build-Off: Craig Whitford vs. Mike Long (Discovery, 9 p.m.)
• Freeform Furniture: Nesting Tables (DIY, 9 p.m.)
• American Chopper: Rick’s Bike 1 (Discovery, 10 p.m.)
• American Chopper: Rick’s Bike 2 (Discovery, 11 p.m.)
• Unique Whips: Bullet Proof (Speed, 11 p.m.)

Our insomniac’s suggestions: Not much – just watch Speed…