Nick’s had this tool bookmarked for a week or so, not sure whether or not it’s great or useless.  So, he shot it over to me.  I’m not sure, either.  We figured we’d ask you.

This jewelry-box looking contraption purports to be a one-stop-shop place to keep lal your microtools, with a drawer and tray for screwdrivers and hemostats and a uniquely-shaped index on top to hold micro-pliers.

I like the wood look, but I’m not sure I have enough micro-tools to justify $30 for something like this.  What say you jewelry and electronics Toolmongers out there?  Let us know in comments.

Hardwood Plier & Tool Chest [Micro-Mark]

Nothing sucks more than over-driving a screw and screwing up (yuk yuk) a pretty piece of woodworking.  While Panasonic’s worked to prevent this error electronically, Festool’s got a simpler mechanical method.  Their Depth Stop chuck is designed to stop at (imagine this) a fixed depth, eliminating the need for torque stops.

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(Sunday, January 28th, 2007) National Geographic finally shows us some love with three episodes in a row of Ultimate Factories.  What, they ran out of Dog Whisperer episodes?

All times are central.

• How It’s Made: Episode 35 (Science, 7:00 p.m.)
• Ultimate Factories: Harley-Davidson (National Geographic, 7:00 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Episode 36 (Science, 7:30 p.m.)
• Ultimate Factories: Budweiser (National Geographic, 8:00 p.m.)
• Classic Tractor Specials (RFD-TV, 8:00 p.m.)
• Ultimate Factories: Peterbilt (National Geographic, 9:00 p.m.)
• 10 Things You Must Know: Kitchen Cabinets (DIY, 9:00 p.m.)
• Tricked Out: Honda Civic SI: Grill and Lights (DIY, 9:30 p.m.)
• Unique Whips: Back With a Vengeance (Speed, 10:00 p.m.)

Enjoy.

Recently I lamented about not being able to reach the back of an SUV’s engine compartment while standing on the ground.  While this isn’t a problem for some of you gargantuan mammoths, the rest of us average-sized dudes still can’t reach the distributor.  If the topside creeper was too big (and expensive) how about something a bit lower slung like the Wheel Step? 

It’s a step that hooks over the tire, adjusts to 3 heights, and holds up to 350 lbs.  It’ll fit any tire size from 14” to 20”, and unlike bigger systems the wheel step folds up and can be shoved out of the way pretty easily.

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We’ve got a drawer completely full of work gloves at the Toolmonger shop.  We carry some in vehicles, and we use them endlessly in the shop to carry steel around, etc.  The problem comes when you want to move something that you’d like to keep clean — like furniture or a big TV.  Sure, you could just forego the gloves, but a good pair of work gloves can really lower the pain and suffering of moving.

Our solution: Shop the local dollar stores for “work gloves.”  They’re poorly made and would disintigrate if you used them much in the shop, but they’re great if you just intend to keep them separate (as “clean gloves”) and only use them when you’re moving something nice.  I’m way too cheap to buy a $7 set of gloves for this purpose, but at $1 each, I’ll take two.

I can see the first comment already: “My pump-up garden sprayer’s already cordless.”  Maybe B&D shoud’ve call this the “pumpless garden sprayer.”  Marketing aside, if you hate manual labor of even the most simple kind, Black & Decker’s got your number this year.  Between the AutoWrench, the AutoClamp, a powered hand saw, and this, you’d better start working out to keep those hands and arms strong.

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If a flatbed isn’t in the budget — or you don’t know anybody with one – then taking your lawn tractor somewhere in the truck can be quite a pain.  Either you’ve got a set of  ramps like these, or you have to ride the thing wherever you’re going.  If you’re planning on riding, make sure you bring a gas can.  And just forget getting a date.  Seriously, don’t ask. 

The Ramp Champs from highland are pretty inexpensive and will get your mower or ATV in the back of the truck in no time.  The ‘Champ is a folding composite/steel ramp that Highland says can support 750 lbs. per ramp, which is more than enough to support the load of most lawn tractors or ATV’s.  They also have a no-slip coating and raised edges to help keep everything headed in the right direction.

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We asked Toolmongers about a couple of tools this week, and here’s what you told us:

Shop Vacuum Drain Pump: Hot.
While those of us in basment-less Texas couldn’t see the usefulness, our Toolmonger friends from other states clued us in to how handt this is for clearing flooded basements.  Many readers also noted that more and more new high-end wet/dry vacs are including this feature now, removing the need for purchasing an add-on like this one.

Black & Decker Cordless Powered Hand Saw: Not.
Readers question a) whether vibration issues would plague this saw, b) whether the basic hand saw really needs power, and c) why a standard recip saw wouldn’t do any job this one could (and more).

A Cheap-Ass Pneumatic Planishing Hammer from HF: Hot.
Though everyone was wary of the hammer’s quality, almost everyone thought it’s worth a try for just $130.  Everyone also warned of noise issues; your neighbors are going to hate your ass if you use one of these.  But hey, that’s why you didn’t join the homeowner’s association, right?

We’ll have some more Hot or Not tools for you next week.  Thanks for weighing in with your ideas and experience!

Fender covers are a must if you’re working on a vehicle that you don’t want messed up when you’re finished.   They protect the wrench monkey (you) form doing harm to your ride.  Also, they make you look like a) you know what you’re doing and b) you give a damn about your paint.

Covers like these are made of thick leather-grain vinyl and are stuffed with a heavy-duty foam pad to guard damage from blunt objects mashed or dropped against the fender.  They also keep you from grinding grunge into the paint.

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When I came across this photo today, it seemed to me that it brought forth all sorts of fun caption ideas — but I thought I’d let you get in on the fun as well.  In comments, drop us a caption for this photo.  We’ll pick our favorite sometime next week and send a small tool to the winner.

Here’s the photo in its original context.

FoxNews.com included this piece yesterday from Jason Cameron, a contributing editor of Men’s Journal Magazine in which he “reveals the essential tools to satisfy your inner Mr. or Mrs. Fix-It!”

His list, in order:

• Ridgid’s R2600 5-in Orbital Sander
• Makita’s LST401 18V Lithium 4-Piece Combo Pack
• Occidental Leather’s 9540 Adjustable Finisher Tool Belt
• Ryobi’s AIRgrip MultiTask-it
• Panasonic’s Cordless Drill & Driver
• Stanley’s FatMax Xtreme Fubar

I’m not sure exactly how to take this list.  If it’s intended as a “tool kit,” it makes no sense at all.  The only hand tool in the list is the Fubar, which as cool as it is — and it’s very cool — isn’t something most homeowners’ll want to pick up as their only hand tool.

If the list is intended as a “new stuff you should have” list, I’d beg to differ with some of their choices.  There’s nothing wrong with RIDGID’s orbital sander, but again, is any orbital sander really at the top of a DIYers list?  Makita makes some great power tools, but if you’re buying a combo kit, you’ve got a lot to consider: What other tools do they offer?  What’s the future of the battery line?  Do you need the power they offer?  Competition’s hot in the combo kit market, and I’m not sure I’d recommend the Makita kit to everyone.

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DeWalt’s combined a rotary tool with all the necessary feet for trimming laminate into a handy kit — the D26670K.  It includes a 5.6 amp, 30,000 rpm rotary tool complete with a standard 1/4″ collet and depth adjustment as well as a fixed base, an offset base (for backsplashes, scribe, and trim), and a tilt base (for angled corners or cuts near vertical surfaces).

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(Saturday, January 27th, 2007) DIY has two shows about building tool storage, which is something we all need.  We felt cheated by Underwater Car, as they didn’t actually test how well the two window breaking tools performed with water pressure against the glass.

All times are central.

• MythBusters: Biscuit Bazooka (Discovery, 6:00 p.m.)
• Modern Marvels: Logging Tech (History, 6:00 p.m.)
• MythBusters: Underwater Car (Discovery, 7:00 p.m.)
• Wood Works: Peruvian Walnut Tool Chest (DIY, 8:00 p.m.)
• Wood Works: Magazine Storage Boxes (DIY, 8:30 p.m.)
• Wood Works: Tool Cabinet (DIY, 9:00 p.m.)
• Freeform Furniture: CD Storage System (DIY, 9:30 p.m.)
• Unique Whips: Dead Men Walking (Speed, 10:00 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Episode 5 (Discovery, 11:00 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Episode 6 (Discovery, 11:30 p.m.)

Enjoy.

When it comes to getting the project done in the eleventh hour we are the kings tools that aren’t really designed for the task at hand.  They come flying out of toolboxes (kitchen drawers, etc.) to attack whatever funky issue we’re currently facing — so we can go to freakin’ bed.  Or go out drinking.  Or play some Halo.  You get the idea.

So when we saw the Knipex plastic pipe cutter, it immediately struck us that it could be used for automotive wiring harness sheathing in a pinch. 

The plastic pipe cutter isn’t really much more than a razorblade with a ratcheting squeeze handle wrapped in a die-cast aluminum body, but that can be super useful if you are going to be wiring all day and cutting 6mm  – 35mm tubing or plastic pipe — like we were last week.

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In my book, lazy = creative.  Say, for instance, you don’t want to lift a 400 pound object and there isn’t anyone to sluff the labor off on help you.  You can either leave the heavy object where it is and get a beer, or you can get a chain hoist and move it. The cool thing about the CX mini hoist in particular is that it doesn’t weigh much more than a beer, yet it can lift up to 500 pounds.   Try that with a Dr. Pepper.

The CX mini also features a load limiter to prevent lifting over-capacity loads, an aluminum body with a steel frame for strength, a durable metal chain guide allowing for smooth operation, and a nickel-plated load chain with stainless steel hand chain.  It’s hot stuff in a small package.
 
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We just received the latest Craftsman Club flyer from Sears, and it contains a few pretty sweet deals.  For example, Sears is offering your choice of a 10″ compound miter saw w/laser, a 10″ table saw with stand, a 10″ drill press w/laser, or a 4″x6″ belt and disc sander for $90.  Not bad!

They’re also re-upping some of the deals they offered just after Christmas on mechanics tool sets and tool storage (read: roll-aways).  Of course, there’s a smattering of lawn equipment to boot.

And, as some astute Toolmonger have pointed out in comments, the Craftsman Compucarve is back down to $1700 if you’re in the ‘club — and if you can find one of the machines anywhere in the U.S.

While pondering upcoming Toolmonger automotive projects today, our thoughts turned to tools we wish we could afford but can’t — specifically a power train lift.  If you’ve never used one of these, let me introduce you: Power train lift, these are Toolmongers.  Toolmongers, this is a device that significantly simplifies an engine swap — especially if the engine you’re swapping in doesn’t fit.  (And what better reason is there to do a swap in the first place?) 

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