It’s been a busy week here at Toolmonger, but we did get to spend some quality time in the shop. If you’ve been spending time in the shop, too, and you haven’t had a chance to keep up with Toolmonger this week, we suggest you start with these posts, which our readers helped to select:

One Collapsible Barrel, 30 Gallons Of Yard Waste
These “Kangaroo Barrels” proved quite popular among readers who like the way they fold up for storage and drain excess water from grass clippings. And with street pricing as low as $15, there’s no excuse not to haul around that excess water weight.

Edge Without Gas Engine Hassles
Today is Earth Day, and what better way to show your respect for the environment than ditching yet another un-regulated, pollution-spewing gas-powered lawn tool. Hound Dog’s “Steppin’ Edger” replaces gas-power with foot-power to do the same job — even better in some circumstances.

Cheap-Ass Tools: An $8 Canvas Tool Bag
It seems Toolmongers love cheap, handy ways to carry tools around — and this bag qualifies on both counts. This simple canvas bag would make a great carrier for a car toolkit where spaces is at a premium. And, as we mentioned, it’s cheap.

Moving Trees? Skip The Shovel, Use A Tree Spade!
This small version of the massive spades you see in use by landscaping crews might be a bit expensive to own, but they’re available for rent at a price that’ll make you think twice about ever digging a mid-sized tree out by hand again.

Mystery Trailer Adapter With “Beep Tester”
Readers loved the idea of a device that’ll tell you whether your trailer wiring is working when you don’t have anyone around to stand behind the trailer and holler when the lights are on. If only the manufacturer would return our calls and explain how it works…

Help us choose next week’s Top 5!

We’d appreciate your help in choosing next week’s Top 5, which’ll be featured here, elsewhere, and in the podcast as well. While you’re reading TM this week, look out for the “Interesting Post” button at the bottom of the article:

When you see an article that piques your interest, click the button once. You’ll return to the same page, but TM’s software’ll score your click for future reference. We’ll check in on the totals before selecting next week’s Top 5.

(Sunday, April 22nd, 2007) It’s Earth Day so you get three episodes of Cool Fuel today.

All times are central

• Cool Fuel: Garbage and Wind Power (Science, 6:00 p.m.)
• Cool Fuel: Geothermal and Bio-diesel. (Science, 8:00 p.m.)
• Classic Tractor Specials (RFD-TV, 8:00 p.m.)
• Cool Fuel: Cow-power and Solar Power (Science, 9:00 p.m.)
• 10 Things You Must Know: Wallpaper (DIY, 9:00 p.m.)
• Tricked Out: Honda CRX: Carpet and Sport-Seats Upgrade (DIY, 9:30 p.m.)

Enjoy.

I found this “mini-nibbler” marked down ffrom $30 to $20 in the “web exclusive” section of the Eastwood Company’s website.  Eastwood claims they to require less effort to cut due to their unique blade and handle design, and they’ll start cutting from a hole as small as 1/4″.  They handle up to 16-gauge brass, copper, or aluminum and 18-gauge mild steel.

Eastwood Mini Nibbler [Eastwood Company]

Mike Rowe fans take note: if you want to go tromping around knee deep in muck, you’d better own superior muck-stomping gear like these hardy boots from folks who know all about grunge and slime — Muck Boots.

Muck Boots’ “Chore” work boots (pictured) are one-hundred percent waterproof from the lightweight rubber outsole all the way up to the knee to keep you dry as you tromp through the nastiness.  They also feature a lined, super-padded interior shell to keep you warm while still providing excellent comfort and shock absorption on hard surfaces like asphalt, concrete and rocky terrain.

The best part about Muck boots, though, is getting them clean — just hose ‘em down and you’re ready to go again.

Street Pricing starts at $69.

Chore Work Boot [Muck Boots]
Street Pricing [Google Product Search]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

Here’s a specialty tool that’ll save you a ton of time if you happen to own a Harley with a malfunctioning neutral light: a transmission neutral light wrench.  Of course, if you don’t own a Harley — or own a Sportster or a soft-tail, which this tool doesn’t work with — it won’t help you one bit.
It features an extended, low-profile 7/8” head that fits your hog’s switch and a short handle that won’t interfere with any gauges or the tree.  And yeah, it’s pretty pricey at $45 bucks, but is price really an issue for you if you already bleed HD orange?

Transmission Neutral light Switch Wrench [Kastar]
Street Pricing [Google Product Search]

Today I found Stanley’s ever-popular TR-150 for $17 from Amazon and $16.53 at Hardware World. Which to patronize? I chose Amazon — but only because I bought a book there and qualified for free shipping. The TR-150 features an anti-jam mechanism, easy-slide staple loading, and lightweight aluminum construction. And because its yellow, it’s pretty hard to lose.

Stanley TR-150 [Stanley]
Via Amazon [What’s this?]
Stanley TR-150 [Hardware World]
Street Pricing [Google’s Product Search]

(Saturday, April 21st, 2007) How original: it’s DIY or nothing again this Saturday, although Discovery does have some good reruns to watch.

All times are central.

• MythBusters: Mega Movie Myths, Episode 2 (Discovery, 6:00 p.m.)
• MythBusters: Underwater Car (Discovery, 7:00 p.m.)
• The New Yankee Workshop: Bath Cupboard (DIY, 7:30 p.m.)
• The New Yankee Workshop: Monastery Table (DIY, 8:00 p.m.)
• Wood Works: Hand Tools and Sharpening Tour (DIY, 8:30 p.m.)
• Wood Works: Turned Sycamore Bowl with Ebony Rim (DIY, 9:00 p.m.)
• Freeform Furniture: Multi-Purpose Patio Furniture (DIY, 9:30 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Episode 31, matches, carousel horses, fine porcelain and automobile fuel tanks (Discovery, 10:30 p.m.)

Enjoy.

On Sunday, April 22nd, Home Depot is celebrating Earth Day by giving away free compact fluorescent lightbulbs to one million customers that visit any Home Depot store.  According to the ‘Depot, switching out a million bulbs for CFLs would generate $12 million in energy savings and a 196,000,000 pound reduction in CO2 emissions next year.

Free is the best deal of all, and we offer a hearty thumbs-up to Home Depot for this thoughtful Earth Day promotion. 

Earth Day CFL Giveaway [Home Depot]
April 22nd 2007 [Earth Day]

We happen to have a few more small tools in testing right now, so we thought we’d go ahead and re-activate our Submit a Tool, Win a Tool giveaway. 

What this means is that we’re offering up some of the smaller post-test tools hanging around the office to those who submit our favorite tools over the next few weeks.  So, if you’ve got a minute, drop us a line using the Submit a Tool form and let us know what’s in your shop that we should have in ours.

And hey — we’re not just seeking your favorite tools.  We’d also love to hear any tips you might have for fellow Toolmogners or great tool deals you’ve run across.

Note: This isn’t a contest, and we’re not going to announce winners; we’re simply going to pick someone from the list of submitters by whatever means that strikes us at the moment when we have something to give away, then contact that person by email directly.  So, if you might like one of these tools — whatever they end up being — be sure and enter a valid email in the submission form.

Submit a Tool [Toolmonger, of course]

Matt writes: “The Schrade ‘Tough Tool’ ST1 is an incredible multi-tool – tough as nails and solid as a rock.  I’ve owned it for years and it’s survived all the abuse I could throw at it.  The key selling point for this $40 tool is that the fold-out tools are on the sides of the handle and not on the ends where you’d normally grip it to dig in.  Some of the tools in the handle — the saw, both screwdrivers, and the knife — also lock in place.  I’d buy it again if I lost it, and I’d rely on it (still) in a pinch.”

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Paslode’s battery-and-butane technology lets you truly “cut the cord” on framing nailers.  Jason writes: “It means that I’m able to build furniture all over my house without having to drag an air compressor and hoses around with me!  Plus, the idea that the it drives nails via the same method that powers my car — by a fuel-explosion-driven cylinder – is awesome.”

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What do you do when you’re a bored twenty-something tank driver freezing your ass off in the middle of a Swedish winter?  You take that 62-ton Leopard II clone out in the snow and drift your heart out.

Seeing this firms up my opinion that we need a tank racing series on Speed next year, and reminds me again that you might take a kid out of racing, but no matter how hard you try, you’re not taking racing out of a kid.

Grab a beer and learn how to painlessly seed your lawn this spring so you’ll have a great looking yard all through the summer.  We’ll talk you through selecting the right kit and picking up the necessary equipment — which is easier and cheap than ever thanks to modern “lawn kits.”  (Podcast Download)

Sticking to conventional wisdom that says “don’t change a classic design that works,” concrete trowels haven’t changed much in the last 50 years.  But the Cam-Lock trowel adds modern kick: adjustability.

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If you visit Cyberguys.com and enter the keycode INFRARED today you can get this Infrared Thermometer for $30 (regularly $70).  It measures in both Celsius and Fahrenheit with a temperature range of -4 to 608˚F.  We can’t begin to tell you how handy these are to have around.  We’ve used them for everything from checking grill temperator to determining how much water’s in a steel barrel.

Non-contact Infrared Thermometer [Cyberguys]
Infrared Thermometers [Google Product Search]

Bessey’s irregular angle clamp solves one of the most frustrating problems in building staircases: clamping two pieces of wood together when they’re not joined at a 90-degree angle.  Standard bar clamps either can’t get a grip (or will mar the finish), and strap clamps don’t hold well enough.  But the Bessey’s ball-and-socket clamping surface adjusts from 15 to 180 degrees to hold perfectly.

(more…)

(Friday, April 20th, 2007) DIY seems to have completely jettisoned all their car shows.  Why DIY, why?  In a classic case of the left hand being ignorant of the right hand, Discovery runs episodes of How It’s Made at the same time as the first eps on Science tonight.  Otherwise it’s a pretty good night of TV, but those programmers do make us cranky!

All times are central.

• Modern Marvels: Garage Gadgets (History, 6:00 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Episode 16, personal watercraft, ice skates, wine and office furniture. (Discovery, 6:00 p.m.)
• How It’s Made, Season 3: Episode 12, kitchen knives, mannequins, socks, and hypodermic needles. (Science, 6:00 p.m.)
• How It’s Made: Episode 7, golf balls, furniture handles, parking meters and room dividers. (Discovery, 6:30 p.m.)
• How It’s Made, Season 3: Episode 13, electrical panels, kites, eyeglass frames, and toothbrushes. (Science, 6:30 p.m.)
• Rock Solid: Firehouse Patio Revamp (DIY, 8:00 p.m.)
• Toolbelt Diva: Episode 9 (Home, 8:00 p.m.)
• Take Home Handyman: Bachelor Party House (Home, 8:30 p.m.)
• How It’s Made, Season 3: Episode 43, battery tins and optical lenses are made. (Science, 9:00 p.m.)
• Holmes on Homes: Site Unseen (Home, 9:00 p.m.)
• How It’s Made, Season 3: Episode 44, horseshoes, dishwashers, graphite fly rods and frozen pizzas. (Science, 9:30 p.m.)
• Holmes on Homes: Sweet Home Abandoned (Home, 9:30 p.m.)
• DIY Inside: The Builders’ Show 2006 (DIY, 10:00 p.m.)

Enjoy.