Basic voltage and current measurements from a simple multimeter are adequate for DC electronics work, but when you deal with inductors, an LCR (inductance, capacitance, resistance) meter becomes essential. Siborg’s new Smart Tweezers combine an ergonomic design with a great feature set, targeted squarely at the surfacemount market.
Here’s a tester made just for security installers that might actually live up to its “all in one” claim. It lets you send pan/tilt/zoom commands to cameras and watch the image coming back, and it generates test patterns for monitor setup and identification. It also tests the twisted-pair cable which carries the control signals and decodes those signals to make sure the control console is sending them properly. And it’s a digital multimeter.
Looking for a set of “disposable” Torx screwdrivers that you won’t mind disappearing? Try this set I found for $10 at Micro Center. The 34-piece set includes four standard and three Philips precision drivers, and four flat and three Philips handle-type screwdrivers — plus T10, T15, T20, T25, T27, T30, T40, H2, H3, H4, H5, H5.5, and H6 Torx and Hex bits. You also get 0.20″, 0.24″, 0.28″, 0.31″, and 0.35″ 1/4″ drive sockets, a 1/4″ socket holder, and a 2.8″ bit holder. Everything is enclosed in a plastic molded case.
VTSET19 [Velleman Inc]
34-Piece Tool Set [Micro Center]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
The ScanGuage II by Linear-Logic isn’t just any OBDII scanner – it’s a direct conduit to what’s going on under your hood. While you could just use it to pull trouble codes or turn off that pesky “check engine” light, it’s really a full featured automotive computer for your 1996 and later car or truck.
If you’re planning on doing any serious maintenance or work on your post-1996 vehicle, you’ll eventually want to own a quality code scanner, like this one which we own and found for $135 right now on Amazon.
This device plugs into your car’s computer and translates the codes in the system into English (or Spanish) and also allows you access to other data stored in the system. That data varies from car to car, but can be quite helpful in diagnosing problems — or at least for telling you why the damn “check engine” light is on yet again.
Anyway, we’ve had good luck with this particular unit, and $135 is a pretty good price for it.
Equus 3110 Innova Diagnostic Code Scanner Via Amazon
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Back in January, we covered the Paladin PC Cable-Check Pro, an all-in-one gadget for testing the pinout and continuity of common computer cables. But who’s got $130 for a cable tester? Try this one for $30. MCM Electronics is clearing out this discontinued Tenma-branded tester, which offers essentially the same features.
It looks identical to the one I own, except mine is branded “Pro’sKit.” If you do any real work with RS232 cables and adapters, consider picking one up; it saves a lot of time and headaches! Note: Shipping starts at $8, but that’s still a deall.
Tenma PC Cable Tester [MCM Electronics]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Via Amazon
For years, gas installers and home inspectors alike have relied on the venerable TIF 8800 combustible gas detector to find the smallest leaks in joints and fittings, but it’s a bit spendy for most homeowners. But with ExTech’s new EZ40 detector – which offers essentially the same features at half the price – it looks like ExTech has a solution for everyone.
Borescopes have been common in some industries for decades, but price has kept them out of the home handyman’s reach until very recently. Now ’scopes like Ridgid’s SeeSnake Micro (pictured) are pushing close to (and sometimes below) the $200 barrier. Best of all, you can forget squinting into an eyepiece as it’s got a battery-powered LCD screen.
Terminating coaxial cable just got a little bit easier: the double-ended Paladin 1917 flares the brad of both both common co-ax cable types — RG59 and RG6 — so you don’t have to carry a second tool. Plus, its ten-dollar price tag pales in comparison to high-buck strippers and crimpers, so there’s no reason not to grab one if you’re doing a lot of coaxial work.
Paladin 1917 Coax Braid Flaring Tool [Paladin Tools]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Via Amazon
TM reader and photo pool member Instant Arcade posted this picture of his hella-messy — and functional — work area. In Flickr comments he writes: “I just work on top of the crap that’s already there, and leave more crap behind. Eventually I’ll have no space, so I’ll either clean it up a little bit or move over to the kitchen table.”
Check out the photo pool for lots of details about what all the “crap” is and what it’s used for, and don’t forget to sign up for Flickr, join the TM group, and post a picture of your workspace. Be it junk-shop cluttered or F1 garage tidy, we’d like to see it!
Toolmonger’s Photo Pool [Flickr]
Home-shop Einsteins and Buckaroo Bonzais take note: add this deluxe temperature controller to your arsenal and you’ll never sweat creating a thermostat or temperature measuring and logging system from scratch again.
The friendly folks over at the Weller blog posted a great article today explaining what’s inside a soldering tip — and why. Something I was surprised to learn: while copper conducts heat well, it doesn’t do so well holding up against tin — hence the layer of iron around the copper tip. It seems as though the iron layer is the main factor determining the longevity of a tip.
If you spend any time at all with an iron in your hand, this is a must read.
The Architecture of a Soldering Tip [Weller Blog]
Sick of trying to manipulate those little jumpers on PC boards? Try using a hemostat. My favorites are the slightly-curved kind which are so easy to slip into the tight spaces in most computers and project cases. They also lock when you close them, so once you’ve got that jumper snagged, you can let go and use your hand to move the ’stats as necessary to extract them.
I have a handful of sets that my father gave me. The small, curved ones live in my computer tool kit while the rest are in a toolbox drawer out in the shop.
They’re pretty easy to come by as well. You can find them at many large flea markets — that’s where my dad picked his up — or you can find them from all sorts of vendors online where they start at around $3 each. (You can find them for much less, but you’ll have to do some brick-and-mortar digging.)
(Thanks to oskay for this great CC-licensed photo.)
Hemostats [Google Products]
Toolmonger reader Russell Jones, a mechanical engineering student at the College of New Jersey, took the time to review his new Weller digital solder station. His verdict: it’s a quality piece of gear for high-end hobbyists and pros — especially if you’re planning on doing any surface-mount work. Russell also found a $20 rebate from Weller — that’s still available – which brings the station’s price down to $110 or less. That’s the best deal we’ve seen on it to date.
Weller announced yesterday the release of two new 80W/24V products desgined to work with their exising power supplies: the WHP80 preheating plate (pictured) and the WSB 80 solder bath.
I came across Markertek when I was looking to purchase some high-quality XLR connectors for a portable recording rig. They’re target market is TV and radio stations, but they sell to anyone. A friend turned me on to them, and I’ve ordered connectors, wire, and such from them a couple of times with good results. They shipped on time and packaged everything surprisingly well.
We met these guys at Maker Faire, and finally had the chance to check out their website now that we’re back. They’ve got all kinds of great stuff, ranging from iPod connectors and breakout boards to electronic components and microprocessors — including all sorts of stuff you’ll never find at your local shop.
At Maker Faire they brought a picture frame Tetris game they built using various components they sell. It used 16 microcontrollers, 720 LEDs, and 1,300 lines of code, and it worked — as you can see from the video above.
www.flickr.com
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