I’ve seen 2 references (Brian’s Blog & Cool Tools) recently about using paracord to wrap tool handles, so it must be significant. Peter Atwood has both a video and a short web tutorial showing his wrapping method. The picture above is from Brian’s Blog showing the Atwood-method wrap on a mini pry bar (the Pocket Widgy® from County Comm).

Given that you can get 50′ of paracord for around $3 and that its 550-lb. tensile strength is useful in many other areas, this looks like a neat application for it. Maybe paracord should join duct tape and vise grips as another universal solution?

Paracord Via Amazon [What’s This?]
Paracord Street Pricing [Google Products]

About a year ago, I made this valve spring compressor for Ecotec motors as a way of saving myself about $300. 3/32″ steel plates form the frame, with a 1/2″-13 bolt handling the compressing duties and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plates in the jaw to prevent damage to the head. It’s missing the dowel pin which hinges the lower arm at the moment (probably hiding somewhere in my engine tools drawer), but it works pretty well when it’s together. Like anything made by an amateur, it’s imperfect, but functions well enough.

This basic concept can be adapted for just about any engine, but there are a few tricks. Unless you have extremely strong hands, the compressor needs a way to hold itself at the proper angle, which is a feature I overlooked. The result is that I sometimes let this thing slip, and a 280 lbf/in spring makes an $800 cylinder head jump a few inches off the table. Good thing I don’t need to go that deep into engines often. You could also solve the issue by putting the upper hinge in line with the compressing screw, which would kill the tendency to rotate. Since this only used about $15 in materials, I may produce a more polished version in the future.

Street Pricing [Google Products]

This is a man with his priorities in order.  Reader goblirschrolf doesn’t buy a mini-crane which could make his life easier because, screw that, he can build one.  Then he can break in his homebrew crane by clearing a little bit of timber, as pictured above.

Will you be seeing Goblirschrolf brand cranes at the local big box next year?  Most likely not — but you can see his place all cleaned up because his truck-mounted crane moved literally tons of wood so he didn’t have to.

Now my question is, Did he go all the way?  Is that bad boy motorized or hand-cranked?

Toolmonger Photo Pool [Flickr]

This Dodecasub makes a great DIY project for a Toolmonger, but cutting the angles can be a problem. After reading this post on the All-In-One Clamp, and this post on the MilesCraft Saw Guide, I still had no solution for how to cut long, straight lines that’re at odd angles to the edge of a board. A table saw with the guide set at an angle will do the trick, but here’s a way to manage it if your shop hasn’t grown that big yet.

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Instructables user Vestus took one look at the high price of commercially-available router lifts and decided he could build his own a lot cheaper. Bustin’ out his shrewd Dealmongering skills he snagged an already-inexpensive Harbor Freight plunge router on sale for $40 and a router base plate on Amazon for another $40. After scrounging around the local hardware stores for a few other components, he assembled his router lift — complete with 1-3/4 HP router — for under $100.

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Look around Sean’s wood shop and you’ll find dozens of items made from scrap wood. His motto: “Why buy s#!$ when you can make it from scrap?” Of course, Sean’s definition of “scrap” varies a bit from most people’s, which is why you’ll see him, for example, moving furniture on a solid-oak furniture dolly.

So how could we not send long-time TM reader and photo pool member jdwires a pair of gloves for posting this kick-ass wooden mallet he made from “scrap” maple he had “laying around the shop.” That’s just be wrong.

So thanks for the inspiration, and enjoy your (free) gloves.

Toolmonger’s Photo Pool [Flickr]

TM reader and photo pool member Vince posted these great photos of a finger joint jig he built himself from plans he found for free online.  It’s made of MDF, maple, and pine, and looks like it’ll do a great job.

My father had a store-bought model that was metal.  It was much smaller, but it was ex-pen-sive.  As in mugging expensive.

Has anyone else made a custom tool lately, either because you just couldn’t find exactly what you wanted or because you just didn’t have the cash to buy it?  Let us know in comments, or better yet, join our Flickr photo pool and post pictures.  We’ll be watching!

Toolmonger’s Photo Pool [Flickr]
Lynn Sabin’s Basic Box Joint Jig [Leeway Workshop]

TM reader NickNaylo posted this great pic of his brake drum forge to TM’s photo pool, providing once and for all that you don’t need major cash to try your hand at blacksmithing.  He says he assembled this little rig for a whopping $75 in parts — including a scavenged squirrel cage fan, some pipe fittings, and, of course, a brake drum.

It even looks like he’s rigged up a dimmer to control the speed of the fan — handy for controlling fire temp to avoid simply burning your workpiece into nothingness.

Toolmonger’s Photo Pool [Flickr]

Luthiers — builders of guitars, violins, and such — are by definition very accurate woodworkers.  So who better to write a “how to” article on making your own finger plane?  Alan Dunwell, owner and operator of Dunwell Guitar which manufactures bespoke guitars and specializes in one-off double tops, wrote an interesting little article on building finger planes — tiny “micro planes” used for intricate detail work.  Look closely at the picture above; some aren’t much bigger than a quarter.

Making Finger Planes by Alan Dunwell [Dunwell Guitar]

As readers told us, Toolmongers build their own workbenches (unless they’re rich).  TM reader and photo pool member Schnaars posted this photo of his home-built basic workbench which meets all our standards for a basic unit: functional, inexpensive, and practical.  Good stuff!

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TM reader and photo pool member Vince posted this photo of his self-made cross-cut sled: a fixture designed to simplify table saw cross cuts — and keep fingers out of the blade.  From his Flickr photo comments:

“The T-track runners are yellowheart ripped to 5/16″ deep and 3/4″ wide.  The baseboard is MDF, and the front and rear fences are yellowheart.  The base is painted, and there’s polyurethant on all top surfaces.  The entire bottom is waxed with paste wax, and the rear fence is set at 90-degrees to the saw kerf to ensure accurate (and safe!) cross-cuts.”

Nice job!  If you’d like to build one of these yourself, be sure to check out Vince’s other photos in the pool as he shows the process in some detail.  And if you have the time, sign up for Flickr, join Toolmonger’s group, and share some photos of your recent projects, tools, or shops.  We’ll keep an eye out for ‘em in the center column of Toolmonger!

Toolmonger’s Photo Pool [Flickr]

In the spirit of a true Toolmonger, TM reader and photo pool member Simple Simon posted this picture of his low-buck feed-roller solution.  Made of “some cheapo wheels found at work” and what appear to be milk crates, it’ll clearly do the job.

If you keep an eye out, you can find wheels like this in bulk at the flea market, or sometimes even Harbor Freight, though they don’t really advertise the sales on these, so you have to keep an eye out at the store.  The rest of the parts are easy to come by — assuming you don’t have them already.

Thumbs (and beers) up to Simon for this simple “hack.”

Toolmonger’s Photo Pool [Flickr]

Randy pointed us to this simple, homemade tube butt-welding jig over at Street Rodder magazine’s website as a great application for cheap-ass clamps like the ones we posted yesterday.  (This particular project actually uses C-clamps instead of locking-pliers-type, but you get the idea: inexpensive clamps of all types are prime for welding into a jig.)

The article (link below) walks you through the whole process of building the jig complete with pictures of every step.

Homemade Tube Butt-Welding Jig [Street Rodder]

I saw this back when we toured Unique Performance’s body shop.  I’d forgotten about it, but I came across it again this morning when I was looking through some of the pictures we didn’t publish.  After going through dozens of wooden-handled body hammers — the guys at Unique do some serious, serious body work — they got sick of buying new ones and welded this one up right in the shop.  The guys at Unique said it’s hard on the wrists and elbows, but at least it doesn’t break once every week or so. 

It’d be sweet if Stanley applied the technology from their AVX hammer to a body hammer.  Think of it: durable all-steel construction without the “body-man’s elbow.”  Good stuff.

Related:

• Shop Tour: Unique Performance’s Body Shop
• Hands-On: Stanley’s AVX Hammer

James ran across this in the magazine ShopNotes.  He writes: “When I got issue 88, I was amazed by this article on how to make a shoulder plane.  Shoulder planes are rather expensive, but that’s not really why I want to build one.  The article includes full instructions for the metalworking required.  It even shows how to use your drill press as a vertical metalworking lathe.  I’ve wanted to learn metalworking for a long time so this looks like a great project for acquiring some of the skills.”

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Lee of BenchNews — whose three-prong earring earring holder we linked yesterday — send along this pic and link to another tool mod he performed to simplify jewelry making.  It’s kinda hard to see in the pic, but essentially he took an articulated “third hand” and permanently mounted it to his bench.

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Speaking of homemade tools, reader sizod sends us this eBay special which looks pretty easy to build yourself: “Plow Cycle — the easy-to-build, easy-on-you snow removal tool.  Recycled from an old bicycle, it’s perfect for people who like easy snow shoveling.  It’s fun to use.  I know what you’re thinking: snow shoveling can be FUN?  It lets you use the leverage (the wheel) to lift the blade, carry the blade, and toss the show.  With both handles parallel, you avoid back spasms and hernias.”

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