http://toolmonger.com All tools. All the time. Your source for news, information, and reviews of hand tools, power tools, and tools of all kinds. Sat, 04 Jul 2009 13:46:45 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en (TV Tonight, Saturday, July 4th, 2009) Nothing to watch tonight, but you'll be watching fireworks and/or accidentally blowing your hand off anyway. All times are central Detonators: Demolition (Science, 7:00 pm) Detonators: Pyromania (Science, 8:00 pm) Under Construction: Two Sides to Every Job (DIY, 8:30 pm) Under Construction: Concrete Block Party (DIY, 9:00 pm) Detonators: Sheer ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/04/tv-tonight-happy-4th/ For all the sub-rock dwellers clinging to the dark and safe ways of yore, this is an air compressor. It is your friend. Embrace it, love it and bask in its many conveniences. The new 26-gallon Campbell Hausfeld compressor is specifically aimed at the challenges and objections homeowners have to ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/03/preview-campbell-hausfeld-26-gallon-compressor/ Reader Scwetherbee has no idea what this tool might actually be. We confess it’s a mystery to us as well. It’s about ten inches long and the handle looks sort of like an old-fashioned frying pan. The business end features a pattern of teeth that are too large to be ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/03/from-the-what-is-it-files/ Carabiners make everything better, right?  That seems to be the mantra of SnapGate, a company who builds a carabiner into products like tape measures, flashlights, and pens. They sell both plastic promotional products and a few real tools. One of the real tools is an 6" aluminum flashlight they claim to be waterproof ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/03/carabiners-make-everything-better/ Use TapeNIX temporary pulls anytime you haven't put pulls on the cabinet or drawers, but still need to easily open and close them. Presumably they are so named because Anthony LaFemina created them to replace the blue tape he saw being used as temporary pulls. Made in the USA, TapeNIX pulls slide ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/03/temporary-doordrawer-pulls/ It's been a busy week here at Toolmonger.  If you've been spending time in the shop -- you should! -- 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: Consumer Reports Responds After reading Kevin ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/03/the-week-in-tools-toolmonger-top-5-81/ The Lab Equipment Store has the Celestron 44302 Handheld Digital Microscope for $51.74, and it's so sweet. The details are a bit thin as both the Lab Equipment and Amazon listings have an entirely different picture than the Celestron site, but it looks to be a fairly high-resolution (compared to the ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/03/dealmonger-celestron-44302-handheld-digital-microscope/ (TV Tonight, Friday, July 3rd, 2009) Tonight we get a look at the making of socket sets and other interesting items on a new How It's Made. All times are central Deconstructed: Catalytic converter, toilet, bathroom scale, barbecue (Science, 6:00 pm) Deconstructed: Juice extractor, strongbox, telephone, lava lamp (Science, 6:30 pm) Wrecked: Code Red ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/03/tv-tonight-ratchet-and-crank/ For us, one of the most important tools this time of year is the BBQ lighter. It has a great way of kicking off most of the important activities that will be going on this Saturday -- fireworks and steaks. Around our home town, you notice two things that mark the ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/02/the-one-tool-youll-need-for-sunday/ We got a kick out of talking to the Milwaukee accessory guys a few weeks ago while attending their product symposium. It was almost a counterculture inside the rank-and-file of the power tool reps, and we’ve seen it at almost every manufacturer. “Those tools are nothing without a good bit ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/02/preview-milwaukee-shockwave-bits/ Okay, so we're not condoning laughing at someone else's injuries. But in this case, it's too, um, educational not to watch. This video shows a guy, presumably in England, who decides a good place to light up is right on top of a Shell fuel truck. Ahh, Darwin. Is there ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/02/another-reason-to-quit/ I’m not fond of doing finish work; however, for projects that go on the inside of the house they are almost required, if for no other reason than they'll stand up to the wear and tear of family life for a long time. Reader Benao_t posted pictures of his finished ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/02/flickr-pool-a-finished-floor-project/ You're probably not going to have a set of break-over torque wrenches in your garage, but that doesn't mean they're not handy tools in a production environment where you need to repeatedly torque the exact same fastener or set of fasteners. The name comes from the fact that the wrench breaks ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/02/break-over-torque-wrenches/ Yeah, we've posted a lot of FastCap products week and we're still not done. This is because FastCap is actually cranking out a ton of unique tools right now. Whether these tools stand the test of time or are relegated to the back shelf remains to be seen, but you have to ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/02/preview-long-nose-pattern-marker/ Discount Paint has the Hyde 09170 Dust Dog Drywall Vacuum Pole Sander for $19.70. The pole sander is used to manually sand drywall while collecting the dust in a shop vac. The 09170 doesn't come with the pole, though -- the cheapest price we found for the 01975 kit with the ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/02/dealmonger-hyde-dust-dog-pole-sander/ (TV Tonight, Thursday, July 2nd, 2009) TLC seems to have abandoned their motorheaad programming tonight, although one could make the argument that they abandoned it several years ago. We do get a new Wrecked, World's Toughest Fixes, a Naked Science on fireworks, and the new How Do They Do It ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/02/tv-tonight-crash-boom-bang/ Rather than get down on your hands and knees to remove leaves around your plantings and trellis work, pick up a steel adjustable-tine rake like this one from Bond Manufacturing. I used to dread cleaning out the garden every spring until a few years ago when I picked up a ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/01/get-off-your-knees-and-use-a-rake/ Our friend Rick wrote to us about a problem he was having with his PS40-2. It seems he found out what happens when you use a straight bit in a quick change chuck. I've got a little bit of a dilemma. So I had let my brother-in-law borrow my Bosch PS40-2 ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/01/reader-question-bit-trouble/ This is the last chance to enter the Paslode giveaway, so don't forget to enter if you already haven't -- and remember that you can add to your chances by entering a comment on this or any of the other Paslode giveaway posts again. Paslode was kind enough to offer up ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/01/last-chance-to-win-a-set-of-paslode-cordless-tools/ FastCap's Joist Clip holds joist hangers in place, leaving your hands free to secure the hanger and out of the way of the hammer or nail gun. Even if you don't have the joists in place yet, you can use the clip with a stub piece to help correctly align the ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/01/joist-clip-frees-your-hands-to-secure-hangers/ As the military is always at the forefront of weapons development, it comes as no surprise that an inventive soldier has taken on the task of producing a six round, 152mm/40 caliber prototype hand gun. Seen here in its proto-mockup phase with its creator Jeffrey Immer, it may seem a ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/01/flickr-pool-152mm-hand-cannon/ The Gilmour Traveling Sprinkler is a cast iron, green-and-yellow model of the classic John Deere tractor. It follows the path you lay out with the water hose, covering up to 13,500 sq. ft. of lawn, and the manufacturer says its adjustable spray arms water at a diameter ranging from 15 ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/01/hot-or-not-gilmour-traveling-sprinkler/ Hermans Central has the Stanley 42-287 Aluminum line level for $1.00. It mounts on a line stretched between two points to determine level. It slides back and forth to each end. It has a flat base for stand alone use -- just a dead simple tool for next to nothing. Stanley 42-287 ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/01/dealmonger-stanley-line-level/ (TV Tonight, Wednesday, July 1st, 2009) Discovery is running a Pitchmen marathon tonight in memory of Billy Mays so no Mythbusters or Time Warp for you tonight. All times are central Cool Tools: Change of Season (DIY, 5:00 pm) This Old House: New Orleans Project (DIY, 5:30 pm) Ask This Old House: Extension Cords, ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/07/01/tv-tonight-in-memoriam/ Mechanized square dancing: when I picture it in my head there’s the kind of image that I can’t scrub out later. So that we’re all running on the same level here, check out the video of just such an event. Let’s be clear -- I’m not judging my Southern brethren. It ... http://toolmonger.com/2009/06/30/its-just-cool-tractor-square-dance/