Tool purchases

[derek badger]

What have you bought recently?I've just ordered one of these as I've got to replace a small bridge over a drainage ditch at the end of the garden. Stand is half price when you buy the saw from Screwfix at the moment. 300 x 80mm cut size and does metal too.

[weeksy]

Park Tools chain checker for bicycle chains.

[Nidge]

Tappet block removal drift

[chillitt]

What have you bought recently?I've just ordered one of these as I've got to replace a small bridge over a drainage ditch at the end of the garden. Stand is half price when you buy the saw from Screwfix at the moment. 300 x 80mm cut size and does metal too.

Eccles just got one of them. I've had no luck with Evolution stuff in the past, but it seems like a top toy. Huge great thing to find a spot to store though.

[derek badger]

What have you bought recently?I've just ordered one of these as I've got to replace a small bridge over a drainage ditch at the end of the garden. Stand is half price when you buy the saw from Screwfix at the moment. 300 x 80mm cut size and does metal too.

Eccles just got one of them. I've had no luck with Evolution stuff in the past, but it seems like a top toy. Huge great thing to find a spot to store though.

I'm sure I can find somewhere for it, the stand folds up. Reviews seem good too.

[v8-powered]

Pocket sized Wera socket set, its great!

[derek badger]

Pocket sized Wera socket set, its great!

That 10mm socket will soon be lost...

[v8-powered]

Pocket sized Wera socket set, its great!

That 10mm socket will soon be lost...

I must be unique as I have a good stock of 10mm sockets, its 13mm spanners I have an issue with....

[demographic]

Not much for work recently, just a few blades for my circular saw.
I have just recieved an adjustable leather strap cutter although I've not tried it yet.


A while ago I was looking at braces for my work toolbelt, seems yank carpenters are right keen on them.
Anyway, I bought some real cheapos to try out the concept, and yeah I liked them, removed a lot of weight (think, hammer, adjustable, roofing square, tape measure, catspaw claw bar, chalkline and few sleeves of nailgun nails) from my waist and oddly enough it seems better for my back also.
The cheapos didn't last so I looked at ones made by Occidental leather and I figured I could just buy leather, few buckles and copper rivets and make em up myself.
Just wasnt hard to do at a and I even enjoyed doing it.
So, here it is on an old office chair, rear view. The bags are bought in and I think the right one is a sparkies bag looking at the insulation tape holder I removed from it with snips, the left bag is bought from Bobs Leather which I think is based in Orange County.

Front.

Bags are handed and theres a dominant side and a fixings side, my left being my fixings side as I'm right handed.

This is the Occidental Leather version I used as erm... inspiration. Mines actually more adjustable but thats cos I wasn't sure how to set it up and just made it so I could adjust it any way.

I think the ones I made came in at about a quarter to a third of the price of the Occidental Leather ones which taking into account the time I spent doing it wasn't that great but I learned a good bit and enjoyed the process so its all good.

And yes, it looks a bit* Village People but its a comfortable way to carry the gear I use for framing jobs.
I have a nice laminated Fallkniven blade blank thats been waiting for me to put handle scales on it for yonks and once I've got my arse into gear I'll likely make a sheath for it also. Can't be that hard to make surely.



*OK, so maybe a lot.

[Silly Car]

What have you bought recently?I've just ordered one of these as I've got to replace a small bridge over a drainage ditch at the end of the garden. Stand is half price when you buy the saw from Screwfix at the moment. 300 x 80mm cut size and does metal too.

Eccles just got one of them. I've had no luck with Evolution stuff in the past, but it seems like a top toy. Huge great thing to find a spot to store though.

I'm sure I can find somewhere for it, the stand folds up. Reviews seem good too.

I’ve got one too, great tool, just made sure you check the stops for plumb cuts and 45° as mine were slightly out but easily adjusted.

Spookily, I’ve just bought an 80T Saxon wood blade to replace the multi blade as that is goosed after cutting one too many pieces of steel*. The fine cut of the new blade will hopefully make clean work of cutting countless architraves and trims. I’ll pick up either a dedicated metal blade or another Rage blade in due course.

*All within the stated limit of 6mm but I’ve hacked through a good amount of thick walled box section over the years.

[demographic]

Oh yeah I forgot.
I bought a Hitachi rattle gun (well impact screwdriver anyway) last week.
I had one that died on me and although I reckon it might have been within its three gear guarantee I'd lost the bumf. Slightly pissed with myself over that one, meh. Suspect the mosfet switch doodaah failed.

So I bought another, just the same, nice machine with good power but I made sure I kept hold of the bumf, registered the guarantee and all the rest this time.
Looks like this. Err, it puts screws in... oh and small(ish) bolts.

I bought the "Naked" version without batteries or charger cos I already have them.

I'm also on De-Walt and Festool battery platforms so I had choices, I'll work out if I was wrong over time I guess. Festool drills always seem a bit overrated to me although I'll buy their circular saws anyday.
I don't mind spending a bit on things that offer a significant advantage but not if its no better.
If you see what I mean.

[Big Pete]

I picked up one of these, inc a full set of collets over the summer, for the princely sum of £200. They normally go for £500 plus so I was pretty pleased. It's a quick release collet chuck for high accuracy/repeatability work.


[/url]colchcester collets

[demographic]

Dewalt compact cordless reciprocating saw.
Got the naked version without batteries cos I already have them.
Oh and one from America was cheaper than from the UK.
They have the same batteries although being Americans they have to call them 20 volt Max instead of 18 volt nominal. Sounds bigger eh?

One of those tools that normally I don't use from one year to the next but on the place I'm working on now it seems I'm using one a lot, cutting steel tubes and so on.

[Rockburner]

Pocket sized Wera socket set, its great!

I do like Wera stuff.

[demographic]

Pocket sized Wera socket set, its great!

I do like Wera stuff.

I use the screwdriver bits a lot and generally find they last far better than most brands when they're in my rattle gun.
Were, Wiha and Bosch being good, Milwaukee being so crap that I have a box that used to contain their bits that I wrote "Crap, Avoid" on.
I wasn't getting an hour out of those when I was laying decking.

[demographic]

Dewalt compact cordless reciprocating saw.
Got the naked version without batteries cos I already have them.
Oh and one from America was cheaper than from the UK.
They have the same batteries although being Americans they have to call them 20 volt Max instead of 18 volt nominal. Sounds bigger eh?

One of those tools that normally I don't use from one year to the next but on the place I'm working on now it seems I'm using one a lot, cutting steel tubes and so on.

Well, I used this for the first time today as there was a scaffold tube in the way of the roof I was working on.
Made short work of cutting through the tube but the scaffolders might be pissed when their 21' tube is more of a 13' and an 8' now.

[KungFooBob]

I bought a 'impact' 14mm Hex head socket from t'bay when pissed.

Then two days later when pissed again, remembered I needed a 14mm hex head socket so added one to my Amazon order.

I now have 2x 14mm hex head sockets for removing BMW gearbox sump plugs.

Maybe I should drink less?

[Silly Car]

Bootlace ferrule crimps -

Great for making off ends of stranded cables to prevent loose strands and to ensure a tight connection in screw terminals. The zoned heating control box is finally complete and I can just heat the floor I’m on whilst working at home rather than entire home.

[exportman]

I must be unique as I have a good stock of 10mm sockets, its 13mm spanners I have an issue with....

Somebody must be half inching them

[v8-powered]

I must be unique as I have a good stock of 10mm sockets, its 13mm spanners I have an issue with....

Somebody must be half inching them

like what you did there....