So, what's the greatest tool you've bought.

[Crossy]

Just now, CGW said:

Dremel - comes in incredibly handy for a lot of jobs wouldn't be able to tackle otherwise, for some jobs its not really the ideal tool, but can still get it done.

 

A stunningly good tool, but, as noted above, pedicure is not in its repertoire.

 

[eyecatcher]

28 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

"Kitchen drawer" implies that your good lady has access to it. I love my wife very much, but allowing her to use tools (particularly power tools) is just too risky.

 

I also keep a screwdriver with the spoons and forks becasue I am tired of wandering to the shed every two weeks becasue she keeps saying "can you tighten the handle on the wok, the pan, the frier.

The standard of expensive pots and pan is typically Thai

[Crossy]

5 minutes ago, eyecatcher said:

I also keep a screwdriver with the spoons and forks becasue I am tired of wandering to the shed every two weeks becasue she keeps saying "can you tighten the handle on the wok, the pan, the frier.

The standard of expensive pots and pan is typically Thai

 

Next time you're home, high-temperature Loctite should be on your shopping list :)

 

[digbeth]

I've found this stripped head screw extractor at one of the high-end Japanese tool shop

one side is a drill bit that fits in normal screwdriver/drill bit holder and the other a reverse thread that digs into the hole counterclockwise and undoing the stripped screw out... saved my ass many times... not as drastic as needing to drill the offending screw out

[tifino]

Bosch BMF MultiFunctionTool

 

Instead of the usual Disc Grinder, with which you cannot grind non-ferrous without fear of the disc self-destructing whilst at speed:

 

- with the BMF I can Sander, or Grind anything I want.

I can even attach the metal grinding disks that were for the old grinder...

 - there's no high flailing RPMs to worry about, as the PMF use semi-oscillating motion

 

another time, another job: the same BMF becomes a woodcutting saw/jigsaw

[Crossy]

50 minutes ago, bankruatsteve said:

Gotta say the cordless drill is a great thing to have. 

 

I find it amazing how far cordless technology has come, even in the time I've lived in Thailand (now 12 years and counting).

 

Not so long ago a cordless drill would struggle with 1/4" in hardwood, now the mains drill rarely comes out to play.

 

And back then who would even have considered a cordless angle-grinder?

 

[Peterw42]

I have tool envy.

Typical male thing, envy your mates mig welder rather than his attractive wife

 

[Peterw42]

7 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

I find it amazing how far cordless technology has come, even in the time I've lived in Thailand (now 12 years and counting).

 

Not so long ago a cordless drill would struggle with 1/4" in hardwood, now the mains drill rarely comes out to play.

 

And back then who would even have considered a cordless angle-grinder?

 

Also the really cheap power tools. Back in Australia you can buy an angle grinder for $20 (with disks), use it all day and throw it in the bin.

"I'm not getting the Makita dirty on that little job"

[Rc2702]

Love my Autoloader Pump Action Screwdriver. 6 bits inside the handle twist and pump to change bits. Time and space saver.

[esprit]

43 minutes ago, bankruatsteve said:

Crossy, over the years I have built 100's of HeathKits.  Radios, TV's, garage door openers, door bells, cruise control, timer light... I could go on.  It was fun and most of all informative.  Good to see they are still active.

And as I am 67 I must come from a similar era, maybe before you guys a bit,  but do kids , young teenagers, actually get to do that stuff anymore ? It was a great learning cycle for life and then with a natural progression into an apprenticeship to learn some trade or other, you felt part of society.  Back to the subject matter and so many youngsters these days have no idea how to use correctly and safely some of the tools discussed in this thread due to not being exposed to "life's learning tools" as we were.

[steve187]

here's one of my work tools, that has came in so useful over the years, this couples with an adjustable staff, not tripod, self levelling, magnetic, vertical and horizontal lines 

Edited March 5, 2017 by steve187

[Rimmer]

This little guy is so useful around the house, no need for that tiresome extension cord anymore, came in a case with a charger and two 18v lithium batteries

[Crossy]

25 minutes ago, esprit said:

And as I am 67 I must come from a similar era, maybe before you guys a bit,  but do kids , young teenagers, actually get to do that stuff anymore ? It was a great learning cycle for life and then with a natural progression into an apprenticeship to learn some trade or other, you felt part of society.  Back to the subject matter and so many youngsters these days have no idea how to use correctly and safely some of the tools discussed in this thread due to not being exposed to "life's learning tools" as we were.

 

I'm lucky in that my dad (now long gone  ) was a keen DIY'er, I was allowed (indeed encouraged) to use potentially lethal power tools from the age of about 10 onwards (under strict [maybe not so strict] supervision). I'd get locked up if I did that with the grandkids back in the UK now

 

Here we are many, many years later and the healthy respect I have for any tools, even hand tools (imagine how much damage a chisel can do) is standing me in good stead.

 

So why do I currently sport an Elastoplast, on the cut (incredibly clean-edged) gained when removing the wax from a new router bit?

 

[jvs]

Last tool i bought was a chainsaw,Stihl of course.The only thing i really miss here in Thailand is my woodstove

and cutting and splitting wood.Did you know woods splits a lot easier when it is really cold?Like minus 40?

The tool before that was more of a toy but still very real,Kubota tractor,old but very strong and reliable.

Sold it not so long ago,just did not have any more work for it.I miss her!

[CharlieH]

15 minutes ago, Rimmer said:

This little guy is so useful around the house, no need for that tiresome extension cord anymore, came in a case with a charger and two 18v lithium batteries

Snap!!

[NanLaew]

1 hour ago, Crossy said:

Not HeathKit, but did anyone else build a Texan? http://www.angelfire.com/sd/paulkemble/sound8h.html

Not my own but my sisters boyfriends dad got a wild hair after retiring as a North Sea fisherman (with absolutely no electrical or electronic nous) and decided he would build one. He kept on losing or breaking components and since I was working weekends as an aerial erector for Radio Rentals, I had access to their workshops and getting most replacement bits and bobs. Somehow, I ended up 'inheriting' it where it languished in a bedroom cupboard along with my fake Marshall solid-state 200 W (of distortion) guitar amplifier while my focus was on restoring an Armstrong Stereo 12 Mk II Tube Valve Amplifier with AM FM Tuner for my dads 'radiogram'.

[mick220675]

The first time I used a Yankee driver, it felt like the space age had come to the construction industry. When I first got a battery drill (the old 9 volt makita) life would never be the same. The modern battery drills now are fantastic and we have laser levels. It is just like star wars.

 

Personally my favourite tool at the moment is my rubber tree tapping knife, as it puts money in my pocket. 

[NanLaew]

Reminiscing... but back on topic.

 

Have to say when I discovered those screw extractors or E-Z Outs as the Americans I worked with called them while we were assembling a prefabricated oil field camp in the lower Tibetan plateau in China way back when, it can only be described as an epiphany.

 

Almost as good as discovering a well aimed and lofted ballpein hammer is a very effective and stealthy rabbit hunting weapon.

[impulse]

1 hour ago, bankruatsteve said:

Crossy, over the years I have built 100's of HeathKits.  Radios, TV's, garage door openers, door bells, cruise control, timer light... I could go on.  It was fun and most of all informative.  Good to see they are still active.

 

Speaking of Heathkit, I just accidentally bought a DIY oscilloscope designed for Arduino stuff.  I say "accidentally" because I figured the PCB would come wired and all I'd have to do is stick it into the enclosure.  For $20, what the hell?  It showed up as a bag of components to be soldered to the PCB before it goes into the enclosure.  Which is more involved than I wanted to get since I still work crazy hours for a living.  Gotta admit the instructions seem real good and I was tempted.

 

It looks a lot like this, though I bought it from AliExpress (I think) 

 

http://www.lazada.co.th/dso138-24-tft-handheld-pocket-size-digital-oscilloscope-kit-diyparts-smd-soldered-electronic-learning-set-1msps-intl-8050654.html

 

I'd gladly mail it (free of charge) to anyone tuned in here who has the time and temperament to solder a few dozen resistors, transistors, capacitors and God knows what to the PCB  

 

First come, first dibs...  No silly essay, no strings attached.  I just hate to see it taking up space.  And I'm afraid if I look at it long enough, I'll be compelled to spend an hour soldering it.  And that will turn into a weekend...

 

 

Edited March 5, 2017 by impulse

[Lamkyong]

i would be up for that  i can pm my address  what do you think??

[impulse]

27 minutes ago, impulse said:

First come, first dibs...  No silly essay, no strings attached.  I just hate to see it taking up space.  And I'm afraid if I look at it long enough, I'll be compelled to spend an hour soldering it.  And that will turn into a weekend...

 

Sorry folks, we have a winner (???), who beat out the 2nd place guy's PM by a mere 2 minutes...  

[canthai55]

2 hours ago, bankruatsteve said:

Years ago I bought a Boesch (sp?) cordless,  It cost over 4500 baht, weighed a ton, and wasn't even impact.  The workers on my house loved it and it got lots of use - until the batteries wouldn't charge and I found out "not supported" any more.  Grrr. 

Take one of the batteries apart. Most have cylindrical batteries, in various combinations to give you the voltage your tool requires. Measure dimensions of one cell. Here is an example of one site that has the batteries. Buy as many as you need. Solder them together, reassemble the battery. Insert in tool. It Lives Again.

http://www.megabatteries.com/?cat1=34

[tutsiwarrior]

5lb sledge hammer...versatile...no moving parts...

 

tutsi was in the woods 40 years ago and a guy line slipped it's fairlead on top of a 100ft Madill mobile tower...tutsi was in charge that day and it was his job to put it right...holdin' up the show... put a limb thru the eye of the haulback, straddle it and with a 5 lb sledge up ye go....

 

never been so scared in me life...horrible vertigo problems fer a lifetime afterwards...the 5lb sledge was my only fren...

 

 

Edited March 5, 2017 by tutsiwarrior

[Daffy D]

Depends how far back in history you want to go.

In the days before power tools a hammer and screwdriver were the basic essential tools. Yes I had both from an early age.

 

Who remembers the early days of picture hanging when to drill a hole in the wall you had the Rawlplug "system" Yes I had that too.

        

Then came the electric drill and things were never the same again. I remember my first power drill had various attachments that would turn it into a circular saw, jig saw, grinder cutter and several other things that I can't recall now.

 

All a bit fiddly to swap around but in those days it was the cats whiskers or the dogs bo**ocks if you're a doggie person.

 

So my vote for the best greatest tool ever would be for the power drill. 

 

 

[CGW]

^ I still use the rawplug punch as a "center punch" before drilling to make sure hole in right position, a lot of the time its actually just easier to continue without bothering to get drill out, though as others have noted cordless is so much easier.........

[ajarngreg]

 

            I brought my "Snap-in Tools" from Europe. Great material. 

 

    From 6 to 24 mm, usually enough. 

Edited March 5, 2017 by ajarngreg

[tutsiwarrior]

32 minutes ago, ajarngreg said:

 

            I brought my "Snap-in Tools" from Europe. Great material. 

 

    From 6 to 24 mm, usually enough. 

 

I worked in various garages in west LA in the late 70s and had Snap - On tools...the man with the truck would come around every week...they sure were nice...I even had an air ratchet...

 

later, I traded them away to a pal that I owed money to...haven't bothered with foolin' around with cars since...I was makin' good money and let some other grease monkey handle it...

 

when I went in for ortho sugery for a broken leg recently I was awake with an epidural...and I heard the surgeon puttin' in screws with an air ratchet and thought: 'ahhhh...'

 

 

Edited March 5, 2017 by tutsiwarrior

[Denim]

A mans best friend ( discounting dogs ) has to be his angle grinder. Electric screwdrivers may be handy but an angle grinder is worth every baht you spent on it. Before I had one ......many DIY jobs were too much effort to contemplate . Before I had one my horizon was limited. Now I've had and abused one there are fewer jobs that I have to pay a nincompoop to do for me.

. Why just today I had to install an extractor fan in the kitchen which involved cutting a 1 foot square hole in the wall. Angle grinder started the job ( making a fog of fine dust that was spectacular to hold ). Finished off using a small saw to cut through the aerated blocks. But it was the angle grinder that gave me the straight edge as a good starting point.

 

God bless the inventor of the angle grinder !

[ajarngreg]

Another very important tool I brought to Lieland was a compression tester. 

 

          The mechanic who "fixed" my big bike, a really well-known guy had never seen one in his life before.

 

             The only problem now is that I had to sell my bike to pay for the surgeries the damage it has done to my leg.

 

           But I've also learned the hard way why they call these things crash bars.

 

              The right one crashed my bones under the Tibia head five times. Leg pointed into a different direction and my biker time was over. But I'll be back. 

[tutsiwarrior]

2 minutes ago, ajarngreg said:

Another very important tool I brought to Lieland was a compression tester. 

 

          The mechanic who "fixed" my big bike, a really well-known guy had never seen one in his life before.

 

             The only problem now is that I had to sell my bike to pay for the surgeries the damage it has done to my leg.

 

           But I've also learned the hard way why they call these things crash bars.

 

              The right one crashed my bones under the Tibia head five times. Leg pointed into a different direction and my biker time was over. But I'll be back. 

 

those compression testers with the hoses are nice but take time...better to use the hand held ones as it's simply a matter of comparing the compression from one cylinder to another...

 

ye ever tried to check the compression onna mercedes?...ye can't even get a screw driver in there much less a hose...on the V8s anyways...

 

the Isuzu pickup is laid out nicely in the engine compartment...everything very nice and accessible...and 4 cyliders as opposed to 8cyls is much more politically correct...