[Jazzbass]

Originally Posted by Vicegrip

Please explain the freeze trick a bit more. I have a OK no name meter that is a bit off.

Got the trick from this video. Pretty clever.

https://youtu.be/B9E4XpUfoc8

[TurboPooch]

When I used to repair commercial amplifiers on the component level, freeze spray and a concentrated heat gun was the quickest way to identify bad components. Much faster than signal tracing. Heat would kill them, and freeze spray would bring them back.

My old Fluke 88V has been a workhorse and reliable meter.

[Vicegrip]

Originally Posted by Jazzbass

Got the trick from this video. Pretty clever.

https://youtu.be/B9E4XpUfoc8

Well now that is slick and simple. Beats little taps with a plastic point looking for cold joints and the like.

No freeze spray but I do have lots of R-134. A small bowl and Q tip works. No clean up after ether. Forgot to take pictures of the before and after and to be honest I still don’t know if it is right as the reference device is a cheap one too.

Thanks for the “cool” trick.

[Dandelion]

FWIW, I chipped the tip of a 30+ year old Craftsman flat-blade screwdriver trying to turn a rusted non-automotive fastener. While it looks that Sears sold the Craftsman brand, it is available for sale at Lowes and some other locations as well. The good news is, they still honor the lifetime warranty on older hand tools which had it. (Alas, not much is made in the US anymore in the hand tool lines.). Will be stopping at a Lowes sometime to pick up a replacement - we will see how well that works.

Anyway, since you can never have too many screwdriver sets, I went ahead and bought another assortment. Since USA made is hard to find, I searched around and found a German-made set made by WiHa. The internet wisdom (tm) is that these are well made and can take a fair amount of abuse at the tip end.



Of course, the real reason these won is that WiHa stands for "Willi Hahn", so I'm keeping it in the family.

ed

[ducatithunder]

I love wiha tools. I’ve always had pretty good luck with them. Both at work and home. I’ve started to convert most of my calibrated tools to wera or whoa. Beta was also a good brand in wrenches.

[slbates]

I bought a Dewalt Atomic DCF850 a few months ago when HD was running a promo for a free power stack battery & charger. I really like this small lightweight Dewalt that packs a big punch. It will readily twist off hex bits & socket adapters with a blink of an eye if you're not careful. The power stack battery is impressive for the size and weight. I would guess that it packs nearly the same punch as my M18 Fuel hex impact at much less size/weight. It might not drive 600 deck screws (haven't tried yet) on a single charge like the M18 but it sure is handy when your on a ladder or a tight space.

[tomfree]

I have Makita 18v stuff, and had been looking at this guy for a while:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Makita-3...W01Z/316321009

I grabbed the tool-only box at HD this week and brought it home. I really like the ability to change from 1/4 to 3/8. I just did a quick test in the garage to make sure it worked, but it should be a valuable addition to the garage.

[Vicegrip]

Originally Posted by slbates

I bought a Dewalt Atomic DCF850 a few months ago when HD was running a promo for a free power stack battery & charger. I really like this small lightweight Dewalt that packs a big punch. It will readily twist off hex bits & socket adapters with a blink of an eye if you're not careful. The power stack battery is impressive for the size and weight. I would guess that it packs nearly the same punch as my M18 Fuel hex impact at much less size/weight. It might not drive 600 deck screws (haven't tried yet) on a single charge like the M18 but it sure is handy when your on a ladder or a tight space.

I might be inclined to curse that bit rather than praise the driver.

Been using the DeWalt stuff for a good while. Getting lighter and more powerful as they moved from the older formats batteries and away from brush motors. Good bang for the buck.

[John]

Originally Posted by Vicegrip

I might be inclined to curse that bit rather than praise the driver.

Been using the DeWalt stuff for a good while. Getting lighter and more powerful as they moved from the older formats batteries and away from brush motors. Good bang for the buck.

I recently picked up a DeWalt 20V brushless cordless grinder (after accidentally converting my Craftsman grinder to cordless ), which is working out great for me so far. Mostly bought it because I already had a 20V DeWalt Impact, so shared batteries. Both are high quality tools. Need to start thinking about what I'm going to "ask for" for Father's Day.

[Dr K]

Originally Posted by tomfree

I have Makita 18v stuff, and had been looking at this guy for a while:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Makita-3...W01Z/316321009

I grabbed the tool-only box at HD this week and brought it home. I really like the ability to change from 1/4 to 3/8. I just did a quick test in the garage to make sure it worked, but it should be a valuable addition to the garage.

I never use my air ratchet, and thought it was a waste when my son bought the M12 Fuel ratchet. I LOVE that tool, and went out and bought one myself (and used it today for an issue a friend had here at Road America).