BuffaloFeeds » Toolmonger » November 23, 2010

Toolmonger (4 unread)

Cheap-Ass Tools: Ratchet Straps

Posted: November 23rd, 2010, 12:48pm MST by Chuck Cage

Sure, you can buy better quality ratchet straps. And if you’re tying down containers of nuclear waste before barreling full-tilt-boogie down a bumpy mountain road, I’d definitely suggest spending for the best. But let’s face it: Most of the time you’re tying down something stupid like a mattress you’re moving for a buddy, and it’s pretty likely he’ll “accidentally” end up with a couple of your straps after the experience anyway. That’s why there’s Harbor Freight.

HF is currently advertising the above four-piece strap set for $13. I’ve seen some cheaper, too, sometimes in the check-out line at Lowe’s. Regardless of where you look, though, when you stumble across a package on the cheap, grab a few. Having a bag of 10-12 straps can make the difference between an easy job and an oh-s#!$-I-hope-it-stays-on experience, and if anyone walks away with a few, who really cares?

Cheap-Ass Ratchet Straps [Harbor Freight]
TV: Omens In The Grain

Posted: November 23rd, 2010, 11:57am MST by Sean O'Hara

It’s funny how people interpret things in different ways. I was watching Sarah’s House recently. Even though I’m not the target demographic and don’t like most of the designs she comes up with, I do like the way she goes about making them. However, when she went shopping for project houses I had to laugh at the above shot: a Mark V sat quietly in a corner.

Sarah took one look at this room and the dusty SS, and her first thought was how to get rid of it and make the room usable. I would have taken a look at the ShopSmith and concluded it was an omen directly from the cosmos that this house was meant to go to a woodworker. I immediately started backing up the show to see if I could lay eyes on pieces the previous owner had built with it.

The old saying about trash and treasure really is true. Sarah enters a room of wall-to-wall wood grains upstairs from the Mark V and feels shut in. I look at that same space and think how restful it would be to sit in that room and what kind of furniture I could make to compliment the wood that’s already there. I’d also see if I could have swung the ShopSmith into the deal with the house — to each his own, I suppose.

Ever find an omen of shop beauty in someone else’s “trash”? Let us know in comments.

Sarah’s House [HGTV Site]
ONESTOP Wrench

Posted: November 23rd, 2010, 11:23am MST by Benjamen Johnson

Ridgid designed this ONESTOP wrench to be the only wrench you need to install angle and straight stops, faucet nuts, washer/dryer/dishwasher legs, compression couplings, and other fittings. Actually, it’s two separate wrenches — the flare-style wrench stores in the open-end handle.

OK, so this is just another plumbing wrench, but what I thought was really cool was the stepped open end jaw. The jaw fits two different-sized fasteners — if you made an entire set like this you’d only need half the number of wrenches. It might not be ideal for every day use, but there are plenty of applications where size and weight are critical.

The ONESTOP wrench will cost you a little over $30 shipped. They don’t list it online, but I’ve also seen it on shelves at Home Depot.

One Stop Wrench [RIDGID]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]
Preview: Milwaukee’s New Oscillating Multi-Tool

Posted: November 23rd, 2010, 10:54am MST by Chuck Cage

Milwaukee recently jumped into the oscillating multi-tool fray with a cordless model for their ever-expanding M12 line. At $150, it’s in the middle-priced category, sporting most of the features you’d expect: variable speed (5,000 to 20,000 orbits per minute) and an included universal adapter that allows you to use accessories from most major manufacturers.

The Milwaukee also offers a battery fuel gauge — a feature Toolmongers have mentioned as a positive in the past. Throw in an all-metal gearbox for durability and it sounds like this is a pretty slick tool for its price. Expect to pay around $150 for a two-battery-and-charger kit. Knowing Milwaukee, they’ll offer the bare tool soon. One of the M12 line’s selling points has always been expandability.

M12 Cordless Multi-Tool [Milwaukee]
Street Pricing [Google Products]