What's new
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.

New tool Box

I had a Waterloo Magnum. Waterloo builds Craftsmen boxes. A Magnum is the same as a Craftsmen Professional. After 4 years, the top drawer looked like it was going to break if I put any more tools in it, and the spot welds were breaking all over. It was just plain falling apart.

Snap-On boxes are just head and shoulders above cheap boxes.

Martin
 
DEMON44 said:
if you've never had the jaws spread on a cheap wrench. either you don't know what I'm talking about, you're liying, or you haven't had to use them nearly enough.


don't get me wrong. i have plenty of sets of cheap wrenches. but its not what I use everyday because they just don't standup.
Click to expand...


I guess i try to use the closed end when somethings that tight, When i can of course:p:. And yes someday i'll have a decent set of tools. A little bit of it all, cheap, spendy, free whatever i can get my hands on.
 
I dont have any problem spending money on quality tools. I spent enough time busting cheap ones where I used to work.

But no way Id drop thousands on a Toolbox. I have a $300 one from Menards with ball bearing drawers...Ive out grown it already though. I will probably just buy another one.
 
Oil drain plugs are a common thing to get screwed up by cheap junk. And the cheap import impact sockets can be a time bomb on an impact wrench or other big torque wrench. If you're lucky when they break they just crack and not explode causing you to need stitches.

Can you use the cheaper stuff to do the same job I do, for the most part sure. Can yours do everything I do? Not without breaking. And the cheap stuff gets its strength from extra thickness of material so sometimes it won't fit into tight areas.
 
ok, i'll chime back in on this, **** it, i'm drunk.. not directed at anyone in particular, just a tool rant.... couple things... first of all, if you wrench for a living, trying to compare a HF wrench to a Snappy is just retarded and shows ignorance...

I'm not talking about breaking, or even stripping fasteners, I'm talking about actually FITTING WHERE YOU NEED THE WRENCH/SOCKET TO FIT! try cramming a box end horrible freight on a Volvo raw water pump, and get back to me... something to be said for quality, slim, flank drive, etc.....

anyone who wants to argue with me who is a pro mechanic, feel free, cuz your a hack...

throw in screwdrivers, sockets, etc and it's a joke... my old boss was a cheap bastard, and ya know what? his tools SUCKED and constantly borrowed mine..

great.... :rolleyes:
 
Last edited:
ryoken said:
ok, i'll chime back in on this, **** it, i'm drunk.. not directed at anyone in particular, just a tool rant.... couple things... first of all, if you wrench for a living, trying to compare a HF wrench to a Snappy is just retarded and shows ignorance...

I'm not talking about breaking, or even stripping fasteners, I'm talking about actually FITTING WHERE YOU NEED THE WRENCH/SOCKET TO FIT! try cramming a box end horrible freight on a Volvo raw water pump, and get back to me... something to be said for quality, slim, flank drive, etc.....

anyone who wants to argue with me who is a pro mechanic, feel free, cuz your a hack...

throw in screwdrivers, sockets, etc and it's a joke... my old boss was a cheap bastard, and ya know what? his tools SUCKED and constantly borrowed mine..

great.... :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Not directed at anyone in particular huh?;):D

No, I get where your coming from and I even said I probably haven't used em enough to fully know where you snappy guys are coming from.

But see heres the kicker... in a fab shop, if you can't bust a nut then normal practice is to bust out the torch and scarf it(maybe 2-10 minute job depending on how much flammable stuff is around it). Or weld a nut to said stripped fastener and proceed to remove it. If its in a really bad place then I'll gladly cut/bend my cheap-o harbor freight wrenches in order to get a good bite. I wouldn't even think about it with a snappy.

However thickness/small flank drive is a non arguable point... snappy's win.
 
It actually wasn't directed at you, it was, what it was, a drunk tool rant..... once a year tool buried in a bottom drawer? sure, fine, i have plenty myself...

in my rigging bags? nothing but the best.........

for the record I don't consider your line of work in the same ballpark, no offense... you spend 85" of your time grinding, fitting, measuring, burning, etc.. thats fine, I'm envious in alot of ways, and wish I did more... I live in a different environment, put a pair of 6BT Cummins in your closet......
 
Last edited:
ryoken said:
It actually wasn't directed at you, it was, what it was, a drunk tool rant..... once a year tool buried in a bottom drawer? sure, fine, i have plenty myself...

in my rigging bags? nothing but the best.........

for the record I don't consider your line of work in the same ballpark, no offense... you spend 85" of your time grinding, fitting, measuring, burning, etc.. thats fine, I'm envious in alot of ways, and wish I did more... I live in a different environment, put a pair of 6BT Cummins in your closet......
Click to expand...

I agree with ya... it may have taken a few of you beatin it into my head but your right.

By the way I wish I worked on boats for a living.;) I seem to have been bit by the boating bug... hell with as much work as I put into my boat I might as well say I work on em for a living.... just found out my stringers(where the motor mounts) are shot... that'll be fun.:crazy:
 
Many times busting out the torch is not an option, amazing that people don't want their stuff set on fire :haha:or that everything around the fastener will melt or burn.

An example of the things a pro does some days is when I replaced a turbo on a Detroit that had the nuts on the turbo siezed and rusted off from a 13mm nut to about a 5 sided 1/2 nut. Out comes the torch to heat the nut and then you drive the box end onto the nut with a hammer and punch. Then use a cheater pipe on the wrench to see if it will break loose or just break.
I had one chance to make things go my way and HF tools aint going to get the job done then:wink1:
 
smalltruckbigcid said:
Many times busting out the torch is not an option, amazing that people don't want their stuff set on fire :haha:or that everything around the fastener will melt or burn.

An example of the things a pro does some days is when I replaced a turbo on a Detroit that had the nuts on the turbo siezed and rusted off from a 13mm nut to about a 5 sided 1/2 nut. Out comes the torch to heat the nut and then you drive the box end onto the nut with a hammer and punch. Then use a cheater pipe on the wrench to see if it will break loose or just break.
I had one chance to make things go my way and HF tools aint going to get the job done then:wink1:
Click to expand...

Welding blankets do wonders... :wink1: so does sheet metal... Ever air arced/torched next to a gas tank? Sometimes the best option is to cut but you need to be 100 % sure your not gonna light something up. But yes I agree that torches/welders aren't always an option... plug welding a nut on was the norm at that shop for a stuck/stripped faster... works like a charm.
 
Last edited:
as for harbor frieght quality or any other poorly made tools, they are junk. they are for somebody who doesn't know there are better tools out there, doesn't care, or for somebody who can't afford better tools. i just got an email from mac today for their 3/8 ratchet and 5 piece wobble extension combo set for $129.99. at that price everybody should be able to afford to atleast have a quality ratchet and wobble extension set. i know if you have a project vehicle that you can afford to buy quality tools, just spend money on better tools instead of a part for your project if money is that tight. http://www.mactools.com/Product/tabid/120/productid/329962/variantid/320721/Default.aspx
 
Fabrimacator21 said:
Welding blankets do wonders... :wink1: so does sheet metal... Ever air arced/torched next to a gas tank? Sometimes the best option is to cut but you need to be 100 % sure your not gonna light something up. But yes I agree that torches/welders aren't always an option... plug welding a nut on was the norm at that shop for a stuck/stripped faster... works like a charm.
Click to expand...

heres the thing about that......... fire axe is not an option on the engine. especially an EPA'07 engine. the sensor harness and vehicle interface harness is everywhere. if you were to tag it with a torch........you're ****ed. I can honestly say in the 9 years I've been a HD mechanic. I've never used a torch to cut on a diesel engine. heat up ok. Ive used my air hammer on many different things.


fireblankets just dont' work for this kind of thing. I have many things to cut with and torch is way down the list. theres no welding on engines in our shop whatsoever. besides the one thats usually ****dup is the one you can't even put your hand on. let alone get a welder to.
 
smalltruckbigcid said:
Many times busting out the torch is not an option, amazing that people don't want their stuff set on fire :haha:or that everything around the fastener will melt or burn.

An example of the things a pro does some days is when I replaced a turbo on a Detroit that had the nuts on the turbo siezed and rusted off from a 13mm nut to about a 5 sided 1/2 nut. Out comes the torch to heat the nut and then you drive the box end onto the nut with a hammer and punch. Then use a cheater pipe on the wrench to see if it will break loose or just break.
I had one chance to make things go my way and HF tools aint going to get the job done then:wink1:
Click to expand...

funny you say that. I know its a pre-egr series 60 from the description of that turbo nut :D
 
DEMON44 said:
heres the thing about that......... fire axe is not an option on the engine. especially an EPA'07 engine. the sensor harness and vehicle interface harness is everywhere. if you were to tag it with a torch........you're ****ed. I can honestly say in the 9 years I've been a HD mechanic. I've never used a torch to cut on a diesel engine. heat up ok. Ive used my air hammer on many different things.


fireblankets just dont' work for this kind of thing. I have many things to cut with and torch is way down the list. theres no welding on engines in our shop whatsoever. besides the one thats usually ****dup is the one you can't even put your hand on. let alone get a welder to.
Click to expand...


See the part in bold.

Fabrimacator21 said:
Welding blankets do wonders... :wink1: so does sheet metal... Ever air arced/torched next to a gas tank? Sometimes the best option is to cut but you need to be 100 % sure your not gonna light something up. But yes I agree that torches/welders aren't always an option... plug welding a nut on was the norm at that shop for a stuck/stripped faster... works like a charm.
Click to expand...

There ARE other bolts in this world besides the ones on motors you know.:wink1:

For the record though I couldn't tell you how many harnesses/wires I had to weld/cut/air arc next to. Admitadly most were in the frame rails though. Wrap em up in a blanket and shove some sheetmetal where needed. I burned a granded total of one wire in 2 years and that was just plain being stupid and not looking where the torch was (talking). Every situation is different and calls for a different plan of attack but when possible it'll save you alot of time as oppossed to fighting the bolt for a half hour. I was really suprised what sheet metal along with a glass blanket can do.
 
Last edited:
And Luke btw the new detroit clusterjunk had got to be almost the biggest abomination behind a Mann diesel in a IH.:doah:
 
73 K5, still a good deal on the boxes... Sorry ya got jacked by a few ppl and it turned into a tool box- tool- whatever now argument...
 
smalltruckbigcid said:
And Luke btw the new detroit clusterjunk had got to be almost the biggest abomination behind a Mann diesel in a IH.:doah:
Click to expand...

You don't like the DD15?

Yeah, it is too bad Mercedes go involved. Have you put a head on one yet? My buddy through his back out the other day torquing the head on one.

Martin
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest Posts

Top Bottom