What tool out of everything you have do you regard as your best investment.

Deancr11 said:

loanwolf 6000

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Photo? Link?

I dont know if this qualifies as my best investment.
This is more about how technollogy has changed my life over the years.
My first cordless drill was a dewalt 9 volt.
I dont remember what I paid for it but at that time it was a whole lotta money for us and our two kids.
It was an investmant because I could go to work on job sites that didnt have power supplied.
Me and my 16 friggen batteries could go to work and be on the job for a week before they had power.
All I had to do was wake up every hour and swap the batteries out of the charger every night.
Then they came out with the twelve volt
I still have three of them and they still work.
And then...
The 18 volt.
I still use my 18 volt antique dewalts I have about 20 batteries and the impacts and drills and screwguns and they all work
The somewhat ignored part about the incredible improvement in cordless tools is that the average dope doesnt have to run his compressor every morning.
He doesnt have to have an air compressor.
The other big change is obviously the smart phone.
The ability to be laying under the car while googling torque values and getting recipes for turnips or trips to the Tortugas is awesome.
Get a notebook and document all of your part numbers kids.
And your bank accounts and your contacts and secure the deed and title to your property and freeze your credit.
People are all freaked out that robots are going to kill them.
Its not ******* robots or ancient ******* aliens
Its us all being mind ****** my people who wouldnt let you in their house .
I am a well known and documented ass.
But when AI takes over inventory and logistics and the very feeble aerospace quality control?
When the people you have elected to be in charge turn out to be ********* how do you get rid of those *********?
You cant.
I am old enough to understand that I can not "unfuck" somebody and I was a real ******* to think that I was somehow qulified to try it.
I figured that out on my own.
So what happens if you are married to someone who is living on the very edge of staying alive and they go online looking for some solid basis to stay alive and google AI tells them to stick their head in the oven?
What the **** happens if some girl who just had a baby and is all on her own with ******* nobody to help her asks google if she can feed her infant baby chunky peanut butter because thats the only thing she has and google AI tells her that she can.
How long do you think it will take for AI to focus and scrape every sarcastic trolling bullshit joke and find a pattern but not understand that joke or that sarcasm and trigger a warning.
Theyre just gonna shoot me for scarcasm
Them boys will peel Shurckey apart looking for the source

There are a few tools I can think of...

1. Milwaukee M18 impact driver and mid torque impact wrench. Both are a bit bulky, but has saved me SOOO much time compared to using hand tools

2. Snap-On Impact sockets. Fit tightly around every fastener and they some off easier (I don't know how) compared to using other impact sockets

3. Snap-On line wrenches. These wrenches have very little play and make doing brake line work a lot easier.

4. Lock and Lube grease coupler. Before using Lock and Lube, I HATED greasing anything. It was messy, the stock grease gun coupler never fit tightly and was a PITA to remove. Now with the Lock and Lube coupler, greasing is 1000x easier and a lot more enjoyable.

5. Yellow Jacket 60440 Heavy Duty Swage/Flare kit. I found this kit at Pawn America for $40. It's originally meant for HVAC, but I use it for brake lines and it's a lot easier to use than the rental flare tools from auto parts stores.

I would say big red. Snapon 1/2” impact gun. Gets used every day. Tons of power and reliable.

https://shop.snapon.com/product/1-2...ive-Heavy-Duty-Air-Impact-Wrench-(Red)/MG725A

https://shop.snapon.com/product/1-2...ive-Heavy-Duty-Air-Impact-Wrench-(Red)/MG725A

3 x ...Dewalt impact driver, 3/8 electric ratchet and a measuring caliper. For decades I didnt have a caliper for measuring things. I cant tell you how many times over the years I stupidly ordered stuff thinking I knew the size by sight only to receive it and its the slightly the wrong size and now I had to return it (dumb) . Even though I didnt think I needed a measuring caliper all those years I certainly did .

Man that's a tough question been turning wrenches 50 years , cant beat good Safety glasses and ear protection For you younger Guys and Gals with out eyes,ears and touch your tools wont matter, Sorry I know my ears ring all the time and hard to but on bolts when you cant feel them Just a old guy here ...

RoyBob said:

Man that's a tough question been turning wrenches 50 years , cant beat good Safety glasses and ear protection For you younger Guys and Gals with out eyes,ears and touch your tools wont matter, Sorry I know my ears ring all the time and hard to but on bolts when you cant feel them Just a old guy here ...

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Yea, I have tinnitus and know it is likely from all the air tools I have used over the years. I learned to use safety glasses after I was dumb enough to lean in and look closely at a drum being cut on a brake lathe and got a very small piece of metal in my eye. Younger days of stupid teach you to be smarter.

someotherguy said:

Tough question. Hard to quantify because what does "best investment" mean? Something you've used many times over the course of decades, and it's paid for itself dozens of times over? That's good - but it's not useful advice to anyone today, because that item is no longer available and its modern replacement is very unlikely to deliver that same performance.

If I was really pressed to decide I'd say it's probably my Craftsman 3/8" electric drill. I bought this thing in 1988. Made in USA. Some of you probably weren't even born yet. I initially bought it and a Skilsaw (also still own and it works fine but I don't use it nearly as often) to do a quickie plywood bed floor install in my '61 Apache fleetside. Drill has seen better days, chuck slips if you don't tighten the hell out of it and the teeth are worn down. Cord outer insulation is cracking all over. That drill has been abused for decades and still hasn't given up. Mind you when I did my recent flip kit on the '93 dually I mostly used my SnapOn air drill, but every now and then to give my compressor a rest, the Craftsman came into play. If it crumbled into dust this very moment, it owes me nothing at all.

As far as modern items that are super useful and a good deal? Probably my BAFX Pro OBDII bluetooth code reader. Connected to vehicles that the cheaper generic blue elm327 reader wouldn't, and has got me out of plenty of jams, paired with Torque Pro for reading the codes. That's a $30 investment that has paid for itself multiple times right away. I've got a Launch CRP123 reader for more involved stuff (gmt800 air bag sensors for example) but it's still an entry-level piece and didn't cost much.

Richard

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My 1988 Craftsman drill is just about ready to crumble into dust. Pulled it out to make those little blocks I raised my work table with, and was gonna remove some bent deck screws from the 4x4 blocks. Flick the lever to reverse.. drill goes forward. Flick it the other way.. still forward.

Between that, the worn out chuck, the grumbling noises from the bearings, and the nearly non-existent outer cord insulation.. I still can't believe this thing works. But clearly, its days are numbered.

Richard

someotherguy said:

Flick the lever to reverse.. drill goes forward. Flick it the other way.. still forward.

Between that, the worn out chuck, the grumbling noises from the bearings, and the nearly non-existent outer cord insulation.. I still can't believe this thing works. But clearly, its days are numbered.

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Crapsman chucks were garbage when new. A proper replacement chuck will delight you. Pull it apart, slam in new bearings, new brushes, and a new cord. Polish the armature bars. I bet you can pull the switches apart for cleaning and lube.

Better than new.

Schurkey said:

Crapsman chucks were garbage when new. A proper replacement chuck will delight you. Pull it apart, slam in new bearings, new brushes, and a new cord. Polish the armature bars. I bet you can pull the switches apart for cleaning and lube.

Better than new.

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We'll see. It's probably worth messing with; it's not like it's vintage-quality or anything but it's been sturdy and reliable for decades. Also there's nothing like an electric drill for throwing low-speed torque at a job, something my air drill seems noticeably less capable of.

Richard