Stercorarius
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Posts posted by Stercorarius
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Better lit picture.
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1 minute ago, BMack37 said:
Torin twist socket rails are on clearance at Lowe's so...
That's awesome. I'll have to check out my Lowe's. I still haven't set up my snap-on twist socket tray yet though.... They've had me out of the mechanics shop since September so I haven't been turning a wrench as often as I like.
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Updated collection. Not pictured are two Protos (24 tooth 3/4 drive and 1/2 long handle) and a Carlyle (3/8 indexing flex head extra long) along with three Gearwrenches and three Kobalts. The Gearwrenches and Kobalts were stolen, but their still mine and so still part of my collection.
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30 minutes ago, KnarlyCarl said:
I haven't touched an adjustable wrench since getting mine. Different applications though...
Nuts and bolts for auto/diesel/ag i would imagine an open end wrench would be advantageous.
For my plumbing applications, and mechanical trades, I use pliers wrench and pipe wrenches while my adjustables gather dust.... For smaller nuts and bolts, i use open end wrenches, but generally, the pliers wrench covers my needs the rest of the time
Yeah the only time I grab an adjustable wrench is when it's over an 1 1/4" or I might need to use the wrench as a hammer.
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Hmmm, I struggle to buy any of those things. I had a pair of the pliers wrenches and used them like once before they were reappropriated by someone in need of more emphatamines. I just don't see where they would be more useful than an open end wrench or the cobras more useful than channel locks.
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That's awesome
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Yeah I'd like to know how valid of a statement that is and if it only applies to the 24 tooth models.
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I make minimum wage➡time is money➡impact wrenches save time➡impact wrenches lose me money➡buy all the ratchets instead of replacing all my stolen impact wrenches.
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None of my 24 tooth ratchets had lube.
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12 minutes ago, Conductor562 said:
Yep, the current guts will match up all the way back to before WWII.
I am a little skeptical about this whole "Proto frowns on lube" thing though. Lube is pretty essential and I've gotten plenty of Proto ratchets lubed from the factory. You notice shit like this when you're the kind of guy that the first thing you do with a new ratchet is tear it apart ?
Yeah I still lube mine anyway. I wonder if the guy had been told something about the round head ratchets or the sealed heads. I have yet to hear it from anyone but him. I might call proto and see what they say.??
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31 minutes ago, CATERPILLAR said:
Nice aren't the two to the right plombs ?
That is correct. Good eye.
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An interesting, unsubstantiated theory about this and the timing from the toolguyd comments.
"Toolfreak says
Apex will still have the Craftsman contract, that isn’t going anywhere as long as Sears is still in business.
I suspect that Apex was hoping for a sweetheart deal on the Craftsman brand, and it would be able to manufacture it’s Gearwrench-branded tools under the Craftsman name instead once it owned the rights, but it didn’t really expect SB&D to bid as high as it did and actually wind up with Craftsman.
Maybe Apex was even planning to use the Armstrong/Allen facility to manufacture Craftsman tools in the USA, and when the brand went to SBD it decided to close up shop and just concentrate on making Gearwrench stuff overseas.
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fred says
Coming on the heels of the announcement of the sale of the Craftsman brand to SBD – this Apex announcement seems too coincidental to be unrelated. You are probably right that Apex or Bain Capital judged that keeping Allen/Armstrong going with SBD owning Craftsman was a not in their best interests.
REPLY. "
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If they truly are getting shut down, remember the real puppet masters are the guys running Bain Capital. Their whole business model is to buy struggling companies and gut them for all they're worth. Don't get me wrong Bain has had some success turning companies around and making them profitable. They aren't committed to the reputation or longevity of companies they buy, much less the employees, as long as it's a net gain before the company disappears.
Until there is an official release from Apex, I won't expect a full discontinuation of Armstrong. Can you really blame them for shutting down the brand though? I mean not a single person on here has said they own an Armstrong tool, and the opinion here it seems is that you wouldn't buy any of their tools because of a lack of commitment to American manufacturing. If no one buys their American tools they don't really have any option other than to cease American manufacturing. I'm all for made in the US and buying American made tools when I can.
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So I found this interesting as hell. So it looks like Proto has never changed the internals of their ratchets. Like the hole sizes and spacing has always been the same so a 24 tooth 3/8 ratchet rebuild kit will work no matter how old the ratchet is. Talk about a time tested design and a legitimate warranty you can depend on. One of these is brand new, the other two are old. Conductor might be able to tell you exact years. All the internals cross over directly.
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Oops
1/2" proto used
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1 minute ago, Cr8ondt said:
Hate to say it but killing the brand kills the warranty obligation too, I can't see paying the premium price. Unless they are sold for fire sale prices I'm not going to be an owner.
Fair enough. It's one of those things where I'd like to own a little bit of tool history. Some of them appear to just be rebadged gear wrench though.
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So maybe and maybe not. This could just be a case of a reporter using poor word choice, or the Apex tools Communications Director using poor word choice. There hasn't been an official statement by Apex Tool Group currently.
At one point it says,"Rhoads said the positions will be eliminated by March 31 as the production of the Armstrong and Allen tool lines ramps down."
It also says, "She said production of the Allen and Armstrong lines of hand tools will end by March 31."
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http://toolguyd.com/apex-tool-group-cuts-armstrong-and-allen-tool-brands/
As if SBD's recent acquisitions weren't enough news now we have this. Thoughts?
This isn't exactly concrete news, but it isn't unlikely that Apex would terminate the two brands. The odds of anyone buying Allen or Armstrong from them is low. I don't own any Armstrong tools, but I might pick up a few ratchets from them while I still can.
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Man that's a long list of winners. That's awesome! Congratulations guys/gals. Pretty awesome of Dan and Eric to make this happen.
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Hmmm, I'm officially back at zero impact wrenches so I need them all. I'm thinking the 2763 to start for general shenanigans, then the 3/8 m12 for sheet metal, the compact one key 1/2" for concrete and most dissasembly, the right angle impact wrench because that is awesome, the new mid size for overhead stuff and not breaking my shoulders, and the 3/4" for chassis work and working on class 8 trucks.
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It is an early 20th century circumsicion tool.
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On the subject of sharpening planes, has anyone ever used that diamond sharpening paste you can put on anything to make custom sharpening utensils? I don't recall the exact name of it. Fine woodworking covered it in an issue about two years ago.
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46 minutes ago, comp56 said:
I know what it is if it isn't a carver?....a hoof trimmer
Yep, real nice trim-tec wheel with replaceable carbide blades. I believe it is now your turn.
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13 minutes ago, comp56 said:
it is a carver
Very similar design to one. Different application, and sold as a different product. You might be able to use it as a Carver but it costs more than a Carver.
Preferred ratchets?
in Hand Tools
Posted
To the left you have the basic HF beater wrenches. These turn into breaker bars really quickly as the handles are extendable and the teeth generally don't slip. What I have found usually happens with these wrenches are that the selector lever either seizes or shears off. I don't know why. I have yet to cause any of them to fail on mine, but the ones at the shop all seem to have this problem.
Top left stubby three are also Pittsburgh ratchets. They make a good just in case ratchet.
Bottom left is a 1/4" drive crescent, no problems with that one slipping. Next to it is a stubby Blackhawk 3/8. That is my all time favorite.
In the middle is an SK roto head I picked up on eBay. It seemed like a good idea at the time. I'm a fan of the form, but this one has a lot of chipping chrome.
Round head Facom design Proto 3/8. Not that big fan of round heads. I just wanted something with a little higher tooth count than 24. Below it is a 24 tooth Proto 1/4 drive. I'm not sure why I bought it. I rarely use 1/4 drive.
Bottom to top on the right:
Snap -on dual 80 3/8 flex head with quick release. Not impressed with this ratchet for being $140. I only use it more than my Carlyle because it has a metal handle which handles oil and grease better.
Proto 24T 3/8 long handle. I always go for the longest handles I can find.
Wright 1/2 drive open gear ratchet. Way too much back drag. Still an awesomely strong ratchet.
Proto 1/2 24T. I like my long handle version better. It isn't pictured because I keep it in the truck.
Crescent 1/2 and 3/8 drive ratchet. These things are first ratchets and have seen all sorts of abuse. They have easily experienced hundreds of foot pounds. They are short and bulky though.
1/2 drive gear wrench. Real short and bulky. Bought for the sockets it came with.
Plombs because killin' Nazis and shit.