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ultgar

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Everything posted by ultgar

  1. For grab and go hardware, I've got a mix of Durham scoop boxes, Stanley boxes, and Tanos/Festool systainers. Get something with a secure latching system....I've had my single latch Durham boxes let go and dump the contents many times. Here are some photos of hose clamps in all 3 types of boxes. SD
  2. I keep a lot of tools, hardware and shop supplied in cabinet drawers.
  3. Thanks. If anyone on this list wants to order Facom, email me at ultgar@verizon.net , and I'll send you the reseller 's price sheet. Additional 10-50% off the already discount pricing. SD
  4. I've been using and selling Facom tools for close to 20 years and have put together a newsletter on my website. Tool reviews, new and discontinued products, Facom history, price drops, links to inventory files, etc. Lots of pictures. See http://www.ultimategarage.com/Facom/facomnews.html Steve D
  5. I'll knock another 10% off the cost for members of this forum. Steve D
  6. Thanks guys. Chris, here's some pictures of my Festool tool cabinet........see http://www.ultimategarage.com/homegarage/UltGar2y-5.htm . Hope to get a chance to use all of them when I eventually retire.
  7. Another new member from Northern NJ (plus a 2nd home in Mooresville, NC). I've been a car enthusiast and home improvement guy for 45+ years and started buying tools for projects back in the late 60's. Sears Craftsman tools were all I knew back then and all I could afford. Any car specialty tools I needed were ordered out of JC Whitney catalogs. My tool addiction got worse as I discovered things outside of Sears and when I started dealing with pro mechanics and contractors and saw what they used. Got married in 1986 and began selling tools in addition to my BMW parts business. My business evolved into designing and outfitting high end garages and the number of tool lines grew to 40+. The best way to hide a tool addiction from your spouse is to make "tool sales" your business....purchases can always be dismissed as inventory. The 2008-2010 recession killed off the garage business and the internet has really hurt the margins in the parts business. In 2013, I stopped doing custom garages, started dumping 30 years worth of BMW parts inventory, and continued to drop product lines that had too many customer service headaches or not enough margin. My business philosophy became.......be really good with a handful of tool lines than mediocre with 50. My core business these days is the sale and distribution of Facom hand tools, a high end line out of France (now owned by Stanley). Will probably sell my business sometime in the next 5 years and hopefully get back to wrenching on a car or two and taking care of some of those home projects that I've neglected for lack of free time. I respect the guys who use their tools in their business or around the house. High end tools like Snap-on, Facom and Festool are nice but in the end, a tool is only as good as the person using it. Steve D'Gerolamo Ultimate Garage, Inc
  8. If the fixed size flex driver doesn't work, I'd use a 1/4" drive rotator ratchet (with safety lock) and the appropriate sized socket.
  9. I've never seen an HVAC contractor torque a flare fitting and I've never seen any torque specs from AC manufacturers.
  10. I switched from braided lines to corregated stainless last year. Less issues and better flow
  11. Facom discontinued their metal grip round head ratchets last year. You can still buy then with Mac and Proto branding. The Proto's are identical to the old Facom's....even made in the same USAG factory in Italy. SD
  12. Plier wrenches are great for field work where you need to expect the unexpected. For fittings and fasteners that I know sizes in advance, I prefer a ratchet flare wrench, box end or socket where I can grab the fastener at all 6-points. Great for snugging up AC line sets to mimimize chance of leaks. Fast action open end wrenches are also pretty handy. SD
  13. Definitely not Facom (Facom, Stanley, Proto, Blackhawk, Expert, Mac, etc are all part of the Stanley Group). Nice looking pliers for that price point. Facom's best lockgrip plier is their new 500A series....see http://www.facom.com/ru/products/Series-500A-Description.html . Still made in France. I stopped selling their 580/582 series lockgrips because of poor quality control (no surprise the 580/582's are made in China, not Taiwan or Europe). SD
  14. Just found this group today. I think the guys here actually use their tools. The garage journal is filled with tool polisher's and collectors.
  15. There's a nest in one of the spruce trees about 18' up and there's a 25' birch tree next to it where they all hang out. Shooting them with a pellet gun would be fine if I weren't in such as crowed area here in NJ....you need a 450' safety done to use a pellet gun. I'd give the local police dept $20/kill for the ones nesting in my yard. I'll try more traps tomorrow.
  16. A group of 10-20 starlings has made their nests in our yard and they're pooping all over the place. I've spent a few hundred dollars on bird control devices....Bird Xpeller (makes annoyingly loud distress calls that are supposed to scare off the birds....just pisses off the neighbors), a few Havahart traps and even a plastic alligator for use in our fishpond. The birds pooped on the alligator. Now I feel like Bill Murray in Caddyshack on a mission to get rid of these pests. Town ordinance says you "can't shoot stuff" ....we live across the street from a church and school. Anyone try trapping these birds? All I caught today with bread crumbs was a squirrel. Steve D
  17. Same principle as the rotator ratchets designed by Facom. They come in handy with oil filter and cartridge wrenches where you don't have a lot of room to swing the ratchet. Just rotate ("throttle") the handle to spin the square drive. There's a video online of the tool in use. Stanley also has a version of these ratchets.
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