fm2176
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Posts posted by fm2176
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I agree that finding the right balance of quality versus cost would be nice. I think that for most of us, though, Milwaukee, DeWalt, and similarly tiered brands represent the best of what we can realistically expect to get. I'm not a professional, instead buying tools due to wants and having a little extra income, but even if I were I feel like my tool collection wouldn't be too dissimilar from what it currently looks like. I feel like Ryobi is a great brand for the same reasons of quality versus cost; a homeowner can expect to see good use out of a relatively inexpensive tools with somewhat few issues.
I've tried becoming more objective over the years, and it's worked to some extent. Years ago I'd have cursed anything that failed to meet my expectations, so naturally I bought a pair of Belleville 590 combat boots a few years ago after having a pair for ten years with no issues. A few months ago the newer boots cracked all the way through the sole. I'm buying another pair regardless, but if it happens again, Belleville will hear from me!
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1 minute ago, Biggie said:
That's exactly what happened. I just didn't know the wording haha. The dark lines on it are actually shadows from the gaps in the laminations and its the worst on the fan end.
Kind of shaking my faith in milwaukee at the moment but I'm in pretty deep at this point.
I hate to sound cynical, but I feel like our loyalty to pretty much any brand in today's world is based more on personal experience and less on the manufacturer's commitment to making the best quality tools. At some point, quality is compromised to meet a price point while generating a healthy profit, so I wouldn't be surprised to see something similar happen to any brand's drill. This holds true for almost every consumer good nowadays. My neighbor had bad experiences with GM trucks so he switched to Ford and hasn't had any major issues. I've had my GMC for over ten years and have almost a quarter of a million miles on it with no major issues.
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I have a few of the MaxFit sets and might have a FlexTorq somewhere, but this is good news regardless of my experience with them. I think that any revamp of power tool accessories is usually a win, as opposed to some refinements made to tools themselves, which might include cost-cutting measures.
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Share your memories of things that we once took for granted. Despite the large amount of disparity in ages here in the TIA forums, please feel free to share what you remember, regardless of how young or old it may make you sound. I'll start with a few easy ones:
Remember when Craftsman hand tools were proudly "Made in the USA" and represented a level of quality that made them ubiquitous in garages and shops across the United States?
Remember when incandescent bulbs were our primary means of lighting, and we were just fine with using them?
Remember when we had two buying options: in person at the retailer or mail order?
Remember when a payphone call cost a quarter, as immortalized by Travis Tritt, only to have the price raised months after the song?
Remember when we had to find a quarter for the payphone after we received an urgent text on our pager?
Remember when a car could get 35+ mpg without hybrid technology or complex monitoring systems?
Remember when computers had mere kilobytes of RAM yet cost thousands of dollars?
Things change, often for the better, but there are times I long for those days when everything seemed simpler and less hectic. I realize that this feeling comes with age, and that older folks might consider my own fond memories as examples of complicated times while younger ones may think I'm archaic, but there is something relaxing about remembering what was once the norm. We'll never get it back but we can reflect and relive those times when everyone was immortal and things would never change.
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Those Irwin pliers are outstanding. I've found a number of the PowerSlot diagonal cutters for as little as $5 each, and despite giving a few as gifts I still have probably 4 or 5 of them. The pistol grip pliers I found maybe once or twice, and I think I have a couple of those, while the linesmen pliers have been the most elusive, with only one pair popping up at a decent price. My local Lowe's had two marked down to $24.98 before jacking them back up to full price but even those are gone now.
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On 1/3/2018 at 8:37 AM, T75R said:
I hear 75% off tools and I just start salivating....is it just me?? Oh....ok....
My bank account wishes it was only you.
I'm often driven to buy things I don't really need based primarily on the fact that they are discounted so heavily. I've suppressed this desire when it comes to truly useless items, but if I find an accessory set, utility knife, tape measure, or even a power tool I already have (but could "use" just one more), I usually give in to temptation.
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17 minutes ago, Jpgwoodworking said:
...I put it in a Tough system tote, but it basically fills up the whole thing.
That's one of the downsides to dedicating a ToughSystem component to larger items, they increase the cost of ownership quite a bit unless you repurpose them for other purposes as needed.
17 minutes ago, Jpgwoodworking said:...Since Dewalt also has so many systems (Tough, T-Stak, Pro Organizer), it would be nice for them to make an adapter plate to lock them together.
This would be nice, especially since even the Pro Organizers are not all compatible with each other. I think that DeWalt would have a much more budget friendly answer to the Milwaukee Packout, with its half-sized organizers, if they enabled a ToughSystem user to attach small organizers.
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pilot light
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I watch a number of videos, but usually am only interested in those that currently, or one day might, apply to my needs and wants. Needless to say, I watched both the Ridgid heater (that or the DeWalt are on my want list) and the Ridgid router (have one and love it!) reviews this morning. Great addition to TIA, in my opinion.
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bush hog
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I don't know if it's the same issue or not, but my 2763 impact is about to go back to Milwaukee after very minimal use. It works fine so long as you commit to full speed, but trying to gradually pull the trigger results in a fizzing sound and error code.
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1 hour ago, Jronman said:
I didn't see the boxes available for purchase.
I couldn't find the Facom ToughSystem boxes on their sites, but did find this: https://primetools.co.uk/product-category/tool-storage-workbenches/plastic-tool-boxes/page/2/?brandlist[0]=facom
Also, here's the rolling box with TS brackets:
I like the red and black look of them and feel like Milwaukee's Packout would be better served with a similar color scheme, but paying a premium to import these to the US isn't worth it since the DeWalt versions are readily available.
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12 hours ago, TwistedTools said:
So here is the deal, I never was a tool head despite my uncles being engineers and mechanics with their own garages etc. They were mechanical or industrial engineers. My career choice didn't require me learning much about tools until I was caught with out the "right tool for the job" or "this tool was too cheap" too many times deal. Now I'm learning and WANTING to become a tool head. Unfortunately they don't' make quality tools anymore like my grandfather tools so I'll be here asking stupid questions about quality and use. I hope you guys don't mind and forgive me ahead time for my ignorance. I look forward to participating!
Welcome to the forums! Your statement about quality tools, while unfortunately true for the most part, is at least somewhat offset by the advantages in safety features, ergonomics, and user-friendliness. For example, I inherited an old metal-cased drill from my dad that just screams of electrocution and broken wrists. I'll gladly use one of my newfangled drills instead of it!
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Pain train
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Professional bearing
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Public toilet
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Just spent a whopping $3 at a local pawn shop for a Snap-On screwdriver and a 5-pack of Bosch jigsaw blades which is missing a blade.
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I've found post-holiday deals to be better, but much more hit or miss for the reasons Grumpy MSG described. The holiday sales are nice, but I've lucked out in the past and found holiday specials at HD as much as 75% off their sale price.
It is good to check for promo cards at HD throughout the year, though. In my opinion cordless tool deals can be better in the summer and fall, as holiday deals usually require a particular tool or kit to qualify for a free tool. As an example, I took advantage of Ridgid's buy two bare tools, get the 2.0Ah starter pack for free last year. This enabled me to buy tools I didn't already have in Yellow of Red, instead of having to buy yet another drill kit.
Diablo is also good for promos throughout the year. They often have special buys on flap discs, saw blades, and other consumables. They also offer $1 recip blades every so often.
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Garden salad
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1 hour ago, Jronman said:
I found the new online promos for January to not be great. Not many new promos. Some from December are still going on but many of the good ones expired and were not replaced. I haven't checked in stores at deals. I guess we can hope the new January online deals just haven't gone online yet.
Tell me about it. I'm hoping to find another DeWalt tape measure promo but they seem to have disappeared. I kind of threw my 25' US tape and cracked the housing. The tape still works perfect, but I want a backup.
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I went ahead and grabbed one of the kits. M12 may be an eventual investment but I needed something else to use my batteries with.
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Got a fresh (2017 date code) DeWalt 12v Max DCK212S2 kit with recip saw and drill for $45.06 at the Exchange. When I was looking at these previously they all had 2013-2015 codes, with the newer kits having 1.3Ah batteries while the 2013 and 2014 kits had 1.5Ah batteries. There were a couple of older kits left but fresh, albeit lower amp-hour, batteries are an obvious plus.
Sadly, this completes my 12v Max tool collection (minus lasers and such) with only four tools and a couple of lights.
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9 hours ago, BMack37 said:
I've been dying to get those pruning blades on clearance but haven't seen them yet. Maybe the hurricane effected them not clearancing the like they have in the rest of the country. I love those Diablo pruning blades.
The Greensboro, NC store was the only one I've seen the 5-packs at, after looking in stores from GA all the way to VA.
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19 hours ago, Foneguy said:
😎😎😎 Florida 🌴🌴🌴🌴
I would add Louisiana, but it was colder down there yesterday than it was here in GA or in VA. It is nice knowing that sub-freezing temperatures are usually offset by 60 degree days the following week, though.
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What tools did you buy today?
in Power Tools
Posted
Just picked up the Ridgid 18v belt sander, as well as four of the holiday promo Klein sets that include an 11-in-1 screwdriver and NCVT-1 voltage tester and a 4-pack of Bessey clamps. I think I'm set on 6" and 12" clamps...need to start getting more 24" and longer.