I thought this might be an interesting subject to pass to each other. Call it a sort of " Consumer Guide to Tools" if you will. There is a good bit of discussion during the build of various tools used by members at different stages of their construction. It might be something to the effect of who's car is better 'Chevrolet or Ford" but that wasn't my intentions. I have several tools with some age on them and they have proved to be very reliable. I wanted to share that reliability to other members who were in the market for various tools. You know you have some favorites that have "took a licking and kept on tick'n". I am sure that quality within the manufacturers has probably dropped in recent years and a newer product of the same general make, model and type may not even be available now but these tools should have a proven track record and maybe the manufactuer still produces them to the same general quality.
With all that said here is what I approve of.
Makita Model N1900B 3" portable Electric planer
Ryobi 3"X21" Varible speed belt sander.
This may also help others that might own similar pieces of equipment find replacement parts that other members have had to obtain.
Quote from: Redoverfarm on December 11, 2009, 09:17:26 PM
Makita Model N1900B 3" portable Electric planer
I have one that must be a quarter century old. Older. Bullet proof as long as your don't run over nails. d* Then you need new blades. I converted mine to use the thin double edged carbide blades instead of the original high speed steel blades.
Ryobi power miter saw. Again older than the hills. No slide. cast iron heavy thing. I don't like to move it much but it cuts nice with a Freud 80 tooth blade.
Porter Cable D handle router. Very hand. Also an oldie.
Yup, my Dewalt 705 compound miter is the #1 tool I can't build without. Next is my Paslode framing nailer. Capable of shooting a 3" framing nail through your finger at a distance of 18" !!!
Where did you get your blades for your planer. I am going to be due a set before long. Already turned mine over once. Both of my perferred are at least 15-20 years old. I had to get a new "platin"(sp?) for the sander once but no big deal.
I found the kit online a number of years ago. I don't recollect where/who. :(
But here's a link to the part....
http://www.tools-plus.com/makita-d-17239.html
(http://ep.yimg.com/ca/I/toolsplus_2085_197241752)
Replacement tungsten carbide blades can be found at Lowe's, probably HD and others. I've bought both genuine Makita and Bosch, they interchange.
Most bullet proof tool I have ever owned is my 25 year old Skil Model 77 worm drive saw. I believe the same model is readily available still. It's a little on the heavy side but it has been absolutely trouble free.
I have the same 77 I bought at a yard sale - changed the frayed cord and it's still going.
All of the Makita 18v xlt tools I have seem to be superior to other battery tools so I would rate them Commercial quality and my 18v Ryobi Lithiums I would rate as heavy homeowner duty to lighter Commercial duty.
dewalt 18v cordless drill is flawless. I was building out a datacenter back in 2001 and saw one being used, it ran all day long without a new battery needed - thats assembling cabinets, racking pdus, serversm guide arms, overhead bus tray. the green one I had didnt make it to lunch. I bought one for the house in 2002, still have the same two batteries it came with, still works well. the batteries are weaker then when I bought it, but nothing that slows me down.
1970s black and decker skillsaw or just circular saw. its all metal, even the top slide. works like a champ. I dont think you can such a beast anymore. I got it from my dad when I said I didnt have one; he went and bought himself a spiffy sears special with the laser. his sears died two years later - I think he regrets giving me that one.
sears crafstman 90 degree right angle grinder. I dont do alot of metal work but damned if I dont find myself using it for this and that quite a bit, no trouble with it at all.
dewalt 90degree cordered drill for doing punchouts in studs for electrical wiring. got this at a garage sale, replaced the cord that was in bad shape. fantastic tool.
not happy with black and decker handheld sander. the pads are too soft and they wear out and rip causing an uneven sanding job. the "filter" is a joke.
not happy with the sears overhead drop light with the electrical outlets. it has a internal fuse that cannot be replaced. while its nice to have a light and an electrical outlet where your working, you cant use the thing without tripping its breaker in the handheld needing to be reset. even a circular or saber saw will do it, useless because then you not only have no tool, but you have no light either.
The entire range of 18V Ryobi tools are very good. I'd say they are great value for the homeowner. Some, like the circular saw are a tad light duty for commercial work or the homeowner who is less than careful in handling the tools. The 'green' ones that are packed in the li-ion kits are better than the others. All in all I am pleased with mine. I have the li-ion batteries (3) and a couple Nicads. Li-ions are better.
Quote from: glenn kangiser on December 11, 2009, 11:31:42 PM
I have the same 77 I bought at a yard sale - changed the frayed cord and it's still going.
All of the Makita 18v xlt tools I have seem to be superior to other battery tools so I would rate them Commercial quality and my 18v Ryobi Lithiums I would rate as heavy homeowner duty to lighter Commercial duty.
Got one of the 77's too. I found it used and it just keeps going. I also have the 18 V Ryobi drill and saw. I use the drill constantly.
My Hilti drywall screwdriver (it's nice to load up 50 screws at a time)..Don't use it too often, but great when needed... My old Makita worm drive, the 18V Dewalt srill/driver, and a rotating laser level....Oh, yeah, and an OLD hammer my Dad built his house with, I built mine with, and now my son is using the same.. I'm sure it's heard plenty of cuss words and bloodied many fingers in the last 65 years..
???Then I get to thinking... d* My Milwaukee hole hog and sawzalls, the Dewalt 706 compound miter, the Bosch jigsaw, and my Stihl 021,026, and 044. Tough to single out just a few--like asking which of your kids do you like best. They're all good for various reasons.
Makita Miter Saw :) This thing takes a beating and keeps on ticking :)
When I was in the industry EVERYONE had Makita skill saws. Except me :( I couldn't afford them and ran around the butt of many jokes with my Black&Decker....funny thing? It is still working but finally after some 25 years the bearing seems to be going so I switched to an equally old Craftsman :)
While I'd love to have all Makita saws I'll settle for an old Craftsman or B&D -- which seem to work fine.
On a side not I have a 50 year old (at least) Skill drill and jig saw from my grandfather -- both work, both are made of steel! The bodies are steel -- amazing. These things will NEVER quit! And if by chance they do? They'd be repairable :)
Alright good responses. Just take this one step further. Out of all the tools that you have which one would you single out as being the most valuable . For me it would have to be my cordless drill. Glenn probably wouldn't have to respond as we know what his weapon of choice would be. [chainsaw] ;D
Yeah, the cordless drill always goes with me, so probably most valuable, but the most FUN would be my Woodmizer sawmill.
Guess I better get me a cordless drill. The last one I had was a Milwaulkee and it seemed I could only drive 4 or 5 screws before recharging, that was 15 years ago. Reverted to my corded drill and never looked back.
Right now I would have a hard time dealing without my 12 in. DeWalt compound miter saw and stand. Does about everything except make my coffee.
Yeah, I've got the model 706 (I think that's it) and it has been a great saw. The only thing that has ever gone wrong with it was fraying of the power cord where it enters the back.
QuoteYeah, I've got the model 706 (I think that's it) and it has been a great saw. The only thing that has ever gone wrong with it was fraying of the power cord where it enters the back.
Same with mine! Been meaning to fix that for 2 years now but haven't got around to it.
Quote from: Redoverfarm on December 13, 2009, 09:03:52 AM
Out of all the tools that you have which one would you single out as being the most valuable .
Yep. Cordless drill
Quote from: Redoverfarm on December 13, 2009, 09:03:52 AM
Alright good responses. Just take this one step further. Out of all the tools that you have which one would you single out as being the most valuable . For me it would have to be my cordless drill. Glenn probably wouldn't have to respond as we know what his weapon of choice would be. [chainsaw] ;D
Hold on a minute there, John..... [waiting]
Yup - I love my chainsaws alright ... Stihl Electric, 026, 044, 046 x 32" and Husky midsize, but none of them are worth anything without my pencil to mark out a line so I can whack out a curve around a log with one of them. [crz]
So looking at it a different way.... most valuable... maybe my Hino Truck with remote controlled crane so I can bring logs to the Wood Wizard sawmill and make a living doing structural steel. The trailer was loaded in place - hooked up - and we pulled 100' trees up to 30" dia. up a 40% grade through the bushes to limb and cut them near the road.
(https://i778.photobucket.com/albums/yy62/the_troglodyte/igotwood.jpg)
Nice looking logs!!
Just like another sawmiller to be lusting after logs, eh? Dave?
We got 2 1/2 loads like that - very nice good milling Sugar Pine. Bug kills but not dead yet so great stuff.
The rest except the one 30" dia or so that went over the edge to be picked up wirh the forklift when dry.
(https://i778.photobucket.com/albums/yy62/the_troglodyte/logs.jpg)
Come to think of it, my forklift is a pretty important tool too. It will push the entire load off in about 30 seconds. It is so hard to choose a single valuable tool as many are not as valuable without the help of the others.
Most valuable tool... hmm.... how about the pile of meat between my ears... [waiting]
(https://i778.photobucket.com/albums/yy62/the_troglodyte/forkinglog.jpg)
Good sized, not much taper, and straight, and I'm sure they're pretty tight-grained. My woodlots are mostly Doug fir, with some Ponderosa pine, larch, red cedar and red alder, with occasional Oregon ash. My son laughed after we got the mill, saying he's never looked at trees the same way anymore...Just go Hmmmm.... How many 2x's in that one??
If I understand the question, it's the one tool I couldn't do without...
Not to sound low tech...Framing square ???
I take back my selection of the cordless drill as being my choice.
The tool I could least do without is my wallet/check book. ;D
"Good sized, not much taper, and straight, and I'm sure they're pretty tight-grained."
are you talking about the logs, or the lump of meat between his ears?
I would have to say that motivation is my least expendable tool.
My Little Giant Ladder. Only ladder I ever had that I feel safe on.
Quote from: curlewdave on December 13, 2009, 03:42:56 PM
Good sized, not much taper, and straight, and I'm sure they're pretty tight-grained. My woodlots are mostly Doug fir, with some Ponderosa pine, larch, red cedar and red alder, with occasional Oregon ash. My son laughed after we got the mill, saying he's never looked at trees the same way anymore...Just go Hmmmm.... How many 2x's in that one??
They are pretty tight and pretty wet for the most part so they cut well.
My buddy told me the same thng... once you own a sawmill you will never look at trees the same way.
Fortunately I have a pretty tight leather hat to keep that lump of meat together, Jens.
It is really hard to rate your tools as most valuable when there is so much interdependence - all of mine seem to be most valuable at one time or another - :)
hmm couldn't do without.... I don't think I have that one yet as I usually try to keep two or three ways to do things.
This week it was the Bobcat to move the logs as the trailer was on the truck and it was too muddy for the forklift. I need 'em all. [waiting]
on second thought, I think my sense of humor is the one tool I could not do without.
I've seen this here before, but as with any tool thread it is good to get our terminology and use straight:
TOOL DICTIONARY
DRILL PRESS: A tall upright machine useful for suddenly snatching flat metal
bar stock out of your hands so that it smacks you in the chest and flings
your beer across the room, denting the freshly-painted project which you had
carefully set in the corner where nothing could get to it.
WIRE WHEEL: Cleans paint off bolts and then throws them somewhere under the
workbench with the speed of light. Also removes fingerprints and hard-earned
calluses from fingers in about the time it takes you to say, 'Oh sh --'
SKILL SAW: A portable cutting tool used to make studs too short.
PLIERS: Used to round off bolt heads. Sometimes used in the creation of
blood-blisters.
BELT SANDER: An electric sanding tool commonly used to convert minor
touch-up jobs into major refinishing jobs.
HACKSAW: One of a family of cutting tools built on the Ouija board
principle... It transforms human energy into a crooked, unpredictable
motion, and the more you attempt to influence its course, the more dismal
your future becomes.
VISE-GRIPS: Generally used after pliers to completely round off bolt heads.
If nothing else is available, they can also be used to transfer intense
welding heat to the palm of your hand.
OXYACETYLENE TORCH: Used almost entirely for lighting on fire various
flammable objects in your shop. Also handy for igniting the grease inside
the wheel hub out of which you want to remove a bearing race.
TABLE SAW: A large stationary power tool commonly used to launch wood
projectiles for testing wall integrity.
HYDRAULIC FLOOR JACK: Used for lowering an automobile to the ground after
you have installed your new brake shoes, trapping the jack handle firmly
under the bumper.
BAND SAW: A large stationary power saw primarily used by most shops to cut
good aluminum sheet into smaller pieces that more easily fit into the trash
can after you cut on the inside of the line instead of the outside edge.
TWO-TON ENGINE HOIST: A tool for testing the maximum tensile strength of
everything you forgot to disconnect.
PHILLIPS SCREWDRIVER: Normally used to stab the vacuum seals under lids or
for opening old-style paper-and-tin oil cans and splashing oil on your
shirt; but can also be used, as the name implies, to strip out Phillips
screw heads.
STRAIGHT SCREWDRIVER: A tool for opening paint cans. Sometimes used to
convert common slotted screws into non-removable screws and butchering your
palms.
PRY BAR: A tool used to crumple the metal surrounding that clip or bracket
you needed to remove in order to replace a 50 cent part.
HOSE CUTTER: A tool used to make hoses too short.
HAMMER: Originally employed as a weapon of war, the hammer nowadays is used
as a kind of divining rod to locate the most expensive parts adjacent the
object we are trying to hit.
UTILITY KNIFE: Used to open and slice through the contents of cardboard
cartons delivered to your front door; works particularly well on contents
such as seats, vinyl records, liquids in plastic bottles, collector
magazines, refund checks, and rubber or plastic parts. Especially useful for
slicing work clothes, but only while in use.
Son of a bitch TOOL: Any handy tool that you grab and throw across the
garage while yelling 'Son of a bitch' at the top of your lungs. It is also,
most often, the next tool that you will need.
I've had a number of good tools for many years- Milwaukee corded drills, Bosch jigsaw, Milwaukee SawzAll. I fairly recently bought a Ridgid table saw, and a Ridgid 12" sliding miter saw. So far, they are excellent. I need a few more pieces before I start my house. I need a decent circular saw, and some nail guns. Probably a cordless drill and a driver to match. Any recommendations? I have a Milwaukee cordless, but the batteries go permanently dead in a year or so. Now I'm thinking Li-Ion. From what I've read, I'm leaning towards a top-of-the-line Makita.
Circular saw---SKIL Model 77 worm drive. The "Mag" model is also good and a little lighter. (unless you prefer "sidewinders") Ryobi cordless tools come highly recommended by many---some previous posts in this thread have specific makes and models noted.
Quote from: MushCreek on December 14, 2009, 05:08:40 PM
I've had a number of good tools for many years- Milwaukee corded drills, Bosch jigsaw, Milwaukee SawzAll. I fairly recently bought a Ridgid table saw, and a Ridgid 12" sliding miter saw. So far, they are excellent. I need a few more pieces before I start my house. I need a decent circular saw, and some nail guns. Probably a cordless drill and a driver to match. Any recommendations? I have a Milwaukee cordless, but the batteries go permanently dead in a year or so. Now I'm thinking Li-Ion. From what I've read, I'm leaning towards a top-of-the-line Makita.
I am sure I put 10 years of use on my Makita 18v XLTs this year drilling thousands of 5/8 holes 6 inches deep in doug-fir and 3/4 hammer drill holes in 1"thick hard stucco. I used two of the 325 foot lb xlt 1/2 inch impacts without failure to install the 3/4 x 6 lags in the appx 2000 holes. I burned up one drill but abused it so bad I felt bad about them giving me free warrenty replacement on it. They also replaced a jammed drill chuck with a free new drill during the first few months.
The XLTs with the 3 amp hour batteries will last long enough to do real work that I would normally have had to use corded tools and a 3hp compressor for. I saved enough in labor over the last year to pay for the tools in full and then some due to no set up and tear down as well as no need for a generator and power cords. I have 8 batteries and 3 chargers keeping them charging off of a larger inverter on the truck.
The cheapest way to get batteries and chargers is in a spare kit with extra tools, or online. Get genuine Makita. The Chinese import replacement batteries die in a short time. No Makita battery failures yet.
Frank - I have quite a few of the SOB tools and some #$%$&XXX&!%$% tools also. [waiting]
rofl [rofl2] Frank, that was really funny! I thought of another use for the utility knife - cutting through skin! Seen a lot of that in the ER [waiting]
"These are a few of my favorite things"
Skil 5-1/2" trim saw. I've used it for framing since 1992. Light, rugged (will last about 6 houses if not subjected to lots of rain or dropped...) and runs well off even a small generator. It won't do the 45 degree compound rafter cuts but for everything else it works just fine. For I joists and 6x beam stock I use a larger 8-1/4" Skil worm drive.
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00912700000P?vName=Tools&cName=Portable+Power+Tools&sName=All+Corded+Power+Tools
I also like Speed Squares, big 12" size and the smaller pouch side. Great saw guides. Stanley makes one with an adjustable angle I like for rafters.
Hart Decker hammer. On my 3rd or 4th handle now. Still have two in reserve. Use it for finish, demo and framing.
Honda EU2000 generator. Overachiever, quiet and easy on fuel.
Stanley Measuring tapes. Longest lasting tape I've found.
Hitachi framing gun. Had mine for nearly 20 years now. Framed dozens of homes with it. Still going strong.
I like the Stanley utility knives best. Seem to open easier with cold hands. I like changing blades without tools too.
Misc in my bags are nail sets, pencils, sharpie, quality pliers, cats paw, quality 1" chisel and quality 4x screw driver. Add a good quality extension cord and a quality cordless drill (I've had best luck with Milwaukee and Makita products) and I can tackle a majority of what I need to do.