Shop tricks

This one I use every day.....
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My shop cart, it keeps the tools I am using on a current job right at hand. It's different if you have a work bench right in front of you, but I wont be without one now. I actually have 2 and I may get a 3rd. I use the 2nd one to set parts on that I have removed before reassembly. They are just Harbor Freight cheap ones, but do the job
 
here's one for you. about twenty five years ago, that was a piece of 3 in. exhaust tubing with a flat flare. all the years of dropping that impact in it have peened it right around.
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also the 1 in. angle with some torch cut holes for long extensions and pry bars. just welded on to the side of the cart.
 
Anyone painting small parts usually need a place to hang their parts onto. A drying rack available for $10 at Wally World, and freebee hangers from the drycleaners. Just bought it this morning and plan to use it today for the first time. Easy to store and won't take up much room in the shop as well.
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here's one for you. about twenty five years ago, that was a piece of 3 in. exhaust tubing with a flat flare. all the years of dropping that impact in it have peened it right around. View attachment 342340 also the 1 in. angle with some torch cut holes for long extensions and pry bars. just welded on to the side of the cart.
I would either change out that air hose, get a new end crimped onto it or Flexzilla has a new end that can be installed. I personally wouldn't trust a hose clamp.
Reusable Fitting for Flexzilla Pro Hoses
 
Here's a couple file tricks. Let's say your small file is clogged up with some soft material. If you paid attention in shop class, you'll know that you clean a large one with a file card. A small one isn't so easy. You never want to use a wire wheel on it because it dulls the teeth. FWIW, I used to work in a shop that "sharpened" dull files using acid. It was kind of a snake oil type fix, and they had stopped doing it before I started there. Still, I learned a few things about files from the guys there.

Clogged file. This one has epoxy that was filed down stuck in it.

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Get yourself a small piece of soft brass and with a little force, push it parallel with the teeth

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The file will cut "teeth" in the brass and will push the material out.

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Next file trick. Grind a bevel on the end of an old file to use as a scraper. This one is rounded off and is one of the handiest I have.

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How about dirt cheap bench top DC power supply? This is mine, made from an old computer power supply. It has 5 volts, good for checking your dash gauges that run on 5 volts and 12 volts for everything else. The newer ones will have 3.3 volts too, but mine is pretty old.

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There's a bunch of videos and online sources that will tell you how to make them. Here's one that looks like what I did. I didn't include the LED light though.

DIY Bench Power Supply With Old Computer SMPS
 
Speaking of files, take a worn out triangular file and grind off the teeth to create a triangular scraper. A little worn out 6" file will become your goto tool for cleaning up rough edges, scribing and million other things.
 
You can twist the tip of those crappyman screwdrivers by hand... I've done it to dozens of 'em. One reason Snapon screwdrivers were a very early purchase in my career. Their tips are hardened and may snap, but a magnet usually pulls the piece out of a still intact screw head vs rounding it to where you need a drill. They also have a bolster on the blade, up by the handle to put a wrench on it... watch out for cheap look a likes... no wrench will fit the cheap bolster, and it won't handle the load if it did.

FWIW, pro's buy tools to break them, and get the job done. Snapon warranty replaces those screwdriver blades, the job gets done, and usually the fastener is in good enough condition to reuse. Bad days when the fastener is destroyed and then you discover that most fasteners are not universal and the local hardware has nothing that will look right and work right to replace it with.

HF replaces screwdrivers too, but the search for replacement fasteners will cost more than a good tool.
 
You can twist the tip of those crappyman screwdrivers by hand... I've done it to dozens of 'em. One reason Snapon screwdrivers were a very early purchase in my career. Their tips are hardened and may snap, but a magnet usually pulls the piece out of a still intact screw head vs rounding it to where you need a drill. They also have a bolster on the blade, up by the handle to put a wrench on it... watch out for cheap look a likes... no wrench will fit the cheap bolster, and it won't handle the load if it did.

FWIW, pro's buy tools to break them, and get the job done. Snapon warranty replaces those screwdriver blades, the job gets done, and usually the fastener is in good enough condition to reuse. Bad days when the fastener is destroyed and then you discover that most fasteners are not universal and the local hardware has nothing that will look right and work right to replace it with.

HF replaces screwdrivers too, but the search for replacement fasteners will cost more than a good tool.

I just thought it was a neat trick, one I hadn't though of before. I'm glad I no longer wrench professionally so I don't have to have those spendy tools. My old Craftsman tools turn a bolt or nut just fine for my needs.
 
I just thought it was a neat trick, one I hadn't though of before. I'm glad I no longer wrench professionally so I don't have to have those spendy tools. My old Craftsman tools turn a bolt or nut just fine for my needs.
For a home user/hobbyist, that's a good call. Sockets and box wrenches will be fine for most folks.

Screwdrivers and open end wrenches are another story if you have rust or frozen fasteners.
 
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