This has nothing to do with tools, but our guess is that if you get all excited about a new Festool release or a drill bit innovation, you'll be interested in this. It's a little video about a 330 square foot apartment in Hong Kong and the extremely creative approach that was taken to utilize the space. It's very cool and probably worth the 4 minutes it takes to watch.
With the release of the 11-in-1 screwdriver, Milwaukee has put itself in direct competition with the fantastic Klein 10-in-1. We know what you're thinking, "the Milwaukee has to be better...it's one louder." Well, not exactly. As it turns out, the new tool is so specified towards electricians and HVAC guys that its eleven functions don't really apply to everyone.
Starting with driver tips, the Milwaukee has a #1 Philips; a #2 Philips; a 1/4" slotted; a 3/16" slotted; a 1/4", 5/16", and 3/8" nut driver; a #1 ECX bit, and finally a #2 ECX bit. If you don't know what an ECX bit is (we didn't), it's a combination of a Philips and a slotted that comes off looking like a Robertson bit with a slotted bit stuck through it. It's a new design that Milwaukee has come up with that works in those strange 'Philips or slotted" screws that are commonly seen on electrical devices (outlets, breaker panels, etc).
Aside from the screwdriver tips, the Milwaukee has two other tricks, both centered around the electrical trade or specifically, wiring. First, there is a little wire stripper in the handle. It's really just a little groove with a blade tucked down in it. At first, we snorted at this, thinking that Milwaukee was trying a little too hard to get to the magic number of 11, but then we rolled a piece of 12 gauge wire in the groove and the sheath just came right off.
The second non-tip feature of the screwdriver is a little hole in the stem that you can use to bend a wire. Now, these two features might not be too practical if you're wiring an entire house, but in a pinch, this screwdriver is certainly capable of replacing your pliers.
About three weeks ago, we started carrying this tool around and we really haven't let it out of our sight since. At first we thought the handle was too smooth and we missed the more knobbly Klein, but a few days later we were used to it and thought of it no more. Because we're carpenters, we have yet to use the ECX bits and really miss the torx bits that are on the Klein, which actually can double as Allen wrenches when working with little set screws (perfect for door hardware). If we were electricians though, we'd be fully enamored with the Milwaukee and probably a little bit misty-eyed that they finally made a screwdriver tailored so specifically to our needs that all the dumb carpenters in the world can't even use a bunch of its features.
By far the most interesting tool we've seen this year is the Ridgid JobMax. The principle here is pretty simple: create a universal power handle, stoked by a 12-volt drill, and then create any number of interchangeable heads that can click on to it. The end result is an entire JoBox worth of tools that's capable of fitting into a ShuBox. Ridgid has released two different JobMax kits, each with a different selections of heads and they were nice enough to send some samples our way so that we could check them out. We've had them for over a month now and we've used them at work and in the shop. We've used them for big things and little things, complicated things and easy things. And we've finally come to our verdict...
The Rockwell JawHorse might be the most important item we have in the shop (we actually have two of them). Each time we're out there on a project, we're constantly shifting them around, using them to clamp things, prop things, hold things, and support things. Like one of our pals once said, "having one JawHorse is like having a helper. Having two JawHorses is like having five helpers." We're constantly amazed at just how useful the tool is.
So now, there's another option on the market, the Ridgid SuperClamp. The SuperClamp more closely resembles the Triton SuperJaws (the original clamping workstation), but as far as functionality goes, it's likely a wash between the three items.
Our guess is that aside from the aesthetic differences, there's probably not much that separates the two tools. Rockwell has made a number of attachments available (log jaws, plywood jaws, miter saw station, etc), which Ridgid hasn't done. But since Ridgid just released the tool, we expect to start seeing attachment pieces pretty soon.
The SuperClamp costs $159 which puts it a few sheckles below the JawHorse ($179)
There are things that are 'pretty cool,' like the new DeWalt Worm Drive saw. Then there are things like the Ridgid JobMax that are, 'really cool.' And finally, there are just few items in the world that make it to the realm of 'McQueen cool.' The Husqvarna DXR 310 not only falls into this last category but we'll be damned if it doesn't live at its highest end.
The DXR 310 is a remote control demolition robot. Let's say that again: it's a remote control demolition robot. One more time: it's a remote control demolition robot. Think about that. You could be operating this thing from your bedroom while it's out in the parking lot demolishing your landlord's car.
There's no point in us getting into any specs on the tool because a) no one who reads this site will ever be lucky enough to own one of these things and b) who cares? The only spec that you need to know is that it's a remote control demolition robot.
Husqvarna has a pretty lame video up at their site. It's mostly lame because it doesn't show the DXR 310 fighting the Predator.
Well 12-volt mania is in full swing and if a 12-volt rotary hammer doesn't convince you of that fact, we don't know what will. There are tools that are no-brainers for the whole 12-volt thing, (flashlights, multi-meters, mini drill/drivers) and then there are tools that strike us as, well, totally incompatible with the little batteries. A rotary hammer...that one falls into the second category. We did quite a double take when we first heard that Rockwell was releasing just that tool and we were happy when they sent one our way so that we could take a look.
Actually, it first needs to be clarified that, regardless of what name they want to use, Rockwell's new H3 is not a hammer drill. It's a rotary hammer. There's a big difference and it's a little strange that Rockwell went with the misnomer. Inside the H3, the impact is created through the compression of a cylinder of air, not the metal on metal mechanism of a hammer drill. Hammer drills have a better name recognition, which must be what Rockwell is thinking, although we're of the opinion that they'd be better off calling it a rotary hammer and broadcasting the fact that they managed to down-size the rotary hammer to such an extent that the tools weighs about three pounds.
But there's more to the tool than just the rotary hammer. The H3, by virtue of two different chucks, (both of which click into the SDS chuck of the tool), can also function as a drill and a driver. The tool's chuck acts just like any other SDS with the pull-back sleeve, so changing between functions is very easy. When drilling or driving, a switch on the side of the tool, toggles the motor out of rotary hammer mode and leaves you with a standard 12-volt drill.
We did some extensive testing of the H3 (a good portion of it recounted in our Popular Mechanics article on the tool) and we were surprised at how powerful the tool was. Testing it against a standard 18-volt hammer drill (again, over at the PM article), the tool was very comfortable to use and showed that it could keep up with the larger 18-volt tool in the area of power. The one drawback of the tool is how quickly the battery gets drained when it's in rotary hammer mode. On one battery, we were able to drill 9 1/2" holes on concrete, and on another battery, we drove 11 1-3/4" tapcons. These are impressive numbers for such a small tool, but when compared to the larger tool (with the larger battery), they're lacking.
As a 12-volt driver, the H3 is pretty standard and doesn't have anywhere near the power of the uber-strong Bosch PS21. It's not weak, but it just sits among the pack and not in the lead. It's also a lot heavier and bulkier than the other drivers on the market, obviously because of the added mojo for the rotary hammer. The weight is mostly up in the front of the tool, making it a bit awkward when compared to the other 12-volt drills, but that's the price you pay for having the ability to blast a hole in concrete.
The H3 costs about $180, which is a fair price for all the action that you can get out of it. We're not sure when the H3 is being released, but it should be available soon. There's no info at the Rockwell website just yet.
The latest issue of Consumer Reports delves into some home and garden items that you all might be interested in now that spring is almost here. Among other things, the magazine has rankings of the latest string trimmers and mowers and tractors.
The relevant articles are posted up online but without a password you can get the intro, but not the actual product ratings. Still, if you're in the market for one of these items, even the intros are quite helpful
Unfortunately, the tractor article doesn't rank the 1947 8N Ford Tractor, like the one we're currently tinkering around with out in the shed (pictured). Because it's an essential character in the tractor pantheon, and far outdistances any tractor made since, we'll rank it for you:
Noise: Unbelievable. Deafening. Exhaust: Smokes like a forest fire. Power: Can do anything. Badass quotient: Think Al Pacino in Scarface.
Check out the overview of the Consumer Reports Home and Garden issue here.
Our latest Popular Mechanics article is up. This time we tested out the new 12-volt Rockwell H3 Hammer Drill (it's actually a rotary hammer), against an 18-volt Hammer Drill and a corded rotary hammer. The results of the tests are actually pretty interesting, and the performance of the H3 is not what we were expecting at all. We'll leave it at that so you click through to the article.
And if you don't care to read the article, it's worth going to Popular Mechanics just to check out the new redesign. Things are looking pretty slick and it's a big improvement over what they used to have going on.
Watch for a more in-depth review of the H3 in the coming days.
RipCart - A Walk-behind Carriage for your Circular Saw
Pushing a circular saw like a lawnmower is something that most of us can only dream of. But yet, this fantasy of laziness is now reality with the RipCart.
The RipCart, a walk-behind carriage for your circular saw is, in reality, a specialized roofing tool for easy demo of roof shingles. Just strap your saw in and start a pushin'. The theory here is that if you first slice up the roof into manageable pieces, with the right prybar, they'll pop right up, saving you time and money.
There's not much more to say other than that it does seem a bit limited, pending the pitch of the roof.
The Rip Cart costs a slightly insane $500, and that's without any circular saw included. Sounds high to us for something you could cobble together with a hand truck and a roll of Gorilla tape (we're joking...please don't try to make your own RipCart at home, nothing good can come of it). Actually though, when we think about it, if you're a roofer and you use this thing two or three times, it'll probably pay for itself.
SmartManTools also sells specialized blades for the roofing application.
Tony Saucier of the DIY website Pounded Thumb has compiled 40 sites that he thinks are worth following on Twitter (and in general). The sites are ones that stand out among the crowd for any of a number of reasons. At Tony explains,
It could be sharing tips (@make_tips), sharing deals (@northerntool), or telling great stories (@ExtremelyAvg). In any event, all are worth checking out.
And in a strange twist of fate, we made the list. Thanks Tony.
Check out the other 39 for yourself over at Pounded Thumb. It's a good collection of sites, no doubt.
Our first thought after seeing the Kerry Bag was, "A bag for plywood? Ha-ha, boy that's dumb. You've got to be joking!" Then, about three hours later, we were at the lumber yard, loading up a few sheets of 1/2" CDX in the pouring rain, having second thoughts about the matter and wondering exactly who the dumb one was. Using ratchet straps to hold down a tarp is only going to get you so far.
So maybe there's something to it, and maybe not just for truck owners. The durable bags might also be useful for general shop storage as well.
From the video, it looks like getting the first sheet in is a real bear (even harder if you don't have a full-sized truck bed), but after that it seems fine. If we had one of these things, we'd just keep a sheet of 1/8" luan in it at all times to solve that problem.
Actually there are a number of Kerry Bags, for all sorts of common construction (and non-construction items, from cement bag pallets to the mattress pouch.
The plywood pouch costs about $60, which sounds like a lot, but it's less than the cost of two "ruined-by-rain" sheets of 3/4" birch ply.
The Makita died this past weekend. Friday, it worked. Sunday, nada. It was a good drill but since we got it on the eve of the big lithium-ion explosion, it always seemed a little heavy and clunky to us. It was durable though...3-1/2 years in our hands is no treat for any tool (and in it's latter days, we were particularly rough with it). There's no doubt that while we had it, it earned its keep.
But now, we're not sure as to where to go from here. Where do you guys stand? What are some of your favorite drills? Drop a comment and let us know.
We like how Milwaukee seems intent on making a 12-volt tool for every single task that anyone has ever performed on a jobsite (we can't wait for the 12-volt Bobcat/Excavator combo kit!). Their latest, the ProPEX Expansion Tool is the most specialized yet.
What the tool does is expand the end of a piece of pex in order to utilize a particular fitting which is produced by a company called Uponor. A quick internet search turned up a manual expansion tool, a corded expansion tool, an air expansion tool, and a large clunky looking 18-volt expansion tool, all produced by Uponor. It's safe to say that none of these tools are as compact and nice looking as the Milwaukee.
For a little background, we found this at PexSupply.com:
The Uponor Wirsbo Expander system is perhaps the most widely used PEX system by professionals in the US. This system makes use of the ProPEX Expander Tool ProPEX Fittings, ProPEX Rings, and PEX-a tubing. If PEX-a tubing (AquaPEX) is not used the connections will fail. This system makes strong reliable connections that have never failed in the field. The only downsides to this system are the high up-front cost of the tool, the high price of fittings, and the fact that Wirsbo only wants professionals using the tools. Wirsbo has addressed the price of fittings by coming out with engineered plastic fittings that are more cost effective. Using the tool can be a little tricky at first, and Wirsbo prefers that only professional installers use their products.
There is no pricing information or release date available yet.
If you're curious what the process is like, here's a video of someone using a manual expansion tool. It's easy to assume that Milwaukee's tool will speed this process up quite a bit.
A while back, we reviewed the new Blue Works lubricating products from the guys who brought us WD-40. We casually used them around the shop and thought they were great. As it turns out Liquid Wrench has also just released a new set of lubes and they shipped a six-pack our way so that we could get a look. We treated them the same as the Blue Works...plopped them on a shelf and used them as needed.
The new products are; lubricating oil, penetrating oil, silicone spray. dry lubricant, chain lube, and white lithium grease. Pretty much anything that a guy could ask for.
Like we said in our review of the Blue Works products, we're not Tools of the Trade, so we don't have the time or resources to set up some elaborate test where we identically rust two sets of nuts and bolts and then saturate them in two different penetrants, and then have some way of measuring the torque needed to loosen each one. No, we try to base our reviews on what 'the guy in his garage' is looking for. And in this case, the question he wants answered is, 'do they work?" We found that after cleaning up the gears of our table saw, fixing a squeaky shed door hinge, and unsticking a bad drawer slide, the answer is yes. "Did we like them?" Yes. "If we saw them in a store, would we buy them?" Yes. And honestly, the same could be said for the Blue Works products. We have no idea what the chemical difference between these two brands is, and we really don't care. And we don't think that you really do either. If you're like us, you're going to be in a store looking for a few things and you're going to think to yourself, "oh yeah, I need some spray silicone for that window that keeps sticking." You just want something that works. And the Liquid Wrench products work.
Actually, one interesting thing about the Liquid Wrench products is the marketing. Where Blue Works takes a technical attitude and have loaded their website with stats and numbers, Liquid Wrench approaches things in a more user friendly way and concentrates on educating you about the practical uses of each lube. Their website is great and after a few minutes on it, we wanted to lube up everything we own. There's a nice page that lists about 100 around the house tasks and the lube that's best suited. There are also some seasonal uses here. This doesn't reflect on the actual performance of the lubes, but it's a smart approach for the company to take.
These lubes will be about $5 a can and should be at your local Ace and Lowes, but for a full retailer list, check out the Liquid Wrench website.
We're sure you're sitting there thinking, "why the eff are these morons reviewing a leaf blower in spring?" There's an answer to that. First off, LEHR sent us this blower to review back in October (we think). At the time, we tested it out quite a bit, but it started snowing before we could get our review posted up, so we packed up the LEHR and there it sat, in the corner of the garage, for the past number of months. That is until last weekend when we decided to burn some brush.
When we first heard that Bosch was releasing another 12-volt driver, we sort of drifted off to sleep. We dreamed of a world where tool companies stopped releasing like-tool after like-tool with only minimal upgrades between versions. Then we actually saw the new tool and became convinced that this time the guys at Bosch had really gone around the bend to la-la land. There's no way around the fact that the tool looks pretty silly at first glance (it's the stubby nose that takes the cake). Thankfully though, Bosch sent us one to try out and boy did that put an end to our snooty little preconceived notions.
Our constant caveat with 12-volt drivers is that they're good, but we always want them to be more powerful. We've never understood how 14.4 drills feel closer in power to 18-volt drills than 12-volt drills feel to 14-volt drills. Still, they're handy, so we usually keep a 12-volt on us at all times, for those hard to reach areas or for light duty punch work tasks.
But back to the Bosch PS21. First off, the power out of this little tool is incredible. Not to mention that it's smaller than the competition. We were stunned when it had no problem sinking a 6" Timberlok screw into a 2x6. We tried out a few of the other 12-volt drivers we have around (including the older Bosch PS20) and the results were pathetic in comparison, they could hardly even sink the screw half way. We then used the PS21 as our primary tool building a workbench and it had no problem dealing with 3" screws. Sure, it's not as fast at a 14.4-volt, but it's getting there.
The reason for this is that Bosch has rebuilt the tool from the ground up and this new design gives you 265-in-lbs of torque, more than double that of the older PS20. The new tools also has an LED, a 2-speed drive train and a 21 position clutch. It sits very comfortably in the hand and it's only just over 5-1/2" in length.
The bottom line here is that this tool is a real triumph. Not only is it small but it reaches a level of power that we had given up on as far as 12-volt drivers are concerned. It's a giant step in the right direction for Bosch and their 12-volt line. But now, they need to follow it up and start expanding the available tools. The 12-volt drill we tend to carry around is the Milwaukee because in one bag (with one charger), we have our driver, a flashlight, a right angle drill, the Hackzall, the power portand a stereo. It's a tough sell to ask us to add another bag and battery charger to our already crammed truck box. We'll do it for this tool, because it's so impressive, but it would be nice to be able to throw a few other items in the Bosch bag.
The PS21 sells for anything from $130 (Ohio Power Tool) to $145 (Amazon).
Measuring, Marking, & Layout: A Builder's Guide - Review
Recently, Taunton Press sent us a few books to check out. One, Insulate and Weatherize, we reviewed here and now we've gotten to the second book, Measuring, Marking, & Layout: A Builder's Guide by John Carroll.
The book is sort of like having some old and experienced carpenter at your disposal (minus the coffee breath). It takes you through foundation work to floor, ceiling, and wall framing, to roofs and stairs, and then finally masonry. At each stop there is a thorough explanation of all of the layout considerations as well as extremely helpful drawings and diagrams. The book has a lot of math, particularly the roofing chapter, but in many cases, Carroll gives alternate (and more simple) methods on how to solve particular problems, which is nice if your math skills, like ours stopped developing sometime shortly after the third grade. All in all, it's a nice split between the principals of layout and the nitty-gritty hand's on stuff.
Luckily for the reader, Carroll gives "measuring, marking, and layout" a wide definition, so there is a lot of general building information included as well (things like how to straighten floor joists).
The book is successful and if you're a serious DIYer who wants to take it to the next level, this is a good place to start. For an established contractor, it's not only a good reference to have around, but there's so much information packed into the book, that there's bound to be something in here you haven't thought of.
This one is for the real mountain men out there. Not the, "look at me, I just unclogged my sink drain" DIYers, but the hardcore, "I built my house with no power tools" crowd. The shingle froe is an old colonial tool used for, among other things, making shingles. The sharp edge of the blade (the long side that faces away from the handle) gets pounded into a log, and then the handle gets leveraged down to pop off a sheet of wood. The tool can also be used in some woodworking situations, but we prefer to think of it as a Grizzly Adams item.
This particular one has got the Peavey name (American made) so it's got to be high quality. If you've ever used a Peavey log roller, you know what we're talking about.
Even though we spent about 2/3rds of the month down in the basement with a floor squeegee and a sump pump, we still had a good month. The snow is gone and we're now starting to spend some time with the garage door open. It's good stuff.
And speaking of garages, check out our review of The Garage Slab. It's a little niche magazine and worth a look-see.
We also reviewed a number of interesting items, including the very durable ToolRider GSR Suspension Rig, which get's the March Tool of the Month.
Also we have a massive pile of tools sitting on the desk, just waiting to be written about, so keep checking back in April. There are some very cool items on the way.
Bizarre Hong Kong Apartment
Continue reading: 
Newsletter
Subscribe - RSS
The Renovation Continues....