April 13, 2009
April 7, 2009
Dead On Annihilator Wrecking Bar - Review
"9 out of 10 gutless thieves prefer stealing the Annihilator over other leading wrecking bars"
So how cool is this tool? Well it's so cool that it only spent three days on the job site before some spineless, worthless, piece of doggie doo-doo stole it. Because it was sitting right next to two traditional crowbars, the theft is actually a testament to the Annihilator's curb appeal. Why grab a simple wrecking bar when you can get something that looks like it kills ghosts?
The good news is that in those three days, we gave the tool a workout and were really starting to grow fond of it. As you can see from the photo, the Annihilator has a lot going on. There's the hammer end, the nail puller, a wrench, a chisel, an axe, a stud straightener, and the always important bottle opener. It's really a one-stop destruction machine and in the fast-paced world of demo, it was nice not to have to keep switching off tools. The only way we could see improving on the Annihilator is if it was equipped with a LoJack or better yet, some kind of remote detonation device.
The Annihilator comes in two sizes; 18" and 14". The 18" is obviously the larger of the two and offers more leverage and swinging force. We unfortunately couldn't photograph this size because the one that we had is now residing in the hands of a slimy, dishonest, lazy scrap of human debris. We could photograph the 14" though and while it is definitely smaller, it can still do some serious damage. They both fit the hand nicely and unless you're a full time carpenter or a serious DIYer, the 14" will probably do you fine. It's worth noting that the jaw of the 14" model is wide enough to grab a 2x4.
As for price, the Annihilator isn't cheap, but it isn't all that expensive either (this is assuming that you're buying it and not stealing it). The 18" retails for around $40-$50 and the 14" is a bit less expensive than that. It might sound like a lot, but when compared to the $75 Fubar it's really not that bad for a high quality demo tool.
The bottom line is that if we were pilfering losers who still lived with mom, we'd probably lift this tool too. And if the asshead who now possesses the Annihilator is reading this, we honestly hope that you do something stupid and break your nose with it.
18" Annihilator at Amazon and Dead On
14" Annihilator at Dead On
April 3, 2009
Striker Mechanical Carpenter's Pencil - Review
Striker, an innovative company that we've become fans of on the merits of their magnetic LED light and their folding utility knife has just released a mechanical carpenter's pencil. The pencil uses Dura-Lead, also a Striker product, that, according to them, is "10% thicker than the average carpenter pencil lead." Dura-Lead has little grooves on one side that are specific to the mechanism of the Striker Pencil.
The Pencil is a pretty simple affair; click the top to open up the jaws and release the lead, let go of the top to close the jaws and set the lead in place. In order to test out the pencil, we just put it in our pocket and brought it to the job site for a few weeks.
Unfortunately, during that time there wasn't much that impressed us about the Striker. We found that the stick of Dura-Lead kept breaking inside the shaft, which meant that we had to constantly struggle to get these little chunks of it to stay in the jaws of the pencil. The lead also wasn't that dark and it was difficult to get anything close to a precise mark out of it. Striker says that you can rub the lead on sandpaper in order to get a point, but we found ourselves missing the ability to whip out our utility knife for a quick on-the-go sharpening.
One thing that looks good about the pencil is that the Dura-Lead comes in a variety of colors (black, red, and white). We only tested out the black, but we could see the other colors coming in handy, particularly with a tricky bit of framing layout.
After using the Striker Pencil and the C.H. Hanson Super Pencil, we're becoming convinced that improving on the good old fashioned carpenter's pencil is a pointless exercise. How can you beat something works just fine and is literally given away at any decent hardware store? The only way we'd really recommend this pencil is if you were a buck or two shy of getting free shipping at Amazon, then it's probably worth checking out.
Striker Pencil at Amazon ($2.29)
Striker Pencil with Dura-Lead Combo Pack at Amazon ($3.49)
March 27, 2009
Striker Folding Multi-Blade - Review
Striker, the company who makes the little magnetic LED that saved our rears during the power outage, has recently released a little folding utility knife that has a number of nice features to it. And even though Jude over at Toologics did a very nice review of the Striker Folding Multi-Knife, we thought we'd add our own two cents.
To us, the utility knife is one of the most essential tools in our repertoire; we keep one on us at all times and during the course of the day we're constantly using it, whether it's sharpening a pencil or cutting out a line of caulk or slicing open the plastic wrap around a new window. So for our testing of the Striker knife, we simply put the thing in our pocket and kept it there for a few weeks. Here's what we found.
We quickly discovered, as Jude did, that the handle of the knife is nice and big. Not too big for a pocket, but big enough to get a good grip on it and to feel in control when using the knife. The body of the Striker also has a belt clip which might be good for some people, but since we carry our knife in our pocket it just caught on things and got in the way. The folding action of the knife is nice and after three or four tries we got so we could both open and close it quickly and easily with one hand.
Striker has also added a nice little file up by the blade that can easily shave off that last 1/8" of drywall when necessary. This is a nice touch and using the rasp is much easier and cleaner than trying to shave the edge with the blade. The underside of the rasp can also be used as a saw for cleaning up things like the corners of an outlet box cut-out. There is also a reinforced piece of metal at the base of the knife that can be used for tapping in a nail or punching out a cut piece of drywall.
Another nice thing about the Striker is the fact that it is a folding knife with blade storage. For around the house use, this doesn't really mean much, but on a construction site, it means everything in the world. We use our knife all day long and go through blades like tissue paper, so it's always advantageous to have an extra one on hand instead of having to stop what we're doing and spend 20 minutes digging through the JoBox looking for the extra blades.
The bottom line here is that this is a very useful knife with a number of 'drywall-oriented' features, but unlike the Husky 5-in-1 drywall knife that we reviewed way back when, the additional features don't interfere with it being a great day-to-day knife as well.
The Striker Folding Multi-Blade costs about $13, which is on the high side of the more expensive utility knives. We think the Striker is a solid enough tool to warrant the price.
At Amazon
February 27, 2009
Hitachi 10.8-Volt Right Angle Impact Driver - Review
Probably the most interesting tool in Hitachi's new 10.8-volt lineup is their new right angle impact driver. We're pretty sure that this is the first right angle impact driver in any of the new micro lines of tools, which is why we were interested in checking it out and seeing how it holds up to both it's larger cousin, as well as finding out what kind of niche it can carve for itself in the world of tool functionality.
First, like Hitachi's mini-reciprocating saw, the ergonomics are off the charts. Again, the crazy Spiderman design, which we've been critical of in the past, gives it all the right bulges in all the right places (well, we never thought we'd ever write that sentence), making it a very easy tool to hold and maneuver into tight spots, which you'll likely be doing with the right angle feature.
Continue reading: "Hitachi 10.8-Volt Right Angle Impact Driver - Review"
February 23, 2009
February 19, 2009
Yaeger Aftermarket Blades for the Fein MultiMaster - Review
UPDATE: Yaeger Blades is now Liberate Blades. More info here.
The Achilles heel of the Fein MultiMaster (our review here) is, without question, price. The full set-up of the tool, a handful of blades, and the dust collection system is going to run you close to $400. Although the MultiMaster is one of our favorite tools and we think that the cost is worth it, given what the tool is capable of, we're bargain hunters just like anyone else. Which is where the Yaeger Aftermarket Blades come in.
Continue reading: "Yaeger Aftermarket Blades for the Fein MultiMaster - Review"
February 18, 2009
Fine Woodworking - April 2009
Way back when we started the site, we used to review all of the woodworking/construction magazines we got. It was sort of a tedious affair and after we solicited your opinion on the matter, we discovered that you enjoyed reading them about as much as we enjoyed writing them. But still, when we get something we're impressed with, we like to let you know about it. And this month's Fine Woodworking is just such an issue.
A lot of the content of Fine Woodworking lands way above our heads. We don't have the time to spend a day tuning up a block plane or the patience to make a massive table saw jig for just one cut (for a piece of furniture that we don't have the skill to make). But this latest issue, while filled with a lot of expert-level ideas and procedures, also has a number of great articles for anyone interested in tinkering around in the garage or basement shop.
The issue includes...
Continue reading: "Fine Woodworking - April 2009"
February 17, 2009
February 16, 2009
Expedition Tools HK1 Hydrokinetic Wrench - Review
The HK1 Hydrokinetic Wrench is one of the more innovative items we've come across in quite a while. It's one of those tools where it seems like the manufacturer rethought the whole concept from the ground up. In it's most simple terms, the HK1 is an adjustable box-end wrench. But when you think through the idea a bit deeper, this little guy is capable of replacing a good chunk of your metric wrench set (7 to 19mm) as well as your SAE set (1/4 to 3/4").
Continue reading: "Expedition Tools HK1 Hydrokinetic Wrench - Review"
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Megapro 13-in-1 Ratcheting Screwdriver - Review
