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Old 28th Jan 2018, 12:21 pm   #1
Sparks
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Default What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

For me it's a set of 'Archer' small swivel-head screwdrivers I bought from Tandy nearly thirty years ago. Holidays notwithstanding there has scarcely been a week in all that time I haven't used them. So well made and still in their original plastic case. I would hate not to have them.

I also have some similar style miniature spanners and nut runners which I think I bought from Greenweld more recently.
They don't see as much use as the screwdrivers but they're jolly handy for small fiddly jobs.
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 12:53 pm   #2
TrevorG3VLF
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

Knife, fork and spoon.
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 1:09 pm   #3
mike_newcomb
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

Hi,
some photos here would be nice to see, particularly from Sparks.
Regards - Mike
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 1:15 pm   #4
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

My Dads electric drill which weighs a ton which has a metal case , and dates from about the mid 50s.
Its probably dangerous by today's standards but I still use it on occasion.
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 1:31 pm   #5
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

Oh, so many....

I guess I should put the Myford Super 7 lathe and accessories top of the list, if only because I could use it to make a screwdriver, spanners, etc. Not that I do, but it is still a very useful tool for making parts for old radios, tape recorders, computers, etc.

For hand tools, I guess the Xcellite System 99 set. I have just about everything they make apart from the ball-ended hexagon keys (I do have the imperial ones).

Or the Swiss set of watchmaker's screwdrivers that I use for precision work. And a slightly larger set made by Moore and Wright which I inherited from my late father.

For small spanners I have Elora (=upmarket Draper, of course) in imperial, metric and BA sizes.

Should I include the Weller TCP iron?
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 1:33 pm   #6
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

Pictures as requested.
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 3:10 pm   #7
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

Given that my eyes have stopped focusing (fine at infinity) and have no other problems, a number of reading glasses of varying strength. Using those I can make anything else I need with 'household articles'.

An example... Out to dinner at friends, he mentioned the TV wasn't working (a 12" BW set that hadn't been used for months, a radio 4 family), I fixed it using a grotty screwdriver, gas stove and a bit of solder splash left by the plumber, it was a dry joint on the LOPT. Couldn't do that with a lathe!
 
Old 28th Jan 2018, 3:47 pm   #8
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

Apart from a pair of hands [coupled to what remains of a brain] ...... it's got to be a medium-sized fine-bladed screw driver, closely followed by a decent multi meter, and of course a soldering iron .......................
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 4:09 pm   #9
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

By far the most used tools I have ever bought which I got with an Amazon birthday voucher from work: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000X1R2K2/ . Tend to standardise on Wera tools after buying that set and have purchased some micro screwdrivers ( https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B009ODV0PI/ ) since. Will be purchasing some metric sockets this year for car maintenance as well. They will pay for themselves over my lifetime easily.

I did have Xcelite hand tools before this but while really good, they start to stink after a few years due to the plastic they use and aren't easy to get hold of in the UK. I've only kept the nut runner set as they're handy for poking around inside Tek scopes (this one: https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/screw...-sets/0538836/ )

That and the recent purchase of a Keysight U1241C ( https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/digit...eters/9064154/ )

You just can't lose buying quality tools.
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 4:38 pm   #10
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

This AFU wire stripping tool - uses some kind of witchcraft to determine the difference between wire and insulation......wondrous!
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 4:43 pm   #11
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

My set of Xcelite deep nut-runners/screwdrivers [and yes MrBungle, the plastic used for the yellow transparent handle stinks like a well-matured cat-litter tray].

That and my ex-BT set of Lindstrom side-cutters. I've also got a nice little Kamasa quarter-inch-drive socket/splined-bit set in US sizes which is great for working on things like AR88s.
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 5:09 pm   #12
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Quote:
uses some kind of witchcraft to determine the difference between wire and insulation
Obviously, that is where all the magic smoke goes.
 
Old 28th Jan 2018, 8:04 pm   #13
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

It used to be a neon screwdriver but (current safety practice) probably now politically incorrect.

I don't think I can put it down to any single (or few) tools. Obviously a multimeter and soldering iron, but really the product of my lifetime's collection of various tools, such that I have a tool for any requirement.
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 8:35 pm   #14
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

My Swann Morton scalpel handle & packs of No:11 & 12 blades !

Even in today's technology, they are still "Cutting Edge" ...I'll get me coat.......
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Old 28th Jan 2018, 8:43 pm   #15
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

Like Mr. Bungle (post #9), I like Wiha tools. I will not part with my set of precision screwdrivers, model # 26197. Not cheap, but very nice.
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Old 29th Jan 2018, 1:19 am   #16
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

Quote:
Originally Posted by ionburn View Post
It used to be a neon screwdriver but (current safety practice) probably now politically incorrect.
Are they really? I rely on mine from time to time and always test it on a guaranteed 'live' before I use it!
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Old 29th Jan 2018, 8:37 am   #17
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

I don’t have anything special for radios just basic tools but my favorite tool is an EKCO screwdriver and I couldn’t do without my croc clip test leads.

John
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Old 29th Jan 2018, 8:58 am   #18
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

A great big 'ammer for repairing radio !
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Old 29th Jan 2018, 10:12 am   #19
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

My wife.

When I can't find something, I send her in (her success rate is around 98%).
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Old 29th Jan 2018, 10:26 am   #20
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Default Re: What tool or set of tools would you not be without ?

The little Vitrex wire-stripper, one of the cheapest and simplest tools I've ever acquired, bought as a discounted clearance item from the "rubbish tools" section of the late lamented Woolworths a good 30 years ago. Fits instinctively to hand with index finger sliding between the handles to set cutting depth, working quickly with a wide span of thicknesses and even works really well with PTFE insulation. On recommendation, I subsequently acquired pricey US Stripmaster and Ideal T-Stripper for benchwork- both very good but the handy Vitrex goes around everywhere to sites and has been a boon in "we need a <this> to <that> lead- now!" situations. It invariably attracts derision when it appears- but has the last laugh.
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