Hello out there. My name is Dustin and I found this forum via the RockAuto newsletter. So far, I like what I see.
I'm a chemist by education and metal-finishing engineer by career. I've worked for a couple of tool makers (Danaher/Apex Tool Group and Stanley Black & Decker). At Danaher/Apex, I ran the plating operations for the socket factory, where our primary product was Craftsman, along with NAPA and several others. Alas, as Craftsman moved more of their operations overseas, my plant in Gastonia, NC closed down. Unfortunately, part of my job at that time was qualifying the tools coming from "sister" sites, primarily the overseas ones, I was partially responsible for the plant closure. I also worked for Stanley Black & Decker in Dallas as the manager for the wrench line and metal finishing operations. We made Proto, Mac, and Blackhawk tools there. While there, I was a key member of the Axis ratchet (high-tooth count) launch team, among other things. Scattered throughout my career I've made Titleist golf clubs, multi-thousand-dollar bathroom fixtures, Kwikset and other locksets, Moen kitchen and bath fixtures, and now I'm making aerospace parts.
I got my start in the garage as a toddler. My grandfather was an auto/diesel mechanic who went to trade school on his GI Bill after serving in the Navy during the Korean War. I deny it, but they claim that whenever he went under his motorhome on a creeper, I put my toy motorhome across a set of ramps and crawled under it. I learned to read fractional (1/2", 3/4", 5/8", etc) wrenches and sockets before I knew what a fraction was. He's a bit too old to crawl under a car now, but he still has a plethora of knowledge that I use whenever I need to work on a car. I do a bit of DIY housework and such. I own a fair bit of Craftsman, DeWalt, Porter Cable, and Milwaukee tools.
