Garage Gazette
TOOLS AND THE SHOP => MECHANIC HAND TOOLS WE USE => Topic started by: jim m on August 30, 2020, 12:44:35 AM
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Several years ago I built a rack to store all my what I call Specialty Sockets.I sorted all of the Sockets and put them on Socket Rails. Then I bolted all of then to a piece of hard Board. It worked really well. But now there has been so much added. I have started another Drawer. It's time to reconfigure so to start I'm switching crows feet to snap on holders.
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Sorry about the blurry pic
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Well done. Looks very usable.
The crowsfoot holders are really useful. Too bad they only are made in 3/8.
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Nice work; I'm in the same boat. Organized everything a few years ago, but since that time I've added to the drawer and it's now overfilled. Time for a re-do.
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Man, that's alot of specialty sockets! :-\
Any trick to make the work easier and get the job done. :great:
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most of mine are in a separate drawer unless they are 1/4 drive. then they are in my 1/4 drive drawer.
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most of mine are in a separate drawer unless they are 1/4 drive. then they are in my 1/4 drive drawer.
Sounds like the rules of spelling in English.
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since I am mostly retired now, I moved all my metric that I haven't gotten rid of to one drawer, all my 1/2 to another drawer, keep all my 3/8s in the top of my top box, and specialty and 1/4 are in the boxes they came in. I like it much better now.
I think I use nut drivers the most at this point.
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Great job. My socket drawer at work is starting to get cluttered it time to start thinking about reorganizing or maybe a bigger box.....
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Great job. My socket drawer at work is starting to get cluttered it time to start thinking about reorganizing or maybe a bigger box.....
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did someone say bigger box >:D
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Great job. My socket drawer at work is starting to get cluttered it time to start thinking about reorganizing or maybe a bigger box.....
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did someone say bigger box >:D
I did.... Refund time might be visit Fatman time.....
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Man, that's alot of specialty sockets! :-\
Any trick to make the work easier and get the job done. :great:
Just keeping like sockets together. Metric to the right Standard to the left. I really don't have full sets of any thing. almost every thing I have is used. I used to buy lots or whole tool boxes of tools. This has opened up a new problem. I was getting all the 1/4 Chrome swivels together and found what appears to be a snap on mid length. Great some thing else to complete.
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I keep anything Metric in a separate top box and mid box. Most all specialty tools like brake tools, timing lights etc all go into another separate box, all standard tools go in my main box, although these days I find I dig more and more tools out of my Metric box instead of my standard box. I keep all of my drives stored separately, IE all 1/4" is in one drawer, all 3/8" sockets in another drawer, too many 3/8" sockets to store 3/8" drive tools in the same drawer as the sockets so the 3?8" drive tools get their own drawer right above the 3/8" sockets. All my 1/2" sockets and drive tools are in the very top of my main box stored together.
You probably do not have the room to do the separate box thing though I suspect. Here is a great suggestion for crow foot sockets. For 3/8" drive crows buy the Snap on two piece crowfoot holders. They are super for saving space in your box and even better they are not costly. I have a set of 1/2" crows as well and to store them in a compact way I took a piece of 1/2" key stock, slid all of my crows on the key stock and once I knew the length I needed I cut the key stock to the length I needed and left just enough extra to cross drill each end of the key stock and shoved a spring keeper that is easily removed by hand in each end. It keeps the crows stored nice and compact. I am always looking for ways to save room in drawers and this was one great solution.
OOPS, I JUST NOTICED THAT YOU ALREADY HAVE THE 3/8" CROW HOLDERS! COOL!
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Man, that's alot of specialty sockets! :-\
Any trick to make the work easier and get the job done. :great:
Just keeping like sockets together. Metric to the right Standard to the left. I really don't have full sets of any thing. almost every thing I have is used. I used to buy lots or whole tool boxes of tools. This has opened up a new problem. I was getting all the 1/4 Chrome swivels together and found what appears to be a snap on mid length. Great some thing else to complete.
Yup, SO used to sell mid lengths, I do not know if they still do. Back in the 1990's Sears also sold mid lenghts for a short time and I bought sets of both SAE and Metric. Every once in a while they do come in handy.
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SO still makes mid lengths.
UB, I thought about you and Cman middies a while back. I got a full set of 3/8 SAE cman mids in a box lot a while back. First time I ever got a complete set. Rarely see them in Cman. I am thinking it was you years ago that introduced me to them. Haven't decided whether to sell them or keep them :))
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Both Snap-on and Matco make mid length. I believe Mac does to but I don't have a dealer to confirm this.
Sent from the twisted mind of the Mudman
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SO still makes mid lengths.
UB, I thought about you and Cman middies a while back. I got a full set of 3/8 SAE cman mids in a box lot a while back. First time I ever got a complete set. Rarely see them in Cman. I am thinking it was you years ago that introduced me to them. Haven't decided whether to sell them or keep them :))
About the last 10-15 years that Sears was still an option for new tools I used to pay close attention to anything new in their catalogs that was specialty or unusual. Previous experience with Sears tools taught me that if something a little offbeat for Sears like the mid length sets showed up in their tool lineup and I wanted them I tried to buy them son sfter seeing them because chances were, those tools would disappear after maybe a year. Sure enough that was what happened with the mid deep sets.
I miss getting the Craftsman catalogs every year. For me, their old USA made tools were the cornerstone of my tools. Odd stuff they did not sell I found elsewhere, but literally, I really knew what was in their tool catalogs almost front to back. I would not care anymore though as once they off shored their tool line I stopped buying Craftsman tools.
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I missed out on the Craftsman mid-length sets many years ago, but when I started to work more in confined vehicle engine compartments I realized that a metric set was needed. Gearwrench makes a very complete and reasonably priced set. It's an import, but the quality is there and the chrome is flawless.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00829RMAM?tag=pixmatrix96396-20&linkCode=osi&th=1&psc=1
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I have that Gearwrench set and it is nice.
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Both Snap-on and Matco make mid length. I believe Mac does to but I don't have a dealer to confirm this.
Sent from the twisted mind of the Mudman
Tim, -- would you know if the MATCO set is made in the US, or is an import?
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Both Snap-on and Matco make mid length. I believe Mac does to but I don't have a dealer to confirm this.
Sent from the twisted mind of the Mudman
Tim, -- would you know if the MATCO set is made in the US, or is an import?
My set is USA made. I believe they still are, but I'd have to check to be double sure as I bought mine quite a few years ago.
Sent from the twisted mind of the Mudman
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Both Snap-on and Matco make mid length. I believe Mac does to but I don't have a dealer to confirm this.
Sent from the twisted mind of the Mudman
Tim, -- would you know if the MATCO set is made in the US, or is an import?
My set is USA made. I believe they still are, but I'd have to check to be double sure as I bought mine quite a few years ago.
Sent from the twisted mind of the Mudman
Thanks -- that probably was during the Danaher years then. These days Apex Group is global and they probably source from everywhere.
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Yes MAC does have semi deep and so does Gear Wrench, your best bang for the buck is Gear Wrench because Apex tool group is now owned by Bain capital which is strictly an investment company and Apex tool group own's Matco, Lisle, KD, Gear Wrench, Sunex and OTC and the afore mentioned are all made in Taiwan and rebranded for Matco. :hee20hee20hee:
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I have an old set of Craftsman semi-deep metric sockets that have served me well. I recently added a Gearwrench set of SAE semi-deeps that are working out quite nicely.