# Tool of the Day



## pontiac428 (Jun 9, 2020)

I thought I'd start a new community contribution thread.  Many of us enjoy the other "of the day" threads, but we don't have one for tools that we think are interesting or unique.  The rules are you have to post a photo and a description of a tool you have.  That's it, it can be any kind of tool from a drill bit to hand tool to a machine.  I'm going to post a few to get started and see if it takes off.

First up is my first machine shop tool.  Kind of like a kid's first BB gun, the tri-knife deburring tool is a helpful little buddy that can out-work a whirly tool in the right hands.



Next is a leetle friend from Germany.  It's a two-finger ratchet that accepts 1/4" driver bits.  Being reversible is nice.  Good for tight fasteners in small spaces.  The photos do it no justice, this ratchet is a midget.



My last tool of the day is what I call my set of "JDM screwdrivers" for working on cars (and other things) from the Japanese Domestic Market.  Officially, they are called JIS screwdrivers, cross tip, #00 through #2.  I used to fear touching any cross-slot fastener from Japan because I knew I had a better than likely chance of destroying the slot.  I've learned all kinds of extraction tricks for JDM screws.  Well, the fear is gone and so are the extractions now that I have the right tool for the job!


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## darkzero (Jun 9, 2020)

I'm a tool junkie so I'll play.....

All my full size JIS screwdrivers are Vessel but I also have their smaller ones too. I use them so much I bought an extra set, one for the shop, the other to keep in my room.




While on screwdrivers. Love these coin slot & faucet slot drivers by Anex. I mostly use them with the Anex mini handles but when I need more grip I use them with Vessel stubby handles (which also came with JIS bits).








Continuing on with Japanese market tools. The Engineer screw gripping pliers are awsome. Although mine came from Japan can get them through Amazon US. Vamplier also sells them here which are red in color & are also made by Engineer.




Engineer scissors are awesome too.




My stubby adjustables. The thin jaw ones are very handy.





And since you mentioned it, love the 1/4" hex ratchets. My Wiha set came with one & with an adapter for 4mm hex bits. The one below it is a Wera which is my favorite, came with a 1/4" hex to 1/4" square drive adapter for it too.



(Sorry, guess I got a little carried away   )


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## francist (Jun 9, 2020)

Here’s a devilishly clever little gem from my pliers drawer. Apparently a reproduction of an earlier Victorian-era design, these little pincers make surprisingly easy work of pulling tacks and small nails.




The sharpened jaws sneak under the nail head and the bow-shaped thumb lever exerts more gripping pressure the harder you pull back on the handle. Looks kind of cheesy but works killer.




And another version of screw pliers, but Will already beat me to it...






-frank


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## Hawkeye (Jun 9, 2020)

The number of times I wished I had a thinner wrench...

I got a whole whack of tools when I bought the Storebro Bruk lathe. This is one of my favourites. It's metric, so it doesn't see much use. My best guess is that you set it up as a Go/No Go gauge for production runs.


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## francist (Jun 9, 2020)

Don’t know that much about this set other than it probably belonged to one of my grandfathers, maybe from the Model A. My Dad had it although I never saw him use it that I can remember.




It’s a “Tomahawk“ ratchet set, maybe one of the first, and it’s pretty clever. Only ratchets in one direction, so to get it to go the other way you just push the little hex stub through to the other side of the wrench! Made in the US, it’s good quality steel and extremely positive action.










-frank


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## Mike_Mac (Jun 10, 2020)

I have a few hand tools that puzzle me as to what they are for. I have kept them over the years as I don't like throwing good stuff away if it is still possibly useful. I will attempt to take some photos today and post them for others thoughts.


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## darkzero (Jun 10, 2020)

Not really unique I guess but perhaps uncommon in a hobby shop? Spindle/taper wipers. These things are expensive new, found them new on ebay for cheap. I also have them in MT2 & MT5 in a drawer somewhere, not sure why I even got the MT5.

I don't like to stick my fingers in holes. Uh, that didn't come out right! I mean in mystery holes. Uh I mean in holes where they don't belong. Ok yeah.... I'll just stop now.


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## Mike_Mac (Jun 10, 2020)

What do you think this 'Speetol' tool is for?
It is some sort of clamp.
It has been hanging up on my workshop wall for years.


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## mmcmdl (Jun 10, 2020)

Can I play along ?


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## pontiac428 (Jun 10, 2020)

mmcmdl said:


> Can I play along ?



It's a public thread, so please join the fun!


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## westerner (Jun 10, 2020)

mmcmdl said:


> Can I play along ?


I can not wait. You sure you got enough film in your camera?


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## pontiac428 (Jun 10, 2020)

Okay, it's a new day!  I came up with a couple more:

Jonard screw starters.  These little tools are guaranteed to lower blood pressure 10 points and reduce alcohol consumption by half.



Coincidentally also from the Jonard catalog are these spring sets.  Good for installing, removing, and adjusting of springs... Whenever you see mechanicals that look like the inside of a Sony Walkman or a disk drive, these are the tools you'd use to set the springs.



My last tool of the day is a real aha! find for me.  I've always used crappy import dental picks that are too fat at the points, hard to hold, and made of metal as soft as cheddar cheese.  That's one on top.  I finally had an opportunity to get my hands on some real deal dental hardware while the dentist was distracted.  This stuff is nice.  Made in USA, hardened 440 stainless tools swaged into big, grippy barrels.  They're great tools, so if you have a chance, snag some from your dentist.  It's hard to feel guilty when you see how much they bill your insurance.


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## darkzero (Jun 10, 2020)

I think I posted I posted this in the What Did You Buy Today thread when I got it. I only learned about these last year so it's unique to me. Oring gauge for sizing orings. Never knew these existed & would have saved me headaches many times over. There are also cone shaped type gauges but they are limited in size range & can take up a lot of space. This thing actually works quite well & covers up to much larger sizes than I'll ever need.

The end has slots for determining thickness. Loop the oring on the appropiate ears, extend the gauge out until the sides of the oring pulls parallel then read the size indicated.


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## francist (Jun 10, 2020)

Pair of Starrett plumb bobs — would you call that a “brace of bobs” 




Both steel and about 5-1/2” long, the one on the right weighs in at 283 grams, the one on the left 330 grams. And the extra weight isn’t because of the line. The hollow body is threaded with a plug about halfway down, and below the plug is the compartment filled with liquid mercury. You can feel it slosh back and forth when you rock the bob, and I always imagine if James Bond ever needed a plumb bob it would be the one with a secret pocket full of mercury!




-frank


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## Hawkeye (Jun 11, 2020)

Mike_Mac said:


> What do you think this 'Speetol' tool is for?
> It is some sort of clamp.
> It has been hanging up on my workshop wall for years.
> 
> ...


Closest thing I've got to that is a set of clamps for holding two sheets of metal together for welding. the thin strip gives the sheets about the right gap for penetration. Yours looks like ir could do the same for curved pieces. Can the bladed part be taken out of the body?


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## Mike_Mac (Jun 11, 2020)

Hawkeye said:


> Closest thing I've got to that is a set of clamps for holding two sheets of metal together for welding.


Yes, I also have got those type of clamps. I don't think the bladed part can be removed? I will have another look at the tool today. Mike


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## pontiac428 (Jun 11, 2020)

Mike_Mac said:


> Yes, I also have got those type of clamps. I don't think the bladed part can be removed? I will have another look at the tool today. Mike


I think that is a butt joint clamp for 90 degree joints.  If it doesn't come apart, then you would have to move it as you go.  It may not be useful for a 6" joint, but it sure would help when trying to keep a 3' joint aligned!


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## gr8legs (Jun 13, 2020)

Rainy day in Oregon so no outdoor projects - here are my TOTD contributions in the 'hand grinder' class:

This is a 'Dental Engine" used by denturists. Belt driven from a motor unit, incredibly handy and much better than a Dremel, Foredom  or other hand held grinding tool as you can use it like a pencil and get your hand/fingers really close to the business end - almost like using a 'grinding pencil'.




And a closer view of the 'user interface'
	

		
			
		

		
	




I also have a small electrically driven manicurist's grinder that is slightly more awkward to use and grossly underpowered - found on eBay for about 30 bucks:



Both use the same 3/32" shaft grinding and sanding burrs:


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## hman (Jun 13, 2020)

Durn!  I can recall the first couple of times I went to a dentist as a kid.  He had one of those belt driven "drills."  Fantastic set of articulated joints.

As for "rainy day in Oregon," that's almost a redundancy (sez a former resident of Corvallis) ;~)


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## Firstram (Jun 13, 2020)

My first Dentist's office still had belt driven drills as well.


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## Dhal22 (Jun 13, 2020)

francist said:


> Pair of Starrett plumb bobs — would you call that a “brace of bobs”
> 
> View attachment 327305
> 
> ...





Those were THE plumb bob before lasers.   The sloshing mercury would stop a swaying plumb in a moment.


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## Hawkeye (Jun 13, 2020)

I still remember those horrid dental drills. They were so slow the vibration was painful. If I found one at a garage sale, I'd grab it.

One dental item I had, up until my house fire, was the reflector light. I had modified it to use a halogen tube (250 W, IIRC). The glass reflector sent all the heat out the back and didn't send any down on your head. Very handy for fine work.


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## gr8legs (Jun 14, 2020)

Hawkeye said:


> I still remember those horrid dental drills. They were so slow the vibration was painful. If I found one at a garage sale, I'd grab it.
> 
> One dental item I had, up until my house fire, was the reflector light. I had modified it to use a halogen tube (250 W, IIRC). The glass reflector sent all the heat out the back and didn't send any down on your head. Very handy for fine work.



Yeah, my first dental experience was with those and it was miserable.

Then my dentist got the Williams air turbine but used it only for the 'rough in' drilling, shifting back to the low speed belt drive he was more comfortable with for the 'finishing touches'. Always a relief when he swung that baby away meaning he was done drilling.

And I have a dental reflector light or three - two in the craft room above the sewing machines and one I don't have room for in the workshop - yet. Definitely a good light source for fine work!

Stu

We decorated the house in 'art medico-dental' and one of the living room chairs is a 40's vintage Ritter dental chair. Remarkably comfortable / adjustable if you disregard the first time you sat in one!


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## Bi11Hudson (Jun 14, 2020)

I do mostly model building and electronics so don't expect anyone to recognise more than about half of what's here. This is just the model building bench, there are the parts bins, the "machine shops", the "mechanic shops", the carpentry and cabinet shops, et al. Plus my model trains. . . Essentially the whole house is full. I don't lay claim to being a "master" of anything, except possibly electrician 40 years back.

Materials worked with are mostly small, 0.015 to 0.050 music wire, 0.013 and 0.006 brass shim stock, 0.025 styrene sheet, and appropriately sized "structural shapes" in brass. Dead center of the photo is a 6" pair of pliers to give scale to many of the items. At the bottom, slightly left of center, between the yellow can of soldering flux and an orange bottle of glue are racks for small screwdrivers and for taps. The taps can only be seen clearly if the photo is enlarged waayyy up. Size 2/0-90 to 4-48. . .

Oh, and the o'scope to the lower right. It ain't much, I hope you can see it.


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## Dhal22 (Jun 14, 2020)

Bi11Hudson said:


> View attachment 327695
> 
> 
> I do mostly model building and electronics so don't expect anyone to recognise more than about half of what's here. This is just the model building bench, there are the parts bins, the "machine shops", the "mechanic shops", the carpentry and cabinet shops, et al. Plus my model trains. . . Essentially the whole house is full. I don't lay claim to being a "master" of anything, except possibly electrician 40 years back.
> ...




I mostly build models as well,  models that fly.   Here is a view of my Byrne's sander and mini table saw.   Both very accurate and well made.


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## hman (Jun 14, 2020)

Let's see ... Plastruct (and other) solvent cement, CA glue, several R/C servos, Stay Clean flux, PC board edge connectors, heat shrink tubing, dental mirror, hemostats, an Xacto razor saw...  

Yup!  Got me some o' them same goodies, myself.


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