What Did You Buy Today?

[SouthernChap]

Look at the Knipex circlip pliers. They angle the pins to retain the circlip when under tension. Clever Germans are clever.

Good call. I have a couple of pairs of knipex wire snippers and they're excellent.

 

[ChazzC]

Multiple big vendors must have shipping deals with eBay. I think eBay is trying to steer the business their way. I bought a Dake 10T benchtop hydraulic press from Grainger, through their eBay store. Free fright through eBay...

Can frequently find items ON MSC’s eBay store with free shipping and selling for less than on MSC’s website.

 

[Dhal22]

View attachment 503149
5HP RPC, floor model. I also bought a 12-gauge 240VAC extension cord with the correct 20-amp 240VAC no-neutral plug, given that the neutral is not needed for an RPC. I'll cut off the receptacle and hard-wire it into the above. And I included a twist-lock 3-phase receptacle to put on the box (they have a place for it) and a plug to go on the new Bridgeport mill wiring. If a machine plugs in, a disconnect panel is not required. I'll plug this into a 20-amp 240VAC receptacle that I will mount adjacent to the 30-amp receptacle I use for my 3-HP single-phase table saw.

After talking with them on the phone, I decided to buy it from their ebay store, which offered free shipping (a $109 savings).

This should happily sit on the floor next to the mill.

Rick "can't find a drop-bed trailer to rent--will have to make it work with a tilt-bed trailer despite the higher stress level" Denney

I built a ‘doghouse’ structure outside of my warehouse for my rotary phase motor. Zero motor noise but DON’T forget to turn it off when you leave.

 

[Shiseiji]

Commonly known as a " Fitzall wrench " , They should be outlawed !

When I taught bicycle maintenance I told my students they were "automatic nut rounders".

 

[Shiseiji]

A bunch of more or less specialty pliers from Japan

Been very happy with mine. Now I have more on the list.

 

[GrifterGuru]

When I taught bicycle maintenance I told my students they were "automatic nut rounders".

Any spanner can be an automatic nut rounder and to be fair, in the right hands, a correctly used adjustable spanner, used by the right person is often better than the proper sized spanner.

I have never had an issue using an adjustable and never once rounded a nut or bolt head with one. Then again, I always ensure the thing is adjusted properly in the first place by "tweaking" the worm to ensure the jaws are tight against the nut/bolt head and there is no movement in the live jaw and that it is facing in the correct direction depending on whether tightening or loosening.

 

[Shiseiji]

Any spanner can be an automatic nut rounder and to be fair, in the right hands, a correctly used adjustable spanner, used by the right person is often better than the proper sized spanner.

I have never had an issue using an adjustable and never once rounded a nut or bolt head with one. Then again, I always ensure the thing is adjusted properly in the first place by "tweaking" the worm to ensure the jaws are tight against the nut/bolt head and there is no movement in the live jaw and that it is facing in the correct direction depending on whether tightening or loosening.

I tried to give quick context. More detail than you probably care about.

Probably half my students had to be reminded "righty-tighty" and the remark was part of "use a box end wrench if you can while you are learning" but if an adjustable is what you have, then remember if not used properly, it's an automatic nut rounder.

Among the various things I would say in the beginning was that I'd been turning wrenches most of my life. I don't know what you do for a living, but I doubt I could do it. So please, there are no dumb questions, and if my response doesn't make sense, please tell me and I'm happy to try to find one that does make sense to you. I tried hard not to come across like a jerk and talk down, and not project what I know as something "anyone should know."

I had one known complaint in over 100 classes of 2 - 6 people. And honestly all the student demonstrated with the complaint was they had failed to ask questions about something they clearly didn't understand and didn't ask for a different explanation. I just gave them a refund out of my pocket, the classes were at a bicycle co-op, I earned nothing, and an invite to take the class again at no charge. Never saw them again. I really wish I could still be teaching, I miss it a lot.

 

[GrifterGuru]

Probably half my students had to be reminded "righty-tighty" and the remark was part of "use a box end wrench if you can while you are learning" but if an adjustable is what you have, then remember if not used properly, it's an automatic nut rounder.

And that is why context matters. If that had been what you said originally, I would have agreed.

 

[Larry$]

I really wish I could still be teaching, I miss it a lot.

I helped teach basic woodworking at a community college, adult night class. About 3/4 of the students were female and really wanted to learn.
I enjoyed doing it, sure wasn't for the pay! I was hired because there were more students than the retired art teacher could handle.

 

[rwdenney]

I built a ‘doghouse’ structure outside of my warehouse for my rotary phase motor. Zero motor noise but DON’T forget to turn it off when you leave.

I considered that but I'm not Keith Rucker and am anticipating only one machine with a three-phase motor. I've wanted a lathe and a mill for a long time but have never had the same hankering for some of the other big machines (like a surface grinder or a horizontal boring mill), so I bought this RPC to support just the single machine. (My South Bend lathe has a 2-HP single-phase motor, and my cabinet saw has also has a single-phase motor--none of my other machines exceed 1 HP and they are all single-phase). The additional noise it makes won't add much to the mill itself, particularly when its cutting. And putting it adjacent to the machine means that turning it on and off will be a routine part of using the machine.

But if my plans and needs change in the future, I suspect I'd get a good chunk of my money back from this RPC if I need to sell it on in the future.

My air compressor is "out back" and I nearly always forget to turn it off when I leave the shop.

Rick "needs an exit checklist, apparently" Denney