Is a torque wrench really necessary ?

[Profpointy]

Looks just like the one we used to use, although we didn't have a grip on the handle.

Typical Snap-on, give it a wipe and it shines like a surgical instrument.

A mate of mine used to work as a motor mechanic and he commented that the shiny chrome surfaces were slippery with greasy hands. His then favourite were Britool. That said modern Britool is a pale shadow of the older ones as it's now Facom's cheap and nasty brand. I always liked the older Britool stuff and have quite a lot and it seems great - but I'm merely a gentleman-dabbler.
I have some snap-on too which I've picked up from time to time on fleabay.

 

[Pale Rider]

I detect the onset of a wall peeing contest.
The Beta cabinets stay in the house because they are full of metrology equipment as I don't heat my workshop in the winter. I use Lista in the workshop, they are the boss of all cabinets.
I have some more torque control gear but it's sat in storage back in blight. View attachment 507262
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Those Beta cabinets look smart.

I like the idea of the top one being not quite as deep as the roll cab.

The ledge it creates is dead handy when you are changing a few tools on a job.

A mate of mine used to work as a motor mechanic and he commented that the shiny chrome surfaces were slippery with greasy hands. His then favourite were Britool. That said modern Britool is a pale shadow of the older ones as it's now Facom's cheap and nasty brand. I always liked the older Britool stuff and have quite a lot and it seems great - but I'm merely a gentleman-dabbler.
I have some snap-on too which I've picked up from time to time on fleabay.

I have some older Britool because I couldn't afford all the spanners I wanted in Snap-on.

Acceptable quality for my light workshop use at the time, although they still felt and looked a bit clunky compared to Snap-on, particularly the spanners.

I've not had a problem with any chrome tool slipping, although I always had an industrial wipe to hand.

Those things could be hazardous.

They were used in different trades and laundered before being delivered to us in a plastic sack.

Occasionally I would grab one out of the sack that had a piece of swarf stuck to it.

A little blood and a lot of swearing followed.

 

[randynewmanscat]

I like the idea of the top one being not quite as deep as the roll cab.

The ledge it creates is dead handy when you are changing a few tools on a job.

Super well spotted! Yes it is very handy when changing out bits or wotnot. They originally served as tool cabinets and I was going to fit a piece of Beech worktop into the well on the top and thought better of it, no ledge.

 

[randynewmanscat]

Buck & Hickmans Roebuck range of tools is a mixed bag of value. Ebay can be a good source of new overstock or auction clearance stuff, the socketry, spannering and driver tools are generally Spanish made, usually by Palmera. Avoid drillbits from them. I have a roll of wrenches from the 70's by them and still use them, they are well polished, accurate in jaw width and very durable.

 

[randynewmanscat]

I've not had a problem with any chrome tool slipping, although I always had an industrial wipe to hand.

You point out the difference between patient workshop practice and bodge it and scarper.

 

[Pale Rider]

Super well spotted! Yes it is very handy when changing out bits or wotnot.

It's small things like that which can make all the difference during a working day.

I suppose it's the professional mechanic's equivalent of marginal gains.

You point out the difference between patient workshop practice and bodge it and scarper.

I was lucky to be taught how to operate in a garage by time served mechanics.

It is all these small things - like your tool ledge - that differentiate the professional from the home bodger.

Going back to budget tools, I have some Kamasa spanners and a small socket set.

Decent, but once again not as nice to use as Snap-on.

 

[randynewmanscat]

Going back to budget tools, I have some Kamasa spanners and a small socket set.

I still own a Kamasa spanner roll from 1974 I think, chrome has not flaked at all and they fit fasteners very well, first spanners I bought. Back then they probably cost me less than a third of the main marques, I would still use them if I needed to.

 

[keithmac]

Screwdrivers, flexi 1/4 drive etc.

Top's a bombsite at the moment!.

 

[Pale Rider]

I also like a good selection of screwdrivers, not that I have as many as you.

Are the red handled Snap-on ones still Pozidriv?

 

[keithmac]

Just the ones in the Blue bit box are Pozi, never see them on motorbikes.

Only really use Pozi at home where most wood screws tend to be Pozi drive for some reason.

 

[Pale Rider]

If I recall, Pozi was a recent innovation when the Snap-on man first offered the red handled screwdrivers to us in the mid 1970s.

Quite a few of us bought one, but as you say I don't think there was many Pozi fixings in automotive, although Philips was common.

I suppose now there are a lot of JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard) cross heads.

 

[Profpointy]

I still own a Kamasa spanner roll from 1974 I think, chrome has not flaked at all and they fit fasteners very well, first spanners I bought. Back then they probably cost me less than a third of the main marques, I would still use them if I needed to.

My first socket set was a comprehensive 42 piece Kamasa set in its green tin box: mm, AF and whitworth along with various handles and what not. It was really really good despite it being the cheapest set I could find. Nothing broke and I used it quite a lot, albeit only on my own car. In due course the set was nicked out of my car so I bought an identical Kamasa set to replace it - but the replacement was shyte and the handles bent, the sockets dented and the ratchet broke. I guess they just buy generic items from the far east rather than proper in house build or even quality control for bought in. I replaced the ratchet with a brand new expensive Britool one and stuck with them for a decade or two, until they too went South. Latterly I've mostly gone for Facom and some snap-on where I've picked em up from ebay.

 

[Profpointy]

If I recall, Pozi was a recent innovation when the Snap-on man first offered the red handled screwdrivers to us in the mid 1970s.

Quite a few of us bought one, but as you say I don't think there was many Pozi fixings in automotive, although Philips was common.

I suppose now there are a lot of JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard) cross heads.

I've only recently ( ie a few years ago) I learnt of the existence of JIS fittings after decades of cursing poorly fitting "Philips" screws and drivers. Bought a set once I realised, and probably need a miniature set for cameras and such too.

 

[Pale Rider]

Another Japanese innovation is reduced head bolts.

The hex head is smaller than the bolt size suggests it should be.

http://www.stainlessautomotivefastenings.co.uk/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=21

 

[Adam4868]

Yeh what can you do though?, it's locked to ground anchors and fully insured.

It would be the loss of tools owned and used over 20 years that would be the kick in the nuts really!.

I made this for a friend who's a mechanic,bolts both ends.