What new tools have you got lately?

[Blue Ox]

I was at a dinner with some friends from my boating community and mentioned to one that I needed to re-borrow the uber-crimper for the 4/0 battery cables. I had borrowed it from him when I started the job, but I had run short of cable, so I couldn't finish the last piece.

A couple of days later I get a text from another friend from the dinner group. He is retiring, selling the big boat and moving south.

"These are for you. I'm not going to need them any more."

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Holy chit! I could literally wire a locomotive with these!

New, those crimpers alone are a four figure item. I have been truly blessed to have such good friends.

 

[Blue Ox]

Not really a "new tool" story, but at least it's too long.

Last winter there were some issues with the exhaust on the 196? Reo Snow Throw. Having a pipe thread for the exhaust isn't the best idea, but if I can re-tap it I may be able to get it to function again without it becoming a major rebuild. It's going to be relegated to "spare" this season anyway, so good enough is good enough.

Do you think I can find a 3/4" NPT tap? I've got enough tooling to open a machine shop, and about every kind of pipe tap up to 1-1/2", but no 3/4" pipe tap. How is this possible? I start looking to buy one and holy hopping snot they're expensive. I finally found one for about $20 at Home Despot, but it turns out it's probably not even suitable for plumbing.

When the weather was warmer it wasn't much of a priority, but the pages keep coming off the calendar, so I'm finally resigned to breaking down to order a real tap for $55.

Meanwhile, in another world I'm gathering the pieces to install the garbage find Kenwood in the Jetta. (Another story.) The last obstacle was a rear support and after much brainstorming I determined that a #10 screw had the right size shank for the 4mm thread on the back of the replacement radio.

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And it's got a serviceable screw thread to match the rear support system on the original radio.

My only problem is finding a holder for the ridiculously small 4mm die. As I said, I have enough tooling to.... So, I started looking in various places to see if I have this bit of tooling and what do I find?

Yep, 3/4" pipe tap. Go figure.

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So it's"new" to me, since I didn't know I had it, and I can get two projects moving again. Normally, the way things operate here at Entropy Labs I'd have found this a few weeks after I bought a replacement and couldn't return it.

I warned you the story was too long. But at least it had a happy ending.

 

[Radiohead]

You're in the same vortex I'm in. Fun, isn't it?