| Author |
Message |
Horsefly (Arlie)
Junior Member
Username: Arlie
Post Number: 179
Registered: 5-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, August 29, 2002 - 8:46 pm: | |
I thought of one more shop item that is pretty mandatory here in the south where temperatures exceed 100 degrees and humidity is really high.
Get a giant 3 foot diameter shop fan. They also make 4 foot diameter shop fans, but I've only run across one of those. I bought my 3 foot fan for $100 at a local flea market. Being a flea market scrounger, I have found many of my tools and shop items as used merchandise. I am always on the lookout for tools and shop equipment any place that I might run across them. One day I was pulling into the drive thru line at the local Taco Bell restaurant. Right next door was a small brake repair shop in an old gas station. I looked out back behind the shop and noticed a rusty looking engine hoist. It was the kind used to lift giant engines out of huge trucks. It was made back in the 1940s or 50s and could probably lift 3000 pounds with the boom completely extended. I stopped and asked the shop owner if it was for sale. Turns out it had been inside a shop that caught on fire, and the hydraulic cylinder hoses melted. He let me have the whole thing for $100. I had to use my 16 foot trailer to get it home. I just have to rebuild the lift cylinder. Those are the kind of tool deals that I look for. |
Verell Boaen (Verell)
Member
Username: Verell
Post Number: 281
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, August 29, 2002 - 5:32 pm: | |
Rob,
With a $5K budget, I'd suggest that you decide what things have to be high quality, and where you can economise for the 1st 5 years or so. Start a spreadsheet, plug in each item & the price you're expecting to pay for it.
The lift at ~$2.5-$3K installed is going to take a very big bite out of your budget.
So will the Air compressor.
Go to www.harborfreight.com and www.northerntools.com for air compressor & tools. I recommend a 5HP 60 gallon vertical tank Ingersol Rand compressor at ~$1K. You'll be living with it for a long long time. Also, it'll be taking a beating if you're sand blasting, cutting metal, & spraying paint. Unfortunately, if you get it, you've only got ~$1.5k for everything else. Whatever you do, don't buy an 'oilless' compressor. They just don't stand up to the continuous heavy use that serous auto work requires.
One of them carries Central Pneumatic air tools. I've had good luck with them. I've had several CP tools for over 10 years & they're still going strong. Just lube them every day, or use an oil fogged air line. Also, sometimes they have excellent sales on Ingersoll-Rand air tools as well. IR tools are workhorse tools.
Plan on starting with about $500 in Air tools (In order of priority):
- Butterfly air wrench Had an old mechanic recommend it as 1st air tool to get. He was right, use it more than any other air tool.
- 1/2" drive impact wrench: Get at least an IR 231 . Anything less just doesn't have enough torque. It's the general work-horse of the auto service business. If it can't break something loose, you're going to need 3' or so of 1" steel box extending a 1/2" breaker bar.
- 1/4" short body air ratchet. (Don't bother w/a 3/8" one, it's generally too long to fit whatever you're doing, & has so much torque that it'll bust your knuckles every time it tightens a bolt down)
- Combination air cut-off tool & in-line die grinder. You'll use it almost any time you're cutting metal. The die grinder will get used for grinding & polishing.
- Orbital Air sander: You'll use it for all kinds of body work.
- Combination Air drill/Rotary sander - You'll use it a lot for wire brushing, body work, and occasionally may drill a hole or 2.
- Air suction sprayer - Great for degreasing engines, cleaning tires, etc.
And another $500 on quality (but not premium) hand tools. For general hand tools, I've generally gone with Craftsman.
For very infrequently used tools I've occasionally bought a cheap import. (I paid $40 for a 3/4" metric socket set that I expect to use about once every 3-4 years. The sockets were surprisingly well machined.)
Sears has a 'Companion' line of tools that sell for ~1/2 the price of Craftsman. They appear to be as well machined as the Craftsman ones. They don't have a warranty. I've never broken a Companion tool. There's a very nice $49 101 piece automotive tool set that comes in a plastic box for $49. I've got 1 in each of my cars for emergencies. Gave 1 to each of my sons for Christmas. Most of my newer pliers ae Companion.
Go to HTP America (1-800-USA-WELD) or www.htpweld.com
Take a good look at their MIG160DV and MIG140 welders.
Lincoln welders also have an excellent reputation, along with high prices...
I suspect that you're going do discover you need more like $7K to fully outfit your shop, even with careful economizing. However, carefully spent $5K can get you enough to do almost any thing you'll need to until you get into serious construction.
Hopefully you've still got some unallocated money left. Consider www.harborfreight.com and www.northerntools.com for the things that don't have to be the very best such as:
2-Ton Hydraulic floor jack $75
Oil drain $65
engine stand
shop crane (Consider using your lift for a while instead! one arm of a 7K lb lift can easily lift any engine you're likely to have.)
hose reels
Jack Stands
3-ton Arbor Press
This isn't a 'dream shop', it's a pragmatic assessment of what you might be able to do within your budget.
BTW, I did an amazing amount of car work with about $150 worth of tools, for the 1st 10-15 years. In fact, you'd be starting with about where I have now. |
Horsefly (Arlie)
Junior Member
Username: Arlie
Post Number: 174
Registered: 5-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 27, 2002 - 6:47 pm: | |
I think the main question that any serious mechanic has to ask himself along the line is this: Do I want tools that get the job done, or do I want QUALITY tools that get the job done? Translated, that means, do you want American made quality tools like Snap-On, Mac, Klein, Craftsman, or foreign made junk. It is becoming increasingly difficult to build a quality tool collection with all the foreign made junk around. I have to read the fine print on any tool that I buy to weed out the foreign junk. A friend of mine found us a deal on a Chinese made 3/4 inch socket set for about $30. A lot of metal for the money. However, after I used the ratchet for 5 minutes and put it back in the box, I noticed that the handle had bent about 1/4 inch due to the lousy metal that it was made of. I don't see how anyone could outfit a complete shop with quality American made tools for $5000. A quality American made Lincoln floor jack will set you back hundreds of dollars. A new Sears Craftsman tool box will cost several hundred dollars. Don't even think about a Snap-On toolbox for less than several thousand dollars, and that's just the price for a used one. Sometimes you buy what you can afford, but all the foreign junk tools that I have seen just don't compare to a quality made American product. I wouldn't feel very good about my shop if everything in it was Chinese, Taiwan, or Japanese made. After all, if the cars you are working on are worthwhile, quality classics, why would you want your tools to be low grade, cheap junk? |
Lawrence Coppari (Lawrence)
Junior Member
Username: Lawrence
Post Number: 215
Registered: 4-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 27, 2002 - 5:22 pm: | |
An arbor press to complement the hydraulic press. Some jobs are too small to use the hydraulic press. |
Rob Lay (Rob328gts)
Board Administrator
Username: Rob328gts
Post Number: 1994
Registered: 12-2000
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 27, 2002 - 3:30 pm: | |
My budget is more like $5,000. |
Bob Campen (Bob308gts)
Member
Username: Bob308gts
Post Number: 299
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 27, 2002 - 3:20 pm: | |
Rob
I think you should figure about $500,000 + for your shop |
Mitchell Minh Le (Yelcab1)
Member
Username: Yelcab1
Post Number: 328
Registered: 11-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 27, 2002 - 2:45 pm: | |
Rob
In my rebuild (I had access to a friendly machine shop), I did end up using the following and thought any good shop should have one.
1. Bead plaster
2. Belt sander, grinder, wire wheel.
3. Good solvent parts cleaner before assembly, in addition to the parts washer
4. Hydraulic press and various pieces of metal
5. All kinds of air tools: die grinder, drills, impact wrenches, and air impact stud removers (that really saved my back that one day I had to pull 20 head studs, this tool got the job done in 10 minutes)
6. Pullers of all kinds (harmonic, slide hammers, attachements)
7. Shop carts that save your back, including a hydraulic lift table that can be wheeled around
8. Heavy duty engine stands
9. Drill press
10. Milling machine and lathe (optional)
11. Honers
12. Mig and Tig welders
13. Band saw
14. Engine lifts, engine hoist, engine cherry picker.
That is all. |
David Burch (Merlyn)
New member
Username: Merlyn
Post Number: 5
Registered: 8-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 27, 2002 - 12:50 pm: | |
If you are going to be doing race cars a lathe and a mill are almost a necessity, a belt sander should be on your list |
bruce wellington (Bws88tr)
Member
Username: Bws88tr
Post Number: 776
Registered: 4-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 27, 2002 - 12:33 pm: | |
porter-cable or bosch automotive tools |
Lawrence Coppari (Lawrence)
Junior Member
Username: Lawrence
Post Number: 214
Registered: 4-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 27, 2002 - 12:31 pm: | |
Pneumatic tools are helpful. |
Bob Campen (Bob308gts)
Member
Username: Bob308gts
Post Number: 298
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 27, 2002 - 12:09 pm: | |
A small MIG welder can be a life saver, a Lincoln SP 125 is a great unit. Torch set falls in the category. |
Rob Lay (Rob328gts)
Board Administrator
Username: Rob328gts
Post Number: 1990
Registered: 12-2000
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 27, 2002 - 11:56 am: | |
Here's my expanded list. These are all Bend-Pak parts located at www.bendpak.com
2 Post Lift Model XL-9
Air Compressor Model R28H
Tool Cart Model RCD-3TR
Hose Model RSS-25AH
Hose Reel?
Jack Model RFJ-1RJ
Trans Jack?
Oil Drain Model RD-8G
Engine Stand Model RES-1TF
Parts Washer Model RST-20PW
Rolling Seat Model RST-1WS
Shop Crane Model RSC-2TF
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Rob Lay (Rob328gts)
Board Administrator
Username: Rob328gts
Post Number: 1988
Registered: 12-2000
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 27, 2002 - 10:32 am: | |
Now that I'm building my shop, I can get shop equipment along with my home improvement loan. I need advice with what's really needed. I will do standard car maintenance, complete race car building and maintenance, and then I want to restore everything thing from a classic V12 to a Boss 302.
My initial list is...
- parts washer
- air compressor
- engine lift
- engine stand
- transmission stand
I think I will use the same company as the lift... http://www.bendpak.com/. Let me know if you recommend other companies or other equipment.
Thanks,
rob |
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