I must admit I hate these less common fasteners. I just don’t see the point.Said like a true wiseman Dave.
I recall coming across cylinder head bolts on a Toureag V6 (maybe a TDI, can’t remember) and having the ask the guy next to me to borrow a triple square after bowing my head in shame.
Tajima make nice tapes. Nice stuff generally in fact. I have one of their sealant guns and it’s superb.While searching for tape measures not made in China, I came across this Tajima and decided to give it a try. Seems like good quality and is made in Japan.
Is that a typo - 2mm out over 10mm??? Maybe you meant 2mm out over 10m?
IPS Hyper Long Pliers
HLS-300
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I've used 12 point sockets for decades, even as my primary 1/2" set (Snap-On) and never had an issue with rounding or fastener damage. The 12 point 3/8's are new but I won't hesitate to use them on everything but perhaps the most delicate/damaged/rusted/stuck fastener. I also have the Koken surface drives for that.
The question of 6 point vs 12 point comes up fairly often. The right answer depends on what you work on.
I wouldn’t personally be able to manage without 1/2” drive, though admittedly there are a lot of times an impact gun isn’t right for me.
Nice collection!My favorite, long reach, set of pilers, a truly helpful tool because of the unique jaw design.
Get these too
Absolutely Dave.
For some reason, although I use these styles of pliers much less than others, I seem to be more sensitive to designs not being quite right.Absolutely Dave.
The IPS and Tsunoda are completely different use cases. The Tsunoda are meant for more detailed work while the IPS are much more industrial. If you look at the jaw designs up close, they are really light years apart. I used my Tsunoda's a few weeks ago to fish out a tiny o-ring out of a container, something the IPS stuff wouldn't tackle. But then again, I used the straight IPS one to heat a rivet before holding it in place before bucking.
That said, BUY THEM ALL, because it's GJ.
Look I like ugly cars, my next one is going to be a mini cooper clubman. Its like a bar of soap that was stepped on and is now cracked in the back.Well, nobody's perfect.
J/K, nice collection you have there.
You are correct. The mini uses a 32mm axle nut, I take that off with 1/2 impact gun and torque that back on using a split beam torque wrench using the same impact socket.I wouldn’t personally be able to manage without 1/2” drive, though admittedly there are a lot of times an impact gun isn’t right for me.
Anything above 17mm I’m reaching for 1/2” drive, and there’s a fair bit of that. Sometimes I find 1/2” drive has just the right range of sizes I need - i.e. machine tool work.
You may find there is one nut on the Mini that needs 1/2” drive, and thats the front hub nut. From memory it’s 32mm and is in a tight recess so a 3/4“ drive socket won’t fit. Not sure about an impact.
There are some advantages to going KoKen. They don’t load the price of individual sockets, so if you just wanted say the 6 most common, it wouldn’t be costly.
Although they do offer nice sets of sockets in metal cases.
Have you considered Z Series / Zeal in 1/2” drive? More costly I know, but maybe a good “mid point“ if you have a lot of impacts already?
Tsunoda Plastic Cutting Pliers PN-125 (135mm)
After much exploration and weigh-up, I went for this one as it suits my uses. There was practically nothing in it between this and the Knipex 72 01 140, just yellow to distinguish and a bit cheaper. A short length of heat-stretched 15mm hosepipe fits nicely over the end to store it shut.
Tsunoda Long Nose Pliers RP-150 (161mm)
Replacement for old beaten up ones. These are really nice and good proportions. The Knipex 25 01 160 are notable daintier by comparison (the "Radio Pliers" name is appropriate) and not to my preference - narrower and thinner body/joint, finer teeth, thinner handles, and lighter.
Olfa Serrated-Edge Stainless Steel Scissors 5" SCS-1
Actual length 5.5" / 14cm. Thickness at the joint 4.8mm, for comparison electrician's shears (C.K.) are 6.8mm, and Ikea cheap scissors are 3.2mm.
Olfa Multi-Purpose Scraper 25mm/1" SCR-S
The storage guard is welcome, but seems easy to knock off, or lost due to being transparent.
Lobster / Lobtex Hybrid Adjustable Wrench 150mm (6") UM24XD
Nicely made with little play in all directions. The jaw makes contact on three faces, away from the corners. I measured rotational play of 1.5mm at the end of the handle when holding an M14/22mm bolt, compared to 3.5mm on a Stanley of the same size. The handle is quite narrow which suits my pouch toolkit, but would be uncomfortable for big tight fasteners. The body (9mm) and jaw (6.5 taper to 4mm) are on the thin side too. That's all relative to other adjustables - probably quite similar to standard combination wrenches.
Samurai ICHIBAN pruning saw 300mm (12") GC-300-LH
Got interested in this type while looking for the above one. Had quite a hard time finding anything that was satisfying in terms of handle, holster, value, and origin - unsurprisingly being a pull saw it was Japan who came to tick all the boxes. I was going to get a straight blade but after reading about pros/cons changed my mind to curved, this is pretty moderate (15mm at the midpoint). The blade is taper ground (thinner towards the top), so the teeth don't need to be set, making for a narrower/easier/faster cut (demo).
Good that you found this one made in Japan, @NitroExpress. I read once where all Tajima tapes made today are made in China (and of course I don't know where I read that so I can't 'produce' that claim). Anyhow, looks like that's not true! How did you find this one?
GS-25BW
Could it have been the ABO-100Can someone help me find a specific tool?
I remember seeing it browsing Japan sourced tools and dismissing it, now I feel I really want it.
It is a screwdriver shape/sized tool for removing the foil/gasket seal from the top of fluid bottles such as oil jugs, washer fluid bottles etc.
I'm aware a flat screwdriver and or a small knife works fine, I thought the same thing until recently when I sliced my finger opening a washer fluid jug.
I thought it was KTC, I can't seem to find it in their current catalogue. I thought it looked similar to their hub cap tool the AH 102. but with one side rounded.
Perhaps I dreamt this, or perhaps you can help me ?
Thank you.
I don’t remember all the details, but I made sure before purchase that COO was Japan.
Many Japanese manufacturers have factories producing exclusively for the domestic market, while the rest of the world get the made in China/Vietnam/Malaysia stuff.
I’ve used, but don’t own, the KTC Profit and they are really very nice.
You didn’t say if you wanted open end, box end or combination, but all three styles are available in the profit.
Each wrench is only one size, with a different offset at each end on the box end and open end.
The “sets” they offer in the Profit are only 5 piece as far as I can recall, but I don’t see that’s an issue. Just add the sizes you want.
These are quite high quality tools.
Very nice!Right you are Dave:
With long tools, I like a little feedback. The HLB-300s are flexible enough to let me know I've latched onto something when I do. I waited and waited for the price to get reasonable, it jumped a lot. Hope you got a good deal!Ordered one, thanks for the confirmation.
Fortunately this years tape measure budget was able to absorb that astronomical $20 extra that was splurged on trying out something new to me.
Mine arrive today - thanks for the referral!!Tuesday’s posts reminded me of something in my toolbox.
IPS PH-165 Soft Touch (soft jaw/ non-marring pliers with grooves for round material)
Kind regards,
Olli
