Homemade Tools

[98TJ]

Here's something I whipped up tonight.

Gutted a Craftsman Pro T10 that I picked up for $1.97 (I bought three. One to use and the other two for handles)

Pulled the handle, drilled it out to 5/16" and hammered a length of brake line (with the flange) through it.

These are great for feeding wires through firewalls.

 

[PCO6]

Here are some tools I made for working on my MG's.

This is a front wheel hub puller. Basically some old right and left hand thread knock offs that I drilled a whole through then welded a nut to. The threaded rod works against the spindle when tightened and pulls the hubs off. These are fine threaded for the early cars. I also have a set of coarse threaded ones for the later cars.

I use this for removing the drive shaft flanges of transmissions and differentials. With the driveshaft removed I bolt this to the flange and pass a large socket through the hole to loosen and remove the nut. It's hard to tell from the photo but this is about 3 ft. long.

 

[PCO6]

Here's something I whipped up tonight. ... These are great for feeding wires through firewalls.

Great idea!

 

[Vividlyvintage]

My great grandfather "Pop" who worked as a welder foreman in the ship yards in Oakland CA during WWII. He was always making home made tools. When I became a welder (its in my blood) my grand father (son of my great grand father aka "Pop") told me stories about Pop making an automatic torch lighter.Pop used a wooden cheese box, model T coil, spark plug, a doorbell button, and a simple gate latch. Pop passed away from cancer in 1989. My great grand mother "Nana" passed away in 2007. My great uncle and his wife emptied Pop's house without us knowing. I wanted pop's torch lighter so I could remember pop while I am at work. When I found out that my uncle emptied the house and kept things for himself I thought for sure it was gone for good. Recently my dad and grand father went up to Pop's and Nana's house to see if they could grab anything that my uncle left behind. Under pop's work bench in the very back happened to be the torch lighter. When they came home and gave me the torch lighter I was so happy I had tears in my eyes. I can only speculate that Pop had a hand in protecting it from my uncle and saving it for me to cherish. It is one of my most prized tools/possessions. It still works too! I even took a photo of the spark. (It is the shown in the last photo). I still have yet to use it so the burnt charred area is from pop lighting torches. Anyways, here are some photos of the wonderful home made piece of my family history.

 

[Vividlyvintage]

2 more pics, showing the spark

 

[usdemt]

Now that is cool ^^^^^ Great history

 

[Vividlyvintage]

Thank you

Thanks,
"Skrach"
My Vintage Blog:
www.VividlyVintage.com
My 55 Chrysler Worklog:
www.Pop's55.com

 

[redwrench60]

Love it! Very cool and priceless too. Guessing it's not UL listed.....just kidding! I'm glad you could rescue this memory, great connection to your family and a bygone generation.

 

[Vividlyvintage]

Love it! Very cool and priceless too. Guessing it's not UL listed.....just kidding! I'm glad you could rescue this memory, great connection to your family and a bygone generation.

Lol, I think its an energy star rated appliance jk haha

Thanks,
"Skrach"
My Vintage Blog:
www.VividlyVintage.com
My 55 Chrysler Worklog:
www.Pop's55.com

 

[DanCo]

I made the same thing, using 3/8" stainless tubing and a Husky handle. A lot cheaper than the Thexton version. Cost me $0.00 since I found the screwdriver on a new Mack truck and the tubing was a DPF drain.

Dan

 

[jweller]

My great grandfather "Pop" who worked as a welder foreman in the ship yards in Oakland CA during WWII. He was always making home made tools. When I became a welder (its in my blood) my grand father (son of my great grand father aka "Pop") told me stories about Pop making an automatic torch lighter.Pop used a wooden cheese box, model T coil, spark plug, a doorbell button, and a simple gate latch. Pop passed away from cancer in 1989. My great grand mother "Nana" passed away in 2007. My great uncle and his wife emptied Pop's house without us knowing. I wanted pop's torch lighter so I could remember pop while I am at work. When I found out that my uncle emptied the house and kept things for himself I thought for sure it was gone for good. Recently my dad and grand father went up to Pop's and Nana's house to see if they could grab anything that my uncle left behind. Under pop's work bench in the very back happened to be the torch lighter. When they came home and gave me the torch lighter I was so happy I had tears in my eyes. I can only speculate that Pop had a hand in protecting it from my uncle and saving it for me to cherish. It is one of my most prized tools/possessions. It still works too! I even took a photo of the spark. (It is the shown in the last photo). I still have yet to use it so the burnt charred area is from pop lighting torches. Anyways, here are some photos of the wonderful home made piece of my family history.

The story and the memories are even cooler than the tool. Thanks for sharing.You made me think of time spent in the garage with my grandfather.

 

[Your Father]

Here's something I whipped up tonight.

Gutted a Craftsman Pro T10 that I picked up for $1.97 (I bought three. One to use and the other two for handles)

Pulled the handle, drilled it out to 5/16" and hammered a length of brake line (with the flange) through it.

These are great for feeding wires through firewalls.

I have the black handled Thexton knockoff that I got from the Snap On truck for $4. Also great for installing string into glass to be installed.

 

[Vividlyvintage]

The story and the memories are even cooler than the tool. Thanks for sharing.You made me think of time spent in the garage with my grandfather.

Your welcome. Glad it could spark memories.

Thanks,
"Skrach"
My Vintage Blog:
www.VividlyVintage.com
My 55 Chrysler Worklog:
www.Pop's55.com

 

[Stephenw]

Serpentine belt tool for a Windstar van...

 

[rslaback]

Here is an arbor I made so that I can rewind the 1# spools that we use in my school shop from the 35# rolls. It saves me quite a bit of money over the course of the year. It is powered by a 1/2" chuck drill and takes about 90 seconds to rewind. The wood handle stays stationary in your hand while the arbor spins inside it.

 

[22george]

The pictures were taken in a crummy light.

The ratcheting crows feet were made from gear wrenches - 3/8 drive.
I also made 4 1/4 in crows feet from 2 ignition wrenches - 1/4 in drive.

 

[22george]

This is an offset extension I welded up to be able to torque the backing plate attach bolts on my Honda Civic. It held up to 47 ft-lbs.

 

[Harvey Melvin Richards]

This is a simple but useful tool that came to me in a dream the other night. A piece of 3/8" drill rod welded to a 1" Kant Twist. Now I have a third hand for my Noga magnetic arm, or for use with machinist snugs.

 

[doodah man]

Here's a piston stop I made. Busted the ceramic out of a spark plug and threaded the inside to accept the threaded rod.

 

[fireman164]

light i built for body work and dent repair, light moves up and down and light swivels 90deg, has a tool tray at bottom and casters for easy moving.

 

[Harvey Melvin Richards]

A recycled old tool, it wasn't done by me, but I use every day.

 

[EOC_Jason]

What's the welded ring end for? Bottle cap opener?

 

[sberry]

These are some a guy might be able to use, we build or modify tools every day, my neighbor was here today and I plasma cut a brake rotor for some kind of wheel brg puller.

 

[Harvey Melvin Richards]

What's the welded ring end for? Bottle cap opener?

It's a bottle opener. The ring isn't welded, just a 3/4 box end that's been modified.

 

[reddog289]

Another case in point where I need to master welding, and Posting pictures.

 

[magova1104]

Interchangeable flex head angle ratchet. Using a Blackhawk ratchet/heads and a snapon handle. <a href="http://s1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/?action=view&current=P1020438.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/P1020438.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
<a href="http://s1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/?action=view&current=P1020437.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/P1020437.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
<a href="http://s1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/?action=view&current=P1020435.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/P1020435.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
<a href="http://s1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/?action=view&current=P1020431.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/P1020431.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

 

[eugz]

my hillybilly linisher, polisher, grinder and wire wheel

 

[JerseyBoatBuilder]

A Staple Puller I made at work out of a broken 6 inch Apex phillips driver bit and some Mahogony because the 2 prong removers **** when pulling staples out of material wrapped marine grade plywood panels, King starboard, Starlite and other composite panels..

The curve I ground down with the hook on the top allows the tool to do all of the work.
I can remove up to 5 staples to 1 vs the tools my co-workers use..

I have another made out of a 3 inch bit that I use at home with my Snap on SDD101 Reversible blade screw driver

I have a seal driver kit that I made the adapters out of King Starboard with a bunch of hole saws that works great too..

 

[dr.gizmo]

I call it the Coolantator 2012, my old one broke last week so I started over and made some improvements. It is a coolant drain and fill machine, it runs on vacuum and can do the job in under 15 minutes. The last pic is the coolantator 2000 which is the one that bit the dust.

 

[Jarhead0408]

Interchangeable flex head angle ratchet. Using a Blackhawk ratchet/heads and a snapon handle. <a href="http://s1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/?action=view&current=P1020438.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/P1020438.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
<a href="http://s1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/?action=view&current=P1020437.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/P1020437.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
<a href="http://s1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/?action=view&current=P1020435.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/P1020435.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
<a href="http://s1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/?action=view&current=P1020431.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1074.photobucket.com/albums/w416/magova1104/My%20toolbox/P1020431.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

Dude, that is awesome. You made that? How?

 

[Steevo]

I was emptying my roll cab in preparation for moving, and in a drawer with a lot of specialty tools for (mostly Honda) motorcycle repair, I came across this one, that I made early in my career by welding a 3/8" drive to a Honda special tool that originally came with a T-handle.

As you can see, that's a Snap-On 3/8" drive phillips bit holder welded to that spanner socket's shaft. I also found a t-handle 3/8" driver, that I apparently made from the handle I cut off the Honda tool, welded to the female end of a 3/8" extension.

This one was for taking the oil "filter" cup from the end of CB350 crankshafts.

The things we do/did.

 

[Crow Horse]

A mobile saw stand made from a water pressure tank and metal bed frame. The "wing" on the right side of the blade is hinged and swings open as needed...

An air tool cart made from wood that floated up on my property in 2006. It's difficult to see as there's a lot of stuff hanging behind it on the wall.......

 

[Vividlyvintage]

Anyone have any homemade fixtures that they have made so the grinder can be used as a stationary grinder and not as a hand held grinder but as a make shift bench grinder?

I have the 4 1/2" grinder from harbor freight:

These electric grinders scare the **** out of me. I don't like the idea that you have no control of the throttle. Its either off or on at full speed. I would use my air grinder but at the moment i don't have a compressor.

I am sure there is some way to utilize the black handle's threaded hole to help hold it. But i am stumped passed that at the moment. I am having Fabricators block lol. I figured someone on here may have already made one. I tried to search but nothing came up.

Oh and i would prefer it to be able to be mounted in a vice but i can figure that part out after i figure the mounting of the grinder first.

Any and all suggestions and help is greatly appreciated.

thanks,
Skrach.

 

[rslaback]

Like This?

 

[Hetman]

Get yourself rpm regulator and adjustable overload protection - that way if you press too hard, grinder just stops.
It's safer to have wire bush or sandpaper disc on that then cutting disc.

 

[lilredex]

Something like this??

 

[Vividlyvintage]

Get yourself rpm regulator and adjustable overload protection - that way if you press too hard, grinder just stops.
It's safer to have wire bush or sandpaper disc on that then cutting disc.

Something like this??

Thanks for both of those. I will give those a try. Thanks guys!

thanks,
Douglas Johnson
"Skrach"
www.VividlyVintage.com

 

[yogitech]

I call it the Coolantator 2012, my old one broke last week so I started over and made some improvements. It is a coolant drain and fill machine, it runs on vacuum and can do the job in under 15 minutes. The last pic is the coolantator 2000 which is the one that bit the dust.

Would you mind posting some details about the construction/ design? Please explain the process? How does it compare to an Air lift unit?

 

[zuk123]

I'm not sure I'd say it was safer with a wire wheel on....

zuk

 

[zuk123]

The wires are razor sharp and spinning, and they are a lot wider than a cutoff wheel.

It did hurt like all get out, but it looks worse than it is. Took a while for the skin to fill back in, and I still have discoloration in the same place and shape. The photo is from March of this year.

BTW, I was cleaning a small metal tool box. Those sheet metal edges can REALLY catch the brush and throw the tool around. The grinder is a 15yr old Makita 4 inch angle grinder. Wheel was a medium steel knotted twist. It just hit me for the instant it took to jump and hit my arm.

Moral of the story, be careful!

zuk