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    Does anybody buy 3/4" Socket sets anymore?

    I have a small collection of 3/4" sockets (in the 3/4" - 1 1/2" range) and a hefty ratchet. These get used almost whenever I'm doing suspension work on vehicles that have spent any time here in Massachusetts - Land of Rust. I was swapping leaf springs on my Bronco and had some 1/2" grade 8...
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    Why Does OSHA Require Some Vises To Be Colored?

    My Snap-On catalog (08? it's hiding right now) says something similar. Hey, wait a minute, who buys vises from Snap-On, anyway?
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    What do you use a 2 3/8" axle nut socket for?

    My 94 Ford Explorer with auto-locking hubs uses it. Well, it used it once, to take off the spindle nuts that are used with those junk hubs. The manual locking hubs used something else (one of those sockets with the four pins). This front end is a Dana 35 TTB. This would also be used on 90-94...
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    new WD40 cans

    Good for cleaning goo, yes. A lubricant, no. You can use it as such (almost anything liquid works a little!) but it was really meant as a water displacer, to keep things from rusting. There are lots of other, readily available, better lubricants.
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    Wire Crimping set

    Hot spit, DMC makes some nice crimpers. I am mostly an electrical engineer, and do some wrenching on the side. I know that some EE's never get out from behind their computers, but I started as an assembly tech while in college and worked my way up from there. I've crimped and soldered...
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    Unusual stainless trimix? (65% Ar, 33% He, 2% CO2)

    I ordered a bottle of trimix for stainless from my LWS today. They had no 40' bottles at the time (I am swapping a spare O2 40 rather than get Yet Another bottle) so it is being mixed up special for me to pick up in a few days. I looked at the invoice later on, and noticed that the mix gas...
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    N2 from HF $200

    There are only two things that I can see really being important in this whole 'nitrogen vs. air' in any particular application. The first, I suspect, predominates: bottled nitrogen is totally dry (assuming the gas supplier didn't screw up). So in the airplane tires, there's no water vapor to...
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    Tried out my Craftsman metric flare nut wrenches

    I have noticed that these is a HUGE difference in the quality of the 'regular' Craftsman flare wrenches and the Pro series. I have some of both, and really should just throw away the non-pro set, or leave them on the sidewalk outside Autozone or something. The Pros' fit & finish are on...
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    In The Market: Cordless Drill

    A few years ago, I was one of the designers of a mobile robot that incorporated what was, at the time, the highest-end DeWalt 18V cordless hammerdrill. We took the drill apart and repackaged the gearbox and motor, and needed to power it. As an experiment, we measured the current the motor drew...
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    Bench Grinder or Belt Sander?

    A real benefit of a belt sander is on aluminum. You should never grind aluminum on a wheel - it loads up the stone's pores and, as it heats up, can expand and fracture - EXPLODE! - the wheel. One other alternative for aluminum that I've not seen mentioned here is a scotchbrite wheel. It's...
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    Air Hammer/Chisel goes Pshhht! instead of Braaap!

    More pressure/volume? My air hammer needs at least 90psi and draws a huge amount of air - especially since you tent to run it longer compared to, say, an impact wrench. How big a compressor do you have? My 30gal 1.6HP unit can't keep up.
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    Plasma cutter on nitrogen?

    Hmm, wait a minute. This guy at http://www.truetex.com/aircompressors.htm says "When a compressor pumps one "CFM" (cubic foot per minute), that means the intake port inhaled one cubic foot of "free air" (air at atmospheric pressure). (Note: A CFM does not mean in any sense the compressed...
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    Plasma cutter on nitrogen?

    Yeah, it's worse than that, as I figure. The 80CF rating is at atmospheric pressure ('gauge pressure' of 0psi; the 4.5CF is at 60psi. The actual run time for a 300CF tank should be around 15 minutes. Glad I don't have much cutting to do. Also - not all cylinder regulators can flow 1200CFH!
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    Plasma cutter on nitrogen?

    Also - I can't upgrade service due to complicated rental arrangements. And man, I don't want to buy a generator right now... :)
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    Plasma cutter on nitrogen?

    Right, the plasma has a built-in regulator to take it down to 60-65psi, but you need a little headroom to make a regulator work right. Most will 'blow-through' if the differential gets too low; it depends on the specific model. I've heard some stories (FWIW) of some high-pressure bottle...
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    Plasma cutter on nitrogen?

    OK, ok, make me do the math :) 26 gal (3.5cf) tank, 150psi max, delivering 4.5cfm at 80psi. Gives about 1.5 minutes.
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    Plasma cutter on nitrogen?

    That's exactly the pickle I'm in. My compressor's tank should let the plasma run for maybe a minute. This seems like a lot of hassle.
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    Plasma cutter on nitrogen?

    I have a small plasma, Snap-on model YA2230, aka Century 118-008. It's a 22A output, 220V unit. I've run it fine on regular compressed air before, but right now am in a situation where I can't run a compressor at the same time as it. It would be really really easy to hook up a bottle of...
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    Battery clamp expander tool

    Well, yeah, I can't believe they sell a tool for this for $50. I was hoping for the Harbor Freight $4.99 version. Every time I try to bend out the terminals with Ye Big Olde Screwdriver, they get a little more messed up. I figure that even the cheap version should last 20 uses, and I'll keep...
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    Battery clamp expander tool

    So Snap-on sells this tool, the B260A, apparently for cleanly expanding the lead clamps on older-style (non-side-mount) battery cables. This is exactly the thing I need. But for a _lot_ less than $50. Anybody know who the OEM is for this, where I can get something like it, etc etc. Thanks!
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