Right tools for the job?

J

jamesr

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After 5 years of saying that i'm gonna to do some work on my csl instead of paying someone else, i finally got off my lazy ass this weekend and did it.

It wasn't anything big, but i successfully managed to remove and replace a leaking fuel expansion tank, without doing serious harm to myself or the car. Unfortunately, due to the fact that i was slightly ill equipped, it ended up taking a lot longer than it should have. At one point i found that the only way i could get to one of the jubilee clips on the hoses with the tools i had, was with a detachable screw driver head held in some moles grips. With a mini mag light in my mouth swinging side to side and a few cut knuckles later, i finally managed to get it off.

So what i'm hoping for, is suggestions of the tools that you couldn't possibly live without and what brands i should be looking at, so that i don't have to replace them again any time soon?

My next job is replacing the radiator, coolant reservoir, thermostat and water pump and then after that it's on the the clutch release bearing...

Cheers,

James
 
Tools are the crack of the DIY

#1 if not in SoCal - a well lit heated garage (a hoist would be nice too).

Generally you can find combination sets of Craftsman brand tools in a nice case on sale for 50% off at Sears once or twice a year - very nice quality and lifetime warranty.

Full set of sockets and wrenches from 6mm to 24 with a couple of larger sizes for crank and wheel work. Minimum set would be 8mm to 19mm.

Couple of torque wrenches. 3/8ths drive 10 - 100 ftlb for a start.

Full set of screw drivers with #1,2,3 in all lengths you can afford. An extendable magnetic probe for those dropped items into the engine compartment.

Full set of pliers.

Floor jack and 4 jack stands. Floor coaster. Couple of trouble lights with fluorescent bulbs (so you don't burn your flesh). Clear safety glasses to keep the crap from falling in your eyes.

Box of nitrile gloves in medium weight and a jug of hand cleaner. Gallons of solvent (Simple Green type) and various trays and tubs.

Dremel Tool and lots of bits.

A big tools chest on wheels.

Band aids and the address of the nearest emergency facility.

When you have a bit more money to spend, let me know - we can expand the scope from need to want.

Doug
 
jamesr said:
Unfortunately, due to the fact that i was slightly ill equipped, it ended up taking a lot longer than it should have. . . .
So what i'm hoping for, is suggestions of the tools that you couldn't possibly live without and what brands i should be looking at, so that i don't have to replace them again any time soon?

My next job is replacing the radiator, coolant reservoir, thermostat and water pump and then after that it's on the the clutch release bearing...
Cheers,
James
Click to expand...

Hi.

One could literally devote volumes to the subject you raised and never complete the work. Much depends upon your location, your purse size, your willingness (tolerance level) to acquire and store a specialized tool with the understanding that you may never use it. Thus, there really is no short answer.

As far as tools to tackle the specific tasks you enumerated, take a look at this recent post with its accompanying pictorial: http://www.e9coupe.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6020

For general tasks, my first response might be to look at the toolkit provided with your car. Except for those whimpy slipjaw pliers, most of the tools are adequate for simple tasks including R&R of your cooling system. Porsche, Mercedes, VW used variants of the same wrenches and screwdrivers, so you might also look in that direction too. Its when you have broken parts and fasteners that things get a bit more demanding. But if you never have a broken bolt, you will not need vice grips or an easyout bit and a drill, or a propane torch or an oxy acetylene cutting torch and on and on.

I am unable to suggest specific locations for you to look for tools in your area; however, it seems that peeking into the work area of any commercial garage that undertakes the same type of work you wish to accomplish - is a good start. For all you or I know, you might luck out and find someone ready to retire and willing to part with some of the duplication that seems to appear from nowhere.

If you want to make a science of the subject, look here for an idea of what you are up against: http://www.samstagsales.com/

Tools I can't live without are generally items collected over the years. Many are no longer commonly available and some, are tools that I have made or modified. Truth be told, I tend to use the tools I have readily available and that I don't worry about breaking or losing. Trouble is that if you don't break or lose these common tools, they start to accumulate fast. I suppose the good stuff is reserved for a special occasion, but I am not sure I wouldn't use the cheap screwdriver on a Hispano Suiza - if it properly turned the screw without stripping it. Sorry, if I can't be more specific.

diesel_Bugatti_4cyl.jpg
hispano%20suiza%208%20B.jpg
 
go ahead

hello uk-james

I am very happy to hear from you, compared with the rest of our star&stripped friends you are not so far away. If you look upon the south border of your country, just across the sea you can almost see bilbao in the basque country

I frequently travel to london, and is always a pleasure to do so, you know, the antique bookshops, the theatres (is my 5th time to watch les miserables), the leather shops, the british museum,…oh my god, I need to order my airplane tickets at once !

good for you !, you may have given the bigest step and the good advises of decoupe and nashvillecat will help you,

Unfortunately I can not help you with the names of those tools in english, but I can tell you a couple of things taken out from my own experience:

- a good tool is always worth the price,…provided you use it. I mean do not become a collector of top brand tools unless you have the intention of using them, but if you are decided to use tools remember that a cheap tool will always become expensive, because it will turn a small work in a nightmare conducting you to a possible non-reversible problem that will cost you thousands in the garage !
- you may start with a set of basic tools, and then step by step, adding new tools on the specific demand, in my opinion is very important to have a good hardware shop near, and the definiton of “good” includes skilled people that can help you and give you right advise about the adequate tool for the specific task
- sometimes you discover the tool you need after analising the problem, thinking about a solution, and checking the solution (feasibility, cost, …), if possible try the new tools in a dummy (something that resembles the problem but out of the car !)

there are some brands producing very specific tools, like FACOM with a wide range of almost everything, and also HAZET which may give you high performance tools (specific display in automotive workshop), in electric tools my previous experience was good with MAKITA, but now I clearly prefer FEIN, their price is high (remember I will not say that they are expensive), you might find others, I don´t have the experience, but english tools are said to be very good also (basically forget about korean or chinese,…unless they are known brands)

yes, I know, that a summary of this post may lead you to think that my advise is: “continue your good habits of the past, and pay for your needs”,… NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO !!!!!

go ahead !, look for those tools, find them, buy them, try and improve your knowledge and skills, it will be hard, but the minimum work you might do will be exlusively yours !!! and for sure you will be satisfied !!!

and about your work with the cooling system, thanks to nashvillecat for recomending my thread, I am sorry, it is in spanish, but is exactly the work you intend to do

I will be happy to help you (in english) if you have questions, and don´t think that you will have all the problems I mention in the thread, you will have better luck for sure

regards

dequincey
 
Great advice all around. My advice Don't! scrimp on the floor jack and jack stands. A lot of this stuff is made in China or worse. I ended up throwing away four jack stands. They made me nervous.

Steve ONeill
 
S-wrenches have made my life easier on several occasions.
Specialized circlip pliers have saved me much frustration. (although circlips are still a PITA)
Good multimeter
Good torque wrench
good gloves
junky gloves (nitrile, other disposable for "wet work")
ratcheting box-end wrenches
socket extenders
magnetic probe
page covers for manuals
lots of lights, point and diffuse
lift of some kind
part cleaner bin
buckets
short and long screwdrivers
comfortable goggles (lights help there too)
rubber hammer
needle-nose pliers
vice-grips
lots and lots of rags
junky clothes
 
Thanks a lot for all the replies! The reason for asking is that i'm just hoping to get a list of the essentials as a starting point, rather than having to stop every time i come across a problem that i don't have the tool to solve.

The tools i'm using at the moment are excessively cheap and as i found at the weekend, made a fairly simple job much harder than it needed to be. They were so bad, that one of my cats had taken a disliking to them and pissed in the box. I only found this out once i was under the car.

Like i said in my original post, due to the fact that i have little knowledge in these things, i was hoping you'd all save me from making any more bad decisions, that the cat may live to regret. Thanks again for pointing me in the right direction.
 
decoupe said:
#1 if not in SoCal - a well lit heated garage (a hoist would be nice too).

Generally you can find combination sets of Craftsman brand tools in a nice case on sale for 50% off at Sears once or twice a year - very nice quality and lifetime warranty.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry, I just had to chuckle. I don't think they have Sears stores in the UK, not to mention have you seen the size of the average garages over there? If you could afford a garage that could even accommodate a 2 or 4 post lift you are truly wealthy. I think we get a little spoiled over here in North America because we have access to so much stuff.
 
Ain't that the truth, and the garages in London are even smaller than the usual small ones.

It's so small, once i'm in, i can barely get out of my car. I've had to fit some padding to the wall by the passenger door, as it's impossible for me to get out without knocking the door against the wall. I dream of one day owning a double garage!

One of my most embarrassing experiences to date, was getting stuck in my car half way out the garage. To cut a long story short, the car stopped so that the frame of the garage door was pinning shut the car doors. The battery was flat and i'd forgotten my phone. My garage isn't part of my house, so no one could hear me scream. It took me an hour to work out how to get out. Gotta love those electric windows...
 
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