Another expensive day a Sears

[BajaEdition]

First a little bit of history.
I used to do land speed racing, you know, Bonneville. I had a good driver and I love to tinker and we used to race Mazda RX7s, at one time we had some really competitive equipment. During this time I had built up quite a nice mechanic shop behind the store my partner/driver owned and we had a 3rd guy, a early 20ish guy who would come around and pitch in a hand a lot. Anyway I set up a really nice shop and had purchased a lot of equipment and tools that we kept there. Never had a problem with anything. things went along real well until one day my partner called and said he had cancer. We had been better than great friends, he was a father figure to me. I was never close to my father and he took me under his wing and kinda raised and mentored me, I consider his sons my brothers.
After his passing I took a few months before I could even enter the old shop. Memories of days spent wrenching and messing around with my buddy were hard. So by the time I did open the shop up I found to my dismay that the place was stripped, Not knowing what belonged to whom, one of my friends sons had allowed that third guy go in and get whatever he claimed was his. I guess he had to have made a few trips as compressors, air tools, drill presses, grinders, specialty tools. hand tools, etc were all gone. I went by his place and he had moved, I was disgusted as we had trusted this guy and now so much was gone. He even took a load of engines and engine parts.
I actually felt luck to have the cherry picker and my personal tool box left, although most of the rest was mine personally.
I got along for the last 11 years with kinda minimal tools for a guy who used to have a shop including a rack and a $*&( load of tools. I would buy this and that at times but always would bitch about needing air tools or a drill press etc. One of the standing jokes my wife and I would have was. "Honey you know what would be nice right now?" and the answer would be, "A set of air tools." I miss my pickle forks, spring stretchers, door handle tools, ratcheting wrenches, flare tools, rolling table with vices, tube bender, etc.
Well yesterday we were having a marathon day on a friends 66 CJ5, cutting out the master cylinder mounts and installing a 2 stage one, that means new lines, etc. Plus just to get into there we were yanking all the pedals and linkage, grinding off this and that. while that was going on I was installing a new set of disc brakes onto the front axle we were about to install.
I looked at my wife when she came out to check if we needed our ice teas refilled and said, "Honey, you know what would be nice right now?"
About 30 seconds later she handed me the sears tool catalog and a set of page markers and a highlighting pen. She just looked at me and said to shut up and put up. they were having a sale on compressors she had noticed while shopping earlier and it was time to get me one.

I love that woman, 1 20 gallon compressor, 2 sets of hoses, 1 impact tool, 2 ratcheting tools and 2 air chisels, a set of flare wrenches and new impact sockets.
Now I just have to figure out what she saw that she wants for Xmas.

 

[Jroch]

First a little bit of history.
I used to do land speed racing, you know, Bonneville. I had a good driver and I love to tinker and we used to race Mazda RX7s, at one time we had some really competitive equipment. During this time I had built up quite a nice mechanic shop behind the store my partner/driver owned and we had a 3rd guy, a early 20ish guy who would come around and pitch in a hand a lot. Anyway I set up a really nice shop and had purchased a lot of equipment and tools that we kept there. Never had a problem with anything. things went along real well until one day my partner called and said he had cancer. We had been better than great friends, he was a father figure to me. I was never close to my father and he took me under his wing and kinda raised and mentored me, I consider his sons my brothers.
After his passing I took a few months before I could even enter the old shop. Memories of days spent wrenching and messing around with my buddy were hard. So by the time I did open the shop up I found to my dismay that the place was stripped, Not knowing what belonged to whom, one of my friends sons had allowed that third guy go in and get whatever he claimed was his. I guess he had to have made a few trips as compressors, air tools, drill presses, grinders, specialty tools. hand tools, etc were all gone. I went by his place and he had moved, I was disgusted as we had trusted this guy and now so much was gone. He even took a load of engines and engine parts.
I actually felt luck to have the cherry picker and my personal tool box left, although most of the rest was mine personally.
I got along for the last 11 years with kinda minimal tools for a guy who used to have a shop including a rack and a $*&( load of tools. I would buy this and that at times but always would bitch about needing air tools or a drill press etc. One of the standing jokes my wife and I would have was. "Honey you know what would be nice right now?" and the answer would be, "A set of air tools." I miss my pickle forks, spring stretchers, door handle tools, ratcheting wrenches, flare tools, rolling table with vices, tube bender, etc.
Well yesterday we were having a marathon day on a friends 66 CJ5, cutting out the master cylinder mounts and installing a 2 stage one, that means new lines, etc. Plus just to get into there we were yanking all the pedals and linkage, grinding off this and that. while that was going on I was installing a new set of disc brakes onto the front axle we were about to install.
I looked at my wife when she came out to check if we needed our ice teas refilled and said, "Honey, you know what would be nice right now?"
About 30 seconds later she handed me the sears tool catalog and a set of page markers and a highlighting pen. She just looked at me and said to shut up and put up. they were having a sale on compressors she had noticed while shopping earlier and it was time to get me one.

I love that woman, 1 20 gallon compressor, 2 sets of hoses, 1 impact tool, 2 ratcheting tools and 2 air chisels, a set of flare wrenches and new impact sockets.
Now I just have to figure out what she saw that she wants for Xmas.

FLIPPING! THIEVES we should be able to cut their damn hands offf.

Does your wife have a sister :drool:

Congrats on the new additions to the family

 

[mylittlecj5]

Man thats a great story! (other than the thieving part!).



But never again will I buy a direct drive air compressor! My new bride (at the time) decided I needed an air compressor for X-mas. So she dragged me down to the Sears store and I bought the biggest 110vac compressor they had. 5 hp 25 gallon (IIRC). That thing was and is the loudest , most obnoxious, can't-have-a-conversation-in-the-shop-with it-running piece of machinery I've ever had.
Its been thru 4 interstate moves and many small ones, had no maintenance till this year when I rebuilt the compressor (about $25), and still roars away to this day when its needed. I've had a 60 gallon reserve tank hooked to it for 4 years, and its lasted 14 years so far...
I say good choice, at least on the brand name!

 

[BajaEdition]

my old compressor was an 80 gallon belt drive v twin that was killer, not loud like this but not portable at all. I am a shade tree (err really a shade umbrella) and that tree can be on the pad off the alley, in the garage or in the front driveway, you can never tell where I will be wrenching next. So I wanted a smaller portable unit, the 20 gallon was a bit small but was on sale. what I really need now is a drill press but that will be another year.

 

[mylittlecj5]

yep, Thats why I went with a large 110v unit. First time we hooked it up, we thought it was broken, it was so loud! :laugh:
But its fairly easy to take from job site to job site, like you said, so until it blows up completely, I'll keep using mine!

 

[JSnow]

they make quiet air compressors? I've thought about building a box and lining it with dynamat and foam to put over top of mine. until then it goes on the opposite side of the wall and as far away from where I'm using it as possible.

 

[IOPort51]

Even if you found the A** hole who ripped you off you could not prosecute him because he was let in. It is always a mistake to give a girl friend a key to your place. The best you could hope for is to apply most of a large can of whup a** and hope to reform the sinner.:laugh:

It was a good day for Sears, I broke down and bought a good roll out tool box yesterday. The good news is (I think) I thought I had a lot of tools but after I moved everything into the new box I found I still have all kinds of room. Now it is a moral imperative to buy more so the box is full. This is logical to everybody, right??

 

[BajaEdition]

as logical as can be
infact I had a draw break on one of my old boxes last friday at work and now I need to upgrade, I mean isn't that what it means, time to upgrade?
I was actually combining a few things when I pulled a draw way to far and it slipped out, I hate that chest and goot violent with teh drawer. when I finished a few guys at work were signing some paper two guys holding a strait jacket were passing around. Anyway I had to take my brand new box from home to work. Time to get out the catalog.
I wonder, would the wife let me get that mac roll around work area? LOL as if I could justify 7 grand for that, I my pants at 700.

 

[IOPort51]

I kind of get a kick out of the $1800 Kobalt with the fridge and I Pod dock.
The fridge would end up as a place to keep your skill saw after the compressor went south.

When I was much younger I considered buying a set of snap on wrenches. When I found out how much they cost I decided that if they could not sing, dance, serve drinks and put themselves away they were not worth that much money.

 

[BajaEdition]

Biggest reason I choose craftsman is I have never had to chase down a craftsman truck to exchange a bad tool, just go by Sears. Are Snap-on or Mac any better made? Could be but they donot stop at my house once a week so I will never find out.

 

[IOPort51]

I can’t speak for everybody but for me it would be just a question of ego, I don’t think snap on turns bolts any better than craftsman.

 

[elwood blues]

Back when I worked at the auto shop, my boss had one of those 12K dollar Sanp-On tool chests, you know the kind. It was full of Snap-On, Mac and MATCO tools. Every stinking tool you could think of, some that you only used once on one specific car then put it back in the drawer. I was in serious awe and lust.

Now that I've started to decently equip my own garage of my own I've found out just like IO said, Craftsman tools turn bolts the same way the expensive one's do. And if you really splurge at Sears and buy the Craftsman Professional series tools, especially the wrenches and ratchets, they're the same shape and design as the expensive ones, with the exact same lifetime garuntee.

 

[IOPort51]

The guy in the snap on truck had a display stand for the open end box end wrench set that allowed them to ring like bells when struck. He could use the 7/16 as a hammer and play the first bar of “Oh Danny boy” on the wrench set. I remember thinking that if I ever was asked to play wrenches in a orchestra I would certainly want Snap On wrenches. I also recall that the set from 7/16 to 1 ¼ was better than $400, this was in 1979. I have, as yet, not had the opportunity to play wrenches in an orchestra.

 

[cj5 guy]

Back when I worked at the auto shop, my boss had one of those 12K dollar Sanp-On tool chests, you know the kind. It was full of Snap-On, Mac and MATCO tools. Every stinking tool you could think of, some that you only used once on one specific car then put it back in the drawer. I was in serious awe and lust.

Now that I've started to decently equip my own garage of my own I've found out just like IO said, Craftsman tools turn bolts the same way the expensive one's do. And if you really splurge at Sears and buy the Craftsman Professional series tools, especially the wrenches and ratchets, they're the same shape and design as the expensive ones, with the exact same lifetime garuntee.

and here i thought that craftsman were expensive! The mac/snapon truck couldnt make it up my drive way! matter of fact the only thing that made it up our driveway for a while there was dad 5 and mom's 7 i had to park at the bottom and walk up...

 

[BajaEdition]

I have been a fan of Craftsman since I first started buying tools. I have found they rarely fail, are of good design and are at a price I can afford. OK so now days I can afford more than when I was younger, I find ratcheting wrenches are now something I have and do not dream of and I collect a lot of those tools you only use on Jeeps. But like I always said, I have never had to chase down a Craftman's truck like I would if I had Snap-on or Matco. So I guess I will stick with Craftsman.

 

[Old Dog]

Yesterday I had to take a 1/2" drive ratchet back to sears because it started sliping. I found out they will no longer just give you a replacment or fix it in the store. I had to give them my old one and they now send it in to be fixed or replaced. They said it will take a week to 10 days to get it back.

 

[chris insull]

Yesterday I had to take a 1/2" drive ratchet back to sears because it started sliping. I found out they will no longer just give you a replacment or fix it in the store. I had to give them my old one and they now send it in to be fixed or replaced. They said it will take a week to 10 days to get it back.

That sux!! Might be a local thing as I just replaced a 10 year old 3/8 drive Craftsman with no questions... Probably a sign of things to come.

 

[dslywalker]

If you can get in the pits at Nascar you pass a lot of Craftsman boxes and tools.I haven't seen any snap-on,mac or matco decals on cup cars.I did see proto and easton

 

[KenB]

Don't know about now, but years back Craftsman had a good replacement/repair program. Case in point: Another fellow and I were working on some lighting at a sewer plant. He was up in the air in a bucket truck and needed a ratchet/socket. I tossed my Craftsman 3/8 ratchet up, and he missed. Plop into the deep well! Couple of years later, they drained the deep well for maintenance, found the ratchet with my name etched on it. Just for the heck of it, I took it into Sears to see what they would do. I got a stern lecture about taking better care of my tools, which I took with a straight face, and walked out with all the parts to fix it - no charge. It's still in my toolbox and gets used more than the newer one.

 

[BajaEdition]

I walked in the other day with a socket that had a nut stuck in it from where I had pounded the socket over a striped nut. Walked out with a new socket.
I guess it is a mater of luck, oh he asked me what happened, I just told him I had a problem. Asked what sales there was for members of the craftsmans club, and gave him that look. OK I am over 50, maybe that makes me look more safe.