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Allen hex keys seem to eventually just pile up in a drawer or toolbox compartment and you end up wasting a lot of time digging through them trying to find the perfect one. I have not been able to find an off the shelf solution that allows storage of excess loose hex wrenches that are not organized in their individual storage. I need something that can hold a lot of extra wrenches of the same sizes. I use drill index drawers, Huot brand, and they are fantastic. Mine are old, s

There are a few unique Milwaukee M12 tools that would be nice to have, but I don't really want to invest in their 12V system. I already have 2 different 12V tools that I choose due to the low cost of ownership for casual to medium duty use. I have some HERCULES 12V tool batteries, and Hyper Tough 12V tool batteries. I know, I also never thought I would buy and use Walmart power tools, but don't knock it till you try them. The HyperTough tools have blown me away, especially fo

Our stock cutting needs have grown to exceed the capacity of our little faithful Northern Tool band saw, which is a 5x6" swivel head band saw sold by several brands. It's a good machine and will remain our backup saw, but it struggles with production stock cutting. Recently we had to replace the bronze worm gear on the little 5x6" band saw. See this post for the details on that ordeal. Bronze worm gears are considered a wear item and will need to be replaced. Finding a replac

There are many different designs for oil skimmers to remove way oil from coolant. Belt Tube Disc Most rely on the oil clinging to plastic or metal surfaces, while the coolant does not. The clinging oil is pulled up to a scraper, scraped off the belt (or tube, disc), and then runs down into a disposal container. The issue with these designs is that they also pick up a lot of coolant with the oil, as much as 50%, so a second oil separation unit is required to drain the excess c

Our 5x6 mitering horizontal band saw stopped working due to a worn worm gear. The worm gear is made from softer materials (bronze or brass) than the worm (steel), therefore the worm gear will wear out first and is sacrificial. The specific model of band saw I have is a BS-128HDR METAL BAND SAW purchased in ~2012 from Northern Tool. It's a 5x6 cut size band saw, but seems to use the same gears as the less expensive, common 4x6 and 4.5x6 band saws like those sold at Harbor Fre

The DeWalt ToughSystem drawers are an awesome portable toolbox for quick tool access, but here are a few ways that they could be made even better. STACKING (How to remove the wobble) When stacked, the drawer tool boxes are not stable and wobble a lot. The taller the stack gets, the worse the wobble. There are cutouts in the lid for the feet to fit into, but the cutouts are so deep that the feet never bottom out. I found some designs available to 3D print, and some to buy. The

Although we can tap parts on the HAAS CNC mill using rigid tapping, it's often quicker to hand tap parts vs setting up the code and fixtures, especially if it's a part that we are not already CNC machining. So we needed to find a tapping arm. Tapping arms traditionally had air powered tapping heads, but there are now many relatively inexpensive electric tapping heads that have much more programmable options, and don't need air, which is loud and inconvenient. The electric tap

I've needed a cordless extended reach ratchet/socket wrench to save time when working in hard-to-reach places. The Milwaukee one with the low-profile sockets is sweet, but I can't justify the cost for occasional use. If I were using it daily for my work, then it could be worth the investment. Dare I say it [Harbor Freight] actually has a good 12V Cordless 3/8 in. Extended Reach Ratchet sold under the Hercules house brand. They also have a 1/4in version. The watcher looks nice