kitting out my workshop...

[carsounds_dan]

right....
i need ur advice on what tools to get for my workshop, im planning on getting:
1: A complete socket set with most different head patterns (i.e. torx)
2a: A complete spanner set, normal type not ratcheted
b: A complete spanner set ratchet type (not sure if i need this)
3: full line up for pliers, mole grips and other similar items
4: a set of screwdrivers, including the interchangable tip ones
5: My electrical gear (crimpers, sidecutters, strippers, test light, multimeter, diagnostic reader etc.)
6: anything else that would be handy

So... i'm asking, what brands do u advise (i dont want a whole thread on how amazing snap-on are), ive got a limited budget, i can afford the halfords pro stuff and probably a little bit more but ive also got to get a cabinet for it all to in aswell...
I work with the companies snap-on stuff and i understand how good that is, but my workshop won't be used daily so i dnt need everything to be the most amazing tool, but having a lifetime warrenty would be a really nice thing.
Any ideas would be nice, any tools ive missed off my list? stuff like that...
cheers
dan
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[T1z3R]

halfords pro is all you need. lifetime guarantee you see.
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[syl]

[carsounds_dan]

[KatOwner]

Torque wrench is a must..... and I wouldn't be without my handy rubber mallet. Not as good as a genuine old-fashioned hide-faced mallet...but an excellent 'persuader' that won't break your alloy bits!

I wouldn't bother with ratchet spanners.

With a decent socket set, some combination spanners and a set of allen-key sockets, there is nothing a ratchet set will do that the others can't.

If you are buying from scratch, a T-bat screwdriver set is a good investment. Easier to keep pressure on those cross-head screws to stop them chewing.

[Kickstart]

Hi

Halfords Pro stuff isn't bad. Facom, Britool and a few others are pretty much as good as Snap On.

Other things that are useful.

G clamps
Small socket sets (ie 1/4" drive)
Jewellers screw drivers
Dremel
Clear pipe for bleeding brakes
Set of punches
Old tooth brushes
Axle stands

And probably loads more things.

All the best

Keith
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[carsounds_dan]

is a dremel really that needed?
ive never seen one before let alone used one..
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[Kickstart]

Hi

Very useful. With the small grinding disk you can do loads of stuff, just as cutting a groove in a rounded off fastener or chopping off corroded jubilee clips.

All the best

Keith
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[T1z3R]

what he said ^^^

my dremel (actually mines a "rotary tool" ) has come in handy for a number of jobs including cleaning up rusty bits and removing baffles from exhausts...can be had quite cheap too
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[stinkwheel]

As kickstart mentioned, a small but good quality 1/4" drive socket set is very usefull for working on a bike.

Wobble extension bars come in handy.

Feeler guages? Vacuum guages? Compression tester? Strobe?

Hacksaws (full size and junior).

Angle grinder.

Small petrol tank for running the engine with the main tank off (nick one off an old lawnmower, you can usually hang it off the handlebars).

Another vote for a deadblow hammer. Nylon are ok, the old fashioned lead-shot filled ones with one hide face and one copper face are best though.

[stevo as b4]

Ive been buying garage tools and equipment since 2002. I started with a Halfords pro 1/2" socket set and just added more and more stuff over the last 4years. I tend to buy most items at times of the year when there are sales on. I have kept as far as possible to Halfords pro stuff, but ive got some teng tools kit and Draper expert tools that i also rate well!

The Tool cabinet i have is all Halfords stuff, but you don't need the expensive roller bearing slide draws or top of the range toolbox's for domestic use, so don't waste your cash on these, just spend the money on more quality tools, as a when you can afford them. Ive added lots of individual peices and bit's to my tool collection mainly as and when i need them.

I don't use everything though, and i find that some tools like ratchet spanners while they can be useful, they are certainely not essential or as useful as a quality set of combination spanners. As for socket set's you can manage on a bike normally with either all 3/8" sized stuff, or what i did insteal was get a 1/4" and 1/2" set, instead of 3/8" drive tools, as then you have the capacity for any job big or small. To get a decent set of Halfords pro tools for just about every job, and the cabinet to keep them all in, is going to get close to £1000 worth tho, so just buy things a bit at a time and and slowly build up your tool collection.

The most important point is that if you have £££'s or ££££'s worth of tools, you need a decent garage with several bloody good locks, to keep it all safe IMO!

[ZRX61]

[carsounds_dan]

no problem with the security, the workshop is alarmed and has steel bars behind all the doors and windows that bolt into the walls and floor when i lock the door.
I recon im gunna need a 7 draw cabinet to keep it in for starters, but im off to halfords later to eye up some of their stuff...
cheers
dan
____________________
add me on msn for info on CAT 2 immobalisers, and cheap fitting in the crawley area

[edd]

Depending on your budget there are lots of avenues you can take. Its nice to have shiny new tools, but if your just starting out its better to have used decent kit than brand new shoddy stuff. You can get lots of good tools at auctions, car boot sales etc. I got a full set of britool sockets and a ratchet for £10 at a car boot sale a while ago, and although I have a new Sealey socket set (Id recccomend Sealey they have a lifetime guarantee on everything and despite my abuse Ive not broken anything they make yet) those britool ones are still going strong. If any members of your family are mechanically minded there is a good chance they will have a lot of old tools that they may well have replaced and would be willing to hand down to you. (My uncle gave me a load of decent tools when he restocked his rally van)

I have some halfords pro kit (a few bits and pieces, spanners, screwdrivers and one of my tool boxes) and as people say it is pretty good. I would think carefully about what you buy, as tools are something you are likely to use a lot.
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[Marci]

Old margarine tub or coffee jar...

Make a fortune if u use it as a swear box and work on lots of 2strokes
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[the grim reaper]

Also, spend a little more cash and go for 6 point sockets instead of 12 point, or even face drive sockets, they don't round anything off.

I've probably got over 2k worth of tools but the things I use most are my 1/4" Halfords Pro socket set and my magnetic tool/fastener holder.

Cheers

Grim
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[sickpup]

[ZRX61]

[sickpup]

I find them good for cutting curves in tiles.