not exactly handtool woodworking, but related

[Ken S]

I am in the process of rehabbing my closets.  I really like the versatility of Closetmaid adjustable shelving.

In the past, I have hung the vertical supports using a level.  Since the move last year, I am now starting with the horizontal support bars.  That lets me place the vertical supports without being so dependent upon screwing them into a stud.

I finally purchased a twelve bolt impact driver.  What a tool!  No more aerobic exercises with a screwdriver.  I have an older drill driver, but never liked worrying about camming out the screw.  The impact driver does a much better job.

As a homeowner, I appreciate the smaller, lighter size of the twelve volt tools. The new llithium batteries seem much improved over the old ni-cads.

I purchased a close out.  The company (Milwaukee) has redesigned the tools with improved brushless motors.  Ideally, I would have purchased the improved models.  However, for my use, last year's tradesman models are more than sufficient.  I don't predict much use for my longtime favorite Yankee screwdrivers in the future.

Ken

[Rob]

I have a full set of all the sizes of Yankees Ken. Funnily enough I used one today. Mind you I also have the makita 18v cordless range too. The Yankees still come in every now and then. Also with a straight bit, great for prising off paint tin lids!

I didn't really say that...honest

[Ken S]

Rob,

I have used the middle size Yankees for decades.  In fact, the older of the two only tightens.  Both are North Bros. tools which have been in the family longer than I have been.  I found they work much better with Phillips heads, although I believe the robertson square heads would work even better.

Lee Valley sells a nice selection of bits for them at reasonable prices.  They also sell adaptors to adapt standard quarter inch hex tips.

In recent years I picked up the small and large sizes on ebay.  I haven't really used them.

I did use the middle size Yankees to install the Closetmaid shelving in my former house.  The extra labor and time with them seemed a good trade to the increased risk of camming out with my drill driver.

The Yankees have decades of memories.  The new kid impact driver will probably see most of my future work.

Ken

ps A "five in one" tool works great for paint, although a screwdriver gets the job done when the 5 in 1 is AWOL.

[Mike Fairleigh]

Several years ago I bought a Makita 18v kit that included the impact gun.  That tool has completely changed the way I plan home improvement projects and is the single greatest boon to home improvement since the spirit level IMO.  I've added several other Makita LXT tools to the kit since then and love 'em.  These really are the good old days where tools are concerned.

The impact does have limits of course.  Without a clutch, you have to be careful about the type of fastener you use.  Some fasteners, types of steel, and/or applications are too risky to use with it.

[Ken S]

Good thought, Mike.  Actually, I did snap off a three inch screw.  I thought I would try using one longer one.  My pre-drill bit must not have been long enough.

I purchased a combination kit with the impact driver and a hammer drill.  The hammer drill has a clutch.

For many years I used a Makita 9.6 drill driver.  It gave trooper service.  the old ni-cad batteries were dying, and replacement batteries required a replacement charger.  It didn't have the power of the 18 volt Dewalt drill which replaced it.  However, the compact size was quite nice.

My forty year old Stanley level still gives trooper service as well.  I would not be without it.

Ken

[Rob]

Excellent posts chaps

My Yankees came from three sources.  Two were from my Dad, one the monster size and one the regular one.  Both have the red paint completely worn off the handles from years of calloused hands twisting them :-). One, like yours Ken has the mechanism broken. Another regular sized one came from a chippy friend of mine (English slang for carpenter).  The last which is the smaller size, I bought and which gets used rarely now. Whilst their technology is clearly part of yesteryear compared to the lith-ion mob, I still use them when I don't want the national grid masking my feeling of the difference between finger tight, snug and tight!

I also absolutely love the new makita tools and apart from the usual suspects ie drivers, jigsaw, hand plane etc I urge you to look at both the vacuum and the blower, body only of course believe me you won't regret it. They're not expensive but are phenomenally useful. I have dust extraction in my shop but even so the ability to be able to blow bits of dust off the lathe, the bench, the bandsaw....I now couldn't live without. That blower is awesome :-)

Oddly enough, the tool I use the least is the impact driver. Probably because I'm rarely driving big fixings into big timbers. My focus is cabinet making and turning so the work is generally detailed. I did once use it to drive a six inch screw through 2x4 into a roofing beam. It just kept on going and going with no pilot hole....scary :-)

Last point cos this is waaaaay off topic.  My first battery operated drill was a black n decker which took 14 hours to charge and lasted about 10 screws before it died. I threw that out last month :-)

[Ken S]

Rob,  my Yankee screwdriver which only tightens is not broken.  It is old enough that it predates the models which work in both directions.  Also, neither of my oldies have return springs.  I suspect they date from either the thirties or forties.

I don't use big screws much anymore either.  Once in a while, and the impact driver is nice to have in ready reserve.

I wouldn't worry about being off topic, especially in handtools.  There is no overabundance of "on topic" posts being crowded out.

I do enjoy the old Yankee tools.  (In the interest of international good will, I am also partial to my Black and Decker carpenter's mallet I bought in a hardware store in London forty years ago.)

Ken

[Rob]

 

[Elden]

Ken, here are a couple of battery pack rebuilding sites you might want to check out. I have seen both of these have a write up done on them in the Farm Show paper. Your 9.6V isn't too terribly expensive to rebuild.

http://www.primecell.com/pctools.htm
http://www.voltmanbatteries.com/servlet/StoreFront

[Ken S]

Thanks, Elden.  Great post.  I wish I had known about these places before I donated my 9.6 volt Makitas to Goodwill.  They were very useful tools with a lot of life left in them.  Rebuilding the batteries would have been just the ticket.  I have bookmarked both for future reference.

By the way, congrats, Mike on achieving the status of full member.  Congrats, also to Justin in advance.  You will find that if you bring documentation of your newly achieved status to Starbucks, along with five dollars, you can probably get a cup of coffee.  (Or, like me, you can still bring your mug to the gas station across the street and get an OK coffee for one dollar.)

Elden, your post is an example of what this forum can provide.

Good job, guys.

Ken

[Elden]

By the way, congrats, Mike on achieving the status of full member.  Congrats, also to Justin in advance. 
You will find that if you bring documentation of your newly achieved status to Starbucks, along with five dollars, you can probably get a cup of coffee.  (Or, like me, you can still bring your mug to the gas station across the street and get an OK coffee for one dollar.)

That's good to know! Great post!

Hopefully I got this quote thing figured out. Ken, like you, I am not very good at this computer scene.

To my understanding on the battery rebuilds, they can bring them up to the later improvements (capacities) and fix them so that your old charger will still charge them.

[Mike Fairleigh]

Full Member!  I hadn't noticed.  I need to get some flowing robes and cherubs.  Thanks, Ken. 

[Ken S]

Mike, I believe you have the added distinction of being the first full member from Kansas. You should contact your local newspaper, if for some reason they are not yet aware of your honored status.

Joking aside, when I first joined this forum about three years ago, no one had yet posted even fifty posts.  The longest threads had about twenty posts.  The longest thread, with 130 posts, was a result of a member not wanting to start new topics.  It became quite clumsy.  We are progressing. 

I welcome the growth in the forum, and look forward to continued growth.

Ken

[Mike Fairleigh]

With the amount of actual journalism that goes on these days, I could probably do that and make the front page.  With some sort of drama included.

[Ken S]

Mike,

Amid our joking about full member status, I just lost mine....... The other guy is one of your neighbors in Missouri.

Ken