tools & products for restorations

[neilb]

are you selling plans for your machine....just in case I don't "retire"?

never thought about it, but i have been thinking how i could improve it and make it more saleable lol, fully built or plans...

[Trevor]

Oh man, I'd love to have a power hammer! Smashing my TIG welds instead of sanding them down with 80 grit as well as a set of thumb nail dies to shrink panels. That's a next level tool!

Here's a tool I have been on the lookout for... a 220V portable spot welder. Found this one with the optional stand that connects to a foot operated pedal. I've already used it on a bunch of stuff instead of plug welding. The bare metal car is my 57, the other one is a 58 Cabriolet I'm doing some metal work on. Since the spot welder weighs 30 lbs it can get a little heavy after the first 5 or so spot welds - learned this doing my own car; so when it was time to do the 58 I made a simple wooden A frame for $15 to hang it from. (No sore shoulders and back the next day)

[Jbrooks]

Trevor

I have the same Miller spot welder, do you have the spot timer on the far side?



Try a rope and a couple pulleys from the top of the a frame. With a counter weight. I have about 30 pounds of steel hanging on a 3/8" sash cord. The top locator pulley can be moved across the top beam and you can swing the welder 2-3 feet from the pivot point. Those 18" tongs give you a good reach. 18" TT-9s will reach around a longatudional from the side.
https://www.millerwelds.com/-/media/miller-electric/files/pdf/resources/resistance.pdf

[Trevor]

[Jbrooks]

If you get serious about floors and closing panels. Look for a Lenco Panel Spotter. Watch eBay I see them every now and again. If you have a big DC welder like a PowCon 300ST. You can use these probes and do some serious spots

[Red911]

Hello all,

"He who dies with the most tools wins!" The original was Toys not tools, but they were not on Justin's excellent informational site.

I have posted some tools that I like on my thread: "1964 Bali Blue SC Restoration Project". However, those tools will get lost in my thread and some may find tools that I like to be useful.

POR 15 Metal Prep and synthetic chamois:



POR 15 sells Marine Clean to remove all grease and oil before treating the metal. Metal Prep (may have new name today) is used to acid etch the steel and two coats of POR 15 black to protect the steel from rerusting.

I use Metal Prep to soak strips of chamois and let sit all night to remove rust.



Before



Motorguard Dent Welder:

In previous SWB 911's I have had to pull large dents that I could not get to from the underneath like rocker panels. The Motor Guard pin welder does a great job for a home shop. Today there are "keys" and multiple pullers that you can purchase, but this simple tool helped me out of many jams.



Here is a photo of some pins welded on for a pull.



The Motorguard kit comes with a pulling hammer that is not subtle. So I looked for a better puller and found this one from Studlever that allows good control.



It is easy to use an end cutter and twist off the studs.



More in the next post.

Tom

[Red911]

Hello all,

Continuing with my favorite tools that I hope others can find useful.

Bolt Buster:

All of us have broken rusted bolts. One of the time tested methods to remove rusted bolts is a torch. I wanted one that would not start a fire. Bolt Buster is an induction heating coil that slips over the nut and makes it red hot for removal.



I tried it on a hidden nut. This one is inside the rear shock bumper.



More soon.
Tom

[Red911]

Hello all,

Evaporust:

All of us are plagued with rust, rust, and more rust.

In a previous post, I discussed using POR-15's Metal Prep soaked in synthetic chamois to remove rust.

Evaporust cannot be used on chamois. Parts need to be soaked in Evaporust. But, Evaporust is not caustic as Metal Prep. You can put your hands in it. Evaporust even says after using all the rust removing properties in Evaporust, you can pour it on your grass. They say that is that environmentally friendly.



Her is a before and after comparison of two identically surface rusted RD door bottoms. I made a long trough out of two flower trays.



Wray Schelin's Shrinking Disk:

Many have used a shrinking disk to remove minor lumps and bumps similar to spoon and dolly, but faster.

You need Wray's shrinking disk, available on his website, a rubber backing disk and a rag for cooling.



Before and after:





More soon,

Tom

[Red911]

Hello all,

Drew and our fearless leader, Justin among others here have fabrication skills far beyond what I have, or will ever have. However, I will blunder through my restoration doing the best I can.

One of my key tools is a DVD from Great Britain. David Gardiner sells Body Work Restoration Tutorial. His website is:

www.metalshapingzone.com

He discusses common tools and gas welding for restorations. I find it worthwhile for someone like me that loves to work on our little cars, but needs some confidence. David gives me that confidence.

For example, I made a valley in my door inside skin that I would have never have the ability to make.



Part of the passenger door that needed an angle that I used a wide chisel as David described.



If you need confidence in your restoration like I did, try his video and nothing can stop you.

Door Hinge Pin Tool:

When I did my SWB 911's getting the doors off was difficult with a hammer and screwdriver, so I purchased a Door Hinge Pin removal tool from Baum Tools.

It has a slide hammer and jaw that the hinge pin fits into. In seconds, the hinge pin is out. Also, you can reinstall a hinge pin with the tool tool.







Tom

[Red911]

Hello all,

Eastwood's 3M 4 1/2 Inch disk

I have used this disk with great results for paint, rust and bondo removal. I have only found it at Eastwood and not local auto body supply houses.



Here is an example of my front fender being cleaned up to see what damage occurred to cause the door's damage.



Oneida Dust Deputy:

I have used my Shop Vac for both vacuuming the garage and my Cyclone blasting cabinet. My Shop Vac has a paper bag that does not allow me to switch from the vacuuming to the cabinet without replacing a dust bag.

The Dust Deputy handles that situation. It uses a cyclone to put the debris into a five gallon plastic bucket that can be easily be emptied before the next task. Oneida states it collects 99% percent in the bucket. My test it captures 100%. There is no residue in the Shop Vac.



Tom

[Red911]

Hello all,

When we drill holes for spot welding, the spacing is sometimes an issue.

A Rivet Fan is ideal to make the holes even and the welds strong due to being close together.

I saw this tool at the EEA annual convention at Oskosh, WI a while ago and it made a lot of sense to me.

Here is a link to see the tool in action:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6SuHTHoRd0

Happy welding.

Tom

[Red911]

Hello all,

Ratcheting wire connector pliers:

Like others, I had used the normal wire crimpers for years, but sometimes the connector and the wire parted. Not a good thing. A racecar shop that I frequent uses ratcheting wire connector pliers.



These work very well and the wires do not come out of the terminals. As you may be able to see in the photo, there are yellow, blue and red dots that indicate where to insert the terminal. Boy, does the ratcheting mechanism lock the terminal and wire together.

Also, I just found these heat shrink terminals and here is a video that describe how they work.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrInkQE0J2g&list=PLAxdsA1NmxpEtYKKPOFyvOTiodTkCJ6Fv&index=63

Tom

[Red911]

Hello all,

This is a personal safety post.

Install a foot pedal for any shop tool that you may not be able to reach to turn off.

A very good friend of mine owns a large shop and one morning he was using a belt sander when his finger got caught and he could not reach the off button. He lost the end of his index finger in the sander. Just imagine the pain of having your index finger being ground off in a sander.

My strong recommendation is to install a foot pedal for any machine, such as a belt sander to instantly shut off the tool. Those who own a professional shop should definitely install foot pedals as the machines are used throughout the day.

Here is a YouTube video on a simple Harbor Freight foot pedal that the tool plugs into.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fpSsS4ZFOY

As you visit other shops, tell this story too to save fingers, or perhaps a life.

Tom

[Jack Staggs]

Those red, blue, and yellow connectors are junk. We take those things off when we see them on any customer's car.

[Red911]

Hi Jack,

What terminals do you recommend? I only know about bullets that came on the 356 and Weather Pack connectors.