Best Shop Tricks

[DustMeOff]

i like the cardboard setup as well. i've also done this for when i managed to dump my bolts or had skipped the organization step.

if you have a side cover, or a case half with a cup full of different sized bolts, the first step is process of elimination by diameter. next you can generally figure out which goes where by putting them through the cover/case holes and shifting them around until they all have the same length of threads protruding (should be at least 4-6 threads, any less and you have problems). this also must be accompanied by common sense and a careful hand while threading bolts in place.

i put the socket or driver on a 3/8" extension without ratchet and use that as a feeble screwdriver. it minimizes the chance of cross threading or threading the wrong bolt too deep.

Originally Posted by KLboxeR

Good tip.


Another variation on keeping fastners organized:

If you have a part that's attached with multiple fastners of different sizes and lengths (such as a side case), draw a picture of the part on a piece of cardboard and poke holes where each of the bolts are positioned. As you remove the part just push each bolt through the cardboard drawing where it belongs and set the cardboard aside. On reassembly, you now have a nice picture of the part and you know exactly where each fastner is supposed to go.

I'll also take a digital pic of any complex assembly that I have to take apart if I think there will be questions when I reassemble. You can put the pic on the computer and zoom in on the parts in question to make sure you have things correct. Take many pictures from different angles and of all relative positions of the parts. If you don't need the pics, just delete them later.

Chris

[DamLucky]

I take care of the bikes during winter, and changing stiff cold tires is always a pain. To ease things along, I put the new tire under the hood of the car after the drive home from work. Warms them up nicely and softens the sidewalls without any real effort.

[ibafran]

i was forever looking a source of cheap applicators for all kinds of chemicals. i finally loaded up an old coffee cup with double ended cotton swabs. now, whenever i need sometrhing to apply a dab of anti-sieze, grease, gel lube, paint, contact cleaner, brake clean, gasket cement, et al; i grab a cotton swab. a small set of snips clips off the used end and i save the good cut-off for the next need.

when i make a home-made tool, i like to paint it with a left-over, obnoxous rattle can color. then clearly mark it for its use. thus, it doesnt tend to get thrown out with the trash. and i can send a garage rat to get it because the kid has a decent chance of recognizing it.

i like putting stuff on those heavy metal rings that snap closed. box end wrenches and socket sets can be sorted that way. i hate the bulk of the plastic boxes some of that stuff is sold with. the ring can be tagged with a bright plastic color so that the SAE is easily spotted from the metric and whitworth stuff. the ring can then hang on a shop hook.

i made some pocketed wrench rolls out of heavy duty towels. blue towel for metric, red for whitworth. one end of the towel had the open ends and the other had the box ends. when unrolled, the towel could be draped over the bike seat with the wrenches easy to grab and replace. didnt have to bend over and retrieve tools from the floor. the towel protected the finish of the bike and could be easily washed when dirty. easy to make on a sewing machine. lay out tools on towel and fold over the end. cut the folded piece on the bias to reveal the shorter tools. mark where the stitching goes and run it through the machine both ways (double stitched)for each pocket.

the whole idea is to be able to get tools to the project from a locked box. keep track of the tools along the way. and get everything back into the locked box ready to go for the next day. surgeons have an operating crew to do this for them and they still mess up. us mechanics have to do it for ourselves and pay for lost tools and other screwups.

if you are working off a creeper or rolling seat, put the common tools like sockets in the bottom drawers of the tool box where you dont have to get up every time you need something. or transfer those common tools to a low rolling tray/four drawer box. one very productive bike mech put his top tool box on the floor of his workspace for this reason. i always enjoyed watching him go to the floor for tools when he had benchwork. the guy was so proficient that he didnt use air tools. maybe he was so hung over that he couldnt stand the noise.

have a set of safety glasses on both sides of the project in addition to the set that you are wearing. its not enough to have a first aid kit in the shop. the kit ought to be configured for how it will be used. fer'stance; if you need to hose off a chemical from your body, is the hose set up to make this easy? is the towel ready? is the big bottle of eyewash handy? are you going to open up the big box to get a band-aid? just exactly why is the fire extinguisher located where it is? nothing like running into the corner of the shop to get the fire extinguisher rather than to an exit? wouldnt it be nice to have a shop electrical disconnect for everything but the lights? i have had the air compressor blow a 4x8 foot hole in the back of the garage and do a lot of collateral damage because the safeties were frozen over in an unheated space. shop procedure might be revisited every year by someone with a very trusted jaundiced eye. my compressor blew because i didnt have adequate shop procedure. several very sharp mechs went home and unplugged their compressors feeling lucky. we all sat around figuring out how we would change our lives after my little episode.

lots of good tips in this thread....

[sidetrack one]

So you guys wouldn't be fans of my odd nuts and bolts filing system I take it?

[2twisted]

Whenever I install a new tire I take the label off and stick it on the inside door of my cabinet and write the mileage on the label. its great to look back and see how long the TKC's or Distanzia's last.

Those small magnetic trays are worth there weight in gold.

Prolly the best tool I have ever bought is the stinger flashlight, Yup its expensive but with the wall charger and 12 v. charger its a must have on all trips.

[WoovsHoovs]

got a nut or bolt you need to start but can't reach the hole? Get ya some clear plastic tubing of (several diameters) insert fastener and work it in.
Also-when using flex\wobble u-joint extensions-you can wrap tape around the joint to limit its motion somewhat instead of flopping wildly.

When in a tight position where the ratchet handle limits motion-you'd rather use the socket extension until fastener tightens...get a small hose clamp on extension end to add "traction"-the added grip will get you alot closer to final torque with the ratchet

[ibafran]

Originally Posted by sidetrack bob

So you guys wouldn't be fans of my odd nuts and bolts filing system I take it?

i have several of those files. i like to pour the file out of the container onto an old towel. after using the file, i grab the corners of the towel and pour the file back into the container. its not a particularly bad system if some of it is sorted out. fer'stance: all the metric stuff in in one bucket. all the fractional mechanical bolts is in another bucket. suspected whitworth in another. electrical screws and bits in another. wood screws in another... cuts down on having to empty the nail bucket to get to the washers. stacking buckets will nest in each other and not fall if they arent filled to the top. mark the buckets as you like so that you dont have to unstack all of them to look in each bucket to get to the most promising one.

i have a budd who has an old rolling tool cab and top box literally filled with odd spares. absolutely none of it sorted by drawer. after having scanned each drawer, i can attest that finding what you need is just plain happenstance. nails, tacks, staples, nuts, bolts, washers, woodruff keys, ball bearings, electrical hickeys, lamps parts, pulleys, cleats, little cabinet hinges,,,et al are just loose in there. finding four matching bolts could all be in the same drawer or just as easily be spread through the whole collection. and the guy is absolutely anal about the quality of his finished work. go figure.

i still need one of those multi-drawer plastic things to store the stuff too delicate for the 5gal bucket. tire valve cores, o-rings,,,

i have an old dental cabinet. several drawers are marked as spares for a particular bike. thus, all the stuff for the antique bike is a narrow locale. specific tools, bulbs, fuses, manuals is sited such that i dont have to wander all over the shop collecting stuff.

i got some old full height school hallway lockers. salvaged 2 banks of 4 and beat them straighter. held a lot of stuff. i always wanted a plan file after seeing a budd's workbench with a plan file under it. the drawers slid out a long way and all his common tools were nicely arrayed.

open studs in the garage? buy a couple of sheets of hard pegboard. rip one to fit back in three stud spaces. rip the other to fit like doors over the studs. use cheap piano hinge for mounting. three layers of peg board in the space of one layer. i always hated peg board for consuming too much space in the shop until i saw this in a budd's garage.

[quazi750]

Not a workshop idea more of a home thing. I use an old fridge as my tool locker. tool box fits on the bottom shelf, Ratchit and cordless drill on upper shelf, vegie crisper in the bottom for nuts bolts and wires ect.Also keeps the place looking like a home, not a workshop. Well if its useful may as well use it hey?

[kellyk7]

Originally Posted by sidetrack bob

So you guys wouldn't be fans of my odd nuts and bolts filing system I take it?

Hey this is what My filling system looked like when the side blew out of my 5 gal plastic bucket

BTW if you could figure out how to market it,, that pile might be able to pay off your house,, man when they went to blister packs harware prices blew thru the roof

[kellyk7]

Originally Posted by ibafran

i have several of those files. i like to pour the file out of the container onto an old towel. after using the file, i grab the corners of the towel and pour the file back into the container. .

reading this reminded me of a shop tool a buddy used in his shop, he had a tray with sides and a hole in it .. he would dump his can of nuts and bolts into it, fish around to find waht he wanted , then place can under the hole and swipe the leftovers back into the can thru the hole.

His had legs on it so it would stand above a metal coffee can. it could be made with no legs and just balance it on a few cans of the prescribed size

[Stephen]

Originally Posted by ibafran

... suspected whitworth in another...

Made the whole thread worth reading.
Cracked me up.

[STUFF2C]

I have a 6 gal plastic gas can I keep my used motor oil in...less trips to the recyclers.

[Spam16v]

clean up your damn tools every time you use them. sounds complicated doesn't it? be amazed how much time and effort it saves. don't overcomplicate things, fix the simple stuff first. then advance onto bigger and better things.

[Doghouse_Riley]

If you over fill your oil you can pull the pump out of a household spray bottle and rig up a little hand pump. Get a tube long enough to reach the oil, if the one that's on there already isn't long enough that is, attach it to the pump and squeeze away.

[openboatt]

I have a small white board on the wall of my shop. I use it for short duration notes to self. It fills up with things like; oil changes for truck and MCs, rough diagrams of stuff with assembly patterns I want to remember, etc, etc. Handier than paper. Erase as needed. obt