Ethan takes us to Hafele in New York, VCG falls for the new Cordless Worm Drive and Buildings are leaning in San Francisco. All of those stories and more coming up in the Power Tool Week In Review.
Last week we got a submission from Josh the Tooldude, whom we’ve featured before. But this time he had something a bit more unusual, and quite frankly, we couldn’t turn away! Josh purchased a BROKEN Ridgid Octane Impact Driver on eBay for $32. Then he proceeded to tear it all apart, and then fix it up like new. And he makes this whole thing look so simple I feel like a shmuck for buying anything new! If you’re looking for a mechanical challenge, and the deal of the century on your next impact, swing by Josh the Tool Dude on Youtube.
I feel like recently we feature Scott Brown almost every week. If you’re not watching him every week, you’re doing it wrong. This week he highlights 5 tools he thought he’d never use. But you know… he does! This includes a deceivingly simple Razorsaw, an air wedge for aligning door hinges, and some CA Glue from Finish Carpentry TV! There are a couple of others, but for that, you’ll have to either travel to New Zealand to ask, or I guess you could just watch Scott Brown Carpentry on Youtube.
We were fortunate to visit a whole bunch of new channels this week, one of which was Blake’s Garage, where we found him just in time for a Total Tubular two minute tool time Tuesday, which I think is grease money terms for Toolsday. Blake is busy swapping an S52 engine into an e30 BMW and he’s finding it far easier to do with the all-new Milwaukee M12 Fuel ⅜” extended reach ratchet. I love cars, and watching him drop a late 90s M3 motor into his e30 was more than enough to keep my attention. But then he added the new Milwaukee ratchet, and I discovered he shoots with the same camera we do. A GH5. Blake, did we just become best friends? YUP! To learn more about my best friend and the new Milwaukee ratchet, be sure to visit Blake’s Garage on Youtube.
If you follow us on Instagram, you no doubt caught the release of The all-new Skilsaw Cordless Wormdrive this week! We’ve had our own fun with the saw so far, and we’ve found some insights from the likes of Tool Girl’s Garage, Kruger Construction, Canadian Carpenter and even the French Canadian Carpenter! On the very day it was announced, Vince from VCG, already a notorious fanboy of the current Mag 77 corded worm drive, posted a spectacular review comparing the old cordless, to the new hotness. Spoiler alert… the cordless is FASTER. If you’re a fan of circular saws, worm drive or not, you owe it to yourself to visit VCG Construction on Youtube.
Our last stop on the InterTubes takes us to Electrician U, where Dustin decided to list out the top 13 Tools Apprentice Electricians Need To Have, or die of electrocution. In all seriousness, Dustin is still determined to make us all quit our jobs and learn to be sparkies, and I don’t have a good reason not to. This time He reviews in great detail the 13 most important hand tools for you to keep in your belt, but for some reason completely ignores the best clothing, which is, of course, a season 2 Week in Review T-shirt. So I’m going to send him one, so he can look just as good as he… electricians. Elects. Eletritionings. Is there a verb for doing what electricians do? Sparking! If your job sucks (trust me, it does) then it’s time to train for the trades! And you’ll find your best start at electrician U on youtube.
Jonny Builds posted a video where he made a DIY bookcase with limited tools. So if you are just starting out and need a project that does not require a shop full of tools this is perfect! He used both metal and wood for the bookshelf which gave it a fun industrial feel. You can find Jonny Builds on Instagram and Youtube.
Modustrial Maker shared his Modern Concrete Coffee Table with a maple rhombus base. Mike walks you through the process of this build including what went well, what went wrong, and what error is never to be seen again. This is a really cool piece that would fit perfectly in any living room! You can find Mike at Modustiral Maker on Youtube.
Anne of all Trades made Pizza Peel using the Plans from Woodsmith she immediately made alterations to accommodate her specific pizza oven. She used a lot of hand tools for this but shows you how you can get the same outcome with power tools. If this perfect spokeshave curl inspires you as it does me, go check out Anne of All Trades on YouTube.
Have you ever heard of the Millennium Tower in San Francisco? It’s a luxury high rise that was erected in 2009, and ever since, it’s been slowly sinking, and tilting. For those of you who know very little about high rises, neither of those things is good. Since this was first discovered, dozens of lawyers have been filing lawsuits because, You know… lawyers gonna law am I right? Anyways, there’s finally some good news for the leaning tower of pineapple pizza. A new 100 million dollar plan was just approved that will add 52 piles driven 250 feet into the ground, which should finally hit bedrock. The building is currently leaning 17 inches to the northwest, which technically means these fixes are not yet “mandatory”, but I’m sure the building next to it is still happy it’s happening.
It’s no secret that the construction workforce is dominated by men, but women are slowly increasing their numbers in recent years as gender barriers continue to be knocked down. With construction jobs expected to continue to grow over the next few years, women will play a significant role in filling job openings. Skanska an enormous construction company, who’s working with several vest manufacturers to produce new PPE specifically for women. Some of the key features of the new vests include a tapered waist, several front pockets, breathable mesh material on the back, and an interior pocket to accommodate larger electronic equipment. Skanska is not only giving this new tailor-made PPE to their employees, but they will also be available for purchase to anyone outside of the company nationwide. It’s an honorable move to not only help your interior workforce, but help to better the industry overall.
