Tool porn

Im sure its not that horrible if you've got the proper tools to do it :)

That looks like a 61cm frame?
Mine must be lighter than I think. I just remember weighing it and being disappointed.
I’d go check but I’m actually in London’s famous London right now.
I can’t believe you people actually live here, it’s horrendous.

On a tool box nerding mission, came across this video. Tidy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8KigjgoH8E

Just used this Unior square taper BB tool for the first time. It’s a revelation.

Screws into the end of the spindle with a spring-loaded thumbscrew, so cannot slip, with a nice long integrated handle.

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I just had to order one of these so I can fit and remove the self ejecting
sram self extracting crank caps on my dub cranks. I figured having the tool will save me from repeatedly buying more of the caps. Not just because I need green tools in my garage

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Hey lufguss, could you help me choose decent tools for metalworking ?
Some important details :

• They will mostly be used for mounting metal fenders, and some hacks/bodges here and there.
  
• I’m an apartment dweller who needs to move fairly often due to work. Compacity is thus my number one priority
  
• I’m broke atm, so if anything should definitely be downgraded or bought second hand, please let me know. I have the bad tendency to always buy the best available thing when in doubt.
  
  

Here’s what I need:

1°) Files: I was planning to buy a round one (ref 704926), a small flat one (ref 705040) and a big flat one (ref 705192). Glardon/Vallorbe was recommended by some framebuilders I talked with.

2°) Metal saw: Do I have to go with the big ones if it’s mostly for small jobs (fender/rack struts, cutting aluminium plates or steel brackets), or are there way smaller one that’ll do just fine ?

3°) Metal drill bits: I have a Bosch GSB 18V-55 drill. Should I go for Bosch metal drill bits ? The wood ones I bought from them kind of suck, they’re not straight.

4°) Portable vice: I need something small that can clamp on a Ikea table. I won’t put too much force on it, it’s mostly to bend struts and hold pieces when drilling, cutting or filing. Should I go for this very expensive one ?

Thanks in advance !

Vallorbe files i like yeah

Smaller hacksaws, sometimes called junior hacksaws, are a bit awkward to use unless you have tiny hands, might as well get a big one. Just makes jobs go faster, ive never needed a small one.

A decent drill bit set is pretty handy, shit bits are not super fun to use. As long as its not the cheapest one itll probably be alright.

For vices id suggest getting something on ebay. Ive bought quite a few old slightly banged up Vices on ebay and you just de rust a bit and maybe some painting and its good to go, and you dont need to spend that much. Usually theyre better build quality as well if theyre a bit older.

just had a look theres loads of vices on ebay atm. CAnt really go that wrong, theyre pretty hard to break. There are some that go for more money, usually because they have a quick release system or something, which is nice but not really needed

Thanks a lot! I'll grab a full size hacksaw :)

Regarding the files, do you think I should grab other shapes/dimensions, or is my selection good enough for what I plan to do?

For vices I'll look around, we don't do Ebay much in France as we have another website for second hand sale, but every second-hand vice that can clamp on a table that I found so far looks very dainty and low quality.

yeah youll probably be alright with those, a half round one can be nice but depends, maybe buy if you find you need it.

Ah ok yeah if not ebay its the kinda thing you see at carboot sales and stuff. For making it removable you could bolt the vice to a piece of wood and then clamp that to a table and unclamp when needed. I think there arent many nice vices that are also removable.

A dremel type thing would get you 90% there.

Yeah, I thought about doing that but then it becomes this gigantic thing, I'd also have to keep a wood clamp somewhere, etc. Honestly I'll think I'll splurge and grab the York, it looks exactly the same as a RS 545-525 vice we have at work which I've tried and is exactly what I need.

@withered_preacher : I used to own a dremel (Proxxon IBS/E to be precise) and absolutely hated it. Very hard to do any precise work, it was terrible for cutting through struts as the body of the tool very quickly gets in the way, etc. I think people have a tendency to see the dremel as the ultimate versatile tool, while I think it should just be used for what it was designed for : a very niche, handheld milling tool to work on weird shapes, i.e. sculpting, model making, etc.

I’ve been very happy using DeWalt Extreme II bits in my metal workshop for years. You can’t enlarge holes with them, but that’s a quick way to ruin bits anyway. Best thing is never need to pilot hole.

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If you’ll entertain a potentially silly question, why not cobalt instead of HSS if used on stainless steel?

They’re good for mild and stainless steel. Good for wood too if used in a pillar drill, but I prefer brad point bits for timber.

Cobalt drills are great if you use them on a machine at higher speeds with lots of lubricant. They’re not really suitable for hand tools, they’ll chip and snap easily.

Drills specifically for stainless are cut at a sharper angle. The reality is a good quality jobber drill will be quite happy doing occasional stainless work. You’d only have a separate set if you were in a workshop.

If you buy a set of black Dormer drills they’ll probably be the only drills you’ll ever buy and you’ll wonder why you ever wasted your time with anything ‘branded’ from Screwfix.

Just to add to the "how to drill" tutorial, ordinary HSS jobbers are fine on the normal stainless grades you'll use at home (304,316) as long as you feed fast enough to avoid work hardening. Really needs a pillar drill, as wandering around with a hand drill inevitably leads to one side rubbing even if the other side is cutting.

Also, loads of coolant

loads of coolant

Ideally, but in a domestic setting I had good luck with a can of spray lube.

I've got a can of spray cutting oil from WD40 which works well

WD40 itself works well when cutting ally.
I suspect it may be the same product under a different label/price.

I’m a big believer in using a spring punch to mark when drilling thinner materials by hand so it doesn’t wander around. I use it nearly every day at work.

Maybe a small planishing hammer and a few bits of wood/leather? If you’re fitting a lot of metal fenders they might need a little reshaping sometimes. I got some VO ones back to nearly new after a stick bent the rear quite badly.

The tin of green waxy cutting compound in our workshop is fantastic on most things. I have no idea what it’s called and it’s probably about 30yrs old by now and still going strong.

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I’m waiting excitedly for a Knippex pipe cutter.

I was hoping I could get by with a pointy bit at the end of my Ikea screwdriver for now, but if it doesn't fare well I'll definitely buy a spring punch, I like them too :) I've been meaning to buy a single sheet of thick leather for a while, but I think it makes more sense for me (in terms of cost) to just buy 5 or 10 VO leather spacers instead of leather + a punch.
I won't be fitting that many metal fenders really, 2 pairs at most in the foreseeable future, but I want to fit them properly because the half-assed job I did with my previous Berthoud just led to them cracking within 2 years. I will buy VO ones this time and plan to adjust their radius by hand.

Thanks for the discussion about drill bits, though I feel a bit overwhelmed by all the different possibilities. I think I'm just gonna go with a fairly basic Bosch HSS-G kit for now, as I'll be using them exclusively on a hand drill and, really, they won't see much use.

Thanks for the recommandation @dbr. I read on reddit that people had problems with this kind of bits, because they had a tendency to wander around/drill oval, but you seem to say otherwise! I probably will never be using anything bigger than a 6 anyway, so it looks like it wouldn't change much, as the special "end" on the Dewalt seems to be only on size 6 bits and above?

Interesting. My experience is the exact opposite actually. They’re especially good at not drilling triangular holes which can can happen with normal twist bits. 95% of the time they’re being used in a pillar drill though so much more consistent anyway.