tommypenguin

I've been working on cars for a little while and know there are a lot of auto tools that would make my life easier I've never heard of. Just had a situation twice in the last month where two different friends of mine introduced me to a couple of tools that made my life a lot easier and I was kicking myself for not having the tools sooner.

Am hoping veterans on the forum who work on their corvette would post some of their favorite tools and what they use them for. With any luck a few people along with myself will find more places to spend their money.

What are some of your favorite tools in your garage you use when working on your corvette?

First tool wanted to bring up was used after picking up a set of 317 heads that a stud with a broken head stuck in one of the exhaust bolt holes. Got the heads for super cheap because the previous owner broke the bolt head and couldn't get the stud out. Had tried taking vice grips to the stud to no avail.

I was looking for someone to weld a nut on the stud to give that a shot when a buddy suggested using a stud extractor. have a tap and die set, left hand drill bit set and hex head extractor but never heard of a stud extractor. Picked one up and it made short work of that issue.










Next, have a picture of a few of my favorite wrenches as they make accessing bolts in tight places almost always a non-issue. Love the makita and milwaukee lighting as well, use the milwaukee for tight spaces and the makita for everything else as it has a flex head. Lastly the milwaukee electric impact is super nice to have and doesn't require dragging the air hose around and has decent torque.

norcalace

Got lots of em. California Duster, microfiber cloth towels, clay bar, random orbital polisher, battery tender and vacuum cleaner.

Roddy13

+1 California duster.

Also my beer fridge.

Pounder

as a former Tech I have just about every tool you could think of, including many Auto trans tools, and many GM specific tools (Kent Moore) (OTC). later in life I was a Union Carpenter and used many cordless tools.(love Dewalt) I would have loved to had the use of cordless impacts back in the day.(hated cords and air hoses) But the Tool I love now even though it not used a lot is the Tech 2, it is a tool you can do so many things that you can't use anything in it's place, and a tool so valuable to a C 5.

Vetteman Jack

One tool I have found useful on occasion is a mechanics stethoscope. Great for finding squeaks and rattles as well as strange noises from components on the car. Got mine from Harbor Freight at a very good price and it works very well.

1Willy1

I don't have a garage but ive picked up some useful goodies over the past few years

Yesterday I picked up my most useful one yet, a 1/2 inch impact wrench , made the horrible task of removing 40 wheel bolts for a wheel rebuild im doing (usually about an hours work) into a 2 minute job

Aside from that my socket set is my most useful

Followed by my HVLP compressor and my griots random orbital (don't get to use it as much as I would like)

My next purchase is going to be a 5 pound, or 18 pound polishing tumbler through harbor freight, really excited about that one

BurntNoodle

My favorite tool is probably my air compressor, and all the tools associated with it. At first I was hesitant to go to air tools because of the price of a good compressor, but it has paid for itself twice over. Its nice using air to clean leaves/debris out of an engine bay and then quickly swap tools and be able to blast lug nuts off with my impact gun.

My other favorite is my floor jack and jack stands, because without them 90% of the work I do would not be possible.


John

Kainedogg

Definitely my TIG/Plasma Combo from Everpro and my trusty Harbor Freight $9.99 4" cutoff wheel.

Fastbird

My favorites:

Snap On long handle flex head Dual 80 ratchets (all three main sizes)
Snap On mini flex head ratchet, 3/8 in a 1/4 body (GREAT for right spaces)
DeWalt 3/8 Hog Ring 20v battery powered Impact Driver - speeds things up big time.
Snap On Solus Ultra Scanner, for those diag type of days, lol.

runner140*

I have two 13" needle nose pliers, straight and angled. Can get anywhere with these (front bulbs etc.). A set of metric wrenches and my impact wrench, I've got two...gets bolts off that don't want to come off. The alum. racing jack. RaceRamps.

Give me enough time, I can come up with many more...Three tool boxes full.

runner140*

Sorry, off topic....don't ever change your avatar.

Omaha Flash

My 4 post lift.

moekluse

My 2 post lift as well as a toolbox as big as the wall loaded with every tool you can imagine, as well as my air compressor, with a fridge full of pneumatic tools (literally a refrigerator) here's a shot of one of my minis we just got done building



Not Done Yet But Hopefully soon

Gary Collins

Of all My tools in my small garage I'd say My AC and stereo are my favorites!

Velocity_Vette

I guess not really "favorites" per say but two sets of tools that I learned a long time ago you don't cheap out on is a good torx driver set and a good strong "breaker" or "cheater" bar. Have cheap torx and you run the risk of rounding off torx heads that seem to be everywhere in GM products. I kept bending and, umm, breaking breaker bars until I went out and bought a really good made in USA one from NAPA. It's withstood everything I've thrown it on.

So yeah favorite tools are a good torx driver set and a good breaker bar. Lame I know.

imjdoggie

Lol I'll add to the list................my Echo Backpack leaf blower acts as a car dryer, a snow blower if it's not too deep and lastly a leaf blower.

Glasact

I don't own this tool but my Son-in-law is an ASE Certified mechanic who owns a Snap-on Modis scanner. (I couldn't afford one) He is only a phone call away and quickly locates any problems with it. I am amazed what this scanner can do.

My favorite tool is my coffee pot

jackthelad

Got pretty much everything I need - or have needed. 1/4,3/8,1/2 and 3/4 socket sets for starters (metric and inch), plus the deep sockets and the impact sockets. Usual stock of open/ring wrenches plus a good few Whitworth tools (used to work on old Brit cars when I lived there). You can never have enough screwdrivers, pliers, etc. And you definitely need vise grips working on older cars. Plus channel grips up to the really big ones. Then the compressor and a couple of floor jacks, a couple of sets of axle stands, along with the neat little adaptor that fits a conventional floor jack and keys into the jacking slots on the C5 - very useful, no chance of damaging the body, and once in place it cannot slip.

Then there are the usual power tools.

There's also the "home improvement" side of me with a decent set of tools - everything from super long drill bits to multiple table and miter saws, sanders, etc. And the nail guns - the framing nail gun is one of my definite favorites.

And when all else fails, there is the oxy-acetelene welding/cutting kit. Not good on a plastic car, tho'.

What clutters the garage up most are non essentials like mowers, trimmers, blowers, pressure washers, etc. Got to get that stuff out of there! Along with my wife's car......

66dts-v

<edit> Works on bikes, motorcycles, cars, and trucks. It can open a beer in the driveway, too.

novasscnc

My favourite tool is my 4 post hoist