Your favorite tools

We all have them. Some were passed down from father to son, some were hand made to solve a specific problem and some may have been received as a Christmas gift.
It's unfortunate that some of the favorite tools have been "superseded" by more modern tools.

One of my favorite tools is the Yankee screwdriver-



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yankee_screwdriver

I can't remember the last time I noticed one for sale. Mine had had a lot of use and for a hole or two- can't be beat.

So- what do you own and consider one of your "go to" tools? It can be new or old, perhaps one that not many have or even a tool you have always wanted but due to the price you just haven't purchased yet.

Pride of ownership is encouraged! associated bitching discouraged

OM

https://www.amazon.com/Craftsman-Mach-T-Handle-Driver-14pc/dp/B011VTORKC


One of my go to tools

Snap-on Screwdriver set I purchased while working as a Smog Tech in college way back in 1970.

The handles have been replaced but the "shafts/Bits" are original and still work just fine.

Also, the snap-on ratcheting driver, pricey at the time, but 2 of them . I have my grandfathers yankee screwdriver in the bottom of a toolbox, with a wooden handle, so must be old.

I wish that I had seen this thread sooner, then maybe I’d have been the first to brag about my Snap-On ratcheting screwdriver as my favorite tool instead of the third poster to do so. Oh well, mine is a stubby with replaceable tips that I’ve had for over 20 years. It’s done a lot of traveling and works as well today as when I bought it.

Doug

This is a cool tool that seems to amaze people that it even exists-



Really works and has been a help in many situations. All the Whia tools are first rate.

https://www.wihatools.com/magnetizer-and-demagnetizer

OM

I have no idea what that tool is?

And funny my Snap On ratcheting screwdriver was one of the first to pop in my head. The first one I ever saw was in a helicopter mechanics toolbox and it was pink. I asked him why pink and he said no-one would steal it. Mine is pink.

I love hammers too.

skibum69 said:

I have no idea what that tool is?

And funny my Snap On ratcheting screwdriver was one of the first to pop in my head. The first one I ever saw was in a helicopter mechanics toolbox and it was pink. I asked him why pink and he said no-one would steal it. Mine is pink.

I love hammers too.

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It magnetizes and de-magnetizes tools like a screwdriver.

The colored handles on hand tools were created as an easy way to find the tools. The traditional black handles hide use and abuse better but disappear in the darkness.
OM

I could see how the might be useful.

This compact set by Motion Pro, along with the optional torx bits.

https://www.motionpro.com/product/08-0161

https://www.motionpro.com/product/08-0716

You can magnetize anything with iron by repeatedly stroking one pole of a magnet along the tool's length.
You can de-magnetize it either by banging it hard (not so desirable) or passing it through the tip of a soldering gun, or any other source of a strong AC field.

A golden oldie- Stahlwille 4 piece internal cam stud remover-



It resides with another oldie from Craftsman, now seems to be supplied by Lisle-



OM

It's a little obscure and oddly cheap but this is one of the best simple hand tools I have ever purchased. I got one lightly used with the bits for $12 on Ebay and they cost about $25 new on Amazon.



It's a Japanese-made Vessel hand screwdriver that includes Japanese Industrial Standard cross-pattern bits. They look like Phillips but the taper grind is different, and they grip Phillips screws better than Phillips bits do. It's a very well-made tool and works wonders on stuck screws. I've used it on my own rusty BMW fasteners plenty of times.

JIS bits or screwdrivers are incredibly important when working on basically every Japanese motorcycle more than 5 years old, because if you try to use Phillips bits or drivers on them the screws will just strip out. Many a home mechanic has stripped out old carburetor screws not knowing that they were using the wrong screwdriver. I made that mistake on my first couple project motorcycles before I learned about JIS and bought this.

It even saved the day once doing a front brake job on my brother's Honda Insight. The shank of the bits is precisely 1/4 inch so you can put a little wrench on to aid with leverage, and I did exactly that to remove a pair of stuck-with-rust brake rotor screws when no other tool would grip them. That convinced my dad to buy one.

I have far to many tools many of them custom made to call one my favorite.

JSNS…….

What is that Craftman tool? I see it goes on a ratchet but what does it do?

This is a tool I love but never need to use. It was designed specifically for use on their bolt on fixie hubs. Very solid and ergonomic with a built in bottle opener. Nicely tapered face to keep your knuckles out of the spokes.



This one from the factory toolkit is highly coveted. Fits the gas tank bolt on the 640.

skibum69 said:

What is that Craftman tool? I see it goes on a ratchet but what does it do?

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Another type of stud extractor - grips and rotates the unthreaded shaft of a head stud.

lkraus said:

Another type of stud extractor - grips and rotates the unthreaded shaft of a head stud.

Click to expand...

On any round part that the "hole" will accommodate. In either direction!

OM

SnapOn metric sockets are currently distinguished from inch sockets by two knurled rings.

Earlier, they were distinguished by two black rings.

From the 1970s ...

It wold be super handy on my toolbox to have differentiated metric vs imperial sockets.

I get you on the stud puller.