Advice for a new mechanic building his toolkit?

[td25c]

When I started out just went with a sears roller cabinet box with a tool chest on top . When I needed a bigger box I bought another sears roller & bolted them together & added a tag axil in the middle .

Caught a little flack from the other mechanics with the big Snap On setups . It was all cool !

I got them back when I set up a Knapheide tool box with a Ford 460 engine .

Pulled up to the shop and service manager & my buddy's all came out to look it over .

Manager asks " what are you going to do with that " ?

"I'm going to go make some real folding money "

His jaw dropped a little . I was 24 at the time .

Still have both tool boxes .

 

[gruntscoreboard]

I agree with AzIron

 

[Wes J]

When I started, pre internet like it is today, I bought a used Mac single bank roller and a more used Snap On top box off the Snap-on guy. I seem to remember paying $600 for the setup, which was probably too much. I used that for about 3 years until I scored a Mac Tech 1000 double bank box at an auction of a retiring mechanic. I paid $750 for that and sold the little Mac bottom box to the bosses kid and kept the top box for home. I still use that Mac box 13 years later. I made an oak top for it from wood I salvaged from a van trailer floor.

I couldn't afford many truck tools, but I did buy some. We had Mac, Matco, and Snap-on every week. Snap on guy was a dick, so other than that first box and a torque wrench, I never bought any Snap-on tools. Lots of Matco.

Also, I could buy USA made Allen brand tools at the farm store, and USA made Craftsman at Sears in the big city. I still have many of those tools even though Allen ceases to be a brand.

Things are a lot different now. Taiwan and China tools have come a long way. The quality of all tools is much better. Compare the finish of a 25 year old Snap-on wrench to a new one. It's night and day different.

Personally, I buy mostly Proto and SK now. I don't like dealing with the trucks. I just order tools from a local supplier. I don't warranty tools either. Not worth it. I just toss them and buy a new one. I lose more tools than I break.

 

[RZucker]

For some high quality Taiwanese stuff, Check with a local New Holland or Case dealer. Its the same stuff that Snap on sells as Blue Point now, For a lot less.

 

[JD955SC]

For some high quality Taiwanese stuff, Check with a local New Holland or Case dealer. Its the same stuff that Snap on sells as Blue Point now, For a lot less.

NAPA is an excellent source of quality tools too. Their Carlyle brand is great, all made in Taiwan but it’s high quality. They have a very thick tool catalog of all the brands they carry too if you ask them for a copy

 

[td25c]

My most used tool hands down is a Leatherman super tool 300 .

Pins & bushings are gettin pretty wore down . I'm due for a new one .

What would completely shut us down is if we run out of Skoal !

Pretty bad when ya tell the concrete truck driver to stop in the convenience store & grab a can of tobacco . LOL!

 

[RZucker]

Td... here's a pic of me and my second truck, I was 28 at the time. first truck was a 79 GMC 1 ton with single rear wheels and a homemade welding bed.

 

[td25c]

Td... here's a pic of me and my second truck, I was 28 at the time.
View attachment 182556

Love the truck setup !

A young RZucker in field welding irrigation pipe .

Cool photo

I have to ask ... What is the rig behind the farm tractor ?

 

[RZucker]

Love the truck setup !

A young RZucker in field welding irrigation pipe .

Cool photo

I have to ask ... What is the rig behind the farm tractor ?

Actually in this pic I was wrenching. The rig was a hydraulic power pack I had built for a farmer to run "push out" trailers that had a huge telescoping cylinder pushing a sliding bulkhead to unload compost or silage. They didn't want to bother with the expense of wet kits on rental trucks. I think the cylinder stroke was around 365"... they took a lot of oil to extend.
It doesn't show in the pic angle, but that truck was packing a Lincoln SA200 welder and a 13 HP air compressor. That crane was one of my favorites, no remote but it could lift, pull, push, etc. The 427 was somewhat thirsty.

 

[td25c]

One thing I will add that might be of interest to a young mechanic starting out .

Myself .... Could not stand working in the same building / shop all day long .

Really enjoyed the field work the best be it a wrecker or service call in the 460 Ford tool box . The outdoor on site work was far more exiting then back at the shop .

Worked for several fertilizer companies dragging & patching trucks back together in the dirt . Really liked it !

Call from the plant manager would go down like this , " We have a spreader truck over in Orange county with a busted king pin on the drivers side " , " Don't care how you fix it just make it move again & send us a bill " .

Endless stories like that . It's fast pace Spaghetti Western wrenching .

" Make it move again & send us a bill" . I like it

 

[td25c]

Actually in this pic I was wrenching. The rig was a hydraulic power pack I had built for a farmer to run "push out" trailers that had a huge telescoping cylinder pushing a sliding bulkhead to unload compost or silage. They didn't want to bother with the expense of wet kits on rental trucks. I think the cylinder stroke was around 365"... they took a lot of oil to extend.

I noticed it had a tank on it and lines . That's cool coming up with a simple solution to the problem with parts & equipment on hand .

Damn Hot Rodder's !

 

[RZucker]

One thing I will add that might be of interest to a young mechanic starting out .

Myself .... Could not stand working in the same building / shop all day long .

Really enjoyed the field work the best be it a wrecker or service call in the 460 Ford tool box . The outdoor on site work was far more exiting then back at the shop .

Worked for several fertilizer companies dragging & patching trucks back together in the dirt . Really liked it !

Call from the plant manager would go down like this , " We have a spreader truck over in Orange county with a busted king pin on the drivers side " , " Don't care how you fix it just make it move again & send us a bill " .

Endless stories like that . It's fast pace Spaghetti Western wrenching .

" Make it move again & send us a bill" . I like it

You are strange... Just like me. I always said a bad day in the field is better than a good day in the shop. And "make it move"? that was my middle name.

 

[td25c]

Make it move & blow smoke again .

Mobile mechanics job .