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his list is woefully incomplete as he will soon find out.
Good advice above. For now I just bought stuff to allow me to change the wheels. The lift, obviously, was most of the cost. I will definitely avoid buying large sets of sockets etc., more on a need to use sort of basis. I do need some wrenches that’s for sure, and some hex keys……
Good advice above. For now I just bought stuff to allow me to change the wheels. The lift, obviously, was most of the cost. I will definitely avoid buying large sets of sockets etc., more on a need to use sort of basis. I do need some wrenches that’s for sure, and some hex keys……
if you're going to be removing and installing wheels a torque wrench is a must.
if you're going to be removing and installing wheels a torque wrench is a must.
Got one!, probably forgot to add it to the list. I also have wheel guides. I essentially documented all the stuff my friend use to swap our wheels (including the lift which was really slick with good safety functions) and started there.
You don't need Snap On for light, shade tree work. Craftsman, Home Depot has some decent stuff. Look for a decent compete set/package.
I third this comment. There are many brands out there that will give you 100% of the performance of snap-on at less than 50% of the cost.
I have a fairly comprehensive tool set and I’m not afraid to spend money (I’m also a hobbyist woodworker and I have truckloads of festool ($$$)), but I have very few (but not zero) snap-on pieces.
For somebody building a tool kit from scratch, who won’t be using them to make a living, snap-on is overkill.
I have a lot of the old USA Craftsman, but when Sears switched over to Chinese sourced Craftsman, the quality and tolerances appeared to be substantially worse. Looked to me like a businessman's bright idea to squeeze money out of the Craftsman name & ruin their rep. I haven't looked back, but this thread made me check into their more recent history, and it looks nowadays YMMV by which 'line' of modern Craftsman you buy and which retailer you purchase from, so check into that before buying.
As someone somewhere between novice and pro mechanic, my chests have a mix of 'quality'. Core tools are pretty decent stuff, but I'll go harbor freight quality if it's something I'll use once every few years (like an engine hangar bar for BMWs). For the core tools that get a ton of use, I have a couple snap on ratchets, but snap-on is mostly too rich for my blood; I have a lot of old craftsman USA stuff (tho I don't like the ratchets) because that was around and in budget when I was first building my collection, and for sockets and wrenches I've added recently, I like S-K.
For core tools, I mostly like @SpyderSenseOC 's comments for the kernel of a mechanics tool set, though I'd add Dewalt as a fine alternative for the electric tools. Things I'd add to his list for early purchases: a 1/4" electric impact driver that shares battery with your 1/2" impact; you'll thank me the first time you remove your panels to access anything under the GT4. You can never have too many extensions, and make sure a couple have a wobble tip. For the 3/8 socket set, I'd get both shallow and deep. A 1/4" metric socket set & driver, shallow only is fine for starters. Finally, add a decent quality head lamp like a Fenix HL60 or whatever is the modern variant. Also always wear eye protection; I'd be blind twice if I hadn't (once took a hit in a lens good enough for the gasses to blacken my eye), and they keep falling dirt out of your eyes.
I have a lot of the old USA Craftsman, but when Sears switched over to Chinese sourced Craftsman, the quality and tolerances appeared to be substantially worse. Looked to me like a businessman's bright idea to squeeze money out of the Craftsman name & ruin their rep. I haven't looked back, but this thread made me check into their more recent history, and it looks YMMV by which 'line' of modern Craftsman you buy so check into that before buying.
As someone somewhere between novice and pro mechanic, my chests have a mix of 'quality'. Core tools are pretty decent stuff, but I'll go harbor freight quality if it's something I'll use once every few years (like an engine hangar bar for BMWs). For the core tools that get a ton of use, I have a couple snap on ratchets, but snap-on is mostly too rich for my blood; I have a lot of old craftsman USA stuff (tho I don't like the ratchets) because that was around and in budget when I was first building my collection, and for sockets and wrenches I've added recently, I like S-K.
For core tools, I mostly like @SpyderSenseOC 's comments, though I'd add Dewalt as a fine alternative for the electric tools. Things I'd add to his list: a 1/4" electric impact driver that shares battery with your 1/2" impact; you'll thank me the first time you remove your panels to access anything under the GT4. You can never have too many extensions, and make sure a couple have a wobble tip. For the 3/8 socket set, I'd get both shallow and deep. A 1/4" metric socket set & driver, shallow only is fine for starters. Finally, add a decent quality head lamp like a Fenix HL60 or whatever is the modern variant. Also always wear eye protection; I'd be blind twice if I hadn't (once took a hit in a lens good enough for the gasses to blacken my eye), and it keeps falling dirt out of your eyes.
IMO the only tools where it makes sense to have brand loyalty is with cordless power tools. This because you don’t want to have to buy into more than one battery platform. I do realize that you can get adapters and such, but that has some risk associated with it.
Personally, I have one battery platform for 12v tools (only 5 or 6 tools) and a different brand for 18/20v tools (over a dozen).
@rubber_ducky agreed; I'm not brand loyal though I do have some I like for certain things... and same thoughts on the cordless power tools. The brand I have was determined with the purchase of the first cordless power tool.
@AdamIsAdam instructive vid. A good friend of mine chose the gearwrench, prob used similar research. Cool to see there's a lot of options out there; when I was building my set and before the internets was a thing most ppl had, I just know of USA Craftsman, crap tools, and Snap-On or Mac for the ballers.
Good advice above. For now I just bought stuff to allow me to change the wheels. The lift, obviously, was most of the cost. I will definitely avoid buying large sets of sockets etc., more on a need to use sort of basis. I do need some wrenches that’s for sure, and some hex keys……
Letters for the rear, which I had custom-made, painted to match, and applied over the Black ones. I used to have thinner decals over them but I wanted something more:
How thick are those bob, and did you apply them with 3M tape?
They are 1/16" thick and they came with 3M tape already on them. I originally asked for them to be 1/8" thick but they messed up, and the "R" was not identical (right/lower 45-degree angle leg) but it is close and one cannot tell since they are on a Black background. Overall though, I like the way they turned out.
This week I had a shop install the GT4 RS rear diffuser fins along with the GT4 RS front under body spoilers. The rear fins fill out the bottom ends of the bumper and completes the look of the diffuser. From the beginning the rear bumper looked a bit weak somehow, as if they had cut the standard Boxster bumper and added a diffuser to it like a parts bin special. The fins have a subtle aggressive look that matches the front end of this car. Quite happy with the results to be honest. The mods on the car are small personal touches with a minimalistic approach and OEM+ philosophy to help elevate the senses even higher and improve upon what already is an awesome car from factory. The best mods so far have been the Akrapovic OAP, Cargraphic Valve Controller, Manthey Rear Toe Links, Winschott Rear Glass, GT4 RS Rear Diffuser Fins. Also need to mention how much Windschott has improved the rear visibility, as well as a cosmetically upgrade and replace that awfully cheap looking net; and a bonus for also helping emphasizing the beautiful streamliners even more so. In my personal opinion it is a must buy for all fellow Spyder owners. Here is the list of what I've had done so far:
-Akrapovic OAP
-Manthey Racing Rear Toe Links
-Manthey Racing Braided Brake Lines
-Cargraphic Valve Controller (2-way)
-Windschott Rear Glass
-GT4 RS Rear Diffuser Fins
-GT4 RS Front Underbody Spoilers
-Spyder logos on the streamliners painted Matte Black
-Musicar Stage 1 Tweeter Upgrade
-Aluminum Shift ****
-Leather Center Console Trim in black (blends in more with the rest of the car)
-Shift Boot with Silver Stitching (Exclusive Option)
10-15-2022, 09:20 PM
