Rockler has a small autoloader screwdriver (see TM 2006 and 2007) for $10 as an online-only special. The unit comes with 6 bits (Phillips #0, #00, #000; slotted 3/32″, 1/8″, 5/32″; all bits are 5/32″ × 1″) that are accessed by pulling back on the handle, twisting to select the desired bit, and then pushing the handle forward. A large autoloader with 6 bits (Phillips #1, #2, #3; slotted 1/8″, 3/16″, 1/4″; all bits are 1/4″ × 1″), is also on sale for $15 (online-only). Free shipping with promo code V9789. This online sale ends this Wednesday, September 30.

Small Autoloader Screwdriver [Rockler]
Large Autoloader Screwdriver [Rockler]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]
Street Pricing [Google Products]

Starrett is arriving late into the digital inspection scope arena with their recently-introduced inspection scope. Made in the USA, the scope features an auto-focus digital camera with a full-color resolution of 320 x 240 pixels. The camera can focus on object anywhere from 0.4″ to infinity and displays the image on a 2.5″ LCD with a 55° degree viewing angle.

Powered by 4 AA batteries, the device lasts 4 hours on average. Dual LED’s give can be set to three different intensity levels. The inspection scope comes with either a 3′ or a 6′ water-resistant shaft that measures .42″ in diameter at its widest point and can be bent in a 2.5″ radius circle. It also has an RCA output that will connect to an NTSC monitor.

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The General No. 142 6-inch dial caliper does direct reading of .01″ (outer scale) and 1/64″ (inner scale) on its dial (plus mm readings on the bar scale, but — without getting into that whole metric thing — I don’t find this “feature” very convenient). It can do inside, outside, depth, and step measurements. Its fiberglass-reinforced plastic body makes it a good choice for damp/wet environments. You can pick one up for around $24.

There are many alternatives (TM has covered calipers a few times: in 2006 and 2007, for example) and some are less expensive (HF or the General 141), but I especially like this model for woodworking.

General Tools [Manufacturer's Site]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

I’ve seen 2 references (Brian’s Blog & Cool Tools) recently about using paracord to wrap tool handles, so it must be significant. Peter Atwood has both a video and a short web tutorial showing his wrapping method. The picture above is from Brian’s Blog showing the Atwood-method wrap on a mini pry bar (the Pocket Widgy® from County Comm).

Given that you can get 50′ of paracord for around $3 and that its 550-lb. tensile strength is useful in many other areas, this looks like a neat application for it. Maybe paracord should join duct tape and vise grips as another universal solution?

Paracord Via Amazon [What’s This?]
Paracord Street Pricing [Google Products]

I’ve had a Radi-Plane (similar, if not identical to, the picture on the left) for many years*, and found it very handy for easing edges. I recently added — following a “suggestion” from the home project coordinator, a.k.a. my lovely wife — a couple of extra shelves to a cabinet above the oven. I used MDF for the shelves and my Radi-Plane did a great job rounding the edges (and was easier and quicker than digging out the router).

While checking options, I found Benjamen’s post on the Veritas Cornering Tool Set (shown on the right above; $33 for 2 tools with 4 different radii and a sharpening kit), and was wondering how these compare to the Radi-Plane (or the apparent equivalents, Woodstock’s W1100 Slickplane [What’s This?], available for $13, and the Rockler radius plane, available for $22). Has anyone had experience with both? Any other good suggestions for quickly and consistently easing edges?

*15? 20? I found a Radi-Plane reference in the Aug. 1990 issue of American Woodworker [Google Books]. My versions are branded “RADI-PLANE, L.A. Mathers Co., Stockton, Calif.”

Street Pricing [Google Products]
Radius Plane [Rockler]

There’s a problem with using superb tools. Afterward, every time you have to use something less than the best, it’s a little depressing knowing there’s something better out there. By that mantra, I’ll never be satisfied with another tubing bender after using a set of Swagelok’s tubing benders. They’re made from extremely high-quality steel, and create easy, beautiful bends thanks to bearings which roll along the tube as the bend progresses, forcing the tube into a precisely-cast base.

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This little tool will save you time when you’re mortising latch plates by hand. Rather than aligning the latch plate and cutting around it with a utility knife to score an outline, you just stick the Latch Mortiser into the bolt hole, align the face, and give it a few whacks.

Don’t be shy with the hammer; Templaco makes this 1″ by 2-1/4″ rectangular mortiser from “tough stuff,” so they claim it’ll take a beating. Sharp edges on all four sides outline the mortise, so now all you have to do is finish it with a chisel and some sweat.

Templaco’s Latch Mortiser will run you $17.

Latch Mortiser [Templaco]
Street Pricing [Google Products]

From time to time when you’re taking something apart, you run into an e-clip. Sure, you can pry them off with a screwdriver, but getting them back on can present a problem if you don’t have the right tool.  This set of tools from OTC allows you to both remove and install four different sizes of e-clip.

The set comes with tools for 6mm, 7mm, 8mm, and 9mm e-clips. One end of the tool removes the e-clip while the other installs them. Each tool locks into the provided handle to give you a better grip.

To buy this tool set you can pay anywhere from $10 to $20 before shipping and handling.

E-Clip Tool [OTC]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

Do it Best has the Stanley 10-788 for $10 online before the $5 mail-in rebate. A nice feature of the rebate — if you’re so inclined — is the ability to donate it directly to Habitat for Humanity. If you don’t want the utility knife, you can get $10 off the $20 online sale for a Stanley FatMax 1-1/4″×25′ tape, or $5 off the $10 online sale for a Stanley 16-oz. Fiberglass Rip Hammer, with the same option to donate the refund. The offer expires 10/3/09. Do it Best offers free shipping of online orders to a local store for “participating” locations.

Stanley 10-788 [Manufacturer's Site]
Do it Best [Website]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

Roofers sometimes use a grid of lath under cedar shingles or slate tiles to allow airflow underneath the materials, especially in Nordic countries. It can be time-consuming to lay down because every grid is made to fit both the roof and the tile. To make the process faster and easier, Bahco created the LathKo template, which they claim cuts installation time up to 40%.

To use the lightweight aluminum tool, you adjust the stop to the desired grid spacing using the integrated scale. Then you adjust the jaws for the width of the lath and you’re ready to go. Simply grab a piece of lath in the jaws and butt the stop against the previous board.

The LathKo itself is priced reasonably at $33, but the only place we found selling it was ToolStop in the UK, where it’ll cost you $63 to ship it to the U.S. Anybody have another source for this tool?

LathKo [Bahco]
LathKo [ToolStop]

This strange-looking cold chisel has a flared profile that’s wider at the head and gets smaller as you go back. This allows you to make grooves, keyways, or slots without the chisel binding on the sides of the slot.

KD tools, one manufacturer among many, sells two sizes of cape chisels. The first cuts a 1/4″ slot and measures 5″ long with a 3/8″ hex shaft and the other cuts a 3/8″ slot and measures 6″ long with a 1/2″ hex shaft.

The 1/4″ chisel runs starts at $6 and the 3/8″ chisel starts at $10.

Cape Chisels [KD Tools]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

When you practice catch-and-release, every second counts. The longer you have the fish out of water, the worse its chances of survival. You grab your forceps or other hook-remover only to figure out there’s no way you’re getting the hook out without damaging the fish. So you need to waste precious seconds to grab another tool to cut the line. If you were holding a pair of Hemocuts, you’d already have the fish back in the water.

The Hemocut is a combination of the Kelly forceps and bandage scissors. It’s marketed by two different companies for two entirely different fields. EMI manufactures and markets the Hemocuts to the medical field and William Joseph markets them to fisherman, including a few modifications like an open-finger loop and a rubber coating for a better grip in wet conditions.

The medical Hemocuts start at $6, while the ones specialized for fishing run $15.

William Joseph [Corporate Site]
HemoCut [The Fire Store]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

Ignition wrenches are one of those tools you’ll never need until that one moment when Murphy’s messing with you, and then nothing else will do. Normal wrenches have a 30-degree offset in the head to allow for rotating hex bolts by thirty degrees at a time, but that’s too much for some very tight situations. That’s where ignition wrenches come in. With a 15-degree offset on one side and an 80-degree offset on the other, you only need five degrees of rotation to spin a bolt. Tedious, yes, but sometimes those small increments are all you can manage.

Pricing is reasonable from Craftsman, at $20 for a set of eight metric wrenches, and the same price for eight inch wrenches. Snap-On, naturally, has similar options at the stratospheric price of $224. Personally, I’ll take 91% off and go for the Craftsman set.

8-piece ignition wrench set, inches [Craftsman]
8-piece ignition wrench set, millimeters [Craftsman]

Whether you call it a Saltus Wrench or a flex combination wrench, it still looks like you left your sockets alone in the dark with your wrenches for too long. I remember running into one of these wrenches in my dad’s toolbox as a kid and thinking, “What the hell is this for?” Given the proliferation of ratcheting box end wrenches and other innovations, most people probably don’t run into these wrenches anymore.

The open end and the socket on one of these wrenches are the same size, and the socket isn’t removable. The socket usually rotates on the end of the wrench, somewhat like a socket on the head of a breaker bar — this setup might get you into some areas too tight for a ratchet and socket.

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This was going to be a simple post comparing the Gerber Artifact with the Mini SuperKnife as a keychain knife/tool. As I started gathering details, it was turning into a Gerber vs. Gerber post: Gerber was acquired by Fiskars in 1986, and in 2005 Fiskars Brands acquired Superknife and integrated it into their Outdoor Recreation division, Gerber Legendary Blades. One big happy conglomerate…

Anyway, I decided to add a couple more similar-sized tools alleged to fit on a keychain, and solicit your opinions. From right to left in the picture (not to scale): the folding blade SOG Micron, 1.5″ blade length and 3.44″ overall length when opened, costs around $10. The Mini SuperKnife, 1.77″ long closed and 2.95″ long opened, is a small folding utility knife that costs about $5. The Utili-Key, 2.75″ long, goes for approximately $7 (TM mentioned this device 7/24/08, 5/1/09, and 8/20/09). The Gerber Artifact, 3.5″ long closed and 4.8″ long opened, is available for $6-7 (TM had a 9/15/08 post on the Artifact).

What’s your choice for a small keychain knife/tool: A knife-only option, or a pseudo multi-tool?

SOG Micron Via Amazon [What’s This?]
Mini SuperKnife Via Amazon [What’s This?]
Utili-Key Via Amazon [What’s This?]
Gerber Artifact Via Amazon [What’s This?]

Cyberguys has the Super Wrench 4-Piece set for $15 through September 8th. These spring-loaded, self-locking, self-adjusting wrenches claim to work on any square or hexagonal nut from 1/8″ to 1 3/8″ (or 3mm to 35mm), and on pipes also.

Super Wrench 4-Piece Set [Cyberguys]
Super Wrench [Manufacturer's Site]
Street Pricing [Google Products]

Over the last few years a host of multitools have hit the marketplace with almost every conceivable combination of tools known to man. The Xtreme Tool Kit goes one step further with the addition of actual sockets. We’re guessing the marketing team was desperately searching for something to set their new rig apart.

At least, that’s what we’re hoping happened. The Xtreme Tool Kit features 5 screwdrivers — mini and regular flathead — Phillips and mini torx, an LED flashlight and a multi-wrench with 6mm, 8mm and 10mm sockets.

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