Hex bit sockets make Allen keys irrelevant

I hate Allen keys also. I use the Wiha 263 series hex drivers, the straight ones instead of the ball drivers, because the screw is a lot easier to start if it’s not flopping around on the ball driver. These are quality tools that last a long time, and they have a spinner top for quick running-in of a long screw.

Vex Robotics uses 3/32" and 5/64" hex drivers on their button-head screws.
My Nixie watches are held together with 0-80 screws that use a tiny .050" hex driver.

1 Like

Ever tried sticking a ratchet into a tight space?

Ya, thank dog that the docs in the emergency room were able to fish it out…

1 Like

Oh my. I love those Eklind folding key sets so hard! I carry the metric set on my bicycle at all times. At first it was for bike repairs, but in practice they have saved the day so many times!

2 Likes

I had to do that, to replace the coupling springs on the wobbling subreflector of our radio telescope, while I was on a man-lift, 30 feet in the air. I made a double-ratcheting hex driver from two of those Chapman ratchets shown above, so they could work against each other. I had to put 1-foot extension handles on each ratchet so I could get to the screws from the outside of the subreflector. I also used a grinder to make the ratchet heads smaller, to fit into a very tight space.

7 Likes

I think nixiebunny just won this thread, but if there’s any life left, I’ve got a whole box full of different screwdriver bits (like this) which are cheap, and have pretty much ever bit I have ever wanted (and lots I don’t, like tri-wings).
Having a Phillips/cross head bit that’s just the right size makes all the difference between stripping the head and an easy job.

It used to be thought that only humans made tools; the list has since been expanded to include ravens, cephalopods, otters, elephants, and now bunnies.

2 Likes

Feh. I used to own a Renault Five. I still have PTSD about unscrewing things on that.

3 Likes

Turbo?

1 Like

Most definitely not.Malfunctioning SU carb? Yes. Dodgy clutch? Yes. The clutch cable is in the stupidest place ever.

Oh, don’t count on that!

In my '63 Karmann Ghia I literally hacksawed the main frame tunnel open (normally this is a permanently welded shut hump down the center of the car, and the single most important structural member of the vehicle, that you must not compromise) because the clutch cable is routed inside it, and one of the cable guide supports had cracked off, so that when you depressed the clutch pedal the whole cable tube moved, and the clutch didn’t.

When it originally broke, I had to speed-shift it all the way home, no clutch at all. This was challenging since the old VWs had no syncromesh in first gear, so I had to push it up to a speed fast enough to get into second every time I came to a stop. Luckily it was mostly downhill, since I was by myself!

2 Likes

Well, no, it wasn’t that stupid.

2 Likes

Good, 'cause that would be evidence for Satan. :imp:

Some people apparently end up routing their VW clutch cables under the floor pan through screw-eyes, so the whole thing’s literally exposed to the road, as a temporary measure while they figure out how to cut into the frame without destroying the car…

This topic was automatically closed after 5 days. New replies are no longer allowed.