What tools are essential?

[rydwhite]

I am making out my christmas and birthday list and was wondering what tools are essential to have. I have some tools, but I can always use more. So, what tools do you feel everyone should have and what tools would be nice to have?

[navysnail]

good sockets and ratchet, breaker bar, jack, a light, multi meter, good tool box, torque wrench, vice grips, thats all i can think of thats essential

[Altiman94]

open end wrenches and pliars, needle nose and standard, jackstands, engine stand, cherry picker

[xyster]

bare essentials: good set of wrenches and sockets - snapon, stanley, craftsman. jacks, jackstands , wire cutters and strippers, snap ring pliars, needle nose pliars, breaker bar, and torque wrench.

I wouldn't call a multimeter, engine stand, or cherry picker essential for basic mechanical work.

[Jesda]

A multimeter is essential on a VH45, not sure how important it is on the VQ35. You can probably do without the engine stand, but an extra jack for support depending on what youre doing might not hurt.

[Chingon]

sockets; milimetric from 10-36pliers; locking, needle, etc..ratchet; 1/2 and 3/4 drive, as well as torqueJack; hydraulic or pneumaticScrewdrivers; phillips + flatheadbreaker bar.

All I can think of a the moment. I have replaced my ratchets with an impact gun for the big jobs, and it's ****ing awesome.

[Altiman94]

wirestrippers, electrical type, and all types of electrical connectors are widely used when Im working on wiriing. Whether it be stereo or under the hood

Also, a compression tester and spark plug socket.

[elwesso]

I got one of those 96 piece craftsman sets for my birthday... Except a few things, Its handled everything Ive needed... Ony thing its missing is a good set of wrenches... Gear wrenches are good...

I prefer ramps over jack stands......

[BadMojo]

I got one of those 96 piece craftsman sets for my birthday... Except a few things, Its handled everything Ive needed... Ony thing its missing is a good set of wrenches... Gear wrenches are good...

Craftsman sets are a real nice way to start out your tool collection. If you keep your eyes open, you can find some really nice sets for cheap. Of course, it's not everything you'll need but it's sure a great start. A nice Craftsman set plus a torque wrench would be a good place to start.

Depending on the set, you might get a nice molded case to hold all the tools too.

[Rex]

I picked up a nice 137-pc CraftsMan set this summer along with a large set of metric and standard wrenches. Aside from a hammer and cordless drill it's got most anything you'll need.

[w1ngzer0]

I picked up a nice 137-pc CraftsMan set this summer along with a large set of metric and standard wrenches. Aside from a hammer and cordless drill it's got most anything you'll need.

what i highlighted in bold is what you "NEED" as far as hammers and screw drivers thoughs are common sense. Also if your talking about working on a car essential. There are to many to list

[Mr1der]

I think you need a hydraulic lift

[cosmo]

or a big ****ing hammer

[DAEDALUS]

I think you need a hydraulic lift

Mr1der thinks he's kidding. But he's not.

I can't believe no one mentioned pick-up tools, like the extendable magnetic ones. I have 3 of them in various places. Plus the springy grabby tool. Oh, and a mirror on an extendable handle is awesome. And, finally, you can never have too much light in the garage.

[DAEDALUS]

The craftsman u-joined sockets are awesome too. I only have a few for the sizes I use most...1/4, 8mm, 10mm & 12mm.

[elwesso]

Agreed, the telescoping magnets are vital..... So much time saved!!!

[Altiman94]

elwesso, it's essential to have a jack and jackstands if you ever do any sort of suspension work. you need to be able to take off the wheel. A ramp set up wont allow this. Thats why I suggested jackstands rather than ramps

[Jesda]

Jackstands are cheap, and essential. But I dont want to be under a car with just jackstands unless I really have to.

[Altiman94]

U obviously dont get the point of jackstands. They are safe as long as they are used properly. They are made so you can be under the car and not have to worry. As long as they are placed under the jacking points of the car you are perfectly fine.

[fiznat]

those really big sets are kinda waste if you already have stuff... But yeah if you're talking about BARE essentials, you dont even really need a full socket set. 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 17, and 19 millimeter will pretty much cover anything you need to do on the 240 except really involved stuff. Combine that with some channel lock pliers, a good set of different size screwdrivers, and some open ended/box wrenches you're in good shape. Everything else is fluff for clowns who want to "do it right" instead of trying to fabricate new and different tools from the tools that you already have (did you know a screwdriver is also good as a jabbing tool? how about a wrench as a hammer, or the handle on your jack as an extension for a breaker bar!? haha really all you need is some creativity, comeon man!

[Zydeco]

Duct Tape and a Hammer!!!

[Jesda]

Physics.

The wider a surface something has to sit on, the more the weight is evenly distributed. Jack stands are like walking around on chopsticks.

You can change fluids or remove a few things, with no trouble on jack stands or blocks. They're essential for brake and suspension work. But if youre doing rack bushings like Wes was on my car, shaking the car around trying to get the damn bushings in, hammering and jacking up the rack, doing a million things to upset the vehicle's balance and stability on what are essentially stilts, then ramps are best. Plus, theyre quick and easy to set and use.

Sure, death by jack stands are unheard of. But a set of ramps won't rob you blind. And the peace of mind and "lifetime" guarantee are priceless.

[Unrelated] I've read some stories about hydraulic lifts at shops failing and slamming cars to the floor, or poorly set vehicles sliding off. Crappy maintenance.
Modified by Jesda at 4:10 AM 10/5/2004

[DAEDALUS]

Ryan are the tools for working on the bike or the Jeep? I assume the G is well under warranty!

[rydwhite]

I already have a full socket set, open end wrench's, screw driver set, hammer, duct tape, plenty of lighting.

Jack stands are a good call. I've been thinking picking some for a while. Extend-a-mirror is something I hadn't really thought of. A torque wrench is already on my list.

Yeah, the G is still under warranty. I have a few things I want to do to the Jeep. I have some u-joints that need replaced, I need to do a little differential work and some other minor things as well.

It is always nice to have a complete set of tools on hand just in case you ever need them. Last year I got a good jump on power tools during christmas with a 19v cordless combo kit which will come in real handy when I start building the deck on my house in the spring.

Keep the ideas coming. The more tools the better.