Tools you shouldn't have bought

[mklotz]

When I was starting out in this hobby, long before the Internet and information mines like this forum, I bought tools I thought would be useful for what I intended to do.

It didn't take long to realize just how dumb that approach can be and I quickly relaxed into buying tools only when I had an immediate application or, preferably, making the tools I needed when I needed them.

I'm guessing I'm not alone here, so... What tools have you bought (as opposed to been given or inherited) that, in retrospect, you now think were an ill-advised purchase?

Let's try to limit the discussion to metalworking tools. While woodworking and fishing gadgets offer a rich field for this sort of question, let's stick to things that may help the metalworking newbies avoid naive shopping sprees.

 

[putputman]

I can think of one (there are probaly more) that I purchase and only use once with very little success.
I thought I just had to have a right angle head for my milling machine. Bought it on Ebay and paid too much for it.
Someday it will be on Ebay again.

 

[jack404]

El cheapo drill doctor knock offs

dont get em!!

spend $100 USD and buy a decent one.

i have 2 cheapies here both useless one worse than useless

i bought a good one for $149 USD + $30USD delivery to Oz

never had a issue it does the job and dont try to re-engineer the drills

 

[jack404]

oh and slitting saw arbours

make em, dont buy em

( i bought my first one , saw what it was when it arrived and i've made my own since)

a 20-30 min job , costs nothing ( if you have offcuts) and gives satisfaction every time you use it.

cheers again

jack

 

[Loose nut]

I'm starting to think that the El cheap'o tool post grinder I just bought is a useless POS, other then that everything is good. My best buy was the original Darex drill sharpener (not the drill doctor) can't live with out it, it can put a better edge on a new brand name drill bit then the factory does.

 

[cfellows]

I bought a Dumore toolpost grinder at the flea market 10 years ago for $20. Great price, good tool, but I seldom use it.

End mill sharpening jig. Used it once.

Metal Bender from Harbor Freight. Have never used it.

Taper attachment for my Logan Lathe. Requires some additional pieces and I've never used it.

Delta mortiser, ought it new for $260 and rarely use it.

Numerous gears, leadscrews, ball earings, electric motors, not bought for any particular project, but just because they were available and cheap.

Buy or build as you need it, not because it has an attractive price or looks neat!

Chuck

 

[ksouers]

I bought a clone Indicol indicator holder for tramming the mill. What a flimsy piece of junk.
I made out better when I made my own copy of a Zero-It. It's quite rigid and was good practice for me.

Plastic parallelogram-type protractor. The metal ones with a swing arm work much better for quick setups and checks.

I'm sure I could find a couple more things if I go searching through the junk drawer.

 

[Philjoe5]

I bought a tailstock dieholder (el super cheapo), used it a few times and realized it was probably off-center so I made my own which works great.

I bought a few 1/2" brazed carbide toolbits, then realized I couldn't get them centered in my toolposts.

I bought a matched set of 1-2-3 blocks and I think they sat on the shelf for almost a year before I realized how useful they can be. That taught me a good lesson. Don't discount the usefulness of any tool. If you can manage to live long enough, with some help and assistance from the more knowledgeable folks on this forum, who knows, you might discover some use for that widget you bought.

Oh let's not forget the cutoff saw... I bought a cheap Harbor Freight model but put some good quality cutoff disks on it. I remember cutting (grinding?)my way through a piece of CRS only to find I had work hardened the end. Replaced that with a bandsaw and have never looked back. I know some folks swear by these cutoffs but hey, some folks like yogurt too!

Cheers,
Phil

 

[lugnut]

Ain't no such thing ;D
Mel

 

[steamer]

Cheap scissor knurling tool, with knurls that had their axles riveted on!

Knurls run out .030".......Lets just say the result is not pretty.....I'll start over and make my own.

 

[shred]

Full size tool and cutter grinder. I like it and use it (not for sharpening tools or cutters though) and it was cheap, but it's pretty big (700 lbs, 6x24 table) and I could use the space more effectively with something else.

Tailstock 3-jaw chuck. Hey it was on sale at HF . Never use it.

 

[mklotz]

Tailstock 3-jaw chuck. Hey it was on sale at HF . Never use it.

Does it freewheel? (If not, mount it on a cheap live center.) Nice if you want to support large diameter pipe shapes while turning the exterior. Of course, if you do that as infrequently as I do, a homemade cat's head will work as well.

Actually, that sounds exactly like something I would have been tempted to buy years ago before I learned about cat's heads.

 

[dwentz]

Cheap drill chucks, have had to upgrade all of them.
Cheap Carbide tooling, Never did hold up well, buy the good stuff or use HSS
Im with you on only buying tooling that you need today, not that you think you might need in the future. I have lots of stuff I have acquired over the years that never gets used. It just takes up space in the shop, and I usually forget that I had it when I need it anyway.

Just because I need a tool that I do not have on hand does not force me to stop working on the project or in the shop. I just move on to the next step if I can. I also try to keep 2 or 3 projects in progress, so I just move on to the next while I wait for the parts. It is also nice to have another project to move on to when you are stuck, or need to think about a problem.

Dale

 

[rleete]

What are cat's heads?

 

[mklotz]

What are cat's heads?

That thing at the opposite end of a cat from the tail.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

There are (at least) two forms of cat's head...

Say you need to use a steady rest on a long piece of non-cylindrical (e.g., square) stock you're turning.

Take a tube that fits over the stock and drill and tap four holes at each end spaced at 90 degree intervals. Slip this over the stock, adjust the eight screws to center stock therein and apply steady rest to cat's head.

Say you need to turn the outside or outboard end of a large pipe and don't have a big enough bull center.

Take a cylindrical chunk small enough to fit into pipe and centerdrill both ends. Drill and tap for eight screws as above. Slip into pipe, expand screws to grip interior of pipe and apply TS live center to centerdrilled hole.

I believe the name comes from the fact that the protruding screws somewhat resemble the whiskers on a cat's face. Alternatively, it may derive from the cathead used on sailing ships as a place to secure anchor lifting gear.

GIYF. Look around and you should be able to find a picture.

 

[rleete]

That thing at the opposite end of a cat from the tail.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

I kinda expected it. ;D

I've seen them before, just never heard them called that.


Persoanlly, I have very few things I regret buying. A side benefit of being a super cheapskate.

 

[John S]

Everybody's ideas will vary, what's one man's meat is another man's poison.
I have three different type of cathead steadies and would be dead in the water without them but I do a lot of welded repaired shaft work.

Worse buy I made after thinking it would be good was one of those Blake co-ax indicators for picking up the centre of a bore.
They work fine, no problem with the piece of gear but it's the operation of it

Take cutter out of mill.

Wind table right down 6 to 8"

Fit Blake and indicate to find centre.

Remove Blake.

Wing back up 6 to 8"

Replace cutter.

Ring doc up for elbow and shoulder transplant.

JS.

 

[mklotz]

John,

What, no "sock puppet" nym? I've been ROFLMAO over that thread and the rest of the daytime TV drama over there. I'm so glad I left - best thing I ever did for my blood pressure.

I have similar thoughts about the Blake (although I have an import knockoff someone gave me). I have found, though, that they're nice to get the TS recentered. Of course, I don't offset it anymore for tapers - use a boring head - so I guess it's worthless for that too.

 

[shred]

Does it freewheel? (If not, mount it on a cheap live center.) Nice if you want to support large diameter pipe shapes while turning the exterior. Of course, if you do that as infrequently as I do, a homemade cat's head will work as well.

Actually, that sounds exactly like something I would have been tempted to buy years ago before I learned about cat's heads.

Were it more than a 2" diameter chuck, I might do that.. Likewise I rarely work on large long pipes, so I'll probably just convert the taper to something I can grab easily in a vice or what all and use it as a workholder for hand work.

I can always find a use for whatever junk I buy, but it might not be the 'official' use.

 

[jpaul]

I am a tool junkie. I have to fight myself everytime I receive the machinery catalogs.

I have noticed that the tools I own, that I rarely use, get lost in my shop or forgotten of. This is particularly true if I own another tool that is adaptable to several uses and consequently frequent used. Example:

I think that I have an adjustable angle block (somewhere). But I know exactly where to find my protractors, sine bar, and calculator.