The toolbox thread

[Eddy Gordo]

On 11/3/2022 at 8:16 AM, dave303e said:

We had a rather large electric fence put in to keep the big ladies(dairy moo's) safe at night.

The guy came with an adendorff petrol powered auger. Our dirt is lovely and soft and that thing worked such a treat I am off to buy one now as well. If you are doing fencing regularly and it is not too rocky, I can highly recommend one. The auger bit also makes a neat hole not too wide so you need minimal concrete to fill it around a pole. Very efficient.

I hired a non motorised one for 2 holes last year, but the petrol one works a treat for deep and multiple holes.

The trench digging machine is also a great tool to get the job done quickly. Days of digging with a spade..... no thanks.

[mazambaan]

12 hours ago, Long Wheel Base said:

I had to google auger, and then said "o is that what it's called". That thing looks cool and fun to operate.

From experience you do have to be a bit careful in mixed soil with some denser layers, pebbles etc as, if you are running it near full power it can jerk out of control and possibly give you a klap. Additions in such conditions are to pilot hole with a smaller auger (75mm diameter) and to have a pipe frame to guide and control it, for deeper holes, a chain block on top of the frame to pull it out if it gets stuck (be careful where you attach the chain - to the auger is best otherwise you can pull the motor to pieces). Hardly needed for fence posts up to 1.8m I guess.

[Stretched@Birth]

13 hours ago, Long Wheel Base said:

I had to google auger, and then said "o is that what it's called". That thing looks cool and fun to operate.

I once dragged a hand operated one across the ice, on a sled, so that we could make a hole in the ice to draw water for cooking.  Best cup of coffee ever, sitting in the frozen wilderness, after having had to work for that cup of coffee!

[The Ouzo]

12 hours ago, Eddy Gordo said:

I hired a non motorised one for 2 holes last year, but the petrol one works a treat for deep and multiple holes.

The trench digging machine is also a great tool to get the job done quickly. Days of digging with a spade..... no thanks.

I spotted hand operated ones at Leroy Merlin on Sunday 

[dave303e]

2 hours ago, mazambaan said:

From experience you do have to be a bit careful in mixed soil with some denser layers, pebbles etc as, if you are running it near full power it can jerk out of control and possibly give you a klap. Additions in such conditions are to pilot hole with a smaller auger (75mm diameter) and to have a pipe frame to guide and control it, for deeper holes, a chain block on top of the frame to pull it out if it gets stuck (be careful where you attach the chain - to the auger is best otherwise you can pull the motor to pieces). Hardly needed for fence posts up to 1.8m I guess.

You can quickly hear and feel when you hit rocks and then we stop and break it with a pick or Hex rod. But thankfully our soil is really good, we have the odd seam of coal at around 70cm, but the Auger handles it with ease. If it were rocky I wouldn't even bother.

[The Ouzo]

regarding batteries for power tools.

My dad has a Ryobi drill driver thing. strange voltage, 16.6v .

He went searching for a new battery and came up empty at a couple of places, eventually he landed up at Aderndorf where they also initially told him they dont have. But whilst there he enquired on what drill drivers they have on special as if he cant get  a battery he might as well replace. So they pull this drill off the shelf, he looks at it and the battery is the same voltage as he needs. Takes the battery off and it looks very similar. Plugs it into his Ryobi (he took it with for testing) and the thing fits and works. Turns out other than the branding its the same thing.

So he bought the new drill as it came with 2 batteries.

 

So when looking at a brand of power tools, check to see if there arent other tools that use the same batteries, it could open up your options.

[dave303e]

There are a lot of white labelled tools out of China. I mean other than the country specific plugs and a few minor cosmetic details, they are often the same thing. 

[patches]

11 hours ago, The Ouzo said:

regarding batteries for power tools.

My dad has a Ryobi drill driver thing. strange voltage, 16.6v .

He went searching for a new battery and came up empty at a couple of places, eventually he landed up at Aderndorf where they also initially told him they dont have. But whilst there he enquired on what drill drivers they have on special as if he cant get  a battery he might as well replace. So they pull this drill off the shelf, he looks at it and the battery is the same voltage as he needs. Takes the battery off and it looks very similar. Plugs it into his Ryobi (he took it with for testing) and the thing fits and works. Turns out other than the branding its the same thing.

So he bought the new drill as it came with 2 batteries.

 

So when looking at a brand of power tools, check to see if there arent other tools that use the same batteries, it could open up your options.

Good find! There are a few crossovers and some badge engineering (like AEG and Ridgid).

A number of brands also clubbed together to subscribe to CAS (Cordless Alliance System), where by the battery platform is universal between 30-something brands. Unfortunately most of those brands manufacture pretty specialised use tools with limited range. Not the kind of tools an average Joe or Joanne wold have need of. Metabo and Mafell seem to be the 2 exceptions. But if anyone thinks Festool is pricey, wait until they see Mafell!

Sadly most of the brands with the broadest range like: Makita, Milwaukee, Dewalt, Ryobi (their One+ platform), AEG/Ridgid etc, don't seem to have much in the way of house-brand compatibles. There are Aliexpress cheap-n-cheerful tools designed to run off the popular platforms (particularly Makita's and Milwaukee's 18V).

For older tools where battery tech is limited (ie old NiMH or even NiCad) or weird voltages, then aftermarket replica/replacement batteries may be available on places like Aliexpress (for those willing to wait). I probably would't use these off-brand batteries on current, high performance brushless tools with Li-ion cells and all manner of smart controllers within the tool or battery pack.

Another option is battery adaptors, but they can make tools bulky and only connect to the positive and negative terminals, so any other terminals for battery smarts (like thermal monitoring etc) don't translate.

I try to justify to myself that going onto a new battery platform to get a specific new tool then frees up the existing batteries I have, and opens up a whole new range of tools to add to the wish-list 😅 The initial hit of buying batteries and charger does hurt though 😖

[The Ouzo]

I'm currently very tempted by this offer

[BigDL]

So, looking for some advice please. My ballie passed away suddenly last Thursday in PMB, so I’m out for two weeks to try and sort out stuff for my mom. 
 

The old man was a fanatical woodworker and had heaps of equipment. He was  supposed to have been selling stuff over the past few months as the folks were supposed to be moving into a retirement complex, but it appears that he sold very little and the garage is still packed with kit and wood. I’m here for another 10 days and am keen to get my mom moved to the new place and to realise some cash for her from the woodworking stuff. The problem is that I have no idea how to sell it as I don’t want randomers turning up at the house because of a Facebook ad and I also have no idea of values of the stuff. 
 

So, the question is, does anyone have a suggestion as to a simplistic way to dispose of it all in the Pietermaritzburg area? 

[mazambaan]

9 hours ago, BigDL said:

So, looking for some advice please. My ballie passed away suddenly last Thursday in PMB, so I’m out for two weeks to try and sort out stuff for my mom. 
 

The old man was a fanatical woodworker and had heaps of equipment. He was  supposed to have been selling stuff over the past few months as the folks were supposed to be moving into a retirement complex, but it appears that he sold very little and the garage is still packed with kit and wood. I’m here for another 10 days and am keen to get my mom moved to the new place and to realise some cash for her from the woodworking stuff. The problem is that I have no idea how to sell it as I don’t want randomers turning up at the house because of a Facebook ad and I also have no idea of values of the stuff. 
 

So, the question is, does anyone have a suggestion as to a simplistic way to dispose of it all in the Pietermaritzburg area? 

Maybe try get hold of the local Woodworker's Club or Guild; Google should find it. I know they have done something like this before but I don't have any contact details sorry.

[dave303e]

10 hours ago, BigDL said:

So, looking for some advice please. My ballie passed away suddenly last Thursday in PMB, so I’m out for two weeks to try and sort out stuff for my mom. 
 

The old man was a fanatical woodworker and had heaps of equipment. He was  supposed to have been selling stuff over the past few months as the folks were supposed to be moving into a retirement complex, but it appears that he sold very little and the garage is still packed with kit and wood. I’m here for another 10 days and am keen to get my mom moved to the new place and to realise some cash for her from the woodworking stuff. The problem is that I have no idea how to sell it as I don’t want randomers turning up at the house because of a Facebook ad and I also have no idea of values of the stuff. 
 

So, the question is, does anyone have a suggestion as to a simplistic way to dispose of it all in the Pietermaritzburg area? 

My old man bought someone's entire workshop a few months back, similar thing. Seller advertised- must take entire contents, cash up front, garage must be empty that day. So you can maybe do similar on a woodworking FB group. Value is a tough one though, chisels and saws and planers and stuff can have huge value, especially the well kept older stuff.

 

Another option would be to have an auctioneer come and sort the tools out for you and auction them off. It will just leave you with all the wood offcuts and some smaller stuff to deal with. 

[Steven Knoetze (sk27)]

11 hours ago, BigDL said:

So, looking for some advice please. My ballie passed away suddenly last Thursday in PMB, so I’m out for two weeks to try and sort out stuff for my mom. 
 

The old man was a fanatical woodworker and had heaps of equipment. He was  supposed to have been selling stuff over the past few months as the folks were supposed to be moving into a retirement complex, but it appears that he sold very little and the garage is still packed with kit and wood. I’m here for another 10 days and am keen to get my mom moved to the new place and to realise some cash for her from the woodworking stuff. The problem is that I have no idea how to sell it as I don’t want randomers turning up at the house because of a Facebook ad and I also have no idea of values of the stuff. 
 

So, the question is, does anyone have a suggestion as to a simplistic way to dispose of it all in the Pietermaritzburg area? 

You could try the cestpool that is FB Marketplace, good luck though.
The advice above is probably best but also SA is struggling, less disposable income, these niche/specific products take time to shift.

And condolences for the passing of your dad. Strength to your mom too.

[BigDL]

1 hour ago, mazambaan said:

Maybe try get hold of the local Woodworker's Club or Guild; Google should find it. I know they have done something like this before but I don't have any contact details sorry.

Thank you. The old man was chair of the local guild so they have been buying stuff for a few months now, although there also seems to be some stuff that wasn’t there before, so I suspect there’s been some swapping going on as well 😂. Appreciate the help. I’ll reach out to them now and see if there’s any more interest. 

[BigDL]

9 minutes ago, dave303e said:

My old man bought someone's entire workshop a few months back, similar thing. Seller advertised- must take entire contents, cash up front, garage must be empty that day. So you can maybe do similar on a woodworking FB group. Value is a tough one though, chisels and saws and planers and stuff can have huge value, especially the well kept older stuff.

 

Another option would be to have an auctioneer come and sort the tools out for you and auction them off. It will just leave you with all the wood offcuts and some smaller stuff to deal with. 

Good call - thanks - hadn’t thought of a woodwork specific FB group, but will look at that now.  There is some really good stuff there so it would be a pity to not get a fair price, but I am also tight for time as I don’t want to leave the old lady trying to sort stuff out once I’m away. 

[BigDL]

17 minutes ago, Steven Knoetze (sk27) said:

You could try the cestpool that is FB Marketplace, good luck though.
The advice above is probably best but also SA is struggling, less disposable income, these niche/specific products take time to shift.

And condolences for the passing of your dad. Strength to your mom too.

Appreciate that - thanks. I’d rather give the stuff away than have a normal  FB marketplace experience.