need tool advice

Infrared thermometer, I bought one for $35.00 at a pawn shop a few
months ago.

Check out the pawn shops in your area, seriously.

I own thousands of very good execellent quality famous name brands of
tools that I bought at pawn shops over the years.You might also check
out auctions and government surplus sales and the classifieds in your
local area newspapers.
cuhulin

Camilo > wrote:
>
>I'm not totally sure, but he doesn't have much and almost anything
>would be welcome, I think.

Another oddity here is a timing light. People hardly ever need timing
lights these days, but when you need one, you really really need one.
And it's something nobody else will give him.

You can never go wrong with socket kits, though. And really, really good
screwdrivers.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

Camilo > wrote:
>
>Is an infrared thermometer of any use to an auto mechanic?

Yes! It is one of those things that makes finding cooling system problems
a lot easier.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

Vic Smith > wrote:
>small tap and die set

An excellent idea! Get a good one from Grainger, though, and not one of
the cheap Chinese sets. I'm not sure what you can get for $75, though.

What kind of cars does he like? If he likes European cars, get the metric
set. If he likes BMWs, get him an M24 socket also. Most mechanic's kit
sets don't come with a socket that big and it's a thing he'll need a lot of
on some of those cars.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

On Dec 15, 6:40*am, (Scott Dorsey) wrote:
> Camilo > wrote:
>
> >Is an infrared thermometer of any use to an auto mechanic?
>
> Yes! *It is one of those things that makes finding cooling system problems
> a lot easier. *
> --scott
> --
> "C'est un Nagra. *C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

In looking at the IR thermometers, I see you can spend anywhere
between $25 and $500. I have a tiny $25 one that I keep on my boat
to shoot the outboard's cylinder heads if I ever think I might be
overheating on one side or another, but it's a POS, if you know what I
mean. It can give me an idea if they're way out of line but I don't
trust it for anything more than that.

Is this something that a typical mechanic would spend $500 on, or are
the expensive ones for some sort of ultra-special use? Are the ~ $75
ones good enough for troubleshooting car cooling problems?

Thanks for all the help guys!

PS: my fall back (if I'm told that $75 IR thermos are not good enough)
is to box up a collection of handy odds and ends including a couple of
different size mirrors, a couple different magnetic and claw grabbers,
a mechanic's stethoscope, etc.

ToolOutfitters.net
ToolOutfitters.com

Good tools, Good prices, Good seller.

They even have a Tool Forum where all kinds of tools can be discussed:

http://www.forum.tooloutfitters.com/

> Odd question he My nephew is going to school to be a professional
> auto mechanic. He hasn't really begun to amass his tools, and I'd
> like to buy him something for Christmas.

Thanks for all the good advice and ideas.

My solution for the three criteria I settled on
$50-$75 budget (shipped)
"Handy" tools that are not likely to be included in a large starter
set of professional tools.
Nothing that is "cheaped out" - decent/acceptable pro-quality at price
point

Mechanic's Stethoscope $15
Large-ish inspection mirror w/ LED $10
Small-ish inspection mirror w/ LED $10
Claw grabber $10
Small magnetic grabber $10
Larger magenetic grabber $10

He'll use all of these things sooner or later and be glad they're in
the box when he needs them, probably won't even think of them until he
needs them or borrows one for the second or third time 8-)

Camilo wrote:
> Thanks for all the good advice and ideas.
>
> My solution for the three criteria I settled on
> $50-$75 budget (shipped)
> "Handy" tools that are not likely to be included in a large starter
> set of professional tools.
> Nothing that is "cheaped out" - decent/acceptable pro-quality at price
> point
>
> Mechanic's Stethoscope $15
> Large-ish inspection mirror w/ LED $10
> Small-ish inspection mirror w/ LED $10
> Claw grabber $10
> Small magnetic grabber $10
> Larger magenetic grabber $10
>
> He'll use all of these things sooner or later and be glad they're in
> the box when he needs them, probably won't even think of them until he
> needs them or borrows one for the second or third time 8-)
>
>

Those are all hand items to have. I only wish they made a self guided
grabber... Just finding those dropped parts can kill some serious time!! ;-)

Personally I think there is a time portal that dropped parts fall into.
Then they return to the current time a few hours later....

--
Steve W.

"Steve W." > wrote in :


> I only wish they made a self guided
> grabber... Just finding those dropped parts can kill some serious
> time!! ;-)
>
> Personally I think there is a time portal that dropped parts fall
> into. Then they return to the current time a few hours later....
>


I do believe the "lost parts" (and small tools) thing has become worse
since automakers started installing plastic splash shields under the
engine. I just drop the shield, and lo! Oftentimes the lost item suddenly
enters current time.


--
Tegger

Look around and get a big strong magnet. That will come in handy for
finding nuts and bolts that get dropped on the ground.I have two old
raggity ones I bought at a scrap iron yard many years ago.Don't let any
kind of magnets get too close to your computers, that will screw them up
big time.
cuhulin