ok, I am gettin into workin on my car myself more and more, and i want to know what kind of more specialized tools i should be buying. I already have all the sockets, ratchets and wrenches i need, as well as a compressor and air tools, jack and stands,etc....all the basics. Now i want to know what else i should buy.....and no snap on stuff, im not that rich.....
thanks in advance

 

For a thirdgen you'll need several sizes of Torx bits. Also, if you don't already have one, get a timing light and the special wrench to get to the distributor hold down bolt. A diagnostic tool like an auto x-ray, or diacom for laptops could come in handy for tracking down problems as well, but they aren't the cheapest tools out there...

 

I go to swap meets, flea markets, yard sales and I buy alot of tools from these places. You can get top names like Snap On or Mac used for cheap prices like wrenches for a couple of dollars each. There are differences not only in quality between brands but the the way they are shaped to fit your hand. You should buy tools that feel comfortable to you while working with them and not because some tells you they are the best.

 

91 Camaro RS
305 TBI w/700R4
14X3 Open element, all Ultimate TBI mods, Accel cap and rotor, Taylor Spiro Pro wires, Accel Plugs,Hypertech Thermomaster Chip, 160* stat, 170* fanswitch, Dynomax Cat-Back.

[This message has been edited by ede (edited December 25, 2000).]

 

i already have the torx stuff now, and the only swap meets around here are in the spring and the fall.

[This message has been edited by ede (edited December 25, 2000).]

 

dude you and twiggy know each other? if so play nice on here or be a little more descrete about it.

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ICON Motorsports
1st & 3rd

 

im sorry if i said anything to annoy the moderators on this board, and im sure that twiggy (he's weaker than a newboard chick) feels the same way. twiggy is an intelligent *coughcough* individual who never messes up a car he's worked on *winkwink*. i still need some suggestions as to what tools to buy, however and i do not wish for this thread to be locked because of this.
(u said be descrete)

 

no problem, not so much that it bothered me, just didn't want to see a flame war getting started here and it was hard to tell what was up with you two. hell me, and i'm sure the other moderators too, want everyone here to have fun, learn a little, and keep coming back for more.

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ICON Motorsports
1st & 3rd

 

Chris,
I'm glad you love me back. You know its all in fun...
BTW, every time you hit the brake pedal in your GTA (ghetto trash automobile), just remember the intelligent individual who installed them!



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Never trust anything that bleeds extensively for about one week out of the month, every month, and doesn't die...

91 Camaro RS
305 TBI w/700R4
14X3 Open element, all Ultimate TBI mods, Accel cap and rotor, Taylor Spiro Pro wires, Accel Plugs,Hypertech Thermomaster Chip, 160* stat, 170* fanswitch, Dynomax Cat-Back.

 

Depending on what kind of car you've got and what you are intending to do:

Scan tool
Measurement tools (micrometer, caliper, dial indicator, couple of styles of feeler gauge, etc.)
Ring compressor & ring expander
Valve spring compressors (C-clamp style, flat bar, screw type)
Torque wrench
Crank socket (very handy!!)
Digital VOM & test light
Big C-clamp
Pickle forks
Gear puller
Balancer puller
Steering wheel puller

The list of specialty tools is almost endless... those are ones I use the most frequently.

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"So many Mustangs, so little time..."

 

It seems to me the longer I am under over and back under and over my car, trying to remove or tighten something for an hour or so and wondering do they make a wrench like this a little longer or a little shorter or bent this way or that way just a little bit more I might get this done without reaching up over and around and scraping my arms till they looked like I was attacked by a cat. Then I wonder,Craftsmen or someone should make a set of tools that are made to work on Third Gen Camaros or Birds specificlly you know just a little longer,shorter,and bent just a little more this or that way. But that might just take the fun out of it right? Oh well you gotta love it. I wouldn,t have any other way. LMFAO

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TPIS airfoil,relocated MAT,AFPR,TB h2o bypass
otherwise stock 5.0TPI
700r4, 9 bolt 3.23 g92 axle, 4 wh. disc brks.

 

My87IROC, you arent alone

the thing is, i KNOW they make these tools, ive youve ever seen a real collection of mechanics tools they have ALL of those wrenches, at every angle etc you can imagine

its frustrating to have actually seen them especially when you are sitting there getting at a bolt that you know this one tool would have gotten to easily and in under a few seconds not 45 minutes

 

flea markets, yard sales, and swap meets are great places to find great deals on tools and cheap. usually the more specialized a tool becomes the less it will cost compared to the regular stuff because of a limited market. just be careful with anything eletric, or air perated and anything likea mike, or torque wrench that could get aout of adjustment.

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ICON Motorsports
1st & 3rd

 

A Bridgeport E-Z Trak II with a 52" table would be nice... Of course, you'd need several quills, a full set of collets, a fly tool, some end mills, a boring tool holder, etc. You can usually find these used for under $10K, but they'll need some work on the drive end and screws.

If you don't want to go that far, get a good set of files, some dial indicators, a few flat stones or burr-busters, a precision straightedge, feelers, a degree wheel, a lock plate compressor for the steering column, an interior trim tool set, a tie rod sleeve wrench, portable ball joint press, arbor press, oscilloscope, DMMs (more than one are necessary at times), a large starter/charger, a battery load tester, and a big freakin' garage to put it all into. A twin-post spider hoist would be nice, too. In lieu of that, an air operated end lift would be cool as long as you already have the compressor. An engine hoist and stand are always handy to have as well.

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Later,
Vader
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"No matter how hard you try you can't stop us now"
Adobe Acrobat Reader 4.0

 

All you really need it a 20 lb. sledge hammer

that will be able to free up all rusty bolts, and you can even get at the nasty bolts way back there that you wonder why there is a bolt back there in the first place.

my dad wants to get a workshop built, may car will be an excuse to get the tools that serve only one purpose. my dad also likes buying tools that do one thing, but look so cool that you have to display them.

 

vaders right a bridgeport would be nice. a mill will be my next big investment in shop tools, i'm tired of packing up and going to my cousins to use his. the more tools you buy the more you can do and the more you'll discover you need more tools for. there are a few things i've bought over the years that suprise me how much i use them, engine hoist is one.

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ICON Motorsports
1st & 3rd