{"id":39523,"date":"2021-12-09T09:00:49","date_gmt":"2021-12-09T16:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/?p=39523"},"modified":"2021-12-07T15:33:18","modified_gmt":"2021-12-07T22:33:18","slug":"testeds-favorite-tools-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/testeds-favorite-tools-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"Tested’s Favorite Tools, 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"

Thanks to everyone who sent messages and pics of their favorite tools this year.\u00a0Send me more<\/a>! I\u2019ll be running them through the rest of the year.<\/p>\n

Also: I\u2019d love for readers to\u00a0share their favorite tips<\/a>\u00a0learned or applied this year. If you have one (or two), please send. I\u2019d especially like to hear if you applied one of the tips from this newsletter.<\/p>\n

Tested’s Favorite Tools, 2021<\/strong>
\n\"tested\"
\nEvery year, I look forward to the series of videos that the\u00a0Tested<\/em>\u00a0team does on their favorite tools of the year. In\u00a0this vide<\/a>o, team member Jen Schachter looks at some of her favorite tools for 2021 including one to\u00a0help with soldering<\/a>\u00a0and laser-cutting, a\u00a0reasonably-priced CA glue starter pack<\/a>\u00a0that includes a lot of accessory tips and a clog-proof cap, her favorite\u00a0Japanese pull saw<\/a>, and a cool and\u00a0realistic-looking grass and dirt flocking mat<\/a>\u00a0that can be used in modelmaking and game terrain. Check out the\u00a0Tested YouTube channel<\/a>\u00a0for more \u201cFavorite Things\u201d videos from the rest of team.<\/p>\n

Maker Slang<\/strong>
\nTechnical terms, jargon, and slang used in making. Also: Fun hobby slang.<\/p>\n

Canslaw<\/strong> \u2013 In metal detecting, the shredded pieces of aluminum cans found in the ground that were cut up by a lawnmower or plow. Canslaw is the bane of detectorists.<\/p>\n

Ferrule<\/strong> \u2013 A ring or metal band that fits around the business end of a hand tool to help give it strength and to help hold the tool in place. E.g. the ferrules on paint brushes help to hold and protect the bristles of the brush.<\/p>\n

Metal mountain<\/strong> \u2013 What miniature painters and tabletop gamers call the gigantic pile of yet-to-be painted metal and plastic miniatures that every hobbyist has and feels guilty about. Related:<\/p>\n

Shelf of shame<\/strong> \u2013 all of the tabletop games on the shelves that you have never got around to playing, but that doesn\u2019t stop you from buying.<\/p>\n

Proud<\/strong> \u2013 When one workpiece, say a dovetail joint in woodworking, extends beyond flush. This is done so that the \u201cproud\u201d piece can be cut or sanded down to create a perfectly flush join.<\/p>\n

Spoilboard<\/strong> \u2013 A sacrificial piece of material (wood, fiberboard, plastic, metal) that goes under a workpiece being cut or drilled to help secure the piece in place and\/or to prevent the tool from cutting into anything it shouldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Readers’ Favorite Tools for 2021<\/strong>
\n\"readerfave\"
\nIn response to\u00a0my invitation<\/a>\u00a0for readers to tell me what comes to mind for favorite, most indispensable tool this year, reader\u00a0Steve D<\/strong>\u00a0sent me a photo of his\u00a0Leatherman Wave<\/a>\u00a0multitool. I concur, I\u2019ve had a Wave since the moment they came out in the late 90s. For years, I wore mine on my belt but fell out of the habit. I have recently started wearing it again.<\/p>\n

Spray-on Japanning<\/strong>
\n\"japanning\"
\nI have been fascinated by DIY japanning recipes ever since watching a video on\u00a0Hand Tool Rescue<\/em>\u00a0where Eric mixed up and applied some to a restoration job. For those who may not know, japanning is a thick black lacquer finish that is often used to protect the metal on tools like sewing machines, hand planes, and other small tools. In\u00a0this video<\/a>, Eric shows the results of some experiments he\u2019s done with recipes for spray-on japanning. The recipe he ended up with was 60% turpentine, 25% asphaltum, and 15% boiled linseed oil. Because of the thickness of the mixture, he uses a special spray bottle for thick liquids that he found at McMaster-Carr. He also tries applying it with a refillable pressurized spray can.<\/p>\n

Pinch-Marking Cans<\/strong>
\nDuring this Thanksgiving holiday, I noticed my stepson, Keith, always pressing a dent in the soda cans he was drinking from. He does this on purpose to \u201cmark\u201d his can. Of course, if everyone started doing this, it wouldn\u2019t be helpful any more, but I thought the idea was simple and clever.<\/p>\n

Noteable Quotables<\/strong>
\n\u201cAlmost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.\u201d \u2014 Anne Lamott<\/p>\n

Maker’s Muse<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"There,

There, fixed them. From Michael M. Butler.<\/p><\/div>\n

Shop Talk<\/strong>
\nIn response to my piece in the last issue on vises, Cool Tools reader\u00a0<\/em>Craig<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0writes:<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cVises\u2026 you really need one, but which one? I have a least four varieties set up to use in my garage\u2026 one permanently mounted\u00a0mid-sized mechanics vise<\/a>, which is probably where most people should start. Several are mounted on plates that can be secured where I need them. I have hand vises and pin vises for jewelry and small parts,\u00a0workmates<\/a>\u00a0of various models, a stitching horse for leather working\u2026 and on and on. Anyway, the search for the perfect vise can become a vice.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div><\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gareth’s Tips, Tools, and Shop Tales – Issue #104<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13684,"featured_media":39527,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[2371],"tags":[2372],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39523"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13684"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39523"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39523\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39528,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39523\/revisions\/39528"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39527"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}