Knipex Universal Dismantling Tool– Review

This review focuses on the Knipex 16 85 125 SB a product featured in Knipexs wire stripping range. Marketed as a ‘Universal dismantling tool’ due to its Swiss army knife range of features, it is basically a more useful version of your bog standard wire strippers.

The tool fits into a bracket most electricians would use all day, especially with its ability to strip all common single-core wires from 0.2mm to 4.5mm and multi-core cables from 8.0mm up to 13mm. The handy retractable blade on the reverse is useful for dispatching the cellophane on new cable reels and although very sharp most standard cable ties will defect the blade.

Knipex have also installed an additional blade for longer longitudinal stripping for use on the larger range of OD (Outside Diameter) wires, 10 – 13mm. On smaller wires the blade has a habit of drawing itself in to deep and damaging the inner cores insulation.

All of the stripping blades are housed within the tool with no external cutting surfaces, the main stripping blades work by opening the tool and sandwiching a wire between the relevant crescents followed by a twist and pull action. As long as the correct stripping blades are selected the tool has no problem quickly removing the sleeving from any type of cable.

Another plus side to the tool is its lightweight and compactness as it easily slips into or clips onto your pocket when not in use.

The only negative I have really found is that the tool is unable to strip wires from 5mm to 7.5mm but Knipex do offer the Dismantling tool for data cables which has the ability to strip all wires from 0.2mm single core to 10mm multicore, for the non-professional this would defiantly be the more useful tool.

Conclusion:

In all this is another great product from Knipex which I really get on with and find exceptionally easy to use, which for me was a nice surprise as most of the fancy stripping tools and pliers I have used always seem a bit cumbersome and awkward.

Although hard to get hold of due to the lack of UK Knipex suppliers (I had to purchase mine from Amazon) I think this Dismantling tool or the data type version is really worth the money. Its compact construction and simplicity really gives it the edge over most other stripping tools, especially the super bulky automatic versions which are more common now.

Overall a great product which I doubt any professional electrician would fail to be impressed with.

Draper Expert 30mm Ratcheting Spanner - Review

Pros:

Open end really tough
Chrome Vanadium tool steel
Heavy duty feel
Tactile to use
Middle range brand for a low-ish price

Cons:

Delicate ratchet head
Draper warranty perhaps not as good as other brands

As a brief introduction, the Draper Expert brand fall into the middle/lower end of the tooling market and provide a good selection of tools, the quality of their products has been steadily increasing over the years, especially after the brand was redeveloped around 2007. This was with the aim to offering customers a more affordable product with good wear and tear resistance. Before this in my and my colleagues opinions where worth staying away from, however since the redevelopment there has been a noticeable improvement in quality. Whilst Draper may still not be the brand to compete with the like of {Teng/Facom/Corolus/Snap-on etc the products offer reasonable quality at an affordable price. All of the Draper Expert range also come with a lifetime warranty. (Even if it does fall slightly on the limited side in my own personal opinion).

This 30mm Draper Expert ratcheting spanner (may also be known as a ratcheting combination spanner) was purchased to deal with some of the larger bolts as long threads and tight spaces can leave very little room for using a standard ring spanner, the ratcheting head is perfect for where access is a problem or where the length of bolts mean that continuously reposition the spanner simple becomes tedious.

The open end has proved to be very robust with good wear resistance and still maintains a fairly tight fit, I have never suffered problems with the open end rotating on nuts and rounding them off, however I do always tend to opt for using a ring spanner for tough fasteners. For especially stubborn nuts and bolts I would always suggest the use of a Slugging/Striking Spanner as the shocks tend to loosen rust without excess hassle which would otherwise take a great long breaker bar which always risks the rounding or snapping of fasteners.

The spanner like most other quality tools has been manufactured fro, chrome vanadium tool steel which has stood up to hard use well with no pitting or rust spots. The chrome finish has also held up well not suffering any flaking yet over use has worn through around the open end revealing a golden tarnish from the base plating layer, this is entirely excusable though as it is a hard used tool and the wear is only superficial.

However the ratcheting end of the spanner has not faired so well and i feel this is really wear the lower price affects the product, the ratchet head just does not seem to exude the same level of quality that the rest of the spanner does. The ratchet does feel to have a really positive engagement giving a good level of confidence to ward of

fears of slipping yet the way the ratcheting head is set in the spanner gives a slightly woolly feeling to any action that causes a lateral load. This has not been an issue for me in other brands.

Another issue I have had with the ratchet head is that after suffering a fall from a table its components literally exploded out and shot across the floor, which I was defiantly not impressed with as the retaining ring is now MIA.

After contacting Draper and asking about their "lifetime guarantee" I was forwarded a copy of said guarantee (Detailed below) and told that as I had subjected the tool to careless handling leading to the failure of the tool they would not be replacing it.

Draper Guarantee Quote:

"These guarantees do not apply to normal wear and tear, nor any damage caused by misuse, careless or unsafe handling, alterations, accident, or repairs attempted, other than by authorised Draper warranty repair agents. These guarantees are in place of any other guarantee expressed or implied and variations of such guarantees are not permitted, but your statutory rights are not affected."

As such I contacted Teng and Facom as a check and was notified that they would have replaced the item, this is due to them classing accidents of this type as expected shop incidents which their tools are designed to cope with and as such, shouldn’t have broken.

Conclusion:

As a tool manufacturer I feel Draper Expert are definitely middle of the range, they are definitely fine for the odd job but if your a keen hands person but want to stick around this price point then I would perhaps suggest an alternative brand such as the selection offered by Halfords Pro, as a bonus they do always seem to have a sale on as well. If you are really into your tools then I would always suggest going for something slightly higher up the range. I have just purchased a 30mm Facom ratcheting spanner as a replacement to this one as if I had simply purchased the Facom one in the first place I would only have splashed out the same as my original plus its replacement from Draper, with no guarantee that I would not suffer from the same issue again.

Basically average brand with a lifetime warranty that only covers the basics of manufacturing errors and honestly I don’t see how this justifies the premium, especially when other tools come with a no quibble lifetime warranty.

Swagelok Pipe Cutter - [MS-TC-308] - Review

As most private individuals haven't heard of the Swagelok are a huge supplier of high quality fittings to industry. However they will deal with individuals directly which makes a nice change from having to contact a supplier/distributor.

Pipe cutters, as the name implies cut pipes, they come in a range of sizes from small specialist ones for instrumentation to large automated ones for industry. Some of the hand held ones are also equipped with an integrated deburing blade to clean the rolled edges left by the cutting process.

Pros:
Cuts Stainless, Copper and Aluminium Tubing
Takes sizes from 4mm - 25mm (3/16th - 1 Inch)
Rugged construction
Large handle
Replaceable parts

Cons:
Price - £36.75 from Swagelok Direct
(Correct as of 05/06/2013)


Review:
This is a very solidly built tool with a forged 'C' section and large reinforcing ribs to evenly distribute the loads. A design like this is directly linked to quality as cheaper variations of pipe cutters tend to be cast items which tend to fair poorly over time and have a habit of fatiguing and cracking in the major stress locations where the  tool is trying to push its-self apart. The large sections of this and other quality tools like the Rigid range prevent this. The knob used to adjust the cutting pressure is also a fairly robust piece with deep ridges to allow for a firm grip.

Stainless pipe proves no problem for the cutting wheel which slices through a 1mm section in only a few turns of the depth adjuster, I haven't ever found a pipe material that this wont cut, its even been used for some galvanised conduit in the past which although took a while the resulting cut was clean.

The specification says the cutter is designed to cut pipes from 4mm - 25mm which I have found to be true this is only limited by the opening of the jaws. If you need to cut larger sections unfortunately Swagelok doesn't stock an up scaled version. I do know however that Rigid offer the Rigid 65S RID31803 which would make short work of pipes up to 65mm.

The cutting wheel cuts cleanly on all pipe materials but tends to leave less of a bur on the harder materials, this is a habit of all pipe cutters though and so shouldn't be worried about as long as a good deburing tool is used to clean the finish cut. If the bur is not cleared then the pipe will in affect have an orifice plate fitted which will lead to large pressure losses in the system. The cutting wheel can easily be replaced with spares sold by Swagelok and proved a simply job when I replaced mine.

Conclusion:
I would highly recommend this product to anyone who regularly does plumping or pipe cutting jobs and even keen DIYers as the price doesn't place it to far into the range of the professionals and its always nice to have the right tool for the job. Its a great Pipe cutter and is very simple to use.

My only issue with the tools is its limited availability in general tool shops or even online, it can only be purchased direct. If you wanted a similar quality tool without the hassle then the Rigid 35S - RID29963 is more readily available from Amazon Here and other online retailers. It also looks better but comes with a slightly more expensive price to match but again it would be a tool for life so a good viable purchase for the right person. The cheaper tools are always tempting but they just don't have the same feel of quality about them and are generally made from a lesser grade material and wont last nearly as long.

Swiss Tools Rainbow Allen Keys - Review

PB212L Rainbow Allen keys – Review

Product Code: PB 212.LH-10 RB

SwissTools

These Allen keys are the longest serving set of hex keys I have ever owned, the set includes 9 keys sized 1.5,2,2.5,3,4,5,6,8 and 10. {{PB Swiss Tools}} as a brand, are a high quality Swiss tooling manufacturer who have been producing a range of tools for over 130 years. They have such faith in their products that they provide an unlimited lifetime guarantee on everything they have ever produced. There is even a neat feature on the website which allows you to track when and where your individual tool was produced. Their tool replacement policy is available on the website but as I have never used it I am unable to offer any comment.

Pros:

General selection of Hex keys

Helpful colour coding aids in size selection when working

Incredibly tough

Powder coated

30° Bull end for angled use

Cons:

Possibly Cost - £42.98 Including delivery to UK

Price no object – None

Background: 

Hex keys or ‘Allen’ keys as they are often referred to are commonly used for all types of cap head and socket head screws. The name ‘Allen’ is thought to have originated from the ‘Allen Manufacturing Company of Hartford in Connecticut’ who are said to have been the first to invent the method of producing a Hex socket drive and where the first to patent the idea.

Review:

The ‘L’ shape as with most hex keys allows for either a deep reach approach to fasteners or for the keys to be used in a high leverage position.

“For the toughest rusted in fasteners its sometimes easier to loop the end of a spanner over the end of the hex key as shown to provide a bit of additional leverage to help loosen even the toughest bolts.”

I have owned this set of Allen keys for well over 10 years and they have been one of the bulwarks of my tool box. Despite all of the abuse I have given them even using then as levers they have never failed me or rounded off. The powder coating although scratched hasn’t even so much as flaked despite commonly being covered in oil and harsh degreasers. The signs of long use are visible, each key having its collection of minor grazes but that’s all and are showing many more years of life in them.

The colour identification of each key covers nearly the whole item bar the driving ends and is highly distinctive yet individual for each size. The vividness of the keys apart from being aesthetically pleasing also has other advantages; For instance, gone are the days looking for dull coloured Allen keys under benches which have been dropped the colours just pop right out even when covered in grime.

Another unexpected bonus of the colours is that if your working with a little helper then its far easier to say hand me the ‘Blue’ one or the ‘Yellow’ one than specifying sizes which is often followed by “which ones that”.

The plastic key holder is pretty standard, fit for purpose with no bells or whistles attached, I find this preferable to most of my other sets which fold in half and all sorts.

The set I have are equipped with a ball or bull end on the long leg of the ‘L’ I have always found this to be the best option opposed to two square ends. The bull end of each key allows for the key to be used at a variety of angles in tight spaces where the square ends sometimes have a problem getting a good seat. Bull ends are also better for fasteners which have suffered a bit of corrosion within the drive of the bolts as the rounded ends mean a small amount of crud build up won’t affect the tools seating ability.

Conclusion:

I judge this set of Allen keys to be the best I have ever owned and despite the higher price than some other options I would defiantly recommended them especially for their longevity. They would make a perfect present for any mechanically minded individual or professional and would last them a lifetime. I rate them even higher than my Teng 1479 set which is also a good product but somehow just don’t seem so tactile during use.

Racecar Aerodynamics: Designing for Speed by Joseph Katz Book Review

For those of us interested in the aerodynamics of racing cars, this book provides good explanations of nearly all top-level aerodynamic theories.

Title: Race Car Aerodynamics: Designing for Speed
Author: Joseph Katz
Publisher: Bentley

Release Date: 09 March 2006

Pages: 270

ISBN: 08376 01428

The author Joseph Katz is a professor at San Diego state University and during his career has been involved in nearly all areas of motorsport from drag racing to formula one. Over this time he has written a series of publications focusing largely upon the aerodynamics of racing cars.

His book Race Car Aerodynamics: Designing for Speed is primarily written to cater for the larger audience and hasn’t made any assumptions about the readers’ prior theoretical knowledge. As such he starts each concept in a clear and concise manner starting from and building upon the basic fundamentals of aerodynamics. This approach allows for the book to be picked up by anyone from the professional engineer to the hobbyist and does not sacrifice content for either.

Anyone who reads this book no matter their level of knowledge will be able to gain a deeper understanding of the background theory and concepts that guide all aerodynamicists including wing theory.

The text and images contained in the book are all black and white (which has proved an issue for me in other publications where all the images have seemed to merge into unintelligible silhouettes) yet the lack of colours does not hinder the readers’ ability to clearly disconcern all aspects of each individual image. 

The overall breakdown of chapters within the book is good with individual topics explained fully and in detail, this allows for a smooth transition between concepts lending the book a nice flow through out avoiding confusion. Real life examples are almost always given to further help reinforce ideas to the practically minded reader.

The inclusion of a large variety of images and examples also means that the text does not feel quite as mathematically biased in this genre and as such it proves to be a much easier read following more along the lines of a highly detailed guide book opposed to a reference text.

The only small issue I have with this book are that it hasn’t had a more recent update to cover later Formula one examples as most of the information only covers up to around 2004, This does not mean that the information contained within is out of date as aerodynamics is more of an "evolutionary art opposed to a revolutionary one".

Within the book the author has also included greyed boxes containing formulas relevant to each specific are. Each formula box is filled with clear explanations of how the formulas are used, allowing for those with no previous experience to grasp the underlying mathematics governing the use of each. Personally I found these boxes especially useful. 

Although aerodynamics is heavily mathematically based, the general principles require no mathematical knowledge yet it is always a good idea to understand the maths behind the ideas.

Conclusion:

I really rate this book highly and I often find myself referring to it over some of my more analytical books like Understanding Aerodynamics by Doug McLean. The way the author always explains concepts in such a clear and concise manner is especially welcome, which is helpful if like myself you are a keen F1 fan and often find the televised explanations lacking and need a quick reference just to suss out possible benefits of recent changes. In this regard the book would make an excellent present for any one interested in forms of racing.

Although the book may fall slightly on the basic side of degree level texts it is still more than advanced enough for anyone interested in aerodynamics. A study of this book before reading more advanced publications would definitely help in achieving a greater base knowledge which can then be expanded upon in sections without trying to learn everything at once.

In all for anyone seeking more of an insight into the aerodynamics of racing cars, this is a highly recommended book.

Showa 380 multi-purpose work gloves/mechanics gloves review

These gloves now form the back bone of my whole families working glove collection, from the odd gardening use to full on oily mechanical tinkering.

Pros:

• Selection of sizes
• Washable
• Extremely grippy
• Comfortable fit
• Good price
• Long cuffs to stop debris getting inside

Cons:

• They are resistant to oil but they are not a barrier

These Showa gloves are manufactured from a woven Nylon with a Nitrile Butadiene rubber coating on the palm and fingers. I find the coating to be super sticky even on cool days and they even provide a bit of insulation from the cold which always helps, no more frozen banged and grazed knuckle moments from slipping here.

They grip exceptionally even when working in the rain or with oil coated tools which can be a nightmare without gloves, surprisingly they also feel the grippiest on smooth chrome handles of some breaker bars and ratchets with no loss of grip on the smoothest of surface finishes.

As the gloves are manufactured from a woven breathable material it also alleviates the horrible paste hands which I always suffer when using the non breathable latex gloves for any period of time. however due to this it also means that if you accidentally stick your hand in a puddle or a pool of oil its also going to get wet.

Despite their permeable nature these Showa gloves do a remarkably good job of keeping your hands dirt free with liquids penetrating through to your skin but not dirt and grime. If you really need to stay clean you could always wear a pair of the plastic gloves underneath or use a barrier cream such as this one Dri-Guard Barrier Cream,

I find the material to be the perfect thickness as it provides shielding from sharp edges but still allows for the right amount of sensitivity through the material.

Even though the gloves are advertised as multi-purpose delicate work I would find myself disagreeing and saying that they are a lot more capable as I use mine for absolutely everything. Although I will say that if you are looking for gloves to trim the brambles with I would suggest something in a bit of a heavier gauge material like these Showa Gardening Gloves.

For myself I can always find packs of these gloves readily available here Showa 380 Gloves and am generally inclined to go for the pack option simply because i have found them to be the best for what I do. A pack costs roughly £34.95 whilst individually they are £3.55 so the packs only really provide a modest cost saving I just appreciate the convenience of being able to always grab a spare.

I take a size 7/medium but there are also available in sizes 6/small, 8/large & 9/extra large. I find the 7/M fits most people leaving the 6/S for small hands and the 9/XL will fit even the largest.

Conclusion:

As far as I have found these are the best all round work and mechanics gloves available at a decent price. I highly recommend them great gloves that don't take away any of the feeling required when handling components yet still offer good levels of protection.

Teng Tools 6" Mega Bite Cable Cutters Review - MB444.6

These Teng cutters are a slightly heavier duty form of wire cutter. They are designed for cutting electrical cables to maximum diameter of 22mm whilst only requiring single handed operation.

Product specs;

• Titanium coated joints
• High carbon steel
• Vinyl coated handle
• Length - 160mm/6"
• Cutting capacity - 22mm diameter (Copper or Aluminium)
• Weight - 181g

Pro's 

• Sharp blades
• Perfect size for one handed use
• The vinyl coated handles are really grippy
• Great Value
• Cuts all sizes of common household cabling

Cons

• They take a bit of wearing in
• They wont cut steel reinforces cables

If I had to choose one pair of wire/cable cutters to use for the rest of my life it would be these.

Before becoming an engineer I had a brief delve into becoming a qualified electrician, absolutely everyone that I trained under has a pair of cutters similar to these as they are the most useful design.

This set of Teng cutters are manufactured from high carbon steel which is harder and tougher than tool steel or stainless steel which is normally used. As such, this provides the ability to hold a much harsher cutting edge than other similar products from cheaper manufacturers. The tool makes short work of any standard electric cables and even thin cooper, aluminium cables and even brass screws.

The above image shows a brief selection of cables which the tool has no problem cutting through or stripping the sheathing from, from left to right 0.5mm tinned copper / 3 x 1.5mm^2 general household wire / 2 x 4 core copper tinned stainless steel sheathed 7mm diameter.

Shown below is a closeup of the stainless sheathed cable detailing the smooth cut obtained without mashing the outer braiding. These cutters are also perfect for cutting coax cables.

As shown, the tool has twin crescent shaped cutting faces on the blades unlike a standard pair of snips. The crescent shape helps to trap the cable as it applies an equal cutting force around 80 percent of the wires circumference. This leaves no resultant force trying to eject the wire from between the cutting faces. This is opposed to standard edge cutters which due to the distribution of cutting load always have a resultant away from the hinge leading to the wire sliding away form the fulcrum of the cutters.

The crescent shape also has the benefit of squishing the wire less during cutting.

They are unable to cut steel cables and cutting steel screws will result in notched blades. If you are looking for a pair of cutters for this sort of application then I would suggest something more along the lines of these, Knipex Wire rope cutters 190 mm  

Although I am sure it wouldn't have been part of the original design specification the smaller of the two pairs of crescent blades are perfect for quick wire stripping with only a quick twist the cutters easily slice through any outer sheathing. Although not as good as a dedicated set of wire strippers because if your not careful you can simply cut through some of the strands they are lot better than using a Stanley blade or side cutters.

The only minor gripe I have had with this product since purchasing it (to replace an older notched pair) was that the middle separating cutting tooth offered a bit of interference upon closing but over time this has smoothed no end always leaving a clean crisp cut.

I also own a pair of the 10" cutters which I will review separately but as an everyday tool i would always recommend the 6" or 8" variation as a more useable sized tool.

Conclusion:

In all I would highly recommend these cutters to just about everyone, from the home DIY'er to the electricians and mechanics of this world. You will be surprised at the amount of uses that you find for them. They are available in a range of sizes as well as brands if you didn't feel like stretching to a Teng set I do know that the Irwin Visegrip Cable Cutters are available for an acceptable price and will be almost as good. I would suggest staying away from any unbranded versions though as they tend to be manufactured from lesser grade materials and have a habit of notching easily.

These are one of the most useful tools I own, I purchased mine from amazon Teng Tools 6" Cable Cutters (Mb444-6) Pliers - MB444-6