Tools you wish you'd bought sooner...

[Watchman]

Teddy Lop said:

I have a triple extension ladder made by hailo that has a similar banana bar setup. Wouldn't want anything lesser now, particularly as I work alone.

Do the feet in yours rotate so you can "stab" them into grass, for that extra peace of mind?

Great design. I've had the Basemate for a decade now but for years before I always felt I was chancing my luck each time I needed to use my ladders.


Since reading the thread, I've put the XL version of those Knipex pliers onto my Amazon wish list. They're over £100 but I can already imagine dozens of situations where I could have used them.

[Watchman]

Thanks for the tips about VDE screwdrivers. Just ordered a Wera set with 2x PH, 2x PZ and some flats, all narrow/slim shafts. Delivery tomorrow.


So, as that was a success, what are the recommendations for hacksaws? There's a decent looking Stanley FatMax on Amazon for 21 quid, plus another fiver for 2x spare blades.

Are there any "magic" blades out there that never go blunt?.. or something?

[B17NNS]

Watchman said:

So, as that was a success, what are the recommendations for hacksaws? There's a decent looking Stanley FatMax on Amazon for 21 quid, plus another fiver for 2x spare blades.

Are there any "magic" blades out there that never go blunt?.. or something?

Ive got this one. Very robust bit of kit.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/irwin-heavy-duty-hacksa...

By all means buy decent branded blades but consider them disposable.

[Seanseansean]

Get this Bahco hacksaw light weight and well built.
Had mine about 4 years used everyday on site, gets some serious abuse it’s great.
I had a fat max and it was to heavy and wouldn’t cut straight after about a year.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/bahco-hacksaw-frame-12-...

[Watchman]

Thanks both for the recommendations and the warning about the weight of the Stanley. That cropped up in the Amazon reviews too. I'll look at lighter variants. I don't need the 5 different applications it can morph into so I'll save myself the bother.

B17NNS said:

By all means buy decent branded blades but consider them disposable.

I always have but with there being these new table and circular saw blades that can cut through anything, without heating up the material and lasting forever, I wondered if there was a hacksaw equivalent.

"Buy bimetallic ones..." I've read. Don't know why though.

[Vanden Saab]

Watchman said:

Thanks both for the recommendations and the warning about the weight of the Stanley. That cropped up in the Amazon reviews too. I'll look at lighter variants. I don't need the 5 different applications it can morph into so I'll save myself the bother.

B17NNS said:

By all means buy decent branded blades but consider them disposable.

I always have but with there being these new table and circular saw blades that can cut through anything, without heating up the material and lasting forever, I wondered if there was a hacksaw equivalent.

"Buy bimetallic ones..." I've read. Don't know why though.

I use these... https://www.screwfix.com/p/bahco-hacksaw-blades-32... for cutting stainless and aluminium trims, seemingly unbreakable and just go on and on. I have had the same blade in my Bahco hacksaw for over a year despite almost daily use.

[dickymint]

Watchman said:

Thanks both for the recommendations and the warning about the weight of the Stanley. That cropped up in the Amazon reviews too. I'll look at lighter variants. I don't need the 5 different applications it can morph into so I'll save myself the bother.

B17NNS said:

By all means buy decent branded blades but consider them disposable.

I always have but with there being these new table and circular saw blades that can cut through anything, without heating up the material and lasting forever, I wondered if there was a hacksaw equivalent.

"Buy bimetallic ones..." I've read. Don't know why though.

They have a hard toothed strip welded onto a softer spine. It gives a compromise between accuracy and brittleness. Soft blades are less accurate, hard blades are more accurate but snap easily.

I spent the first three months of my engineering apprenticeship with nothing but a hacksaw and a couple of files in my hands!! One of the measures of how good we were doing was the number of blades/week we each booked out of the stores

Still got my old Eclipse hacksaw in the garage.

[V8mate]

Watchman said:

The best tools I have, that I should have bought years earlier, are a Basemate for my ladders (use then on uneven ground) and a Triton Superjaws. Since owning these, all my struggles seem so far away...

Basemate - no more needing to nail a couple of planks into the sloping driveway while putting up our tasteless Christmas lights:

"Ooh", I thought. "I want one of those too!"

£364!

I'll stick with calling my son to stand on the bottom rung

[jas xjr]

Other ladder stabilisers are available

[Whoozit]

Reversible quick grip bar clamps for general DIY. A godsend.

[Seanseansean]

Watchman said:

I always have but with there being these new table and circular saw blades that can cut through anything, without heating up the material and lasting forever, I wondered if there was a hacksaw equivalent.

"Buy bimetallic ones..." I've read. Don't know why though.

Here’s mine.
I just use blades from our stores, normally starrett I think.

[Sheepshanks]

V8mate said:

"Ooh", I thought. "I want one of those too!"

£364!

I'll stick with calling my son to stand on the bottom rung

I saw that as well but the £364 Basemate looks altogether more complex than the one in the picture here.

[Watchman]

Yes, not sure what all the extras are for on the ones currently advertised but mine is a very simple affair - just the semi circular hoop and its mountings.

And I paid no more than £50 - I'm sure. I bought it in 2011. Seems as though it's currently unavailable on Amazon and everywhere else I Googled.

[dickymint]

Watchman said:

Yes, not sure what all the extras are for on the ones currently advertised but mine is a very simple affair - just the semi circular hoop and its mountings.

And I paid no more than £50 - I'm sure. I bought it in 2011. Seems as though it's currently unavailable on Amazon and everywhere else I Googled.

Yes - i've been looking for the "hoop" only one like yours since you posted up. Makes me wonder if it's been withdrawn due to some elf and safety issues? I take it you had to drill/modify your existing ladder?

[Watchman]

Ah, I think I get it... The more complex-looking one seems to be removable where mine is a permanent fit. You have to drill and bolt mine to the ladder. This newer one seems to temporarily fix to the ladder.

Not sure it's worth £300 more than I paid though.

[Watchman]

dickymint said:

Yes - i've been looking for the "hoop" only one like yours since you posted up. Makes me wonder if it's been withdrawn due to some elf and safety issues? I take it you had to drill/modify your existing ladder?

Posted at the same time.

You might be right although mine did come with "sandwich plates" to ensure the ladder was properly braced on the outside, but using the ladder offcut, I inserted that inside the ladder rotated 90 degrees from normal so you can't overtighten the sandwich plates and deform the ladder. Maybe this new design overcomes the obvious design flaw although at the price difference I'm quite happy with mine.

[227bhp]

V8mate said:

Watchman said:

The best tools I have, that I should have bought years earlier, are a Basemate for my ladders (use then on uneven ground) and a Triton Superjaws. Since owning these, all my struggles seem so far away...

Basemate - no more needing to nail a couple of planks into the sloping driveway while putting up our tasteless Christmas lights:

"Ooh", I thought. "I want one of those too!"

£364!

I'll stick with calling my son to stand on the bottom rung

Unsure how your son will help with the difference in height unless you're going to mount one of the side rails on his head or something?

[Watchman]

BTW, my VDE screwdrivers turned up today. Absolutely chuffed with them. Thanks for the recommendation. Definitely something I should have bought earlier.

[ben5575]

Watchman said:

BTW, my VDE screwdrivers turned up today. Absolutely chuffed with them. Thanks for the recommendation. Definitely something I should have bought earlier.

They're very nice aren't they?

Whatever you do, don't look at this

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Zyklop-Ratchet-switch-met...

or this...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wera-05020013001-Ratchet-...

[dickymint]

Watchman said:

dickymint said:

Yes - i've been looking for the "hoop" only one like yours since you posted up. Makes me wonder if it's been withdrawn due to some elf and safety issues? I take it you had to drill/modify your existing ladder?

Posted at the same time.

You might be right although mine did come with "sandwich plates" to ensure the ladder was properly braced on the outside, but using the ladder offcut, I inserted that inside the ladder rotated 90 degrees from normal so you can't overtighten the sandwich plates and deform the ladder. Maybe this new design overcomes the obvious design flaw although at the price difference I'm quite happy with mine.

I would be happy too but you can't get it anymore