tools from argos...

[BrokenBiker]

i was in argos earlier picking a few things up that i had click and collected from ebay and a load of powertools came down the conveyor to the collection area, a bench grinder, a circular saw, a drill and a few other bits too...

now i doubt they cost that much and they probably have some form of warranty with them but are they actually usable tools for the hobbyist?

i have been warned away from cheap tools through experience although i have found some real gems in the bargain bucket section like a 15 quid dremel copy and a load of bits that just refuses to die, a b and q grinder that was left in a puddel by my brother that just started up and carried on working etc

the one i was most interested in was the grinder, i want one with medium and fine wheels but dont want to pay proper money form a tool that will only be used for chamfering bolts after i cut them with a hacksaw and sharpening drills

 

[decca]

i was in argos earlier picking a few things up that i had click and collected from ebay and a load of powertools came down the conveyor to the collection area, a bench grinder, a circular saw, a drill and a few other bits too...

now i doubt they cost that much and they probably have some form of warranty with them but are they actually usable tools for the hobbyist?

i have been warned away from cheap tools through experience although i have found some real gems in the bargain bucket section like a 15 quid dremel copy and a load of bits that just refuses to die, a b and q grinder that was left in a puddel by my brother that just started up and carried on working etc

the one i was most interested in was the grinder, i want one with medium and fine wheels but dont want to pay proper money form a tool that will only be used for chamfering bolts after i cut them with a hacksaw and sharpening drills

I've had a nutool grinder for about 10 years paid £14.99 for it. Used in my shop for sharpening garden tools for customers and small jobs like you suggest. Sometimes runs out of steam on heavy grinds but for the money well worth it. If its light use go for it.

 

[steveo3002]

ive got the grinder , its better than having no grinder , but you get what you pay for

works ok for occaisional diy use , but its no way a good quality tool

ive now got a collection of 4 grinders , i leave a wheel /pad fitted to each so no messing around swapping them for differant jobs

 

[BrokenBiker]

ive got the grinder , its better than having no grinder , but you get what you pay for

works ok for occaisional diy use , but its no way a good quality tool

ive now got a collection of 4 grinders , i leave a wheel /pad fitted to each so no messing around swapping them for differant jobs

i will be buying another few angle grinders as i want my good bosch one for cutting as it feels good in the hand, and then want one for thick grinding discs, one for flap discs and maybe even one with a wire brush in it (becasue slag removal gets tedious after a while) but very regulalry come across the need for a bench grinder for the likes of drill and chisel (cold chisel not wood chisel) sharpening and would have been really handy for a few other things too...need somewhere to store it all though which is the only thing putting me off at the moment, shed is ruined by damp, dont want to buy another as it will probably fall apart when i move house but that wont be until june (maybe sooner if the mrs gets another new position next week and we can aford to write of the last few months rent) but even the mrs has agreed i need a garage or space for a big home built shed/workshop

 

[cumbriasteve]

I think before buying any tool you have to simply consider it's use under your ownership, I bought a £29.99 SDS drill from Aldi about 10 years ago, it's had a lot of DIY use and even a bit of light industrial use, starting to get a bit rattly but still going strong.

If I wanted a SDS for everyday use then I would not have considered it at all.

Same with the grinders, compressor and a few other cheapo's, had more than my moneys worth out of them all.

The only things I have found are not too good are the cheap battery drills, they work fine when new but the battery's dislike not being used on a regular basis.

 

[BrokenBiker]

I think before buying any tool you have to simply consider it's use under your ownership, I bought a £29.99 SDS drill from Aldi about 10 years ago, it's had a lot of DIY use and even a bit of light industrial use, starting to get a bit rattly but still going strong.

If I wanted a SDS for everyday use then I would not have considered it at all.

Same with the grinders, compressor and a few other cheapo's, had more than my moneys worth out of them all.

The only things I have found are not too good are the cheap battery drills, they work fine when new but the battery's dislike not being used on a regular basis.

i agree with the drills, i had a cheap 18v drill a while back, it was good for the first few charges but then started losing its charge very quickly when not used often, i replaced it with a hitachi and its been much better.

for what i need i think a cheap bench grinder will suffice, i rarely have to sharpen bits in all fairness, i use cutting fluid every single time, try to match speed with drill etc and dont actually do that much drilling but i think i will be doing a lot more once we move and i actually have a warm and dry space to work in with enough space to actually do stuff

 

[Maker]

I've got a cheap 150 watt bench grinder (Probably out of the same factory as the one you've seen) and it's served me well for sharpening tungstens, drills and lathe tools for the last 3 or 4 years but it can be quite easily slowed or stopped if you press too hard. Definitely worth getting one.

 

[BrokenBiker]

I've got a cheap 150 watt bench grinder (Probably out of the same factory as the one you've seen) and it's served me well for sharpening tungstens, drills and lathe tools for the last 3 or 4 years but it can be quite easily slowed or stopped if you press too hard. Definitely worth getting one.

have just been comparing the argos offering to b&q's cheapest offering and a few others, all look much the same as each other so doubt there is much in it apart from price...best think of somewhere to put it as i know i will need one sometime in the future and i am fed up of trying to hold an angle grinder in one hand, hold a drill in the other and then try and get the angles right to sharpen it properly

 

[Maker]

I should say that the wheels don't sit very straight* on the shaft so there's a lot of vibration and noise unless it's screwed down well (I modified mine so it would screw to the wall).

There's probably about 2 mm of sideways wobble as the wheel rotates a full turn. It doesn't affect grinding, it just makes it vibrate. You could probably dress the side of the wheel and it would be fine but as you're not supposed to grind with the side of the wheel I've never bothered.

 

[daleyd]

I bought a cheap (as in 10 quid clearance job) circular saw years ago. As said above if I was using it to earn my living I don't think it would have got a look in but it's done it's fair share of work, no complaints for the price paid.

 

[BrokenBiker]

I bought a cheap (as in 10 quid clearance job) circular saw years ago. As said above if I was using it to earn my living I don't think it would have got a look in but it's done it's fair share of work, no complaints for the price paid.

when i was using tools to earn a living i bought the best i could afford, but as im no longer using my tools to earn (serious) money i just buy whatever looks good enough to do what i need

 

[daleyd]

Yeah exactly that, I bought that when I didn't have much money and it was to do 1 job (replacing bathroom floor) which it did and is still going. To me anything after that job I bought it for is a bonus, considering it cost 10 quid.

 

[Bill Edwards]

Cheap bench grinders I have never had a problem with, and it seems to be the stones which wear away first and it's not worth buying replacements, it's usually best to buy a new grinder altogether. Typical throwaway society, but that's how the prices are.

As to not wanting a shed which won't stand being moved, get on and order some 40 x 40 box section and get welding...

 

[BrokenBiker]

Cheap bench grinders I have never had a problem with, and it seems to be the stones which wear away first and it's not worth buying replacements, it's usually best to buy a new grinder altogether. Typical throwaway society, but that's how the prices are.

As to not wanting a shed which won't stand being moved, get on and order some 40 x 40 box section and get welding...

have thought of that, but it needs to be easily moveable, i had thought of making a steel frame bolted together for ease of takedown, and then wooden sides that can be treated as consumable and just bin them if needs be when we move, then when i move and have somewehre decent to work i still have all the lengths of box section to use for something else...then i started pricing it up and its cheaper to buy a shed...plus i need a solid base (which i dont have now, my shed is resting on breeze blocks as i only have a 4ftx4ft concrete patch and landlord wont let me expand it). i could make it 4ft by 4ft to match the base and just use it as storage as i will have somewhere dry to work but its at the bottomm of a garden that floods at the first sniff of rain and takes weeks to drain off

 

[Bill Edwards]

40x40 box is £15 per 7.6 meter length, pretty cheap shed building I'd have thought...? Soon make a floor strong enough out of it as well!

 

[BrokenBiker]

where did you get that price? just a quick look on ebay and 40x40x3mm is 26 quid per 3M length, i need 22M to do the design i have in my head that would incorporate the concrete base i have already so 3 lengths would be plenty and only 45 quid.

i only want storage so would fill it with shelves and so on

if i could get 40mm box at that price i would have so many projects finished and in use that i probably would have run out of things to weld lol

 

[Bill Edwards]

http://www.fhbrundle.co.uk/groups/30SHS1__Square_Hollow_Sections

 

[BrokenBiker]

i always forget about brundle's site. cheapest i have seen in a long time, thanks for the link

 

[BrokenBiker]

£66 quid for 22.8M including VAT and Post, same cost as 9M from ebay...cant fault that at all...just need to price up something sutable for the sides and roof and payday will see my putting an order in

 

[Maker]

i always forget about brundle's site. cheapest i have seen in a long time, thanks for the link

Remember there's £10 postage, then VAT, but even then that's much better than eBay.