It’s been a while since we did a tool shed, but this tool is worth a post. A friend let me borrow his Stihl KM 90 R (KombiMotor multifunction). And it was amazing.

Stihl KM 90 R

This is a great tool. Basically it is a motor that can handle up to 11 different attachments making it very versatile. This model has a 1.27bhp, low emission motor. It lasted a long time and started right up. Some of the attachments include a hedge trimmer, grass trimmer, pole pruner and edger. Changing attachments is very easy. Simply loosen the bolt and slide the attachment on.

I’ve never edged my lawn before but it made a huge difference. Now my sidewalk has nice, clean, straight lines. I hope to use the grass trimmer and pole pruner attachments to landscape the lawn a bit more.

The real value of this tool is the ability to tackle many different jobs. The pole pruner can be used to trim tree limbs, hedge trimmers for your bushes and a blower for easy clean-up. For more information check out their site here.

What do you think? Which multifunction do you use? What attachments do you like the most?

If you’re looking to tackle any painting job beyond painting a smooth drywall/sheetrock surface, you are probably already considering an airless paint sprayer.  Airless paint sprayers offer numerous advantages over brushes and rollers for large irregular surfaces like open-joist ceilings, wood decks & fences, popcorn/stipple ceilings, and more.  Airless sprayers provide even coverage, let the paint get to where brushes and rollers cannot reach, and most importantly, they save a lot of time.

Airless paint sprayers use a compressor to force paint through a hoze to a nozzle that atomizes the paint into a fine mist.  Most airless sprayers accept interchangeable tips that provide different flow rates and spray fan widths.  Paint cans will usually include instructions on what nozzle width should be used  (Note: caution is in order when using an airless sprayer - they have enough power to cause harm if the stream hits your skin and close range)

Some airless sprayers have a paint resevoir that is coupled to the handle, trigger and nozzle.  This type of sprayer can be useful for very small jobs, but isn’t good for large projects, or those where you are working over your head (such as when you paint a ceiling).  Inverting these units can cause them to lose pressure, and they generally require frequent refills due to the small paint resevoir.

Amazon sells a refurbished version of the Wagner Spray Tech II 2,750 PSI Paint Crew Sprayer.  This paint sprayer is the most versatile paint spayers we’ve found, and retails for almost $200 at Home Depot.  Amazon’s price is a steal, and this sprayer has everything most homeowners will need.  It’s advantages include:

• 2 gallon hopper located on the ground (few refills, you don’t hold it over your head)
• 25 foot hose
• interchangeable tips
• 2750 PSI pump to spray even thick latex paint

What do you think?  Do you have this airless sprayer?  What do you think of it?  Do you own another model you’ve had good success with?

This week’s tool is a necessity for folks planning to do electrical work in their home. Automatic wire strippers take much of the chore out of hooking up switches, receptacles, and fixtures by quickly and easily removing the insulation from wire ends. Unlike their non-automatic counterparts that require tugging on the wire to remove the insulation, automatic strippers do everything in one motion. They’re as easy to use as a pair of pliers and help prevent nicks, cuts, and frays in wire ends.

Amazon sells several different brands of automatic wire strippers ranging in price from $10-$50. The complete list is here. Many of these brands qualify for free super-saver shipping (if you order more than $25.00 worth of items). Just make sure there’s a super-saver discount notice next to the price.

Our recommendation is the Gardner Bender SE-92. The SE-92 will handle 8-22 gauge solid or stranded wire and it’s backed by a 1 year manufacturer’s warranty. GB has a solid reputation for providing good tools for do-it-yourselfers and professionals alike. This model qualifies for super-saver shipping, and has a very appealing price tag.

If you want a professional model, Amazon also offers the Klein KLE11062. The KLE11062 will allow you to swap blades to handle a wider variety of wire gauges and will likely stand up to more use and abuse. Unfortunately, it doesn’t qualify for the free shipping discount, and comes with a “professional” price tag.

Free Shipping Note: If you’re looking for a complimentary item to get you over the $25.00 minimum, we highly recommend Stanley’s Complete Home Wiring book. You can see my brief review of it here.

Automatic Wire Strippers In Action (click to enlarge):

What do you think? Do you have automatic wire strippers? Have they proved useful on your jobs?

While Home Improvement and tool specialty stores offer the best selections of all types of tools, an often overlooked option for getting the tools you is buying them second-hand. So I was thinking, what better place to look than Craigslist?

I took a quick look at our local (Baltimore) Craigslist tools section. All I can say is: Wow. There were A LOT more tools for sale than I expected. And, there weren’t just tools. For instance, I found this Home Depot $50 Store Credit Card listed for $40. If you’re like me (in this case meaning a substantial part of your income goes to the big box home improvement chains), that’s like someone handing me a $10 just for driving to their house! Who knows, I might even be able to bargain the guy down to $35. I didn’t see one tonight, but I’ve also heard of people selling the 10% off coupons HD sends in the mail - usually for $10-$15. Those are good for up to $200 off at HD. It’s worth checking your local listings before you make that next big purchase.

Any other ideas? Besides the obvious borrowing from family and friends, any other good ideas for where to get tools on the cheap?

This week’s tool is the electric screw gun.

As you can see, a screw gun resembles a drill, except it has a nose housing an interchangeable bit instead of a chuck. You load a screw onto the bit and apply pressure to engage an internal clutch, driving the screw into your material. This allows you to lock the drill motor to keep it running as you work (recommended). Nicer models can be used with collated screw strips to automatically load your next screw - a major time saver on big projects.

weLast week I wrote about the pneumatic nailer. While that is perhaps the most useful tool I’ve encountered in my home improvement life, there is at least one type of job that the adventurous improver will need more power to complete. That job is fixing framed walls to a concrete slab, or any other job where you must fasten wood tightly to poured concrete or block. For fixing walls to a slab, it’s easy enough to build the framed walls on the ground but how are you going to fix the bottom board to the concrete slab? Attempting to drive the bottom board in place by hand would be very challenging - particularly if you’re working with concrete that has been curing for years.

That’s where a powder actuated tool comes in handy. These tools are made by a few different vendors, with Home Depot carrying the most popular brand: Ramset. There are a number of different calibers and types of tools, including semi-automatic guns with trigger-firing mechanisms, and ones that you must hit with a hammer to drive (the latter is significantly cheaper at the big box stores).

After you buy the tool, you’ll need to select the right powder charge for the job, which depends on what material you’re fastening into what other material. Fortunately, vendors color-code these to make it easy. Most of the tools have a guide on the box you buy the tool in; and I know the Home Depot near here as a whole display set up to help.

In the introduction to my basement finishing project video, you can see the result of using one of these tools to fix the bottom board of my walls to the slab.

More Information: Jeff Krotzer over at Ezine Articles writes even more about these tools; how to select one, and what to look for.

Unrelated note: You may have been expecting to see the planning article I promised as a follow up to last week’s The Mythical Two Day Project. Well, a two-day project got in my way. That article should come tomorrow.

Related terms: powder actuated nailer, powder actuated nail gun, RAMSET, fastener

Harbor Freight, “America’s Favorite Tool Store” (Their words, not mine) offers an oft-overlooked cheaper alternative for many DIYers.

While not as common as Home Depot and Lowes, Harbor Freight offers some pretty amazing deals. For example, I recently needed 4 GFCI receptacles for 4 new circuits in my basement. Harbor Freight sells 15amp GFCI receptacles for $9.99 each, while the other big boxes get $16.99 or more for each. That’s a $28.00 savings on 4 plugs. They have similar deals on all types of tools including electric, pneumatic, and manual.

Harbor Freight will also send you a free catalog and accepts mail orders for tools and other parts - something neither Lowes nor Home Depot offer.

Of course, Harbor Freight has many fewer locations than any of the big home improvement chains, and the old adage may apply: “You get what you pay for.” I’ll certainly be monitoring the GFCI circuits in the basement to see how they hold up.

Want more? Wikipedia has an article discussing GFCI circuits here. Did you know that you should be checking your GFCI circuits every month?

For anyone who’s installed baseboard, chair rail, or crown molding the old fashioned way - with a hammer and nail set - you’ll appreciate this week’s tool.

Pneumatic nailers for household use are a fairly new concept. Back in my father’s time, only builders and contractors had access to such high-tech equipment. Now, many vendors sell individual nail guns and nail gun kits for the average Joe. I bought my Portal Cable finishing nailer from Home Depot as part of a 3-nailer starter kit that included a brad nailer, a stapler, a finishing nailer, and a 1.5 gallon pancake compressor. Each nailer will prove useful depending on the level of hold, finish, and nail length you require for a project.

Application: A great first project for your first nailer is one that I’m again going to be undertaking in my living room: installing chair rail. I found a great video tutorial at Easy2DIY. Just substitute a finishing nailer in their “hammer and nail set” step, and their instructions go from good to great.

Around the Blogosphere: Jon McDougal uses a nailer to install crown molding, and questions whether or not he should use pre-fabricated corners. I prefer the mitre join better; but I understand his motivation to use the pre-fabricated corners.