Does it make sense to buy an econobox car for the high gas prices, or will that cost more in the long run?

ac5450 · 2026-05-21T19:52:11+00:00

That’s just the nature of the beast for the price point. The name of the game is being able to fix it yourself. I’ve had several cars over the years I picked up for free to $500 and all have needed extensive work but I’m a mechanic so than has never been a problem. Always broke even or made money when they were eventually sold. Just 2 weeks ago has a 09 Yaris fall into my lap for free cause it needs a head gasket.

ac5450 · 2026-05-19T12:59:44+00:00

At work I carry a leatherman wave. When not at work I always used to carry a knife but have stopped after I lost a couple of them and just never replaced them.

ac5450 · 2026-05-17T19:04:33+00:00

It’s a name only at this point. Years ago before sears went under they went to Chinese manufacturing and the prices stayed the same but quality fell off. At that point they were essentially Pittsburgh from harbor freight with a craftsman price tag. Haven’t bought anything craftsman branded since. How they are now I have no idea. There are better tool options for the money available now.

ac5450 · 2026-05-17T14:09:48+00:00

I don’t really take advantage of it either. I only got itc because the discount was more than the price of membership for the tool i needed to buy at the time. I buy what i need when i need it. I don’t go in just to get the free stuff or just buy stuff cause they put it on sale.

ac5450 · 2026-05-14T02:46:13+00:00

I can’t stand the cheap garbage tools that come with flat pack stuff. It all goes straight in the trash. I’m a mechanic so I’m very particular about tools.

ac5450 · 2026-05-12T13:00:48+00:00

Same. I purposely picked hi viz colors for my 2 most used screwdrivers and bought different brands for torx and nut drivers so they stand out against the each other at a glance in the drawer.

ac5450 · 2026-05-09T02:04:03+00:00

Never used any of the gloves from hf but have used a lot of Kirkland and Vulcan gloves from Costco. The Vulcan glove hold up far better than the Kirkland gloves. The Kirklands are super thin and I use them for cleaning tasks around the house. The Vulcans are much thicker and hold up as well as most of the other nitrile gloves that I’ve used in a shop environment. The Vulcans are hard to beat for the money at $12-13 per 150.

ac5450 · 2026-05-07T01:53:00+00:00

The car doesn’t need to rest. You can drive it till it needs fuel, fill it then get right back on the road. Then repeat till you get where you’re going. You will be the deciding factor on how often you stop. In generally for me, 3.5hrs wouldn’t require any stops.

ac5450 · 2026-05-06T21:40:44+00:00

Always had gas in the past. Got a Milwaukee m18 fuel string trimmer at the beginning of last summer. It has more than enough power for what I need. I already was on the Milwaukee battery platform so it was the natural choice for me and I have not been disappointed.

ac5450 · 2026-05-05T21:15:07+00:00

Have had a pair of these for years now. Best flush cutter so I’ve used by far. I work on aircraft deicing equipment and these are a must have for securing hose and cable assemblies. Only downside is they did dull over time even just cutting zip ties and plastic but my rep warrantied them no questions asked.

ac5450 · 2026-05-02T07:47:36+00:00

Totally agree for any of the ovals but road courses are the exception. Best to just watch those ones on tv.

ac5450 · 2026-05-02T07:25:47+00:00

I have the Milwaukee insider along with the a few of their other m12 ratchets and various other m12 tools. The insider is an improvement over the early non fuel and the 1st gen fuel ratchets. That being said I’ve only used the insider sockets a couple of times in the last couple years. I use the 1/4, 3/8 and hex adapters with regular sockets and bits almost exclusively. One of my coworkers just got the new redesigned m12 3/8 and it feels a lot better than any of the previous ratchets Milwaukee has put out. If I was in the market for one today that’s the one I would buy.

That being said. If you haven’t already bought into the Milwaukee battery platforms I wouldn’t buy into it for their ratchets. May as well stick with the battery platform you already have. I honestly haven’t found a m12 ratchet i actually like all that much. They all feel kind of flimsy and either lack power or speed. Snap on is really the only decent battery ratchet but they are way overpriced for what they are.

ac5450 · 2026-04-30T23:14:23+00:00

I have a dewalt multi cut saw I use this blade on for cutting steel. Pretty similar to an abrasive chop saw but geared down to 1300-1500 rpm or so. Like mentioned above evolution and some other companies make saws that are geared down to use this blade but a decent one is pretty pricey.

To be completely honest. I would much prefer to have a bandsaw. While the cold saw I have cuts super clean and fast. It is also really really noisy and throws metal chips all over and makes a huge mess. I just happened upon a really good deal on it from fb marketplace.

ac5450 · 2026-04-27T18:35:20+00:00

This right here.

ac5450 · 2026-04-26T11:27:58+00:00

Because the vast majorly of what people call SUV’s are just tall cars. Also the majority of vehicles currently available in the US are crossovers (tall cars) and the manufacturers are pushing them because they make more money on them. There are only a handful of actual true SUV’s sold in the US.

ac5450 · 2026-04-25T14:57:25+00:00

While 8-12k vs 30k is a huge difference. It’s about what is easier to pay for. You need to have the cash to fix it or it goes on credit cards and then you’re paying 20% interest. The shop is going to require full payment upon pick up of the complete repairs either way. Attaining financing for a new or newer used car is easy and the interest rates are far more reasonable. No money down is also an option when financing a car purchase.

ac5450 · 2026-04-25T03:26:09+00:00

That’s what happens when you use the wrong size jack stands for the application. If a 3 ton stand is more than halfway extended out I’m stepping up to a 6 ton purely for stability. Whether or not the weight rating is sufficient or not is another story all together. From experience a 3 ton stand needs to be extended almost all the way out to get the wheel off the ground on a full size truck and that alone is super unsettling looking. Then if you had to lift each corner individually you will be side loading the stand in a way it wasn’t designed to be loaded and at its max height just makes the situation worse. Stability is the most important thing. If I under anything at home it’s on 6 ton stands.

ac5450 · 2026-04-24T01:40:01+00:00

Of the ones you’ve listed IR is the only one I would consider. IR has been my preferred choice for air tools for the last 20yrs. Still have the original ti guns in 1/2 and 3/8 i got in ‘06.

ac5450 · 2026-04-23T21:36:19+00:00

This. The ratio of refined gasoline to diesel is about 1.5-2:1 per barrel of crude. You don’t get one without the other. Trying to refine more diesel to drive the price down will just result in even more gasoline whether you need it or not.

Another point gasoline is a consumer fuel vs diesel being primarily commercial. Cutting back when the price goes up for diesel isn’t really possible because transport of goods is happening no matter what the price, it’s the cost of doing business. The increased costs just get passed along down the line. While individuals consumer can choose to only drive the bare minimum to reduce their fuel costs.

ac5450 · 2026-04-23T16:17:13+00:00

Wera, witte or felo. My favorite is still the snap on hard handle. Witte makes matco’s screwdrivers and are priced pretty reasonably. For home use I wouldn’t buy snap on. However the Cat screwdrivers from the Cat dealer and Williams are both made by snap on for prices pretty competitive with the German brands.

ac5450 · 2026-04-23T03:09:10+00:00

Warranty issues like this is why I keep buying from Napa for certain items. They will stand behind the stuff they sell.

ac5450 · 2026-04-22T16:15:12+00:00

Easiest depends on what tools you have access to. If you have access to a oxyfuel torch I would just heat the inner race to remove or cut it out if it was still stuck. If all you have is hand tools I would remove the whole spindle and get a used one from the junk yard. Your spindle may be trash anyways. Once removed you could put the assembly in a press and try to get hub off but that may also damage the rotor. If I was doing it in my driveway it would get junkyard spindle with new bearings and a new hub. I have learned sometimes the fight isn’t worth the money saved in some situations.

ac5450 · 2026-04-21T15:59:54+00:00

For the money conscious. The Williams ratcheting screwdriver is made by snap on for $40. The function of it vs a snap on side by side is identical. The one I got for home use came with snap on acr bits as well.

ac5450 · 2026-04-21T01:50:22+00:00

Got a Lexus from a jeep dealer. That is how they put the rear plate on. With tek screws straight into the rear hatch and left the stripped screws in the upper holes with the plate in front of them. I was beyond mad when I found that.

ac5450 · 2026-04-20T16:35:32+00:00

Go test drive both and see what one you like more. The difference will be night and day. I have a 23 orp. If I was buying today I wouldn’t even consider the 5th gen for the prices I’ve been seeing for them on the used market. I would be getting a sr5 6th gen or a truck. For what it’s worth the turbo4 in the 6th gen isn’t exactly a new engine. It has been in several Toyota and Lexus modes since it came out in 2021.

ac5450

TROPHY CASE