The following commentary does not necessarily reflect the views of AgWeb or Farm Journal Media. The opinions expressed below are the author's own.
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The following commentary does not necessarily reflect the views of AgWeb or Farm Journal Media. The opinions expressed below are the author's own.
As a farm machinery mechanic and writer, Dan brings a hands-on approach that only a pro can muster. Along with his In the Shop blog, Dan writes a column by the same name as well as the Shop Series for Farm Journal magazine. Always providing practical information, he is a master at tackling technical topics and making them easy for all of our readers to understand. He and his wife, Becky, live near Bouton, Iowa.
My last blog was about "most useful" tools. Dan and Mike, both from Nebraska, commented that Vise-Grips were their favorite tools. I appreciate their comments, and agree that Vise-Grips are a gotta-have tool. I have between 17 and 20 different kinds of Vise-Grips scattered around the shop. A few are currently MIA, but I'm hoping they turn up during a pending shop clean-up. Or that the farmers who's combines they're clamped to will notice them and return them to me.
I especially like older Vise-Grips, the ones built in Nebraska by the original Vise-Grip company. Those rascals work great compared to newer Vise-Grips produced by companies that bought out the original Vise-Grip manufacturer.
The newer VGs look the same, measure pretty much the same, but don't work the same. The lever you pinch to release the VGs doesn't work as well. The threads on the adjusting bolts on the end of the handle are rough from the factory--I've had to pull those bolts and use a tap and die to clean up the threads to get them to work smoothly. And there's something different about the leverage that makes them click and lock into place that's different from what it used to be.
It's hard to explain the subtleties that are different about the latest generation of VGs. Maybe it's all in my head, but when I reach into my toolbox for a VG I now look for the old, battered, rusty VGs instead of the shinier new ones.
And, to be clear--these are my opinions about tools and do not reflect the views of Farm Journal or AgWeb. I'm not sure what difference it makes, but I'm saying that just in case any lawyers start calling and asking questions.
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