A couple notes: The fluid extractor trick down the dipstick is def interesting, as one of my used vehicles has the threads of the drain plug shredded prolly from a teenager at a quick lube place so I have to clean it thoroughly and apply RTV silicone to ensure it doesn’t leak. If I dont have to take that out, it could make sense to use the evaluator. Otherwise, it’d take me less time to lift the front to do the oil change than manually vacuuming it out. That being said, they are still a wonderful tool to have for a multitude of uses. One of the more common uses for me is evacuating power steering pump reservoirs and the like before doing a replacement. The mechanic’s stethoscope is something I have but use rarely. Another easy way to listen pulley bearings is a small vacuum hose. Hold one end close to your ear and put the other close to the pulley in question. It does everything you need it to and is much less fragile, so I always keep some in my tool cart. If it’s the right diameter, you can also cut a ~1/2” piece off and put on a lug nut to keep a brake rotor in place without worry of marring the surface when doing some brake or suspension work. The stethoscope is def better at locating engine and valvetrain noises though so not a complete replacement imho. Good stuff here, thanks for sharing.
I agree on the Esco jackstands. They’re well made and feel very secure. The comparo done by Project Farm took circumstances to extreme by forcing a car sideways to see which failed. In practice, those conditions would very rarely, or never, take place.
Part 1: ruclips.net/video/Za_YUtalgdE/видео.html
Part 2: ruclips.net/video/Cn4mGd5G1WQ/видео.html
A couple notes:
The fluid extractor trick down the dipstick is def interesting, as one of my used vehicles has the threads of the drain plug shredded prolly from a teenager at a quick lube place so I have to clean it thoroughly and apply RTV silicone to ensure it doesn’t leak. If I dont have to take that out, it could make sense to use the evaluator. Otherwise, it’d take me less time to lift the front to do the oil change than manually vacuuming it out. That being said, they are still a wonderful tool to have for a multitude of uses. One of the more common uses for me is evacuating power steering pump reservoirs and the like before doing a replacement.
The mechanic’s stethoscope is something I have but use rarely. Another easy way to listen pulley bearings is a small vacuum hose. Hold one end close to your ear and put the other close to the pulley in question. It does everything you need it to and is much less fragile, so I always keep some in my tool cart. If it’s the right diameter, you can also cut a ~1/2” piece off and put on a lug nut to keep a brake rotor in place without worry of marring the surface when doing some brake or suspension work. The stethoscope is def better at locating engine and valvetrain noises though so not a complete replacement imho.
Good stuff here, thanks for sharing.
Love theae type of videos. Really useful 👍
I agree on the Esco jackstands. They’re well made and feel very secure. The comparo done by Project Farm took circumstances to extreme by forcing a car sideways to see which failed. In practice, those conditions would very rarely, or never, take place.
I agree, it was a stress test and I still think these jack stands are pretty solid. Gotta love Project Farm's thorough testing though.
That vise could be very handy for me lol...
Yeah, it's a good vice and easily could have made the list. I just don't use it very often so there wasn't much to say about it.