Just like getting dressed, I suggest that for this go-round of Tool News Nirvana, you first put your feet in your pants, and then work up. Meaning: start at the end of this article with the last item: a contest from Duluth Trading Company, which could net you a new pair of their firehose work pants… and potentially cash! Good deal, if you ask me – especially since at the moment I happen to be down to one pair of work jeans and they’re starting to look more like the fashionably torn duds of a major movie actress than actual clothing. I’m thinking up a tall tale for my entry… so hurry and enter too before I outshine you with my great storytelling skills.
Black & Decker Gyro Screwdriver
I hardly think I should be required to write anything here, because a picture is worth a thousand words, and so if I found a great video like the one you’re about to watch, I should get credit for like ten thousand words, right? Therefore I should be excused from writing this edition of Tool News Nirvana, right? But somehow I can feel the eyes of Marc, our illustrious editor, boring into the back of my head, so I’ll dutifully share the details of this new tool announcement via the trusty written word. Here goes: Black & Decker® just introduced the GYRO™ 4V MAX* Lithium-ion Rechargeable Screwdriver, a motion-activated screwdriver that controls variable speed and direction. What, you say? Watch this: (And yeah, this video happens to be in Japanese since we found it more entertaining than the English version) –
Milwaukee Tool Force Logic Press Tool Line
If you’re tired of sweating the details (and by “details” we mean “pipe”), the Force Logic Press Tool line from Milwaukee Tool just may make your day. The one-handed, in-line design of the M18 and M12 versions of this fitting press tool make it easier to navigate around installed pipes, while at the same time delivering excellent press accuracy and reliability. Both tools utilize Milwaukee® Redlink™ Electronics to monitor the force output of the mechanism to ensure quality connections and at the same time visually indicate both a secure connection and when the tool needs calibration. The tools require service only every 40,000 and 32,000 cycles respectively. This allows users up to 4X more connections between calibration inspections than with other competitive units. The Press Tool line units are cordless, powered by Lithium-ion batteries.
Black & Decker Multi-Head MATRIX Quick Connect System
The new MATRIX modular tool system is built around three different base power units and changeable attachments to drill, cut, sand, and more. You can buy a Lithium-ion base power unit in either 12V, 20V, or 4.0 Amp AC, and then any of six attachments: an impact driver, oscillating multi-tool attachment, jigsaw, detail sander, router, or trim saw. The base power unit comes with the drill/driver attachment, and the lightweight battery holds a charge up to 18 months. The 12V and 20V base units / drill/driver attachments go for $49.99 and $69.99 respectively, and the 4.0 Amp AC version will be released in January at $39.99. Attachments will range from $29 to $39 apiece. You can find the new tool system at The Home Depot, Lowe’s, Walmart, and Amazon.
PORTER-CABLE Amps it Up With New 3.0 Amp Multi-Tool
PORTER-CABLE has come out with a new Corded Oscillating Multi-Tool Kit, which includes a 3.0 amp motor for power and durability on the jobsite. This model is meant for tough applications, including cutting, sanding, scraping and grinding. This new baby delivers up to 10,000-22,000 oscillations per minute (OPM), and features a depth/cutting guide that provides stability when making long cuts as well as control for making plunge cuts. You can comfortably hold the tool in the front, middle, or back, thanks to its redesigned three-position over mold. Like its predecessor, the PC250MTK, this unit features a tool-free system blade change. Available at Lowe’s and independent distributors in September, the price will be about $129 and will come with 31 accessories.
Festool Rolls Out a New Impact Driver and Router Table
About to be unveiled in October, the new Festool CMS router table is a design beauty, featuring precision machined work surface, fully adjustable fence, dust extraction capabilities, and top mounted height adjustment, among other cool features. It integrates with the Festool OF 1010 and OF 1400 routers and is available in either the freestanding GE model or the MFT/3 add-on modular model. The TI 15 impact drill driver comes out the same month, another in the brushless motor line of tools. It has the capability of both a standard drill-driver and a powerful, long-running impact driver. If you already own a Festool C-Series or T-Series cordless drill, you can buy the “basic” version of the TI 15 which comes with the driver body, drill/driver adapter, and impact bit holder. And, for your tired old butt, Festool is treating you to a new work stool, also to be released this October: the MFH Work Stool, which comes with a built-in storage cabinet, roller bearing slide drawer, interior shelf, and pegboard sides. Smart design, but I’m kinda thinkin’ they should have called it the Festool TOB Work Stool.
Hold onto your socks for this super dramatic TI 15 Drill Driver video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZi6lc2TN08
Duluth Delights With this Giveaway Contest
From the Duluth Trading Company and just in time for planning your fall wardrobe, is the Last Pants Standing Contest, which could win you a $500 Duluth Trading gift card and a chance to be on the cover of a Duluth Trading catalog. Woot! You may have already seen our reviews of their work pants and their cargo pants in the past. What you’ve gotta do for the contest is: Like the Duluth Trading Company Facebook page, show a picture of your awesome self, and tell a tall (or medium, short, or XL) tale about the battering your pants take. There will be voting, people. If you make the top 10, you get a pair of Duluth Fire Hose Work Pants and proceed to round 2, where you could win $100, $250, or the 500 big ones.
