Machined Tool steel my a$@!

[va aviator]

If you have cheap tools that are too soft you can usually fix that by heat treating. Stick them under the flame of a torch until they turn bright red, then quickly quench the hot part in oil. Let it cool, remove the oil, and warm them up ever so slightly in the flame, but do not let it get so hot that it glows. This will anneal the heat treated part so it won't be as brittle. Obviously not the best solution bit it can turn an otherwise unusable driver into a slightly serviceable piece that can function as a spare.

[FourT6and2]

Originally Posted by va aviator

If you have cheap tools that are too soft you can usually fix that by heat treating. Stick them under the flame of a torch until they turn bright red, then quickly quench the hot part in oil. Let it cool, remove the oil, and warm them up ever so slightly in the flame, but do not let it get so hot that it glows. This will anneal the heat treated part so it won't be as brittle. Obviously not the best solution bit it can turn an otherwise unusable driver into a slightly serviceable piece that can function as a spare.

Won't doing this increase the carbon content of the metal, thus making it harder yet more brittle?

[AndrewAZ]

Whatever I get I will probably just send off for cryogenic treatment. Done it on engine blocks..why not..

[EKron]

I'm only a couple of months into this new heli addiction thang so my knowledge of the best tools is limited but I've started out by taking everything apart so I'm not without at least some experience . In the ramping up process I started a completely new tool box just for heli stuff so I could quit running into the garage to get something out of my "real" toolboxs. (some girls like shiny things that aren't jewlery). I'd like to see if anyone has any opinions about the Team Integy stuff that can bee seen here: http://www.integy.com/st_main.html?p...1#.TsqmfPKk3PO

I have a 450 so my main hex driver is the 1.5mm. I have an Align one out of a set and a single Team Integy one that is way better. I'm almost afraid to use the Align one because I just get the feeling it's going to screw up whereas the Integy is clearly a step above.

I'd like to get a full set of the Team Integy's since they seem better in my limited experience but am curious if they are considered junk or are somewhat okay? They have several different models so could someone maybe suggest which ones would be best or point me to something in the same price range?

I'm off now to look up some of the ones already recommend but I'm sure they're a little beyond my budget.

Thanks,
--EK (Elisabeth)


Those $285 Hudy's look great but come on, two hundred and eighty five bucks?

[Cailid]

Originally Posted by EKron

Those $285 Hudy's look great but come on, two hundred and eighty five bucks?

If you consider how many tools are in the set, plus the case, it works out to just under $20 per tool.

Align drivers are decent. They're not top of the line but they do the job and are better than a lot of other brands. I use a couple align drivers and have had no troubles with them.

[wolfdown]

MIPS are great, and I found a seller online that priced them about $11 each.

[chuckk]

I've been on the same set of Align hex drivers for at least 5 years now. These drivers have built and repaired well over a dozen helis and a few airplanes over that time. No complaints at all on the Aligns. Have a few Wihas also. They don't really have the ummphh that you need sometimes to loosen a screw due to the narrow handles.

[va aviator]

Originally Posted by FourT6and2

Won't doing this increase the carbon content of the metal, thus making it harder yet more brittle?

Heating the steel red hot makes arranges the molecules into a structure known as austenite, which is higher on the hardness scale. Quenching the hot steel "freezes" the molecular structur. Left like this it would be brittle, but heating to around 500 degrees anneals the steel leaving a compromise between hard and brittle.

I'm not a metallurgist, however this is something I've studied a small amount on for the purposes of heat treating tools I've made.

[AndrewAZ]

Originally Posted by va aviator

Heating the steel red hot makes arranges the molecules into a structure known as austenite, which is higher on the hardness scale. Quenching the hot steel "freezes" the molecular structur. Left like this it would be brittle, but heating to around 500 degrees anneals the steel leaving a compromise between hard and brittle.

I'm not a metallurgist, however this is something I've studied a small amount on for the purposes of heat treating tools I've made.

The problem with these cheap China made tools is that they are already improperly hardened, there is no turning back once you have done that.

I have had engine blocks in cars making 700+WHP that are cryo treated..take them apart 20,000mi later, almost no wear at all..

[Wizzard]

I have 2 sets of the Align drivers and absolutely no issues with broken tips or stripped out screw heads. Have owned the Dynamite ones as well back in the day and no issues with them either. We sell many many many of the Dynamite ones in my 2 stores and have had no customer ever return any either.

[desertstalker]

Originally Posted by AndrewAZ

The problem with these cheap China made tools is that they are already improperly hardened, there is no turning back once you have done that.

I have had engine blocks in cars making 700+WHP that are cryo treated..take them apart 20,000mi later, almost no wear at all..

Unless they have botched the carbon content really badly you can allways recover from a poor heat treatment. Annealing the part will reset it back to the soft state, then you harden from there. If the steel is cheap low-carbon stuff though you wont get much between soft and really brittle though.

You were snapping parts right? not rounding the heads. If so, then hardening them more is only going to make them snap more easily, the harder you make a given steel alloy (beyond a certain point, which we are well past here) the lower its toughness (resistance to complete failure) it gets harder and usually stronger (yield strength) but more brittle.

Fancy heat treatment processes are not needed for hand tools, just some decent steel and basic hardening. The oil quenching is not bad (done properly) as it does tend to increase the carbon content of the outer part of the tool increasing its hardness and wear resistance, while leaving the middle of the part the softer, tougher steel (to resist failure). This is however very difficult to do with such thin parts (ideally you want to cool the outside rapidly and the inside slowly).

If you actually manage to snap a driver then it was hardened, cheap ones bend, they dont snap. Also you are using much too much force if you are snapping them, how much threadlock to these screws have in them? Bottom line, the higher-end tools should work fine, if you are breaking them often then you should consider technique.

[Shafto]

I am happy with my pink handle dynamites.. they fit sooo good!

[Tailbender]

This is a great thread and just what I was looking for... With so many here commenting on MIP where's the best place to buy MIP tools?

I've always found... it never pays to buy cheap tools...

[Inverse]

http://miponline.com/store/mip_thorp...ex_driver.html

[Tailbender]

That was fast thanks Inverse

[wolfdown]

I got mine here: http://www.hobbylinc.com/cgi-bin/s8...._s=mip%20thorp

[Tailbender]

Wow WolfDown... even better! Thanks

[whoanelly]

Originally Posted by wolfdown

I got mine here: http://www.hobbylinc.com/cgi-bin/s8...._s=mip%20thorp

Dam , i should of bought here..i paid $15 each. but i can say they are worth the 15 too.