First there was Man Vs Wild, then there was Man Vs. Food. Now, a new web show will pit man against the tools we all know and love. Man Vs Tool is a new web series that comes to us from the online tool store, ToolBarn.com. Is this just another form of advertising on the cheap? Absolutely, but we all know what the power of good viral marketing can do. Who knows, they might have what it takes to be the next Will It Blend?.

In the first episode Man Vs Tool pits a 7th degree Tae Kwan Do black belt, Master Kassebaum, against the Makita 5377MG 7-1/4” magnesium hypoid circular saw, teamed up with the Rockwell Jawhorse. Whoever breaks or cuts the most boards in one minute gets the bragging rights. Who will win? Place your bets now, then see who comes out victorious in the video after the break.

Man Vs Tool

What is the number one problem with owning any tool? Simple, there is always someone out there that is willing to steal it from you if given the opportunity. The problem is, nothing is unstealable. We can only do our best to make it as hard for them to steal as possible. My friend learned about this the hard way when all of his tools were taken from the back of his truck. When I saw the Skyd Cable Locking System, I knew this was the product that would have saved his tools. The problem for my friend was that it was just too easy to unbolt the cargo tie-down that his chain was looped through.

The Skyd Cable Locking System is a complete truck cargo locking system that uses only one key and one lock to lock everything. The system uses a 20-foot, 3/8” vinyl-coated braided-steal cable that is housed in a small 14” x 14” x 6”, 3/16” thick diamond plate aluminum box. After pulling the cable out of the self-retracting box, which is bolted to the bed of your truck or trailer, you can then thread it through all of your tools. The end of the cable is then placed inside of the box where it is locked with a cam-lock. The retracting mechanism even has a built-in centripetal force safety brake to prevent cable snap backs. The system also allows users to use padlock, without the need for extra keys. This is done with special Skyd Locks that do not require any keys or combinations.

Skyd Locks are innovative keyless padlocks that are designed to simultaneously lock your toolboxes while securely locking your toolboxes to your Skyd Cable. Because Skyd Locks are locked by threading a cable through the actual lock, there are no keys or combinations to hassle with.

You can add as many Skyd Locks to the Skyd Cable as you need, and all that is required to unlock everything is a single key. Both the Skyd Cable and the Skyd Lock come with a lifetime warranty to the original owner. The Skyd Cable System comes with everything mentioned above, and includes 2 Skyd Locks, for $395. Additional Skyd Locks can be purchaced for $9.95 each.

[:cicn:] Skyd Cable

How can a company prove to you, that their product is the best on the market? These days they do it by throwing said product off of a roof, down some stairs, or out of a moving vehicle; and get the whole thing on video. Those are just some of the crazy things we have seen these past few years. In the end we get to see a video that is both informative and entertaining. The DieHard Torture Labs showcases some crazy videos of their own, including powering a total of 24 cars off of a single battery and providing some musical bliss in the process. One of the more shocking videos is of a .458 caliber bullet round almost completely cutting through a DieHard battery. Even though the battery was now bifurcated, it still had enough strength to start a pick-up truck on the first try. It is hard to argue with those kind of results.

DieHard – Torture Labs

Ready to be the envy of all the other guys at work, and still have skin left on your knuckles? Say you find yourself trying to drive a screw that is too close to a wall or other obstruction; what do you do? Normally you would try to drive the screw with your screwdriver at an angle, and lose a bit of skin against the wall in the process. This sometimes gets the job done, but often ends up stripping the head of the screw at the same time. A right angle driver might be a solution to this problem, but it will still leave the driver tip a good distance away from the wall. I believe the correct answer would be to use a flexible shaft, like the 392 Flexible Shaft bit holding screwdriver from Wera. Its flexible head allows users to screw or unscrew without having a direct line of sight to the screw. It accepts all standard 1/4” bit tips, so even those specialty screws will be no match. For under $20 you can own this German engineered bit holding screwdriver complete with a lifetime warranty.

Wera - [:cicn:] Amazon

CopTool.com

Remember the Makita 10-inch miter saw we talked about back in April. I thought it was unique and offered a nice compact design. Because of its 2 pairs of sliding rails, it allows the saw more travel while requiring less space. Jay over at CopTool seems to have liked it, and has a great review for your reading pleasure. This season, 10-inch is the new 12-inch... next season, 7-1/4 inch miter saws with 6 rails.

CopTool LS1016L Review
Makita LS1016L 10-Inch Dual Slide Compound Miter Saw - Amazon

The new Model 40-6001 Laser Distance Measure is a first for Johnson, but it looks like they got plenty right. It doesn't get crazy with 800 feet of measuring, but it has plenty to offer at 165 feet with an accuracy of ±1/16" (±2mm). The 40-6001 has all of the features you would expect from a good LDM; including, indirect measurement capabilities for length and height; and single distance, area and volume measurements. The LDM also has a few features not seen in lasers in the same price range, like a backlit LCD screen and a 10 measurement memory. The coolest feature of all has to be the sound activated measuring mode. This new sound mode should come in handy during those moments of awkward one handed measuring.

The 40-6001 also has a couple downsides. It has three measurement reference points (Front, Rear, and Tripod), but it lacks the forth measuring point for measuring in corners. Also a possible downside is the use a more expensive, less common, 9-volt battery.

The 40-6001 includes a soft-sided pouch, safety strap, rubberized LDM protection cover, 9V battery, and instruction manual.

Johnson Level - [:cicn:] Amazon

Rockwell's new table saw looks nothing like the table saws you are familiar with; the saws you know and love. In fact the only thing similar about it is the table. The BladeRunner from Rockwell can accurately be described as a jigsaw mounted in table, upside down. In the past we have seen rigs that allow users to mount their own jigsaws under tables, but the BladeRunner takes the idea a step further by offering an all-in-one package.

ZipSnip, the answer to your cutting woes? The ZipSnip is a 3.6-volt lithium-ion rechargeable electric material cutter who purpose is to make cutting simpler. Its circular cutting blade makes it ideal for zipping through cloth, leather, plastic packaging, corrugated fiber board (aka cardboard) vinyl sheet goods, rubber liner, landscape fabric, canvas, wire, wrapping paper, etc. The 1-1/2” hardened steel cutting blade is configured to self-sharpen against a small sharpening stone so you don't have to worry about a dull blade. Even after you have worn down the blade to nothingness, you can simply swap it out for a new blade.

The ZipSnip weighs in at one pound, so it is probably a little heavier then the scissors you are used to using, but its cutting speed will cut down on your cutting time. The rather large trigger switch on the ZipSnip should make it easy for people of all ages to use, but the safety switch on the top will keep the tool from attacking on its own. The cutter uses a 1.4Ah 3.6-Volt battery that can be completely charged in 3-5 hours, and can hold its charge for up to 24 months.

Except for the trigger mechanism, the ZipSnip looks identical to the SKIL Power Cutter, which I own. So I can confirm that this tool can cut through everything in the above materials list, and that the battery can hold a charge for a very long time.

Interested? You can pick up the ZipSnip for $39.99 at your local Menards, or other hardware and home centers, and online at [:cicn:] Zipsnip.com - Amazon

The search for the perfect tape measure is no small task. I have yet to find one that I am 100% happy with and have been on a never ending search ever since I started working in construction. For the longest time it seems as though manufacturers were content with tape measures as they were; without even trying to come up with new ideas. Thankfully that has all changed, and the last few years have been full of a lot of really good tape measure ideas.

Johnson Level has now entered the tape measure game with a complete line of their own, and I say, the more the merrier. I don't know if Johnson has the tape measure you have been longing for, but they do have a line up that offers a ton of great features. Their top of the line Big J model includes all the features I look for in a great tape, and many more. Big J uses an extra wide 1-3/16 blade that allows for extended standout, has measure markings printed on both sides of the blade, uses a double sided hook, and is all housed in a rubberized stainless steel case. Have you ever seen a tape measure with a stainless steel case? I will be keeping my eye out for the Big J in stores. The new Johnson tape measure line has features like auto-locking and magnetic tips, to fit jobs of all types.

Johnson - [:cicn:] Amazon

OK, this is not the end of the composite world as we know it just yet, but if things keep going the way they are going now, it is probably not too far off. Last month I wrote about how SKIL has stopped selling their X Bench in California because it did not meet the new formaldehyde standards for composite wood set in the state. Well, I guess President Obama liked the new California standard so much, he decided to make it a national law. Starting January 1, 2013, all products sold in the United States will have to meet a 0.09 parts per millions or less emissions standard for formaldehyde. This means that the materials in question can release no more then 0.09 ppm of formaldehyde into the air.

We have already seen what this new standard has done to the sales of the X Bench in the state of California. Can we now expect the same thing to occur nationally? This will probably be the end of the SKIL X Bench unless they move to an approved MDF composite, but they still have a couple more years to figure things out. This new standard will affect just about any wood product that makes use of glue, so you can expect to see price increases in everything from skateboards to workbenches to home furniture. One bit of good news is that the California deadline has been extended until December 31, 2011.

via TheWoodWhisperer