c/garage-gear

Finally got around to organizing my socket drawer last week, and I found a 10mm from three years ago I thought was gone for good.

TIL my old magnetic tray was costing me more time than I thought

Last month, I was putting together a new workbench in my garage in Springfield. I kept dropping small bolts and washers on the floor, spending maybe 10 minutes each time just crawling around to find them. My old magnetic tray was weak and stuff would slide off if I bumped it. I finally bought a deeper, stronger one for about $25. It seems simple, but not having to stop and search for parts changed my whole flow. Has anyone else found a basic tool upgrade that saved a ton of hassle?

Can we talk about how much torque a standard 1/2-inch impact gun actually needs?

I was watching a video from Project Farm on YouTube and they tested a bunch of them, and the fact that a $150 model can hit over 700 ft-lbs of breakaway torque completely changed my mind about needing the most expensive one for home use.

I've been storing my extension cords wrong for years and a buddy in Phoenix just called me out on it.

He saw my tangled mess and said 'you're killing the cord life by coiling them tight like that.' Now I'm wondering, is loose looping really that much better or is he just being picky?

My neighbor's garage flood made me rethink my floor drain setup

I was helping him clean up after a busted water heater line flooded his whole space last month. He had a floor drain, but it was right under his workbench and got blocked by sawdust and a dropped socket. Took us two hours with a shop vac and a plumber's snake to clear it. Now I check my own drain every single weekend, and I keep a clear path to it. Has anyone found a good grate or cover that stops small stuff from falling in but still lets water through fast?

Overheard a guy at the hardware store say 'a clean garage is a sign of a wasted weekend'

I was in line at Ace Hardware in Springfield, buying a new set of socket organizers, and the guy behind me said that to his buddy. He was joking, but it really got me thinking about how we judge each other's spaces. My garage is a total mess right now, with projects stacked on the floor, and I used to feel bad about it. Now I think maybe it just means I'm actually using my tools instead of just showing them off. Does anyone else feel pressure to have a picture-perfect garage, or is it okay to let it get a little messy while you're working?

My neighbor called my old jack stand setup 'a good way to get dead' and I had to listen

I was under my truck last month, just using a single 3-ton jack stand on the front frame rail like I always did. My neighbor Mike, who used to be a mechanic, walked over and said, 'Riley, that's a good way to get dead. You need a matched pair and a backup.' He pointed out that my one stand was on uneven concrete and the truck could rock side to side. I felt pretty dumb, honestly. The next day I went out and bought a second identical stand so I have a pair for the front, and I started using my old, heavy duty wheel chocks behind the rear tires as a backup. It cost me about 80 bucks for the new stand, but now I won't even crawl under without that setup. It just feels way more solid. Anyone else have a simple safety rule they learned the hard way?

I thought those magnetic parts trays were a waste of money until my third dropped bolt

Kept knocking over my old plastic tray and losing small screws under the workbench. Grabbed a cheap magnetic one on a whim and it's stuck to the side of my toolbox ever since, holding everything in place. Anyone have a better spot to stick theirs besides the toolbox?

Ace Garage Storage motorized lift reviews? Looking to upgrade

Thinking about pulling the trigger on a motorized ceiling lift from Ace Garage Storage. They seem to have great reviews online, but I wanted to see if anyone here has firsthand experience assembling them and using them long term?

My neighbor said my old 20-gallon air compressor was 'like trying to mow a football field with scissors' when he saw me painting my truck bed.

I've been over-tightening my impact sockets for years without knowing

I was putting together a new workbench last week and my 1/2-inch drive socket cracked on a simple bolt. A buddy who builds race cars was over and saw it happen. He asked how much torque I was putting on it, and I just said 'until it's tight.' He showed me his torque wrench and said for most garage stuff, you only need about 80 foot-pounds, not the full muscle I was giving it. I checked my old sockets and three of them have hairline cracks I never noticed. How do you guys know when to stop on a bolt?

Saw a wild setup at a garage sale in Mesa that got me thinking

Honestly, I was driving through Mesa last weekend and stopped at a garage sale that had a full metal lathe sitting next to a kid's bike. The guy running it said he used it to make custom parts for his old Ford, but he had it wired into a regular garage outlet with what looked like a homemade extension cord. It made me wonder about the line between DIY ingenuity and just being unsafe. Has anyone else seen a garage tool setup that made you genuinely nervous?

TIL my $15 magnetic parts tray is way better than the old coffee can I used for years

The magnet is so strong it holds a full set of sockets, and I haven't spilled a single bolt since I switched. Anyone else have a cheap tool that totally changed their workflow?

Checked out that new 'pro' tool rental place in Springfield and their whole setup felt like a showroom, not a real shop

I mean, everything was spotless and shiny, but the floor layout was all wrong. The big floor buffer was parked right next to the welding bay, and all the air hoses were these short, bright orange things that wouldn't reach across a single car. The guy working there said 'we prioritize aesthetics for customer confidence.' Idk, maybe it's just me, but a garage space should be built for function first. Has anyone else been to a place that looked great but was a pain to actually work in?

Saw a guy in a Milwaukee shop using a 6 foot level for a 4 inch tile job

I was picking up some blades at a tool rental place in Tacoma and watched a contractor check a tiny backsplash with a giant level. He told me, 'If it's not perfect here, it won't be perfect anywhere.' I've always grabbed the shortest tool for small jobs, but maybe I've been wrong. Do you guys use bigger precision tools for small work?

Visited a friend's new workshop in Bend and noticed his pegboard layout was all wrong.

He had his most-used socket wrenches on the top row and his rarely needed specialty tools right at eye level. I helped him reorganize it based on weekly use, which took about an hour. How do you all decide what goes where on your pegboard wall?

My old floor jack gave out right as I was lifting my truck in the driveway

I was swapping winter tires on my F-150 last Saturday afternoon, halfway through raising the front end. The jack handle suddenly dropped an inch with a loud POP. I looked down and saw a small puddle of hydraulic fluid forming under the seal. I had to carefully lower it with the release valve, which took forever, and then run to borrow my neighbor's jack to finish. Has anyone else had a jack fail like that? What's a good brand that won't leave me stranded?

I think the 'no cordless' rule for shop vacuums is a bit much

Three years ago, I bought a big corded shop vac for my garage in Tacoma. Last month, I finally got a cordless one for quick cleanups. Everyone says the cordless ones are weak, but mine picks up metal shavings just fine. Why do people act like you need a cord for every single job?

Tried a cheap magnetic parts tray from Harbor Freight and it actually held up for a full engine teardown

A talk with my neighbor made me switch from cordless to corded for my bench grinder

I was complaining about my battery powered grinder dying halfway through sharpening some mower blades. My neighbor, who used to run a small machine shop, just said 'You're paying for the cord, you might as well use it.' He pointed out that for a tool that stays in one spot and needs constant high power, the cord is free and never runs out. I went and bought a basic 6-inch Skil corded model for $65 last weekend. Has anyone else gone back to a cord for a stationary tool like this?

Am I the only one who was storing their jack stands wrong?

I always kept them on the floor under my workbench, but last week I saw a guy at the auto parts store put his on a low shelf. I realized having them on the floor meant I was always kicking them and the pins were getting rusty from concrete moisture. Where do you guys keep yours so they're easy to grab but out of the way?

I used a $5 paint roller to apply epoxy floor coating and it worked perfectly

Everyone says you need the expensive notched squeegee kit, but I tried a short nap roller on my 2-car garage floor in Austin and got zero bubbles. Has anyone else skipped the fancy tools for this job?

Just realized my old extension cord was costing me hours...

I kept using a thin 16-gauge cord for my orbital sander, thinking it was fine... until I borrowed my neighbor's 12-gauge one. The sander didn't bog down at all and finished a whole door in half the time. Anyone else have a piece of gear that was secretly holding you back?

Saw a guy using a leaf blower to clean his garage in Toledo

He was just blasting sawdust and old bolts everywhere, and his neighbor's car got a free coating. What's the weirdest cleaning method you've seen someone try?

The great garage door opener mystery that ate my Saturday

Last weekend, my garage door just stopped working. No noise, no movement, nothing. I figured it was a simple fix, maybe a loose wire or a bad sensor. I spent two hours checking every connection, cleaning the photo eyes, and even resetting the power. Then I noticed the little green light on the wall button was out. I thought the button itself was dead, so I drove 20 minutes to the big box store, bought a new one, and wired it up. Still nothing. After a total of five hours, I finally found the problem. The tiny, cheap 3-amp fuse in the opener unit itself had blown. It was hidden behind a panel I didn't even know existed. A 50 cent part and 30 seconds to swap it, but it took me half a day to find it. Has anyone else had a garage door issue that turned out to be something stupid simple after hours of messing with it?