wrote in message
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On Sun, 27 Nov 2011 05:36:08 -0600, "HeyBub"
wrote in message

stuff snipped

You need the right cutoff wheel though - or about 2 dozen of the
wrong ones. You really need the fiber re-enforced ones.

Followup - It took about 5 minutes and two battery packs for my Dremel to
cut through the shackle of my "weather resistant" (HAH - NOT!) Popular
Mechanics lock. I had to set up a little garden stool to sit on so I could
keep the blade steady on the work and a wood shim under the shackle so I
didn't cut the hose by accident. Used very thin 1.25" reinforced cut-off
wheel. An A/C powered Dremel would have done it in half the time - my
battery units cut fine for a minute or so, then the blade tended to get
stuck in the kerf and it was obvious that the tool was losing torque.

My buddy seems to think the battery unit's low torque prevented the cutoff
wheel from shattering when it got jammed. Could be. Of course, he was the
one trying to loosen the wrong lock (the one on the hose bib) with a cold
chisel and a sledge hammer while I was still in the house. I ran outside
screaming "stop hitting the pipes!" when I heard the booming noise
throughout the house. The last thing I needed was to turn a simple lock
removal into a hose bib replacement. Experience has taught me
seventy-year-old plumbing does NOT like to be knocked around very hard.

So, no Harbor Freight angle grinder for me, even though I heard its siren
song calling to me. Now it's off sale, so there's even less incentive to
buy it. (I still want one, though!)

I also was unable to determine whether the shackle was hardened in any way.
It's been about 40 years since I had access to a Rockwell hardness tester at
the metallurgy shop at Brooklyn Tech. I assume I could make a rough
estimate by taking my spring loaded centerpunch and looking at the depth of
the pock mark it leaves on various metals, but it would be a rough estimate
not good for much of anything. Left the lock around the hose bib intact
(although rusted badly) so that I can get a REAL weatherproof lock to attach
to the replacement Craftsmen hose.

Now it's time to shut the outside faucets from inside to prevent them from
freezing even though we've had months of unusually warm weather in the 50's
and 60's. I'm not complaining, though. The heating bill has been
remarkable low for October and November here in Maryland.

FWIW, the hose sat outside for over 20 years without any problems until just
recently. Some years it would even freeze before I had a chance to drain
it. Never burst, though. Although I am NO friend of Sears, I have to admit
their hoses can take a real beating.

--
Bobby G.