OK, wreckers. It's 'fess up time!
 

And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

For me it's a B&D "electric file" - basically a needle-nose belt
sander. It's a something that should be handy as hell but it's just
too damned vicious. Touch it to a piece of wood and you have instant
"**** - too much". I've never been able to get anything done with it.
Next?

FoggyTown
"Cut to shape . . . pound to fit."

On 29 Dec 2004 08:02:38 -0800, "foggytown" wrote:

And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

For me it's a B&D "electric file" - basically a needle-nose belt
sander. It's a something that should be handy as hell but it's just
too damned vicious. Touch it to a piece of wood and you have instant
"**** - too much". I've never been able to get anything done with it.
Next?

FoggyTown
"Cut to shape . . . pound to fit."

Mastercraft Rotozip kit. Gift.
$150 CDN and the biggest piece of crap I have ever seen.
Even the power cord is made out of such hard wire you can't even stretch it out
in warm weather.
Nothing can be squared, the plunge router attachment is a complete joke.

Complete crap.

Dremel and all its accessories...especially the...cough cough..."router
table".

Jim

PC biscuit joiner. I just don't use it. Mortise and tenon is stronger and
I prefer it to the noise and dust.

--
Ross
www.myoldtools.com
"foggytown" wrote in message
oups.com...
And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

For me it's a B&D "electric file" - basically a needle-nose belt
sander. It's a something that should be handy as hell but it's just
too damned vicious. Touch it to a piece of wood and you have instant
"**** - too much". I've never been able to get anything done with it.
Next?

FoggyTown
"Cut to shape . . . pound to fit."

On 29 Dec 2004 08:13:23 -0800, "WoodchuckCanuck"
wrote:

Dremel and all its accessories...especially the...cough cough..."router
table".

I couldn't live without a Dremel.
I even used it to remove the exhaust system from my 3/4 ton pickup.:)
Router attachment is cool, especially for installing hinges in almost anything.
I've never seen the router table.

My Old Tools wrote:

PC biscuit joiner. I just don't use it. Mortise and tenon is stronger and
I prefer it to the noise and dust.

....
Biscuits work great for aligning edges, etc...

Sears table saw with lots of features instead of a Delta contractor
saw with less features and better quality for same price.

foggytown wrote:
And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

For me it's a B&D "electric file" - basically a needle-nose belt
sander. It's a something that should be handy as hell but it's just
too damned vicious. Touch it to a piece of wood and you have instant
"**** - too much". I've never been able to get anything done with it.
Next?

FoggyTown
"Cut to shape . . . pound to fit."

"foggytown" wrote in message
oups.com...
And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

For me it's a B&D "electric file" - basically a needle-nose belt
sander. It's a something that should be handy as hell but it's just
too damned vicious. Touch it to a piece of wood and you have instant
"**** - too much". I've never been able to get anything done with it.
Next?

Those things can actually be quite useful for metal working. Used often
with the small, light gauge tubing for furniture, etc.

Those little Veritas corner rounding planes - the ones bent from a
piece of steel with the little elliptical opening. Woodcraft sells
them for $14 apiece. They either split the grain or require so much
pressure to work that my fingers get sore quite quickly. Easier and
more consistent to use sandpaper or a router.

Water stones. I found that I was spending more time trying to take
care of the stones than I was using them to sharpen anything. I scary
sharp now.

Dick Durbin

A Japanese flush cut saw. It bends easily and I have difficulty using
it (maybe my technique). It always turns and cuts into the surface I'm
trying to flush with. I have much better results using a Japanese
Razor saw. I cut off close to the surface, then use a small low angle
block plane to do the flush trim part.

Bob

On 29 Dec 2004 08:02:38 -0800, foggytown wrote:
And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

SWMBO bought me a Black and Decker "sanding mouse" 2 years ago for
Christmas. I've never used it, and she's never asked about it.
As far as woodworking stuff, clamps. I've got too damn many clamps.

Dave "sorry..." Hinz

On 29 Dec 2004 08:02:38 -0800, "foggytown" wrote:

And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.


There are several, but up among the top 5 is the drill press mortising
attachement. After having the chuck drop a couple of times, one decides
that this is not the way to go.



+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Now we'll just use some glue to hold things in place until the brads dry

+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

I agree with Bob - A Japanese flush cut saw. For all the same reasons
he mentions.

A Ryobi detail sander. It looked like a good idea at the time but...

"foggytown" wrote in message
oups.com...
And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

For me it's a B&D "electric file" - basically a needle-nose belt
sander. It's a something that should be handy as hell but it's just
too damned vicious. Touch it to a piece of wood and you have instant
"**** - too much". I've never been able to get anything done with it.
Next?

FoggyTown
"Cut to shape . . . pound to fit."

On 29 Dec 2004 17:28:41 GMT, Dave Hinz wrote:

On 29 Dec 2004 08:02:38 -0800, foggytown wrote:
And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

SWMBO bought me a Black and Decker "sanding mouse" 2 years ago for
Christmas. I've never used it, and she's never asked about it.
As far as woodworking stuff, clamps. I've got too damn many clamps.

It's funny, because the best furniture I've seen made by someone I know
personally came from a guy who had TWO rusty old pipe clamps total.
He made oak furniture, cherry furniture and did it on a clamping table using
wedges and twisted rope.

He used rope twisted tight with a stick to make drawers and boxes and everything
came out perfect.

Just thinking about it brings back the stench of rancid hide glue he always had
bubbling away.

On 29 Dec 2004 08:02:38 -0800, "foggytown" wrote:

And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

The Original Freud Hot-Air Edge Bander.
I salvaged the hot air gun from it, and use it often , but the rest of
it went with the trash.
Truly one of those tools that should work, and sporadically did work,
but was no time saver compared to a regular iron. Just one major source
of frustration, to the point I 'repaired' it one day with some excess
energy and my lunch bucket ended up flying through the shop as a
punctuation mark.
I was told, several hours later, when the rest of the crew dared to come
close enough to me again, that I had uttered previously unknown words as
I was 'adjusting' the tool with a 5 pound ball-peen hammer.
It was very irresponsible and immature behaviour, but dammit, it felt
great.

r

Whew! and I thought it was just me! I feel better about myself now.
Thanks for the therapeutic comments!

Bob

I think anyone who bought a PC 944 detail sander would list it as worthless;
though maybe many would not admit to buying it.

It was my first "good" tool and HD had it on closeout at half-price...
Live and learn.

Chuck Hoffman wrote:
A Ryobi detail sander. It looked like a good idea at the time but...

"foggytown" wrote in message
oups.com...

And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

For me it's a B&D "electric file" - basically a needle-nose belt
sander. It's a something that should be handy as hell but it's just
too damned vicious. Touch it to a piece of wood and you have instant
"**** - too much". I've never been able to get anything done with it.
Next?

FoggyTown
"Cut to shape . . . pound to fit."




Yes, I got one as a gift and don't recall opening it after the
obligatory Christmas morning look, however many years ago that was.
Joe

Hi Dick, Are you looking to get rid of the stones? I'm looking to get
some.....JD
"Olebiker" wrote in message
oups.com...
Water stones. I found that I was spending more time trying to take
care of the stones than I was using them to sharpen anything. I scary
sharp now.

Dick Durbin

Hi Ross:

Funny, but if someone started a "What's the best tool you've ever
bought" thread, I'd probably rank my PC biscuit joiner in the top 5 of
my tools. It's great for edge-joining and the occasional face frame.
Regards,
John.

Joe Gorman wrote:

Chuck Hoffman wrote:
A Ryobi detail sander. It looked like a good idea at the time but...
....
Yes, I got one as a gift and don't recall opening it after the
obligatory Christmas morning look, however many years ago that was.
Joe

OTOH, my wife uses hers a lot for the refinishing she does and likes it
well...

YMMV... :)

"foggytown" wrote in news:1104336158.089897.251330
@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:

And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.


The whole @#$%ing Shopsmith incident. I donwannatalkaboudit.

Patriarch

"the_tool_man" wrote in message
oups.com...
Those little Veritas corner rounding planes - the ones bent from a
piece of steel with the little elliptical opening. Woodcraft sells
them for $14 apiece. They either split the grain or require so much
pressure to work that my fingers get sore quite quickly. Easier and
more consistent to use sandpaper or a router.


Hate to say it but I use one most every day at work. Find is one of the
best tolls available. Course I'm not using it on wood but on plastic which
is still warm from the injection mold. Trims the flash quite well. Never
tried em on wood though.

D. Mo

Yup, I'm with Chuck. Bought it, tried it, boxed it, hide it. Couldn't tell
you where it is now...

Joe C.


"Chuck Hoffman" wrote in message
...
A Ryobi detail sander. It looked like a good idea at the time but...

"foggytown" wrote in message
oups.com...
And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

For me it's a B&D "electric file" - basically a needle-nose belt
sander. It's a something that should be handy as hell but it's just
too damned vicious. Touch it to a piece of wood and you have instant
"**** - too much". I've never been able to get anything done with it.
Next?

FoggyTown
"Cut to shape . . . pound to fit."

The whole @#$%ing Shopsmith incident. I donwannatalkaboudit.
Patriarch

How much $$ would you sell your whole shopsmith outfit for?

Alex

Porter Cable profile detail sander. I use the profiles by hand and leave
the sander in the box.


"foggytown" wrote in message
oups.com...
And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

For me it's a B&D "electric file" - basically a needle-nose belt
sander. It's a something that should be handy as hell but it's just
too damned vicious. Touch it to a piece of wood and you have instant
"**** - too much". I've never been able to get anything done with it.
Next?

FoggyTown
"Cut to shape . . . pound to fit."

WoodchuckCanuck wrote:
Dremel and all its accessories...especially the...cough cough..."router
table".

Jim

Got a cordless Dremel which is a most useless POS. Can't keep a charge
in the battery for more than a few minutes and then it seems to take
hours to recharge. Bought a cheapo Harbor Freight corded thingy so I
could at least use the bits.
whine,
jo4hn

On Wed, 29 Dec 2004 13:14:18 -0500, "John" wrote:

Hi Dick, Are you looking to get rid of the stones? I'm looking to get
some.....JD

Whoa! That sounds like something overheard in a San Franscisco bar. ;-)
[Sorry, just hit me as funny]

"Olebiker" wrote in message
roups.com...
Water stones. I found that I was spending more time trying to take
care of the stones than I was using them to sharpen anything. I scary
sharp now.

Dick Durbin





+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Now we'll just use some glue to hold things in place until the brads dry

+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

"Patriarch" wrote in message
news:n_CAd.39764$k25.30196@attbi_s53...
"foggytown" wrote in news:1104336158.089897.251330
@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:

And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.


The whole @#$%ing Shopsmith incident. I donwannatalkaboudit.

Patriarch

C'mon now, it does make a halfway useable lathe and drill press.

--
Nahmie
Those on the cutting edge bleed a lot.

On 29 Dec 2004 08:02:38 -0800, "foggytown" calmly
ranted:

And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

For me it's a B&D "electric file" - basically a needle-nose belt
sander. It's a something that should be handy as hell but it's just
too damned vicious. Touch it to a piece of wood and you have instant
"**** - too much". I've never been able to get anything done with it.
Next?

B&D belt sander. This one is over 30 years old and has seen about
3 hours total work in that time. Every time I use it I cuss myself out
four using it again because it invariably finds a way, when I'm least
suspecting it, to TILT and dig in and mar every piece of face wood it
touches, no matter how hard the wood and with 120 grit belts. sigh

-----------------------------------------------
I'll apologize for offending someone...right
after they apologize for being easily offended.
-----------------------------------------------
http://www.diversify.com Inoffensive Web Design

In article .com,
"foggytown" wrote:

And now in a burst of refreshing honesty we're all going to admit to
the most useless, waste-of-money, unnecessary, white elephant, "why the
hell did I ever buy that" tool in our arsenal.

For me it's a B&D "electric file" - basically a needle-nose belt
sander. It's a something that should be handy as hell but it's just
too damned vicious. Touch it to a piece of wood and you have instant
"**** - too much". I've never been able to get anything done with it.
Next?

FoggyTown
"Cut to shape . . . pound to fit."


This may draw a few flames, but the tool I bought that I never use is a
Delta mortiser - the one with the cast iron table. I tested it when new,
and it works fine. But I'm used to cutting mortises with routers and
jigs - faster (for me) and much more clean and accurate. So I never seem
to want to use the mortiser.

PDX David

On Wed, 29 Dec 2004 20:40:28 GMT, jo4hn wrote:

Got a cordless Dremel which is a most useless POS. Can't keep a charge
in the battery for more than a few minutes and then it seems to take
hours to recharge. Bought a cheapo Harbor Freight corded thingy so I
could at least use the bits.

Typical with NiCd batteries. If you have a Batteries Plus store near-ish
you, they might be able to fix and/or replace those cells.

Dave Hinz

Larry Jaques wrote:
B&D belt sander. ...

B&D power planer here. I seemed to have a "need" at the time, but now
I can't remember what the tool is even for ...

I do occasionally use the Ryobi detail sander. Light use only, please.
It's the only Ryobi I own.

"My Old Tools" wrote in
:

PC biscuit joiner. I just don't use it. Mortise and tenon is
stronger and I prefer it to the noise and dust.


I agree with you. I don't have a biscuit joiner. Haven't needed one yet.
I use all mortise and tenon or dovetail. Of course it would be different
if I were doing this for a living and not a hobby.

"foggytown" wrote in news:1104336158.089897.251330
@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:

....
Next?

Anything by Ryobi ... bought a POS 1/4" router by Ryobi as a newbie ...
also bought a POS random orbital sander as a newbie. Both ended up on the
scrap heap, replaced by better brands.

I'll fess up. I bought one, haven't found much use for it. My buddy borrowed
it and said it was the best thing since sliced bread, Hmmmm. I wonder what
he did with it, hahahaha.

Bernie

"toller" wrote in message
...
I think anyone who bought a PC 944 detail sander would list it as
worthless; though maybe many would not admit to buying it.

It was my first "good" tool and HD had it on closeout at half-price...
Live and learn.

A rotozip tool. How can they even sell one? Why did I buy one? I thought I
could use it to rough out some sheetrock electrical socket holes, but it was
pretty crappy.

"Nate Perkins" wrote in message
. 125.201...
"My Old Tools" wrote in
:

PC biscuit joiner. I just don't use it. Mortise and tenon is
stronger and I prefer it to the noise and dust.


I agree with you. I don't have a biscuit joiner. Haven't needed one yet.
I use all mortise and tenon or dovetail. Of course it would be different
if I were doing this for a living and not a hobby.

I use mine for some panel glue-ups. How do you do yours? A spline? Dowels?