If you had to teach a monkey how to be a mechanic...

King4aDay

King4aDay

King4aDay

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Joined
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...what selection of tools would you recommend he buy to start out?

Let's assume that the monkey will just be doing basic service items on his Prelude to begin with, but if he gets a bit overconfident he might want to tackle trickier jobs as they come up. Nothing really hard though; he's just a monkey, remember.

Also, he only gets paid peanuts, so nothing too expensive :p
 
Go to halfords, get the largest "Advanced" or "Professional" socket set you can afford. Ad bits to it as and when you need them or can afford them.
 
3/8 metric socket set
3/8 breaker bar
spanner set
screw driver set
pliers/side cutter/needle nose set

that would be a good start
 
Brookert said:
These + a good socket set. All you need to get started.
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+1

You can pick up a little trolley jack for £30ish and axel stands for £15-20. Then just collect the tools you need to do the jobs you intend to do. No point in having £500+ worth of "Snap-On" in th garage if they only get used once in a blue moon.
 
DampDog said:
£500+ worth of "Snap-On"
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?
 
paradigm said:
Go to halfords, get the largest "Advanced" or "Professional" socket set you can afford. Ad bits to it as and when you need them or can afford them.
Click to expand...

This is the absolute best advise.

For trolley jacks and axle stands I must say between me and my friends we've got a couple of cheap eBay jobbies and they all seem to be absolutely fine.

Mine was particularly cheap and I give it plenty of abuse and its been fine. I'd recommend a low-entry one if you're in the market.

Kind Regards

Alec
 
allllec said:
This is the absolute best advise.

For trolley jacks and axle stands I must say between me and my friends we've got a couple of cheap eBay jobbies and they all seem to be absolutely fine.

Mine was particularly cheap and I give it plenty of abuse and its been fine. I'd recommend a low-entry one if you're in the market.

Kind Regards

Alec
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years ago i bought a £15 SET from makro that included a trolley jack and axle stands. They have out lasted two posher/far more expensive trolley jacks, which is sort of annoying
 
Pretty sure stuff like brake discs required a torque wrench, although a cheap one was fine for what I was doing.
Torx and hex bolts are common on modern cars, suggest spending a few quid on a set.

The number of times I'd wished I had a funnel, yet I've never got around to buying one :(
 
^ Same here. I always think 'I wish I had a funnel, would be really handy right now. I'll pick one up from the shops'. Have I bought one in 3 years of messing with cars, nope :(
 
Brookert said:
^ Same here. I always think 'I wish I had a funnel, would be really handy right now. I'll pick one up from the shops'. Have I bought one in 3 years of messing with cars, nope :(
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Wait till you need to fill a gearbox through the dipstick tube, THEN it'll be useful.
 
Bought a pair of Halfords 3 ton axle stands off Ebay two years ago, new & unused for £1:04p.

And get yourself a flexible funnel, I got my Pressol Flexible Spout Funnel from Halfords, really useful for that tight spot.
 
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