non striking pry bar to striking conversion

picked up this mac 28in pry bar on the side of the road a while ago. handle was cracked on the end from the previous user striking the handle all the way through exposing the steel. i pushed the handle about 1/2 way off the shaft and gave it a quick buzz with the circular saw to cut the cracked stuff off. hammered the handle back flush. looks better and functional now.

golf ball file handles

read about using golf balls as file handles on the internet a while back. passed some golf balls on a commute home so i picked them up for some files that needed handles. drill a hole in the ball and bang it on. epoxy if you must.

park tns-1 or star nut setter repair

no need to order the set screw to replace your bent up one. remove the old set screw. grab a disc brake caliper mounting bolt or v brake mounting bolt. these are usually hardened. i know for sure that avid cps bolt are hardened. screw it in the star nut tool and cut off the excess with a hack saw. clean up the thread with a file or on the grinder. good as new and ready for service. for future repair just stick the stub in the vice and twist, should come right out

keep bits and screws in place

use a piece of plastic bag to keep your bits in your tools. prevents the bit from falling out. good for starting socket cap hex screw too. wrap some plastic around your hex key and stick the screw on, now the screw wont fall off. works like a screw holding screwdriver. you can also do the same with bolts and sockets. to remove the original bit from the torqkey i heated it with a lighter and pulled with my knipex pliers wrench