Been thinking about it, and there are a whole range of things I wish were made. They might even be made, but I don't know about them.

Here are just a few:

• Adjustable 1 gang, or gangable steel boxes simular to Carlons adjustable boxes for use in cabinets or changes in wall depth.
• A small, portable, light-weight bender for bending 1 1/4" ~ 2" RMC. (Fits in a small tool box)
• A 6' flexible bit that goes where you want it to go. (that self-centers on studs, and joists.)
• The long awaited feed-thru AFCI device. (Like a GFCI receptical)

Feel free to add....
Or, if you know of any of these items made, let me know...

Or so I have heard.

Well, my wish is that we could get some things that are available in other parts of the world, like more diesel engine choices for work vehicles. And a better selection of mid-sized work trucks and vans.

Also, I would love to see the diesel powered mini-Sprinter like pickups and vans that you see in the UK, Europe etc become available in the US.

With rising fuel prices, I hope this will soon become a reality.

Peter

Just from the physics of bending that size pipe, I don't think a bender could be made meeting that criteria. Perhaps titanium would work, but I would hate to see the cost of such a bender.

The sprinter is available here, but in macro version. For some reason Detroit still thinks bigger is better.... http://www.dodge.com/sprinter/
I too would like to see the smaller version here.

Turbotorch - that can't be legal.......
I was thinking like a hydraulic hickey

Well it's not legal for PVC but it is not prohibited for RMC.


You can bend RMC however you can as long as you do not damage it.

I know you where looking for something a little better.

Isn't RMC galvanized?

I wouldn't put a flame to it, and then how would you re-galvanize it once you did put a flame on it?

That would damage it, wouldn't it?


Dnk........

Yes it could if you heated it to much.

I have removed RMC that has sagged from being in a fire and if you cleaned the smoke damage off it the RMC looked new, other than the sag and the conductors melted inside.

Sure- let's see you use a propane torch to get steel pipe that large hot enough to bend! Lots of luck!
And, BTW, make sure you've got good ventilation, as the heat will vaporise the zinc- and those fumes are NASTY!

I bend large pipe- and small, gentle bends only at that- using a 12 ton bottle jack, frame, and bending shoes- all from Harbor Freight, for about $75. It is a bit heavier and larger than what you're asking for, but it works. I suppose the frame and shoes could be made of aluminum. Just keep your bends to about 15 degrees, and you're OK. Works on EMT as well.

As for my wishes, they are somewhat more modest.

I love cordless tools. Now, if only (a)batteries were interchangeable between brands, and (b) you could buy the tools without also buying a pair of batteries and a charger. (If you could, that $250 drill would sell for $75- and I'd be able to have lots more tools!)

I wish my ratcheting cable cutters would also cut ACSR. At least to 2/0.

Setting ground rods would be a dream, if I had a "transporter" like the one in Star-Trek!
Speaking of "Star Trek," those anti-gravity boots sure would save a lot on lift rentals!

More 'down to earth,' how about some sort of pilot device that would let you enlarge a hole (on center, or a little to the side). Hole saws don't work too well on existing holes.

Finally, I wish pick-up trucks had modular bodies...so I could easily slide off the utility box at the end of the day, and slide on whatever body I wanted- a dump bed, an open bed, a kid & pet-carying "passenger" module, you name it.

OK, I have to ask.....
A device to remove ground rods???????

Probaby have to resort to the ATV forklift, but any ideas, anyone??????

John

As for your "pilot" an old plug from a previous hole sorta works ... if you hold your mouth right.
Say you have a 1" hole and you want a 2" hole. Take your 1" hole saw, drill half way through some thick stock, from both sides. Save the plug.
Stick this in your 2" hole saw as your pilot and go after the 1" hole. It may wobble a bit until the saw bites but it works.
I had to do this to redrill a cabinet base once.
I assume if you actually had a real tool that was a better fit it would work better.

Hi John,

Going back to my days in the 'circus' tent poles where pulled with a lever.

Picture a 6'- 7' bar with a 18" T shaped leg attached to it about 18" from one end.

The large side of the T rests against the dirt and a short section of rope was wrapped around the pole and the short end of the lever. A tent pole being about 3' would come out enough in one shot, a ground rod may take more.

That said the workers where happy to see me come over with a front end loader to just yank em out.

How's it going down there?

Come on over the house I'll show you how it's done.

I did not say it was fast.

Bob you got me thinking about the ground rod puller. If you had a hardened steel washer doodad like the one on a screen door closer piston that holds the door open you could use it to grab the rod. Then a short piece of chain or cable to your lever (stick of RMC) and off you go. Pull up and when you let the lever down the grabber would slide down the pipe for another grab. Two or three times and you would have it.

Quick, call the patent office!

There's something I've needed at least three times in the last few years, and I've had to build it myself every time. A simple plug-in relay module.

Picture something like an X-10 appliance module, but with two screw terminals. Short the terminals, and the internal relay closes and energizes whatever load is plugged in.

The module contains an internal class-2 power source, so nearly anything can be connected connected to the low-voltage, low-current terminals: a magnetic reed switch, a float switch, a pendant switch, a floor mat switch, whatever.

Bonus points for having selectable normally-open or normally-closed control.

It seems like something that every hardware store would carry, but AFAIK, it just doesn't exist.

Ryobi is doing a good job on the interchangeable battery scene with their 18V products. I suspect they are very 'consumer grade' though.

For the pilot device.... I will drill the hole size I want in a piece of scrap material and affix it over the existing hole. (This also works good if you've broken the pilot bit.) Another cheat I use is with a knockout punch set. You can get 3/4" and 1" conduit dies that fit the 3/8" draw stud. Gives you lots of flexibility if you are starting with a 7/8" (1/2" conduit)hole.

Interchangable truck bodies is almost a reality. The local phone and power utilities are using more and more camper shells on pickups instead of outfitting vans.

How 'bout a ring bender and a little heat treatment?

Oh, GND rod romoval... While in the military, we had special rods that came in sections that threaded together, and a slide hammer that threaded on to them. "So you put it down, now pull it back up, and put it over there Lance Coolie!" I would imagine if just add the threads to any rod, you could do the same. But having pulled up more rods than I can think off - WHY? It's in, leave it there.

And I love the modular truck idea, but it would never happen. They want you to but whole brand new ones. And it seems like I would always have my work portion to put back on every monday morning.....

Creighton see the LV relay thread, I know ecactly what you're looking for, so am I!

Anyway, one more thing for the list:

A PDA or Labtop add-on O-scope. (Cheap!)

Reno ,
As to redrilling a larger hole with the holesaw, Gfretwell is on the right track. I use a similar method except I cut the larger hole in a scrap piece of wood and save the outer part with the new hole in it. I use brads or a clamp to secure this new template in place and use it as a guide for the holesaw. The holesaw can't jump out of this new guide.
HLCbuild

I log on to ECN this Sunday, and find all sorts of helpful advice for my "holey work!"

Thanks, guys!

CTwireman,
in England we have a vast selection of vans and trucks to choose from,
i personally drive an Iveco Daily 2.3litre turbo charged Hi Pressure Diesel van with a top speed of over 100MPH !!
fuel consumption is very good i get about 270 miles from one tank of fuel (approx 50 litres) carrying capacity of 1.9 ton, the van is rated at 3.5 ton and is a very long (6.8m) and is about 2.7m high.
the Iveco is made in Italy and is one of the best selling vans in the UK at the moment.

most of my staff use small utility vans made by Ford Motor Co or our old favorite the Transit also made by Ford.

what types of utility vans do you have in the US.

one thing i am going to invest in in the next year or two is a bucket truck, its getting expensive to keep on hiring them in when we need em.

Britspark
www.iveco.co.uk

I am getting ready to build a truck with changable bodies in the near future. I really like my old service truck, retired the bucket truck but have a flatbed with a knuckle boom that is very handy. Here are a couple pics. I had to go to a heavy truck for service, just couldnt carry enough weight and have enough space on a smaller one. http://www.urkafarms.com/Welder_Index.htm

[This message has been edited by sberry27 (edited 08-14-2005).]

Britspark, Look at the differance of offerings in Ford here and there...
http://www.ford.co.uk/ie/all_vans/-/-
http://www.fordvehicles.com/trucks/

While I was in Japan, the American version of the pick-up truck they sell alot of here is not available there. Most use a beefy version of an over-cab golf cart.

Doh, thought of another one....

Remote control cable puller/fish tape puller for one man pulling.

I have seen that puller somewhere but I cant recall exactly where, it was in a trade mag or advertisement. Someone makes one.

quote "You can bend RMC however you can as long as you do not damage it."

My answer probably belongs in the confesionals thread. I have done it once with a 2" grc mast that did not penatrate the roof, but needed an ofset. It was before I bought my first triple nickle bender. I was working on a beach house right in front of the Banzai Pipeline. I filled the pipe with beach sand and used a propane torch with a large end on it to heat the pipe up. It bent perfectly. House is still standin.

3-wire romex strippers simular to the klien 2-wire strippers:-)

Fish tape with ft markings on it (This has got to exist but I just haven't walked onto it).

Staple gun for NMB I mean... COME ON! WTF is the hold-up here, this should be on every shelf... hehe

A real pop-in box for doing concrete boxes, we use the big white ones for recepticals but what about doing coach lights in a hollow cell...

Arlington is making a "stucco" box that finishes out nicely if you get it there before the stucco punch.

I'll second that request for a marked fish tape!

I made a ground rod puller a few years ago. Piece of 1/2" steel plate 2"x2" with a 7/8" hole drilled in the center. Weld 1' of 1/4" chain to the corner of the piece of plate. Attach a grab hook on the other end of the chain. Drop the plate over a ground rod and loop the chain over a spud bar and pry. The plate binds and grabs when you pry and drops back down the rod when you let off. You can jack an 8' rod out of the ground pretty quickly. We used to pull steel "T" fence posts on the farm the same way except the plate had a "T" torched in it and you hooked the chain on a spoke of the Farmall rear wheel and drove forward to pull the post.

What I'd really like to see is a duplex recept that you could mount in a raised 4 square cover without having to cut off the plaster ears and remove the screws.

Bob:
Things are well, except for the HHH, hazy, HOT & humid.....hit 105.3 at jobsite Sat.

The rod thing is 310+/- that have to come out! From gens, tents, lite towers, etc., at the PGA Championship. Can't have a rod catch a fairway mower now, can ya???

We're going to try an old Klien cable grip,(Chicago) with a web sling, or a chain...and a R/T forklift.

See ya

John

Conduit measuring tape, GB ST40 for heavy wieght, TT31 for light wieght. I Use a few rolls of light wieght stuff on larger conduit jobs blown/sucked through. (Vaccum or compressor for med lentgh, both for long runs.)
http://www.gardnerbender.com/Products/product_list/pdf/01GB_FISHINGHANDLING.pdf
(Bottom of page 12)

Personally I'd like to have an Apprentice that would turn up on time at 5am.
If I can.......

Footage (or half metre) markings on wire, so you can easily calculate how much wire was used on a job. That or an on-site off the roll wire printer which can be programmed for that, and wire numbering as well.

Switches, especially 3-way, in the form of: https://www.electrical-contractor.net/ubb/Forum1/HTML/006219.html
Not for the benefit of rough/finish electritians, but for the home owner, so they can replace the switch without ruining connections.

4 wire cable, and 2 and 3 wire made for switch loops (with blue in addition to, or instead of white).

Plug in ceiling/wall light fixture fitting, for the same reason of the plug-tail recepticle/switch.

NEMA 3A dimmable incandescent lighting recepticle configuration.

Quite possibly overkill for most applications, but such a beast IS manufactured for interfacing 120VAC wiring to intrinsically safe switch loops in hazardous areas. 3 screw terminals on the 120 side (line,load, neutral), and 2 terminals on the control side that energize the load when shorted together. Here's one manufacturer's version,which I have installed a few of:
http://www.gemssensors.com/SpecTemplateStandard.asp?nProductGroupID=152

NJW, thank you for the pointer. It's not quite the plug-in device I was looking for, but it's definitely something I'll file away for future use.

You all seem to want a ground rod puller I want a ground rod that I can hook up to the hammer drill so I can get in past the hard pan around here. I get tired of jack hammering a ground rod in 6' and having it stop there. A hardened end and drill tip I could get it all the way down. Before I get bashed there is not a place in San Diego that you can get the proper OHM reading on a ground rod; it is to dry/sandy/sandstone. Rod (who spent 6hrs beating a dead horse because the boss is from New York)

Spline or SDS-MAX?

Rod, I've thought the same thing, ground rods with hardened tips and SDS shafts would sell great here in Arizona. How about welding up a rig 8 feet long with a bit on the end, then just pre drill the hole first before pounding in the rod? You could fill the hole with water first.

They make Rod Driving attachments in both Spline, and SDS. Sometimes a rotohammer, even some of the larger ones dont have the drive or throw to get past rocky soils. On occassion I have used a 40LBS Demo Hammer/ Jack Hammer, and I figure if it wont go down with that, it wont. Its only slightly unwieldy getting up the ladder with it.

Hey! Here's an idea, maybe Hilti could make a Powder Actuated Rod Driver. Using belted .50 HP shells in full auto. Na, that could be dangerous.

For all of you wishing for a ground rod driver:

It is simply amazing what comes up if you "google" terms like 'ground rod drover,' "post pounder,' or 'pile driver.' Or, 'fence post driver.'

There are a number of folks selling compressor-driven or hydraulic-driven drivers. Think 'modified jackhammer,'
Another guy sells a variation of the hand-held post driver that claims to let you also use it to remove rods.
One clever firm has drill points that you place on the rod- supposedly, you then are able to 'drill' the rod into the ground.
The final one- one that has some appeal to me- is a collet arrangement for your jackhammer. This contraption slips over the rod, sits near ground level, and lets you use a jackhammer to drive the rod. No need to climb the ladder- and no rod whipping around.


NOW- if anyone has tried any of these things- speak up!

I have drove ground rods into some really hard clay. The kind where some bruno looking fella comes over with a huge sledge and nails it dead on and the rod never moved...

The DeWalt rotary hammer (the big one) with a FORGED steel rod driver (The cast iron one kind of sucks and I have broke em, the forged is awesom) seams to drive it pretty well, sometimes goes kind of slow, but unless you get a deep drilling rig out there:-)

We use a #60 jackhammer and it finished the job today but I have driven as many as 5 times to get all the way down. Rod

Guys:
FYI, the Klein Chicago Grip worked well.
Thanks for the hints; we used the plate with the hole; but the favorite was the Grip (with a web sling; on a Lull AT forklift

Yanked about 140+/- with another 75-100 to go.

FYI; we used a Bosch Rotary HD w/adaptor; B&D Macho 2 & 3; Bosch 20lb air hammer; and the fence guys big honkin air hammer gizmo.

John