Lesson 1. Motorman Tools

MOTORMAN TOOLS

A basic set of mechanics tools is required for working on engines – wrenches, a socket set, screwdrivers, hacksaw, crescent wrench, Vise Grips, etc.

1. Oil squirt can – preferably with flexible tip, for putting oil into the air inlet manifold.

2. Grease gun – preferably with flexible hose.

3. Feeler (thickness) gauges – from 0,001ʺ to 0,025ʺ (or the metric equivalent if clearances are specified in millimeters).

4. Oil filter clamp for spin-on-type filters. Such filters are extremely difficult to get on and off without this special purpose tool. More than one size may be required if the fuel filers are a different size.

5. Grinding paste. This is sold in three grades: coarse, medium and fine.

6. Suction cup and handle for lapping in valves.

7. Torque wrench is an indispensable tool for any serious mechanical work.

8. Ball peen hammer. Carpenters hammer with a jaw for pulling nails is mostly used but a ball peen hammer is far more useful. Hammers are specified by the weight.

9. Needlenose pliers – handy for all kinds of tasks – side-cutting needlenose pliers also have a wire-cutting jaw and are preferred.

10. Scrapers for cleaning up old gaskets.

11. Mallet or soft-faced hammer. A surprisingly valuable tool, especially if you need to knock an aluminium or cast-iron casting that might be cracked by a steel hammer.

12. Aligning punches – invaluable from time to time, especially the long ones. These punches are tapered.

13. Injector bar is about 15ʺ long, tapered to a point at one end, and with a heel on the other end. It is a very useful tool for prying or levering.

14. Allen wrenches – almost certainly required at some point. Keep am assortment on hand.

15. Hydrometer is needed for testing batteries.

16. Snap-ring pliers are very specialized equipment for the serious mechanic.

17. Valve-spring clamp.

18. Piston-ring expander.

19. Piston-ring clamp.

20. Gear puller. There are a number of gears and pulleys in any engine that just cannot be removed, unless you use some kind of a puller, without risking damage to engine castings or other parts. What should never be done is to put levers behind a gear to try and force it out – the effort generally ends in failure, and frequently in damage to some castings, the gear, the pulley, or the shaft.

21. Injector nozzle cleaning set includes a brass-bristle brush and the appropriate nozzle hole prickers.

A good toolkit represents a considerable expense but it will last a lifetime if cared for.