Submitted by
Scott Plaster,
Technician
Trading Post Motors
Buffalo, Minn.
Streamlight Stylus Pro
A small flashlight for looking in small spaces. Sometimes a droplight just lights up around the edges and makes it harder to see deep down in the little areas that nuts and bolts seem to go when you drop them.
Kal-Equip circuit tester, No. 2566
The test light tip has threads on it so you can put an alligator clip on it and the light is only as bright as the amount of voltage that you are checking. The best test light I have ever used. I did replace the alligator clip with a better one.
Snap-on SSDMR4B ratcheting screwdriver
I bought this ratchet in 1996, and use it almost every day. Since then, it's only been warrantied twice. Everyone that sees me using it says I should get a cordless screwdriver, but I don't think I could ever give (the SSDMR4B) up.
Nitrile gloves
When I meet new people they don't believe I am a mechanic because my hands are almost always clean.
Paper clips
If you want to back probe or jump a relay to test a circuit, paper clips work just as well as anything I have ever seen.
Kal-Equip 3000 Digital Multimeter
Almost everything on cars is dependent on wires and electricity.
Snap-on 1/4"-drive sockets
Shallow and deep, these are the sockets I go to first. I use these sockets for reaching in tight spaces when taking stuff apart.
Needle-nose pliers
I use a long-reach needle-nose pliers with bent tips. It's always an arms-reach away, and used for just about everything.
3/8" drive universal impact sockets
Anyone that has worked on cars knows that it's not always easy to get a straight shot on a nut or a bolt.
1/2" and 3/8" extensions in different lengths
On this list, my nos. nine and 10 go together. You save a lot of time with this combo.
For sharing his Top 10 Tools with readers, Scott received Matco Tool's four-piece Universal Pliers Set, No. SPU4TB, and the four-piece Stubby Ratcheting Screwdriver Set, No. SRSS04.
