power tools

11.22.09

A Look Inside NASA's Custom Hubble Repair Toolkit

Fixing the most advanced telescope in space requires more than a trip to Home Depot

By John Mahoney Posted 05.19.2009 at 4:46 pm 0 Comments

Earlier today, astronauts aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis released the Hubble Space Telescope back into orbit after a successful mission to repair and upgrade NASA's famous orbiting observatory.

The mission was intensive, especially considering almost all of the repairs that were performed during a series of TK spacewalks were on parts that were never intended to be serviced by astronauts in space. Equally intense (and beautiful) are the 180 tools NASA employed for the job--with 116 of them created specifically for this mission.

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READ MORE ABOUT > hubble, hubble space telescope, nasa, power tools, space, space shuttle, space shuttle atlantis, TOOLS

The Meanest Drill

This 23-pound drill bores six-inch-wide holes in brick and smashes concrete, without destroying your arms

By Chuck Cage Posted 03.19.2009 at 10:51 am 5 Comments

Standard drills will barely make a chip in concrete or brick. That’s why contractors drilling holes in a home’s foundation use rotary hammer drills like this new Hitachi DH50MRY. In addition to the standard spinning bit, it slams a weight—the hammer—forward to create a sort of jackhammer effect to crush masonry as it drills. But all that pounding beats the heck out of your hands and arms. The Hitachi is one of the first to integrate a counterweight to absorb recoil. The result is a safer and easier-to-control drill that’s still concrete’s worst nightmare.

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READ MORE ABOUT > april 2009, how it works, how it works 2009, power drill, power tools, workshop

Extra-Power Tool

A redesigned motor gives this drill a serious boost in juice

By Mike Haney Posted 11.06.2008 at 12:28 pm 1 Comment

For guys on a job site drilling hundreds of holes a day, power matters—it lets them work faster and blow through knots, nails and other obstructions. That’s why corded tools, with their bigger, stronger motors, still reign for contractors, and why DeWalt challenged its engineers to deliver even more oomph. Their answer: a motor that squeezes in extra copper to deliver 40 percent more power.

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READ MORE ABOUT > dewalt, drills, Mike Haney, power tools