Newbie Alert Question about cordless cutting tool(s).

Situation:
No outdoor electricity.
Cutting front, and maybe rear fenders.
Re-installing factory flares or going flareless.

Reason:
Rubbing

Question:

Would a good pair of snips be good enough to do the trim?

Or would a better solution be a cordless "Dremel" tool? I've never owned one, but they seem to have tons of uses. I found some good prices on cordless ones, but by design and by the standard attachments they don't seem to be for cutting metal (mostly grinding, sanding, drilling plastic and wood).

If that might work, would a person familiar with it tell me what blade/attachment they might use? (I'm guessing I'll need a few of them or one that does not come with the standard attachment kit, that's why I ask.)

Any other cordless soultion? I can't see springing for a cordless sawsall or some other high dollar tool.

I can just wait a few more weeks and folks from the local Jeep club have offered to host/help/provide tools (after Easter). But, I'm off all Easter weekend with NOTHING to do. And I'd really like to go slow with this, take my time, and make it look just so and get it done ASAP.

(and as everyone knows, I'm not scared to ask dumb questions)

FWIW, I've read about 20 fender cutting writeups. But they all involve electric or air tools. I've hit my dumb question limit for the month of March. Thanks in advance.

wescam said:

Situation:
No outdoor electricity.
Cutting front, and maybe rear fenders.
Re-installing factory flares or going flareless.

Reason:
Rubbing

Question:

Would a good pair of snips be good enough to do the trim?

Or would a better solution be a cordless "Dremel" tool? I've never owned one, but they seem to have tons of uses. I found some good prices on cordless ones, but by design and by the standard attachments they don't seem to be for cutting metal (mostly grinding, sanding, drilling plastic and wood).

If that might work, would a person familiar with it tell me what blade/attachment they might use? (I'm guessing I'll need a few of them or one that does not come with the standard attachment kit, that's why I ask.)

Any other cordless soultion? I can't see springing for a cordless sawsall or some other high dollar tool.

I can just wait a few more weeks and folks from the local Jeep club have offered to host/help/provide tools (after Easter). But, I'm off all Easter weekend with NOTHING to do. And I'd really like to go slow with this, take my time, and make it look just so and get it done ASAP.

(and as everyone knows, I'm not scared to ask dumb questions)

FWIW, I've read about 20 fender cutting writeups. But they all involve electric or air tools. I've hit my dumb question limit for the month of March. Thanks in advance.

Click to expand...

Extension cord?

I'd just pop for some good shears and pump those forearms. I've trimmed two sets of XJ fenders with one pair of yellow handle snips, but they were pretty beat after the first set.

I tried a sawzall for approx 10 seconds, but it was crazy. A jigsaw with a metal blade would be ideal IMO, but snips/shears get it done.

Lol. Nope.

I live on the third floor of an apartment building and the parking garage is another building, next to the apartments, with entry points on each floor over to the garage.

So I'd need a 1,000 foot cord or so....

It's a real high brow joint -- surprised they let me move in. You know, everyone drives Lexus and higher and buys a new car when the old one gets dirty.

Edit: OK Woody thanks, I just wanted to see if anyone had done it with good old manual snips.

Edit: I've also been wanting a Dremel tool -- so if they can cut metal -- just another reason to buy one.

Wes those cordless Dremals are gutless terds. I got one a while back charged the battery up, and tryed the old can I stop it with my hand torque check. Needless to say it whent straight back to the store. Don't you have a buddy that would let you do it at there place where electric isn't as hard to get to?

go to somewhere closer to an outlet, your friends house, your boss, see if you can do it before or after work, you mom and dads house. Do you HAVE to do it at the apartment ?

yeah, some local guys in the jeep club I just joined will let me use their place, but they are all tied up this weekend and VROC (going to watch) is next weekend and then we have a club ride the weekend after that -- so getting a day for it has gotten hard and I won't impose on a family over Easter (just not even cool to ask)


I'll just get the flares off, buy some metal snips and try and make the first cut. If it don't work I'll wait a few until I can get to someone's house.

Thanks for the thumbs down rating on the cordless dremel tool scoobyxj -- saved me the trouble!

another idea is in someones write up i think i saw a tool that attachs to the end of a cordless drill and shears the metal. I forget the name of it. Thi isn't the greatest description but someone else will likely know where you can get it. This will solve the problem of the under powered dremel.... well so long as you have a high quality cordless drill. It might be in the eastwood catalouge i think they called it a 'nibbler.

sounds cool enough -- i'll google it thanks

found it at http://www.enjoythedrive.com/content/?id=10489

but yet another vote for just using snips/sheers below -- thx

wescam said:

Question:

Would a good pair of snips be good enough to do the trim?

Click to expand...

I did mine with metal shears and it worked perfect. Then I just took a regular file and ran through al the edges and it was done.

also look at local rental place they should have a cordless sawsall

worked great when i did mine
just make sure you hold saw close to jeep when cutting or you get a jerking moti0n going

I dont know wattages and volts and all that but what about a power inverter and running it off the jeep, or would it suck the life out of it. And Im guessing you dont got OBA either

TORX

I thought of that, but the more I look at it (and I want it to look really clean) the more I think hand tools are best for this job after all. At least worth giving it a shot.

TORX that's also a good idea though. Other than rental of a cordless sawsall (smack forehead for not thinking of that) -- could work, and if the rating wasn't high enough, I could find other uses for the converter....

TORX said:

I dont know wattages and volts and all that but what about a power inverter and running it off the jeep, or would it suck the life out of it. And Im guessing you dont got OBA either

TORX

Click to expand...

I was thinking of that when I posted earlier too. The only bad thing is going to need a big one, and thats not going to be cheep. On the other hand if you spring for one of the bigger ones you can just get a small home air compresser for trail side air.

EDIT: If someone can give me a jig saw amp rating (what I used on my fenders) I can suggest a power inverter watage rating.

The 18v cordless tools do a pretty good job. They have jigsaws and sawzall's as well. Heck you can get a cheap on for around $70.

A Dremel is a good tool, provided you are mindful of its limitations:

1) It is mainly designed for small-scale work
2) It doesn't work from torque - it works from speed. Torque isn't much of an issue at 30,000 no-load RPM.

Could you trim fenders with a Dremel? Certainly - but not a cordless, and not quick. In fact, the slow working might result in a better job.

Another advantage of the Dremel - low current draw. While the cordless would take slightly longer than forever to trim fenders, who says you can't use an inverter? The advantage there is that you have AC power wherever you have your truck - the main limit being how much you want to spend on the inverter. Mount it well, hard-wire it, and use as required. It can also be used to run bettery chargers and such for cordless tools...

If I were going to use a Dremel for this, I'd use it with the reinforced cut-off wheels (spendy, but will work best for the job) and TAKE IT SLOW! It's not designed to be pushed - like I said, you're working with a FAST tool, not a STRONG one.

I have three Dremels (two corded, one cordless) that I use for a multitude of jobs, and they haven't let me down yet. Of course, I work well within the reasonable limits of the tool...

Failing that, I believe Makita and DeWalt both make serviceable cordless jigsaws. Cut out a felt pad to cover the bottom of the shoe, and you'll have more control (since the shoe will slip easily over the finish and not scuff everything) and keep the shoe pressed firmly against the metal surface for best control. I'd still want an inverter and an extra battery - it may take you a bit, and you should keep a battery charging while you're working (reminds me, I need to get another 12v NiMH pack for the big Makita I've got...)

I shall continue to sing the praises of the Dremel toolkits - the main reason people get into trouble with them is that they try to use them like "regular" tools. Once you get use to them, you'll find that cutting and such is about as easy as drawing the line that you use to guide the cut - I have more control with the Dremel than I do with pretty much anything else.

Whatever you do, I still suggest adding a decent inverter. Check JCW or Northern Tool & Hydraulics for decent pricing. Vector's are pretty good, and so are Coleman's (I've used both.) Here's a tip - try to mount the unit somewhere that stuff won't fall into it! I've cooked two that way, and I'm still looking for an ideal place to mount. Remember that they'll want cooling airflow, so mount them somewhere fairly open...

5-90

I recently bought a set of Ryobi 18 volt cordless tools it comes with sawsall, drill,circle saw, flash light and a stupid little vacume the cost was 150.00. they also sell a three piece set for about 100.00. Or you can buy just one piece like a jig saw for about 35.00. these tools sure come in handy. They also have 18 volt rotor zip for about the same price. It was an easy decision for me because I can never say no to new tools any excuse for new toys I mean tools. Home depot sells them.

Inverter ratings are easy to figure - take peak expected current (full rating of any and all tools) in amps, multiply by 115 volts = Watts. Add a minimum of 10% for "cushion" and buy the next higher size of inverter. Electrical generation setups should NEVER be run at full capacity for long - you ALWAYS want to leave a little room up top (why do you think thye make alternators with such foolishly high outputs? Shouldn't use the last 10-15%...)

Any power tool (Hell, any power ANYTHING) is required to have the current requirement on a label ON THE TOOL, so you should be able to find it easily.

5-90

Oh - that other little tool is called a "Drill Nibbler" and is carried by Eastwood. Here's the link...

Eastwood's Drill Nibbler

5-90 said:

A Dremel is a good tool, provided you are mindful of its limitations:

1) It is mainly designed for small-scale work
2) It doesn't work from torque - it works from speed. Torque isn't much of an issue at 30,000 no-load RPM.

Could you trim fenders with a Dremel? Certainly - but not a cordless, and not quick. In fact, the slow working might result in a better job.

Another advantage of the Dremel - low current draw. While the cordless would take slightly longer than forever to trim fenders, who says you can't use an inverter? The advantage there is that you have AC power wherever you have your truck - the main limit being how much you want to spend on the inverter. Mount it well, hard-wire it, and use as required. It can also be used to run bettery chargers and such for cordless tools...

If I were going to use a Dremel for this, I'd use it with the reinforced cut-off wheels (spendy, but will work best for the job) and TAKE IT SLOW! It's not designed to be pushed - like I said, you're working with a FAST tool, not a STRONG one.

I have three Dremels (two corded, one cordless) that I use for a multitude of jobs, and they haven't let me down yet. Of course, I work well within the reasonable limits of the tool...

Failing that, I believe Makita and DeWalt both make serviceable cordless jigsaws. Cut out a felt pad to cover the bottom of the shoe, and you'll have more control (since the shoe will slip easily over the finish and not scuff everything) and keep the shoe pressed firmly against the metal surface for best control. I'd still want an inverter and an extra battery - it may take you a bit, and you should keep a battery charging while you're working (reminds me, I need to get another 12v NiMH pack for the big Makita I've got...)

I shall continue to sing the praises of the Dremel toolkits - the main reason people get into trouble with them is that they try to use them like "regular" tools. Once you get use to them, you'll find that cutting and such is about as easy as drawing the line that you use to guide the cut - I have more control with the Dremel than I do with pretty much anything else.

Whatever you do, I still suggest adding a decent inverter. Check JCW or Northern Tool & Hydraulics for decent pricing. Vector's are pretty good, and so are Coleman's (I've used both.) Here's a tip - try to mount the unit somewhere that stuff won't fall into it! I've cooked two that way, and I'm still looking for an ideal place to mount. Remember that they'll want cooling airflow, so mount them somewhere fairly open...

5-90

Click to expand...

Very true. I have a Dremel too. What I was getting at, is the cordless are much less powerfull than the corded ones. I took mine back for a corded one.

As far as the inverter I agree with you 200% those things are invaluable for running a miltitude of trail side tools.

i'm personally a dewalt freak. i bought the 4 piece kit and got a free grinder for it. i also bought the cut-out tool ( knockoff rotozip) that i absolutely love. i'm not far from you. let me guess, you live in the clarendon area of arlington? my sawzall has gone to crap though, need to get it fixed. i should have known better than to cut plaster with it!! that was before i had the cut-out tool though or i would have used that instead. i'm also itching to get the jig saw for it. they do make 18 volt metal shears......... i wonder how good that would be for fenders?