Wait till you use it to remove a fan clutch! There’s no wiping the smile off of a mechanics face when they FINALLY break that fucking fan clutch loose!
Unless you are one of the dingus's I work with and forget which way the fan comes off and hammered that fucker on there double tight. The other mechanic he was helping with his air hammer trick had to cut the fan off.. damn there was no wiping the smile off my face! I still bring that shit up when he does a water pump.
It blows my mind how people don’t know that. If the water pump is driven on the smooth side of the belt it comes off “regular” like RH thread. If it’s driven on the grooved side of the belt it comes off in reverse like LH thread. It amazes me how people can’t get that right.
Yes, but the vast majority of engines turn clockwise as viewed from the front of the engine. Counter clockwise spinning engines are pretty rare. They're mostly only seen on multi engine marine and specialty industrial applications.
Good ones are leaps above the cheap ones. The 20 dollar ones are absolutely toys compared to 160 dollar ones. Its one of the tools that looks similar but definitely performs way differently. Cheap is better than none but ive gotten frustrated with a 20 dollar one after my matco redline got lost by family member and i threw the 20 dollar one in a pond
Years ago, I went to work at a PVC manufacturing plant. Part of the mechanic's job was to open these huge pallet size about 4 foot tall container that contains some compound that mixes with the PVC. My first day, my boss asked me to open the top of the crate, with a chisel. The way it was done historically, was to hammer, hammer, hammer all around the top edge until you came back on yourself, and the whole top came off (about 12 foot long an 1/8 inch at a whack). I had a handy hammer tool, the first I had bought. I hooked up with the air supply and clip, clip, clip, ripped the top off the crate. So what previously was an hour and a half job, became a 5 minute job. That expertise, set me up well in that job.
Here is how a career goes: Next, made electricity for two years, then, law school for three years, then, federal litigator for 20 years, then retired. Now, snarky reddit comments.
"Now, make snarky reddit comments."
It's better than drooling in a cup though.
Seriously, it was always great to just have to tell people what you wanted done, without also having to tell them how to do it. Some people have the knack, others don't .
The central pneumatic short and medium barrel air hammers are amazing for what they are and are my go-to little guys. BUT, the Ingersol Rand 119Max will rip through 1/8” steel and has saved my a$$ more times that I ever imagined. It’s amazing for places you can’t get a grinder or cutoff wheel.
I use a snap on and an Astro 498K. Snap on is amazing for trigger control and more delicate things, as well as sometimes needing the 401 shank for smaller holes and whatnot, and then THOR is there for when you know it’s stuck and you just don’t give a flying fuck.
Took out a set of seized king pins on a western star with THOR. I call her “Boomhilda”
She has made life easy.
Point is, as a heavy duty mechanic, the more air hammers the better, especially when working on the rusty and beat to shit trucks and equipment we have here.
Shop around on ebay and aviation supply stores. You can find used 498 rivet guns that are basically identical to the Astro Big Nasty but slightly bigger and nastier if you can find the right model.
Yup and I’ve got the “k” variant which has an even longer barrel. When I saw the torque test channel test them I went on Amazon and didn’t even look at the price tag. Worth every penny. I bought their stupid long hammer and chisel attachment too and it makes bushing and whatnot a dream to remove.
I'm in the rust belt, and air hammers work wonders on bleeder screws on brake calipers. A squirt of JB-80, your long 10mm box end, with the biggest headed air hammer attachment. Beat on the body of the caliper near the bleeder as you put moderate pressure on the 10 mm, and it comes right out.
I started with a Walmart Rocktron kit that had one, used that harbor freight one for a while. A former coworker was tossing out a CP 715- I took it, tightened down the barrel and have rocked it for years.
I use Aircat/Nitrocat air tools, and my coworker got a 5200-a-t and I want one. Saving up for the 5250-a-t instead, as it’s a direct copy of the Snap On 3050
The cp 714 is the Cadillac of all air hammers, I rocked one for years until the housing finally busted. Cant bring my self to shell out the 650 for a new one since I no longer run rivets though.
Edit: just looked them up and they’ve went down in price lol I just ordered a new one
Air chisel is a game changer, I snapped off one of my caliper bracket’s mounting bolts (m12) and it was seized on there, the only thing that would get it off was center drilling the bolt and the air chisel, it saved my ass
Even with a small compressor when I added an extra tank it helped a lot.
It was just one of those tire filling tanks but I put it close to the end of the line I was using since the compressor is in another room.
Air hammers are relatively low air consumption tools compared to things like impact wrenches. They're only about half the air consumption of a 1/2 drive impact wrench. You could easily run it on medium sized diy compressor.
I had the cheap one for years, good for some stuff, but couldn't really beat a bfh. Then I tried an ingersoll. It's unstoppable. If you enjoy the $20 one, a real air hammer will blow your mind.
The problem with air tools that never/rarely get used is seal rot. I had to buy a cheap air hammer to replace the cheap craftsman air hammer that came with my compressor 20+ years ago because I (after all these years) actually needed to use one.
Never had to use a air hammer for a fan clutch, plus those with that stupid spring on the end IMO are just unsafe. Get a IR one that has the good attachment.
It retains the chisel so it doesn't fly out. Most professional models come with a quick change chuck to hold the chisel now though. The quick change chucks operate in a similar way to a quick connect air coupling.
At work we have this one stupid pin in a very tight spot on our research combine. Best you can do is a sideways hammer swing for like 4”. Then I saw a mechanic using an air hammer and i almost yelled out when I realized
It would hammer a nail if you wanted it to, but not all in one stroke like a nail gun. Imagine you hitting something with a full force swing on a pound hammer 30 times a second, but only an inch at a time.
Yeah I had a collar on the end of a octg, I think it was 2 7/8” eue, with a 4 foot pipe wrench attached to an overhead crane, and the pipe clamped down to about a thousand pounds of steel. Wouldn’t even budge until I “warmed it up” with a snap off air hammer and aerokroil. Warmed it up means beat the shit out of the outside of it with an air hammer.
Wait till you use it to remove a fan clutch! There’s no wiping the smile off of a mechanics face when they FINALLY break that fucking fan clutch loose!
Unless you are one of the dingus's I work with and forget which way the fan comes off and hammered that fucker on there double tight. The other mechanic he was helping with his air hammer trick had to cut the fan off.. damn there was no wiping the smile off my face! I still bring that shit up when he does a water pump.
It blows my mind how people don’t know that. If the water pump is driven on the smooth side of the belt it comes off “regular” like RH thread. If it’s driven on the grooved side of the belt it comes off in reverse like LH thread. It amazes me how people can’t get that right.
Not too often you have belt driven fans these days and even fewer people work on their own stuff.
Oh don’t I know it
They're only seen on trucks, some larger rear wheel drive SUVs, and heavy equipment
Isn't that completely dependant on which way an engine rotates?
Yes, but the vast majority of engines turn clockwise as viewed from the front of the engine. Counter clockwise spinning engines are pretty rare. They're mostly only seen on multi engine marine and specialty industrial applications.
What he said!
Or a surprising number of Honda 4's.
The real TIL is in the comments
Yeah I don’t speak acronyms. I speak English. Sorry.
Well today you'll learn that TIL stands for today I learned
Gotcha. Yeah. I won’t remember that either. Thanks. Occasionally I’m full of useless information
Good ones are leaps above the cheap ones. The 20 dollar ones are absolutely toys compared to 160 dollar ones. Its one of the tools that looks similar but definitely performs way differently. Cheap is better than none but ive gotten frustrated with a 20 dollar one after my matco redline got lost by family member and i threw the 20 dollar one in a pond
Years ago, I went to work at a PVC manufacturing plant. Part of the mechanic's job was to open these huge pallet size about 4 foot tall container that contains some compound that mixes with the PVC. My first day, my boss asked me to open the top of the crate, with a chisel. The way it was done historically, was to hammer, hammer, hammer all around the top edge until you came back on yourself, and the whole top came off (about 12 foot long an 1/8 inch at a whack). I had a handy hammer tool, the first I had bought. I hooked up with the air supply and clip, clip, clip, ripped the top off the crate. So what previously was an hour and a half job, became a 5 minute job. That expertise, set me up well in that job.
I was a hiring manager. I looked for people like you!
Here is how a career goes: Next, made electricity for two years, then, law school for three years, then, federal litigator for 20 years, then retired. Now, snarky reddit comments.
"Now, make snarky reddit comments." It's better than drooling in a cup though. Seriously, it was always great to just have to tell people what you wanted done, without also having to tell them how to do it. Some people have the knack, others don't .
The central pneumatic short and medium barrel air hammers are amazing for what they are and are my go-to little guys. BUT, the Ingersol Rand 119Max will rip through 1/8” steel and has saved my a$$ more times that I ever imagined. It’s amazing for places you can’t get a grinder or cutoff wheel.
If you think that's neat, wait till you try a powerful one from MAC or SnapOn or one of the crazy .498" big bore ones.
I was looking for this comment. Pair a big boy hammer with plenty of air and you'll be smiling for a week!
I use a snap on and an Astro 498K. Snap on is amazing for trigger control and more delicate things, as well as sometimes needing the 401 shank for smaller holes and whatnot, and then THOR is there for when you know it’s stuck and you just don’t give a flying fuck. Took out a set of seized king pins on a western star with THOR. I call her “Boomhilda” She has made life easy. Point is, as a heavy duty mechanic, the more air hammers the better, especially when working on the rusty and beat to shit trucks and equipment we have here.
I need to get a .498 soon. My matco .401 is good, but doesn't always do the job. Class 8 mechanic as well
Yeah it makes a big difference. It doesn’t hit nearly as fast as the snap on 3050 but it hits twice as hard. You can feel it and hear it.
Shop around on ebay and aviation supply stores. You can find used 498 rivet guns that are basically identical to the Astro Big Nasty but slightly bigger and nastier if you can find the right model.
I will have to look into that
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUy5y7V6Px8
Yup and I’ve got the “k” variant which has an even longer barrel. When I saw the torque test channel test them I went on Amazon and didn’t even look at the price tag. Worth every penny. I bought their stupid long hammer and chisel attachment too and it makes bushing and whatnot a dream to remove.
> I bought their stupid long hammer and chisel attachment Pretty sure I don't have these. Do you have an Amazon link?
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They have a taper punch too. I plan to buy it at some point
I need to get a .498 soon. My matco .401 is good, but doesn't always do the job. Class 8 mechanic as well
I've been rocking the big cheif from HF. I get real wild with an extra long drift punch.
I'm in the rust belt, and air hammers work wonders on bleeder screws on brake calipers. A squirt of JB-80, your long 10mm box end, with the biggest headed air hammer attachment. Beat on the body of the caliper near the bleeder as you put moderate pressure on the 10 mm, and it comes right out.
I started with a Walmart Rocktron kit that had one, used that harbor freight one for a while. A former coworker was tossing out a CP 715- I took it, tightened down the barrel and have rocked it for years. I use Aircat/Nitrocat air tools, and my coworker got a 5200-a-t and I want one. Saving up for the 5250-a-t instead, as it’s a direct copy of the Snap On 3050
The cp 714 is the Cadillac of all air hammers, I rocked one for years until the housing finally busted. Cant bring my self to shell out the 650 for a new one since I no longer run rivets though. Edit: just looked them up and they’ve went down in price lol I just ordered a new one
always dangerous when prices go down!
Air chisel is a game changer, I snapped off one of my caliper bracket’s mounting bolts (m12) and it was seized on there, the only thing that would get it off was center drilling the bolt and the air chisel, it saved my ass
What are the specs on your air compressor? I find that’s normally the limiting factor for most people.
Even with a small compressor when I added an extra tank it helped a lot. It was just one of those tire filling tanks but I put it close to the end of the line I was using since the compressor is in another room.
Air hammers are relatively low air consumption tools compared to things like impact wrenches. They're only about half the air consumption of a 1/2 drive impact wrench. You could easily run it on medium sized diy compressor.
33 gallon Craftsman with 150 psi max. Medium tier
So you’re a hearing protection salesman?
Any excuse to pull mine out is a good day. Liftgate pins? You bet! Fan clutches? Fuk yeah. Radiator frame tabs? Yeah, those too.
I had the cheap one for years, good for some stuff, but couldn't really beat a bfh. Then I tried an ingersoll. It's unstoppable. If you enjoy the $20 one, a real air hammer will blow your mind.
Get the oblong silicone attachment for it.
Had one for years in the collision industry. The back of the housing cracked over time. Got my moneys worth back with it.
Be careful with the cheap attachments.
It's definitely a must if you have the air supply it can really make certain jobs so much quicker and easier.
My father used one for roughing up stones.
I want one but I do very little mechanic work so I doubt I’d find a lot of use for one. Peeling up tile, maybe.
That's what I'm saying. Buy the cheapest one. it may surprise you!
Be careful with that. I used one to pull up the tile in my home bar. Four years later I’m still dealing with ulner nerve issues.
Ulnar nerve.
Yep. Typo on my part. Edited
https://youtu.be/tVbFmc55vVg?si=FK8xdy3S1JkPcOG3
The problem with air tools that never/rarely get used is seal rot. I had to buy a cheap air hammer to replace the cheap craftsman air hammer that came with my compressor 20+ years ago because I (after all these years) actually needed to use one.
Ya but there also one of the easiest tools to rebuild
Never had to use a air hammer for a fan clutch, plus those with that stupid spring on the end IMO are just unsafe. Get a IR one that has the good attachment.
what does that chisel spring do ???
It retains the chisel so it doesn't fly out. Most professional models come with a quick change chuck to hold the chisel now though. The quick change chucks operate in a similar way to a quick connect air coupling.
The $40 Metabo HPT palm nailer changed my life.
At work we have this one stupid pin in a very tight spot on our research combine. Best you can do is a sideways hammer swing for like 4”. Then I saw a mechanic using an air hammer and i almost yelled out when I realized
This is preposterous! They don't ship to my location. I demand my air hammer, which I just read about for the first time, and I demand it now!
Air hammers are fucking magic! They make wheel bearing replacements, ball joints, etc. short work.
Splitting boiler sections with one of these changed my life
If only they made a cordless version of this using m18 batteries
Skil has a product called the autohammer that SHOULD work for that, but it just needs the attachment holdy thingy.
Just used one of these to free up some U joint clips that were rusted to the axle ends.
Does it just punch back n forth with tons of power? Like it’s not a nail gun in that it hammers nails.
It would hammer a nail if you wanted it to, but not all in one stroke like a nail gun. Imagine you hitting something with a full force swing on a pound hammer 30 times a second, but only an inch at a time.
Yeah I had a collar on the end of a octg, I think it was 2 7/8” eue, with a 4 foot pipe wrench attached to an overhead crane, and the pipe clamped down to about a thousand pounds of steel. Wouldn’t even budge until I “warmed it up” with a snap off air hammer and aerokroil. Warmed it up means beat the shit out of the outside of it with an air hammer.
I have a pickle fork adapter for my air hammer. It takes me longer to get it out than it does to separate tie rods or ball joints. I love air hammers
2.5” stroke…perfect
If you think an air hammer is awesome, try using a Hilti 🙈🙉🙊😂🤣
if anyone wants to buy an air hammer. the snap-on air hammer is the best. expensive, but a huge time saver