10 High-Tech Eastwood Tools You Didn't Realize Existed

Eastwood offers a wide range of automotive repair tools and parts. From engines to lift jacks and surface preparation power tools, Eastwood's catalog of goods is comprehensive. There's the typical hand tool inclusions, like stubby ratchets and lengthy combination wrenches, perfect for removing old parts or securing new components under the hood. However, this Pennsylvania based automotive tool company also carries a variety of highly technical solutions to many of the problems that hobbyists, home mechanics, and professional restorers all alike will happily bring into their workspace.

Whether you're a motorcycle enthusiast, a big rig repairer, or anywhere in between, you're bound to find yourself working with a variety of materials while engaging in technical and skill-dependent repair tasks. While the tool doesn't make the mechanic, a great set of technically proficient tools can make a huge difference in the ease and confidence with which you approach any restoration or repair project. For instance, a lack of workpiece raising equipment can result in a much slower workflow and far greater knee or back pain at the end of a project than might be involved in raising a car up to check out the underside of the vehicle's chassis. 

That's but one example of how technically superior tool inclusions can transform a repair operation. Fortunately, Eastwood carries a range of excellent tools for all manner of projects, within the auto body shop and beyond it!

Induction heating is a revolutionary technology that helps protect repairers and auto mechanics while they perform their work. Traditional heating methods require an open flame or extremely hot air blown across a surface. These kinds of heating tools can drastically alter the strength or visual characteristics of surfaces around the target workpiece, especially if it's a small component that fits within tight quarters. 

Induction heating is a different process altogether and focuses electromagnetic waves — in a roughly similar process to one approach allowing for wireless charging – to create heat across a metal surface. The process works in seconds, and a sized bolt can be heated to a target temperature in the blink of an eye by creating an electromagnetic circuit with the piece simply placed into the field.

Eastwood carries a few Induction Innovations products, and the Mini-Ductor Venom and Standard Coil Kit is a great option for mechanics, DIYers, and home renovators alike. Some induction heating equipment is bulky and extreme, but the Mini-Ductor Venom tool is scaled down to a tiny footprint. The induction heating tool comes with a heavy duty power cord and a set of standard induction coil sizes that make plastic molding removal, sized bolt loosening, and paint curing simple tasks.

For a pro that needs consistent power tool access throughout each day in the shop, air tools are superior in many applications. Pneumatic air tools offer lighter overall bodies, greater torque and speed production, and often even reduce the total cost of ownership for users constantly reaching for impact wrenches and cut off tools. One example of a high-tech, immensely potent air tool that virtually anyone working in a shop setting might want is the SP Air Tools Reversible Flex Head Cut Off Tool. Listed at Eastwood for $160, the cut off tool sits at the same price as some of the most impressive electric cut off options on the market.

However, as a pneumatic air tool, the cut off wheel isn't reliant on electric power, corded or otherwise. This makes it safer to use, and far lighter. Operators can handle the cut off tool for lengthier usage times without fatigue, especially since the tool weighs just 2.8 pounds. The SP Air Tools cut off tool features a reversible disc rotation to spray sparks and debris away from the user, no matter where they might decide to position themselves. It's also a multi-positional cutting option with a flex head that can be locked into three different angled positions. With a 12,000 rpm spin rate, the tool is immensely powerful and can cut through 3/4-inch steel.

Welding is an important task in any shop environment that works with metal components. Whether you're a metal fabricator or a hobbyist working on an automotive restoration project, your welding kit is likely an integral part of your success. A multi-process welder is a must-have addition to these kinds of workspaces. They allow for MIG, TIG, and stick welding, opening up plenty of options to select the process that's best for your particular needs on any individual project, or fits the best with your skill level and confidence.

The Eastwood 200 Amp Multi-Process Welder with Welding Cart and 60 Amp Versa-Cut Plasma Cutter is a complete package that can jumpstart your welding capabilities or completely replace an old welding unit that you've grown out of. The trio is listed at Eastwood for $1,500, a pretty penny to be sure. However, by purchasing the combination package you'll save $455, and get a highly versatile welding cart that can carry 350 total pounds — all in addition to the plasma cutter. The cutter features a digital amperage readout to help precisely dial in the cut you want and can slice through sheet metal up to 7/8-inch thick.

Sanding is the bane of many woodworkers and auto body specialists' existence. Sanding often takes forever, and it's such a precision-driven craft that every stroke must be carefully considered when performing the finishing touches on a car body — especially after performing a no-weld rust repair, where sanding is crucial to achieve a smooth finish. Objectively, one of the worst parts of any sanding job involves the cleanup that comes afterwards. Sanding dust can eventually find its way into nearly any crack or crevice in your workspace, making the job of cleaning up all the waste a lengthy and energy sapping endeavor.

Eastwood offers an alternative, however. For auto body mechanics and restoration enthusiasts, the Eastwood Elite Contour DSB Master Kit with Sandpaper delivers everything you'll need to sand a vehicle to 220 grit without spewing out dust. The flexible blocks gently contour to the shape of your vehicle, allowing for laser-straight precision, and the system utilizes PSA sandpaper rather than hook and loop sheets for the flattest sanding result possible. Connecting the hose system to your shop vac allows the blocks to pass through nearly all produced dust without any hassle. 

The system can be deployed when sanding drywall and other surfaces, too, allowing for a versatile dustless sanding process that's adaptable and incredibly efficient.

A bandsaw is a common sight in shops and garages that deal with metal stock and metal-focused projects. Cutting through metal components is a key capability in the automotive space and elsewhere. There are plenty of other tools that can get the job done, including an angle grinder or cut off saw, but they don't always produce accurate, clean cuts. When the job requirements demand a precision slice through some kind of metal component, a bandsaw is the go-to tool, every time.

However, not all bandsaws are created equal. The Eastwood Benchtop Metal Cutting Bandsaw is loaded with features like a variable speed control and pistol grip trigger for precision cutting across size, shape, and material demands. The bandsaw can slice through metal as thick as 3-1/4 inches and features an adjustable clamp and stop bar to dial in the exact cut dimensions you need, even when performing repeated incisions in metal stock. The saw can deliver cuts ranging from 90-degrees to 45-degrees, as well. 

As a compact, benchtop option, the Eastwood bandsaw features a 1,000 watt motor that's more than capable of handling heavy cutting needs while also folding down the cut arm in a locked position for easy storage or transport.

The Ingersoll Rand Super Duty Air Reciprocating Saw is a precision cutting instrument that completely blows away corded and battery powered competition in the category. Reciprocating saws are often utilized as a means to hack through all manner of material. Milwaukee Tools' Sawzall invention in 1951 brought the reciprocating saw to life and is most often deployed to slice wood, old screws or nails, and anything else lurking in a workpiece.

The Ingersoll Rand reciprocating saw is an air tool that provides incredible power in a light body weighing just 1.63 pounds. The blade offers 5,750 strokes per minute, and in the massively scaled down unit this power and speed combination creates a uniquely potent precision cutting function. The saw can be used to shear all manner of metal, fiberglass, or composite materials. It's also excellent at delivering straight lines and delicate curves or sharp angles, allowing for effortless slicing through most workpiece materials while maintaining a delicate enough touch to create any shape needed.

Eastwood has been working to improve the functionality and usefulness of its DIY powder coating system for years. The HotCoat 100kV Powder Coating System is Eastwood's newest offer in this area, and will start shipping in late October for those who preorder a kit now. 

This is a professional-grade powder coating system that's excellent for those working in larger shops and DIYers alike. The unit offers adjustable power output up to 100,000 volts and features individualized controls for fluidizing and dosing air, as well as the pressure of the powder coating gun. Dialing in the exact parameters you need for any job allows you to repeat your setting preferences on each successive job, or make adjustments when necessary.

The gun is built separately from the powder hopper, allowing you to connect properly without having to lug your material around or potentially touch off the workpiece with a hanging tank. The kit arrives with everything you need to get powder coating — aside from the oven — and larger 5-pound and 10-pound hoppers are in the works, as well allowing users to size up their powder coating efforts when the job calls for extended colorization and coating. Multiple gun tips are also included, and the gun's pressure control knob makes it easy to pump powder directly into tight corners and tricky curves to avoid buildup or the faraday cage effect.

Drill bits inevitably wear out and break, making it a constant replacement game with consumables like these. However, in some instances you might consider looking for a repair opportunity. When utilizing carbide or large masonry bits and other tool accessories that are specialized in nature and therefore fairly expensive, repair looks a lot more favorable. 

The Palmgren Multi-Angle Drill Sharpener offers exactly this service in a professional shop setup. Rather than wearing out bits and having to replace them, this bit sharpening tool means you can simply rework their tips to get them back into the drawer and ready to continue performing.

The sharpener can handle bits up to 3/4-inch and deliver angles from between 90 and 150-degrees and relief angle from 0 to 20 degrees. The sharpener relies on a prismatic vise to precisely center drill bits and allow for repeatable grinding for repairing multiple bits of the same spec. A 600-watt motor delivers immense rotational force reaching up to 9,120 rpm speeds. The cast iron build also helps create a vibration-free stability (in a 50-pound device) that delivers impeccable precision when repairing bits to extend their life and utility in your workshop.

A combo machine is a favorite tool for many in the machining game. The Grizzly 31-Inch 3/4 Horsepower Combo Lathe/Mill offers a two-in-one functionality and a wide range of technical features that amplify its utility tremendously. The lathe, for one thing, provides a 31-inch capacity between centers and a 16-1/2-inch swing over bed. The spindle rotates at seven speed settings, from 175 rpm to 1,425 rpm. 

The tool becomes far more valuable with the addition of the built in milling combination. The milling table features T-slots and a four-way turret tool post. The combo lathe/mill operates with two motors, a magnetic controller, and a forward/reverse switch for versatile functionality across a range of user requirements. The machine is backed by a one year limited warranty, too, providing a bit of comfort to owners as they perhaps transition from disparate devices to a single combination unit that can do it all.

The last tool offered by Eastwood to make this list is perhaps a doozy of a device. The BendPak PCL-18B Mobile Lift System is a shop star that can be found in only the most heavy duty automotive workspaces and priced as such — it will cost you $20,595 for the set of two mobile lift columns! This lifting gear can raise a vehicle weighing up to 36,000 pounds on two mobile lift arms. The mobile lift system offers an 18,000 pound capacity per device, so adding more lifts increases the total weight that can be heaved up into the air: With six lift arms brought into the fold, up to 108,000 pounds can be muscled up for tremendously weighty vehicle servicing.

These lift devices are true marvels of technology, though. Connecting multiple columns together allows for seamless lift coordination across all units. Any station can serve as the control for every linked device, and while each one is a heavy and large affair, they remain a mobile lift system that can be carted around the workshop to accommodate new spatial needs or varying sizes among vehicles to be lifted for maintenance. Users can also set height limits to prevent crashing a vehicle into the shop's overhead ceiling. Smart electronics help create a self-calibration feature and self-diagnostics to keep the lift columns working seamlessly and in perfect unison.