Table of Contents

September/October 2008

Editor's Note

• Net Play
  With the Olympics and U.S. Open tennis championships just concluded, I am still well within the statute of limitations on using a sports analogy to make a business point--especially a tennis analogy.

Features

• First Test: Porter-Cable's High-Tech Sander
  Compact and powerful, this low-profile tool has a lot to offer.
• First Test: Next Generation MultiMaster
  Fein's new model boasts more power, tool-free accessory attachment.
• First Test: Milwaukee Cordless Vacuums
  18- and 28-volt units really clean up on the job, wet or dry.
• Tool Test: Cordless Recip Saws (Slide Show)
  We tested 12 new cordless recip saws, with every type of battery ranging from 18 to 36 volts, for ergonomics, speed, and convenience. It's amazing how close these tools come to corded performance, tackling all kinds of tough jobs without flinching. And with tool-free blade changing, speed control options, new trigger and lock-out designs, and LED work lights, the features keep getting better all the time.
  

Cutting Edge

• Site Commander Update
  Here's a sneak peek at more of the technology we've designed into the 2008 LENOX-sponsored Site Commander, which will hit the road by the end of September. These Dodge 5500s are loaded with custom work-truck innovations, including what we're calling the "Command Center" on the driver's side of the Reading body. Think firetruck control area.
• The Crop Report: A Preview of New Tools
  The fall tool harvest will be big this year, and Tools of the Trade has a sneak peak to share with you.
• September's Hot Finds

Truckin' Around With Mike Morris

• Slime Those Tires
  A flat tire at a jobsite is no fun. Thinner, less robust utility trailer tires are especially vulnerable. Tow vehicles routinely throw objects into the path of trailers, and when trailers veer toward a road's shoulder, they encounter all kinds of puncture-ready debris.
• Oils Get Environmental
  Motor oil, two-cycle oil, even hydraulic oil are going green. Green Earth Technologies, a recent startup company with no ties to the petroleum industry, is selling the first products in a line of naturally organic, biodegradable, high-performance motor oils, including environmentally friendly hydraulic oil for heavy equipment.

Product Watch

• Special Focus: Electronics. Plus, tool storage. (Slide Show)

Tool Hounds

We just love tools. Is that a problem?

• A lesson in cool from Don Dunkley.