In order to do it yourself, you need the right tools, and other than our trucks themselves, there's nothing more dear to our hearts than our ever-growing collection of tools. From big, noisy power tools to neat little manual gadgets that fit in the palm of your hand, nearly all of us have toolboxes jampacked and workbenches and walls covered and hung with tools of every description and use. Let's face it, any tool that makes a repair or fabrication chore easier or even possible at all is welcomed into the home shop with glee. Even if they're ones that'll only see service on rare occasions, we just gotta have 'em-just in case.
Cool tools can be found anywhere: the local hardware store, parts jobber, metal supply house, swapmeets, ads, tech stories right here in CLASSIC TRUCKS, the Internet, and in the case of some neat homemade tools, the home shops of friends and acquaintances. The subject of this diatribe, though, was found between the covers of one of my favorite tool sources, The Eastwood Company's mail-order catalog. They have more cool tools than you can shake a body hammer at. Some are simple and some aren't, but they're all useful.
This month we're going to check out a great home-shop spray gun system offered by The Eastwood Company. The kit is manufactured by Devilbiss, and it contains everything the hobbyist will need to both prime and paint like a pro (with a bit of practice, of course). It's called the Starting Line system, and it consists of two spray guns (one for primer, and one for paint), a pair of 20-ounce aluminum gravity cups, an air regulator, and a tool kit with accessories-not bad for under $150. Check your local regulations for what kind of paint can be sprayed at home and how much of it is allowed. If you're not sure how to do this, stop into the local automotive paint supply house and ask them. While you're there, pick up a quality respirator, and make sure to use it!
So toss that sub-par gun you got at the "cheap" hardware store and check out this handy system-it's a must-have for the home builder, as are most of the cool tools and materials offered by The Eastwood Company. Check out their Web site, www.eastwood.com, and you'll see just what I mean.
