4 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.

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.

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.