In this section I am going to recommend some top tools that have enabled some great results during my Tesla build. I don't have the luxury of a huge workshop so I can't fit in every tool in the book so its great if some tools can have multiple uses.
1. Digital Vernier Callipers
This is my top tool. Apart from being very accurate, it allows you to measure both inside and outside diameters. Most also measure the depths of blind holes, useful if you want to check a series of holes are to the same depth. I used to have a set of Oxford non-digital verniers which were great but reading off the measurements took time. I recently upgraded to digital and find them much quicker to use, also you can flick between mm and inches at the press of a button. Below are my Mitutoyo 500-672 150mm IP66, bought secondhand on ebay.
Mitutoyo are quite expensive and if you don't want to spend too much to start with I recommend picking up a cheaper set from Maplin for around £10. They look reasonable quality and good enough to show you just how usefull digital verniers can be.
There's an interesting article at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caliper if you want more info.
2. Mini Milling Machine
OK you might think this is a luxury rather than a necessity but I can't begin to say how useful this little milling machine is. It replaces the need for a separate pillar drill which is a must if you want to drill accurate holes. The X and y axis bed allows accurate placing of the drill bit and z axis allows you to drill to a desired depth.
The same bed allows accurate milling of reasonably small work and with an ER32 collet holder and a set of collets you can get really good results. Above is a pic of my set-up which started life as a Clarkes CMD300, below is a pic of it in its original form straight from your local Machine Mart.
I made a couple of upgrades to mine. First a belt drive transmission that enables a faster rpm, makes the machine much quieter and means you don't strip gears if the head stops suddenly. Second, I fitted digital vernier scales to the x and y axis which totally removes any errors due to slop in the bed. I did quite a bit of research on mini mills before I bought, in the end the decision was between the Clarke CMD300 and the SIEG X2 pictured below.
Most people rated the SIEG and slagged off the Clarke model. Bit strange, if you take a close look they are, in fact, the same machine. Having a local Machine Mart which was having a VAT free promotion day helped make my decision.
