Over the years I have been part of many startups, retrofits, and or image makeover of shops. I personally have upfitted several collegiate design labs, and training centers. I always start by giving them this list. When asked what piece is first and what is the most important, what can we cut off the list. I always ask what part do you want to do half ass? In collegiate design and professional racing environments they are spending other folks’ dollars so the image of what you “have” is more of issue to the bean counters than the program. From the learning and /or teaching side, tools and equipment are instrumental in the way your craft matures. From the manufacturing side always chase the source that makes me money first. In the late 1986 I got the chance to hang the bodies on a number of Pontiac teams, to pull this off I needed to upfit a shop for sheet metal fab, brake, shear, slip roller, bead roller, English wheel, belt sanders, vertical and horizontal saw. I reached out to a leasing company, with crazy interest rates, with a payment plan, $800 per month, for 24 months. The project was to build 10 bodies for underfunded teams, Pontiac paid half, teams paid half. With a prayer, a promise, a payment, two contract labor helpers and a 5,000 sq ft rented shop the adventure started. Within six months I paid the equipment lease off, as the projects matured, we expanded our capabilities with talent and equipment. As NASCAR grew the talent pool was challenged but the “want to” expanded. Cal Davis addressed the metal shaping issue with a John Glover designed shop version of the English Wheel. Later the desire for short-term equipment specific training was addressed with the Motorsports Training Center program. The education game changed our direction as we realized the talent had the desire and we had the need-to-know skills training for them to succeed in professional racing. The first Motorsports Training Center focused on training skilled racers to do specific tasks, metal shaping, chassis fab, motorsports welding, MIG/TIG, chassis setup, and assembly. Most of the mature racer crowd was 25 to 50, most with a resume, work history, easy to train, and dedicated to the racing industry. Our program was able to match teams with talent and to match students to teams that mirrored their personality. As the sport expanded the workforce ventured outside of the race shop and support product business expanded splitting the talent. The motorsports industry in NC demanded attention and started reaching out to community colleges/tech schools to address the need. In the fall of 1996 Ned Jarrett reached out to my family to help direct the Catawba Valley Community College in a program, after a professor’s attempt to fund a $2mil a year budget fiasco that included owning a Winston Cup Team. We agreed upon a direction that included but was not limited to an 18-month performance vehicle skills curriculum with short term equipment, product, and topic specific training. The programs trained over 1500 students between March 1997 and July 2010, 92% of the students were from outside NC. The equipment listed is the basic equipment inventory used in the Motorsports Training Center, Mooresville, NC, Bobby Isaac Motorsports at CVCC Hickory, NC, Carolina Motorsports Tech Center, Newton, NC, and the Metalcraft Tools Skill Center, Crossville, TN. A number of families like mine were involved in equipment manufacturing most were racers supporting their habit, another contingent known as “carpet baggers,” copied, stole designs, used overseas markets, took 20-year equipment designs and discounted the quality/ price down to 5-year quality. Below is what I consider the Ultimate Performance Vehicle Fab Shop Equipment list. This is where I would end up with at the end of the day, all you need is $250000 and 5000 sq ft.
The Makers IP LLC goal is to review each tool group, there are a number of manufacturers and equipment designs that are similar in nature some are 20-year quality, some are 5 year quality, the reviews will come in time.
Mittler Bros. Machine & Tool
24″ Bead Roller Kit – Standard
5 Ton Hydraulic Bench Press
Round Punch & Die w/ Urethane Stripper – 5/32″ to 1″ 3/16
Round Punch & Die w/ Urethane Stripper – 5/32″ to 1″ ¼
Round Punch & Die w/ Urethane Stripper – 5/32″ to 1″ 5/16
Round Punch & Die w/ Urethane Stripper – 5/32″ to 1″ 3/8
Round Punch & Die w/ Urethane Stripper – 5/32″ to 1″ ½
Round Punch & Die w/ Urethane Stripper – 5/32″ to 1″ ¾
Round Punch & Die w/ Urethane Stripper – 5/32″ to 1″ 13 Piece Set of Soft Face Dead Blow Bossing Mallets
Shot Bag, 12″ Round
T-Dolly, Straight – Small
14 Gauge B-1 Throatless Beverly Shear
Cleco Kit, 1/8″
Floor Model English Wheel w/ 9″ OD X 3″ Wide upper wheel
4 Piece Bead Roll Layout Template Set
Double Headed Variable Speed Power Hammer
24″ Planishing Hammer
Shot Bag, 12″ Round
13pc Aircraft P & F Tool Kit
96″ 16 Gauge Straight Brake
Mitler Bros. 52″ Foot Shear – 16 GA
Shrinker / Stretcher Pair
Heavy Duty 180 Degree Hydraulic Tube Bender
1″ – 4″ Round Shoe Set
1″ – 4″ Square Shoe Set
Air Hydraulic Pump, Hose & Fittings 6′
NBA w/ Smart Tool
Smart Tool Angle Sensor
Digital Protractor – 8-inch
Ultimate Variable Speed Notcher w/ Upgrade Adj. Vise
1″ OD Standard Cutter
Digital Camber Gauge W/ Magnetic Adapter
Mini Temp with Laser
B-G Racing 6″ Small Chassis Stand (Pair) – Powder Coated
15″ ULTIMATE WIRELESS SCALES
SCALE CART
10″ RISERS (SET OF 4)
2.5″ DELUXE TIRE GAUGE 30 Psi
Turn Plates (Set of 2)
JARKE
2- Starter Inclined Cantilever Rack, No. of Sides: 1, 12 Arms, Arm Length: 16″
LITTLE GIANT
2- Welder Table,34Hx51Dx24D
Westward
10- Transparent PVC Welding Screen, 6 ft. H x 4 ft.W x 0.014″ Thick, Yellow
Tennsco
6- Commercial Storage Cabinet, Light Gray, 30″ H X 36″ W X 18″ D, Assembled
10- Commercial Storage Cabinet, Light Gray, 72″ H X 36″ W X 24″ D, Assembled
10-Workbench, Steel, 36″ Depth, 32″ Height, 72″ Width, 1800 lb. Load Capacity
DEWALT
1-20V MAX® Cordless Combination Kit, 20.0 Voltage, Number of Tools 4
1-Cordless Cutoff Tool Kit, 20.0 Voltage, 7000 No Load RPM, Battery Included
1- 1/2″ Cordless Impact Wrench, 20.0 Voltage, 700 ft.-lb. Max. Torque, Battery Included
1-3/8″ Cordless Right Angle Drill Kit, 20.0 Voltage, Battery Included
1-Cordless Die Grinder Kit, Battery Included, 20.0 V, In-Line, 0 to 25,000 No Load RPM
LINCOLN Welders
2-Precision TIG® 275 TIG Welder Ready-Pak®
2-POWER MIG® 180C MIG Welder
1-Tomahawk® 625 Plasma Cutter w/ 20 ft Hand Torch
Harbor Freight
6- 30 In. 5 Drawer White Mechanic’s Cart
BAILEIGH INDUSTRIAL
1-MAGNETIC SHEET METAL BRAKE BB-4816M
1-HORIZONTAL BANDSAW BS-210M
1-BSV-18VS-220 – VARIABLE SPEED VERTICAL BAND SAW
1-VERTICAL MILL VM-949E-VS
1-METAL LATHE PL-1440E
1-COMBINATION BELT AND DISK GRINDER
Air Compressors Direct
Ingersoll Rand 3/4″ 0.01 Micron High Efficiency Coalescing Compressed Air Filter (45 CFM)
2-RapidAir Fast Pipe 3/4-Inch Compressed Air Aluminum Piping System 90-Foot Master Kit (3 Outlets)
Ingersoll Rand 7.5-HP 80-Gallon Rotary Screw Total Air System (230V 3-Phase)(125PSI)
Columbia Coatings
Columbia Coatings Oven 6’w x 6’h x 12’w
10’w x 8’h x 14’l Spray Booth
KK-HD with Industrial Box Feed Stand
Dell Computers
Dell Precision 7740 Mobile Workstation Intel® Xeon E-2276M
– Windows 10 Pro for Workstations (4 Cores Plus) Multi – English
– 32GB, 4x8GB, DDR4 2666MHz ECC Memory
– M.2 1TB PCIe NV Me Class 40 Solid State Drive
17.3-in. display
Includes a Xeon processor, Windows 10 Pro for Workstations, more memory, a 1TB PCIe solid state hard drive, a high-end graphics card, and a 3-year ProSupport warranty.
FASTENAL
12″L x 18″W x 3″H Blue Steel Large Scoop 20 Compartment Box
29 Piece 1/16″ – 1/2″ x 1/64″ HSS 135[DEG] Split Fastenal Jobber Drill Set by Norseman
60 Piece #1 – #60 HSS Black & Gold Finish 135[DEG] Split Jobber Drill Set
26 Piece Ltr A – Z Molybdenum Tool Steel Black & Gold Finish 135[DEG] Split Jobber Drill Set
2366 Pcs. Assrt SHCS From 1/4-20 – 1/2-13 & Bolt Gauge
1186 Pcs Metric SHCS Asst From M4-.7 – M12-1.75
169 Piece Yellow Zinc Grade 8 Nylon Insert Nut Assortment
200Pc Sealed Crimp & Solder Connector Kit w/ Large Metal Tray
MSC Industrial
Vectrax – Milling Machine Tooling Package
6 Piece, Lathe Tool Accessory Kit – Includes 2 Drilling Chucks, Die Holder, Live Center, Reaming Chuck, Tapping Collet
Phase II – Series BXA Tool Post Holder & Set for 10 to 15″ Lathe Swing – 6 Piece, Includes Style 1 Holder, Style 10 Holder, Style 2 Holder, Style 4 Holder, Style 7 Holder, Tool Post
Value Collection – 38 Pieces, 5/16-Inch-Wide Bit, Grade C5, Carbide Tool Bit Set – AL, AR, BL, BR, C, D, E Tool Bit Styles
Albrecht – 3MT, 1/32 to 1/2″ Capacity, Steel Integral Shank Drill Chuck – Keyless, Taper Shank, 2″ Sleeve Diam, 3–3/8″ Open Length