Sign in to follow this  
Followers 0
Lordzorak

Tools

15 posts in this topic

Is there a list of recommended tools to have on hand when building a panel? Anyone got a favorite make and model of a particular panel building tool they can't live without? I looked but did not see a post that went over the time tested true tools and those that are nice to have. I may have to start building some of the panels that I design. It is an opportunity to learn. My first one will be slow and not as clean but experience is a great teacher. But learning from everyone's experience on tools might save some time (probably not money) and would be interesting to see. So what are your favorite and most useful panel building tools? Anyone have any input or a link to another post that might be informative? Thanks. Z

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Range of good screwdrivers - do not buy cheap ones. If they get daggy throw them away and buy new ones. I carry spares. Sidecutters. Pliers. Long nose pliers. Cable cutters good for about 16 sq. mm. Weidmuller cable strippers - I have one that does to 6 sq. mm but only use to 4 sq. mm and another that does from 6 sq. mm to 16 sq. mm. Weidmuller pin lug crimpers - I have the ones that are a proper die and have a rotating head for front and side crtimp. Really good battery drill/screwdriver - I have a Panasonic - about as good as they get - and have smashed the gear box in 10 months - gets a lot of use. Hydraulic punch. Really good set of drills. Grinder/linisher - invaluable - needed for sharpening drills. Machine taps to fit in the battery drill - hand taps smash in the hole. Good quality Philips and Posi Drive bits - do not buy cheap ones. I use Legrand PVC duct and the cutting tool is invaluable. Mitre saw with tungsten tip blades for cutting all sorts of things particularly duct lid. Hacksaw with good quality blades - I use Sandvik. Cut off saw for cutting DIN rail and other steel things. Small cheap turret drill for drilling DIN rail and other things - I find Ryobi is fine for this and not expensive. Good set of hex spanners (Allen keys) - I have Bondus with the T bar - get plenty of purchase - and a set of Bondus short ones in the plastic holder. Good set of spanners (open end, tube, ratchet, ring) complete with all the funny inserts as well - amazing what you find in the electrical industry. Crimpers for bigger cable - hand probably OK to start with but I have hydaulic and electric hand held - they are great but not cheap. Shifters, multi grips, jig saw, files. I could probably think of plenty more - I do not short cut on tools as it is my business and if it saves time it saves money.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Bob, thanks for reply. This is exactly why I am asking for what people use, whether there are is something specific that is works wonders that they like to use. Everyone here already has gone through figuring out what works and what does not. And while I am sure it would be a great learning exercise for me and be a great initiation, I'd rather ask those who have been doing it and have already gone through it all. If I get a chance to get tools for this, I'd rather get something good thought possibly a bit more costly now, then cheap and have problems. Thanks again. Z

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Quality Taps Square Quality label maker CNC Plasma cutter for making push button and HMI holes (I wish)

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Bob has given you an extremely thorough list. The only one I would add to is the screw drivers. I wouldn't recommend the terminal block screw drivers with the small handle that everyone gives away. Get you some terminal block screw drivers with regular size handles. After a long day of building a control panel it's a lot easier on the hands and wrist. Just important as your tools is how you lay out your work area. I'd be interested in different peoples methods of this. For me the wire racks are mounted high up on the wall, that way when you walk around the panel you don't trip over the spools of wire. Which notice I said walk around the panel. I go to a lot of peoples facilities and they have tables against the wall or long counter tops. For me it works better to have it in the middle of floor where you can work from all sides. When it's against the wall my neck and back get sore from from reaching across to wire the other side. Plus it's hard to see what terminal I'm wiring to. I have very basic 2 x 4 frames that I set the panel on, no plywood or anything on top of them, keeps obstacles out of the way when bolting components in. They have casters on them so that they can be moved around easily. Actually we have everything in our shop on casters. If we are sawing then we roll out the saw and conveyor stands, when we are not sawing they take up a very small footprint against the wall. When we are not building panels the stands can be stacked on each other in a very small footprint. We have larger heavier carts for our mechanical rebuilds that are different heights from our panel carts to make it easier to inspect them. This lets us do a large variety of work in a very small building. We have a single monorail that runs out of the building so that we can pick up enclosures and parts easily and load them on a truck. Since everything is on wheels we rarely need to lift anything that is not on center line of the monorail. Commonly used items have a place. We have small drawers for drills and taps with only one size drill and it's matching tap in a single draw, larger drawers for larger commonly used parts, small bins for things such as relays, terminal block accessories, etc, larger bins for bulk amounts of terminal blocks, and finally shelves for big items such as wire duct. I would love to hear how someone stores wire duct effectively. Everything is labeled as to where it goes. I should know where it goes but sometimes when I'm in a hurry it keeps me from opening and closing drawers when searching for something. Also if someone else is helping me out it assist them in finding things and more importantly putting them back so I can find them the next time. Another advantage to it is it makes it very easy for me to browse and see what I am running low on.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I use a plywood top on saw horses. This top has 4 1 1/2" holes in it so I can drop a drill in the hole and not worry about knocking any of them over. I change my setup around almost everytime I am still trying to find what works best fir me. 1 drill with a countersink 1 drill with a 8-32 drill tap combo 1 drill with a 10-32 drill tap combo 1 drill with a 3/8" drill bit fir the knockout pilot 2 holes for large screw drivers Phillips and Straight. 5 1/4" bolt sticking up through the sheet so I can drop wire spools on them and have it where I need it and spin free. A forklift and a hoist so you can flip a large panel over by yourself ( or have your 5 year old help ) A good shop vacuum. I had a guy ask me if my mom ever made me clean up after myself. I shipped a panel to him that wasn't as clean as it could have been. I won't make that mistake again. That was the last panel I did for him. Another good tool to have is a heat gun. I always heat the any panel before applying a sticker to it. That way I break the surface tension and makes the stickers stay longer.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I don't do a lot of panel building but I always keep a roll of blue painters tape around to mask off the surfaces I'm laying holes out on. Makes it easy to just remove the tape to get rid of pencil marks. A couple more things I didn't se listed were a center punch, jig saw(old school way to cut rectangular holes), file and deburring tool. Edited by willf650

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
we use the "old School" way on our rectangulars, we have tried plasma cutters but the painted boxes always get discolored from heat. Anyone have some suggestions on this?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
We got our hands on some square knockouts. Makes a nice hole but a bit of a pain

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I didnt see a bench drilling machine, bench bending device,and a vice grip. Mostly for busbar work but still neccesary. Get your hands on a weidmuller tool catalogue. They have some awesome tools. Most of which i dont have yet but definatley gonna get soon

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
amazing what programmers carry around

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Essential for programmers - 120 ohm resistors for terminating comms lines - they are usually forgotten or misunderstood. Chuck them in the laptop bag - they do not take up much room.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
And the close tolerance 250 Ohm for the analog stuff too!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
A multimeter with spare batteries. I also have a mini clamp meter for 4-20 ma signal troubleshooting without having to break the loop. Awesome, can't live without it.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!


Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.


Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this  
Followers 0