Today's Deal: 3/8'' VARIABLE SPEED REVERSIBLE DRILL for $14

My old Black & Decker drill died...well, actually not the drill, the plastic surrounding the wires in the cord was so old it was hard as a rock, and when the surrounding plastic cracked, the wire inside the cord broke. You have to understand that this drill was at least 25 years old. I actually don't use a drill very often, but it so happened I needed mine to to work on an ancient bathtub door that is dragging in the track---I plan to drill a couple new holes for the rollers to lift it just a tad to keep it from dragging.

We just happen to have a new Harbor Freight store in Paducah (for locals, go to where the Party Mart used to be at Hannon Plaza, corner of Lone Oak Rd and Jackson St). I don't know if you've ever shopped Harbor Freight, but they have some really good tool deals, and I've bought from them on the internet before also. You can visit their web site to get a feel for their extended inventory, which includes both tools and other helpful household items.

So I trot down to Harbor Freight last evening and found this Chicago variable speed reversible drill on special for $13.xx. The drill has a 90-day warranty. It's a basic no-frills corded drill, however it does have a few bells and whistles that my old B&D didn't have.....Variable speed, keyless chuck, and reversible.
* Variable speed: 0-3000 RPM
* Reversible
* Keyless chuck
* Built-in level
* Heat treated gears
* 120V, 3.1 amps;
* Speed: 0-3000 RPM
* Chuck capacity: 3/64'' to 3/8''
* Belt clip
Weight: 3.3 lbs.
Overall dimensions: 9-1/2'' L x 2-1/2'' W x 7'' H


While I was in the Harbor Freight store, I found an item that I've been needing: quick couplers for garden hose. I have soaker hoses in my flower beds for watering them, and it's a pain in the back (literally) to connect my hose to them. I have a divider to hook up two hose branches for watering two flower beds at a time. But I have been having the screw the hose connecters together each time. Harbor Freight had these on special for $5.xx a set, so I went all out and bought two sets. These are brass and look like just what I need.
* Finely crafted from solid brass
* Includes 4 male and 2 female couplers


BTW, here's another item from Harbor Freight that I WISH I'd had a few days ago: I was re-doing the silicone sealer in my bathtub and it's so very difficult to get the old sealer cleaned out. Of course, my tub and surround are both acrylic, so metal can actually damage the surface. These plastic scrapers would have made my job to much easier. In case you are anticipating doing this dreary task, the tip of the day is to use really strong rubbing alcohol on the sealer first to soften it (you can actually buy 91% rubbing alcohol at CVS), and then scrape to your heart's content. Heating the old sealer with a hair dryer can also be helpful.