Gear you’ll want when working on your car
It’s hard to generalize about Diy-ers; there’s such a large range, and they encompass everything from infrequent tinkerers who don’t venture much past checking their rides’ fluids and filters, to master overhaulers who love to get elbow-deep in the grease and grime.
But there’s one exception — the Saturday-morning mechanics with a wellequipped locker full of protective gear. Sure, almost everyone’s got a pair of work gloves and a scratched-up set of safety goggles, but most think because they only work on their rides as a hobby, serious personal protection isn’t necessary. That being said, with all the various metals, plastics, fluids and other synthetic materials used in modern vehicles, even if you only take out the tools for a few hours once a month, you need some gear.
None of these items will break the bank, and your usual auto-parts store will likely have a variety of each of these items in stock.
Face masks: The COVID-19 pandemic has made face masks a rare commodity, but if you’re grinding away or sanding down sheet metal, keeping those particles out of your lungs is important, especially when working indoors.
Having a good-sized fan inside the garage is also helpful, especially when working with heavy-duty degreasers or any other volatile chemicals. Some reasonable airflow can also help reduce the risks of fire or explosion, when working with flammable materials. Work gloves: Before you say, “real mechanics don’t wear gloves,” a set of disposable or reusable gloves can go a long way to reducing the risk of infection in nicks and cuts, and can save a lot of time as well as your skin. Purpose-made gloves allow you to handle parts that might be too hot for bare skin, and can even give you better grip to avoid the busted-knuckle syndrome.
EAR PROTECTION:
No matter how infrequently you turn a wrench at home, soundreducing headsets (or properly fitting ear plugs) are a must, if you’re working with loud tools in an enclosed space. With almost every home-based tech now having a hammerstyle power gun in their tool box (either air- or batteryoperated), ear protection is no longer a nice-to-have item — it’s must-have gear.
EYE PROTECTION:
This should be a no-brainer. I wear eyeglasses and I’m still haunted from the time I got a piece of rusty steel lodged in my eye. Even though my family doctor was able to remove it without permanent damage or surgery, I was laid up for several days. Most safety goggles can easily fit over eyeglasses, and if you can’t get adjusted to them, get a full face shield instead.