Your Tools are in Trouble

If you have read headlines from the automotive industry lately than most likely you think all is well. Auto sales are up, quality is better than ever, deals are being struck and cars are being built on US soil more than ever. But if you have something in the garage that likes a lot of attention, you might soon find yourself working empty handed.

That’s because tool manufacturers are closing at a staggering rate. Cars are lasting longer, fewer people are bothering to learn how to repair cars at home, and US manufacturing isn't being nurtured like technology is. This doesn't just affect the do-it-yourself-er either; car manufactures’ options for tool suppliers are also dwindling. When a car company engineered a part, put it on the car, and then realized that a standard wrench wouldn't fit, they would call up a tool company to mass build them a tool that worked. The company would send the tools to the dealerships and now removing the fuel pump didn't require dropping the engine. A few years ago car companies had about 9,000 tool companies to call up. Today that number is 5,500. Automakers know how serious this is but for the weekend racer or tinkerer it’s deadly.

But hold on, I think the hobbyists have an option. 3D printing, simple put, is amazing. We now have the ability to build and shape things from nothing but a mound of dust. 3D printing can make almost anything you want from plastic, rubber, aluminum, titanium, etc. So as long as there is a 3D plan, we can still get manufactures’ tools. Simple download the tool file, send it to a 3D printer, and then add it to your toolbox. This does require some participation either from the automotive enthusiast community, tool companies, or automakers to make these plans available. Tool companies could charge a small fee for an online download, other enthusiasts could upload their own design for free to car forums, or manufacturers could simply offer free downloads with the purchase of the car. So all hope might not be lost, especially since the 5,500 remaining tool companies can now produce tools even cheaper than before. So while you might be using your tools less on modern cars, you won’t have fewer tricks in your toolbox to fix them.

Happy wrenching.

Thanks to http://www.flickr.com/photos/lox/ for the photo.