My name is Max and I am the owner of agradetools.com. I want to thank you personally for checking out my website, and I hope you enjoy the content. My goal is to provide you with tool recommendations from my own personal experience, as well as from polling and consensus of professional technicians.
My Background:
I have worked on cars, motorcycles, and small engines for over 10+ years.
My fascination with cars started when I was 16 and installing my own subwoofers and car stereos in my BMW e36 318is. That allowed me to get my hands dirty, and learn how to install car audio equipment/solder.
When I was 19, I worked in Colorado for a summer where I was trained in a fire-camp as a feller. That summer I spent cutting dead trees all over the Colorado mountains. I learned a ton about hard-work, the dangers of felling trees, and how important a well-tuned chainsaw is when your life depends on it. From that experience, I began working on all my own cars, motorcycles and became an apprentice mechanic.
I have owned and worked on everything from an Alfa Romeo 164 to a 1998 Honda Civic. I have also driven on both Laguna Seca race track and Infineon Raceway in California. Both of those were awesome experiences, and I highly recommend everyone get out on the track!
Why I started AGradeTools.com
I saw a need for tool reviews and recommendations that were accurate and real. I also wanted to share with people tips and tricks that I have learned throughout my years working on engines to help you be the best DIYer/Technician possible.
Also, to help people be safe when they work on their own car, truck, or motorcycle. It is a dangerous thing to do, especially without the right tools, and people are constantly putting their lives at risk working on their cars.
There is a lot of poor information and advice online, and I hope that the one thing you learn from my website is to always seek the help of a professional if you feel unsure.
The best way to learn how to work on your own car safely is to find a professional mechanic that you can pay to show how to do certain things on your car. Or better trade cleaning their shop or something in exchange for lessons.
What are some of your favorite tools?
Some of my favorite tools include my Gearwrench fine tooth ratchet set, you can get them for an amazing deal new on Amazon here. I have the 84t model
, but the 120XP
is even better. Either set is miles ahead of the junk you will get at your local hardware store for the same price. Even professional mechanics that swear only by Snap-On tools have really enjoyed the new Gearwrench ratchets. Check them out, I swear by them!
I also really value having a high-quality OBD2 code reader because it allows you to help your friends out all the time. Just being able to read codes on peoples cars will save them a ton of money, and you can always get some extra money out of it. I highly recommend for entry level people not looking to break the bank buying a Bluetooth OBDII reader like this blue driver
on Amazon. It is PERFECT for the beginner or DIYer mechanic and you can do a lot.
You also need to make sure you’re using high-quality jack stands. This is the biggest mistake I see beginners make. DO NOT GET UNDER A CAR WITHOUT JACK STANDS. Preferably get this beefy 6-ton jack stands
that OTC makes. They’re frigging awesome and will work AMAZINGLY well for pretty much anything from a small car to a large truck.
Must read articles:
Here are some of the articles I have written on this website that I am most proud of. This is because they provide useful information that wasn’t entirely easy to find beforehand on the web.
