Technician: Matt "BleepinJeep"
Shop: BleepinJeep
Location: Knoxville, TN
Matt, creator of the YouTube channel BleepinJeep, creates how-to videos related to Jeeps and off-road vehicles for his subscriber base of more than 170,000.
Matt, who has been "dabbling" in all things Jeep since 1998, turned his repair hobby into a profession "through the power of YouTube" about seven years ago. The channel, and its website of the same name, BleepinJeep.com, house instructional videos that Matt boasts as easy-to-follow, informative, and "without all the boring stuff."
The East Tennesse native is one of several other content creators that make up the BleepinJeep community. Other content creators are based in Oregon, Utah, Wisconsin, Connecticut, and Michigan.
As a self-made creator and virtual instructor, Matt has his fair share of favorite tools, as well as some "homemade" equipment he can't do without.
1. Central Machinery Horizontal/Vertical Metal Cutting Band Saw, No. 93762
"The horizontal bandsaw is great when cutting longer sections of tube and flat bar," Matt says. "It has a stop which saves a lot of time if you want to make many pieces of the same length."
2. Wilton Mechanics Vise 4", No. 744
"The table-mounted vice is like my third arm," says Matt, who uses the vice for anything from changing U-joints to holding a pipe.
3. Homemade welding table
"A heavy duty welding table changed the name of the game in my shop," Matt says. "I didn’t have to bend over and weld things on the floor anymore. Not only that but it's perfectly flat and I can tack weld pieces to it then grind them off later as needed."
4. Miller Electric Millermatic 211 MIG Welder
Welding and fabricating is the most common type of work in Matts' personal shop.
"The argon shielding gas mixed with the quality of Miller products can make almost any welder look good," Matt says.
5. Homemade pegboard and bin cabinet
To keep things organized in the shop, Matt created an 8' tall by 12' wide pegboard cabinet which opens up to another 8' by 12' section of pegboard, with 144 large storage bins and a couple of shelves for paint can storage.
6. Hypertherm Powermax45
Before purchasing a plasma cutter for his shop, Matt says he was limited to straight small cuts with an angle grinder, or imperfect cuts with an oxy torch. Now, he says, he can cut metal at any shape, at any length or thickness, with ease.
7. Ryobi 18V ONE+ Angle Grinder, No. P421
Matt has two angle grinders, one with a cutoff wheel for "quick short cuts, cutting off tack welds, and cutting tubing that is too long to go in the bandsaw" and one with a flap disk which removes bad welds and splatter.
8. Delta Disc Sander, No. 31-140
"The disk sander is something I didn’t know I needed until after purchasing it," Matt says. "Having one makes all the difference in the world when it comes to smoothing and beveling the edges of metal and tubing to get those perfect setups for the perfect weld."
9. Pro Tools Deluxe Model 105HD Manual Tube Bender
Although Matt says the tubing bender isn't much fun to use, without it it would make creating a roll cage or a bend in metal tubing impossible.
"I have several dies for 1.25", 1.5" and 1.75" tube," Matt says.
10. Medford Tools and Supply Inc. Syn 180 JR Tube Notcher
"The Syn Notcher makes quick work of eating through tubing to get those perfect fitments every time," Matt says.
