CMU School of Drama


Monday, February 10, 2020

Tool News Nirvana - February 09, 2020

Home Fixated: Valentine’s Day is upon us here at Home Fixated, which, to be honest, is one of our favorite holidays. “Well, how are tools related to Valentine’s Day?” you might ask. It’s because we really, really love tools here. Reading about them, talking about them, using them – these things really make our heart sing! You know what we love even more than tools and home improvement, though? Sharing those tools and those home improvement ideas with you.

3 comments:

DJ L. said...

While I have never seen the "Tool News Nirvana" articles from Home Fixated, I think I have found my new weekly read. The people over at Home Fixated have done a great job writing a short but informative article about some of the new tools to expect in the coming months. The tool that realty caught my eye was the new Hilti double cut metal shears. While I personally do not do a lot of work with sheet metal, there are a few trades that I think would love this tool. The biggest trade that I think could benefit from this tool is the HVAC industry. This tool seems perfect and reliable for cutting duct work and more. That being said, like any tool we use, I think the theater industry could steal this. Again, we don't work a lot with sheet metal, but when you do, you need the right tool for that job at that moment. For this reason, I think this tool would be a good addition for the Purnell Scene Shop.

Elliot Queale said...

As DJ mentioned, Home Fixated does a great job at getting to the point about new and upcoming tools. In this article, there are a few tools that could be great additions to our shop or any scene shop for that matter. First, the Milwaukee M18 Series portaband is such a useful tool for strike or just cutting stock down quickly. Additionally, the dual-trigger safety feature is a nice touch. Second we have the Dewalt Leaf Blower, which could be useful for blowing confetti or petal drops without compressed air. Next up is the Makita Rotary Hammer with a built in dust collector, which the article mentions is an invaluable safety feature, particularly when doing masonry work. Next up is the Hilte Hand Shear, which may not often come in handy in the shop but could for productions with a lot of sheet metal siding or roofing. And, as Ben Carter will tell you, Hilte is "THE BRAND" when it comes to power tools. Finally, the Dewalt tile cutting saw, which again may not find much use in our business but is worth knowing about. It is great to hear about what new developments are out there that can affect our industry or parallel ones.

Gabe Marchant said...

I have to agree with DJ and Elliot about the quality of this article. Home Fixated provides a quick read about the new tools coming out which is always interesting to keep up to date with. I specifically like how they do not make bold judgments about the tools, just providing basic information from the manufacturer about the new tool. Milwaukee and DeWalt have really made a good name for themselves with their constant eye on quality and consistent performance. The new portable band saw by Milwaukee may not stand apart from other portable band saws, the battery-powered nature is always a good selling point for people who are unsure if there will be a power source at the job site. I have always been skeptical about Makita because of its reputation. However, they seem to be focusing on some interesting features, like the integrated dust collection system. Finally, DeWalt's new tile saw that claims it can be used in a finished job site are a bold claim. The traditional problem with tile saws is the mess that they produce with the water required to cut tile.