We're mostly talking about hand tools, power tools, and garden tools in this article, but much of the same advice applies whether your tools of choice are kitchen knives, crafting tools, or whatever else. Store them well, keep them clean and well-maintained, and you won't be sorry.
5 comments:
This all seems very self-explanatory but it's easy to bypass and forget these important steps if you don't make them a part of your work routine. I think that inspecting your tools is especially important because it not only guarantees that they will remain in good shape (as long as you act upon any problems that you notice during your inspection), but it also puts the emphasis on keeping your tools safe, and discarding the ones that are no longer safe to use.
To be honest I am someone who forgets that I have to keep my tools clean and make sure they are working great until it is too late. These are pretty simple things to do to maintain your tools that just go unnoticed. Taking care of your tools should not be much of a challenge but most people do not think of it. Tool maintenance should be incorporated in everyones daily life to keep everything working smoothly.
This is a great article. Keeping good care of your tools is a must and it baffles me that so many people neglect this important step. Not only are poorly maintained tools inefficient but they can be dangerous. Cue Jon Wards talk about dull exacto blades being the most dangerous tool for design students. As a lighting designer lights are the tools of my craft(who knew?) and I can't stand working with fixtures that are poorly maintained because it becomes that much hard to achieve my design. In fact this is the reason why my best friend enjoys his job as a moving light service technician so much. He understands that an older mover with clean optics and fully functional parts can be more desirable then a newer fixture with a dusty lens and shaking gobo wheel.
I think these are all good tips but they really seem more suited for a homeowner type person than a professional. At least in the entertainment industry with most "tools" (winches and large equipment not included) we dont really have time to inspect and repair all of the time, and we try our best to keep everything clean but sometimes it just doesnt work out that way. I would also be interested to see a monetary comparison for a professional environment using these tips. Would it actually be cheaper to pay someone to clean and maintain simple tools or just buy a new one when the thing breaks?
Most of this stuff seems like a no brainer. Take care of your tools and they will take care of you! It is never a good situation to have a tool fail on you when you need it the most. I would argue that reliability is probably one of the most important attributes of any good tool. The best tools are still useless if they don't work properly!
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