www.slashgear.com: Every DIYer knows the sinking feeling that comes when you uncover a problem you don't have the tools to handle. Missing a crucial tool can add hours of workaround effort to the job or perhaps even make for a more dangerous resolution that shouldn't really be attempted by anyone but an experienced tool user (and maybe not even them at times).
5 comments:
For a long time I didn’t know much about tools or have too much interest in them, but once I joined theatre and got involved in the technical end I began to have a need for them. I’m proud of what I’ve learned in the past two years and would love to learn more about tools, so that I can have the knowledge needed both as a scenic designer and an eventual home owner. I found this article quite educational, and it outlined some basic tools I should start with- a lot of them were cheaper than I expected which was great. I sent my brother a link to the Kobalt 6-inch Variable Speed Polisher for polishing cars, and would personally start out with the Craftsman V20 Random Orbit Sander or the Skil 15 Amp 7-1/4-inch Circular Saw. I appreciated their price and felt that they would be the most versatile when beginning my collection.
For the past 5 years of working on carpentry teams, I know that I have done some weird stuff with tools that weren't right for the job I was doing. There have been many times where I wished I owned the right tool for the job. I've slowly started building up a collection, but most of my tools are hand tools, not electric. To further my collection, I would probably purchase the Skil 15 Amp 7-1/4-inch Circular Saw and the Kobalt 302-Piece Metric and SAE Mechanics Tool Set. Circular saws are useful for so many projects, and I love that they are portable, unlike a miter saw. It's harder to cut straight lines with it, but taking the time to build a jig will help with that issue. The Mechanics Tool Set has so many little bits that I know will come in handy when I least expect them to, which is why I would purchase that item. In terms of drills, I would rather spend more money on a name brand drill that I know will last me a long time.
Multitools are, as I have found, so incredibly useful, and so satisfying to use. Although, I always thought they were mainly called Multimasters, perhaps that is a brand name, or a moment of niche genericization. It immediately piqued my interest when the first tool listed in the article was a Kobalt Multitool, with 16 different attachments! I was apparently ignorant to how multifaceted the multitool was, as I have only ever used one with the blade attachment. Come to find out, there are different styles of blade attachments, as well as sanding attachments. I was also surprised to learn that Kobalt was a Lowes in-house brand. I had heard of the brand before but didn't know anything about it, only to find out, via this article, that not only are they Lowes brand but apparently they're pretty cost effective. There were a number of products from Kobalt in this list, specifically, I really like the look of their trim router, and how light the tool says it is. I wish their products came with a battery and charger, but I suppose that’s kind of how the marketing for battery powered hand tools go. To some extent you kind of have to pick a brand and commit to that collection from there since their batteries are not compatible.
Articles like this are really dangerous for me! I started getting into tools when I bought my first car and committed to doing as much of my own work as possible, to avoid the expensive shop visits. That did mean that I almost immediately started keeping a mental inventory of tools I had and things to look for, especially on platforms like facebook marketplace and pawn shops where I could get expensive tools for steep discounts. Since then, and especially after working in scene shops, my addiction to having all the tools I could need has only gotten more pronounced, and I wish I was kidding when I say that storage for all my tools was a genuine concern when apartment hunting for my move to Pittsburgh!
That being said, in some instances, buying multiple new tools (such as outfitting a new or growing scene shop), being able to know the brands that will be cost-effective and reliable is incredibly beneficial,
All of that to say, I think for many applications and quick fixes, this list is great, but I would also tell anyone who was asking me about cheap tools for DIY projects to keep an eye on used markets. Not only can you often find better deals, it also helps prevent excessive amounts of waste. Often, tools who are used by those who care about them will outlast tools bought spontaneously for a single project.
As far as tool reviews go, I would say that this is one of the better written ones. There's a wide variety of tool brands presented, which is always a good sign that biases aren't playing too much of a part into the decisions being made. There also were few DeWalt tools presented, which is always a plus in my book. Lastly, I feel like the majority of these tools are actually things that would be useful to the average buyer for home improvement. I was particularly surprised by the mechanic tools set, as I was not expecting it to be available for les than $100 dollars and appreciated the description of how long it was going to be on sale. There were a couple tools which I felt were unnecessary to add to the list because their uses would have already been covered by another (like the several types of sander presented) but I acknowledge the need to pad out for length as well as the benefit of giving people options. All-in-all, definitely a quality tool review from Slashgear and I look forward to reading more of Daniel Feininger's work.
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