What could be more of a “guy thing” than tools?

Do you really enjoy spending time in the hardware store?  I mean reeeeeeally enjoy it? Can you jump in the car (assuming you live somewhere within reasonable driving distance of one) and go blow an afternoon looking at tools? Well,  I am guilty as charged your honor.  Do you know the difference between and XRP battery and a Nano? Do you care?

Well you are reading this post from a guy who absolutely loves tools of almost any sort.  Hand tools, power tools (especially cordless stuff), wood working tools, fix-it around the house tools, auto mechanics tools and tool boxes, tool attachments, special saw blades, screw drivers by the drawer full, all kinds of tools. Wrenches, taps, dies, screw drivers, cordless drills, drivers, saws, flashlights, calipers, clamps, soldering stuff, sanders, grinders, vises, hammers, levels, stud finders, you name it, I have some interest in it. 

Now most of the guys I know come in a couple of flavors, when it comes to tools.  Look in their tool boxes and you will see what I mean.  Is there stuff all from the same vendor (Craftsman, Snap-On, Mac, Stanley) or is it Heinz 57 Variety? A little of this and a little of that? The brand guy has gone out of his/her way to acquire a set of tools that are probably guaranteed until some time after the next ice age is over! Just bring them back and we will replace them.  OK, are they still in business, do they still have a store in the same state you live in?  I buy Sears Craftsman.  I don’t have a great deal of analysis on their quality or their engineering or their usability.  Actually I am too dumb to know much about the metallurgy of these tools, but what I do know is that they are guaranteed for ever as long as they stay in business.  Now I understand that that has become a shakier and shakier proposition, but until they turn out the lights, I can return my 3/8″ drive ratchet and get a new one even though I bought it 20+ years ago. So if it is a socket set or wrench, there is a high likely-hood that it is a Craftsman if it is in my garage.

Now if we are talking cordless, that is a different deal altogether.  I have been through Makita, Craftsman, Rigid (is that the best/worst name for a tool company ever), Black and Decker and all of the other brands and finally got a good deal on a 5 tool kit from Dewalt.  Whoa baby. Now there is a cordless tool set. I am not a fan of Dewalt’s NiCad technology but I have found a solution. Buy a couple of XRP batteries and use ‘em up.  When they finally go casters up, head over to Interstate Battery and have them replace the batteries inside the battery pack with lithium ion batteries,  and voila, more ma hours and it is about the same price as buying a new battery ($55.00). This is a sweet deal and solves the dilemma of $100 batteries.

 So if you really are nuts about tools, here are some of the drool items on my Sunday morning newspaper sales ads strafe. Sears ads for the large laser etched socket sizes for those with mature eyes.  Too cool for words.  I don’t have a set but they are definitely on my “watch list.” Sears has the entire set of every socket size they make, available and it is pretty cool! Do not pass up the Lowe’s and Home Depot ads either, they seldom have any deals but the comfort of your favorite easy chair is a great way to shop. Another general category is attachments for cordless drills and cordless drivers.  They make them with everything you can imagine as an attachment.  The area that is really lacking is hex driver based drills.  Nobody is making an industrial strength set of these for speed loaders or quick attachments or whatever lingo you use.

Well enough about what you got and who makes ‘em.

Let’s get practical, for around the house kind of projects you really need to assess what kinds of stuff you do, before you leave the house to make the purchase of a lifetime.  If you change you own oil and do you own maintenance on you vehicles you need to consider something a little better than some of these and some of those sockets and wrenches. I know they are expensive, “honey, think of all of the money I will save changing the oil on our cars” yeah really, give me a break.  I really hate to make a trip to the store just to buy tools for a project that should have taken 1 hour but took all weekend because they did not have a ratcheting box wrench on 9/16″.

So what have we learned?

Tools are cool.

Find a brand you like and keep buying it.

Cordless stuff is really fun stuff to own.

Don’t justify buying this stuff with some lame cost benefit analysis you learned in a business ethics course you audited because some hot chick you knew took the class.

Consider brands that are available for purchase in web stores and/or eBay.

Support your tool brand by rooting for your NASCAR driver that is sponsored by your fave tool maker. Not!