Here is my fantasy tool box list.

1.) circular saw
2.) miter table saw (Rigid makes a nice one for items like crown moulding)
3.) reciprocating saw
4.) drill (doubles as a screw driver with the right bits)
5.) table saw (much better than guiding a circular saw through plywood)
6.) hammer drill (concrete and brick baby)
7.) Drimmel
9.) ratchet set
10.) Dewalt drill bits
11.) powered hand sander
12.) Craftsman tool organizer
13.) the tool used to remove stripped screws (forgot the name)
14.) Shopvac
15.) organizer for finishings (nails, bolts, screws, nuts)
16.) ventilation fan (the kind that looks like an upside down whistle)
17.) router
18.) industrial shelving from Costco or Sam's Club to hold it all

There's more on the list but that about covers it.

It was the 2 broken screwdriver heads on Sunday that prompted this. Plus the nipping to the neighbour to borrow his electric saw. And big wrench previously.

Ooh! I forgot some things.

19.) Flashlight you wear on your head
That's perfect for doing overhead wiring or working with plumbing, or whenever you need booth hands free.
20.) Maglite torches
21.) Coping saw

The tool that I was thinking of is called the 'Gator Grip'. I've seen it on TV, so I'm not sure how good it will work in real life. You may want to stop off by Sears to see if they have something similar.

Also don't forget this....I forgot this on my list.

22.) C-clamps

EDIT!!!! (forgot these)

23.) Compressed air
24.) NAIL GUN!!! (wooohooo!)

Hi:

Good tools are wonderful.

On the hand tools the "Craftsman" brand from Sears [and now OSH] have been considered wonderful for years. They also have a no-questions asked lifetime warranty -- bring in the broken tool, walk out with a brand new one. [And this is even if you abuse it -- like using a 3 foot "cheater" piple on a 3/8" ratchet to break that rusted bolt]. However, Sears is a shadow of its former self.

On corded power tools, I use my father's worm drive "Skil" saws from the 40's & 50's. They still make them! Interestingly, same price too -- I guess the tooling is fully amortized [and perhaps exported to China, who knows]. Also, use the "Milwaukee" brand drills and "Sawzall" -- and that is still made and looks just like the old ones.

I've noticed that many carpenters tend to buy Hitachi power tools for the small drill motors, sanders, planers and stuff like that.

I don't own compressed air & nail gun. They are wonderful, especially for trim work. I still use a hammer.

A nail set -- many people don't have that in tool box
Wire cutters and strippers -- good ones are a blessing.

And don't forget the "Vise-grips"

On the wrench sets -- you will need both "english" and metric. I've never seen metric drill bit sets though.

I still use a hammer myself on trim work since I don't have a nail gun. I'd love one because I won't have to worry about the angle changing whilst hammering. Also it does a good job of countersinking because of the strength behind the compression. It would definitely be perfect for baseboards, chair railing, and of course crown moulding. I sure could have used it as it would have made the job A LOT quicker.

Girl you need to come to my house for a tool night....

I can show you my boxes and we can talk aviation...creaming myself at the thought...


IMO

Craftsman are rubbish, but if it's just for the house then no harm...


This is my tool inventory that is in my travel tool box for work (Really trying to entice Rushy back now!!)


But for house work you gotta have CORDLESS!! So what, get two batteries and don't forget to charge! and I'd definitely say DeWalt for any kinda cutting, sawing action, in fact just invest in a really good Dewalt combi table.



1 x 3/8" DRIVE SOCKET SET BI HEX
1 x 3/8" RATCHET, SNAP ON
3 x 3/8" EXTENTIONS, SNAP ON
4 x 3/8" LONG SOCKETS, SNAP ON
1 x 3/8" SPEED BRACE
1 x 3/8"- 9/32 TORQUE ADAPTER



1 x 1/4" DRIVE SOCKET SET BI HEX, SNAP ON
1 x 1/4" DRIVE SOCKET SET HEX
1 x 1/4" RATCHET, SNAP ON
5 x 1/4" EXTENTIONS, SNAP ON
4 x UNIVERSAL SOCKETS, SNAP ON
5 x VARIOUS SPLINED SOCKETS, SNAP ON



3 x RATCHET SPANNERS, SNAP ON
1 x SET COMBI SPANNERS 11/32 - 1"
6 x RING SPANNERS, SNAP ON
2 x COMBI SPANNERS, SNAP ON



2 x ADJUSTABLE SPANNERS, 6", 10"
1 x LARGE VICE GRIPS
1 x LOCKWIRE PLIERS
1 x LONG NOSE PLIERS
1 x FLAT NOSE PLIERS
1 x 'C' CLIP PLIERS
1 x SHORT NOSE PLIERS
1 x SIDE CUTTERS
1 x BENT NOSE PLIERS
1 x TIN SNIPS



5 x SCREWDRIVERS, VARIOUS
1 x NYLON MALLET & DRIFT
1 x HAMMER
1 x 3RD ARM, GRABBERS
1 x SET OF ALLEN KEYS
1 x SET OF TAPS, DIES
1 x DE BURRING SET
1 x SET OF FILES & KEY FILES


And then there's always the little home made tools which are the best

Hubby says Rigid has a good warranty. Home Depot has a brand of hand tools "Husky" I think that have a similar warranty to the Sears ones. He has all kinds of goodies that are never here when I need them, they are in his work van with him!

did not mean to include the previous post, sorry.

In general, I suggest staying away from low-end power tools. BritGuyTN gave a pretty good rundown of manufacturers. I don't have any specific brand loyalty, I try to find a good piece of equipment from a good company. So I have a Bosch jigsaw, Milwaukee Sawzall, Milwaukee cordless drill (carbide teeth in the chuck), Milwaukee circular saw (left-blade), Dewalt miter saw, Dewalt right-angle drill, Dewalt compressor, Dewalt random orbit sander, Hitachi nailguns, Hitachi router, Porter-Cable biscuit cutter, Porter-Cable belt sander. The only cordless things in there are the drills. I'm happy with all of these.

For woodworking, brad-point drill bits are much more useful than the standard bits you find everywhere. Woodcraft and Rockler are local sources for these. Lee Valley in Canada is an excellent online resource.

Here's your test on homemade tools ...

get a metal coater hanger... to the end attach a 3ft piece of
rubber covered cable..

and its used in a similar fashion to a fishing rod

Picking keys out of a drain in a lightning storm...

Holy hell girl! If it weren't for my boobs, dudes would think I was one of 'em. I'm sure the same of you, LOL. Aviation, tools, probably cars as well, and I bet you have the desire to sky dive too. Bitchin' WV, just bitchin!

Rigid has a lifetime warranty and their stuff seems to be good, a mate of mine swears by them


I bought a shop vac (shop vac brand) from lowes and when unboxing it felt a bit fisher price, lo and behold, within 30 mins I had snapped off a wheel - shite

i took it back and got a rigid shop vac which I am so far very impressed with

However, I personally dislike 1. 'own brand' items (unless its marks and sparks food) and 2. Home depot in general

the place is always a mess and the people mostly don;t have a clue. I also do to one or the other (90% lowes) maybe 4-5 times a week

I've been very pleased with the 18 volt set by bosch, and although I would not want to drill into concrete with it, with a spare battery I am pretty sure I could put a fence up

sometimes the drill is too big or heavy for smaller jobs and for that I bought a porter cable 14v drill from amazon of all places for $70, its remarkably good

although the craftman tools do have the warranty, I think sears just sub it out to whoever's cheapest, black and decker at the moment i think

i know a lot of people in the US have a hard-on for de walt, but I found the plastic to seem a bit fragile

actually, i found my amazone order

its only a 9.6 volt! but it works very well

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00005R1I1