Tim “The Toolman” Taylor isn’t the only guy that has a tool for everything. Everyone that does any DIY or work around the house should have a go-to set of tools that they need to get their jobs done. We do a lot of different projects and have had a lot of crappy tools that were cheap and it was very obvious that they were cheap. We’ve learned that it’s better to spend a little bit of money on certain tools to make sure you can get the job done right. So, here’s a list of the top five tools for everyone’s toolshed.
- Drill– If you are building things, a drill is your best friend. From drilling holes to screwing things together, a good drill is what you need. I used to have a crappy drill that I had gotten as a free gift from a catalog and it had no power and died quickly. Also, the drill bits were always breaking in the holes! It was cheap and I needed a new one. That’s why I got the Porter Cable 20v Max with a lithium battery. This drill has tons of power and the battery lasts for a long time. Plus, when the battery does die, it goes full power until it cuts off. Then you switch the batteries really quick and they charge fast. This drill is seriously a lifesaver.
- Hammer– This might seem dumb, but a good hammer makes a lot of difference. Before I met Morgan, basically the only hammering I did was to put nails in the wall to hang things. I didn’t do much building. I lived in a small apartment by myself and didn’t need much so all I had was a small hammer with a small head and little force behind it. After I met her and we started doing lots of projects, that hammer wasn’t cutting it. I went out and got a really solid Kobalt hammer with a fiberglass handle and it works great. You can get various weights of hammers that will aid you in betting more force behind each swing, but make sure it is something you can handle.
- Double-drive screwdriver– Morgan got me one of these for Christmas last year and I absolutely love it. The screwdriver is set up so that it the screwdriver will turn in the same direction as you move your hand back and forth. You no longer only have to only take a half turn of the screwdriver and then pivot your hand around and twist again. Now, you can screw in that screw each direction you turn your hand. It’s the coolest thing ever.
- Level– A level is a must for anyone that is doing home projects. Anything that is going to go on a wall needs to be measured with a level. Any sort of table you build is going to need to be measured with a level. For the wall, I bought a suction cup hanging laser level by Black and Decker. It works really well if you need to line up nails on the wall, but not as good if you’re trying to put up painter’s tape. The problem is that you can’t block the laser and the tape does that. Regardless, it’s very useful and crucial for projects at home.
- Work Station– A work station is essential to doing work at home. There are lots of options for purchasing work stations, but often times the best solution is to build one for your space. That’s what I did since I only have a small corner of our porch to work at. I custom built my work station from a wooden pallet that fit my needs. If you need a work station to do work on, you might as well build it yourself. I tell you, it is so much easier being able to saw, screw and nail things when they are at a proper height versus trying to do it on the ground.
(p.s.- look at all the crappy tools I had back when I built this table!)
Those are my favorite tools. There are lots of others and there are lots of options for each type of tool you need. The important thing is to make sure you have the right tools for the projects you are doing. Don’t try to improvise and risk messing up or hurting yourself. The thing I’ve learned is that it makes sense to buy a tool because if you use it once, you are likely to use it again.
What are your favorite tools?
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Hey there, I’m Sean, the woodworking enthusiast and builder behind CharlestonCrafted.com! Since 2012, I’ve been sharing the magic of turning raw materials into beautiful creations. I love teaching others the art and satisfaction of woodworking and DIY. I try to inspire fellow crafters to make something extraordinary out of nothing at all.