I love tools. Frequently, a new project will result in a new acquisition.
“What I could make with that…”
Since moving to the new house we have obtained several new implements. These include a heavy-duty cart, an 18v electric weed-eater, an 18v drill, a shop light, a laser level, chalk line, a compression tool for the cable wiring, some pliers, a fan rake and a nail puller.
Put all in one list, it sounds like a lot. On the other hand, I find these things to be, mostly, indispensible.
My philosophy about buying tools is to rent (or do without) what I may need only once and reserve purchases for things that I will use again. I also go with as high a quality as I can afford, within reason. I’m not particularly brand-loyal though.
When I see Coby and he comes over for a project, he has a van full of tools. Many of them are older, some are passed down from his father.
I’m impressed by his technique. He can pull nails without damaging boards, he can cut cleanly through a 4×6 beam flipping once and making a second cut right through the first. He can pilot a hole for a screw to angle into the board below.
Among his drills and squares and fasteners and brackets, levels and saws he has two mechanical jacks. They must be 60 years old but amazingly powerful. I’ve never seen anything like them.
We used them to hold up the ridge of the shed while we replaced the rafters. I thought about their first owner and what they might have been used for.