TOOLS/HARDWARE

Look, Ma, one hand! These 10" Powerbuilt® wrenches have spring-loaded, self-adjusting jaws made to bite, hold and turn virtually anything--round, flat, hex or oddly shaped--that will fit. The jaws open to 2-3/8" apart and remain parallel. Designed so the jaws will generate 4X the clamping power of the ANSI pliers standard. Unlike you, its jaws have hardened steel teeth. Good to have a few in the garage, workshop and camper.

You say your ex locked your bike to a fence just to be cruel? We’ve been there. Worry no more. From Tolsen Tools, this 8" long bolt cutter with 2-1/2" teeth is compact and ready to slice through steel. Has a CRV steel blade and a steel-plated handle with a soft grip. Tolsen makes good stuff. After you free your bike, go find something else to cut.

Everything from Tolsen Tools is solid, and that includes this 8" long end cutting pincer tool with 1-3/16" jaws. It’s made of chrome vanadium steel, and you should get one for that reason alone. Not to mention the soft and grippy rubber-coated handles. Damn, we love quality tools.

Our thinner picker-upper, but with a powerful 5-lb-pull, 9/16" dia magnet on the business end (for spilled nails, the screw that rolled under the stove, or the heavy wrench you dropped into the sump). The 5/16" dia x 5-1/4" long 4-draw barrel extends to a full two feet. Has a convenient pocket clip.

There are plain ol’ planes and there’s the 42000 Plane from Tolsen Tools. This hand-held, steel-bodied wood plane has a carefully sharpened, adjustable blade that can be used for smoothing and removing soft or hard wood. Also has an anti-slip comfort PVC grip and knob. Blade is 1-3/4” wide x 3-1/8" long, and the whole shebang measures a compact 9-1/4” long. Though not numbered, we believe this is a No. 3 bench plane despite being a smidge longer than normal. Tolsen means quality, which sounds like an ad slogan, but it’s true. 

This 16-piece set of watchmaker's tools are just as handy for jewelry-makers, crafters, or anyone else working with small parts. The professional watch-repair kit Includes (2) tiny Phillips-head screwdrivers, (3) diminutive flat-heads, a case knife, non-magnetic tweezers, case wrench, metal/plastic watch hammer, link-pin remover, double-head pin pusher, (3) pin-punches, small needle-nose pliers, and a watchband holding block. Just changing bands and batteries? Get these tools to make it a lot easier, and order a brand-new pack of 30 popular-size button batteries-(6) AG1, (6) AG3, (6) AG4, (3) AG5, (3) AG12, and (6) AG13.

Silent movie star—came to a bad end. Also this 38-piece stubby handled driver and bit set in an easy-to-tote case. Forward, reverse and lock settings. Includes 3mm, 4mm, 4.5mm, 5mm, 6mm, 7mm slotted; #0, #1(2), #2(2), #3(2) Phillips; #0, #1(2), #2(2), #3(2) Pozi; T8, T10, T15, T20, T25, T30, T35, T40 torx; 3mm, 4mm, 5mm, 6mm hex; and #0, #1, #2, #3 square. Whole shebang in a 3.5" x 6.5"x 1.25" case. Get ratcheting.

This Stansport product is called the Finger-Tip Saw (although all you really need to cut off fingertips is a good garden pruner). This is actually a survival/hunter's wire saw, a 20" long, thin and sharp serrated wire with a 1-1/8" slip-ring at each end (for your fingertips). Coil it up and you can store it in a shirt pocket. Cuts "wood, plastic, bone, etc." and includes instructions for making a one-handed saw with a short tree branch.

Then better check your bore. This tiny bore light, made for looking into barrels or other tight spots, measures 3-1/4" long x approx 5/8” dia with a single white LED. Includes a slide on right-angle fiber-optic head and a pocket clip. Take off the head and it’s a nice mini flashlight. You add (1) “AAA” battery.

These 10" Tolsen Tools chrome-moly beauties are aviation snips, right-cutters with a compound action and 1-1/2” long fine saw-tooth cutting blades. Will cut up to 1.5mm cold-rolled steel, 1.8mm aluminum, or 1.0mm stainless steel. Coated handles and a blade lock. Our Whs manager John, uses them around the shop to cut steel banding cable on pallets. If they’re Tolsen, you know they’re tough.

See saw, buy saw. Then go on a camping trip and saw some firewood so you don’t freeze your tuchas off in the woods. This folding steel crosscut saw opens to 10-1/2" long with a 5” blade, but folds to a tote-able 6-1/4” long. Has an easy-grip contoured handle and a locking blade with teeth designed to cut through tree bark.

This 6” long wire stripper/crimping tool has (7) positions to strip wire between 10 and 22 AWG, with a 3/8” cutting edge, serrated ends and a lock. Also has plastic-coated handles. Pat says they’re better quality than your average pair.

This 3-piece set includes a 1-1/2" wide seam roller, an 8" plastic paper smoother (to chase air bubbles out) and a small utility knife with snap-off blades. Sold for applying borders, but it will work with any seams and air bubbles and cuts. You may still need one of those big wallpaper-paste brushes but we can't be expected to do everything for you, can we?

No idea where this trowel is from, actually, but we know you expect stupid puns, so we made it up. This is a basic, reliable flat trowel, no notches or grooves, in black plastic, 9-1/2" x 4" with a handle. Disposable if you know you’re not going to be needing it again, but also probably reusable, too. Marked PT-600 STR. EDGE if you're a trowel collector. Go smooth something out.

You might know these as “diagonal cutters,” which is what electricians sometimes call them because “wire cutters” is too easy. These are 6" long, nickel-plated high-carbon steel with dipped handles so you don’t electrocutionate yourself.

The Alligetter is a pick-up tool that works much better than "You come here often?" Sorry--joke. This pick-up tool is for getting stuff that's stuck in the garbage disposal, an alternative to having your fingers disposalated. Translucent white plastic with a gatorish head and 2-1/2" long serrated jaws, a white LED for lighting up the drain, and a clever little device to spread those rubber drain flaps, it folds for storage. Personally, we think it's way too alluring to stick down a drain, and its real future is with imaginative children and invented games. Consider buying some marbles or playing cards. Or mini dinosaurs… Please note, the included (4) AG-3 batteries are getting old, may be corroded and in need of replacing. Check out our battery assortment Button Cell Batteries for low-cost replacements. That's just the way surplus works sometimes.Update

This sturdy steel punch for leather goods has a coiled-steel spring, and (6) screw-in punches. Make 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, 4 and 5mm holes, even in heavy leather. 8-1/2" long OA.

The flying saucer meets the screwdriver in this compact driver set. The 2-7/8" dia x 1" thick gray-plastic case with a pocket clip holds #3 and #4 flathead, #2 and #3 Phillips, #1 and #2 pozi, and #2 and #3 hex bits, plus a 2-1/4" long driver. The driver fits into a port in the housing for leverage. At this price, they're perfect for replacement bits, glove compartment, desk drawer, etc. Do handle them carefully, because the cases break easily.