Husbands and Tools

The blog posted on Thursday without any copy. That's because I stopped writing after the title. I meant to save it as a draft, but blew it. I knew I needed to take a couple of pictures of my shop so you could understand I'm a man who takes his tools seriously. They have languished in disuse as of late due to my laziness and other priorities, but it is still nice to know they are there when needed.

Now when I need them it is usually for an emergency repair or a postponed project. In the summer the garden tools take priority. There is much trimming, digging and raking to be done.


And though I claim the worst yard in the neighborhood, that doesn't mean I don't enjoy working on it. Quite the opposite in fact; yard work is satisfying, rejuvenating and pleasant, in spite of humidity, sweat and mosquitoes.

Pictured here is my work bench with pegboard above for hanging often needed tools. This little nook sits directly below my fireplace in the living room. I learned this when we discovered the chimney chase was rotted and leaking. I found a puddle in my small shop the morning after a rain. Thankfully that is in the past.

If you are going to do any real carpentry around your place you need a skill saw, a table saw and if you can afford one, a cut-off saw. With these three saws you can do everything from cabinetry to sundecks. I also have a 3/4 horse router (used for making moldings and for the Formica work on my kitchen counters). I have 3 corded drills and 2 cordless, one of which now belongs to my wife.




During our extensive remodel she took to the smaller cordless and I was happy to give it to her. There's something sexy and cool about a girl that can use tools. When we were putting down our oak floors ( the real kind that you nail down with a floor nailer) she learned to use the cut-off saw. (After a lesson in safety and proper use) Her help was invaluable and very time saving as we moved from room to room over a mulit-week period.

She now makes fun of the people we see on the TEE VEE how-to shows who have not used power tools. The girl definitely has skills.

In addition, I purchased a set of Ryobi cordless tools that includes a small skill saw, a reciprocating saw (very useful in demo), a bigger cordless drill, a powerful flashlight and a dustbuster. The dustbuster hasn't proved that useful, but the rest have come in very handy on more than one occasion.

My collection of tools might be considered a bit of overkill, but remember I worked in the trades for many years. You build up a stock of speciality and backup tools after you've been doing it professionally.




This ancient looking tool belt is actually my third. I had one while I worked in commercial glazing that is long since gone; then the second one lasted till I started hanging garage doors and it died. This last one, which I wore at times with suspenders to help carry the 20 odd pounds of tools, is my last one. I still don it when going up on the roof or working from a ladder. It saves trips up and down, if you put the right tools in it to start off with.

So my fellow husbands, I don't know if you are handy or mechanically handicapped. Either way, if you own a home and don't want to wait for someone else to do maintenance around your place, you need to get the right tools to do the job.

The Daily Husband