Must have tools

[Pykie]

Interested in the thoughts of some of the FOG members.

There's a few tools out there brand to brand that are just must haves imo, such is their innovation/quality and time saving that sets them apart.

For example, I consider the domino, TS55, RO150 and the Mafell P1cc to fit in this category.

What tools other than Festool have you found to be irreplaceable and must haves? Can be portable or shop machinery.

 

[Stone Message]

This should become a popular thread...

I managed for years and years with ordinary planes, some bought second hand and some from Dad. Then when the Parf Dogs got going I invested in Veritas planes and my life at the bench changed over night. I have 3 low angle models - Jack, Smoothing and Block - and all are brilliant.

As a non commercial woodworker it is hard to justify any large machinery but I could not manage without the Jet JPT260 planer/thicknesser. It was not cheap but I believe it to be excellent value for money.

Over the last 7 years Axminster have really improved the quality of tools sold under their own brands (Axminster and UJK) and some of these are worth a mention. My Axminster bandsaw cuts architectural veneers beautifully true. I am just getting into their Centrotec ended drills and screw bits and these are very good too.

Measuring and marking is a vital area and I would not wish to be without my Incra Precision T Rule which I bought from The Woodworkers' Workshop in UK. I use engineers' squares in the workshop as it is so very hard to find a "woodworking" square that is accurate enough. Buying tape rules and steel rules is a bit of a lottery and it is best to establish one that you know is spot on and then take it with you when you buy any more. I have a Rabone Chesterman 600 mm steel rule which I know is accurate and I use it as my reference. I have recently received a sample of a new 610 mm steel rule from Axminster which is also spot on and has the advantage of left to right and centre outwards scales - ideal for getting drawer handles centred.

Although not in the aim of the OP can I just say how valuable the various tool shows and demo days are that we have access to in the UK (and I am sure that this is true for other countries as well). These are really well supported by the manufacturers and the suppliers and provide an invaluable opportunity to see tools in action. It really helps with the decision making process. Family run businesses like Lee Valley, D&M, Toolfest and Axminster (I know that there are many others equally as good) do a lot to help as well.

Peter

[I managed that without saying "Festool" at all. My stars are - Domino, Kapex, CT26, TS55, OF1400 - sorry !]

 

[AlexThePalex]

I find non of them irreplaceable. There's an alternative for everything, though some are less desirable than others.

 

[Roseland]

To Peter's list I'd add OF1010 with edging accessories, the MFT and MFS.

Andrew

 

[peterboy]

I had my TS55 stolen eighteen months ago, I went out the next day and bought another one.....life would a little too dull without one.

 

[jasen]

I have recently received a sample of a new 610 mm steel rule from Axminster which is also spot on and has the advantage of left to right and centre outwards scales - ideal for getting drawer handles centred.

Any ETA on this product Peter?

 

[charley1968]

For me that would be FT OF1400 and the Mafell KSS400. It's not that i use the router so often, but when i use it, the cuts always work out and it is always a joy to use. The KSS for its versatility.

 

[kevinculle]

Small example: the Incra rules with the 0.5mm slots allowing repeatable marking to 1/64" (0.4mm) - brilliant!

Big example: Byrd Shelix conversion heads with carbide inserts for jointers and planers...no more fussing with knife sharpening, setting, tweaking - just run after run of beautifully finished surfaces even with wild grains.

 

[clark_fork]

I find non of them irreplaceable. There's an alternative for everything, though some are less desirable than others.

Charles DE Gaulle famously said graveyards are full of indispensable men.  And so it is with my collection of obsolete tools. Some put the Domino at the top  of the list of "Must Have.." but I have dowel jigs, a biscuit jointer and even a ridiculous Jessem floating tenon crank driven tool. Currently I am rediscovering the Rietvelt Joint known also as the Cartesian Node, so I using new dowel methodology where I would formerly use a Domino. We learn early "progress not perfection" So it is with tools. Always be on the look out for the next best thing.  That is one reason I enjoy watching WP's OTT program.

I do have tools that earn my respect over time. Along with my Domino, I have a small square I seem to use everyday and a block plane that seems to find a use on every project. I am a throw back still depending on my table saw and I would never part with my Biesmeyer fence.

 

[Stone Message]

I have recently received a sample of a new 610 mm steel rule from Axminster which is also spot on and has the advantage of left to right and centre outwards scales - ideal for getting drawer handles centred.

Any ETA on this product Peter?

I just checked their web site and it is there but out of stock. Here is the link:
http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-precision-centre-finding-rule-ax962205

Peter

 

[jjowen]

I don't understand the premise of this discussion.

(If you are reading this Pookie, _all_ my tools are must-have  [cool])

 

[pettyconstruction]

Fien supercut

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

 

[gunnyr]

For me it is my Grandfathers claw hammer.  I use it on every project so that he lives on.

 

[JimD]

I'm redoing a bathroom at the moment and I'll be doing another project once this one is done.  I use a lot of my woodworking tools, often my Ryobi cordless drills, impact driver, reciprocating saw, multitool and brad driver.  But I recently got a Fein multitool and used it again today.  I needed to demo a 2x4 what had been nailed with 16 penny nails - and a lot of them - to roof rafters.  The reciprocating saw was not getting done so I put a carbide blade in the multimaster and had it out in a few minutes.  I would have been very frustrated if I had to finish without the Fein.  The same blade in my HF or Ryobi tool would have worked, I guess, but the Fein takes about half the time.  But I would be in trouble without a lot of my tools.  I've been cutting drywall with my DeWalt track saw (as well as wood).  I cut 2x4s on my CMS today.  Much easier to get a good 38 degree angle on them on it as opposed to using a skil saw.  The top plate for that wall was made out of a 2x6 ripped on the table saw.  Kind of fancy, I guess, for framing but it also easier than trying to do everything with a circular saw.

 

[Birdhunter]

The tools I touch most often are my Starrett combination square, my readers, and and sharp wooden pencil.

 

[Gr8trim4u]

A good tool belt that is comfortable and can be worn everyday.  One of my pet peeves is to have your basic tools on you at all times. When my guy asks to use my hammer they get the WTF look. They wonder off to put there hammer back in their belt. Basic tool belt on my jobsite is the following

Hammer, moulding flat bar, tape, 2 pencils 2.5 lead, Razor knife, Sharp chisels(3/4" and 1/2"), ability to carry spare nails, tapping block, note pad(paper or wood i don't care but have something to write on) Chalk line at least one for every 2 guys, low angle plane is optional i have one and most of my guys do also, nail sets(either spring loaded or standard), Rag, miscellaneous assortment of bits for impactoer(#1 #2 square drive, phillips and assortment of torx).

This is a minimum a lot of my guys have other items as do I.
MOst of the time when we are in a house working no one has to go to the trailer to get something.

 

[leer]

I'm likely the only one here to respond that my must have tool is my 40+ year old radial arm saw! 
It's an old Craftsman, built in the days when they were solidly built, like the DeWalts.  I keep it well maintained and align it every couple years if it seems to need it.  It was my first major power tool purchase -- bought in 1976.  It has been not been used to rip or miter for many years.  I keep its arm locked at 90.

I have a miter saw, but  when you need a huge crosscut (14+ inches) it is so nice to use.  I could move the fence behind the rear spacer and get a bit more crosscut capacity but at that point I'd just use my track saw. Another nice feature is cutting dados across the width on a long board.  You can slide a long board along the fence, and just pull the blade thru at each dado location.  It is very cumbersome to do that on a table saw.  (Obviously a router would be a good workaround, too, for dados.)

 

[WarnerConstCo.]

My 30" jointer and my straight line rip saw. 

 

[Holmz]

While not so much a tool, the lamello Invis seems to fit. I have not had a use yet, but I am keeping it in mind.

The zeta P2 does fit, and while a small domino is good, it is not the same and shines better for wood whereas the Zeta has an edge in sheet-work.

 

[Coliban]

Must have tools, ... "...such is their innovation/quality and time saving that sets them apart"

I have four extraordinary tools from festool which i find unique over all others:

1. the domino DF500 (or the xl)
2. the MFS 700
3. Systainer T-Loc
4. MFT/3

They allow me, as a hobbyist to do things for which i would otherwise need much more skills and time than i have (and which i don´t get from other brands):

The DF500 allows me to do joints, etc. in a fast and perfect manner, i could not do it without that in a reasonable time.
The MFS700 allows me to mortise cuts in a flexible and  accuracy i couldn't accomplish manually and gives the possibility to generate amounts of templates for cutting and mortising.
The T-Loc allows me to store, access and transport tools adequate and, in the first place, in a very flexible and time saving way i couldn´t manage with other storage systems.
The MFT/3 is a flexible, and at once sturdy base for work of all kind and i am happy that at least i´ve bought it last christmas

No other tools have, as i think, such an outstanding capability i would find at other brands. When it comes only to quality, of course Festool (or Mafell) are for me the first companys i would search for tools but to be true, there are, more or less, many others with similar performance. But Festool has, imo, a much broader system-wide concept so even if i might think there are other manufacturers, in the first place i would choose Festool because it would fit seamless together.