Tool Blog

There have been a few small portable table saws on the market over the years, but DeWALT started a whole new table saw class with their DW745 Compact Table Saw. Following shortly after DW, with a saw of their very own, Ridgid came out with the R4516 Compact Table Saw, though it's life was short lived. But now after a few years, it looks like the time for the Ridgid R4516 has come again.

The Specialty Tools and Fasteners Distributors Association trade show has just come to a completion and Marc from Homefixated was there to cover all of the latest tools news and after show parties. Marc discovered some really cool tools while making his rounds, one of them being the tool-less blade change Bosch Multi-X that I wrote about a couple of months ago.

Update: Website and additional photos added. Early next year Swanson Tools will be launching a new professional line of hand tools called Savage. Now I always figured Swanson tools were already for professionals, so I guess this new line of tools will be for more professional professionals, not just your everyday run of the mill professional.

The holidays are just around the corner and the sales have already started or will be starting soon, so I figured I better get a Black Friday and Christmas sale guide going now. Below are deals that stores are offering in alphabetical order by store. I will be updating this page as deals come and go, so be sure to check back. Update 11/23: Eagle America, Jet, Powermatic, Rockwell and Worx tool deals added.Update 11/17: Rockler Black Friday Ad added & Duluth offers added.Update 11/14: Duluth Trading sale extended. Details below.Update 11/11: Wood Werks...

Many of the clamps that we own and use are designed to remain parallel during the clamping process. The parallel faces on these clamps are great in ensuring that whatever we are clamping remains secure and square; but what if we want to clamp something that is not square, maybe a round closet rod, or a tapered chair leg?

I have always found that if your tools are easy to see, and each tool has its own place, then it is easier to spot a missing tool or one that is out of place. Not only does a system like this keep you better organized, but it many cases, it is more productive. Old sayings like "A place for everything and everything in its place" really do work.

A good roller stand is must-have for anyone working with long or wide materials, and while the Ridgid Flip Top stand doesn't exactly 'roll', it has a unique design and some great features that make it one of the best portable out-feed stands I have used. Because of the features offered in the Ridgid Flip Top Stand, it was an obvious choice to make it a Tool-Rank Pick.

It was a couple of years ago when I first wrote about the Veto Laptop bag, but somewhere down the road the bag was discontinued. Now Veto is back with two new versions of the laptop bag, and it looks like they made a few changes. From the outside, the bags look nearly identical to the regular Veto bags with slight changes to the handle and a now non-hook&loop shoulder strap that now uses a clip to stay in place. The Model LT bag is the smaller of the two and is pure laptop...

Every day it seems some new app comes out that makes smartphones even smarter. They are used to solve many problems people come across throughout the day, soon we will be able to add laser measuring to that list. A new smartphone app is being developed by Andrew Leyden called Phaser Tape that uses a separate laser module to deliver surprisingly accurate measurements. The app works by using the lasers from the module and the phone's built in camera to determine the correct distance. The Phaser Tape offers a measuring distance of between 30 - 50 feet...

At a time when most power tools are made outside of the U.S., and a time when jobs are hard to find, it is good news to hear that Milwaukee Electric Tool could be adding up to 103 new jobs to their research and development center in Brookfield, WI. It turns out this expansion is due to $1.5 million in economic development tax credits that MET is eligible for, as well as a $250,000 loan to improve the facility. Milwaukee Tool has already started on the remodeling and expansion needs at the facility, and some of the...